Twenty-eightIt had been Sir John’s idea to call together as many of San Francisco’s newspapermen as he could and mount a publicity offensive to convert readers to their cause.
The circle of correspondents gathered around the octagonal picnic table near the top of Pavilion Hill in Woodward Gardens showed that Aristide Laurent’s notoriety, coupled with d’Oro’s challenge to the wine establishment, was a hot story, particularly with the prestigious Golden Gate competition looming.
Sir John’s hasty invitations to come and hear what he had to say had drawn an impressive response. There was the beefy wine columnist from the Chronicle, his red cheeks advertising excessive consumption of the sponsor’s product. The Chronicle was one of the leading papers in Newspaper Row, the newsprint cluster at
