Jay Lee – Page 47 – The Bald Heretic – Short, bald dude with a goofy beard

Santa Jaws

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My good friend Jim Henkel recorded a Christmas album 20 years ago called “The Jazz Carolers” which featured about 4 Christmas standards where he played all the instruments and performed all the vocals. We put it into the seasonal rotation here at the house come Christmas time as it’s a real joy to listen to.

Now, 20 years later Jim has released “Jazz Carolers – 2009” which is pretty much the same, 8 Christmas songs with Jim doing all the vocals and performing all the music. The production values are fantastic on this one and it’s includes one not so traditional Christmas song. The new CD contains what may be my new most favorite Christmas carol of all time – Santa Jaws

Give a listen using the embedded player or download the song from here.

The song is free to distribute so pass it along!

$100 Wine Challenge Comes To A Close

Final thoughts on the $100 Wine Challenge

Cynthia:

What have I learned from this wine challenge? First of all, I had a lot of fun with this challenge, more than I expected at the beginning- not only because I got to drink ten bottles of wine, but because I had this experience with Jay, and it was fun sharing our opinions and figuring out which wine we were going to try next and what we would serve it with. It was also fun having our Wine Sherpa, Gerald, select the wines, and getting his feedback and hearing from other people who were following along with the “Wine Challenge”. Hopefully we have empowered some other wine novices to get out there with an open mind and try something different.

And, I have learned that it is really possible to have a nice wine experience for a small amount of money. In other countries, sitting down with friends and family and opening a bottle of wine for dinner is not an unusual thing. I think that here in the United States, it tends to be more of a “special occasion” thing, where there is a lot of pressure to purchase an expensive bottle of wine. That’s a pity because we are really missing out. I’m not saying that we should all begin drinking wine every day, or drink irresponsibly, just that we should recognize that sharing a bottle of wine can be a fun addition to an “everyday” occasion. (Besides- the red wine has medicinal benefits !) Also, opening a bottle of wine does not necessarily mean that you need to drain the entire bottle. I’ve learned that cooking with wine can be fun. Adding a little wine to the right dish can enhance it. The alcohol evaporates during the cooking process, but the delicious flavor remains !

I’ve also learned that it doesn’t matter what anyone else, or any “expert” thinks about a particular grape, or a particular type of wine, or winery. At the end of the day, the opinion that counts is mine. There is no “right” or “wrong”, and I have learned a lot about my own personal tastes. Cheers everyone !

Jay:

What a blast this was! We took our time and went through 10 bottles of wine, each of which cost $10 or less. We found some gems and we refined our tastes and expectations. I don’t think I will ever be a wine savant or anything and that’s why it’s good to have a guide like Gerald to help us navigate the complex and bewildering world of wine. I’ve enjoyed the feedback I’ve received, both through this blog and just running into people while out and about that have commented on this project. I hope it has been entertaining and informative. Perhaps we’ll do more. At the very least I hope to just document the various things we’re tying so we have a reference for ourselves to assist us in remembering what we like and dislike.

Thanks for following along!

#10 Chateau De Lavagnac Bordeaux

Wine #10 in the $100 Wine Challenge

Winery: Chateau De Lavagnac
Country: France
Vintage: 2006
Price: $9.80

Cynthia’s Review:

According to the label, this wine is 70% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. We served this wine with what I would consider a pretty heavy meal: Appetizer of crackers and my homemade triple-garlic hummus, strip steaks, potatoes augratin and spinach. The wine had a nice aroma and initially a nice flavor, but kind of a dead taste at the end. (I guess wine folks would call that a poor “finish”) The lack of finish was less noticeable with the heavy food, but still there. I wanted to like this wine, but found myself trying to overpower it on purpose with the food. This wine was definitely not terrible, but I probably would not buy it again, and I really wouldn’t drink it as a “stand alone” wine. If I could give this wine somewhere between a “Yay” and a “Nay” I would, but since I am limited to one or the other- I give it a “Nay”.

Jay’s Review

This is the first Bordeaux I recall drinking, at least with the mind to pay attention to it.

I really liked the smell or “nose” of this wine. When I poured the first glass I was immediately struck by how pleasant it was. The flavor, however, did not live up to the hype of the aroma. Somewhat thin overall. It was good with the food Cynthia served, but didn’t really enhance the meal the way a more flavorful wine might. Not to say this was a bad pairing with food, to the contrary. I could see where a bit more sophisticated, older vintage Bordeaux could have really made this meal exceptional. I think if your just looking for a school night wine to have a glass and catch up on some TV or do a little reading this might be a good choice, but after the previous 9 wines we tasted in this challenge I think I would opt for something I know I really liked. So I guess that’s a “nay” from me.

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Tora Tora Tora!

Wings Over Houston Air Show recreation of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Click any image to see larger version.

#9 Ashwood Grove 2006 Petit Verdot

Wine #9 in the $100 Wine Challenge

Winery: Ashwood Grove
Vintage: 2006
Price: $8.99

Cynthia’s Review:

OK-Back to Australia- land of screw-top bottles! Fortunately, our Wine Sherpa warned us ahead of time that this wine would not stand up well with food, so we drank this on a “school night” with wine and crackers. The wine was smooth and pleasant, but I can understand why we were warned against pairing it with food- I was even wishing that I had a blander cheese to serve it with. I did like this wine, but I must say that it didn’t inspire me to want to experiment with any other Petit Verdots. Although this definitely was not my favorite wine in our challenge, I still give it a “Yay” along with some strong advice to drink this only as a “stand alone” wine.

Jay’s Review

When selecting our wines for the challenge we gave the other store clerks at Spec’s veto power if they wanted to replace any of the wines selected for us by Gerald with something they thought might be more interesting. Early on in the selection phase Gerald picked out a Petit Sirah which technically we’d had before but also technically fit the rules of the $100 challenge. When one of the clerks used his veto to replace the Sirah with the Verdot my heart sank a little because I LOVE the Petit Sirah. As Cynthia mentioned, we were warned against having this wine food of any substance so we had some mild cheese with some crackers. Overall, the wine was good. Pleasant, smooth and quite drinkable. Sadly, because this wine was a reminder of the Sirah that never was I think it was doomed not to get a totally fair shake from me. I don’t think we’ll repeat this one, but there’s certainly nothing wrong with it. Especially if you are looking for a good wine to have socially or with appetizers. A “yay” from me.

#8 Bogle 2007 Old Vine Zinfandel

Wine #8 in the $100 Wine Challenge

Winery: Bogle Vinyards
Vintage: 2007 Old Vine Zinfandel
Price: $9.91

Cynthia’s Review:

First- a confession: We actually drank the Bogle one evening, and then forgot to do a review, so we had to sneak into the Specs near us and purchase another replacement bottle so that we could do a proper review. I really liked this wine. I drank this (second bottle) with a dinner of eggplant Parmesan and pasta and it was delicious. I thought the wine had a nice aroma and a fruity, spicy flavor that went well with, but did not overpower, the food. (And drinking the second bottle caused me to remember that I really liked it quite well the first time around !) This is my first experience with a Zinfandel, and I truly enjoyed it. I’m looking forward to some additional Zinfandel recommendations from our wine Sherpa. This wine receives a resounding “Yay” from me !

Jay’s Review

I was not going to mention that we had the wine and forgot to post a review. But I guess Cynthia let the cat out of the bag. I do recall I liked the wine but could remember no real specifics. This was probably due to the overall good experience when we consumed that first bottle and not due to the wine being less than memorable. After sneaking into our alternate Spec’s to secure our re-do bottle we headed to our fave Italian restaurant to give the attention it deserved. I found the Bogle to have a good, full flavor and to be quite smooth. There was a certain pep to the wine, not really what I would call spicy or bitter, but a “zing” if you will, Nothing overwhelming. The wine combined well with the panini I had for dinner and I enjoyed it immensely. As time goes by I find I may be becoming a snob for wines from overseas so it was notable to me that I enjoyed this California Zinfandel and also the previous 2007 Ca’ Momi so I hope to explore more California wines with the help Gerald. And who knows? We may even make the pilgrimage to Napa Valley some day as part of our travels. Definite “yay” from me!

Photographer As Road Hazard

Standing in the middle of Fannin near Dallas looking straight up at the crosswalk of the Houston Pavillions. Shot with the A850 and the Sony 16mm fisheye. Had to move quick, the light at the intersection doesn’t stay red for long.