As a devoted HTC customer I was exalted to see a commercial for the company during the World Series tonight – mostly because I have never seen any advertising for HTC (at least not at this level). They make wonderful products and most people have never heard of them and they really should (hence the ‘Quietly Brilliant’ slogan?). I was even more excited that I liked the commercial….a lot….and have to love Nina Simone as the choice for background music. Enjoy.
Sutton Cellar's Merlot
…and I am willing to venture a guess that you haven’t….still. Yes, even 5 years after one line in Sideways maligned the grape, Merlot sales are still lagging (up 2% in 2008 in comparison to Pinot Noir’s 16%). I’m not gonna lie – I had not purchased a bottle of Merlot in years until a couple of months ago. I bought another one the other evening and I’m here to say you should too.
Let me first say, I certainly do not consider myself a wine connoisseur nor do I have a palate that is distinctly defined. I do enjoy it though and drink enough to have some sort of an informed opinion – nothing beyond that though! Anyways, onto to the Merlot grape and the bottles I purchased. The first bottle I purchased because it was from one of my favorite producers, Sutton Cellars. I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Carl Sutton, like a few of my friends, but apparently he is quite an interesting guy…..and he makes fantastic wine. So, when I saw this Sonoma County bottle by him, I grabbed it. I was pleasantly surprised.
Paso Creek's Merlot
I hadn’t had a Merlot in a long time and thoroughly enjoyed the bottle. Unfortunately, it was some time ago and I can’t give you a description of it, but I do remember enjoying it a lot. The second Merlot was by Paso Creek, which is a producer I had not heard of before. They are located in Paso Robles, which is part of the central coast wine growing region of California and is the southern most region. It was definitely a BIG wine and had a plummy taste/smell to it that Merlot’s are known for. This bottle reminded me a lot of a Cabernet Sauvignon, which isn’t surprising because the two are blended often. I wasn’t eating a red meat at the time, but it would have gone very well with it. Both of these bottles were around $14 range, which is a target price for me – I think you can find a lot of value in the $13 – $17 price range. So there it is – my recent experiences with Merlot and I’m happy to say they’ve been good ones. Next time you see a bottle – pick it up – I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
Also, for fun – check out Wine Library TV’s Gary Vaynerchuk’s episode on this topic.
When I began this blog, I had visions of writing posts on my amateur view of the equity market – it hasn’t happened yet, but I haven’t lost faith. In the meantime, let’s go with this. I stumbled upon this “story” today and thought it was interesting / humorous (in a depressing kind of way). Enjoy.
———————————
It is the month of August, on the shores of the Black Sea. It is raining and the little town looks totally deserted. It is tough times, everybody is in debt and everybody lives on credit.
A rich tourist comes to town.
He enters the only hotel, lays a 100 euro note on the reception counter and goes to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one.
The hotel proprietor takes the 100 euro note and runs to pay his debt to the butcher.
The butcher takes the 100 euro note and runs to pay his debt to the pig farmer.
The pig farmer takes the 100 euro note and runs to pay his debt to the supplier of his feed and fuel.
The supplier of feed and fuel takes the 100 euro note and runs to pay his debt to the town’s prostitute who, in these hard times, gave her services on credit.
The hooker runs to the hotel and pays off her debt with the 100 euro note to the hotel proprietor to pay for the rooms that she rented when she brought her clients there.
The hotel proprietor then lays the 100 euro note back on the counter so that the rich tourist will not suspect anything.
At that moment, the rich tourist comes down after inspecting the rooms and takes his 100 euro note, after saying that he did not like any of the rooms and leaves town.
No one earned anything. However, the whole town is now without debt and looks to the future with a lot of optimism.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how Europe and North America are doing business today.
Otter Creek Beer Mustards
I love mustard. It goes hand-in-hand with the fact that I eat A LOT of sandwiches. Because of this I have tried almost every mustard imaginable. I’m always picking up a different brand or type at the supermarket every time I go (at this point, it’s usually brand because I’ve tried most types). Well, thanks to my friend Zach and his wedding golf tournament gift this summer, I received some of the best mustard I’ve had in awhile. Otter Creek beer mustard is fantastic. I currently have the Hickory Smoked in my refrigerator and can’t get enough of it. The flavoring is delicious, probably in part due to their phenomenal beer – this mustard is made with their Hickory Switch Smoked Amber Ale. I can’t say I’ve had this, but would love to try it (if I could find it somewhere). The mustard also has a nice spice too it, but is not over the top, where it becomes overwhelming. I’ve had it on sandwiches and as a dipper for pretzels or crackers. I’m too the point now where I’m using it conservatively because I don’t want to run out. If you like mustard, you owe yourself this treat.
