A couple posts today before I take a few days off to visit the parental units-by-marriage in Texas. The first is this interesting Syrah (or Shiraz as they type it in Australia) I tasted last night. It was offered as part of FreshDirect’s holiday wine pack and it a great drink at $15. 
Winery: Hope Estate
Grape: Shiraz
Region: Hunter Valley, Australia
Year: 2005
Source: FreshDirect.com
Price: $15
Color: Dark red
Nose: Dark berry scents with slight chocolate and hints of mint. After a swirl asparagus and black pepper come out.
Taste: This medium bodied wine has a dramatic fruit forward entry, presenting lots of plum and blueberry flavors. Later, the wine has a taste and texture similar to a baked chocolate-raspberry cake. The exit is soft, with lingering tannins and raspberry flavors. Read more »
When I started working as a full-time journalist six years ago, I took every opportunity to meet with people in whatever subject area I was covering. Over time, I’ve gotten busier and had to become more selective about whom I spend time with.
Picking which relationships to feed or develop is very difficult. Some of my best sources and some good friends have resulted from completely random and unlikely circumstances. I met one friend from a mass email. I met another via an ad I posted on Craigslist asking for help with a project. So I am disinclined to ignore opportunities.
At the same time, I can’t begin to count the number of useless meetings I’ve had and people I no longer speak to. Or worse: there are those who once were useful and now just waste time. Parasites, even if they are nice people.
Read more »
Every year, Pantone, the color authority decides on a color for the year. This years winner, and the official Pantone color for 2008 is… drum roll please… Blue Iris (or, 18-3943 TCX for those in the know).
Blue Iris marks the 4th time a blue has been chosen for the color of the year this Millennium. (previous winners include Blue Turquoise, Aqua Sky and we kicked off the millennium with Cerulean Blue). The color is “a mix of blue and purple that suggests dependability and magic.”
As Blue Iris was unavailable to accept the award, Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute had this to say about this years chosen winner:
As a reflection of the times, Blue Iris brings together the dependable aspect of blue, underscored by a strong, soul-searching purple cast. Emotionally, it is anchoring and meditative with a touch of magic. Look for it artfully combined with deeper plums, red-browns, yellow-greens, grapes and grays.
Oddly the site seems to just be linking directly to a dating site now… well it was interesting for about 12 hours.
24
Personally I am not positive if I could take 24 5 year olds. I am not totally sure where I found this site, but I think the premise is hilariously ridiculous. After a brief set of questions relating to your physique, fighting experience and ethics the site tells you precisely how many five year olds you could take in a fight. A vital piece of information no ones should be without.
What exactly does it mean when the best thing you can say about something is the same as the worst you can say about it?
That is the story of Absolut 100 Vodka. One of the newest Absolut vodkas out, the 100 stands for 100 proof, or 50% alcohol. With that percentage you would expect that the vodka would taste like a fine grain alcohol, not terribly pleasant and probably meant primarily for mixing with fruit juices or anything else that might cut the taste. But that is not the case with Absolut 100. Here is what I can say about it. It tastes just like Absolut Vodka. Not a glowing recommendation, not a real trashing.
Absolut 100 is a perfectly fine just-below-the-top-shelf vodka. Pretty much the same taste that make Absolut what it is, but with a higher alcohol content and, well, a kick-ass bottle. The classic Absolut bottle painted black with silver writing for the name and black screened letters for the story. This is the type of thing that people take note of when you bring it as a gift to a holiday party. That, or it makes you look like you are trying too hard.
