Domenica 22/5/2011 in occasione della manifestazione Educational “I tesori della Riviera 2011” si terrà a Bordighera una grande degustazione delle ultime annate di Rossese di Dolceacqua DOC.  Io ci sarò e siccome la tecnologia avanza, proverò a documentare alcuni momenti dell’evento attraverso un live streaming sul mio canale http://bambuser.com/channel/rizzus a partire dalle 10:30  e attraverso Twitter mediante l’hashtag #rossese 2011.
May come ora STAY TUNED!
Luk
Ho una passione particolare per il Ciliegiolo. Si tratta di uno dei miei vitigni preferiti, non tanto per le qualità del vino che produce, quanto per il suo carattere spavaldo ed esuberante. Dalle mie parti dove prosperano felicemente, le piante di Ciliegiolo sono sempre le più sane e opulente, ricche di grappoli e generose. Non sembrano essere particolarmente suscettibili alle malattie, se non un po’ all’oidio e in annate piovose alla botrite a causa della compattezza del grappolo mai spargolo. Amano posizioni ben soleggiate e ventilate. I grappoli sono bellissimi, scuri, non troppo grandi come invece sono gli acini. Le foglie sono ampie, di solito pentalobate e con una bella dentellatura, di colore verde chiaro. Come altri vitigni italiani il ciliegiolo è ricchissimo di antociani e tannini, questi ultimi non finissimi di solito, per cui il vino che se ne ricava tende ad avere carattere di rusticità . Per contro il contenuto zuccherino è sempre elevato, e l’acidità non alta, per cui è il vitigno ideale per impianti di resa elevata e per produrre grandi quantità di vino che comunque avrà abbastanza alcol, profumi ed estratto, e non sarà mai troppo acido. Continue reading
What do you do when floods have invaded your wine cellar? It’s a question many victims of the recent Australian inundations are asking. After his cellar was flooded, one Brisbane restaurateur is reported to have dumped 2000 bottles of top shelf wine as undrinkable.
Unsaleable maybe, but I wouldn’t agree that flood ravaged bottles are undrinkable. And no way would I dump them. (Unless the insurance people insisted, that is.)
A couple of (sceptical?) correspondents have asked whether my weight loss regime took a dive over the Christmas festivities. The answer, strangely, is no. Continue reading
A dark and stormy moussaka
One evening, many decades ago, the good Greek ship Ellinis was under full sail (poetic ain’t I?), somewhere in the North Atlantic. Most of the souls aboard were young Australians, en route to England to gain a bit of kulcher.
The sea was angry that night my friends – as George Costanza might have said. Storms were creating massive waves, and as the ship had no stabilisers we were rocking and rolling as we sat down to late dinner in the dining saloon. Continue reading
On a recent visit to my dentist I asked if he could institute a frequent filler program. He hadn’t thought about it but apparently his accountant’s computer answered in the negative.
As I tried unsuccessfully to whistle a happy tune through numbed lips, I decided that the following delicacies must be loved by the dental fraternity (and sorority).
Olives – the ones with the pits. Even pitted olives contain the odd tooth-cracker.
Toffee – a classic filling extractor. Not to mention boiled lollies, peanut brittle, seaside rock and gob-stoppers.
Animal bones – chewing on chops, chicken legs and t-bones is great for breaking canines. (Unless you’re a canine.)
Popcorn – unpopped kernels can bring a tear to anyone’s eyeteeth.
Rice and lentils – famous for crunchy stray bits of gravel. Continue reading
Écusson Grande Cidre de Normandie Brut 750ml – $10 – ˜˜˜***
Well, I wouldn’t call it brut – medium-dry maybe. Colour of weak black tea. Softly fizzy in the mouth with a winey appley nose. Ripe autumnal flavours. A soft and rich style of cider – moreish.
Brown Brothers Prosecco Extra Dry NV – $18 – ˜˜˜***
King Valley, Victoria. A light nose of pears and peaches. The palate is clean, flavoursome and mid-dry with a hint of citrus at the finish.
Clover Hill Méthode Traditionnelle 2006 – up to $47 – ˜˜˜˜****
Pipers River, Tasmania. Chardonnay 57%, pinot noir 36%, pinot meunier 7%. Aged on lees three years. Lemon tart, porcini mushrooms and bread oven nose. Light and crisp in the mouth, multi-layered with brioche, citrus zest and new season apricots on the palate. A mouth-watering aperitif style. Continue reading
E’ da un po’ di tempo che sto osservando un fenomeno in lenta ma costante crescita. Sembrava una cosa sepolta nel passato, relegata a qualche sottoscala semiclandestino, e invece piano piano la vendita del vino sfuso sta ritornando tra noi. Continue reading
Wine
For what it’s worth, I reckon that in 2011, Australian wine drinkers will get over their flirtation with New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.
My crystal decanter tells me that the trend will be towards stylish dry rosés, pinot gris, medium priced bubblies and pinot noir. Continue reading
Late September, I was feeling poorly and went to see the Doc. After endless tests he said, “We don’t know what you’ve got. It’s probably viral. Maybe it’ll go away.†(It did.)
He added scientific words to the effect of, “You’re no spring chicken though, and you do have slightly elevated blood sugar levels. If you don’t lift your game, in a few years you could become part of Australia’s Type 2 Diabetes epidemic.â€
He didn’t recommend a specific diet, merely suggested that I check out Diabetes Australia, lose weight, and avoid sugary stuff and carbohydrate-rich food. “Oh,†he went on, “You should also cut down on the booze intake and exercise regularly.†A sobering thought. Continue reading