Sunday New York Times Crossword – Toasting The New Year by Elizabeth C. Gorski

The other two gentlemen in the photo are Fred Piscop (left) and Brendan Emmett Quigley (right)

Wired magazine says the quote attributed to 100-Across (25-Across) is most likely apocryphal, but it’s still beautiful. Tony Long writes:

This much is true, though: He [25-Across] made an enormous contribution by developing the technique that finally produced a successful white wine from red wine grapes, something vintners had been trying to accomplish for years. That was a major step toward the development of modern champagne, probably the major step.

I am particularly amused by the Oscar Wilde zinger: “A poet can survive everything but a misprint.”

As I think of champagne, I recall this toast.

“Here’s champagne to our true friends, and true pain to our sham friends!”

Technorati: Elizabeth C. Gorski, NYT Crossword