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Vintage Pierre
WMMR's Beloved Disc Jockey Robert is Honored With a Wine of His Own
Courier-Post
By Tara Nurin
July 27, 2008
Courier-Post
Throughout 26 years as arguably Philadelphia's most beloved and influential radio disc jockey, Pierre Robert has inarguably perfected the ability to appeal to listeners' sense of sound.
With his almost tushy-length hair, a brown beard that sprouts a well-placed front-and-center white patch and a lovable penchant for brightly colored tie-dyed shirts, the 52-year-old voice of rock station WMMR is also a pleasing and recognizable landmark for one's sense of sight.
And now, the charming, gregarious and silky-voiced man whose devotees treat him with the adulation of an A-list celebrity has launched a new experiment to seduce fans' third and fourth senses -- those of taste and smell.
He calls this experiment "Pierreno Grigio."
Robert's first venture into the world of personal branding is a wine, locally produced at Chaddsford Winery in Chester County, Pa.
"People have been encouraging me for a long time to put my brand out there a little bit more -- but I tend to think about these things and not act on them," recounted Robert. "Then the Chaddsford Winery came to me and said, "Would you like to do this?' and all of a sudden the opportunity to step out of this (radio) universe came to me and I said, "Yeah. Why not try this and see how it goes?' "
So Robert worked with Chaddsford's owners, Lee and Eric Miller, to develop a wine style he liked, and he designed the tie-dye label that prominently features his face and all of that hair.
After a few months of spirited discussions, Robert and the Millers settled on bottling the 2006 Pinot Grigio, one that Lee Miller describes as "light, clean and crisp with sort of a hazelnut, apricot flavor and a floral nose."
"It's fun, light and fruity for cocktails, parties and simple foods," she said. "We thought it would be a great thing going into the summer season."
Released in April, Pierreno Grigio is only scheduled for a limited run. The Millers produced just 300 cases and are selling them at the winery and their specialty retail shops, as well as at scattered restaurants in Center City and the surrounding Pennsylvania suburbs. That means curious wine drinkers from New Jersey must cross the bridge for a sample.
"We would love to sell in New Jersey," said Miller. "We have stores and restaurants that want it but we need a distributor in New Jersey and we don't have one."
But Jersey 'MMR listeners are targets for temptation. Robert pitches his product a few times a week during his weekday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. show, which reaches more than 119,000 listeners east of the Delaware River.
"Hey, have you heard about this wine? Pierreno Grigio!" he croons into the microphone from 'MMR's Bala Cynwyd studios one day before he leaves for a vacation back to his childhood home of Northern California. Robert's constant companion, a golden retriever named Lucy, lazily ignores him as he describes on-air the wine dinner he hosted the night before at Center City's Valanni.
"(We) had a great time, thanks to their chef down there, Evan Turney, and also to Chris, the manager, and Edward, who was our waiter, and to the nice folks who came out and had fun with us," Robert tells his listeners.
The June 25 event at Valanni was the last of seven wine dinners he hosted throughout the region to promote Pierreno Grigio. Before each dinner, Robert selected two listeners to join him at his table and invited his entire listener cadre to dine at tables nearby.
"This is a beautifully crafted wine. I stomped on the grapes myself," he joked with patrons at Valanni's bar, before moving on to buy another group a round of his namesake. To them he proclaimed, "It comes from Mount Olympus."
Despite the adulation Robert receives when he makes a public appearance, the hippie rock jock who's widely credited for helping rock bands like Bon Jovi and The Hooters break into the mainstream still remains deeply humble.
"It's a little embarrassing at times because I'm used to promoting the station -- (but) I've never promoted myself as a distinct entity before," he confessed. "At times I go, "Is this geeky? Is this silly?' But it's really been fun."
Fans seem to relish the opportunity to get a personal taste of Robert, even if that taste is only a glass of white liquid that bears his name.
"Those people that are aware of Pierre Robert that are fans get excited," said Valanni manager Megan Hackett. "From the other people we kind of get a "What? Huh?' "
"People seem to get a kick out of it," said local wine consultant Marnie Old. "One of the big battles winemakers face is trying to find a way for their wine to stick out and to remember it the next time they're in the store. And I'll tell you, there is nothing, nothing about Pierre Robert that is not memorable."
Though for some drinkers, Robert's memorable personality doesn't translate into memorable wine. "I didn't care for it so much," said Nick Piergrossi of Philadelphia, who chatted with Robert during one of his wine events. "I thought it lacked body, it was overly sweet and it just wasn't my style of wine."
But his girlfriend, Tiffany Gruzinski, also of Philadelphia, leveled a more positive assessment: "It's light, it's fresh and I love it."
And Hackett noted, "The owner really liked it. He asked me to pull a bottle for him to drink and he really liked it, as did the chef."
Or in other words, they might say that Pierreno Grigio is music to their mouths.
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A Popular Haunt Reinvents Itself
Metro
By Brittany Snyder
June 18th, 2008
Metro Point
After seven years of being one of Midtown Village’s favorite haunts,Valanni has just gone through $1 million
worth of renovations. And not to be outdone by the new digs, the restaurant has reinvented its menu. We talked
with owner George Anni about the recent transformation.
Why change when you had a good thing going?
"After seven years of success, it just seemed the most logical and exciting thing to double the size [and] expand
the bars. We added two rooms and we can accommodate private parties now. I had my original designers help me with the space, and I wanted to keep it where there were still four sections of the restaurant. Now people have a place to sit when they drink. We went from 13 to about 40 people at the bar."
How has the menu changed with the expansion?
"The menu has changed drastically. Aside from having a bar and lounge menu that runs with the dinner menu, we added a section of paella; it’s a great dish. And we’ve added a lot of little small dishes, especially for the summertime. We added a meat-and-cheese menu and the bar/lounge menu. We kept some of the signature dishes. And the foie gras burger has really taken off. We also added lamb meatballs and pork belly, but we still maintain our signature tapas and entrees. But the paella has been a winner. It’s really been a hit."
Do the customers seem happy with the changes?
"Oh yeah. We try to stick to our neighborhood roots; our neighborhood is what made us so successful. We also expanded from the overflow of people waiting at the bar at the mercato across the street, and added additional sidewalk seating. It’s good sight-seeing."
Can you think of something customers will miss?
"I can tell you what they won’t miss — not being able to get a seat at the bar. This was very strategic to come up with the way that this would make sense without killing the atmosphere or the ambiance. We also had a Sunday big brunch but could never accommodate all the people. Now we can, since it’s double the size."
Is there anything you decided to keep from the old Valanni?
"There was this big mirror that we had hanging that’s 10 foot by 10 foot. People really remembered that. They always said, 'Don’t get rid of that mirror.' So we relocated and reframed it. It was a little bit of a challenge but we did it."
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Mojito Olympics Round Up
Posted by Foobooz
June 18th, 2008
Foobooz
A few months ago I was asked if I would like to judge the Mojito Olympics at the Rum Bar. I of course jumped at the chance and it didn’t dawn on me that it could be anything but a great time until Rum Bar owner Adam Kanter handed me a sizeable stack of judging forms. There were five contestants representing Chick’s Cafe, G Lounge, Pinocchio’s in Media, Rum Bar and Valanni. With three events that meant sampling 15 mojitos. My lunch of a soft pretzel seemed woefully inadequate at this point.
Continued after the jump.
I was joined by judges, Chef of Lacroix, Matthew Levin, and WMMR’s Caseyboy. Levin brought wasabi peas which he had heard cut the effects of alcohol.
The event was sold out but that didn’t stop people from trying to get in, even offering double the $8 admission to enter. And the crowd was in to it, several even had homemade signs urging on their favorite bartender.
The first contest was fastest muddle and as the crowd chanted “muddle, muddle” Tony from G Lounge raced along completing 10 mojitos in just over 3 minutes. It seemed like a number that was going to be tough to beat but Vena from the Rum Bar, used her home bar advantage and two rum bottles to eclipse Tony and receive the first Gold Medal of the competition.
Fastest Muddle:
Vena (Rum Bar) -Gold
Tony (G Lounge) -Silver
Barbara (Valanni) -Bronze
By the time the second round began it was obvious that sipping was going to replace sampling and pawning off the drinks on an appreciative crowd was going to be a necessity if even a modicum of sobriety was going to be maintained through the third round. There was still some room for individuality in this round, Barbara’s rock sugar stirrers sealed first place for her.
Traditional:
Barbara (Valanni) -Gold
Vena (Rum Bar) -Silver
Bill (Pinocchio’s -Bronze
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Valanni, One of Philadelphia's Finest Bistros
Associated Content
By HX
May 17th, 2007
Associated Content
I admit, after a six-year courtship, I got neglectful. I forgot the little things that made the relationship special. The spontaneous encounters ceased, and the romance fell flat as I started to eye up the new hot thing on the block. I took Valanni for granted. I was extremely happy, but I thought that I was too young to settle down. So many new choices, new options...I couldn't commit. I started to run around with cheap BYOBs and sassy new franchises. Some hot times ensued, don't get me wrong, but often I was left empty, cold and alone with a lighter wallet. Why do we confuse familiarity and comfort with boredom? The morning I awoke with a terrible hangover, smelling of BBQ sauce with an Arby's napkin in my pocket, I knew that things had reached a breaking point. I admit it, I screwed up.
We'd been fixtures on the scene for years. Matt and Valanni, hand and fork, strolling down Spruce. Me at the bar, whiling away the hours with plates of calamari and glasses of wine. People always said what a handsome couple we made. Valanni stylishly coiffed in black and brick, me well fed and smiling. We were really something.
But men are stupid. I wanted to try new things, like Latin-German fusion, and Meso-Polish-vegan. Boy, did that all suck. You don't know what you've got till it's gone. The wanderlust faded, and I decided to beg Valanni to take me back.
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Valanni
Posted by Messy and Picky
Thursday, August 4th, 2005
Messy and Picky
This was the best restaurant meal either of us could remember having, from start to finish. The atmosphere is cozy, not super schmancy, and the price-to-value ratio is outstanding. From the second we tasted the bread with the basil and garlic-infused olive oil, we knew we had come to the right place.
We started off with the vegetarian tapas (12 dollars) and were overwhelmed with a platter filled with cheese, bruschetta, white beans with pesto, olives, cucumbers, carrots, goat cheese crustini, roasted red peppers, and more. The only part of our meal that wasn't fabulous were these weird pickly things, but they weren't bad either, just weird. By this time, Messy was already full and was not expecting much from her vegetarian-ized version of the pasta of the day. She was ecstatic to find out her ravioli with a million fresh vegetables was damn near the best thing she'd ever had. Picky went for a parmesan-encrusted rack of lamb on a bed of beans and sausages, and pronounced it oustanding as well.
For dessert, we shared the chocolate pot de creme with almond gelato, which was also incredible. Messy had her own individual French press of coffee and it was so good that Picky, an avowed hater of hot coffee, was able to enjoy it as well. All this, plus a glass of sangria, and our total tab was still in double digits. If you can afford it (and we can't, really), go there. Immediately. It won't let you down.
UPDATE: We've had a couple more excellent meals at Valanni (try the grilled romaine salad with chipotle dressing — yum!). However, even though the food is consistently good, Messy has had to lower her rating by half a star due to the lack of vegetarian choices on the menu. On each visit, Messy has ordered a vegetarianized version of the pasta of the day. The last time, it definitely tasted like fish sauce. The big vegetarian tapas dish we ordered on our first visit is, sadly, no longer on the menu. However, Valanni still remains our favorite fancy (but not too fancy) dinner place in all of Philly. [September 17, 2006]
Messy: 4 ½ stars
Picky: 5 stars
The final word: The best meal we've had in Philly!
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