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This page contains Winings from the 2nd Quarter of the year 2003. To contact WinoBob, click here June 30, 2003 It was great speaking with all of you who visited the Lisa Grubb book party. Wino Gary; I look forward to touring your cellar and enjoying a bottle of California’s best. And a special message to Wino Jerry and Winette Rose, if you two silly kids decide to get married after kanoodling over the wine, I am available to do weddings. Just drop me an email. The weather
was hot and humid on the banks of the Hudson River in Piermont NY yesterday,
which had most people looking for a refreshing, chilled white wine. With the help of Big Bob from DA, I was able to provide just
that. For those of you who
asked, I am getting a list of retailers in the area who carry the white wine
I served. I will post that as
soon as I get it. The
interesting thing was that at the end of the event, as the hardcores hung
through the clean up process, we were left with red wine drinkers.
Yes, the white winers came early, quaffed and split, but the red
lovers took time, enjoyed the art, savored a few glasses and chatted though
the evening. To check out
Lisa’s artwork visit www.happydoggallery.com
or www.lisagrubb.com. The great
thing is that whether you are a pinot noir, or a Grenache, a Sauvignon Blanc
or a Syrah, we can come together under a common bond of wine enjoyment.
The diplomats working for the Middle East Peace process should take a
page out of WinoStuff’s philosophy. Wino John and I put aside the
fact that Big Bob is a Burgundy lover and we dislike weak and fleshy French
grapes; we still broke bread with the Frog lover.
Wine is warming me to the idea of overlooking Big Bob’s French
Allegiance and enjoying the information and wines his company has to offer. 2002
Giesen Sauvignon Blanc $
(10.99) 2000
Nederberg Pinotage $
(12.99)
June 28, 2003 This entry is in thanks to Big Bob of Dreyfus, Ashby & Company for his assistance in selecting the wines to serve at Lisa Grubb’s book signing tomorrow. Big Bob was nice enough to take an evening out of his crazy schedule and dine with Wino John and myself. The dinner was all about drinking great wine and sampling what I will be pouring at the gallery. I will reserve comment on two of the wines we enjoyed last night until I report on the book signing . Though Big
Bob is a huge Francophile, he did treat us to two unique wines that I will
talk about here. As a warm up,
he opened a Dopff & Irion Crustaces, which I had previously enjoyed last
summer during the hazy hot days when a Big-Ass Red was too heavy.
This wine is crisp and acidic and a nice wine to serve as your host
fumbles with the gas jets on the Weber.
Relax with this Alsace white that sells for less than ten dollars at
most shops. In the new experience category, Big Bob laid out a Swiss wine. Except for hole-ly cheese, bank accounts, watches and the heroine of Wino John (chocolate), I would never have considered Swiss wine. I figured they were neutral on grapes as well as politics. Education is where it’s at and the fountain of knowledge flowed from Big Bob as he poured and we tasted.
The treat for the night was the big red from Paso Robles that Big Bob opened to complement the sausage- and spinach-stuffed chicken in brown sauce. Knowing that WJ and I are Big Red drinkers, BB brought us the 1998 L’Aventure Optimus from Stephan Vineyards. This blend of 52% Syrah, 44% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Zinfandel was a taste of the good life. This blend brought forward great dark fruit flavors, chocolate, eucalyptus and a toasted marshmallow over an open fire. Power and grace, but be prepared, this one is at the high end of the pricing tables for a wine from this region due in part to the fact that they use their French oak barrels one time only. Thanks, Big Bob, for that gem of a red, even though your palate favors Burgundy, that fleshy, fickly French grape which can crumble if you don’t sing to it as you harvest. That’s OK, we like you anyway...
June 26, 2003 Look left. Nothing. Now looking over my right shoulder, all clear. Thank God. When they say that this is the Government for the People, do they really mean it? After typing out my last entry in the fuzzy logic state of red wine bliss, I took my entry seriously. Hell, I was fired up about this fat tax issue so I got on the USSenate.org page, found the email addresses for my senators and presented the Wino Bob logic in reducing the tax on wine. With all the medical information I can provide, I told them I am available for Congressional hearings to testify for the reduction of federal taxes on wine. Stick figure is ready to hop on a train, I cannot afford to fly, and that thing with security would make it better to take the train, enough said. So imagine the shock on Honorable Mr. Corzine and Mr. Lautenberg’s faces as they read a Wino Bob letter signed with the arrogant statement that it’s my tax dollars that pay their salary and I am a voting member of a large wine loving group that wields tremendous voting control. I demanded a meeting in their Washington offices to take this up as a Bill for the next session and give back to the people whose good cholesterol is higher than normal from red wine consumption. There are all types of good things for my skin, lungs, heart, and brain as Wino John had in breaking news. I clearly told the Senators that wine does nothing for rectal cancer so, as you can see, I am not a perfect asshole. So now I sit in my room watching as dark, late-model sedans cruise past my house at odd hours of the night. Men in dark glasses and earphones walk past my house and men in black trench coats have been seen in this 98-degree heat. While I am pissing people off, check out this sign I saw somewhere on the Turnpike near Jersey City. Have you seen this one yet?
June 21,
2003 This may be
a geocentric posting, but it goes beyond the four walls of this dimly lit
rain soaked room I call home. For
those of you winos not able to read or hear news from the Big City, New York
is going through financial hell right now.
Billionaire Mayor Bloomberg thought he could just hire a few good
managers, fire the dead wood, get sales up and operating expense down and he
would forever replace the How’m-I-doin-Guy.
Quickly, the City turned against him and the reality of politics has
set in. Cuts cannot be made of
Government employees, Unions threaten strikes, and the Army of Squeegee
Maniacs is back at it. As a
show of strength, NYC cops were handing out tickets several weekends ago for
violations that have not been dusted off since King Kong climbed the Empire
State Building. One man
received a fine for having his garbage cans too close to the curb and
another was fined for sitting on a stoop in a no-loitering zone from
speak-easy times. As in all government
lunacy, NY has hiked the tax on cigarettes to raise revenues, then banned
smoking in bars and restaurants. Dare
I say the later half of Oxi-Moron is befitting the activities in NYC these
days? The latest discussions
have bounced around the idea of this FAT Tax.
Yes, well no, it’s not a tax on Fat people, though with America
being overweight it might be the quickest way to retiring the long term
debt. No, this is a tax on
foods that we so love but are not the healthy choice. So here is
my proposal, if in fact this fat tax sees the light of day in any weigh,
shape or form. WinoStuff will lead the charge in a Tax Reduction on
wine due to all the cited health benefits reported here at our news central.
Wino John will be the key witness seeing how I will not be able to
keep a straight face when talking about rectal cancer.
One other topic I need to gather further data on is wine's effect on
testicular cancer. However,
that is not the topic for today. Maybe
we can start the movement anyway regarding the tax reduction on wine or at
least get Medicare to cover the costs and the environmental protection
agency to offer tax credits to those of us using white wine as an
environmentally friendly cleaning agent in the kitchen. I say we
put a mirror under Senator Lautenbergs’ nose, make sure he’s still
breathing and ask him to host a bill for a Tax credit to those winos that
consume 4 bottles per week. They
will be the healthy heart, lung, colon and brain constituents of his and
they should get a preventative maintenance tax relief.
The WINO BILL shall be authored in this great State of Intoxication
and seen as a working man’s benefit, because my job is driving me to
drink. Hail Fredonia, land of the Free and the Brave, let’s take up the
Tax; no let’s take up the carpet. Well,
yes, you have to take up the tacks before you can take up the carpet -
Groucho RIP. 2001
Penfolds Koonunga Hills Shiraz/Cabernet $
(11.00)
June 20,
2003 With summer
finally making gestures like it will be here to stay for a while, the Wino
Wally Summer White’s challenge lingers in the back of my mind.
Last year, with all good intentions, I spent $68.00 to place 5
chardonnays of my choice up against 5 chards of Winos Wally and John.
Somehow, our schedules never fit into a timeframe that would allow us
to compare our selections. As
witnessed, I am committing to two things this summer.
Number One, we will have this wine dinner competition of Summer
Whites and Number Two, I will actually visit and report on a winery
somewhere in the East Coast region. It
is about time I start throwing around the Wino Bob name and contact these
local wineries and spend time tasting their offerings.
Now, I am not looking for any special treatment, for that might
influence my impression and taint the otherwise objectiveness of my
writings. I take great pride in
the fact that to date, the Wino Bob name carries so little weight that I
have yet to receive a wine charm for the glasses I will be using at next
year’s holiday party. I do
qualify that once, I received a Marilyn Scott CD from a wino trying to help
Ms. Scott gain recognition for her CD, but he nor her nor any of their
employees, friends or family have contacted me since.
I do play the CD during Sunday dinner, as most songs are not talking
about killing or f-ing or the white man, or f-ing killing the white man,
well you know what I mean. As you
know, I once wrote about Renault Winery in NJ.
Their history dates back to the earliest and most recognized name for
sparkling wines outside the champagne region of France.
So three weeks ago, I logged on to their site, clicked the 'contact
us' button and advised them that Wino Bob of the world famous wine review
web site and friend of Veronique Drouhin would like to make a special trip
to Renault and do an in depth interview with the folks at the winery.
I am pleased to announce that as of this date, no one has gotten back
to me. So as with all in life,
I will do this on my own under the cover of just Bob, the geeky electronics
equipment salesman who has a passing interest in wine.
Then I will rat out all the problems the common folk go through
during such a visit. Well it did
not take me long to find a replacement Unbacchus.
This one takes the all-time wine abuse award. It may take me a
year to get things straightened out there.
Through the suggestion of a friend, a restaurant I have never been to
before in the general geographic vicinity of the old Unbacchus was
identified. Interestingly, they
have a web page that touts its wine offerings, fine cuisine (Italian of
course) and a cigar lounge to enjoy a smoke after dinner.
With geek guests to entertain this week, I fancied this the perfect
opportunity to give it a try. The
place is impressive, though the valet-only parking is a bit tedious.
The large bar area gives way to a great view to the glass-encased
wine storage. Unbacchus item
number one, wine racking to hold about 1500 bottles showed less wine than my
meager cellar. Hey, that’s
not what your website stated. Unbacchus
item number two, wine by the glass is house wine of the minute. They
offer a cab, merlot and Chianti (sure, it’s Italian) and whites of chard
and Pinot Grigio all pouring out of the double wide.
The affable Holly the bartender cheerfully poured us Chianti the
first two times as we awaited our dinners.
But seeing how the merlot bottle was closer the third time, she
topped us off with one on the house. In
the same glass, right on top of the quarter-full glass of Chianti.
Hey this is fitting the bill right from the get-go.
Sign me up; Unbacchus is bigger and better than ever. June 15,
2003 Happy
Father’s Day to my non-wine drinking Dad and to the fathers of Wino John
and Wino Wally. In reading the
recent news item on our front page, I now understand why Wino John gets the
bigger bucks from this site. Well, actually, none of us get any money yet, but when we do,
Wino John will be entitled to the bigger cut.
No, I am not being sarcastic, it is the total restraint he shows when
blurbing the latest new item. I
did see that research and hell, I volunteered for the pooper pipe just to
pass time on a Saturday afternoon, but to not go for the easy joke shows
true professionalism. Come on,
at least the obvious, Rectum…hell it nearly killed him, or the not
so obvious question, was it the wine or the wine bottle that leads to
rectal issues? Sorry, my
immature sense of humor and penchant for the softballs gets me in trouble
more times than not. That is
why, Wino John has risen to heights in his career, social and spiritual life,
and I am perpetually standing at Hell’s Gate.
Hey, does wine lead to Klingon’s around Uranus?
Put a cork in it' has a hole
new meaning. Too much wine
consumption leads to dead in the end. Wow,
I need to examine the residue from my bung again.
Jesus, help me, I’m sweating here trying to refrain from this topic
going too far. OK, I think this
is flushed out of my system now. On a more
serious topic, I have recently lost another contact at a restaurant.
The affable Thursa from Luce has moved on.
Last night I dined there with the Wino Rocker family thinking we were
at least in for a complimentary round of coffee, but she was decided to live
out her dream of starting her own place.
Unfortunately, I did not get to speak with her beforehand to know
where in the Morristown area she decided to move.
If any winos in Morris County email me with info on Thursa’s new
place, I will send you a special picture of me in my thong. One sad
note, this week marks the official end of Unbacchus as a hangout for Wino
Bob. The history behind this
establishment will forever line the hearts of those who laughed at a comedy
show in the basement of this place. Greats like Sam, Dice, Rosie, Jerry, Bobby, and the
offbeats like Jackie-the-Jokeman, Otto and George, Jay Moore, and even
Stuttering John have graced the stage at Unbacchus (AKA Rascals Comedy Club
in West Orange, NJ). Good Night
Funny Man, your cheap wine and uncanny way of pouring to the brim will
forever be missed by this Wino. Tuesday,
or Wednesday, or Thursday nights will never be the same for me as I spent my
fair share of cash in a bar that was poorly managed by a “Know it all ex
Wall Streeter” who thought an IPO and his name would be the financial coup
of the decade. Soon, the
building will be torn down and a new Commerce Bank will stand on the sacred
graveyard of NJ’s best-known comedy club.
Countless white zinfandels have been served at 4 times mark up prices
as comedians played to less than sold out audiences on a Tuesday in February
just to test new material for an upcoming tour.
The squirrel icon, the symbol of the nuts who have performed less
then A-List material, will be taken off the wall downstairs and placed in a
dumpster to be carted away to the Kearny dump, loaded on a barge and hauled
10 miles off shore where it will amuse the blue fish as they swim past
Jersey in August on their annual migration route.
I spent many a late night at that place, in therapeutic discussions
with F-able barmaids. I will
surely miss this facility. I am
saddened with this loss. 1997
Rustenberg Stellenbosch $$
(27.00)
June 10, 2003 Big Day.
Yes, something very exciting happened at the Wino Bob Chateau.
No, I did not get invited to lunch with Robert Parker.
No, I did not get invited to a barrel tasting at Screaming Eagle.
No, I did not get asked to write a column for Wine Spectator magazine
to air my views. No, I did not
get asked to be the Goodwill Ambassador for Joseph Drouhin in an effort to
help bring French/US wine relations back to pre-war purchasing levels.
No, no, I was not asked to be spokesman for the Wine program at Cal
Davis. No, no, no, I was not
asked to be guest speaker at the NJ Wine Festival.
Wow, maybe I don’t have any big news now that I think about it. I was
noticeably excited last night; as I sat and watched the Devils take their
third Stanley Cup. But it
wasn’t from the game; it was from the fact that the cork I drew out of the
bottle of wine was the finishing touch on that 6-foot by 8-foot corkboard I
started months ago. I actually
thought I was going to open that bottle Sunday night, but then I watched
that bullshit interview with Hillary Clinton and Barbara Walters.
I had built up so much bile in my stomach from the 'Pretty in Green'
attitude of Hillary that I would not have been able to taste the wine.
Are we to believe that this woman is Presidential material when she
tries to bullshit us with this innocent victim route that was so scripted
not an ounce of feeling flowed from her mouth?
Is this what we can expect if she is involved in a national crisis?
Oh, I’m just a poor frail innocent woman that people did bad things
to. And what the F%^# was with
Barbara Walters, Mrs. Journalist? Could she just once say,
"Hillary, please answer the question I asked."
The first half hour was like they were in two separate rooms edited
together similar to the old My Three Son’s episodes.
Is this the plain speak we will get if Hillary is elected?
Spare me the F-ing embarrassment.
And what nutless male Democrat is going to step aside and just let
her walk into that position? Call
her on the carpet and make her answer the tough questions. Here’s one, “If you took 8 million to write a personal
bio and someone probes deeper into a subject you wrote about, how then can
you hide behind this position that you are a very private person?”
Either you write a book and open up, or give back the money. Then
you can claim how private a person you are.
We are not all your backwoods constituents that allow the wool to be
pulled over our eyes daily. We await the book sales tales to see if those million first
printed books really sell to individuals, not some pumped-up numbers from
your Hollywood friends mass buying to make you look good. Hey, two words, Al Gore. How long did it take for his
book to be in the discount bin? But I
digress. What I wanted to show was the completed cork project,
that’s to the few who helped…
So
there you have it, and if you look real close on the third row from the
bottom, you can see a piece of my dead liver… (Editor's
note: There are maybe 100 corks in Bob's little "project" shown
here. By my calculations, that's represents a single weekend of
WinoBob's wine consumption. But he's been working on this
"project" for over a year. I'm speculating that his driveway
is now paved with cork...) 2001
Casa Lapostolle Cabernet Sauvignon Rapel Valley $
(9.00) June 9,
2003 Mark the
Wine Guy at Kings has become a good resource for me when I’m looking for
something off-beat with dinner. Last night, as I was doing that "I’m hungry but
don’t know what I want to cook" stroll with my basket, Mark was
buzzing around the front wine display.
I had some veggies, salad greens, boneless chicken and mesquite
marinade in the cart, but I still wasn’t clear what I was going to do with
that stuff. I asked Mark what
he might have to go with my food choice, save the Moon Pies and he laughed,
“Well, if you give me a clue on what you are going to do, I’ll try to
figure something out.” He did
recommend a wine they recently brought in for me to try.
It is a wine from the Mendoza region of Argentina and a blend of
Syrah and Bonarda. Oh, you aren’t familiar with Bonarda? Me either.
So I went home, and while my chicken was marinating in the mesquite
stuff, I grabbed my resource books and started reading up on Bonarda grapes.
The funny thing is, the experts aren’t sure what the true origin of
the grape is either. The best I
can tell is that the Argentina Bonarda is some relative of a Piedmont and
Lombardy Italian grape, but people also refer to it as Croatina.
Needless to say, I poured some out, sniffed, swirled and swallowed to
the delight of a good solid drinking wine for a causal Saturday night.
They only problem is that the bottle ran out before the Devils game
was over and I had to suffer through the third period coming off my buzz.
To the Duck’s credit, Kiryan’s goal after being flattened by
Stevens was one for the highlight reels. So try
something different, though I do think the price should be three dollars
less than what I paid to make this a real keeper. 2001
Crios de Susana Balbo 50% Syrah 50% Bonarda Mendoza
$ (16.99) June 6,
2003 Just when I
was enjoying the semi-anonymity of the Priorat wine region, keeping wines
from there still within my budget, the Wine Spectator features Spain in
their latest issue. And yes, they spend time speaking of this gem region for
those winos and winettes that prefer chewing their wines. I guess I can start the price increase chart now. Soon
the wines I now purchase for 10-20 dollars will be hitting the 40-60 dollar
range over the next few years. Dashed
are my hopes of purchasing those 40 acres at ten cents on the dollar and
retiring to Spain to make a big-ass chewy Granacha that coats your
intestines with a dark purple that will alter your white porcelain forever.
The two dreams, a gold miner winery in Priorat and a tight fitting
bull fighters outfit were all I wanted out of life.
Do you know how silly I look now when I wear my tight bullfighter’s
pants and hat without having property in Spain? I even started taking flamenco
lessons and wearing frilly orange shirts with castanets on my fingers and
those black hi-heeled flamenco dancing boots that drive all the
Latin-blooded women wild. Right
now, as I type, I have a rose between my teeth.
I guess I have to start being closed lipped about the wines I like so
the publishers of some mega wine magazine don’t start publishing stories
about my next favorite region and dash my dreams of ever making my mark in
the world of wine. There would
be nothing better than creating a Wino Bob juice that people in the wine
world would be talking and writing about for years to come.
Maybe I would start with a bottle of Wino Bob’s White Wine Juice,
which would be so hand-crafted every bottle would contain a part of me that
shows my love for wine. Wow, I
better stop myself right here before I go too far with this one.
But being me, I always get in trouble by just stepping over that
line, so I just wanted to get this one off my chest and I’ll move on.
Wino Bob’s White Wine Juice is crafted to be swirled and
swallowed…sorry. Maybe
it’s that frivolous lawsuit thing and the 39th consecutive day
of rain that has me off the edge today.
Or maybe it’s the disappointment I have after sharing a bottle of
wine with an old friend last night. Wino
Stan brought over a couple Cubans and I opened a bottle of wine I looked
forward to trying. Wino Stan caught me up on his current personal issues that
include lawyers and stuff. Did
I tell you the wine didn’t go well with the cigars?
The phrase that made me laugh was when he was talking to his lawyer
to get her moving on his issue and he said to her he didn’t want to be a
pain in the ass by calling her twice that week.
Her response, “Don’t worry, I bill you for the home time, call
whenever you like.” 2001
Kirralaa Bushvine Shiraz $
(10.99) June 5,
2003 Will
miracles never cease? The
corner stone of liberal bias, Howell Raines, will no longer be sculpting the
national opinion at The NY Times. Never in my lifetime would I have thought this would happen.
I grew up believing that the NY Times would forever be without a
conscience and continue to blindly support the Democratic view point, while
continuing their vitriolic and incendiary attack on Conservatives.
With Mr. Raines out of the picture, I might not be able to light my
fireplace with the Times Op Ed page in the future.
I guess the paper does care about its image, at least on the surface. Speaking of
incendiary comments, Solder Paste Boy has been on my back about only adding
new comment on the weekend. Don’t
worry, I will ignore my AA counselor’s advice and start to drink again
every night just for your personal amusement.
I guess a dry Wino Bob isn’t funny.
Though a new picture of Wino Bob might be appropriate.
This is me on my way to French class to learn some new phrases, which
I have listed below. I hope you
enjoy. Je
suis si vieux mes noix ont séché jusqu'à les raisins secs. Vous
jamais avez vu une vigne comme ceci avant? Je
pense que mon brix est prêt à exploser. I see the
screw cap issue is making news again this week.
I say 'again' since WinoStuff was all over that issue months ago.
Right now, after the Solaia issue, screw corks. I’m ready for
screw caps. Maybe I should
start developing a screw cap opener that looks a corkscrew so all the
pompous wine stewards will have something to go along with their shiny Taste
Vins once the world goes metal. Wait
a minute, stop, just think about all the ambulance-chasing, low-rent lawyers
conjuring up some massive lawsuit when patrons cut themselves on the sharp
metal cap when they ritualistically try and squeeze it.
First the white linen restaurant gets named in the suit, then the
winery, then the bottle maker, then the cap manufacturer, then Alcoa, then
BASF (they don’t make the cap, they make the cap brighter). Holy
Crap Mary, this will be a 14 million dollar frivolous lawsuit.
Then the price of wine will skyrocket because of the liability
insurance cost wineries and cap makers will need to carry to safeguard
against copycat lawsuits. Christ,
its cheaper to dump hot coffee in the lawyers lap then let him drink a screw
cap Caymus. There they go
again, the lawyers causing the cost of goods to get out of sight.
And why in 2003 are we using words like 'heretofore' and 'whereas'
and all those other outdated secret words that only lawyers write so only
lawyers can read so they keep themselves in a job.
Hey, if Ebonics cannot be taught in Oakland, Ca., then lawyereese
should be needed in a contract in 2003.
If they want to keep that language intact, then they should go back
to wearing powdered wigs and frilly shirts, stockings and knickers.
Hey, I said Knickers… Sorry,
it just amazes me how much money is sucked up by the legal system.
Why is it that the US has 6% of the world population, but 75% of the
world lawyer population? It
just doesn’t seem right. Check
your phone book and see how thick the yellow pages are from lawyers. 1998
Sebastiani Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma $
(15.00)
May
31, 2003 For
all the crap that New Jersey gets, it is the Devils and Nets that are still
standing in their respective playoff hunts, thank you.
It just pisses me off when bonehead people say bonehead things. Though I never speak about people that do not want to appear
on this page, I do have a general gripe.
Bonehead people shouldn’t say bonehead things….
On that topic, one of the biggest bone head statements that certain
nameless faceless many use is a statement that qualifies their opinion with
the prefix, “The Best”. Like the following: “The best pizza in town is from…”
or “The best restaurant in town is….”
Or “The Best wine ….” Oh
really, how the hell could anyone use that as a definitive statement? I tell you as Bacchus is my witness, you will never find a
bold statement in my entries that any wine is the best, hands down.
I have yet to taste tens of thousands of wines, so I would be
Blairing (lexicon for making something up like Jason Blair) if I ever made
such a statement. As I
mentioned years ago, like the great Get Smart would say, I’ve enjoyed the
second best…., I won’t know the best until just before I die, Chief.
I often find wines I really like, and if I ever refer to anything as
the best, I will point out how that is relative to my limited knowledge
base. So for those out there
that want to tell me what the best place to eat in a town I have lived for
10 years when they have only visited here once, please refrain from exposing
your ignorance to the public. Sorry,
just a bit of personal house cleaning. Though I hate to bring my personal life into this entry, I
felt it necessary to be on record with this statement and qualifier for the
two people out there that know what I am knurled about. Enough
said, now how in the hell can a winery be so bold as placing fabulously
generous self-accolades on the back of a ten dollar bottle of wine?
Again, just a general pissed off statement, nothing specific at this
moment. I guess the Tom
Waits’ CD playing his hit “Up Shit’s Creek” has altered my mood to
the pissed off point about a statement said to me once that I never
challenged, by someone who does not have a frame of reference worthy of
making a conclusive statement. Well,
as I was watching the Devils lose last night in OT, I did have some wine
that disappointed me. The Lyeth
Estate is often described as a front-runner in designing the Meritage group
of wines. It was
experimentation in their early days with traditional Bordeaux blends that
established their reputation. So
the other day I picked up a bottle to give it a try.
Admittedly it was a low end offering, but price and quality are
independent, right? This wine
started out as a pleasant olfactory experience with a strong dark cherry,
tobacco and plum nose. But like
a Democratic Presidential Candidate, it failed to deliver on its promise.
That really bummed me out since I was looking to find a reasonably
priced Bordeaux style wine I could serve to friends. Maybe I should serve this to the person that told me what the
“Best Wine” he ever had was, and I will tell him how this is the Best I
have ever had. 1999
Lyeth Meritage Red Table Wine $ (13.99)
May 30,
2003 Hey,
here’s my wogging for tonight, kinda…
I recently heard President Bush
comment on France in a manner I think is time for me to adopt.
He didn’t say he understood France’s position, nor did he say let
bygones be bygones. He
merely stated he would look to future opportunities to where France and the
United States may cooperate. If
I am breaking ranks, so be it. I am a stick figure who marches to his own
tune (mostly suicidal tomes from gravelly voiced ex-addicts).
My position is that France clearly was wrong, and I will always view
them as cowards on the world stage.
However, in the spirit of world wine détente,
I have uncovered the segregated bottles of French wine in my cellar. I have NOT contributed to their economy, but rather I am
lightening my boycott of the French wine already in my possession prior to
the Iraq thing. I firmly
believe that France’s economy must suffer for awhile longer, but there is no
strong feeling at this moment on why I should not consider drinking pre-war
bought French wine. As a
starting point, I opened an Alsatian this evening, as a move into France, as
did the Germans. Actually,
after the experience with the Pindar, I had a bottle of 1995 Tokay that Joe the
Wine Guy gave me one Christmas. I didn’t want it to sit any longer so I opened it to see if it was
drinkable. While I spilled this
wine, I looked up some French phrases that might be helpful when the Frogs
come back on bended knee and ask us to lead the movement in the US for
Americans to begin buying French wine again.
I listed a few greetings that I looked up on one of those
French/English Translators. I’m
sure if I were to call up my ex-girlfriend Veronique and speak some of these
lines, all would be smoothed over between them and us. J'ai une bouteille de vin a enfoncé dans mes sous-vêtements. Regarde l'étagère de vin sur ce bébé. Est qu'une carafe dans votre poche ou vous sont seulement heureux de me voir. Le mien est plus grand. Vous avez tels beaux groupes de raisin. Aucune façon de fucking. Spy
photo of Bob dipping Stay
tuned; there might just be “A More” in the air when I reunite my French
wine into my good wine racks. May 26,
2003 I hope the
weather where you are is better than the start of the summer season in NJ.
Damp, wet, cold air is circulating through this weekend and making it
miserable for those who want to do something outside.
Fortunately for me, a three-day weekend gives me Sunday night to over
do it and not get the Monday Morning Blues.
So it was my turn to have the affable Wino Lou family to dinner and I
wanted to do it right. Wino Lou
is one of the few, save Wino John, that I deem wine worthy and break out
something above and beyond with dinner.
So the grill, oven and stove were filled with a variety of foods to
try and keep up with the gourmet cooking of the Louster.
As we sat and enjoyed social intercourse, and that is not a sexual
thing for those of you in Rio Linda, I broke open the Costco bargain.
Yes, Costco is selling the Mondavi/Rosemount Estates venture wines at
25% less than the local store in my area.
This cab/syrah blend was the warm up with deep fried falafels and
melon wrapped Italian Ham munchies. The
big gun was saved for the grilled onion and garlic glazed pork roast slowly
cooked on the Weber. Only a Big
Ass California Cabernet would suit that hunk of meat (I learned that from
the Wino John book of food and wine pairing).
The joy of sharing a great bottle of wine that is appreciated by
guests is what life is all about. At
one point in the evening, Wino Lou told me he appreciated the wine so much
that as a thank you we would purchase an item off the WinoStuff site and
have Mrs. Wino Lou pose in it for us. I
cannot wait for those pictures… 2000
Talomas $
(10.99) 2001 Penfolds
Bin 2 $ (11.99) 1995 Far
Ninety Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon $$$
(85.00) May 24,
2003 This
Memorial Day holds a special place in our thoughts for those who fought and
gave their lives so we may enjoy the unalienable right called Freedom.
To the families and friends of those who did not make it home from
the Iraqi war, we salute you. Tonight was
a calm quiet evening, with a simple dinner and a simple bottle of wine. Since it is coming up on a year since the Summer White Wine
Challenge, I thought it was important for me to drink up the chardonnays I
purchase to compete with Wino Wally. Wanting
something quick and simple, I bought some shrimp, cleaned and deveined them,
placed sage leaf in the deveining slit and wrapped it in bacon.
A quick couple of minutes on all sides so the bacon browns while a
pot of brown rice simmers on the back burner and you have yourself a
delicious meal. Needing to weed
the whites, I grabbed a bottle from Long Island I was planning on surprising
the Winos with. This was a 1997
and did out-live its prime but the wine stood up well to the bacon and
shrimp ensemble. 1997
Pindar Chardonnay $(8.99)
May 20,
2003 I once
thought that my entries were simply reflections of my weekly or daily
experience with wine. I
believed that my inclusion of comments regarding my friends and family were
a way of sharing, kind of a nose-pressed-to-the-glass look at the fun we
have with a provocative beverage. But
NO! According to the Sunday NY Times (which may actually contain less
factual information than WinoStuff.com) my entries may be hurtful to my
friends and family. I,
according to them, am a Blogger, a person who has developed a web site to
reveal intimate details of my daily activities for personal satisfaction.
The Times pointed out several instances where entries of dates gone
badly, and of problems with families or friends who have read the truth on
the net instead of hearing it from the person directly. I would
like to add the following word to the Internet lexicon, Wogger - one who
enjoys wine immensely but fails to have any true friends or family to piss
off with the made-up shit that wanders through his empty mind and vacant
life to make others believe these people are real.
I actually check the guest book and my email several times a day
hoping to have pissed someone off. However,
one cannot piss off Topper (OK, all you under thirty, go ask your parents to
clarify that reference). Last night,
we were taken to a brew house (chain), and had… beer.
So today we went to the second most famous place in Milwaukee, The
Safehouse. Styled after a 1920’s speakeasy, every turn of the corner
and door to open leads to frivolity. The
fun begins in locating the place since the name on the door refers to
International Export Company. Entering
the foyer, one must pull the lever to unlock the built in bookshelves that
let you into the maze of false doors, carnival mirrors, one-way mirrors and
the famed magician bartender. Be
careful not to place a call from the phone booth near the back bar, you will
find yourself exiting the establishment into a back alley, just like Capone
used to when giving Elliot Ness the slip.
One goes for the scenery and fun since the lunch menu is burgers and
salads and they push the local Sprechers Brew in dark of night. Foiled again as the cheese stands alone in wanting a glass of
wine. The walk back did reveal
an establishment called Mo’s Wine Bar, a retail wine shop with a cheese
counter and tables to sit and enjoy. I
may give the group the slip tonight as they head to watch the hapless
Brewers attempt to play baseball. Instead,
I may buy a front row seat to Mo’s Wine Bar, order up a wedge of Wisconsin
cheddar and pour myself a glass of red.
Then again, I might be stuck drinking five-dollar beers at the
stadium. May 18, 2003 I couldn’t have made it up
if I wanted to. Yes, folks, as you drive north out of Chicago on 94,
you know you have crossed over into Wisconsin by the “World of Cheese”
signs. The city of Milwaukee
reminds me of Paterson, except Lou Costello wasn’t born here.
First impression is, “so this is where they moved the old Cleveland
before they restored the Mistake on the Lake.”
With a free night, I asked several people at the hotel where they
recommend we go to dinner. Several
people pointed us to the “most famous place to eat in Milwaukee”, Mader’s
Original German Restaurant. Knowing
there are no good German red wines, in my opinion, I checked the wine list
to see if anything impressed me. What
impressed me most was that the small, but diverse list did not carry a crazy
NY mark up. I have never seen a
1997 Jordan on a wine list for $60.00 until tonight. The décor is medieval by
design with many unique antiques artfully addressing the dining area.
The dark mahogany bar and full wall stained glass window bring one
right to Munich. The German
sampler gave me a chance to try several dishes they are renown for of which
the sauerbraten topped my list. The
wine was simple, but well rounded for the sauces served and the red cabbage
side. Worth the trip as long as
you don’t want to stay out late, it seems that on Sunday nights the
sidewalks roll up by 9PM. 1999 Schlink Haus Spatlese
Bereich Nahetal $$(35.00 rest.) May 17,
2003 Since I am
off to a geek meeting of the techno-likes in beautiful Wisconsin, where the
wine is cheese flavored, I decided to treat myself.
Wino Rocker and his Winette daughter dropped by for a stop and chat,
so I dug a bottle of wine out from the section of the rack closest in age to
the corked Solaia. Though the
cork was good on that one, I wanted to ensure it was not something in my
cellar causing the problem. Knowing
the meeting I am attending and the area I will be staying, it looks pretty
much like beer, brats and a hunk of Cheddar are going to grace my evenings.
I owed Wino Rocker a payback for some printing work we bartered out
two weeks ago, so I upscaled it a bit.
To my guests' delight, this was a winner, a perfect social lubricant
that lead to two additional bottles consumed.
Those where once reviewed in the past so I will just be posting the
gemstone. 1995
Beringer Alluvium Red $$ (32.00) May 15,
2003
During the last season of the Bachelorette, I had several
entries on the wine consumption on the show and had even emailed ABC to
allow us to know what Trista’s favorite wine was.
That was right around the time they were planning this Bachelor
show. My guess is that Mr.
Steven M. Bornstein, President of ABC Television, got on our site and
realized how hot a topic wine is and located a young, wealthy, bachelor
whose bank account is larger than the gross domestic product of Uganda and
has wine in his veins. This was
such a major influence that the Shoppers Express and wine shop in Caldwell
is now featuring Firestone wines. Coincidence?
I don’t think so. WinoStuff staff in Caldwell, wine shop carrying
Firestone wine in Caldwell, WinoStuff staff member pathetically hooked on
watching an inane reality show every Wednesday day night since he has little
social interaction. The
sequence of events is obvious. So to be
fair, I went into shoppers express and bought a can of cheese wiz, some
crackers, an unmentionable magazine and a bottle of Firestone wine and sat
down on the couch to watch the latest install of Bachelor.
Hey, do any of you cast-offs want to date an optically challenged,
slightly balding, socially maladjusted stick figure?
The question is, without knowing the size of his inheritance would
those women be throwing themselves at him?
Exactly. He would be home every Wednesday night watching a
reality show just like me. How
the F does one get on line for the Gene Pool Lottery?
So I prep myself to watch the compelling bitch session of the losers
Andy Boy threw off the show. As
I cut the foil, I see wine on top of the cork.
Without hesitation, I left the cork as is, loaded that fifteen dollar
bottle of wine into the car and headed back to see Patel at Shoppers
Express. He quickly offered up
a replacement bottle, so I asked him to cut the foil right there to make
sure I wouldn’t be doing this again tonight.
That bottle had wine over the top of the cork too.
They pulled the remaining wine off the floor and offered me an equal
value. What is
going on with me and cork issues this month? So I am
still hoping that the filthy rich bachelor makes crappy wine, but I don’t
know that for sure just yet. Stay
tuned to the same Bat Channel…. 1998
Firestone Vineyards Cabernet Syrah $
(15.00) 1998
Blackjack Harmonie $
(23.00) May 14,
2003 Expanding
my wine-consuming wings, I headed to a new place to check it out.
Wino Stan told me about a new restaurant in Montclair that is worth
the trip. Subsequent to that,
several members of the Bacchus staff informed me that an ex-staffer was
working at this new trendy upscale (expensive) place.
Located across from the Walnut Street train station and the soccer
bubble and on the same block as the motor vehicle inspection station, this
building is impressive as you drive past it several time trying to locate a
parking spot. Wrought iron
gates, dark mahogany paneling and impressive windows greet you as you walk
into the bar area. As a first
timer, I took a seat, asked for the wine menu and scoped out the joint.
The large white marble bar, granite block and dark paneled walls let
you know to come with a full wallet. Wines by
the glass are simple varietals, a cab, a pinot, a chardonnay, ….
I understand that they have an impressive wine cellar that seats a
private party of 24 and tables upstairs, but Matt was not working last night
and I did not push for the tour. As
the bartender brought my Cabernet, she asked if I wanted some cheese and
crackers. A small array of four
different cheeses and an assortment of crackers was a pleasant departure
from the bowl of gold fish or wasabe peas served by most.
Their wine list is heavy with Italian wines and the mark up is big
but the trendy people of Montclair have already made this place hard to get
in on Friday and Saturday nights. So
if you want to dine in style, and have a large tab to show how important you
are, call today for a Saturday reservation in September and let me know how
the food is at Richie Ceceria’s in Montclair, NJ. 2000
Amberhill Cabernet Sauvignon $
(11.00) May 13,
2003 Thank God
that the abundance of resveratrol will keep my skin intact so I will not be
liver-spotted and skin cancer ridden as I rest in my coffin from a cirrhotic
liver. Yes, I’ll be found
with a healthy heart, strong lungs, no melanomas, no dementia, but a liver
the size of Connecticut. Now I
can get that lawn-cutting job to pay for my wine habit this summer and not
be worried about over exposure to the sun. To hell with CopperTone’s ad featuring the dog pulling down
the girl’s swimsuit. Wino
Bob’s sun tan lotion will feature my stunning stick figure in my thong,
skin cancer free. Do you
recognize this guy?
I just want
to state this clearly. Never have I written a fact in any of my
entries. Therefore, never have I compromised my facts, nor have
I stooped low enough to pretend I am knowledgeable on any subject and
present information as fact. And
to the NY Times I say, get your house in order. Call Wino John, for he
is the best damn editor a beat reporter could ever want.
Unfortunately he is stuck with my whinings and disjointed
unintelligible dot, dot, dot column that will never be reviewed by the power
elite in the journalism world and is merely enjoyed by all, most, some of my
family and the two winos on the corner of 42nd and 8th.
Yes, my love affair with Flavia, the only published person I somewhat
knew, has vanished before she was able to meet me and get a restraining
order. I apologize
that this has nothing to do with wine, but more to do with my livelihood.
OK, the only way one can call it a livelihood is if one makes a
living off the work, which I don’t. But
Damn It, this needed to be said and the rest of the weenie left wing media
elite are too scared to bite the hand that feeds them.
I can sleep at night, knowing that I have not offended anyone in
those circles and it did not ruin my chances of getting black listed from
the next A-list party since, no one in the elite reads this site nor have I
ever been on a Z-list let alone an A-list.
All of you who wished to say this but were too afraid of getting
kicked out of the club, you can email me privately. 1999
Black Jack Estate Merlot $$
(34.99)
May 8, 2003 A day
filled with coping mechanism consumption courtesy of our friends at local
wine serving establishments in Northern NJ.
These two wines could find their way into the casual drinking corner
of my racking. Sensible and
solid for those of us unable to drink the good stuff too often. 2001
Evans & Tate Margaret River Shiraz $ (17.99)
2000
Robert’s Rock Shiraz/Malbec $
(11.99) May 5,
2003 Could wine
have been invented for the sole purpose of enabling you to deal with people
that one normally would tell to go "F" themselves?
If kept in balance, wine is my coping mechanism, though I rarely have
the personal willpower to just keep in the happy zone.
Most of the time, I fall over the edge and spend the rest of the
evening telling everyone to go "F" themselves.
I need to run a series of tests with beakers and measuring devices
and people that send me over the edge to see exactly how much I can consume
to stay within the happy zone. Maybe
my mistake is that I try to stop. I should just push myself over to
the comatose stage then I cannot speak to anyone. As I spend
time with friends and discuss the subject, some of my married/divorced
friends had some amusing suggestions. If
we had a winery, our labels would be simple and to the point. Stupid
Friends Chardonnay Handling
a Difficult Spouse Syrah Annoying
Neighbor Pinot Noir Whining
Kids Sauvignon Blanc Big Ass
In-Law Red Parents
Port I don’t
know, maybe the Valium emails are getting to me, maybe some anonymous email
spammer knows me personally and those drug ads are a message from the great
beyond to move me from wine to pharmaceuticals.
But for now, I will continue to experiment with wine and social
settings to find my limit and stay in the “I Love You, Man” zone where
all in the world is wonderful. 2000 RBJ
Vox Populi
$ (9.99) May 3,
2003 It has been
awhile since the WinoStuff staff had a planning meeting, so the emails went
out for everyone to clear their schedule.
Since Wino Wally is now running covert operations, he sent us an
encrypted message about being on a very important assignment for some very
important people and if anyone was to find out his whereabouts, those
important people who deny that he is really working for them would be upset.
When last seen, he had pages
from the Wall Street Journal taped up on all the walls of his wine cellar
and he was decoding a series of longitude and latitude coordinates for
somebody referred to as Mr. Big and the Bowery Boys.
I cannot say anymore, lest I be dragged into this whole spy vs spy
counterintelligence thing, and you know how counter intelligent I am. The worst thing that could happen to me is to acquire more
intelligence. That left
the meeting to Wino John and myself for the road mapping session.
Since our road map has long been a dirt road, we wanted to low key
the dinner so we went BYOB. To
further challenge Wino Wally, we did not eat at Bacchus or Bruschette, but
rather at a small place in Roseland called Marra's.
Two things I learned: 1) Yes, Virginia, they do take
reservations and strongly recommend them for Friday and Saturday nights, and
2) they do accept all major credit cards.
Wow, another Italian restaurant in Essex County, what luck? We both
ponied up with a bottle of fine Italian wine to complement dinner since he
and I can consume a bottle apiece without breaking a sweat.
I drew a bottle that I have been saving for several years, one that
Mr. Kim recommended when I first was frequenting his store.
This Super Tuscan was a prize to the Big Red drinkers in the crowd.
Wino John drew a 1997 Brunello di Montalcino, which came from that
prized lot which helped to send Tuscan wines soaring in price.
We decided to open the 1995 Super Tuscan first to let it breath.
As I swirled and sniffed and drew in that first olfactory foreplay,
my mind suddenly lurched and warning lights flashed.
Though the cork was intact, the wine carried a damp basement smell
that fouled the fruit and made this one undrinkable.
Fortunately, Wino John always travels with a spare bottle of wine. Dinner was
good but a bit rushed since they were booked full for a rehearsal dinner at
8:30. The waitress never told
me what they were rehearsing but she was under pressure to move us out
quickly and offered little in the way of humor or pleasantries.
My Lobster Tortellini had a flavorful pink sauce that was delicious.
And the Brunello was a great match. But the
night was still young since we were shuffled out so quickly and Roseland is
close enough to Bacchus that we headed over for a nightcap, OK at 8PM it’s
an evening cap. The place
was hopping with a Blues Band and a large group of nuts and flakes from the
tree hugging Sierra Club. Obviously, as I pulled up in my Explorer, they all looked at
me like the devil in the flesh and I heard murmurs of “Gas Guzzling
Pig" and "We Love Our Planet but You Don’t”.
Somehow they weren’t much on slogans.
But they did smoke, drink and eat red meat, just not out in the
wilderness. Wino John ordered
up a Big Ass California Cabernet that we enjoyed as the crowd danced to the
music and chatted about the unfair use of resources that we Americans
consume and how we need to leave things for future generations and drive
electric cars, blah, blah, blah. While I
waited in the valet line behind the 25 Birenstockers, I heard the car jockey
say, “I know, sir, but we have 12 white 1991 Yugos, you need to tell me
your license plate.” (My
apologies, I did not write down name of the Brunello di Montalcino but it
was lovely. If Wino John can let me know I’ll post it up) 1995
Antinori Solaia $$$
(105.00) Corked. Unreviewable at this time 1999
Mount Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon $$$
(70.00 rest.) May 2,
2003 I know that
World Traveler and Diner Extraordinaire, Wino Wally, eats in the finest
restaurants, and I am mostly limited to Bacchus.
So this week, I had a business meeting scheduled and decided to mix
it up, live life on the edge, and expand my horizons.
Instead of the normal default of Bacchus, I decided try an Italian restaurant.
Big surprise, its New Jersey where you can find an Italian restaurant on
almost every corner. But if HBO
said that, they would be under fire again… Hey, speaking of HBO, I
have a new email pal, the creator of a Sopranos web site called www.sopranonsonlocation.com.
And yes, there are two pictures contributed by and credited to yours
truly, Wino Bob. But I cannot
take full credit; it was my email from Flavia correcting my use of the term
'Lou Costello Park' that then had me see the same mistake on this web site.
I forwarded them my newfound knowledge and dialoged with Bob at the
site. I told him I was aware of
two locations he did not have posted that are in West Caldwell so he posted
them with the information about the show on which they appeared and thanked
Wino Bob for the contribution. Maybe Wino Bob can be Tony’s wine captain (you know what I
mean, yuz guyz?) Getting
back to the topic at hand, I tried a great little Italian restaurant called Bruschette
that boasts that all their pasta is made on premise in the Bruchette pasta
room. I walked in off the
street, without a reservation, and was immediately made to feel like I was a
regular. OK, this is Mike and
Sylvia’s other place and Mike was greeting guests and since I spend so
much time at his other place, he told me he didn’t think I ate Italian
since this was the first time he saw me in there. But, it is a different place and is located three driveways
South of Bacchus, so for me, it was a world away.
I had the Sea Diver Scallop and Shrimp ravioli and Wino Tim had angel
hair pasta drown in shellfish. I
was the guest, but I influenced Wino Tim to get a bottle and the choice was
great. If you do find yourself
in Fairfield, looking for a great Italian meal, consider Bruschette.
You won’t be disappointed. 1995
Barbaresco Rabaja Giusseppe Cortese $$$
(65.00 rest) April
26, 2003 I have a
question for any restaurant industry people out there. If a patron’s
meal is overcooked, what is the appropriate compensation? The other
evening, I was having dinner at Bacchus and one of the filet mignons for the
table looked like it had been sitting under the lights awaiting the release
of the other dinners. As we cut
into the filet, it seemed a bit drier than a medium steak should be cooked,
but hey, we were having a good time and it was the end portion of the meat,
which is a bit drier anyway. Unfortunately,
the center wasn’t much better. Not
being one to complain, when the waiter came by, I made a small comment that
one of the meals was overcooked. “Hey
wait-boy, the $2.50 per hour labor you have in the kitchen f’d this thing
up so bad I could resole my Bruno Maglia with it.
Damn it, don’t you realize I’m Wino Bob, a very influential web
site Internet guy whose entries are read across the globe?
I will have you off the Suburban Essex Best Restaurant list in a snap
of the finger!" That is what I wanted to say, but instead, “Hey
Jimmy, this one looks a bit more than medium," is what came out.
He agreed it looked overdone and promptly headed off to speak with
the manager on duty. The
manager played it real cool..., not. As
he is walking up to the table, he is already speaking, “It looks like that
meal is overcooked, so dessert is on the house.”
Dessert, it’s a God Damn Filet Mignon and besides, you know I’m
watching my stick figure! When in the hell have you ever, ever seen me
order dessert after dinner? So
you are saying that a single espresso is all I’m worth after all the times
I have dined here? So in my most indignant tone I said, “That will be
great.” So here’s
the question. Should they offer another steak? (By the end, he
did mumble something like that under his breath.)
And if they offered, would someone in the kitchen be getting bitched-out
so badly that he wipes his most private of areas with the steak before
serving the new meal to us? Should they have been gracious enough to take that dinner off
the bill or offer a comp next time I dined there, if there will be a next
time? On the positive side, I
opted for the Wild Boar special and always order my food medium rare.
Most meat tastes better with the juice pooling around my potatoes and
if I do not like it, they can zap it a bit more. So I say to
you, what is appropriate in the restaurant world and what should I do next
time to give me more satisfaction? April
24, 2003 If you are
like me, you wait until the day after Easter to get those bargain prices and
stock up on candy for next year. Why
pay full price and stand in large lines the week before Easter when you can
visit a store several days after Easter and get a 50% discount on Peeps (I
only eat them when they are hard and crunchy) and malt eggs? They will
survive for 5 years with all the preservatives and the three foot chocolate
rabbit is only $10.00. Just
remember not to store it in the basement near the furnace. While I was
shopping yesterday, I came across something that even I was taken |
The
primary white grape of the Swiss wine community is Chasselas.
My
apologies, I have been negligent in pointing out another glaring example of
the influence WinoStuff has on pop culture.
Well I wouldn’t
have either if not for the recent story in the NY Times regarding Mr.
Blair’s predisposition for writing headline news by making up some
/ most / all of the facts.