During the Democratic primary debate on Thursday, 2020 candidates were wielding the phrase “wine cave” like a sword to attack Mayor Pete Buttigieg for his high-dollar fundraiser with $900-bottle wine.
But while Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren exchanged jabs over who had fewer ties to billionaires, many Americans were probably relating to Amy Klobuchar, who broke up their spat by interjecting: “I have never even been to a wine cave. I have been to the wind cave in South Dakota, which I suggest you go to.”
So what is a wine cave?
A wine cave is an underground storage area for barrels of wine to age. Wine ages best underground because of the cool temperatures and high humidity. The structures have become very popular in California, but they have been around in the state since the 1860s.
Although a wine cave can just be a barren storage area for barrels of wine, some have morphed into top-dollar wine tasting areas and the perfect location for ritzy events. Buttigieg earned the scorn of Warren because his fundraiser, which was held in Napa, California, included more than a dozen wealthy donors and zero reporters to relay what promises the candidate was making.
Buttigieg’s fundraiser was held in a wine cave that had a chandelier made of 1,500 Swarovski crystals, featured $900 bottles of wine, and included a half-dozen Silicon Valley donors such as Netflix CEO and co-founder Reed Hastings.
Here are some photos of the Buttigieg fundraiser in Napa — with the famous wine cave and the chandelier with 1,500 Swarovski crystals — that @BrianSlodysko wrote about.https://t.co/0sprQ3aDsy pic.twitter.com/3waO6jO93L
— Teddy Schleifer (@teddyschleifer) December 16, 2019
Wine caves can vary in price. Buttigieg’s fundraiser may have been held in one of the more expensive locations in California, but some are much more accessible and provide additional revenue to cash-strapped farmers.
Here is a “wine cave,” every vineyard has one. Many/most use them for event spaces/part of their tasting rooms. It’s one of the ways for a farming community under enormous pressure to get by. So anyway, diss the fundraiser if you like, but leave wine caves alone. pic.twitter.com/HUHogRVpm3
— Clara Jeffery (@ClaraJeffery) December 20, 2019
As California Gov. Gavin Newsom explained after the debate, wine caves are “a point of pride” for many in the industry.
“It’s one of America’s great exports,” he explained. “It’s my business. It’s how I started.”
