literary jouissance

Proust is (almost) better than sex.

The slow dance of wine and oxygen

Is no longer. Well, not quite. A recently released study, performed by Southcorp (owner of Penfold's and many other top Aus brands) and the Australian Wine Research Institute, found that oxygen is not a central component in the maturation of wine. The study, which was begun in 1997, involved "premium red wine" that was bottled with different closures (corks, synthetic corks, screw caps, etc) of varying permeability. Having not read the study, I don't know what sort of analysis was performed, but I imagine that samples were tested at least every year. In recent years, screw caps have become increasingly acceptable for white wines (or any wine meant to be drunk young), but the view that wine maturation is essentially a very slow oxidation has lead many to believe that screw caps should never replace corks for wines requiring bottle age. If this turns out to be false (as the study mostly concludes), we may see a much greater use of screw cap closures, which though lacking in romance, do not come with the risk of TCA taint (corkiness). Before accepting the study's findings, I'd like to see long term studies tracing the progession of wine over many years. Wines could be sampled every year from bottling to 30 yrs. Sampling should take the form of both chemical analysis and blind tasting (tasting multiple samples of each at the same time), with tasters selected from noted wine industry professionals or from those who've past the Master of Wine certification. All tasters should have to pass some sort of (friendly) blind tasting to take part. Perhaps not the most feasible study, but that's what I'd like to see. I'd like to see the study myself, but a bried search on the internet turned up nothing.

Am I an Internet Whore?

I just joined Friendster. This may be my biggest mistake since starting this blog. I'm not saying that I don't like this blog. I do. But sometimes it makes me a little uncomfortable.

If any of you are on Friendster, send me an email, and we can become "friends" (in the Friendster sense—imagine me shuddering in distaste).

I've also started a second blog. It's for my 16th and 17th century French poetry class (though the first post is on a poem of Baudelaire's). There is little reason for anyone besides my classmates to read it, but you should check out the title, which I will explaine next time I post.

A Wake

My beloved Automatic Pearl Blog is no longer. I'm not quite sure what about it I found so intriguing, but I will miss it.

Reagan Cultism Burgeoning

The apotheosis of the late Ronald Regan?

Ay Ay Ole!

It's not often that I am genuinely blown away by something that I stumble across on the internet. On those occasional times when this does happen, it is usually the graphic design and interface that leave me speechless. I was thus particularly stunned last night to come across one of the best web sites I have found in years and find myself liking it not for its graphic design (which was functional), or for its interface (mediocre), but for its content. Flamenco Guitar Transcriptions was obviously a labour of love. Despite that the site is in some sense advertising for a set of two books that the author has put together (one for Soleares, the other for Siguiriyas—both very reasonably priced at 30 Euros), there is still a wealth of information available that is wonderfully organized. My favourite parts trace the historical evolution of different falsetas (fancy guitar licks that fit within a particular compas (rythmic structure, of which Soleares and Siguiriyas are two examples)). There are only a handful of examples online (many more are available in the books), but they are worth checking out for the short recorded examples, even if you don't play or listen to much flamenco. Start with the evolution of a Soleares falseta, and then check out variations in the alzapua technique throughout history. From the latter, I especially enjoyed the little snippet of Montoya from 1936.

Ahoy to the New Year

Much has happened in times of late. I've spent three wonderful weeks in Vancouver, where I enjoyed many heart filled times with old friends. It's good to see everyone, even if we're all not in the best of places. In that spirit, I'm listening to an album I recently rediscovered, Radiohead's "Amnesiac". Depending on my mood, this album will sometimes get my vote for their best album. Though "Ok Computer" was perhaps a more impressive studio effort, "Amnesiac" tends to suit my mood more often (Jedd and I exchanged parts of this conversation less than a week ago). Perhaps we should all light a candle for Evan's soul. No, it's alright, Evan doesn't believe that he has a soul.

In a similar vein, I've also rediscovered what has been, for me, Blind Melon's most enduring album. "Nico" contains an excellent rendition of "The Pusher", an awesome recording from an answering machine ("Letters from a Porcupine") and a heart wrenching ballad (of sorts, what really is a ballad), "Soul One". It is a fine piece of songwriting.

I'm hitting the sack early tonight. It's about two, but many of my friends are still at a house party. Today's been sort of a hectic day, especially considering that I'm still on vacation. I spent all day prepping for the evening which included dinner for an old friend recently returned from France and a Scotch tasting that I was co-leading. Dinner was good. A simple moules marinière with good baguette and some good cheese. We enjoyed a very tasty (for the price, $6.99USD) Bergerac Sec from Seigneurs de Bergerac (2003). Mostly Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon with a splash of Muscadelle, the wine was delicious on its own but also paired nicely with the mussels.

As for the Scotch:

We started with the Auchentoshan 10 yrs (Lowland). Very nice rounded caramel nose with a smooth palette. Fruity a smooth (these notes are a little pathetic as I didn't write anything down at the time).
Now in simple order of appearance:
Balvenie 10 (Speyside)
Bunnahabhain 12 (Islay)
Cragganmore 12 (Speyside)
Laphroaig 10 (Islay with a kick in the chops)

Cragganmore was my favourite, though I always love a good healthy kick in the chops.

I must head to sleep. Good night to all.