Obi-Wan gestured to a nearby cantina. "This has to be the fifteenth we've passed."
"On this street," Anakin said. "If we stop for a drink in each one, we'll be drunk before we reach the bridge"
"With any luck...."
Four hours later, half drunk and near frozen, they entered the final cantina before the bridge. - From Labyrinth of Evil

Yes, it's true! Not only is there alcohol in that galaxy far, far away, but apparently, Jedi Knights can be guilty of consuming mass quantities.

But I ask you, what do Obi-Wan and Anakin like to get hopped up on?

Why, Viandante del Cielo, of course.

"What's that?" you ask.

Well, Viandante del Cielo is Italian for "Walker of the Sky." Get it? Francis Ford Coppola does.

I've always been interested in wine, but it was during my time in Italy that I got hooked on the stuff. While my palate runs more toward the taste of Tuscan grapes, a road trip last year to California's Napa Valley taught me to appreciate Californian wine. But I missed out on a key experience while I was up there: visiting Francis Ford Coppola's vineyard for a sweet glass of Jedi juice.

The Viandante del Cielo (pronounced "Vee-ahn-dahn-tay del Che-lo") comes in two varieties: Merlot (red wine) and Chardonnay (white wine) and is made from wine grapes from George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch. According to the Francis Ford Coppola Presents website:

Inland from the northern Pacific coastline and nestled between a small range of hills lies Lucas Valley and the vineyards of Skywalker Ranch. This area is renowned for having exceptionally long, cool growing conditions, which contribute to mature fruit, profuse aromas, and complex flavors.

How cool is that?

This tasty beverage, as Mace Windu might refer to it, played on a couple of my hobby interests. One is obviously my affection for wines, but the other is my interest in Italian-related Star Wars memorabilia. My Guerre Stellari collection began with the acquisition of a rare Star Wars comic from Hasbro's Italy branch back in about the year 2000. Then during my residence in Italy a few years ago, I stumbled into a Milan bookstore where I found the three original trilogy novelizations translated in a single volume. Later, author Craig Carey made a priceless gift for me of a trio of West End Games roleplaying books that included "Il Pianeta del Male," a.k.a. Domain of Evil, where ol' Halagad Ventor comes from.

So when I learned about the existence of Francis Ford Coppola's Viandante del Cielo, I had to have some. I'll be honest, I've drunk a lot of wine, but all those hoity-toity aromatic descriptions of "smoked vanilla" and "chocolate with a touch of tangerine" still puzzle me. What I know is that when it comes to wines, I like reds best, and pay attention to taste, with a preference for a strong, almost meaty quality. And my favorites are naturally the Tuscans, especially Chianti and above all Brunello di Montalcino. But as one wine connoisseur buddy of mine once suggested, a good chunk of the enjoyment of wine is psychological, even spiritual: drinking yourself silly with Two-Buck-Chuck at home in the company of old friends can be just as memorable as sharing a decanted bottle of Bordeaux in France.

In any case, when I heard about the Meet & Greet the StarWars.com bloggers were putting together for Celebration IV, I knew the perfect opportunity to try that classic Skywalker whine had come at last!

I ordered a couple of bottles of the 2004 Merlot and took em with me to L.A. the first day of C4. Later that night, I headed to the Liberty Grille where everyone was meeting, across from the Los Angeles Convention Center, and in one of the coolest Star Wars moments I will surely ever experience, I got to share Skywalker wine with a good dozen Star Wars fans and creators at the party, laughing, clinking glasses, sharing stories, cork inspecting, celebrating 30 years of the saga, and creating memories.

The moment of truth, of course, was after we'd sucked the bottles dry. Sad thoughts of my incomplete Italian Star Wars collection danced in my head, but in the end I decided to part with my two 750 ml trophies and offer them up to my fellow Jedi juicers. Bob Vitas and John "jSarek" Hazlett were quickest on the draw.

I've ::sniff:: already got a few wine keepsakes at home, anyway.

So is the Viandante del Cielo worth almost $50 bucks a pop? I leave that judgement to your discerning taste buds. But personally, I'll definitely be ordering this one-two punch of Merlot and Chardonnay in the near future. And who knows? If there's a Celebration V, I just may show up again with a couple of Skywalkers in tow. ~ Abel G. Peña

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