Wine around the world

mick7's grievances with BC ID,
and a review of THE DEPARTED...FEEL IT FEEL IT!

That's what I call Costco.  If you live in a city and need a break from it, don't drive to the country and spend $50 bucks on gas - just go to Costco and spend $50 on a 10 gallon tub of peanut butter!  Spend just five minutes in the warehouse frenzy and you'll be itching to get back to the city where life is simpler :)  I drank my uneaten smoothie from this morning (frozen mixed berries, yogurt, and rice milk) and added some vanilla flavored Muscle Milk Light for some protein to prepare me for my "workout."  I knew that pushing an oversize cart full of beer would not be an easy task!

I have a Costco card because a friend lists me as her "domestic partner" so we just split the $40 charge between us.  I usually only go there for staples like laundry detergent and toilet paper, but when you're throwing a party for 60+ people, Costco comes in handy.  I should have taken a picture of our haul.  Five cases of beer, two bottles of wine, one magnum of champagne, chips, dips and cheese.  

Afterwards we went to WinCo (which is 100x worse than Costco) for cheap fruit, veggies, drink mixers, a pinata, and condoms to put in the pinata.  Quite the combo, no?

Emily and I went back to my house to set up the backyard a bit and to figure out what we need to do tomorrow before the party starts.  When that was done, we broke open one of the bottles of wine for some much needed relaxation after our outing.  I had one glass of chardonnay and it was rather tasty.  Here's Emily enjoying hers :)

The smoothie didn't quite tie me over until bedtime, so I had some raw goat cheese and crackers.  They are the Milton brand whole wheat variety.  (There's all of our mixers in the background - I'll take a picture of all of the food we bought tomorrow when I'm setting up.)

Ok...off to bed!  Tomorrow will be a loooong, drunken and debaucherous.  I better get a good nights sleep and load up on nutrients and water tomorrow to prepare for the damage.  This weekend will be alcohol filled as Chris and I have a wedding to go to on Saturday at a local vineyard.  I'm getting too old for this :)

 Yay! Himself and I drove to the Bay of Islands and took a nano-break in our Northern backyard so to speak and joined the few visitors brave enough to visit our country at this time of the year. Three nights and four days! We stayed in Paihia. No matter the wet and wintery weather, we played the tourist and imbibed our nation's heritage and cuisine. Of course, we checked out the cafes. We drove to a local vineyard near Kerikeri. We discovered a wonderfully crisp dry Sauvignon Blanc 2006 and a fruity Pinot Noir Rose. That made the trip worthwhile.  

In 1819 Samuel Marsden introduced winegrowing to New Zealand with the planting of over 100 different varieties of vine in Kerikeri, Northland.

"New Zealand promises to be very favourable to the vine as far as I can judge at present of the nature of the soil and climate"

he wrote. Nearly two hundred years later, the New Zealand wine industry is at an all time high, and is especially praised for it's Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir.\

It's fascinating to read the historically familiar names on the tombstones of the earliest settlers in the cemetery behind St Paul's Anglican Church in Paihia, the first church to be built in New Zealand, quote:

I actually forgot to take photos - I guess a case of being blase about familiar sights and taken-for-granted scenery. Anyway, we spent much of our time near the waterfront.

Late last night I returned from a five-day trip to Napa for a wine consultant conference (hard work but someone has to do it). Happily, in between workshops I was able to visit a few of the big houses: Mondavi, Cakebread, Rubicon Estate, Domaine Carneros. I love these places. They epitomize the elegance of California wine — except Domaine Carneros, which evokes the beautiful chateaux of Champagne. It's at Domaine Carneros where I feel perfect contentment, sitting on the terrace and absorbing the stunning views with a lovely glass of Le Reve (and caviar on a really good day). At Rubicon, they treat you like a movie star if you're a wine club member, which I am. My friends are always impressed, even before we get to the fantastic '04 Rubicon.

Okay, so what's with the castle? The newly opened Castello di Amorosa from Daryl Sattui, a few miles north of St. Helena, looks like more of a theme casino than a winery. According to the local guides, it has a moat and a drawbridge — and a torture chamber. What? Can someone please tell me how this fits into the Napa aesthetic? It looks like a beautiful place, but if the staff is wearing Midieval costumes, I'm out of there.

I had recently come across a new set of barn doors.  http://www.nicephotomag.com/the-latest/the-10-no-mod-barn-door-for-your-flash

Immediately after following on the link to B&H and ADORAMA, I quickly realised that I may have been the last man on the planet to know about this as it is completely out of stock.

I am in Bangkok, the Land of Smiling faces, and for all its charm and beauty, it lacks many essentials (read - photo related equipments).

So I find myself improvising a heck of a whole lot here... from snoot to gobos to bardoors.  I also found myself improvising on how I approach photography.

And that is a good thing.  See my photo of the wine glass... it is basically shot using available lights.

But once in a while when I see nice stuff like these relatively ineqpensive barndoors, I go gaga and turn into geek heaven.  Geek or Gik in Thai street slang means mistress by the way.

So here I am, yet again waiting, but waiting in pure nerdgasm state.

And by the way, I am going on another business trip... gotta make sure I am packed properly and I pay attention to my flight details.

Until next time...

----------------------

the Generic Asian

Varietal: Tempranillo / Garnacha
Vintage: 2003
Colour: Red
Style: Dry
Producer: Bodegas Berberana S.A.
Origin: Spain - Rioja
Classification: DOC
Alcohol Content: 13%
Bottle Size: 75cl
Price: €12.99
Purchase: FinestWine.com

Description:
Medium brick red wine with juicy raspberry fruit aromas following through on the palate. Smooth and creamy. A classic wine typical in style and character of a good Rioja.

Ageing Potential: 2-4 Years

Tasting Note:
The ripe red berry fruits and sweet vanilla are all very harmonious in this dry wine. Medium-bodied with a good grip of acidity. Long finish with nice oaky tones right on the end. Great value and drinking very well now.

Food Matches: Beef / Risottos / Goat Cheese / Venison

Source: http://www.wineonline.ie

90 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine cellar: "Bright straw with a very fine bead. Pungent, yeasty aromas of intense citrus zest and minerals. Silky, pure and focused, offering vibrant lime and tangerine flavors. Finishes with racy notes of wet stone and lime zest, and excellent length. An outstanding non-vintage bottling with striking vivacity and focus." (Nov/Dec 06) K&L's notes: Ruinart is one of Champagne's oldest houses, founded by Nicholas Ruinart in 1729, himself a descendent of Dom Thierry Ruinart, the other "Dom" responsible for so much of the early viticulture progress of the appellation. Only Gosset is older, but apparently it was Ruinart that was first to base his business on sparkling, rather than still Champagne. This blanc de blancs is made exclusively from Grand and Premier Cru Chardonnay, much of which is estate from the biggest land holder in all of Champagne- Ruinart's parent company LVMH. The feature that sets this stainless steel fermented wine apart from other Blanc de Blancs is the combination of grapes from both the cotes de blancs and the montagne de Reims, giving it a more rounded style. I find some chalky minerality in this Champagne, but also lychee fruit and texture. It seems sweeter than claimed dosage of 8 grams per liter. -Gary Westby K&L

Additional Information:

Varietal: White Wines

Country: France
When it comes to wine, France stands alone. No other country can beat it in terms of quality and diversity. And while many of its Region, Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne most obviously, produce wine as rare, as sought-after and nearly as expensive as gold, there are just as many obscurities and values to be had from little known appellations throughout the country. To learn everything there is to know about French wine would take a lifetime. To understand and appreciate French wine, one only has to begin tasting them.

Sub-Region: Champagne
The French region of Champagne (comprised of the towns of Rheims, Epernay, and Ay) was the first region in the world to make sparkling wine in any quantity. Today, the name of the region is synonymous with the finest of all sparkling wines, and winemaking traditions of Champagne have become role models for sparkling wine producers, worldwide. Surprisingly, the region of Champagne is now responsible for only one bottle in 12 of all sparkling wine produced. Styles of champagne range from the basic brut (often blends of several vintages), single vintage champagnes, and rose.

Price: $59.99

Purchase: FinestWine.com

Source: http://www.klwines.com

Country:	America
Region:	California
Category:	Rose Wines
Size:	75cl
Body:
ABV:	9.50%
Vintage:	2006
Price:	£6.49
Purchase:	FinestWine.com

Description:
Light fruity white zinfandel which blends fresh raspberry flavours with hints of watermelon

Source: http://www.drinksdirect.co.uk/acatalog/ej_gallo_white_zinfandel.html