On the Circuit: Fourth Capital Dinner

Sometimes, there’s a special magic in an evening out. Maybe it’s the dishes the host prepares or the special bottle of wine selected for the occasion. Often, however, the magical recipe that really makes the evening is the company kept and the stories told. Fourth Capital’s dinner with Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi was just such a night.

After a reception featuring hors d’oeuvres of Saint-André and southern peaches with Charpier’s Bakery brioche toasts, crawfish and cheddar hand pies, local melon, Clifty Farm country ham, and bubbles — ample Legras & Haas grand cru blanc de blancs — guests were invited into an intimate and tastefully decorated room for dinner. The menu included a three-course dinner, with each course beautifully paired with a wine from Burgess Cellars. The final wine of the evening was a 2009 Estate Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon library wine made by original winemaker, Bill Sorenson.

The highlight was a Q&A with Alexander Rossi, the winner of the 100th run of the Indianapolis 500, who graciously described his start in racing and how a 10th birthday party at a go-kart track led to a lifelong love of racing. What made the evening truly special was listening as Rossi described his win of the Indianapolis 500.

Alexander qualified 11th for the Indy 500 and set out with the goal of just finishing the race. During his run, he made the crucial pit stops but encountered delay after delay with each stop. After too many bad stops and issues, such as not being able to get the gas hose in the tank, his strategist, Bryan Herta, suggested they try a strange strategy: skipping a pit stop. To hear him tell it, at this point, he was so far back that trying anything was worth it. Everyone else would be making three more pit stops while he only made two. He agreed. At first, he was asked to keep his car going at 4.3 mpg. With 33 laps to go, however, his team delivered the news: He needed to keep the car going at 4.7 mpg. Doing the math, that would leave him running 199 out of 200 laps. He would run out of fuel one lap short.

Alexander persisted. He saw the white flag of the last lap, and he was in the lead. At the first turn, he felt the fuel pressure begin to drop. By the second turn, he felt the engine begin to cut out. It was at this point that he heard Herta yell over the radio, “Full throttle!” Alexander answered by taking the car to 205 mph. At the fourth and final turn, the tank was empty and the engine died. His heart pounded as he waited for someone to pass him, but luck was on his side that day as he passed the checkered flag in first place. Alexander was the first rookie to win the Indianapolis 500 since 2001.