It was good enough for Thomas Jefferson ...

We toured Monticello on a recent trip to Charlottesville. Down in TJ's cellar was a note about the kinds of wines that our third president enjoyed. He liked Madeira. He liked port.

He also liked North Carolina wine. REALLY liked it.

In fact, in 1817 Jefferson -- according to the Jefferson Encyclopedia -- "gave the state of North Carolina credit for producing 'the first specimen of an exquisite wine,' Scuppernong, and praised its 'fine aroma, and chrystalline transparence.' " It should also be noted that by 1826, "[w]ith the exception of a 'sufficient' quantity of Scuppernong, all the wines on hand in the Monticello cellar at the time of Jefferson's death came from southern France."

Not bad praise at all.

So why do wine snobs still look down their noses at the "sweet" wines?

Sweet wines - or "comfort wines," as this poster states -- are those "familiar, simple wines that are inseparably linked to fond memories, or places, or events. While they typically don’t receive rave reviews from wine critics and won’t be showcased in glossy periodicals, they do have merit."

Sounds fine to me.

More on Abe Lincoln, N.C. native(?)

When discussing more than a year ago the "Most Influential North Carolinians" we mentioned the (tenuous) idea that Abraham Lincoln was in fact born near Murphy, not in Kentucky.

Well, author John A. McKinsey has dived right into the speculation with "The Lincoln Secret," a novel.

“The Lincoln Secret” is a modern-day, mystery adventure that explores mysteries of Abraham Lincoln’s life and the Civil War. In particular, the book delves deeply into the theory that North Carolinian Abraham Enloe might be the real father of Abraham Lincoln [according to the Elizabeth City Daily Advance].

The core mystery in “The Lincoln Secret” is whether Abraham Lincoln’s father was really Thomas Lincoln. A documented version of history holds that Abraham Enloe impregnated Nancy Hanks, Abraham Lincoln’s mother, while she was working in Abraham Enloe’s household as a servant girl. She was sent back to Kentucky in disgrace where she secretly had the child after marrying Thomas Lincoln.

As the nation prepares to celebrate Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday, “The Lincoln” Secret probes into the topic of who Abraham Lincoln’s father really was and raises doubts about when he was really born. ...

“I tell the story of the Abraham Enloe theory though a modern-day, fictional story,” explains author John McKinsey. “It is a great medium to push the envelope of history and also to get people’s attention. But it has to be done respectfully and accurately. I think I struck the right balance in ‘The Lincoln Secret.’

“The more I explored the story of Abraham Enloe’s possible fathering of Abraham Lincoln, the more curious I became about why the story seems to be covered up and is clearly ignored by many historians. The idea that Lincoln’s parentage might have been covered up is what led to this mystery novel.”

Thoughts on this (some would say preposterous) idea?

(Image of book cover from Amazon.com)