Yearly Archives: 2011
Which wine do you pair with a PC person?
So if you were going to hazard a guess on what kind of wine to give someone based on what kind of computer that person uses, would you guess PC people prefer whites and Mac folks go for red wines? Or vice versa? What varietals do you think Mac people vs PC people choose? Dare you serve meat on a cheese plate?
According to research released April 26, 2011 and compiled from recommendation site Hunch (one of those applications where you start by answering a bunch of seemingly unrelated questions, and based on your answers, Hunch offers recommendations by correlating your answers with preferences for you and others) in collaboration with Column Five Media,
people who identify themselves as Mac users drink red wines, specifically Chianti, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cotes du Rhone while PC people prefer white wines like California style Chardonnay, White Zinfandel, and Pinot Grigio.
The chart shows a number of other fascinating differences between Mac and PC people but this factoid about wine drinkers and computer users was the one that stood out for me! Oh, and you better stick to just cheese with the wine for Mac folks since there’s an 80% higher chance that they are a vegetarian.
But before all those marketers for Rhone wine blends start chasing after Mac people, keep in mind what one commenter said: “It’s probably important to remind the audience (though I wouldn’t suspect it of readers of this particular blog!) that hunch users are not necessarily a super accurate proxy of the general computer-using population.”
I also suspect that income has something to do with it…but that info isn’t on the chart which you can find here: http://flowingdata.com/2011/04/26/mac-vs-pc-people/
Leather Wine Rack–For Your Bicycle!
Just what I need–a leather wine rack for my bicycle! Love this!!
While I have found that many wine bottles fit in a standard water bicycle cage (one of the many lessons in living from attending the Burning Man Festival), this is a very classy way to travel with your favorite beverage!
You can buy yourself one for $25 Canadian at etsy. Designer Jesse says,
“This thing is awesome! I had a lot of fun making it and doing the R&D 🙂 The rack secures tightly to the frame so that the two parts do not separate. I’ve tried it with a bunch of different bottles and it’s nicely flexible. The fittings and hardware are all brass. It only fits a 1″ bike frame!”
This would be a very special and unusual Mothers or Fathers Day gift for the wine lover in your family!
Now to figure out a way to carry wine glasses without breaking them!
Where will you Rhone this weekend?
This weekend is a MAJOR Rhone event for folks who love Rhone wines (like me!)
It’s the annual Hospice du Rhone, which is going on 19 years, and it’s nearby, up in Paso Robles, central California. The weather should be stunningly gorgeous with fields of wildflowers.
But people aren’t going for the views–they’re going for the wine! And copious amounts of it too from rhone wine producers from all over the world.
It’s an event not just about tasting wine: it offers seminars, wine and food events, a marketplace, and more.
While the passports are sold out ($800 each–which tells you a LOT about this event!), you can still attend Continue reading
Last Minute Easter Ideas: Wine & Food Pairings for Lamb, Ham, Salmon & more
Easter celebrations come big and small. My husband’s family is preparing lamb, ham, ribs, and tri-tip–and at least a dozen sides and desserts. It’s hard to know what wines to bring!
Here are some wine ideas for your Easter celebrations, whether they be small ones with just you and a friend or big ones with lots of people–like the one I’m going to with all the clergy and most of the congregation of the local Greek Orthodox church!
Just as Easter is celebrated around the world, the wines I talk about below come from near and far. They include a California Sparkler with salmon, two french wines (a gamay and a Bordeaux rose) with ham, and a Spanish Rioja with lamb.
Enjoy your Easter however you celebrate it!
A Rose Brut Sparkler for Starters, Oysters & Salmon
Any celebration becomes more festive when you pop a cork from a sparkling wine, champagne, or cava. Continue reading
Earth Day Every Day: which wine to choose? Five Tips for “green” wine purchases
I’ve been eco-minded since I was small. My first memories are of the sand between my toes, the smell of damp earth under the house, and the joy of being one with a tr
ee or a rock when climbing it. I’m a Girl Scout First Class, I backpacked from Mexico to Canada, and I have a BA from UC Santa Cruz in Environmental Studies plus graduate classes in conservation biology. I’ve hooted for spotted owls, surveyed for goshawks, hacked peregrine falcons, and preserved burrowing owl habitat.
These days, I spend as much time as possible in the outdoors, camping, traveling, and enjoying fine food and wine! Here we are in Zion recently on top of Angel’s Landing–then enjoying a meal with a bottle of Barolo at the campground.
I’m still an environ
mental activist, speaking out about environmental issues at City Council and leading monthly bicycle rides around town. You can read more about bicycle issues over at my Bikergo Gal blog.
So, yes I have some serious “green” cred: I’ve been celebrating Earth Day since before it was invented. Caring about how wine is made and how “green” wine is came “naturally” to me–I also grew up running around my grandfather’s cellar!
Like many, I assumed that wine is “natural.” As I’ve learned more about wine over the past few years, I’ve been appalled at how manipulated wine is and disgusted by some of the green washing that goes on in the wine industry.
So I do my best to navigate my way to purchase wines that are more green on the sustainability spectrum and produced as naturally as possible. And here on this blog, I try my best to call attention to “green” wines and “green” wine practices to support them.
This afternoon, my friend David Rodriguez is visiting from Puerto Rico–we met in Santa Rosa CA at the first Wine Bloggers Conference in 2008. He’s a world traveling wine blogger with a particular interest in wines that are made in traditional, “natural” ways that are sustainable and gentle to the earth. I look forward to learning from him about some of his recent finds –and tasting some of these wines also since many of them he is storing in my grandfather’s cellar!
Here are five choices you can make to green your wine–whether you prefer red or white! Happy Earth Day! Continue reading
Wine & Art Walk in Downtown Oxnard Benefits Afterschool Music Programs
The weather this weekend should be glorious for a stroll to discover the delights of downtown Oxnard California at Sunday’s Wine & Art Trail from 1-5pm. Tickets are $50 and benefit the Boys & Girls Club Afterschool Music Program. Your ticket enters you into a raffle and gives you an event glass.
Let wine and art help you recover from the stresses of tax season and get a jump on your donations for this year! Enjoy fine local wines and delicious appetizers while browsing through unique artist exhibits at locations around downtown Oxnard. Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Oxnard, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Oxnard, and Port Hueneme’s Young Professionals Network, the 3rd Annual Wine & Art Trail will feature wines from the Ventura County Wine Trail.
Ventura County winemakers may not grow many of their own grapes but they’re certainly making some fine wines with the grapes they’re getting from places like Lodi (Cantara Cellars) and Santa Barbara AVAs (Vino V, Old Creek Ranch, Ojai Vineyards). Rancho Ventavo is soucing wine from several areas and even has a tasting room right in Heritage Square in downtown Oxnard where Sunday’s adventure begins. The Wine and Art Trail is an easy way to experience some of the wonderful wines that Ventura County has to offer these days.
Participating Artists include: Brianna Bainbridge, Rolando Camarena, Anna Karakalou, Paulo Ruvalcaba, Andrea Vargas and Jose Zuniga.
For more information, email: WineArtTrail@yahoo.com
wine predator.............. gwendolyn alley 