That tobacco note in your wine

If you're like me, you're amused by wine descriptions like " ...tangy flavors of pineapple, peach, charred oak, butterscotch and a tobacco note ...". But, at least in the case of wines from Chateau Ste. Michelle, that tobacco note may be too real to be amusing. 

I thought I remembered the URL for the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, so I typed http://www.pmmc.org/. To my surprise, I arrived at the home page of the Philip Morris Capital Corporation (PMMC). To my further surprise, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates is, like PMMC, wholly-owned subsidiary of Altria Group. Chateau Ste. Michelle makes some excellent wines, and Philip Morris probably makes some great cancer causing tobacco products (I wouldn't know), but these big companies being such cozy bed-partners makes me want to put my glass of Riesling down for at least a moment to let the smoke clear.

For a breather, check out the real website of the Pacific Marine Mammal Center at http://www.pacificmmc.org/.