Monday, January 20, 2014

Who is Edward Russell?

Who is Edward Russell? I don’t know, but I certainly want to find out.

The question arose yesterday when my daughter and I went to the Basha Library  to ­­­check out the latest “Friends of the Chandler Library”  50% off book sale.  My daughter found 24 hardcover children’s books for $14, ranging from Winnie the Pooh to Holes. These books build the foundation of her elementary classroom library as she finishes her education degree.

I didn’t plan to buy anything, that is, until I walked up to one shelving unit.  Here I should mention, that in the past month, I read Wine for Dummies and currently have downloaded the ebook, Vino Argentino: An Insider's Guide to the Wines and Wine Country of Argentina. Last November I traveled there sampling the food and wine from Buenos Aires to La Pampa to Mendoza.  After I returned home, I daydreamed about being part of the wine business.  After I retire, if my writing plans aren’t as fulfilling as I expect, why not consider learning about wines around the world?  Who doesn’t need a backup, backup plan?  This daydream inspired and carried me through the last few weeks though I had no intention to act upon the idea.

That is, until I saw the shelving unit.  There among the cast offs were books and books about wine.  Now the last thing I need is to store more books in my home. I already have collected more books than any person should.  But, like a moth to the flame, I was drawn. I picked up one book, then another. I looked at beautiful color photographs.  I analyzed dates and worn edges.  I flipped pages and reviewed tables of content. I was not familiar with the authors but judged my choices by year and content. I was smitten.



The books were marked at $3.00 each.  The lightest weighed about a pound, the heaviest at least five. Initially I chose three, then a total of four.  For $5.00, I had my hands full of the history of wine.

My selections were: Wines of California by Robert Lawrence Balzer,  Moët & Chandon, Impressions of France by Pietro Francesco Mele (printed in Italy by Graphicolor), Wines of North America by Bernard Moore, and The Great Book of Wine by Edita Lausanne.  I carried them to my car and, later, into my house.  I believed my weightlifting was done for the day.
In the afternoon, I opened the Wines of California book and noticed there was writing and drawing on the first page.  The drawing is a bunch of grapes hanging from a vine and below is written, as best I can decipher:

“Tendrils of California wine for my good friend, Ed Russell. 
Robert Lawrence Balzer, November 10, 1978.”



When I saw the signature, I had to check the front cover, and, yes, this book was signed by the author.  This merited some investigation.  So, I googled Balzer’s name. Turns out he was an influential wine writer (wine columnist for The Los Angeles Times from 1964 to 1995), educator (he led wine tours and taught wine classes into his 90s), and a champion of California wines. Balzer organized the New York Wine Tasting of 1973 which was a precursor to the matching of French and Californian wine at the Judgment of Paris. The Judgment of Paris was the basis for the film Bottleshock starring Alan Rickman.

I checked the front pages of the other books to see if there were any author signatures.  Property of Edward Russell was written on the inside cover of Wines of North America.

Who was Edward? Wine lover, friend of Robert Lawrence Balzer? Retiree, book donor to the library?  Someone to inspire me to read more about wine?

With a few simple clicks on my computer, I found Robert Lawrence Balzer.  With another few clicks, I discovered twelve people named Edward Russell in Arizona…one in Gilbert, Mesa, Sun Lakes and other cities farther away from Basha Library. 


Who is Edward Russell? I don’t know, but I hope to find out.

Sources: 
Information retrieved from 
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/15/dining/robert-lawrence-balzer-wine-writer-dies-at-99.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/15/dining/robert-lawrence-balzer-wine-writer-dies-at-99.html
http://www.csupomona.edu/~library/specialcollections/balzer/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Lawrence_Balzer

1 comment:

  1. How fascinating to find the note to Ed Russell. It sounds like you have to put on your detective hat and find out who he was. I bet there is some interesting history there. Keep us posted on what you find. Plus, on your wine discoveries! You are making me thirsty!

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