Put a Wine Predator to Work in a Vineyard? Please Vote Yes!

Put a poet to work in a vineyard!

Gwendolyn Alley is Murphy-Goode http://www.areallygoodejob.com/video-view.aspx?vid=MEPRrfj1uHUPUT A POET TO WORK IN A VINEYARD!

Hi, I’m Gwendolyn Alley. I’m a blogger,
poet, multimedia journalist,
college teacher and I want Sonoma
County in my backyard so I can share
Murphy-Goode wine with the world as your
Wine Country Lifestyle correspondent!

My grandpa built this wine cellar and carved
this door.  I love the magic of wine with food.
I know these Murphy-Goode Alexander
Valley Cabernet Sauvignons will be
great with tonight’s tritip.

My grandpa taught me to respect nature,
the land, what grows there, what we make from it.
He also gave me a passion for challenge
and adventure. The world is my backyard.

I’m ready to grow in your backyard,
Murphy-Goode. Using all the cool social
media tools, I’ll share my adventures.
I’ll hike vineyards, discuss sustainability,
harvest grapes, taste barrel samples, and
enjoy wine with the Murphy-Goode family.

VOTE for Gwendolyn! She’s Murphy-Goode!

For the Monday Poetry Train, I turned my script for my video for the Murphy-Goode Wine Country Lifestyle Correspondent blogging position into pentameter (at times, even iambic!) Go here for another poem about the same grandfather which I posted last year.

OK, my script may not be my best poem ever posted to this site, but please click on the link, watch my video, and vote for me by putting your email in the box even if it’s NOT my best poem! Don’t you think they should put a poet to work in the vineyard? Voting for this round closes on Friday when they will announce the Top 50 and voting opens up again. Thank you for your support!

Gwendolyn Alley is Murphy-Goode video application here.

Wine How To: Avoid Palate Fatigue

Gwendolyn Alley IS Murphy-Goode! Please vote here: http://www.areallygoodejob.com/video-view.aspx?vid=MEPRrfj1uHUWhen I applied for the “dream job” as Caretaker of the Great Barrier Reef I discovered a whole community of fellow applicants–warm, interesting people who share my interests. Same thing around this time as an applicant for the Murphy-Goode’s Wine Country Lifestyle Correspondent.

One of the cool people is Andy over at Andy’s Goode Life Blog where she’s hosting a blog carnival by asking us to respond to these three questions:

  1. When I drink red wine, I often get the dreaded “red wine teeth,” which is an embarrassing condition to have at a party when I intend on talking, smiling, or otherwise showing my newly wine-stained chompers. And is there any way to reduce this affliction without hampering my enjoyment of red?
  2. What are your tips to avoid “palate fatigue” when tasting so many wines in a session?
  3. Why smell the cork?

Since I discovered I had several stories I wanted to share, I chose to answer all three questions but in different posts since it was getting so long! So here’s my answer to #2. And please head over to Andy’s place and vote for one of my blog posts! Good practice for voting for me over at Murphy-Goode…

2. How do I avoid palate fatigue? I smile at this question, thinking back to the Delicious Wine Tasting in Santa Monica earlier this month. I brought three friends with me, Helen and her partner Grant who both work in the hospitality industry and influence wine selection at the high end restaurants, and my friend David who I’ve learned to rely on for good notes, a delicate palate, and a willingness to drive f I don’t do enough spitting.

Helen does a local TV show called “Tidbits” and we were shooting a segment, so we had a camera and mic. We were interviewing and tasting. It was exhausting, partly because most of the people we were talking with were French and we’re not. Plus our French is awful but our curiousity great. The food had run out early on, right after we’d had something after our nearly 90 minute drive; I’d even heard an organizer make a snide remark about one of my friends “making a meal out of a bread bar.”  So another 90 minutes later, when more bread and cheese arrived, we filled the tiny plates, chose different wines to see what happened with the food, and settled into some couches outside the room to compare notes and take a break.

This is where I answer the question, by the way. Continue reading →

Wine Predator’s Murphy-Goode Wine Blogging Job Video is UP!

Soooooo Goode: watch my video & vote, please!

MG ap pagesmHere’s a screen shot of my application video for the position of Murphy-Goode Wine Country Lifestyle Correspondent!

Please click on the link below to watch the video on their site and to vote for me, please!

http://www.areallygoodejob.com/video-view.aspx?vid=MEPRrfj1uHU

Thank YOU!!

Pretty in Pink Father’s Day Celebration for Our Super Hero

In the Pink Drink for Pre-Dad’s Day Celebration

dad'sday09supersleepsm

Here’s MY SuperHero, sneaking in a nap between chapters of Melvin Beederman, Super Hero, one of their favorite chapter books to read and reread. And reread again. We couldn’t recommend Melvin more. The Dad comes highly recommended too.

For the Big Monkey, aka Dad to the Small Boy, catching some extra shut-eye is a favorite weekend pastime.

So is putting some sockeye salmon on the grill! dadsday09PINKsmThank goodness for us! That’s another reason why he’s my Superhero–the man knows how to grill and grill it good!

Saturday night we went pink: pink salmon, pink sparking Codiniu pinot noir cava, pink beet salad with goat cheese and walnuts on greens from our garden, even a pink lobster! Plus some homemade basil-arugala pesto for some colorful contrast. The dry, pink sparkler made for a beautiful table as well as a festive occasion; bonus was it went well with the meal. What a treat! Yummy!

Now you can see why we’re celebrating Father’s Day all weekend! Happy Father’s Day to all the dads! Today and every day! Cheers!

A Really Goode Wine for a Really Goode Dad

Father’s Day: An Excellent Excuse for an Excellent Meal & Really Goode Wine!

frifathersday09smMy campaign to be the Murphy-Goode Wine Country Lifestyle correspondent has required me to find, buy and drink Murphy-Goode wine. I know, I know, it’s a tough challenge, but I’m up for it!

When I first heard about the Murphy-Goode wine blogging job, I had just bought a bottle of 2005 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon at my favorite wine store, Ventura Wine Company.

Say what you will for the advantages of on-line retailing, and the energy and enthusiasm of Gary Vaynerchuk, but I like going into a brick and mortar store.

I like feeling the heft of the bottle, fingering the labels, readng them over front and back. I love talking with Nick, the owner, or his daughter Nicole, and getting into conversations with other customers, exchanging tips and recipes. Continue reading →

Wine How To: Avoid Red Teeth?

Gwendolyn Alley is Murphy-GoodeSo you might have gathered that I’m applying for another “dream job”–this time, instead of Caretaker of the Great Barrier Reef, I’m up for Murphy-Goode’s Wine Country Lifestyle Correspondent.

And just as many people told me I was perfect for the island reef job, so people are saying about the Murphy-Goode job: “Go for it! You’re perfect! You love wine, you’re a great storyteller, I love your blog!” (OK, they know me, they love me, they’re biased…what can I say?)

So, my 60 minute video application awaits approval and processing (and it came out soooooo great! Whoo hoo!!). In the meantime, I’m headed for a carnival, a blog carnival that is, over at Andy’s Goode Life Blog where she asks us to respond to these three questions:

  1. When I drink red wine, I often get the dreaded “red wine teeth,” which is an embarrassing condition to have at a party when I intend on talking, smiling, or otherwise showing my newly wine-stained chompers. And is there any way to reduce this affliction without hampering my enjoyment of red?
  2. What are your tips to avoid “palate fatigue” when tasting so many wines in a session?
  3. Why smell the cork?

1. How to avoid the dreaded red wine teeth? Ahh, the scurge of red wine drinkers, especially for those of us with a passion for heavy bodied reds like syrahs.

At Doug Cook’s birthday party at the Wine Blogger’s Conference, toward the end of a long day of tasting and drinking wine, we were all laughing at ourselves and each other, joyously celebrating our red teeth! It was a mark of a day and an evening well spent amongst new and old friends sharing some of our favorite wines.

So, enjoy!

Now, if you’re doing a photo shoot that’s another story. It’s best not to drink much anyway if at all. Bring a toothbrush. And if it’s a first date or a business dinner, and you’re worried about first impressions, choose to drink something white!

VinTank To Aid Wine Predator in Quest for Social Media Wine Job!

VinTank to Help Art Predator Get A Really Goode Job!

Extra, extra read all about it! VinTank to help Art Predator win Murphy-Goode wine job!

Okay, I admit, I am exaggerating a little bit, but it’s really exciting news! After I groused over at VinTank and here on Art Predator about how VinTank was providing an unfair advantage to the 8 candidates they’ve chosen before the contest is even over, VinTank’s Paul Mabray commented on their blog and on mine that they are happy to help ALL the applicants–those that ask anyway!

What’s in it for VinTank? If they’re in the business of social media wine consulting, why are they giving away all this information for free? Because they get it–they understand that what they do to help the wine industry will help the wine industry hire them! Further, by nurturing enthusiastic wine bloggers like me, they are developing talent for all those jobs VinTank recommends they fill.

So, Paul and partners at VinTank, I’m asking, I’m asking! Help me get not just a Goode job, but a great job! Help me further develop the skills I need to get a job in social media in the wine industry! (I even have some ideas of places to pitch!) I’m all ears and thrilled to learn more from the experts about using social media tools to communicate stories and make the world a more exciting, interactive place!

And since I know many of my readers want to better reach the world with what YOU want to say, I’ll share what I can with you!

First step, though, is to do my homework and read VinTank’s white paper on social media and the wine industry. Whoo hoo! I love this kind of stuff, I really do. And it smells and sounds like the coffee is almost brewed. Mmmn, coffee. Mmmnn, wine.

Stay tuned!