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New Vignerons: Mathieu Chedid, Jeanne Cherhal, Bertrand Belin & Pauline Croze
You don't want to miss this fabulous clip from Mathieu Chedid. You can advance to midpoint in the video and then let it play:
Mathieu Chedid
Then, there's a great duet from Bertrand Belin and the remarkable Pauline Croze:
Bertrand Belin & Pauline Croze
Of course, there is also Jeanne Cherhal waiting her man:
What does this have to do with Wine Anyhow?
Totally unrelated is the following clip:
Kamilya Jubran & Gilles Coronado
American blues and R&B were largely ignored by white America throughout the 50s and early 60s. It took a group of British bands to import that music back to America to get it both known and loved.
Is it possible that Europe will now rediscover the 1960s?
I'm a nostalgic guy. I certainly hope so.
Does anyone know how many versions of David Bowie singing Heroes can be found on the internet?
The Wine of the Year
The tasting panel met yesterday and we've come up with a unanimous decision.
This year's winner is the Emmanuel Houillon/Pierre Overnoy Savignin Vieilles Vignes Ouillé 2000!
Savignin Grapes from the Houillon/Overnoy Estate.
This is not a Vin Jaune, but is a Savignin without the voile from three constantly topped-off barrels which were aged for nearly seven years.
Frankly, this was one of the most profound wine experiences I have had in years. I love using the word profound when describing wines. The wine revealed instense Savignin characteristics, but with astonishing freshness and precision. I love using the word revealed when writing tasting notes.
OK, there were almonds, there were leaves, there was honey, there was rocks, there was savignin fruit. Lots and lots of savignin fruit. The wine constantly shifted, moving left, moving right, refusing to be pinned down. I know I'm supposed to write about all the other fruits this reminded me of, but the only fruit which kept coming to mind was the Savignin grape grown in limestone, picked at maturation and raised without sulphur for seven years.
This wine has not yet been imported to America and very little will arrive here. It will be expensive, although considerably cheaper than 2005 Musigny from Roumier.
To view an interesting video showing how the judges came to their decision, please click on the link below:
Wine of the Year Deliberations
Don't Miss Tomorrow's Dramatic Wine of the Year Announcement!
Assuming, my fingers don't hurt too much to type.
I used to be a far active blogger until I developed rheumatism around my thumb joints. It is now acutely painful to type. I've tried seven different ergonomic keyboards and none of them help.
The only reason I can write this blog is that my new doctor just put me on tramadol hydrochloride acetaminophen, which does much to alleviate my pain. While I can now blog and answer e-mails, I have mixed feelings about this drug. The problem is that the drug makes me dizzy and tired.
Yesterday, for instance, I ran over a pedestrian on the corner of 5th Street and The Bowery while riding by bicycle home under the influence. I was looking up at one of the new towers being built on The Bowery, which Mayor Bloomberg is renaming to Dubai on the Bowery, and didn't notice an older woman coming right at me. Luckily, she was only slightly bruised and was able to get up and continue on her way to her Mitchell-Lama apartment on 4th Street and the Bowery which is scheduled for demolition next spring to make way for another luxury hotel.
The New Bowery Skyline
So, at this point, I am only taking this drug on a day-to-day basis. Today, I am driving to a Thanksgiving celebration in Great Neck, where many members of my immediate family live. The neighborhood has many orthodox Jews who don't drive on Thanksgiving and need to be in walking distance of their Turkey dinner. I will not be taking the drug, as I fear running over an Orthodox Jew walking to a Thanksgiving celebration at sundown.
The Torah doesn't take off on Thanksgiving!
I still have warm childhood memories of the ceremonial blowing of the Thanksgiving Shofar before my mother took out the turkey and the Cranberrry Chorases sauce!
Don't Miss Tomorrow's Dramatic Wine of the Year Announcement!
Assuming, my fingers don't hurt too much to type.
I used to be a far active blogger until I developed rheumatism around my thumb joints. It is now acutely painful to type. I've tried seven different ergonomic keyboards and none of them help.
The only reason I can write this blog is that my new doctor just put me on tramadol hydrochloride acetaminophen, which does much to alleviate my pain. The problem, is that the drug makes me dizzy and tired. Yesterday, for instance, I ran over a pedestrian on the corner of 5th Street and The Bowery while riding by bicycle home under the influence. I was looking up at one of the new towers being built on The Bowery, which Mayor Bloomberg is renaming to Dubai on the Bowery and didn't notice an older woman coming right at me. Luckily, she was only slightly bruised and was able to get up and continue on her way to her Mitchell-Lama apartment on 4th Street and the Bowery which is scheduled for demolition next spring to make way for another luxury hotel.
My Thanksgiving Wine Choice!
Like most of America, I will be opening a bottle of Nathalie Gaubichet and Christian Chaussard's You Are So Beautiful!.
This thrilling wine from the Coteaux-du-Loir is 50% Pineau d'Aunis and 49% Côt.
Frankly, it is a fruit bomb.
Exciting Tasting at Chambers Street on Saturday, November 10th
Denyse and I are going to be serving 22 wines. Each bottle will be covered by a sock and you are going to have to guess which wine you are tasting.
This will be an exciting contest and we are looking forward to seeing many of you on Saturday. The event starts at 4 pm, but the store will be closed from 3:30 pm to 3:45 pm to prepare all the samples and cloak them in socks. We will be using Thorlo Level 3 King Size Running Crew Socks, all in Black, for the event.
Real Wine Italian Offensive Coming in Mid-January!
We'll be coming to Seattle, Portland, New York, Boston, Connecticut and North Carolina!
Participants will include:
Luca Roagna and his Barberesco and Barolo
Alessandra Bera and her Moscato, Arcese, Barbera and Dolcetto
Silvio Messana from Montesecondo with his Chianti
Stefano Belloti from Cascina degli Ulivi with his Gavi
Nadia Verrua from Cascina ‘Tavij with her Grignolino and Ruché
Chinati Vergano with their Stunning Chinatos
Direct from the New York Wine Experience!
I learned on Friday, too late to buy tickets, that New York is full of wine world worthies this weekend. They are all here to celebrate The New York Wine Experience!
I didn't realize what a big deal event this was, until I happened upon Corrine Mentzelopoulos of Château Margaux taking the Number 1 Train downtown to attend the festivities. At first, I wasn't sure it was her, as this is Halloween weekend and many New Yorkers take to disguising themselves as famous celebrities. But, all my doubts disappeared when I spied Lamberto Frescobaldi of Marchesi de' Frescobaldi getting on the 42nd Street Shuttle.
Don't miss the live video feeds of this great event:
Live Video Feeds from The New York Wine Experience
Big News: Gmail now does IMAP!
This is a big help for guys like me who write all their blogs and e-mails on cell phones.
New Louis/Dressner Web Site!
We've changed the look and hopefully will be updating content more frequently than in the past. Let me know what you think:
New Louis/Dressner Web Site
National Media Coverage of the October 17th Louis/Dressner Tasting!
Over 300 people showed up and tasted a lot of wine. There was a lot of excitement in the air and the national press and media had extensive coverage of our tasting. Here are just a few examples:
The Washington Post!
The New York Times!
The Wall Street Journal!
The tasting was a great success but we never expected to get so much coverage in the mainstream press!
October 17th Tasting a Big Hit!
All our thanks to the nearly 370 people who showed up yesterday!
In related news, Joey Bishop, the stone-faced comedian who found success in nightclubs, television and movies but became most famous as a member of Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack, has died at 89.
Bishop
Joey Bishop was the last surviving member of the Rat Pack.
He was the group's last surviving member. Peter Lawford died in 1984, Sammy Davis Jr. in 1990, Dean Martin in 1995, and Sinatra in 1998.
I
Bishop died Wednesday night of multiple causes at his home in Newport Beach, publicist and longtime friend Warren Cowan said Thursday.
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The Rat Pack -- originally a social group surrounding Humphrey Bogart -- became a show business sensation in the early 1960s, appearing at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas in shows that combined music and comedy in a seemingly chaotic manner.
Reviewers often claimed that Bishop played a minor role, but Sinatra knew otherwise. He termed the comedian "the Hub of the Big Wheel," with Bishop coming up with some of the best one-liners and beginning many jokes with his favorite phrase, "Son of a gun!"
The quintet lived it up whenever members were free of their own commitments. They appeared together in such films as "Ocean's Eleven" and "Sergeants 3" and proudly gave honorary membership to a certain fun-loving politician from Massachusetts, John F. Kennedy, at whose inauguration gala Bishop served as master of ceremonies.
The Big Tasting is Tomorrow!
Emily Loizeau to Make a Guest Appearance!
~French recording artist, Emily Loizeau, will be singing at tomorrow's big Louis/Dressner tasting.
Five Major Wine Journalists to Attend our October 17th Tasting!
In addition, Morley Safer might be there.
There's a lot of media buzz going on.
Don't miss this event!
There's Going to be a Lot of Great Wines on October 17th
I'm trying to write tasting notes....there's so many great wines I'm running out of superlatives!
And exclamation points!
Other Important Events that have Occurred on October 17th
Yes, our tasting is on October 17th. October 17th is an important day for the wine industry, for many different reasons, and this seemed the appropriate day to plan our big event.
Some of the other important October 17th events include:
- 539 BC - King Cyrus The Great of Persia marches into the city of Babylon, releasing the Jews from almost 70 years of exile and making the first Human Rights proclamation.
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1660 - Nine Regicides, the men who signed the death warrant of Charles I, are hanged, drawn and quartered, another is hanged.
- 1806 - Former leader of the Haitian Revolution, Emperor Jacques I of Haiti was assassinated after an oppressive rule.
- 1912 - Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia declare war on the Ottoman Empire, joining Montenegro in the First Balkan War.
- 1917 - First British bombing of Germany in World War I.
- 1931 - Al Capone convicted of income tax evasion.
- 1937 - Huey, Dewey and Louie, Donald Duck's three almost identical nephews, first appear in a newspaper comic strip.
- 1945 - A massive number of people, headed for CGT and Evita, gather in the Plaza de Mayo in Argentina to demand Juan Peron's release. This is known to the Peronists as the Día de la lealtad (day of loyalty) or San Perón (Saint Perón). It's considered the birthday of Peronism.
- 1961 - Scores of Algerian protesters (some claim up to 400) are massacred by the Paris police at the instigation of Nazi collaborator Maurice Papon, then chief of the Prefecture of Police.
- 1967 - The musical Hair opens at the Anspacher Theater on Broadway.
- 1970 - Montreal, Quebec: Quebec Vice-Premier and Minister of Labour Pierre Laporte murdered by members of the FLQ terrorist group.
- 1973 - OPEC starts an oil embargo against a number of western countries, considered to have helped Israel in its war against Syria.
- 1989 - Loma Prieta earthquake (7.1 on the Richter scale) hits the San Francisco Bay Area and causes 57 deaths directly (and 6 indirectly).
- 2003 - Eunuchs in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh float the political party Jiti Jitayi Politics.
Fake Ad Circulating for October 17th Tasting!
Several readers have sent me what is clearly a fake advertisement for our October 17th tasting.
I have no idea who is circulating this ad and why they are trying to sabotage our tasting.
To make the public record clear: we continue to be staunch anti-Stalinists.
Don't Miss Today's Chambers Street Tasting
We have a lot of new and great wines parading about today.
I will start insulting customers at 4:00 pm.