48 HOURS "The Usual Suspect" airs on Saturday, March 2, 2013 (10:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) An executive with Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. and president of the Corvette Memphis Club (CMC), Tina Caronna was a vibrant member of her community. Her disappearance in suburban Memphis on October 25, 2008 was a shock to all who knew her. After two days of searching, the missing-person case changed to a homicide when the 44-year-old’s body was found in the passenger side of her car. Her partially nude body was covered with beach towels, and duct tape was over her mouth.Tina’s social life had revolved around cars. She and her husband of 15 years, Joe, travelled often in their three corvettes to various CMC events. Tina met Joe in 1993. She was divorced, with a four-year-old son. Joe, also divorced, was managing a shoe store, where Tina, known for her collection of hundreds of shoes, was a regular. The couple married several months after they met. Joe soon became involved in finance as well - running his own company, Caronna Investments.
When Tina’s strangled body was discovered, Joe told friends and police he believed she may have been murdered in a gang-related car-jacking gone bad. The car-jacking theory, however, would immediately be called into question when it was revealed how, exactly, Tina’s body was found… thousands of dollars-worth of jewelry left on her body. Although he had always been a suspect in his wife’s murder, there seemed to be no motive for Joe, who was well-known for showering Tina with jewelry, flowers, and other gifts, to kill her. Searching for answers, eyes turned to a woman the Caronnas knew from church, Becky Black. Becky met Joe when she was in her mid-thirties, and as she explains to Maureen Maher, feeling unappreciated in a troubled marriage, she and Joe became involved in an extra-marital affair. And even after police questioned her, Becky continued to see Joe. But soon, her support turned to suspicion. Becky told her husband about the affair – and her concerns about Joe, which she now also shared with police. Seeing an opportunity, investigators convinced Becky to keep the pretense of the relationship going – and to meet Joe, in her car, in a parking lot.. wearing a wire.
Investigators also learned about a home the Caronnas were planning to buy. One week before the murder, after many delays, Tina believed the closing was finally going to happen. Prosecutors believe, with good reason, that Joe, did not want Tina, or the bank, looking into his finances—and that the closing was never going to happen. The reality was Joe did not even have an approved mortgage. What Tina would have noticed, say prosecutors, was that Joe had built a financial house of cards — instead of investing all of his clients’ money , his company was scamming people – including Tina, their closest friends --and even his mistress Becky Black. Over a period of eight years, investigators say Joe Caronna conned his so-called clients out of more than $780,000. But with no physical evidence placing Joe at the crime scene, would he ever be charged with Tina’s brutal death? Maureen Maher has the story.
HEIDI BARRETT - LA SIRENA WINES
Welcome to La Sirena, where our mission is to make wines of high integrity and purity that are simply delicious. I focus on the wines that I personally love best - Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Moscato Azul (our dry Muscat Canelli). Our flagship wine is our Cabernet Sauvignon, which is a beauty indeed. I have become famous for making this variety during a 30 year career making such wines as Screaming Eagle, Dalla Valle, Grace Family, and so many more. My philosophy is to make the best wines possible by blending modern technology with traditional winemaking. These are wines of high pedigree that are ultimately handcrafted - a magical blend of art and science. Simply put - an incredibly delicious bottle of wine. All the wines are finely balanced, flavorful, pure and elegant. At the end of the day, if I don’t love it, I don’t bottle it, and the results are in the glass! Heidi Peterson Barrett grew up in the Napa Valley in a winemaking family and was destined to become one of the world’s foremost winemakers. It is said that winemaking is a combination of science and art. With her father a scientist-winemaker and her mother an artist, it’s no surprise that Heidi’s natural born talents led her to the wine industry. With great enthusiasm, a love for what she does, and an abundance of experience, Heidi’s instinctive gift of integrating the art and science of winemaking is unparalleled.
During her High School years Heidi’s summers were spent in the vineyards and wineries diligently working every task from sorting vine cuttings to working on the bottling line. She continued her formal education in fermentation science at UC Davis. While at Davis she was an assistant to Dr. Ann Noble, developer of the aroma wheel. It was during a college internship at a large winery in Germany that Heidi learned the art of making balanced wines, no matter what the variety.
After graduating from U.C. Davis in 1980 with a B.S. degree in Fermentation Science, she went to work for Justin Meyer at Franciscan Vineyards and Silver Oak Cellars. In 1981, after subsequent crush jobs at Lindeman’s Wines in Australia and Rutherford Hill in Napa Valley, Heidi became assistant winemaker to Jerry Luper at Bouchaine Vineyards. In 1983, at age 25, she became winemaker at Buehler Vineyards. Wearing the title of winemaker for the first time, Heidi attracted critical acclaim by integrating her unique style of winemaking. Demand for the wines grew, allowing Buehler to more than triple their production to 20,000 cases.
This wide range of hands-on experience has given Heidi a distinctive approach to winemaking. “It is important to have diverse knowledge in all aspects of winemaking. You can’t just step in and be the winemaker unless you have adequate experience in the cellar and the vineyards. I wanted to make sure that when I finally had the title of winemaker, I had earned it.”
In 1988, she left Buehler to become an independent winemaker, consulting for a number of small wineries. Within a week she was hired by Gustav Dalle Valle at Dalle Valle Vineyards where she remained as winemaker until the spring of 1996. It was there she took her talents to the next level, creating wines of “cult” status. Her powerful yet elegant Cabernets from Dalle Valle Vineyards include the famous proprietary blend “Maya” which received perfect 100 point scores in two consecutive vintages ( ’92 and ’93) from Robert Parker and record-breaking bids at the Napa Valley Wine Auction. In 1992 she began making wine for Screaming Eagle, her most celebrated and, undoubtedly, her most successful project to date. The 1992 and 1997 vintages garnered another set of perfect 100’s from Parker. A 6-liter bottle of the ’92 Screaming Eagle set a world record for the highest price ever paid for a single bottle of wine at the 2000 Napa Valley Wine Auction selling for $500,000. A vertical offering sold for $650,000 at the 2001 NVWA. These coveted accolades coupled with her philosophy of winemaking have earned her such great respect from Robert Parker, Jr. that he tipped his hat by proclaiming her the “The First Lady of Wine” and TIME magazine dubbed her “The Wine Diva of Napa Valley”.
Heidi, who loves the ocean and especially SCUBA diving, began making wines under her own label, La Sirena, in 1994. “I was looking for a name for my wine which would be fun and magical. La Sirena, which means “the Mermaid” in Italian and Spanish is a lovely expression of my two great passions!” Heidi’s winemaking style lends itself so seamlessly to the Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, her proprietery Pirate TreasuRed blend, and dry Muscat Canelli (Moscato Azul) she hand-crafts for La Sirena. The La Sirena Cabernet Sauvignon follows the same winemaking style and blend that she made in the past for Screaming Eagle.
Since 1988 she has developed an impressive client list of ultra-premium wineries. In addition to her very own wines from La Sirena, she is currently the winemaker for Amuse Bouche, Paradigm, Lamborn, Kenzo Estate, Au Sommet, Vin Perdu, and Fantesca. Past winemaking clients include Screaming Eagle(14 years), Dalla Valle(8 years), Jones Family(12 years), Grace Family(6 years), Vineyard 29(6 years), David Arthur, Barbour Vineyards(15 years), Revana (10 years) and Showket(12 years).
As well as her winemaking talents, Heidi is an accomplished artist and helicopter pilot and lives in Calistoga with her husband, Bo (winemaker at Chateau Montelena) and their two daughters, Remi and Chelsea.
LARRY VAN AALST - SOMMELIERLARRY HOSTS A WEEKLY PROGRAM ON CRN AND ALSO IS AN EXPERT ON WINE WHO IS SOUGHT AFTER FOR EVENTS, TASTES AND MAJOR SOMMELIER EVENTS IN THE SAM FRANCISCO AREA. HE COMMENTS ON THE INDUSTRY AND HIS THOUGHTS ABOUT WINE.
STEVE EVANS - "THE MOVIE GUY"
GREAT MOVIES OPENING THIS WEEKEND AND BOX OFFICE PREDICTIONS AND HOPES. FIND OUT WHAT MOVIES ARE WORTH YOUR HARD EARNED MONEY. GET SET FOR THE WEEKEND.