Drink

Slight bricking at the rim;Bouquet of subdued earthy sweet cherry underneath baked cherry pie with cedary presence.Palate--Overwhelming initial blast of huge cedar and spruce--like biting into an evergreen branch; with air, it mellows yielding cedar, earthy cherry with robust foundation and pleasantly ripe tannins. Finishes pleasantly and lingering suggestion of tangy black cherry.I loved this wine! Classy and bold, full of mouth filing textures and flavor. I have an 03 waiting in the wings and I can't wait! I paid about $40 which is a nice price for such a wine. Raise a glass.--A Review from The Wine Cask Blog. Creative Commons: Attribution - ShareAlike 2.5 applies

One of the pleasures of watching BBC TVs 2010/2012 show “Sherlock” is the sly, tongue in cheek references it makes to the canon of Sherlock Holmes; another is the sheer length of each episode…ninety minutes per; and a third is the precise casting of the eponymous lead and the Doctor. About the only thing I [...]

Seems we’re onto the 2012 vintage now, so I’ve been a little slow reviewing it would seem.

More NSW wine. #askforit they suggest. It’s up to you I say. Drink what you like. There’s no need to be parochial or patriotic. We’ll leave that to the South Australians

A brand new study released in Inhalation Toxicology concluded that using electronic cigarettes does not harm lung function. The Greece-based study compared the impact of first and second-hand smoke and e-cig vapor on lung function. Researchers worked with fifteen tobacco smokers and fifteen nonsmokers. The smoker group was comprised of both men and women and all of the participants smoked a minimum of fifteen cigarettes each day. The nonsmoker group was comprised of men and women who had never smoked. The fifteen smokers were studied after smoking a tobacco cigarette of their choice. Then they were studied after vaping with an electronic cigarette. The fifteen nonsmokers were studied after inhaling second-hand cigarette smoke and then after inhaling electronic cigarette vapor. Both groups underwent tests to determine their serum and cotinine levels. Researchers also measured their lung function, nitric oxide levels, and exhaled carbon monoxide. The research team noted cotinine levels were similar between both tobacco smokers and e-cig users. The cotinine levels are representative of exposure to nicotine. The similar outcome on cotinine levels reveals the e-cigs offer the same nicotine exposure as regular cigarettes. While the results were similar on this test, that was the only truly similar result. Lung function was extremely different after exposure to tobacco cigarettes vs. e-cig exposure. When participants used electronic cigarettes or were exposed to e-cig vapor, it did not have cause any significant change to lung function. Tobacco cigarettes caused a major decline in lung function. Exposure to second-hand cigarette smoke was more damaging to participants’ lung function than using electronic cigarettes. This study is important for putting to rest rumors that electronic cigarettes are harmful to people with breathing problems. Previous studies have also shown similar results, with electronic cigarettes causing no impairment of lung function. Tobacco cigarettes are known to cause significant harm to lungs, leading to major breathing problems and lung disease or even cancer. According to the Lung Association of Canada, a smoker’s carbon dioxide levels will begin to decline within days of giving up cigarettes. Studies like this are vital to improve the reputation of electronic cigarettes. While many people do not understand the differences between tobacco cigarettes and e-cigs, there is really no comparing the two. E-cigs seem to offer smokers an alternative way to enjoy nicotine and the act of smoking without sustaining acute lung damage in the process. Do you feel e-cigs have improved your lung function?

Grenache based red from Southern France's Languedoc Roussillon region is made by Dave Phinney (Orin Swift's The Prisoner) and famous California winemaker Joel Gott. 15.9% alcohol.TASTING NOTES:Inky purple-red with blueberry pie on the nose. Dark fruit with notes of blueberry, blackberry, plum, charred oak, and mocha. Brambly, some sweetness, lush grapey richness.SCORE & RECOMMENDATION:95 PTSThis is a blockbuster wine. Simply awesome. Powerful with elegance. There's complexity here and the whopping alcohol content is integrated fairly nicely. Saturated and full of pure deliciousness. If you love cult-Syrah like Denner, or young fruit forward Chateauneuf-du-Papes, you'll love this CDP-esque wine on PEDs. Retails for $29 and one of the best new wines I've tasted all year.

Memorial Day is just around the corner, and I could not be happier. After a VERY snowy winter, and a spring that has left much to be desired, I am embracing the summer season with open arms. Memorial Day is the beginning of BBQ season and outdoor drinking, and I love to explore new recipes to share with family and friends during the holiday weekend. One way to impress guests is by adding new products to old favorites. Sangrias and Punches are a good place to add in unexpected flavors such as Mama Walker’s new breakfast flavored liqueurs, including Blueberry Pancake or Maple Bacon. Another way to get your friends and family excited about your cocktail offerings is to mix them into the dessert menu, because who doesn’t love dessert? Malibu has recently released Malibu Sundae and Malibu Swirl, two dessert-flavored offerings that are perfect for satisfying your sweet tooth after the hot dogs, hamburgers and salads! According to the company release, “Malibu Sundae combines the brand’s signature coconut taste with the tempting flavor of chocolate ice cream while Malibu Swirl pairs the flavor of coconut with the delightful taste of strawberries and cream.” Find out more about Malibu’s new offerings at: www.malibu-rum.com Another refreshing and sweet dessert cocktail is the adult spin on the summer favorite orange cream popsicle: The Whippsicle 1 part Hiram Walker Whipped Cream Liqueur® 1 1/2 parts Absolut® Mandrin Vodka Club Soda Shake Hiram Walker Whipped Cream Liqueur and Vodka with ice. Strain into tall glass over ice. Top with club soda. Garnish with orange wheel. Enjoy! -KJ

  Eat tea. Yes, that’s right. We love eating tea, when it comes to matcha that is. Matcha is the only tea we actually eat. The finely milled powder from shade grown organic Japanese green tea whips up into a … Continue reading →

Plus, a Texan happy to have wine on his boots, a Santa Barbara wine label dispute ends amicably enough, and the ups and downs of Brooklyn's Great GoogaMooga

In the Wine Atlas of Australia & New Zealand (HarperCollins, 1998), James Halliday refers to Kay Brothers in McLaren Vale as a “traditional winery with a rich history and some priceless old vines.” As far as history is concerned, the winery was established in 1890 by brothers Herbert and Frederick Kay (pictured on many of the labels) and is the oldest estate in McLaren Vale still owned by the founding family. Winemaker now is Herbert’s grandson Colin Kay, who uses traditional methods and in fact employs the winery’s original basket press and open-top fermenters. “Priceless old vines” refers to the estate vineyard’s Block 6, planted in 1892 and still producing shiraz grapes that are bottled separately as the property’s flagship wine. As for me, these are the sorts of wines and the kind of family estate that are a joy to write about, because they embody a heritage and an adherence to old-fashioned methods, and they evince no desire to be all things to all people. These Kay Brothers wines from 2010 were tasted in Chicago on May 15, 2013. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ The entry-level wine at this estate is the Kay Brothers Hillside Shiraz 2010, McLaren Vale. The color is very dark ruby, almost black in the center and with an intense violet rim. Despite the portent of that depth of hue, this is not a heavily extracted wine and is impressive for an impeccable sense of balance, especially in the sway dusty tannins against vibrant acidity and a dynamic graphite element. Fruit shines though, with a bright array of ripe and slightly macerated black and red currants, blackberries and blueberries fostered by earthy touches of leather and briers and hints of cloves and sandalwood, lavender, bitter chocolate and dried thyme, all of these aspects beautifully proportioned and poised. 14.5 percent alcohol. Drink now through 2017 to 2020. Excellent. About $35. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Next is the Kay Brothers Basket Pressed Shiraz 2010, McLaren Vale, a wine derived from the estate’s Amery Vineyard; it spent 18 months in American, French and Bulgarian oak barrels. The color is dark ruby with a vivid magenta cast; aromas of ripe black currants, blackberries and mulberries are deeply infused with cloves and allspice and some wild spicy and floral note, as well as graphite-tinged touches of briers and brambles, making for a lively and engaging bouquet. On the palate, this wine is pure and intense, downright lovely in its lucid spicy black fruit qualities but also a little chiseled and flinty, more faceted than rounded, so while every element is balanced and harmonious, the emphasis lies in a somewhat sculpted structural character. I don’t mean that this nature is a flaw, in fact far from it; I love the crystalline, scintillating approach that bolsters the wine’s ripe fruit with its slightly Olympian — yet thoroughly drinkable — personality. 14.5 percent alcohol. Now through 2018 to ’22. Excellent. About $45. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Third in this trio is the Kay Brothers Amery Block 6 Shiraz 2010, McLaren Vale. Of the original 12 acres of Block 6, planted in 1892, only four acres remain. The wine aged 20 months in American oak barrels. The color is dark ruby that sports magnificent depth and clarity, while the complete package is wrapped in the paradoxical yet totally complementary qualities of rigor and allure; my first note: “just beautiful.” While the wine’s sense of dimension — its breadth and depth of tannin and mineral elements. its profound acidity and longevity on the palate — feels immense, it does not diminish the finely-etched details of fruit and flowers and spice that lend the aspect that