The Wine Commonsewer™

Good Night George

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

There were two services on Saturday last. One dazzled the anointed and featured a  public eulogy by no less than the President of the United States of America followed by interment of the recently deceased at Arlington National Cemetery.

The other concluded with Ian's flawless bagpipe rendition of Amazing Grace, wafting from the open chapel doors on a sweltering August afternoon. It was the final tribute of the day to his grandfather, a tailor by trade, who supported six kids and a wife and still managed to own his home. Even though the young tend to be clueless, it was fairly apparent to me even then that this was a significant measure of a man's character.

When we were vagrant yoots, George was an apparition who appeared out of the darkness when you least expected him, always with a smoke in hand, often with a beer.  He never had much to say and I never realized that Paige was as close to his stepfather as he was. Funny how something like that completely eludes you.

I hadn't seen George in at least two decades and I was mildly surprised when El Jeronimo de Crow sent the news that he had passed. And then, much like a half million movie plots where funerals bring old friends together, five of us were there. Does art imitate life? Or is it the other way around?

Terry, El Jeronimo, Paige, TWC, & Miltie

Terry's mom fessed up that when we were kids she figured the lot of us we're bound for hell on a sled with greased runners.

As Ever,

TWC

Fire On The Mountain

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Actually, I guess it would be fire behind the mountain.

TWC wishes he had taken this photo but his friend Moxie gets the credit. Likely taken near her place in West LA.

The smoke spiraling up behind the ridge is actually in the Angeles National Forest behind La Cañada (Lah Kahn Yada), which is one valley beyond the Hollywood sign and Griffith Park.

Bonus:

Fire viewed from the Mt Wilson Observatory camera. Also from Mox.

As Ever,

TWC

Smoke at Sunset (on the water)

Gentle Readers,

Looking northeast from Casa de las Rocas Grandes the plume of smoke about sixty miles distant is from the La Cañada fire and resembles that horse-lookin' chess piece they call a Knight. La Cañada is pronounced Lah Kahn Yada. I think the true Spanish pronunciation is a bit different. Then again, it might be the Azusa fire, can't tell for sure.

I've lived here my whole life and it seems like these days we can't go two days of hot sunny weather without a conflagration. Never was like that back in the day. At least as near as I can recall. 

Thanks for all of the well wishes, we are in no danger. 

Slide show here.

Bonus:

As Ever,

TWC

All That's Left of Route 66

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

At the outbreak of hostilities of the Big War folks in California had a little ditty they sang. Went like this.....

Said the Okie to the Arkie
Let us go and fight Japan
We took California
And never lost a man

Earlier, California established a checkpoint at the Arizona border near Needles on Route 66, the purpose of which was to prevent poverty stricken migrants fleeing the Dust Bowl from moving into California. No tickee, no laundry. Or, more to the point, no money? Go home.

Dusk arrives with a spattering of fat rain drops near The Painted Desert. Some sixty or so miles into northern Arizona from the New Mexico border, this is all that remains of the road so many of those migrants traveled.

As Always,

TWC

2006 Gallo Family Frei Ranch Vineyard (Dry Creek) Cabernet Sauvignon

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

This well crafted wine is stunning. Sometimes it really is just that simple.

Terroir.  We've come to understand that terroir isn't the exclusive, definitive determinant of the character of a wine that we once imagined it was. While the question of terroir is no longer cast immutably in stone, it is unquestionable that  soil and place enhance and contribute to the skills of the wine maker, which is why Oz Shiraz is distinguishable from California Syrah, despite the commonality of the varietal. Both, after all, are made from the same grape, but there is no mistaking Australian Shiraz.

As a rule, Dry Creek wines rarely disappoint and the Frei Ranch Cab is no exception in its celebration of the magic that is Dry Creek Valley. The Gallo family had a long association with the Frei brothers dating to the end of prohibition and ultimately purchased the ranch in the late 1970's. Concurrently, the vineyard was replanted, the result of which is this single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon blended with just a tease of Petit Verdot.

Occasionally one finds a wine like this where it is immediately apparent from the aroma of the bouquet that something special is happening in the glass. In these rare instances there isn't any waiting for the wine to open up, from the first sip to the dregs, one is treated to the promise of Dionysus. And the overt reaction is simple. This wine is really good.

The Frei Ranch Cab is a gorgeous full bodied wine with black fruits, hints of a rich earthiness on the nose and palate, firm tannins, and a long and mellow finish. Enjoyable today and, I suspect, for the next decade or so.

Best part? It's forty bucks US. From the winery! Gotta be less elsewhere if you can find it. Repeat after me: I've had wines costing twice this much that weren't half as good. Yes, it's a mantra and another illustration of the basic principle stating that sometimes the relationship between the price of a wine and its quality is tenuous.

Frei Ranch Vineyard at Sunset

You'll want to pair this wine with herb roasted prime rib, medium rare mesquite grilled New York steaks, or a succulent, falling-off-the bone roast pork. Okay, lamb too.

Winemaker's Notes:

This wine shows tremendous depth with dark, ripe fruits and toasty complexity from oak barrel aging. An intriguing top note of spicy strawberry jam lends an almost ethereal quality to the aroma. In the mouth the wine is full, rich and chewy. The mid-palate shows enough density to suggest long-term aging for those who can resist all of this wine's current charm.

As Ever,

TWC

Photo appears courtesy of Gallo Family Vineyards

British Invasion

The Boy vs Guitar Hero

Why I Use Splenda In My Coffee

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

I agree, with Katie P's admonition that eating real food is a huge part of staying healthy and enjoying life. During the conversation, TWC observed that simply avoiding the white poisons** does wonders for maintaining a slim girlish figure and slows down the accumulation of sticky plaque in the plumbing. Predictably, the question of sugar came up.

.....how do you sweeten things, honey? (she means bee barf, not a term of endearment) Or do you use chemical “sweeteners”?! That’s the dark side I will not go to. That whole Michael Pollan thing, “Eat food…” repeats in my head, and keeps me from picking up artificial sweeteners.

TWC ambled over to the Dark Side some time back and this is why.

I don’t use sugar for much of anything besides coffee anyway and you can have all my share of Scooter Pies and Little Debbie Snack Cakes (reg US pat off) or anything with corn syrup in it. Thank you Archer Daniels Midland, enjoy your welfare subsidies.

The human body is not designed to process refined table sugar any better than it is designed to process Splenda, which is made from what? Bug spray? Naptha? Dry cleaning solvent?

Keep in mind that humans lived for ten thousand years with little to no dietary sugar and then, Bam, we’re eating it like candy (heh). It defies science to imagine that the human body can adapt to high levels of dietary sugar in six generations, it isn’t possible.

Okay, let's ditch refined sugar and go with natural sugar or honey, both of which have nominal food value. I LOVE RAW SUGAR IN MY COFFEE but that doesn't change the reality that sugar and honey are loaded with relatively empty calories and are still fairly toxic to our bodies. So, my choice is nothing in my coffee or Splenda. I’ll take my chances with Splenda [ducks a slap upside the head from Chatalaina who is screaming TRUVIA! Dammit TWC, why don't you listen better?]

The secondary consideration with respect to sugar (and honey) is that both wreak serious havoc with your blood sugar (glucose) levels.  Sugar and white carbs immediately spike your blood glucose levels. Riding that Yo-Yo up and down is a perfect set up for long term damage. Those little sugar crystals in your blood  are like razor sharp mini-ginsu knives, lacerating every capillary they pass through, leaving behind scar tissue that impedes blood circulation. Repeat that enough times and, well, you can do the math and you might learn to spell D-I-A-B-E-T-E-S.

That said, I’m not opposed to sugar entirely, it has its place (you cannot make Crème Brûlée without it) and I will occasionally indulge in something I shouldn’t. But it has to be something that is decadent and sinful and delicious. Or a handful of M&M’s (I save the green ones for the ladies. Just in case).

As Always,

TWC

**white flour, refined white table sugar, white refined rice, white potatoes and most products containing these items like soft drinks, chips, white bread, other snack foods

The Four Stages of Life

Teach Your Children Well

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

This originally appeared at TWC on August 26, 2005

As Ever,

TWC

Tip of the glass to JC for reminding me much it makes me chortle

Everything You Know Is Wrong

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Brave New World, Boys.......

Scientists in Israel have demonstrated that it is possible to fabricate DNA evidence, undermining the credibility of what has been considered the gold standard of proof in criminal cases.

The scientists fabricated blood and saliva samples containing DNA from a person other than the donor of the blood and saliva. They also showed that if they had access to a DNA profile in a database, they could construct a sample of DNA to match that profile without obtaining any tissue from that person.

No more fingerprints lifted from a crystal wine goblet with Scotch tape and planted in the blood spattered kitchen, we can simply engineer the entire crime scene from scratch.

Sounds like the plot to TWC's definitive American novel, eh?

Whole thing here.

Oh, Bonus:

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need a drink.

As Always,

TWC

Tip of the glass to Baked Penguin and John