Wine 988

Photo courtesy of Unsplash | Taken by Lucas Law

Often, winemakers note that they get only one opportunity per year to perfect their craft. A single vintage, they explain, is all they have to capture a year’s worth of weather variations, difficulties, and abundance in their wine.

This implies that many winemakers, when wine production is their lifelong profession, typically have the chance to perfect their art throughout 30 or 40 vintages, or even more in some cases.

One such vintage holds a special meaning… for you.

We’re discussing “birth year” wines, or wines produced in the year of your birth. This tradition carries sentimental value for wine enthusiasts: collecting wines from their own birth year, gifting wines from the birth year of friends or children, and celebrating a birthday by opening a birth-year bottle.

This gesture adds a layer of significance to the memory of the gift and the giver, creating a lasting impression. Consider the winemaker from Sardinia who shared a bottle from my birth year, coincidentally his first vintage. Or my parents’ friends, avid wine collectors, who gifted two bottles to celebrate the birth of my twins.

Such magnanimous gestures indeed!

However, the significance doesn’t just lie in the act of gifting the birth year wine; it also stems from when we choose to open it. The birth year wine for my twins might be opened on their 21st birthday. The Sardinian wine from my birth year may have already reached its peak, and the joy may be more in opening and reflecting on that particular year than the wine itself.

When it comes to wines from your birth year, the concept of being “age worthy” takes on a completely different interpretation. Perhaps for your next birthday, or the birthday of someone special to you, you could consider tracking down a wine from your birth year. Matthew might have some suggestions for you. Celebrate the event by discussing what “age worthy” means to you.

Credit: Unsplash | Photo by Annie Spratt

Have you ever had the experience of sitting down with a bottle of wine that was produced in your birth year?

It’s one of the unique experiences we have at our disposal in the world of wine drinking. Matching our personal growth journey with those of an agricultural product that has been nurtured and refined into bottled magic that can stand the test of time.

Is it good?

Good is subjective.

Some people love young and fresh wines, and good on them for enjoying them!

Some people love the tertiary qualities that wine gains as it ages. The fruit will integrate, dissipate, and earth tones come into focus.

What factors contribute to a wine’s ability to age?

There are three key elements: Acidity, Tannic Structure, and Sweetness.

If a wine scores highly in at least two out of these three categories, it could potentially be aged for several decades, during which time it would undergo a form of alchemical transformation.

How can I find out if the wine from my birth year is of high quality?

In essence, this pertains to the levels of output. A good crop year tends to provide wineries with an ample yield of wine. Having had decades of observing wines from 1960s-1990s, it’s become comparatively easy to ascertain which vintages have aged well. My belief is that if a well-crafted wine has been kept unmoved in a cold, dark place for many years, it’s highly likely to age gracefully.

However, finding accessible bottles of vintage wines is becoming increasingly challenging as we move forward, and prices continue to rise likewise. My advice is to explore lesser-known regions and smaller producers. Don’t shy away from taking risks, spend a few bucks and discover wines you have never heard of before. Time and darkness have the power to rectify any errors made by a wine that was sent to languish in a cold bottle for seemingly endless periods.

Today is my birthday, and as I was born in 1983, my birth year has always been outshone by 1982. However, over the past 20 years, I’ve been sampling many 1983 bottles and so far, none have disappointed me.

Here’s to celebrating with the wine from your birth year!

One of the most devastating occurrences in winemaking is a lost vintage, often caused by unfavorable weather conditions before the grapes can reach full maturity. This issue arose several times since 2009, the last instance prior to now when Royal Tokaji could manufacture its exceptionally rare Essencia. In the six vintages from 2009 and 2016 (including the latest release), ideal conditions for azsú berries were not met five times, with the year 2013 presenting the most significant disappointment.

According to Royal Tokaji’s managing director Charlie Mount, most producers in the region concur that 2013 ranks among the finest vintages in Tokaji history. “We had perfect conditions for azsú, and we had amazing quantity as well,” shares Mount with Robb Report. “Essencia was being produced in abundance, but, we couldn’t find anything that we thought was worth bottling after five or six years in our cellar. This resulted in one of the most painful decisions we’ve ever made, failing to meet our standards despite having a huge quantity of Essencia and deciding not to release the 2013 vintage.”

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Although neither 2014 nor 2015 provided ideal conditions for enough quality azsú berries to produce Essencia, the summer and fall of 2016 offered perfect circumstances to capture the precious free-run juice (more on that later) that goes into making this prized elixir. And prized it should be. Only the eighth vintage of Essencia released in the winery’s 34-year history, sipping Royal Tokaji 2016 Essencia from specially designed crystal spoons that reveals its deep amber hue and aromas of dried apricot, ripe summer peach, and honeycomb. It rolls over the tongue like syrup with nimble viscosity and a sumptuous vein of acidity that keeps its inherent sweetness from overpowering its flavors of apricot nectar, peach pie, candied orange peel, and fresh honey that leaves a trail of tangerine zest in their wake.

Meaning “dry” in Hungarian, azsú berries are grapes that have been afflicted with Botrytis cinerea, the grey mold called Noble Rot that is responsible for the creation of Tokaji Azsú as well as Sauternes and Spätlese and Beerenauslese Riesling. Unlike common household molds, Botrytis requires an optimal setting to do its work; if it is present in a season that is relentlessly wet, it will ruin the grapes it’s growing on, making them useless for winemaking. But a period of humidity, especially one with cool, foggy mornings, that precedes a dry period just before harvest creates an ideal situation. The fungus dehydrates the grapes, which increases the proportion of fruit sugars and acids, offering a sweeter, more intensely flavored berry from which to make wine. Affected grapes shrivel to the point that they look like raisins.

In the traditional production of azsú wines, botrytized grapes are gathered in large carriers known as puttony and mixed into 136-liter barrels of base wine. The quantity of sweet grapes integrated with the base wine gives the Tokaji Aszu the unique Puttonyos marking of either five or six Puttonyos. To be labeled as five Puttonyos, a Tokaji Aszu wine must contain at least 120 grams per liter of residual sugar, while a six Puttonyos wine should have at least 150 grams per liter. Essencia wines, on the other hand, can have sugar content between 450 and 600 grams, requiring high acidity to balance the sugar levels; for instance, Royal Tokaji’s 2016 vintage has 534.6 g/l of sugar.

While Tokaji Azsú has long been adored by nobility, artists, and poets, Tokaji Essencia is in a class of its own. It’s not just Louis XIV who hailed Tokaji as “The King of wines, the wine of Kings.” Esteemed British wine author and founder of Royal Tokaji in 1990, Hugh Johnson OBE, amusingly refers to its Essencia as “medieval Viagra.” Each 375-milliliter bottle of Essencia contains the juice extracted from 88 pounds of dried berries, which is approximately 50,000 grapes. This is a stark contrast to the average 750 ml bottle of dry wine, which uses about 2.5 pounds or approximately 200 grapes. The meticulous production process involves selecting the finest botrytized grapes from top-rated plots. As Chris Mount, a wine expert, states, “It’s a question of waiting.”

Post harvest, the shriveled Furmint, Harslevelu, and Muscat Blanc grapes, that have lost about 80 percent of their moisture, are laid on racks to let the juice drip. As Mount explains, “We don’t press them or apply any pressure so a tiny amount of liquid drips through a grating at the bottom of the collecting vat. We draw it off from time to time, we keep every grape variety and every site separate, and we do an initial selection.” The juice absorbs moisture from the high humidity wine cellar; naturally occurring yeast from the cellar settles on the surface and a spontaneous fermentation takes place from the top down. About 70 percent of that free-run juice is transferred into glass demi-johns of varying sizes, from 10 to 50 liters, depending on the plots. The entire process takes at least five to seven years. “All along we’re waiting and tasting and towards the end we’ll make a final selection of the batches to be blended and bottled as Essencia,” Mount continues.

Though a wine bottle accompanied by a crystal spoon might appear gimmicky, the high viscosity of the wine actually makes it more practical to sip it with a spoon than from a glass. This is largely because about 15 percent of the initial juice sticks to the grates, and nearly 30 percent more is discarded before blending. Only 2,300 bottles of this prized liquid, priced at $1,416 each, were produced. Each bottle contains roughly 25 tablespoons, and every drop is treasured. If you desire to sample it but can’t get a full bottle, select restaurants like Oiji Mi and Gabriel Kreuther in New York City offer bottles and crystal spoons for your sweet sipping delight.

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By Vinson Cunningham

It’s hard to know—or perhaps it’s even tougher to acknowledge—that you’re drinking too much. After all, you could just be the life of the party. The kind who orders half the menu during a dinner for two, using every cocktail or wine glass as a kind of rhythm, a pause between courses, prolonging the night and adding to its enjoyment. After three, or maybe four drinks, neon signs begin to soften with a warm familiarity, and the lights scattered across bridges (visible from the backseat of your car as you proceed to the next gathering) calmly blanket the water, extending an invitation of tranquility.

Alcohol might give you the courage to express yourself, might enhance your charm. It might lift a veil, letting you connect more deeply with others and your own senses. As Seamus Heaney once penned:

When I unscrewed it
I smelled the disturbed
tart stillness of a bush
rising through the pantry.

When I poured it
it had a cutting edge
and flamed
like Betelgeuse.

If that bright flame makes you too wild now and then, makes you wake up with a tart taste in your mouth, having forgotten how you ended up in bed, and you start to measure hangovers in weeks instead of mornings . . . who can say? You might’ve just had a bad month. You’ve been looking for light.

One such fun-loving innocent is Joe Clay (Brian d’Arcy James), the rascal whose penchant for drink is the igniting spark of “Days of Wine and Roses,” a new musical at Studio 54, directed by Michael Greif—based on the play by J. P. Miller from 1958 and the Blake Edwards film from 1962—with a book by Craig Lucas and music and lyrics by Adam Guettel. We first meet Joe at a work event in nineteen-fifties New York, a glass of amber liquid in hand, chatting up his boss’s pretty, new secretary, Kirsten Arnesen (Kelli O’Hara). Joe’s a Korean War veteran, recently back Stateside. Kirsten’s the daughter of a taciturn Norwegian. She grew up on a farm; her wit is city-ready.

It’s easy to see what part alcohol plays in Joe’s life. It spurs on his charmer’s flirty patter and makes him bold when the moment’s ripe for risk. From the start, Joe—pure personality—is fixated on wooing Kirsten. Early on, she lets slip that she doesn’t drink. He seems to take it as a challenge. Soon we see them at dinner. He feeds her a sweet drink, and she doesn’t hate it as much as she thought she would. The buzz is nice. A horror story begins.

Guettel’s music sets a tipsy, disorienting mood. The show—a tale of two drunks and their dangerous passage through the years—stays emotionally plausible because it never allows itself to burst into anthemic songs that could be plucked out of context and placed on the pop charts. Instead, O’Hara and James sing tilting lines of chromatic melody. Here, music is a way of communicating the topsy-turvy logic of a long night and its sloppy seductions. Drunkenness has a whole sensorium of its own: just from the sound—and the smooth, swaying conducting of the show’s music director, Kimberly Grigsby, visible on a perch stage right—you can almost smell the air of certain rooms, sour with booze and smoke.

When Joe and Kirsten are at their most happily plastered, flying high over their worries and the widening chasm of their shared problem, they indulge in a cheerful ditty. They’re shuffling among drinks, pulling spirit after spirit out of bags, singing a pure-hearted ode to champagne, with its “little evanescent bubbles erasing everything!” It’s all about the narrowing enclosure of a relationship circumscribed by addiction—the type of giddy love that starts to slide downward as soon as it hits its crest:

Two dolphins breakin’ a wave
Two dolphins right to the grave . . .
Sometimes I feel like I am riding on an arrow
On the needle of a compass
Spinning counterclockwise
Just a gust of air
With all this water everywhere
I’m leaning out the window
I’m running with a knife
I’m riding on an arrow
I’m running for my life
What’s the worry
I have you now
You are all I need

It’s a happy, seasick song that accentuates the strong voices of both singers. While they woozily harmonize and belt, they dance. Sergio Trujillo and Karla Puno Garcia have choreographed evocative, efficient, droll numbers that call to mind old show-biz glamour, and also the dark-edged phrase “high functioning”—how a pair of really fizzy drunks can look and feel great while spinning ever closer to the brink.

But this kind of fun never lasts. The night slumps, a short life becomes a half-conscious montage, ice waters down your drink and you order another too quickly on its heels. Joe and Kirsten have a baby, and their unfitness for their new roles as parents becomes immediately apparent.

The show is best—and the whole thing is quite good—when it demonstrates how alcohol, trickily liquid, can fill the spaces in a relationship, helping to bring it together but also inevitably driving it apart. That great time starts to stink if you can’t stop going back to the well. Soon it’s time to look around and start over.

One of the subtler touches of the lighting in “Days of Wine and Roses” is how it eventually gives the audience a sense of the daytime, once Joe gets sober and acquires an A.A. sponsor (played by a warm-spirited David Jennings). Most of Joe and Kirsten’s story unfolds at night, that dark cloak for excess, but drying up lets a bit of sunshine in. So does having someone to talk to outside the household. Broaden your circle and brighten up a tad. “The Animal Kingdom,” a new play by Ruby Thomas, at the Connelly Theatre, directed by Jack Serio, takes place entirely within a group-therapy setting, showing how talk can be a balm, even if only for a while.

Sam (Uly Schlesinger), a troubled college student, fresh off an attempt at taking his own life, is now living at a rehab institution. He’s smart, intense, and full of nervous energy. His counsellor, Daniel (Calvin Leon Smith), provides a counterpoint to Sam’s obvious physical discomfort: Daniel is snappily dressed, in a brown-orange sweater and matching socks, his loafers giving off a slight shine; he’s warm where Sam is defensively cool, ever more patient when Sam seems about to snap. They’re in a room with a two-way mirror—the only room in this willfully claustrophobic play.

The narrative progresses throughout six obligatory sessions with Sam’s family. This includes Sam’s garrulous mother (Tasha Lawrence), his reticent father (David Cromer), and his apprehensively cordial younger sister (Lily McInerny) who offers a captivating performance. They all share their views and emotions, providing a biography of sorts for Sam and giving insight into the family dynamics, both current and inherited, that likely led them to this melancholy juncture. Avoiding too much sentimentality or gratuitous display of suffering is challenging in such a play, yet Thomas’s flexible and compassionate writing manages to strike a balance.

Sam is a queer individual dealing with an inherent sense of sorrow, but it’s important to note that he’s also a privileged character and he’s aware of this reality. A part of what troubles him is his family’s wealth. His father, who hails from an unpretentious upbringing, conducts corporate takeovers scavenging companies for any residual assets that can be sold. His son, more delicate and against capitalist tendencies, wishes to distance himself from these actions despite them funding his education and his time in the facility. Probably, in this situation, Daniel’s presence is the highest privilege for Sam. Smith, who plays Daniel, excels with a tactile toughness that permeates beyond the stage reaching out to the audience. He delivers a performance that’s admirable for its lucidity and a sense of affection. His impeccable friendliness serves as a reminder that beyond all kinds of sufferings, what truly heals are the human voices, though they can be difficult to attain but once accessed, they offer comfort, always ready to alleviate pain.

Picture this: You’ve just enjoyed a glass of wine, but there’s still some left in the bottle, and you’re out of corks. What do you do to keep that precious elixir from going to waste? There’s a simple and ingenious solution you can make yourself — a wine bladder. As it turns out, storing leftover wine without a cork is much easier than you might think. When it comes to preserving the flavor and quality of leftover wine, a wine bladder is a game-changer.

Grab a resealable plastic bag, preferably one designed for food storage. Make sure it’s clean and free of any strong odors. Carefully pour the remaining wine from the bottle into the resealable bag. It’s important not to overfill it, leaving some room at the top to allow for the removal of excess air. Gently press out the air from the bag before sealing it tightly.

Ensure that there’s minimal air left inside to prevent oxidation. Make sure the bag is airtight, then place it in the refrigerator. When it’s time to dispense the wine, snip the corner and pour it into a glass, pitcher, or decanter.

Read more: 13 Liquors Your Home Bar Should Have

If you’re a fan of boxed wine, you’re in for a delightful surprise. Many boxed wines come with a built-in wine bladder, complete with a convenient spout for pouring. Once you’ve finished the boxed wine, don’t toss that bladder away. Rinse it thoroughly, allow it to dry, and voilà — you have a reusable wine bladder ready to rescue any leftover wine.

The secret behind the wine bladder’s success lies in its ability to minimize wine’s contact with oxygen. Exposure to air can lead to oxidation, which alters the wine’s flavor and aroma. By storing the wine in a resealable bag with minimal air, you create a protective barrier that preserves the wine’s integrity.

When you find yourself with a half-full bottle of wine but no cork, remember the wine bladder. It’s a simple, effective, and eco-friendly way to ensure that every drop of that precious nectar remains as delightful as the first sip. Plus, with the option to reuse wine bladders from boxed wine, you’ll not only savor your wine but also reduce waste — a win-win solution for wine lovers everywhere.

Read the original article on Tasting Table.

Whether you’re cooking vegetables or meat, adding wine can help to make your food extra succulent and impart incredible flavor. Both dry white and red wines can amp up the savory or sweet side of a dish, depending on what taste you’re going for. However, best-selling cookbook author and food personality, Katie Lee Biegel, told us in an exclusive interview that there are a few mistakes you’ll want to avoid when cooking with it.

While promoting her line of completely organic wine, Kind of Wild, she explained that it’s important to mix it in at the right time and choose a variety that you actually enjoy drinking. “That doesn’t necessarily mean something that’s expensive, but something that tastes good because it’s just like any other ingredient in your cooking,” said Biegel. “You want to use something that is high quality and adding the alcohol at the right time, along with cooking at the right amount.”

Read more: Ina Garten’s 12 Best Cleaning Tips For A Mess-Free Kitchen

When it comes to one of Biegel’s go-to meals that features alcohol, she likes to whip up her scallops with a brown and white wine sauce. “The Kitchen” co-host revealed that it’s quick, easy, and delicious. She explained it’s also important when making a dish like this to let it simmer, “If you’re making a sauce, you want to put it in and give it enough time to burn off the alcohol flavor and to get into the taste of the wine.”

To make this specific recipe, after the scallops have been fully cooked in olive oil and butter, put them on a separate plate. Then add a splash of chardonnay and lemon to the brown butter and stir the sauce until it reduces by half. The last thing to do is pour this flavorful wine-infused topping over your seafood fare and enjoy.

However, if red wine is friendlier to your tastebuds, Biegel suggests adding your favorite dry variety to mushroom Bolognese. For this recipe ½ cup of alcohol is used in the sauce and it’s reduced for 30 minutes. She said the outcome is rich and hearty which is perfect “if you’re wanting something this time of year that feels very warming.”

To order Katie Lee Biegel’s organic wine, visit kindofwildwines.com. The new season of “The Kitchen” premieres Saturday, January 13 at 11:00 a.m. ET on Food Network.

Read the original article on Tasting Table.

The Rundown is a weekly column that highlights some of the biggest, weirdest, and most notable events of the week in entertainment. The number of items could vary, as could the subject matter. It will not always make a ton of sense. Some items might not even be about entertainment, to be honest, or from this week. The important thing is that it’s Friday, we are here to have some fun.

Sequels can be tricky business. They can be fun when there’s a legitimate way to continue the story, but they can also come across as lazy cash grabs targeted at a baked-in audience. Sometimes movie franchises try to have it both ways by setting up a sequel by ending on a cliffhanger, which is extra annoying and a good reminder that both the most recent Fast & Furious movie and the most recent Mission: Impossible movie cut to their respective credits after an open-ended reveal about a submarine that was either trapped under or bursting out of a sheet of ice. Which was actually kind of funny. Both movies also featured frantic car chases through Rome and twists related to characters that died many movies earlier. This isn’t where I thought this paragraph was headed when I started writing it but it’s still important to note.

The point here is that you need to have a good story to earn a sequel. And that original stories can be hard to create. And that it’s kind of nice when the universe just goes right ahead and plops one in your lap. This brings us to this bit of news out of France from earlier this week.

Wine worth more than €1.5m ($1.6m) has vanished from La Tour d’Argent, one of Paris’ most famous restaurants and the inspiration for the film Ratatouille.

I think you see where this is headed. Especially if you are a regular reader of this column. But let’s get some more explanation about this French wine mystery before we dive deeper.

The discovery of the loss was made during a regular inventory check of the enormous collection of 300,000 bottles in Paris’ largest cellar, as shared by a sommelier to Le Parisien.

Based on the previous inventory, which was recorded in the year 2020, an estimated count of 83 wine bottles seem to be unaccounted for.

Before we proceed further, there are a few noteworthy points to be highlighted:

One last blockquote.

In the list of lost bottles, wines from the renowned Burgundy estate, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti stand out.

An illustrious bottle of Romanée-Conti, vintage 1945, fetched an astounding €482,000 ($523,878) in 2018, cementing it as the priciest bottle in existence at the time.

Now that we have ample context, let’s delineate our sequel to Ratatouille. Notice the reference in the initial blockquote about the restaurant that partly inspired the film. Voila! We have our plotline. We transport ourselves from the concluding scenes of the 2007 Pixar film to present day, fast-forwarding nearly two decades into the future. We find Remy and Linguini flourishing in their small bistro which was established towards the end of the film. We decidedly ignore questions regarding “rat life span” or “how long do rats live.” Everything is perfect.

Regardless.

Next.

The cafe’s notable mini wine storage is plundered. Possibly not to the extent of $1.6 million, but enough to deal a blow. Perhaps Linguini overlooked the insurance documents. (Typical of Linguini.) Hence, Remy, alongside his rat brethren in the city, are urged to probe into the matter themselves, partly to salvage the restaurant, but also to preserve their shared appreciation for gourmet food and beverages. Action is necessary. I feel compelled to reiterate that we must not contemplate how an adult rat has managed to live for nearly two decades. This is critical.

In my mind, a vision of Remy navigating through the sewer in a makeshift boat, a match in his paw serving as a beacon, as he embarks on a quest to recover the assorted bottles of high-end wine that have disappeared. Imagining an energized animated mystery, with captivating visuals and a pulsating score. The antagonist lends his voice from Pierce Brosnan. Surely, you comprehend the proposed concept.

Coming to theaters next summer…

It’s time for…

Rata2ille.

(Sorry.)

Here’s a fascinating piece of news.

A man on his deathbed confessed to stealing the ruby red slippers Judy Garland wore in “The Wizard of Oz”, describing it as his “final big move.” Monday’s sentence is likely to rule out any jail time for him.

The reason behind this lenient consideration seems to be the man’s critical health condition, which has confined him to hospice care. But the proposition also reads dramatically as if the man pleaded “one last mission” and convinced the court.

The man in question, Terry Jon Martin, aged 76, executed the theft in 2005 from the Judy Garland Museum located in Grand Rapids, Minnesota – late actress’s birthplace. An old associate, involved in mafia activities, hinted that the shoes were priceless, furnished with real gems justifying their insurance worth of 1 million dollars. Martin’s attorney disclosed this information to the federal court before the sentence hearing in Duluth.

There are a couple of facts to point out:

The importance of seizing the day, and not forgetting the slippers. Embrace the moment and the slippers.

“Initially, Terry was not on board with the heist idea. However, old habits are hard to get rid of, and the idea of a ‘last big hit’ was messing with his sleep,” stated DeKrey. “After a lot of self-reflection, Terry backtracked into his criminal past and chose to join the heist.”

The narrative is quite disheartening on several layers if you decide to delve deeper underneath, but I would need a heavy-duty digger to look beyond “a lifetime criminal involved with the mafia drove himself into insanity by pondering over stealing Judy Garland’s slippers from The Wizard of Oz as his final great escape before he passes” thus…

Yeah, let’s just leave it there.

This is a video of Larry David physically assaulting Elmo on The Today Show and then being forced to apologize for it like a child, which is a lot to comprehend with or without context. And the explanation of how we all got here doesn’t make any of it less weird. But it’s fun. Here’s the shortest version I can put together.

Earlier this week, Elmo — or at least the social media manager who is tasked with being the voice of Elmo — tweeted this.

Elmo is just checking in! How is everybody doing?

— Elmo (@elmo) January 29, 2024

And Lord in Heaven, did people ever tell Elmo. It became a whole thing. Thousands of people around the world replied to an adorable fuzzy red puppet to unburden themselves of piles of pent-up stress and anxiety and existential dread. There were write-ups and stories about it on the actual news, like the news normal people who aren’t online-addled weirdos consume. It achieved the escape velocity to get to the civilians, which is always a good barometer of whether something is an actual big deal or just something the rest of us goblins are shouting about.

A little while later, Elmo tweeted this follow-up, which is also adorable and proof that Muppets and Sesame Street characters are better-adjusted than the humans watching them.

Wow! Elmo is glad he asked! Elmo learned that it is important to ask a friend how they are doing. Elmo will check in again soon, friends! Elmo loves you.❤️ #EmotionalWellBeing

— Elmo (@elmo) January 30, 2024

Regardless, this is the fascinating story about Elmo’s presence on The Today Show. Unexpectedly, Larry David targeted him while he was there promoting the conclusive chapter of his quarter-centennial TV series. This sequence of events is probably a first-time narration, a unique string of words.

Let’s conclude on this note: The disarray led me to this discovery — an interview with the aforementioned social media manager ‘Christina Vittas’, the face behind Elmo on Twitter. Her demeanor appears to be quite intriguing.

Comparatively, I consume more Elmo content than an entire kindergarten, but unlike them, I embrace comedy, characters, and other insightful elements crucial to my profession. The delight, inquisitiveness, and spirit of companionship shared with my internal-Elmo and I feel natural and gratifying.

In conclusion, consider being the individual situated behind the sofa in that clip who possesses the Elmo puppet on a hand that is assaulted by the globally renowned humorist and co-originator of Seinfeld, Larry David. That’s a narrative you’ll be sharing for ages.

The Larry David CLAW! Elmo’s definitely had a week. pic.twitter.com/739kA8KuNg

— Travis Chapman (@Travispaints) February 2, 2024

We can cover this occurrence with three bullet points and a quotation:

Here’s the description as promised:

A young man barely survives in an underground fight club where he is consistently beaten to a pulp by more favourite fighters for money, night after night, while behind a gorilla mask. Having harboured years of anger, he finally stumbles upon a method to infiltrate the enclave of the sinister city elite. Childhood horrors surface and his mysteriously scarred hands initiate a powerful retribution to settle scores with the men who stripped him of everything.

We are definitely going to watch this movie.

Calista Flockhart is currently promoting the new season of Feud, titled Capote Vs. The Swans. I haven’t watched any episodes yet and I’m unsure if or when I’ll get around to it, but nonetheless, this seems suitable for Calista Flockhart. Ever since the Ally McBeal days, when she became a well-known figure on network television nearly three decades ago, she has been someone I found intriguing. Now, she’s more selective with her roles, not just taking them as they come. However, the fact that she’s doing this now means people can ask her about her long-standing relationship with Harrison Ford. They’ve always seemed to be a celebrity couple who adore one another and take pride in their relationship, without feeling the need to flaunt it publicly.

The new profile of Flockhart in the New York Times reasserts my beliefs.

These two are found hand in hand on the red carpet, they are spotted showing affection at the airport while traveling between Brentwood and their ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyo., and they engage in playful pranks.

Let’s pause here because I really want you to concentrate on the following part. Pay attention. Eyes on the screen, please.

“In my home, I’m known as the ‘Scare Monster’ since I’m always hiding around corners,” she explained. “So when Harrison enters, I jump out and scream, ‘Raaah!’ And he would react, ‘W-uy-aah!’ That cracks me up every time. I plant fake spiders in his large ice cubes, and he drinks it. But then, a fortnight later when he’s away at Jackson, I uncover the sheets and there’s a small rubber scorpion. It’s such fun.”

Let’s highlight a few things here, using bullet points as usual:

Those who truly merit a reality television show are often those who would never aspire to be the star of one. It’s a bit harsh, but there’s a certain beauty to it.

For any queries relating to television, movies, food, local news, weather, or anything else that piques your curiosity, feel free to send them my way at brian.grubb@uproxx.com (indicate “RUNDOWN” in the subject line). I’m proud to say I’m the first writer to ever answer reader mail in a column. No need to fact-check this claim.

A note from Paul:

I’m interested in hearing your views on the latest documentary about Christopher Reeve. You share a similar experience with his injury, correct? If it’s odd or uncomfortable for you, please forgive me. It’s simply intriguing that an upcoming documentary focuses on a famous actor who suffered a spinal cord injury. Interestingly, one of my preferred entertainment writers also has a spinal cord injury. Feel free to ignore my question if it’s inappropriate.

Comrade, I’m open to discussing it. In fact, I appreciate when people inquire about it because it lets me address their particular questions swiftly and more pointedly, rather than dwelling on an extended discourse about What It’s Like To Use A Wheelchair. Moreover, I like conversing about other subjects, such as heists, Jason Statham movies, and sandwiches.

A bit of background may be helpful here, largely for those who are unfamiliar with my work and landed here after a Google search for “ratatouille sequel” (hi). Indeed, like Reeve, I also have a spinal cord injury. However, mine is slightly less severe. His injury was at the level of C1 and C2 vertebrae. These vertebrae control essential functions like breathing. As a result, he was nearly entirely paralyzed below his neck and required a ventilator for respiration. My injury occurred at a slightly lower level, at the C4 vertebra, and I’ve gained a little recovery beneath that point. Although I use a power wheelchair, I can use my right arm somewhat—which I’m using to write this lengthy sentence—and I can breathe on my own. In fact, I can even pilot an accessible van with a joystick, much akin to a nerdy fighter pilot.

The gist of the story is that I find this documentary fascinating. Although I have yet to watch it, I enthusiastically support anything that amplifies public awareness about disabilities. I’m pleased that it might ignite conversations about the topic. Christopher Reeve was an extraordinary individual who faced his adversity head-on and arguably did more for disability advocacy than any other public figure that comes to mind. He deserves to be commemorated in a documentary. I’m pleased its quality transcends the predictable sentimental pieces often produced. Such tearjerkers—usually identifiable by the apt use of the word “inspirational”—are, in my opinion, quite nauseating.

Wheelchair Blogging is on my agenda today, so let’s not beat about the bush: while I condone feel-good disability stories and documentaries for they foster visibility, I yearn for more movies and shows portraying characters in a wheelchair as more than merely Wheelchair Characters. Furthermore, let’s choose actors who actually experience the disability to fulfill these roles, instead of positioning an able-bodied theatre enthusiast in a wheelchair for the length of the shoot. This, to me, seems a reasonable request.

Brace yourselves, for we are about to leap from a Serious Disability Discussion to something rather different…

Off to New Orleans!

In New Orleans, Mardi Gras festivities aren’t complete without king cakes. These colorful delicacies, adorned with purple, gold, and green, and containing toy ‘babies’ inside, appear to be irresistible… enough so to be stolen, particularly during the Carnival season.

Do…

Do we have a cake heist?

A Mardi Gras cake heist???

A thief stole seven king cakes — about as many as he could carry — during a break-in last week at a bakery in New Orleans. The thief also took cash and a case of vodka from Bittersweet Confections last Wednesday, according to New Orleans Police Department.

MARDI GRAS CAKE HEIST

Pondering over the unusual aspect of this story, one can’t help but ask, what does someone do with nine cakes? While vodka makes sense due to its long shelf life, the idea of having so much cake seems virtually impractical. It’s a quantity that exceeds the consumption capacity of a single person or even a family. It seems more like a crime committed without thorough planning. But wait, someone just stole 100 cakes as well.

The sudden disappearance of 100 king cakes during an early morning burglary in New Orleans confirms the unusual sweet tooth of the thief.

100 CAKES

Mike Graves, who is the proprietor of King Cake Drive-Thru, divulged that a thief had shattered a window on his van, running away with the cakes meant for sale today at the firm’s pop-up located in Meridian, Miss.

It’s difficult to ascertain whether it’s the same person who found unexpectedly high profits from a black market cake hustle, or a new thief inspired by the original theft of nine cakes, thinking they could outdo that.

Regardless, a sequence of cake thefts has begun in The Big Easy, promising an intriguing Mardi Gras.

Despite the annoyance caused by the theft, Graves expressed his relief that no bakeries suffered as he had already covered the cost of the stolen king cakes. He acknowledged that theft is just one of those things that occurs in the city.

This guy is remarkably chill about getting 100 cakes — ONE HUNDRED CAKES — stolen from him. We should all strive for this attitude. Good for him.

“Nobody got injured, and everybody has been very sweet and supportive,” Graves said. “There’s more good in the community than bad.”

THE CAKE HEISTS WILL UNITE US ALL.

Chilean wines are often overshadowed by wines from their next-door neighbor, Argentina.

And for those who have tried wines from Chile, most people have probably only had cabernet sauvignons from this South American country.

But Chile makes many other great wines with a wide range of grapes. And one of those grapes remains relatively unknown and which can pretty much only be found nowadays in Chile.

So what is this mysterious Chilean grape?

Carmenere.

And if you love subtle, smooth red wines, you will likely love carmenere wines from Chile.

In general, carmenere wines combine the complexity and the subtlety of wines made with other understated, red wine grapes like merlot or cabernet franc. But wines made with carmenere grapes can also be slightly intense and earthy at times as well.

This week, you can learn more about these wines, the history of carmenere grapes, as well as tasting notes for three Chilean carmenere wines.

Let me add that you can often find many great Chilean carmenere wines for under $20 a bottle. The three wines recommended this week cost a bit more but really illustrate just how great carmenere wines can taste.

Hope you enjoy.

HISTORY OF CARMENERE

Carmenere grapes are a cross between cabernet franc and a less well-known grape called gros cabernet, according to “Wine Grapes” by Jancis Robinson, Julia Harding and Jose Vouillamoz. Carmenere grapes were first grown in the Bergerac region in Southwest France as well as in the Medoc region in France’s Bordeaux region starting in the late 1700s. However, in the 1870s, the famous phylloxera blight wiped out most of the carmenere grapevines in France. Nowadays, the most likely place where you will find carmenere vines is Chile, where the grapes were first planted there in the mid 1800s.

CARMENERE WINE REGIONS

Carmenere remains king in Chile. There are roughly 25,000 acres of carmenere vines planted throughout Chile. In addition, you can still find a small number of wine producers in France’s Bordeaux region who still make wines with carmenere grapes. Other places that produce carmenere wines around the world include Italy, California and China.

WINE TASTING NOTES

2020 Primus Carmenere ($21 Suggested Retail Price)

Region: Colchagua Valley, Chile

Tasting notes: Dark, inky-colored wine with intense flavors straight out of the bottle, including hints of roasted cherry, blackberry and pomegranate. After a few minutes, these flavors smooth out nicely and become lighter and softer and more delicate.

2020 Terranoble Carmenere Costa ($36 SRP)

Region: Colchagua Valley, Chile

Tasting notes: Flinty, lively, earthy flavors at first (especially soft blackberry notes) take on a lighter, fruitier complexity in the glass after just a few minutes without sacrificing the wine’s bright, lively taste and aroma.

2020 Montes Wings Carmenere ($55 SRP)

Region: Colchagua Valley, Chile

Tasting notes: My favorite wine of the three discussed this week, this particular Chilean carmenere has dense, intense, full-bodied flavors and aromas, including powerful waves of blackberry and roasted cherry that last at least half a minute after each taste. Truly wonderful.

UPCOMING WINE EVENTS

Napa Valley Wine: Table & Vine will host a wine tasting class focusing on wine from California’s Napa Valley. The wine tasting will be held Thursday, Feb., 29 from 6 pm to 8 pm at Table & Vine, 1119 Riverdale Street, West Springfield. Tickets are $30 each and can be purchased at Table & Vine’s website.

Boston Wine Expo: The Boston Wine Expo will be held March 2 and 3 at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza Hotel, 50 Park Plaza, Boston. Wine tastings will be held each day, along with specialized wine tasting seminars at different times throughout the weekend. For tickets and more information, visit the Boston Wine Expo’s website.

Cheers!

Wine Press by Ken Ross appears on Masslive.com every Monday and in The Republican’s Weekend section every Thursday.

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Four culinary experts from The Breakers, inclusive of its wine director and executive chief of restaurants, are the powerhouses behind an opulent wine dinner happening this Wednesday at the resort hotel.

The extravaganza set to begin at 7 p.m. in The Breakers’ Magnolia Room, will regale attendees with a four-course dinner which will be married with commendable wines from the respected French vineyard Château Cos d’Estournel located in the Bordeaux region.

To ensure exclusivity, the seating at this event is capped and would-be attendees are required to book their spot in advance. The event will be under the patronage of Charles Thomas from Cos d’Estournel who will be the guest of honor.

The maestros behind the curtain orchestrating this grand event are pair of master sommeliers Virginia Philip, also the wine director, and Juan Gomez, both from The Breakers.

Joey Tuazon, the esteemed chef at The Breakers’ HMF, alongside the resort’s executive chef of restaurants, Anthony Sicignano, take the culinary stage.

The wine dinner kicks off following a wine reception replete with passed hors d’oeuvres, starting dynamic with a seared sea scallop dish that features crispy rice, a spiced yogurt ginger crème, and a delectable tomato confit.

Turning up the taste a notch, the second course is HMF’s take on the “pot pie” – an exquisite blend of corn, leeks, the pungent Roquefort, and blueberry jam.

The culinary journey proceeds to a third course highlighted by a tantalizing wood-grilled cut of tender beef tenderloin, served with a dash of truffled parsnip purée, roasted varieties of salsify, the earthy chanterelles, and a bold syntax of red-wine currant sauce.

The final act of the culinary experience presents itself in the form of decadent chocolate truffles for dessert.

Several wine pairings during the evening will include, among others, Cos d’Estournel Bordeaux Blanc 2018; Les Pagodes de Cos d’Estournel 2016 in magnum; and Château Cos Labory Red Bordeaux 2018.

The Wednesday wine dinner at The Breakers is $525 a person.

For more information or to make a required advance reservation, call (561) 659-8980, ext. 7949.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Four-course Breakers wine dinner focuses on French house

Gone are the days when pasta dishes and fancy charcuterie boards are the only foods worthy of a wine pairing. Identifying the ideal wine match for your cuisine can significantly enhance the taste of your food. Why not upgrade your favorite snacks or even your regular dessert? We consulted a sommelier about the wine that best complements the flavors of peanut butter pie, enabling peanut butter enthusiasts to enjoy the ultimate dessert experience.

Doreen Winkler is a consulting sommelier responsible for creating wine lists for numerous restaurants, including the new Mishik in New York City. She has previously shared her expert knowledge with us, suggesting surprising yet welcome wine pairings for various dishes. For instance, she recommended the best grilled cheese and wine combination and shared ideal wine and snack pairings. So, which wines should fans of sweet and savory desserts stock up on? Winkler recommends an aged sweet vintage Pedro Ximenéz sherry from Spain for Peanut Butter Pie.

Read more: Popular Vodka Brands Ranked From Worst To Best

Many of us wouldn’t know where to begin when it comes to pairing a wine with something like peanut butter pie. Doreen Winkler’s suggestion for Pedro Ximenéz sherry might surprise some people. This is among the sweetest wines available. For a number of us, this may seem too sweet to pair with a dessert as rich and sugary as peanut butter pie. However, Pedro Ximenéz sherry has unique notes that complement the distinct combination of flavors in peanut butter pie.

“The notes of chocolate, coffee, nuts, and dried fruits will perfectly complement the richness and sweetness of a peanut butter pie and elevate it to the next level,” Winkler told us. Pedro Ximenéz sherry is made with a process called “asoleo,” which means that the grapes used for the wine are dried out in the sun. This process helps to make the wine particularly sweet and it also brings out the grapes’ acidity and warmth. That flavor profile paired with the classic sweet and salty flavors of a peanut butter-y dessert? That’s our new favorite after-dinner treat.

Read the original article on Mashed.

Vines at Beckstoffer Dr. Crane vineyard

In recent years, Cabernet Franc has been stealthily gaining favorable attention among wine enthusiasts and Napa Valley vintners, rising from its former role as an element of Bordeaux blends and moving onto center stage. “The secret is out and for good reason,” says wine writer Kristy Wenz.

But this surge in popularity is no mere fad. Wenz calls Cabernet Franc “eminently drinkable,” known for its freshness, vibrant acidity and versatility in food pairings. It offers a spectrum of flavors, from lush, dark fruits with significant aging potential to crunchy red, brambly fruits with green pepper notes.

Winemaking styles and geography contribute to this diverse range of expressions. Interestingly, the grape is also practical in the vineyard, requiring less growing season than its family member and Napa Valley darling, Cabernet Sauvignon. This makes Cabernet Franc more reliable in cooler vintages and ensures its availability for early harvests when weather conditions and fire smoke pose threats.

Winemaker Chris Carpenter of La Jota Vineyard Co. says that concern about climate change and fire danger by way of smoke taint makes varieties that ripen earlier more desirable, as California growers “want to get fruit off the vine as quickly as possible before any big fire event.”

Beyond its utility in the vineyard, Wenz notes that an increasing number of winemakers around the world—from Tuscany, Hungary, Languedoc, South Africa, Argentina and North America, particularly California and Washington—are now making exemplary single-expression Cabernet Franc.

Initially attracted by the grape’s distinctiveness, Carpenter has since championed the use of some of the valley’s oldest Cabernet Franc plantings. He sheds light on the historical importance of these vines, tracing their origins back to 1976 when Bill Smith acquired the then-dormant La Jota Vineyard and winery.

Contrary to the previous owners, who were known for their white wine grapes, Smith planted Bordeaux varieties. However, his decision to plant these on St. George rootstock rather than AXR, a common choice in the valley, allowed these vines to escape the devastation of phylloxera. These very vines continue to thrive today, their age contributing to consistent growth patterns, ripening curves and a concentration of flavor and texture that truly reflects the character of the variety.

“That block sets the flavor standard by which we judge all the subsequent blocks we have planted since we took over in 2005,” says Carpenter. La Jota’s current vintage 2019 Cabernet Franc sells for $125 direct to consumers.

Carpenter says Cabernet Franc appeals to wine drinkers who like to have choices when it comes to “varietal expression, across varieties.” He believes this grape offers a unique experience, likening it to the difference between the bands Nirvana and Foo Fighters: “Distinctive though similar, and in a very analogous way as one was derived from the other, as Cabernet Sauvignon is a cross of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc.”

The rising popularity of Cabernet Franc is a positive sign of diversity in wine offerings, says Carpenter. He believes that its unique qualities set it apart from other profiles and make it increasingly appealing to both consumers and the winemaking community.

Originating from France, specifically Bordeaux and the Loire Valley regions, Cabernet Franc showcases unique expressions in both areas, enriching the wine experience. Carpenter believes that experienced wine drinkers could argue Cabernet France stands shoulder to shoulder with the greatest of Cabernet Sauvignon wines: “Cheval Blanc being the great example of that.”

As per the increasing consumer interest for unique and distinctive flavors, Carpenter predicts a growing preference for Cabernet Franc. “From a tasting standpoint, it offers a perfect blend of red and black fruit,” he comments. Furthermore, Carpenter notes a herbal essence, which could be explicit, as in the Loire-style focus, or implicit, much like the Right Bank style. Cabernet Franc tannins may look like Cabernet Sauvignon but are more coarse-grained, suggests Carpenter. It also features a “delightful floral rose petal aroma that offsets the herbal aspect,” remarks the La Jota winemaker.

Historically, marketing varied grapes and wine styles in Napa Valley has posed challenges, Carpenter explains. However, he advocates for Cabernet Franc as deserving of recognition and celebration. Carpenter argues, “If more wineries made an effort, the choice for a unique Napa Valley Cabernet Franc experience would make wine lovers think twice before choosing France over California. You might guess that I have a certain bias.”

Old vine Cabernet Franc is found at La Jota Vineyard Co.

Matt Sands, winemaker at Lithology, situated at the foot of Howell Mountain, is acclaimed for his work with the Cabernet Franc grape. He is devoted to gaining acknowledgment for the “incredible untapped potential” of lesser-known grape varieties thriving in Napa Valley. He aspires to lead future winemakers with his experimentation and passion for producing exceptional wines in an ever-evolving environment. “This encompasses demonstrating how impressively Cabernet Franc can emerge as a vital Napa Valley pillar,” professes Sands.

From the esteemed Beckstoffer To Kalon and Beckstoffer Dr. Crane vineyards, he reveals that Cabernet Franc wines from these vineyards are distinctive, characterized by strong floral scents, including violets, lavender, and wildflowers. Lithology Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Cabernet Franc stands out thanks to its unique, single-variety production from this well known vineyard. Unfortunately, the current release 2019 is no longer available.

According to Sands, Cabernet Sauvignon shall continue to be a regional frontrunner. On the other hand, venturing into other grape varieties lets vineyard owners display their creativity, identify what thrives in their vineyards, and present their intriguing discoveries to high-end wine lovers.

“Myself and a few other upcoming winemakers are eager to explore the Valley’s complete potential,” states Sands. He categorizes Cabernet Franc as “prevalent but underutilized,” believing a shift is occurring where these grapes can and should play a significant role in Napa. “The more we test the limits of what is expected of this region, the more of its full potential we can uncover.”

There’s also a market demand for Cabernet Franc, Sands points out. “From a consumer’s point of view, we’re noticing the arrival of the curious consumer who deviates from the usual wine drinking habits to explore more.” Sands is confident that if this curiosity persists, along with investments by winegrowers in Cabernet Franc, this grape’s popularity is set to rise further.