September 8 WednesdayA day without wine ... is out of the question!<< Home
12- results found for June 2009 Showing page 1 of 2
Wine(s) of the Day (Do France! With a Great Bottle or Two)
Published 2009-06-30 10:53:48 | By Winex
Delas' 2007 Chateauneuf may be the 'buy' of the vintage... $29.99 (WA 92-94)
Robert Parker raves: The 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape is a blend of 70%
Grenache and 30% Syrah. It reveals a deep ruby/purple color in addition
to a gorgeous nose of black fruits, spring flowers, licorice, incense,
lavender, and grilled Provencal herbs. Dense, full-bodied, flamboyant,
and chewy, with that terrific freshness and purity that characterize
this great vintage in the south, it should drink well for 12-15+
years.
Delas 2007 Cotes du Rhone... $9.99 (WA 90)
Parker writes, "The amazing 2007 Cotes du
Rhone St.-Esprit (75% Syrah and 25% Grenache) reveals a northern Rhone
orientation, but it is loaded with spice and black fruits, and displays
a beautiful opulent texture as well as a gorgeous finish with
impressive purity. Chateauneuf du Pape has also benefited from the new
attention to detail and upgraded quality." Buy Now from Winex
Yawk! I told you guys to not tell anyone about these! Quick, where's me treasure chest? I'm cashing in doubloons to buy more.
Wine in the Future ... Yikes ... The Future is here!
Published 2009-06-30 09:39:05 | By The WIne Thief
When I was a kid, lots of us figured by the year 2009 we'd be living on the Moon, "Jetson" style. Unfortunately, it seems, mankind would rather spend it's resources waging war, then building cool robot maids and exploring the dark side of that big cheese ball. C'est la vie.
However some Swiss folks have not given up the dream and have come up with a "wine" that seems would be perfect for space travel... (well hiking actually, but we could take it on the flying saucer.)
Trek-n-eat has created a "powdered wine" to go with their line of freeze-dried foods.
Mountaineering gourmands no longer have to forgo a glass of red wine
after conquering a peak. Trek‘n Eat has now launched a new red wine in
the form of a powder. The beverage powder that comes in convenient
portions packed in pouches has an alcoholic content of 8,2%, which is
similar to a light bottled wine. A matching mulled wine has also been
developed for expeditions in snow and the cold – for celebrating the
special moment at night camp.-TreknEat
Available in Europe only. Dang, the cheeseburger in a can had me smacking my lips, and washed down with powdered wine? Yum.
Wine Drinkers have a lot of Gall ... NOT
Published 2009-06-26 08:57:35 | By The Wife Thief
Wine May Prevent Gallstones! Hooray!
First things first. What the hell is a gallstone? My gallbladder? Where is it?
What is it? And I don't remember asking for one. OK, here's the skinny.
The gallbladder hangs out with your liver. It's a little "bag" about 4
inches long, shaped like a avocado more or less. It’s job is to store “bile” AKA gall, which is then
released when fatty foods show up and helps digest them. (If it made a noise,
imagine the racket your local McDonalds would produce.) The bile stuff is produced in the liver,
pumped over to the gallbladder to await the arrival of French fries. In some folks, this bile concentrates so
much, that it crystallizes and creates “stones”, which in turn can clog the
system and ouch! Hurt like the devil. (source: Wikipedia)
Here’s the good news.“A new study holds that a glass or two of wine each day may help
prevent gallstone formation. The findings were presented in May at the
Digestive Disease Week 2009 conference in Chicago,
by Dr. Andrew Hart of the University
of East Anglia's
school of medicine (located in Norwich,
U.K.). The
study was conducted with cooperation from the gastroenterology division at the
university's hospital as well as the epidemiological department of CambridgeUniversity and the U.K.'s
National Institutes of Health. Hart and his colleagues found that drinking up
to two units of alcohol per day reduces the risk of developing gallstones by
one-third when compared to nondrinkers.”
Two units? Hope that's glasses, not barrels. I like wine, but that would be too much, even for me.
Wine Barrel Cuff Links? Say that again?
Published 2009-06-19 10:52:13 | By The Wine Thief & Friends
Just when I thought I'd seen the most ridiculous thing ever ... another
pops up! Hooray for mankind's ingenuity for creating superfluous crap! What are they? Cuff links with a scrap of a barrel stave glued to them. WOW! If, for some horrible reason, I had a shirt with cuffs and I had to wear the stuffy thing to a rich uncle's wake in order to collect my inheritance, I'd might pay ten bucks. SORRY Dude. Those little blingettes are going to cost you ... (drum roll)... One Hundred and Twenty Dollars, plus shipping, tax and handling.
To those of you, (and I mean that with intended singularity,) think you need these and it's a smart deal, my apologies for mocking your values, however you are a moron. No insult intended. Just stating a fact. For the same money you could pick up 5 cases of 2Buck or one awesome bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Your choice Einstein.
Wine barrel spats anyone? Just 299.00!
More Fathers Day Gift Ideas! Love you Pops!
Published 2009-06-18 00:00:00 | By The Wine Thief
Baby, baby. Someone has been putting the old meatball to work to come up with this one. The major leagues pay guys to play games that we'd play for just beer. So why should we pay by be robbed at every game we attend?
What is it? It's your own personal bartender disguised as a stadium cushion! Friggin brilliant. Just fill her up at home and stroll past security smiling, knowing you've just save serious bucks.
Is it any wonder that we made it to the Moon first? Rah! Rah! I say for American Ingenuity. (Made in China?)
Hmmm... warm beer? Just what is the temperature of your butt?
Phone Sales Nazis and Other Culture Fallout
Published 2009-06-17 09:56:01 | By The Wine Thief
(First published in the TWC Newsletter - 6/10/2009)
Wine
is fun, a pleasure to share and always an adventure when seeking out something
new. When you're on the hunt, you have a couple of regular choices. The larger retail four-wall wine sellers
which usually have an astounding the number of choices presented. It's
overwhelming for most of us and we can use a little need help making
decisions. Fortunately most of the "dedicated" wine stores have knowledgeable employees who can help
guide you to the right purchase and have you coming back for more.
That's fun, but for sure convenience I like buying on the web. Great wines,
great deals and I can do it sitting here in the "all-together". Try that at your local wine store and you'll have lots of new friends, with
guns and badges. But I digress. Next there are the "bev-marts"
and membership warehouses, where there's little help and you have to have
done your homework before loading up your cart.
THEN there are the wine Phone Sales Nazis. We'll call them PSN
for short. Sooner or later, if you're a business person who likes wine,
they
somehow get ahold of your number. A buddy of mine, owns a large
business, had his info out there to be "mined" by these PSN's and got a
call. He
told the woman he didn't drink wine, but HIS buddy did. Thus my
introduction
to a group that does all of their sales with these PSN's. I suspect
they are
trained them in "terror sales camps" hidden behind unassuming doors
in suburbia. Their techniques are like "water boarding" over the
phone. At first they're friendly, pumping you for information on your
wine buying habits. "You like red? Bordeaux? White? Sauvignon
Blanc? How much you like to spend on wine monthly?" Then
they ratchet it up. They have "secret" wine suppliers that get stuff
nobody else can. Straight from the most "prestigious" wineries in
wherever.
They name drop like crazy. "You know JeanLuc Pompidou of course. NO?
Well what kind of an idiot are you??" PSN's don't easily take
"no" for an answer. They have every little sales trick well practiced
to cajole, befriend and entice, all the while, metaphorically pouring
their
wine sales pitch on your face until you gag and buy something. These
are tough
folks.
The group behind my tormentor is well-known for selling "private"
labels of over-priced plonk to the unsuspecting wine enthusiast. Eventually you
figure it out, and let yourself out of this Wine Gitmo relationship by just
saying no, but it takes a little backbone and even perceived rudeness to escape
their attentions. Even then, six months later, expect a call, "Hi,
this is Sheila with MurkyWine Importers, how are you today? " My advice, just
hang up.
EDITORIAL FOLLOW UP
When you're immersed in the mini-culture you've planted yourself, the views and concerns of the next group down the road are often just out of sight and out of mind. This came to light when a thoughtful winery owner responded to my use of the term "Nazi". (Granted I'm no Letterman, but we both can ruffle feathers of those folks down the road.) The winery owner's complaint that using the word "Nazi" trivialized the evil it represents. I scratched my head and thought, "He has a point."
It's certainly a hot-button word and use of it should be thoughtfully considered. My response to him, and now others whom may have taken offense, is this. The use was meant for comic effect as in the "Soup Nazi" character of
Seinfeld fame, who was portrayed as a madman. I believe one can
diminish the "power" of monsters and tyrants by using them as examples
of excess and evil in a manner that belittles and reduces them to
powerless buffoons. The movie, "The Producers", did this to great
affect. Granted nasty phone solicitors are only lying about their
product, but that's were all little dictators begin. Finally, I assure you, as one who has walked
the grounds of Dachau and Buchenwald, the only way for me to leave
those places with your soul intact is to use a little dark humor
against the horror mankind can level upon itself. - The Wine Thief
A Little More Good News from the Resession
Published 2009-06-17 03:14:30 | By The Wine Thief
If you're in the Los Angeles area and it's Wednesday night and you've just enough cash to swing a decent dinner out, but no can do restaurant wine prices ... Good News. Most of Pasadena's finer restaurants are participating in a Free BYOW - No corkage fee program.
Uh fellas, leave the Two Buck at home and pony up at your fav wine store. You're still saving a sawbuck or two.
Winex Wine of the Day! Push Buttons, Get Wine! That Simple.
Published 2009-06-17 02:14:55 | By The Wine Thief
MOUNT EDEN 2006 CHARDONNAY SARATOGA CUVEE - $19.99
Great new price makes this the best $20
Chardonnay on the market! Simply put, this is the declassified juice
from Mt. Eden’s estate Chard, one of the best in the state. We had not
seen this bottling before but it is impressive, showing more like a
quality white Burgundy than your garden variety Chardonnay. Nice
citrus, hazelnut, spice and floral tones, refined, long finish, good
acidity, this is a classy effort and a sneaky good deal. BUY NOW from WINEX.COM
I'm going to party like it's 1999... oh. Opps. Just sounded good.
Father Day Gifts that might make Dad forget the Police Incident
Published 2009-06-17 00:00:00 | By The Wine Thief
Okay, it's that once a year opportunity to get right with your old man. Remember, he controls the family Will at this point, and well... nuff said.
Got a beer drinker? Here's a cool one. For two hundred bucks, the old man (and you) can sup down those cool little Heinie barrels that fit inside this mini-kegger. Imagine Dad's face, little tears forming. "Son, I don't know what to say." "It's cool, Dad. Wanna beer?"
Tennesee Drops Direct Wine Ban ( Oral Sex Next ?)
Published 2009-06-09 12:43:26 | By The Wine Thief
Governor Signs Wine Bill into Law Tennesseans can have wine shipped directly to their homes under a new law signed by Governor Phil Bredesen.
The law allows wineries that acquire a $300 license to ship up to three cases to Tennessee consumers per year. Tennessee was previously among 15 states that banned direct shipment of wine.
Bredesen
previously signed into a law another measure to allow Tennesseans to
buy up to five cases of wine at licensed out-of-state wineries and
bring them back home with them.
That law was designed to
overcome a recent federal appeals court opinion that found existing
rules designed to promote Tennessee wineries were unfair to competitors
from outside the state.
From "Dumblaws.com", in Tennessee, it's against the law to give or receive oral sex.
Oh man. Should I stay or should I leave this crazy state? I hate hard decisions.
