This is really a couple of days worth of stuff, because I didn’t get around to posting yesterday or the day before.
1. Philosopher argues that evolutionary metaphysics isn’t akin to the faith claims of religion, specifically advancing the thesis that “every question that used to be answered by appealing to God can be answered better by appealing to some form of evolution.”
2. You could be wrong. Really. Consider it carefully, because it’s better to know sooner than later. The best part of this is her “Series of Unfortunate Assumptions” people make about why people disagree with us: the ignorance assumption, the idiocy assumption, and the evil assumption. Nicely done.
3. El Bulli has closed, which is sad. This is a great post outlining one diner’s experience at the legendary restaurant.
4. Bertrand Russell: not right about everything, but a wise man nonetheless.
5. This is pretty fascinating. An article about the difficulties cryonics faces in attempting to market itself to the world.
6. An interesting article about the frustrating and endless task of trying to find out what is REALLY wrong with or about religion (as a whole or in general). The conclusion he come to and only briefly comments on is that faith is the only truly unsalvagable part of religion.
7. Some video highlights of Jancis Robinson’s keynote at the 2011 Wine Bloggers Conference
8. I wish I had been at this concert.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Monday, August 1, 2011
Brain Food 8/1/11
1. A good listing of the up and comers of the Washington wine scene. I’ve tried a few of these wines, and they aren’t joking around.
2. Great article in the New Yorker which summarizes the May 1st mission that ended in the death of Osama bin Laden, and the events preceding and following. Excellently written.
3. A video of the legendary Paul Draper of Ridge Vineyards (one of my favs - Central Coast CA represent) talking about the history of Ridge.
3. A security expert talks at TED. Best quote “It if happens in the news, don’t worry about it [happening to you].”
2. Great article in the New Yorker which summarizes the May 1st mission that ended in the death of Osama bin Laden, and the events preceding and following. Excellently written.
3. A video of the legendary Paul Draper of Ridge Vineyards (one of my favs - Central Coast CA represent) talking about the history of Ridge.
3. A security expert talks at TED. Best quote “It if happens in the news, don’t worry about it [happening to you].”
Friday, July 29, 2011
Brain Food 7/29/11
Missed yesterday because I was home taking care of a sick wife.
1. Amazing story. First American to make Grand Cru Burgundy. And he did it BEFORE HE TURNED 30.
2. Good article at Terroirist concerning the oversimplification of marketing to Milennials. Mr. White is correct - all those things he points out are indeed flat-out incorrect assumptions. The dumbing-down of wine theory for this new generation is pretty insulting, frankly. And gross.
3. I have a friend with cancer, and this seems about accurate. Treatment is more complicated than you think.
4. A fun list of words that you should know, from the New York Times. I’m about half and half. Let me know if you want to make some flash cards and have a study session.
5. Great article on parenting - not only on what you need to be a parent, but on how to enjoy it. That is to say, DON’T GET OVERLY ROMANTIC. It’s WORK. My experience of being a parent has been overwhelmingly positive, but it’s certainly been a challenging adjustment, turning what seem at first like burdens into pleasures. It requires a major shift in perspective, and it doesn’t happen overnight. Good advice.
1. Amazing story. First American to make Grand Cru Burgundy. And he did it BEFORE HE TURNED 30.
2. Good article at Terroirist concerning the oversimplification of marketing to Milennials. Mr. White is correct - all those things he points out are indeed flat-out incorrect assumptions. The dumbing-down of wine theory for this new generation is pretty insulting, frankly. And gross.
3. I have a friend with cancer, and this seems about accurate. Treatment is more complicated than you think.
4. A fun list of words that you should know, from the New York Times. I’m about half and half. Let me know if you want to make some flash cards and have a study session.
5. Great article on parenting - not only on what you need to be a parent, but on how to enjoy it. That is to say, DON’T GET OVERLY ROMANTIC. It’s WORK. My experience of being a parent has been overwhelmingly positive, but it’s certainly been a challenging adjustment, turning what seem at first like burdens into pleasures. It requires a major shift in perspective, and it doesn’t happen overnight. Good advice.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Brain Food 7/27/11
This is what I've been consuming today.
1. This article argues that while Atheists are skeptics by nature, they are also obligated to hold positive speculative beliefs, because of course you must speculate in order to propose testable hypotheses...the very meat and potatoes of the science. “By refusing to endorse any speculative explanation for the universe, you’re saying that the existence of the universe is mysterious. But with that, you’ve handed the whole topic over to the religious mystery-mongers.”
2. I have been recently obsessed with Inside the Actors Studio, which I’ve been watching on YouTube virtually all day while doing this dull project at work. It makes me wish desperately that I had more time for film. Here are a couple of my favorites so far:
Robin Williams
Julianne Moore
Anthony Hopkins
3. I’m not currently an investor, but I will be soonish, and most of my intuitions that I’m willing to bet on are tech stocks. This is a short piece on Warren Buffet’s different perspective.
4. A professor of mine wrote a short article about a longer article that I sent his way, which argued that a degree in the humanities (specifically philosophy) is a great prerequisite to working in technology.
5. I really like Freakonomics Radio. This one is interesting, and features a writer I this is very interesting (and unconventional), James Altucher, whose worthwhile blog is here.
1. This article argues that while Atheists are skeptics by nature, they are also obligated to hold positive speculative beliefs, because of course you must speculate in order to propose testable hypotheses...the very meat and potatoes of the science. “By refusing to endorse any speculative explanation for the universe, you’re saying that the existence of the universe is mysterious. But with that, you’ve handed the whole topic over to the religious mystery-mongers.”
2. I have been recently obsessed with Inside the Actors Studio, which I’ve been watching on YouTube virtually all day while doing this dull project at work. It makes me wish desperately that I had more time for film. Here are a couple of my favorites so far:
Robin Williams
Julianne Moore
Anthony Hopkins
3. I’m not currently an investor, but I will be soonish, and most of my intuitions that I’m willing to bet on are tech stocks. This is a short piece on Warren Buffet’s different perspective.
4. A professor of mine wrote a short article about a longer article that I sent his way, which argued that a degree in the humanities (specifically philosophy) is a great prerequisite to working in technology.
5. I really like Freakonomics Radio. This one is interesting, and features a writer I this is very interesting (and unconventional), James Altucher, whose worthwhile blog is here.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
How Bottle Prices are Set
Great article here by Terry Theise, a wine writer and importer, about how the cost of wine is determined. He makes two great points that you don’t hear too often - first, that “Those $6.99 bottles actually represent poor value, whereas a trade-up to $9-10 gives you twice the wine, because the fixed costs of freight and duties are the same.” That is, because importation costs are roughly fixed (it doesn’t really cost much more to ship wine that will end up being $5 a bottle than it does to ship wine that will sell for $100), spending just a few more dollars on an (imported) bottle can get you much better wine, or really, much more wine for you money, since a higher percentage is actually being spent on the juice, not on importation and distribution costs. Those costs can make the USA retail price exceed 200% of what it was originally sold for by the producer. Think about that next time you’re trying to decide between a $6 and a $12 dollar bottle (or a $12 and a $20). Second, when you buy from the big guys, you pay a premium for advertising, and when you buy from new wineries, you pay a premium for their startup costs. You can get more juice for your dollar, Theise argues, by “betting against the crowd,” especially by buying from small, family-based Old World wineries (that own their land and don't pay for anything but upkeep). Overall, this fits my experience - the best values I’ve found have been from small French producers. This is a good article, and a great little primer on wine economics - absolutely worth a read.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Things Wine Newbies SHOULD DO.
This is a companion piece to a post i wrote previously on Things a Wine Newbie SHOULD NOT do. Come to find out, writing about what NOT to do was easier, for some reason. Giving positive advice is more difficult, and as a result my list is shorter. I will update if I think of anything else. The generalities about what I assume make a “newbie” are listed in my previous post, which again is here.
Things Wine Newbies SHOULD DO
1. DO taste wine blind, especially with people who know more and are better tasters than you. But why blind? Because once you get a basic feel for varietal or regional characteristics, you can get lazy. Having to taste wine without knowing certain details forces you to pay attention to the minutia, making you a better taster, able to notice (and appreciate) the subtleties in the wine you drink. It's also a fun thing to do with small groups of people who are interested in wine. While a lot has been written about wine tasting (this is an example), it is a thing best learned, I think, by apprenticeship.
1a. While you do this, DO take notes. Physical sensations like taste can be difficult to remember, and words can help. Plus, standardizing the language you use can help you to figure out which wines you prefer to others.
2. DO decant. Especially those young, ageable reds you buy off the shelves, and normally pop and pour. Most good wine improves with decanting, especially young red wine, as it takes the edge off of the harsh and overly astringent tannins, and usually results in a fuller, more balanced, and more complex nose. If you don’t believe me, next time you open a bottle, plan a bit in advance and do an experiment (decanter not required). Pour a glass, cork the bottle, and wait an hour. Then pour another, recork, and wait another hour. Repeat a third time, then wait again and pour a final glass, and taste all four glasses against each other. You’ll be amazed at the differences between the glasses - blind, you’d easily think they were different wines. And I bet you’ll prefer one of the ones that’s had time to breathe.
3. DO expand your palate. Try new stuff. All the time. Especially if you're young like me, spend your early wine years trying everything you can get your hands on, finding the stuff that you REALLY like (not buying a bunch of high-scoring bottles to save for 10 years before you taste them), then you can spend your years of wine maturity buying that really good stuff, not wondering or worrying if you could get better (subjective) bang for your buck somewhere else.
4. DO challenge your presuppositions. Think you don’t like, for instance, Chardonnay? Walk into a wine store, find a knowledgeable clerk, describe what you don’t like about Chardonnay (or Merlot, or Riesling, or pinot noir, or whatever) and then ask him or her to please recommend a Chardonnay that they think avoids all the characteristics you described (my own initial dislike of Chardonnay came about by tasting a few that could be described as tasting like a bunch of sawdust floating in a vat of movie theatre popcorn butter with a sprinkling of liquid smoke). Challenge your preconceived notions, and find new things.
5. DO buy some nice wine glasses. This is obvious, but some people don't. Crystal, or at the very least good glass, with a cut rim and a big, convex bowl (where the rim has a smaller circumference than the widest part of the bowl...so you can swirl). You really only need red wine glasses - they're even fine for sparkling wine, and don't let anyone tell you different.
6. DO eat wine with food, and learn something about wine and food pairing. I heartily recommend this book. Wine IS food (a luxurious food item certainly, but food nonetheless), and should be treated as such. Like enjoys like. Additionally, one of the great pleasures in having a wine collection is having a perfect bottle to go with a special meal you're preparing (or you've ordered at a restaurant).
Update: Here is a great little video by Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon vineyards, who adds a couple of very good points to this list, namely, try wines in context (i.e. try several similar wines together), taste in a group (but don't let others' opinions influence your own too much), and don't think you can understand a (great) wine in 5 minutes.
Things Wine Newbies SHOULD DO
1. DO taste wine blind, especially with people who know more and are better tasters than you. But why blind? Because once you get a basic feel for varietal or regional characteristics, you can get lazy. Having to taste wine without knowing certain details forces you to pay attention to the minutia, making you a better taster, able to notice (and appreciate) the subtleties in the wine you drink. It's also a fun thing to do with small groups of people who are interested in wine. While a lot has been written about wine tasting (this is an example), it is a thing best learned, I think, by apprenticeship.
1a. While you do this, DO take notes. Physical sensations like taste can be difficult to remember, and words can help. Plus, standardizing the language you use can help you to figure out which wines you prefer to others.
2. DO decant. Especially those young, ageable reds you buy off the shelves, and normally pop and pour. Most good wine improves with decanting, especially young red wine, as it takes the edge off of the harsh and overly astringent tannins, and usually results in a fuller, more balanced, and more complex nose. If you don’t believe me, next time you open a bottle, plan a bit in advance and do an experiment (decanter not required). Pour a glass, cork the bottle, and wait an hour. Then pour another, recork, and wait another hour. Repeat a third time, then wait again and pour a final glass, and taste all four glasses against each other. You’ll be amazed at the differences between the glasses - blind, you’d easily think they were different wines. And I bet you’ll prefer one of the ones that’s had time to breathe.
3. DO expand your palate. Try new stuff. All the time. Especially if you're young like me, spend your early wine years trying everything you can get your hands on, finding the stuff that you REALLY like (not buying a bunch of high-scoring bottles to save for 10 years before you taste them), then you can spend your years of wine maturity buying that really good stuff, not wondering or worrying if you could get better (subjective) bang for your buck somewhere else.
4. DO challenge your presuppositions. Think you don’t like, for instance, Chardonnay? Walk into a wine store, find a knowledgeable clerk, describe what you don’t like about Chardonnay (or Merlot, or Riesling, or pinot noir, or whatever) and then ask him or her to please recommend a Chardonnay that they think avoids all the characteristics you described (my own initial dislike of Chardonnay came about by tasting a few that could be described as tasting like a bunch of sawdust floating in a vat of movie theatre popcorn butter with a sprinkling of liquid smoke). Challenge your preconceived notions, and find new things.
5. DO buy some nice wine glasses. This is obvious, but some people don't. Crystal, or at the very least good glass, with a cut rim and a big, convex bowl (where the rim has a smaller circumference than the widest part of the bowl...so you can swirl). You really only need red wine glasses - they're even fine for sparkling wine, and don't let anyone tell you different.
6. DO eat wine with food, and learn something about wine and food pairing. I heartily recommend this book. Wine IS food (a luxurious food item certainly, but food nonetheless), and should be treated as such. Like enjoys like. Additionally, one of the great pleasures in having a wine collection is having a perfect bottle to go with a special meal you're preparing (or you've ordered at a restaurant).
Update: Here is a great little video by Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon vineyards, who adds a couple of very good points to this list, namely, try wines in context (i.e. try several similar wines together), taste in a group (but don't let others' opinions influence your own too much), and don't think you can understand a (great) wine in 5 minutes.
Friday, July 8, 2011
Déjà Vu for the Proximal Senses, AKA Olfactory Transportation
Had a funny experience the other day. They say the sense of smell is the sense most intimately connected to memory - and I believe it. Have you ever had that experience when a smell reminds you of a place? Not just smelling some thing in wine, e.g. "this wine smells of strawberry" or blueberry or lemon starburst or green beans or sticky toffee pudding or moldy hummus (no joke - come to think of it, I really shouldn’t have told the wine rep), but when you catch a whiff of a scent that sort of transports you to some place you've got locked in your memory. I've revisited my great grandmother's old kitchen in this fashion (haven't been there since I was about 10), my grandparents’ bathroom, and a good friend's house, among other places. With objects it’s less profound, but even more common - I can’t count the number of childhood treats I’ve been reminded of since I’ve started seriously tasting wine. It's a sort of déjà vu for the proximal senses. A fascinating feeling. But while again I've obviously smelled things in wine, plums, prunes, my wife's hairspray, etc., and occasionally gotten tiny doses of that fun olfactory déjà vu feeling, nothing that I can recall that was not in fact wine has ever reminded (in the same visceral sense) of wine. Until the other day. Anyway, on the bus a little while ago I opened a tin of Altoids and got hit with that blast of menthol, which is normal, but for some reason totally piqued my sense memory and gave me a curiously strong (get it?) sensation of fresh mint leaves, which immediately sort of transported me to red wine. I "remembered" a wine smelling strongly of menthol...though I rarely identify that characteristic in red wines, and never so clearly (so it wasn't a particular wine I was "remembering"). Really fascinating, and really puzzling, but fun. Amazing how our minds can create complex compound sensations out of disparate atomic parts. It’s days like these that I’m thankful for my cerebral cortex.
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