Thoughts....Things....and a bottle of wine.: September 2013

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Dwight's Top Picks for the 2010 Bordeaux Release!

I thought I would be the conduit for Dwight's "FWS" insights into the Bordeaux release this year….. so….. below are his top picks for the left and right banks… a bit of an inside tip are the Fronsac. It is a really good value as the AOC, the area the wine is from, is right beside Pomerol, one of the more famous right back Bordeaux communes.

Fronsac is a bit obscure, not popular because it is not well known and not well marketed.. so you don't see it very often. Fronsac has the same level of commune restrictions as Margaux or Saint-Emilion, meaning the French gov't regulations for the quality are exactly the same, which means the quality is there for half the price.

Dwight's value picks for the 2010 Bordeaux release! One of the best vintages in the last 10 years! (numbers are based on the catalogue from the BC Liquor Distribution Catalogue)

Left Bank Bordeaux's - Cabernet Sauvignon based

#21 - Chateau Brown, Pessac-leognan $38.00 - Drink now or 2020

#13 - Château Bel-veu, Haut-medoc $38.00 Drink now through 2020

Right Bank Bordeaux's - Merlot based

#86 - Haut-Carles, Fronsac $38.00 - Drink now through 2030

#154 - Chateau La Vieille Cure. Fronsac $38.00 - wait till 2015 then good for another 10 yrs

#17 - Chateau Bourgneuf, Pomerol $68.00 - hold till 2015… and longer :-)

So Dwight is heading straight for the Fronsac's.. my job is to tackle the crazy people that get in our way!! Got to get my elbows out and go Haligonian on them!!!!! :-)

Ann

Sunday, September 8, 2013

What I did on my summer vacation!

So I know it's been a long time, and I am sorry... I have signed up for Facebook and it seems to have become my defacto way of posting... So.. This array of images is from my most recent vacation. Which I would like to point out… was really wonderful, we really do live in a great country.

It all started with the RBC Banff Gran Fondo, in essence a 145km bike race. Well they say its not a race.. But I knew better, and I did race it...and I am very happy with my effort, 4hrs & 54mins, 19th out of 171 in my age group and 37th out of 474 females overall... It might not sound that impressive but given the fact that I had been sick for almost 6 weeks and ended up on antibiotics two weeks before the race for bronchitis ... I thought it was not too shabby!

I have to give some great credit to my coach Mike Neill from Human Powered Racing, while I did not get formal coaching this year, last year Mike not only coached me to prepare for the ride but during the ride as well! It was his support and guidance during the ride last year that help so much this year, I was able to pick myself up after getting dropped by the group I was with in the last 20km and talked myself into moving forward at the pace I needed to… thanks Mike, I know you thought you were being hard on me last year…. but you were not and it helped!

The Trip…

So three nights in Banff with a great visit from my sister in law and it was off to wonderful Chateau Lake Louise, 6 nights; hiking, biking, canoeing, eating... And yes wine.... I can not even express how wonderful that place is! We were in a 1 bedroom lake view suite, yes… it was that nice!

Then one night in Radium Hot Springs, where we made friends with a waitress at the golf club that was sure we should do shooters, luckily we were sure we should not :) after a good nights sleep it was off to Nelson BC.... Historic, beautiful... But just a tad odd..... That's for sure...

Now after a very scenic drive we are staying at a little slice of heaven in Naramata BC, vineyard views, birds chirping, and breathtaking sunsets....

Want proof of all this wonderfulness? Here you go!