The Wine Commonsewer™

One More From The Road: Got The Green Light, Baby, Gotta Keep Movin' On

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

It probably isn't news that Billy Powell shoulda kept that appointment with his cardiologist earlier this week. Too bad, because fifty six is way too young to punch the clock.

The Fire Station was never a fire station. Long past its prime, the fifty-something clientele couldn't bear yet another evening alone with Donna Reed reruns. If you got lucky, it was conveniently adjacent to the dilapidated Fire Station Motel. Pretty sure they kept the rusty hook-and-ladder truck when it shed the cocoon and morphed into DJ's, an innovative, cutting edge discotheque, pulsating with energy.

Steve (not Stevie the Spy) raved that DJ's was the coolest place in the OC. (I swear, we never, ever called it that.) Except he couldn't talk any of the hot chiquitas  into dancing with him. I had a grudge against Disco, which had pounded coffin nails into the live band scene, but it intrigued me that no chicks would dance with Steve. With that incentive, I let him drag me off one foggy Saturday night.

As we shuffled past the bouncer he handed me a business card good for a free drink. We found a table, called for a beer, and as my eyes adjusted I noticed something peculiar. Took a quick look at the free drink card and then reached over to slap Steve upside the head. The card read.....

DJ's

Gay All The Way

Long way around the barn to say that John Travolta's mechanical bull Disco'd DJ's almost overnight. They junked the fire truck, ash canned the disco ball, tossed sawdust on the floors, and hired a Southern Fried Hockey Boogie band. The piano player put you in the mind of Lynyrd Skynyrd's Billy Powell with a bowler hat.

I love a good boogie piano and Billy Powell was as good as anybody, except maybe the Killer. This performance was for BBC in 1975. If I had energy I would have turned Billy's sizzling piano solo into a clip (picks up at about 2:40).

Rest in peace, man.

As Ever,

TWC

Tip of the glass to JC Bowman

Resveratrol: Fountain of Youth in a Wine Bottle?

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Sunday night's 60 Minutes aired a segment on Resvaritrol, the remarkable substance in red wine that seems to account for the French Paradox.

The French Paradox first came to light nearly three decades ago after serious research into coronary heart disease revealed that while the French diet will give any food fascist apoplexy, and they've got the per capita record for annual wine consumption, inexplicably, the French have far healthier tickers than  their American counterparts.

Although no definitive studies support TWC's thesis, I sometimes wonder if it could also be that there is a difference between eating Chateaubriand with Bearnaise sauce and chasing pork rinds with Code Red. And don't even get me started on that ghastly, repugnant, yet altogether ubiquitous nacho cheese sauce.....

Although the future seems bright for the wonder compound, red wine for health is a bit more nuanced. Much of the heralded cardiovascular benefits of red wine comes from the alcohol and the flavonoids, of which the revered resveratrol is the most prominent.

Moderate consumption of alcohol, any alcohol, decreases coronary heart disease by as much as forty percent while the flavanoids found in red wine act as powerful antioxidants, perhaps adding years of healthy lifespan. Red wine also bumps levels  of good cholesterol and is certainly beneficial in regulating blood sugar, a boon to diabetics, many of whom see the onset of the disease later in life. 

For those of you paying attention, you'll notice we're not talking about white wine (toldja--Lips that touch white....). That's because the ratio of goodies found in white compared to red is lagging. The effective score is:

Red: 180

White: 9

It ain't personal. As is the case with most fruits and vegetables, most of the bennies are found in the skins of the grapes, which are left in the must with the juice that will ultimately become red wine.

Red wine also contains large concentrations of folic acid, potassium, and magnesium, all of which are important to circulatory health. Best of all, that pleasant little flush you feel about three sips into the second glass? That is the release of serotonin from your blood platelets. Kinda takes the edge off a less-than-stellar day.

And the starvation diet that we've been told is counter productive? Seems there may be something to that after all. Pop accidentally bought into that about 20 years ago. Today, at 80 years of age, he's six feet tall and weighs about 130 pounds. Looks like he survived Dachau but he's in great health. No red wine, though I believe he takes communion with The Reverend Jack of Tennessee each evening.

If all of this magic pans out, the miracle of resveratrol may have us dancing into our tenth decade on the planet. In the meantime there's Cabernet. Have a glass (or two) for your health!

The Wine Commonsewer on red wine and longevity here and red wine and diabetes here. Transcript of the show is here.

As Ever,

The Wine Commonsewer

Tip of the glass to Del Mar Dave. TWC equates TV with Opiates and would have missed the show entirely had it not been for Mr Dave. Thanks.

Never Again

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Today marks the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by the Soviet Army. The one (count em) deed that may keep some Rooskies from burning in hell for eternity.

There is a reason why the Israelis don't take a dime's worth of crap from anybody. It's because history has made it pretty clear about what happens to unarmed Jews.

I was here (at Auschwitz) naked as a young girl. I was 16. I am Israeli, I have a country, I have a flag. I have a president.-Merka Shevach

A day in the life of an Israeli (female) soldier here.

Shalom.

As Ever,

TWC

All The Leaves Are Brown, But The Sky Ain't Gray

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Harford Springs was once a working cattle ranch. Now it's a county wilderness park. Several hundred acres of land, as it was, open to hikers and horses. No OHV's, thank God for small favors. Took the kids for a three hour hike a couple of weeks ago on a chilly Sunday morning. Took a nap Sunday afternoon.

The county doesn't care for it like they should and seriously bungled by paving a road through the most beautiful part of it, violating the terms of the gift. Now the trust is threatening to revoke the deed, a condition of which was, no roads. Duh.

The solution? Force a developer with no connection to the road or the park to move the road as a condition of granting a permit to develop the plateau  where the orange trees used to grow. Of course, that's a moot point in today's market. After seven years of running the permit process gauntlet, the market has turned and there'll not be any development. I guess they call that slow growth.

The lesson here is don't give stuff to the government.  The Nature Conservancy woulda been a better bet.  

More pictures here.

Bonus.

As Ever,

TWC

Saguaro Skeleton

This is Will's prized Saguaro skeleton at sunset. The view is roughly toward the observatory at Kitt Peak.

Tucson Az--June 2008

Two Buck Chuck Terminated (With Prejudice)

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Governor Schwarzzengroper isn't groping for much of anything these days except money. Tax money. Rather than face the truth, that Californicate now spends double what it did ten years ago and forty percent more than when Arnold took office, the Governator has done two things. Gone groveling to DC for a bailout and proposed massive new taxes, one of which is an increase in California's wine tax from four cents a bottle to nearly thirty cents a bottle.

That's not a deal killer for the guys buying California's cult wines but it will be enough to spell the demise of Two Buck Chuck. As you would expect, putting a  bottle of wine on retail shelves at $1.99 translates into razor thin margins. CEO Fred Franzia reiterates.....

It's like shooting Charles Shaw in the eye. The profit margin is already so low we will have to raise the price.

And, Gentle Readers, if Charles Shaw wine costs $2.49, it ain't Two Buck Chuck no more, no how. OTOH, my pop still calls a quarter two bits, so maybe the moniker will stick.

Course, it's all moot anyway, Between GWB and Barry and all their stimulatin' we'll all be fondly reminiscing about Ten Buck Chuck (and remember when popcorn was only seventeen bucks a box?). 

As Ever,

TWC

For the record, the wine tax is an excise tax that is paid at the producer or distributor level and then rolled into the final retail price, which is then subject to sales taxes.

Note: In some states Two Buck Chuck is Three Buck Chuck.

LA Times has the whole story here.

Tip of the glass to Mrs TWC

Scottish DUI Test

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

This DUI test is far less intrusive and provides a significant reduction in the per-test cost to administer compared to traditional breathalyzer or blood tests used to determine BAC.


As Ever,

TWC

2008 Personal Income Tax Organizer

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Got so tied up with year end stuff I forgot to put up the Tax Organizer. This handy little device is just the ticket to help you get your tax stuff together.

I make it freely available to clients, friends, Gentle Readers, relatives, fans, rounders,  and those who curse my mother for turning me loose on the world (a certain blond chick in The OC comes to mind).

The Tax Organizer is about a 450kb download and you must have Adobe Reader to open it. Most computers come out of the box with Adobe Reader but if you happen to need it you can download it for free here.

I did not make it a fill-in form that you can complete on your computer because nobody ever used the function when I did (and it is a huge pain to make it look good and work right).

Tax People: I'd appreciate it if you didn't put your name on it and pretend it was  your creation. That happened to my buddy Ty recently. Some schmoe totally ripped off his hard work, scratched out Ty's name, wrote his own name in with a crayon, and posted it on his website as original. That's just wrong. I don't get it, neither.

Actually, if you're looking to re-fi, go see Ty ♬ ♪ (that rhymes, man). If anyone can get you a decent mortgage it would be Ty.

Terms of Use: I retain all rights, but you can DL it for personal use.

As Ever,

The WC

A June Wedding

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Long time Gentle Reader, full time actual wine connoisseur, and good friend, the Ink Stained Scribe has pledged his troth to his beloved Cara. Or is it the other way around? Maybe the girl is the betrothed and pledges her troth to the guy. Or something. The plan is for a lovely June wedding in gorgeous Colorado.

Congratulations Rick and Cara.

As Ever,

TWC

2003 Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon (Bonus: Cork Seepage 101)

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

As a yoot with little sense and less money it still seemed readily apparent that The McKooze was off track with his penchant for wining and dining the ladies on the first date. Bought him several books, but all he did was eat the covers.

At six two with a ready grin and the hint of a Texas drawl, the man could have  promised a Hungry Man aluminum clad chicken dinner and the 9.5 babe in Apartment 10 upstairs would have crawled across four miles of broken glass to get there by seven. She'da brought the tequila too.

Had he graced you, Gentle Lovely, with a dinner invitation, you'da likely been drinking something akin to the Jordan Cabernet, a wine as lovely  as you, very smooth and perfect for a night out or a special occasion. You'll often find Jordan on the wine lists of upscale eateries and it remains one of the most widely purchased restaurant wines in the US.

The three inch, walnut-and-stainless pocket knife that doubles as the semi-official foil cutter here at the Casa (is that thing even legal in Californicate?) revealed obvious and worrisome cork seepage, a sure sign that the wine had been mishandled at some point up the distribution chain. While not necessarily a death knell, cork seepage is indicative that the wine has likely been baked.

TWC HOT TIP: Walking out of a tasting room on a hot summer day with a cool bottle of wine that you leave in the car for a couple of hours can induce seepage quickly. The sudden change in temperature causes the wine to expand and forces it past the cork. If the pressure is severe, it can push the cork out of the bottle a quarter inch or more. The antidote is to get the wine into a cool environment quickly. It is also serves as an illustration of why wine appreciates a constant cellar temperature. In a pinch, a five dollar Sams Club cool bag or a cheap Styrofoam ice chest can help protect your  valuable wine from a day of sunshine beating on the trunk lid. Better too cold than too warm.

For today the seepage was benign. In the long term? Might shorten the life expectancy. The Jordan Cabernet is a big  Alexander Valley wine and should be served with something it won't overwhelm, such as a standing rib roast, strong cheese, or a prime rib. We paired it with  mesquite grilled New York strip steak and a Boston salad that Mrs TWC tossed with diced apples and crumbled blue cheese.

Winemaker's Notes:

.....the blending of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot with the Cabernet Sauvignon is responsible for the well integrated flavors, deep color and full mouth feel of the 2003 vintage. The vibrant blueberry qualities of the Petit Verdot marry well with the soft, alluring flavors of Merlot and contribute to the complexity of the masculine, tannic nature of the Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2003 Cabernet is very rich in texture with opulent flavors, a restrained framework of oak and a lingering finish of subtle earth, cigar tobacco and cedar.

All of the above plus a a little pencil lead, which may have been the cedar as well. About $45.00 US.

The verdict? A delightful accompaniment for an intimate dinner, a little Stan Getz, and a cozy fire. In a dozen years it will be ever so much more delightful.
 

The McKooze married that Margie chick from East L.A.  The cholos (El Jeronimo de Crow's Ma woulda called them pachucos)  occasionally expressed their opinion about that with a little graffiti on her garage wall....Gringo, Go Home. Last I heard, he had dragged her off to Texas, and  sometime later signed on with the Dallas franchise of the Boys In Blue. Sometime later still, he got himself shot. Bad guy with a pistola that didn't take kindly to getting stopped by The Man. Not  a permanent enough injury to cause the assumption of room temperature, but I'm guessing it hurt.

As Always,

TWC