More drinking, more drinking... for research purposes

A vendor left us some bottles last night, to take home and "sample the merchandise." Mmmm, yes-yes-yes. One of the fringe benefits of being in this industry, there's always something to drink, and yes, we do a lot of drinking. We have to. We must know our product.

There are exceptions. I've never had an Non Alcoholic beer before. Why would I? I like alcohol. The more the merrier. But on a weekly basis, I'll always field a question of which N.A. beer is the best and which one do I prefer. Hmmm, that's a tough one. They're all so good.

And I'm not a fan of the sweet, hide-the-alcohol-taste, fruity, wine coolers. Someone the other day asked me how the Smirnoff Ice Raspberry Burst flavor tasted. I blankly stared at the person, never personally having a taste of any Smirnoff Ice product, let alone the raspberry, and shrugged my shoulders.

"I've never had one. Raspberry-ish, I guess."

"Do you not drink?" The person asked in a snarky tone.

How am I supposed to reply to that? Yes, the first thing I do after a long, hard day of working, is pop open a sweet, raspberry bursting Smirnoff Ice. Yeah, that hits the spot.

No, just like the song, I'll take one bourbon, one scotch, one beer.

Anyway, we had some good wine last night, and revisited my favorite drinking wine at the present moment, the Calera Pinot Noir '08. Damn, that is some good shit. Whooo. Smooth as the velvet-tongued devil whispering in you ear. The small production Calera winery is one of our favorite California go to's. The supple fruit falls ever so gently on your tongue, caressing your mouth with seductive sweet cherry and strawberry jam flavors. Ah, just so tasty. Another night of good drinking with my wonderful co-pilot in life.

The glass enclosure of Calera. Very cool. Perfect seal and no worries over cork taint.

Cheers,

James

Replacing the Ice Cream Man (Wine truck anyone?)

When you were a kid, how could you resist that seductive, siren call of the Ice Cream Man? Slowly driving his sketchy, old van, with the box sticker ice cream pictures sprawled out on the side. Playing that annoying music that was singularly recognized from at least a block away, and could quickly disperse any game of Cowboys & Indians, launching kids into a rabid frenzy, like a kicked hornet's nest. All to get that ice cream.

What about us grown-up kids? Don't we need something to get excited about again? What if you were out sitting on the bleachers, watching your son's little league baseball game in the hot, afternoon sun, and the Wine Truck Man pulled up? Or, you're out mowing the lawn and you could sure use a cold, crisp drink, but nothing is in the fridge.

Wine Truck Man! Wine Truck Man! or maybe call it, The Wino Van! Yeah, I like the sound of that. Wino Van!

Why not? Food trucks are all the rage right now. Don't we need something to drink too?

It would need some recognizable music, to really distinguish it from anything else.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Of course, there would be more offerings than just wine. Maybe a tropical pina colada or dacquiri, margaritas, mojito's, sangria, maybe a couple different beer offerings.

Now, I'm not sure if anything like this is actually legal, but wouldn't it be great? A bar that travels to you.

I'm getting thirsty just thinking about it.

When in Rome, drink as the Romans do

Austin left the shop early yesterday, not only to take care of our little one, but also to start making a delicious dinner for us: Lasagna.

So, she tells me to make sure I bring home a bottle of wine to complement it (like she has to tell me, hmmm).

The way I figure, if were having Italian food, we might as well go ahead and do it the right way, and have an Italian wine. They go hand in hand. Scrumptious pasta. Flavorful vino.

But which one?

I'm perusing our Italian offerings on the shelf. Eyes scanning left and right, up and down. So many good wines to open and enjoy. When my eyes slowly settle on a wine that's been gracefully aging and developing its interesting character, and is now begging to be savored. It wants to be opened and driven, to tell you a story, and to take you to a different place. It wants to show you all that it has to offer, with a flavor profile that is distinctly unique, yet familiar.

Albino Rocca Barbera D'Alba "Gepin" '04 ~ $26.99

Oh, sooo good. So worth the wait. The flavors are deep and gorgeously layered, with hints of menthol, black cherry, and dark, ripe fruit. The oak has been so integrated that it seemlessly blends into the soft, luscious juice.

We still have a few bottles left in the shop, waiting patiently for someone to take it home. Patiently waiting to please you.

James

Cheerios with Daddy

Had a nice breakfast conversation with my Daughter, Vivian (8 months old and getting bigger and wiser by the hour), early this morning. Granted, it was a little one-sided, but still a very profound and fulfilling dialog, especially at that time of day, when I'm mostly a groggy mess.

Little Vivian was sitting in her high chair, sharing her precious Cheerios, which were spread out all before her on the tray, with her Papa. Nom-nom-nom, so good. Picking them up with her tiny fingers, one by one, and using an advanced navigation technique to guide them home for her 2 chompers, she playfully cooed and squealed with delight.

It brought back some cherished memories, so I started to reminisce with her about my childhood mornings, many moons ago, when I used to savor my bowl of Cheerios. Sitting at the kitchen table with the box in front of me, reading and re-reading the nutritional chart and its percentages of goodness I was slurping down.

But, most of the time, especially on Saturday mornings, I ate my bowl of Cheerios downstairs in front of the TV, so I could watch cartoons. And Saturdays were special. You see, they would have a non-stop barrage of cartoons on, from 7 am through noon. They would be on, not only 1 channel, not 2 channels, but THREE! 3 channels of constant cartoons. Oh my God!

And not these fancy, 3-D, digital cartoons that they have these days, but the classic Hanna Barbera (Scooby-Doo, Flintstones, Jabbajaw, Speed Buggy, Johnny Quest, Herculoids, Captain Caveman, etc..), Super Friends, Bugs & friends, Speed Racer, Thundar the Barbarian, and Voltron. The good stuff (I didn't watch those girly cartoons. No Care Bears for me, thank you very much).

But, there was one problem.

In order for me to watch these cartoons, I had to first venture down the steps, into the basement, completely in the dark. I know, I know, crazy. Cause all kids know, besides the bedroom closet, that's where the monsters reside. That's where they wait for unattended kids to recklessly venture before they frightfully reveal themselves. Down the basement. In the dark. The nearest light source was a lamp you had to click on, but that was down there. Down in the dark, amongst the monsters, where they patiently waited, and I could hear them breathing.

My solution to this problem: sing. I guess I watched too many Disney shows or something, but the idea had logically been formed in my mind, that if you were joyfully singing, then the monsters couldn't attack you. Something about the purity of the act that repelled the monsters, I don't know. But, dog gone it, it worked.

Vivian was listening to me the whole time.

When we left the kitchen to go find Mommy, she was singing.

James

Adventures in the baby pool

Like a trumpet sounding off from the arches of heaven, joined by a chorus of angelic voices bursting through the clouds, the package had finally arrived in the mail, and not a moment too soon. They promised it would arrive anywhere between 5-7 days, but they expeditiously outdid themselves in a rapid 4 day delivery. The baby pool was finally here.

Or, more specifically, the pink, whale-shaped, baby pool with a water spout. Wow! Big enough to snugly fit both Mommy & Daddy with the baby. Oh, yes. As the mercury thermostat bleeds into the upper 90's this week, the dire need for a cool, refreshing activity for the baby is at its utmost priority. Thank God for the pool.

But first things first, got to blow the damn thing up. Luckily for me (since I've been deemed to take care of its operation), I've got an old, air mattress pump, that took me 40 minutes to fill up with air, otherwise it would've taken a couple of days, working strenuously round the clock, to blow it up by mouth. After those arduous and monotonous 40 minutes, blankly staring at an inflatable pool take its shape, I was almost ready to call it a day and start drinking. But the baby was getting testy and needed a good diversion, so I dropped the hose in, turned the valve, and started filling it up with crisp, cold water.

Now:

* Put water-proof diapers on baby / throw on my swim trunks ~ check!

* Grab towels ~ check!

* Grab Mr. Ducky ~ check!

* Grab 6-pack of Resurrection cans ~ check!

It's swim time!!!

Ahhhh, nothing more refreshing on a hot day than lounging in a pink, whale pool, leaning back with a baby playing with her ducky on one hand, and a cool, frosty beer frothing at the lip on the other. The beach umbrella shielded us from the rays of the sun, while the brisk water penetrated the availing heat, chilling us to the bone. Everything was pure and blissful, until the baby looked me in the eye, and threw up her late afternoon bottle of milk.

Pool time was over.

James

I'm melting! I'm melting...

98 degrees and climbing.

Hot.

Much too hot.

Must not move. Moving produces more heat. Heat = sweat. Sweating leads to dehydration. Most of my body's fluids have already been soaked into my clothes, leaving me completely parched and terribly uncomfortable. I'm in need of total re-hydration.

Now, what can I drink that will not only bring refreshment, but utter satisfaction as well?

I reach for a bottle of crisp Sauvignon Blanc out of Chile, from San Elias. Unscrewing the cap (we love screw-caps), I unleash the liquid refreshment into my glass and within the blink of an eye, it's drained just as fast.

Gulp-gulp-gulp-ahhhhhhhh.

Pure refreshment.

Such an easy-drinking, light and crisp white.

There's nothing left to do, but to stay immobilized in front of the AC vent and finish the rest of this bottle.

James