You know me as an amateur wino, but my day job consists of managing the communications and marketing efforts at a premier Miami art museum (Pérez Art Museum Miami to be exact, PAMM for short).  This week, a member of our “PAMMily”, Katherine O., is saying goodbye to this chapter in her life and is moving on to another opportunity.

Even though we’re going to miss her, we can’t help but celebrate her success. And as any PAMMily member knows, success is celebrated at The Corner. A tiny but vibrant bar, The Corner is a hip and cultured meeting place for downtown Miami inhabitants.

The happy hour is exceptional, $3 beers and $5 wells, but I of course felt like wine. I ordered a bottle of Graham Beck Brut, which came in at $30 (I found it online for about $15). It’s from South Africa and uses pinot noir and chardonnay grapes. Both varietals were hand-picked: Chardonnay at 18-19.5°B for fruit and elegance and Pinot Noir at 18.5-20°B for complexity and length of flavor. In the cellar, whole bunch pressing ensures fractional recovery. After settling of the juice, the two varieties are fermented separately. They are then cross-blended along with reserve wine if necessary, bottled and left for 15 to 18 months yeast contact time before disgorgement.

The wine has a pale yellow hue and plenty of bubbles. It has a light aroma, but packs fresh and crisp lemony citrus fruit punch with nice acidity and minerality. It was the perfect drink for a celebration. I give it 3.5/5. I paired it with a The Corner staple – pan con tomate with serrano ham and manchego cheese – along with good times and laughter.

Cheers to you, KO!