The Wine Commonsewer™

Happy Birthday Jacob Michael

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

We've had a pretty mild summer this year. The mercury may briefly top eighty degrees later today, but it's cool enough now for the windows to be open to the breeze. OTOH, the day Jake was born was into triple digits. The air was thick and oppressive. Not steamed and downright viscous like Memphis, Baton Rouge, or Charleston, where you gotta hack your way through it with a machete. But it wasn't the dry heat one associates with the southwest. Sixty percent humidity and one hundred degree plus heat ain't comfy.

And I remember the heat. And that Jacob was a long time coming. And that he was born blue.

TWC's pick for a name was Charles Fremont Snell II, after his great, great grandfather. Mrs TWC wasn't having any of that stuff. I don't mind, though, Jacob Michael is a fine name and besides, everyone knows that there isn't a schoolyard bully walkin' that can beat up a kid named Jake. That's a junkyard dog of a name.

Jake starts high school in a few days. He's always been gregarious and outgoing. Never met a stranger. Everybody knows him and most everyone likes him. Last spring in Washington he managed to wiggle his way through the Secret Service and ended up on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial while President Obama was addressing the crowd. It began slowly, rolling around the mall like a wave at Anaheim Stadium. The crowd chanting, in waves, one single question.....

Who is that guy up there with Jacob Snell?

Jake has always made us proud, he's sharp, quick witted, reads like a house afire,  loves basketball, finished junior high on the honor roll, and he's a stand-up guy. 

Jake Driving the Tub in a Driving Wind Storm on Lake Mead While Standing Up

Course, he's fourteen and he's way smarter than his mother or I, but he'll be shocked at how much we'll learn in the next five or six years.

Happy Birthday, Sonny Boy.

As Always,

TWC

2005 Masía De Yabar Garnacha

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Sunday last dawned mild and sunny. Later, an invigorating breeze set the stage for some animated conversation enhanced by a quaff or two of vino with old friend Milton. 

Our second stop of the afternoon was Masía de Yabar Vineyards, nestled on the hillside above Glen Oaks Road in Temecula.

The winery theme is La Masía, the Manor House, the self-sufficient heart of every rancho in Catalonia and, later, our own southwest. A place where all are welcome and life is celebrated with a glass of wine, a little Flamenco music, and stunning hilltop views.

The winery focus is on Spanish varietals such as Monastrell, Tempranillo, and Garnacha, though they offered us a decent Cabernet and a tasty Zinfandel as well. Yabar celebrates the owner's connection to the wineries of Argentina, including the winery's Malbec sourced from Argentinian grapes.

The Monastrell, known in France as Mourvèdre, was interesting but TWC kept drifting back to the Garnacha. The grape is native to Spain and ultimately migrated to Italy (Cannonau) and to France, where it is known by its more recognizable name, Grenache.

Garnacha is an intensely flavored black grape that thrives in arid climates with little water, making it an ideal grape for Mediterranean climates. It kept my attention and in the end, Miltie and I adjourned to the the portico with a glass of it, rather than a taste, and resumed swapping tales of the glory days.

Pouring TWC's Garnacha

Garnacha is versatile and a little tricky to get right. I've had some that were nigh on sink-pourin' and others that were quite tasty. This particular incarnation is one of the better ones that TWC has enjoyed. In the glass the Garnacha is a medium bodied, deep purple with aromas of black and red fruit. It is an intensely flavorful wine, rich and tart on the palate with a smooth, lingering finish. It is a sturdy wine that will enhance mesquite grilled steak or strong cheese (with a little sourdough and some balsamic vinegar).

As Ever,

TWC

Is This A Foul?

Basketball Jones' Team is in Grey (that isn't The Boy)

Hands Off My Gatorade!

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Apparently, The House Blond understands the concept of private property and has staked a claim.

As Ever,

TWC

Francis Bacon on Aging

Age appears to be best in four things; old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to read.

Boxwood Basil

Oak Leaf Merlot (Two Dolley Wally)

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

Yes, we've all found them in a viral email or two in the inbox (with the thousand or so forwards and everyone's email address ripe for the picking). But not in a while I suppose. The top twelve names for Walmart Wine:

• Chateau Traileur Parc 
• White Trashfindel 
• Big Red Gulp 
• Grape Expectations 
• Domaine Wal-Mart "Merde du Pays" (Translates loosely as: Crap of the Land)  
• NASCARbernet 
• Chef Boyardeaux 
• Peanut Noir 
• Chateau des Moines 
• I Can't Believe It's Not Vinegar! 
• World Championship Riesling 

Hear this in a Leno voice: The numero uno name for Wal-Mart Wine.....

• Nasti Spumante

So what happens when Wal-Mart comes up with a credible alternative to Two Buck Chuck? Are the jokes off? Perhaps.

TWC was hoping that Wal-Mart's Oak Leaf Merlot was going to give Chuck a run for his money, and in some senses it does. It's great to have another hat in the ring, but there isn't a clear winner here. Unfortunately, TWC doesn't like either of them much. Both exhibit that sickly off-sweet cloying taste and aftertaste that some would describe as sweet cherries. That's enough for moi, and you can't fix it by elevating your BAC.

I've heard that the Oak Leaf Cabernet is pretty good, better than Charles Shaw, which is found at Trader Joes. Although that is encouraging, TWC can't vouch for that. Your mileage may vary. Buyer beware and all of that.

Shaw (Two Buck Chuck) is made by Bronco Wines, which is owned by the Franzia Brothers. The Wine Group, which owns the Franzia name (got that distinction?) markets Oak Leaf as a non-vintage private label created exclusively for Wal-Mart. Other Wine Group offerings are Glen Ellen, Alamaden, Inglenook (which once produced fine Napa wines), and Corbett Canyon. 

It's always fun to throw rocks, but these inexpensive wines serve a purpose that goes beyond getting as drunk as the bag lady. They provide an entry level opportunity for those who otherwise would be picking up a sixer of Bud Lite after work. For some, the pleasure of wine is an acquired taste that blossoms over time. No Star taught me that lesson a while back and he's right.

And neither one are screw top. That puts them one up on Strawberry Hill or Thunderbird. For less dinero.

As Always,

TWC

A Summer Day

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

So Cal's notorious June Gloom hung around for an extra coupla weeks this year but summer has arrived with a vengeance. We're easing into triple digits this afternoon with about 25% humidity and there are billowy, monsoon-lookin' cumulonimbus clouds off over the desert toward Arizona. The cats and The Boy escaped the heat of the day by moving indoors. 

Kramer, who careens into a room exactly like his namesake, lounges with The Boy

As Always,

TWC

See The USA, In Your Shivolay (Don't Miss the Petrified National Forest)

Good Morning Gentle Readers,

TWC has an album on Facebook called On the Road With the Politically Incorrect Foreign Pickup Truck That's Made In America. I posted this pix the other day, which was taken last summer on the Great American Road Trip. You are looking more or less north east at former Route 666.

This particular section opened for business in 1942 and runs roughly from the Petrified Forest National Park to the Mexican border at Douglas, Arizona. Clearly, the Park Service missed a classic opportunity here. That place shoulda been named the Petrified National Forest. How cool would that be?    

The route parallels the New Mexico border through the White Moutains and follows part of Francisco Coronado's trail as he searched for the Seven Cities of Gold.

The post sparked a bit of a conversation that concluded with Angie's remark that she'd love to just see more of the USA. I love my country! There is a lot to see, Angie. 

Coolest thing about this commercial is that my dad had a 1952 red Chevy convertible just like the one you see in the ad.

There was a time when Government Motors made good cars that were tailored to meet the needs and wants of consumers. For instance, the 1955 Chevy had 43 different interior options to choose from.

There was also a time when GM execs didn't fly into Washington National in a private jet to beg for taxpayer supplied handouts (it's bad form to show up at the welfare office in a MBZ, don't ya think?). Instead, they quoted Hayek and touted the benefits of a free market.

From free markets to the welfare office in a half century. Not exactly your father's Oldsmobile. Course, they don't make Olds' anymore, neither.

Boy, that was kind of a downer.

Happy Mundane,

TWC

Traveling the Desert at Night