Archive for May, 2005

Vicchiomaggio Ripa delle More-2000

Published by brandon 3 years, 5 months ago in Wine. 0 Comments

Wow. Now, I love Tuscan wines. I think they are certainly one of the more under-appreciated wines in the world. Granted, many of them are not cheap…although relatively inexpensive when compared with Bordeaux’s or Chateauneuf du Pape, but when compared to some Napa’s or Aussies, they are pricey. Anywho, the Vicchiomaggio Ripa delle More 2000 is a little pricey, between $40 and $50 retail. Amazing wine, unbelievably smooth finish, unbelievably wonderful nose…semi-fruity, yet my limited pallatte could be overstating some things as well.

Passing Clouds

Published by brandon 3 years, 5 months ago in Wine. 0 Comments

Had the 2002 Passing Clouds Reserve Shiraz this weekend. It’s a fantastic little Australian from the Bendigo district. Graeme Leith is the winemaker of this wonderful full-flavored Shiraz. Definitely a wine that’ll be drinking well for the next several years.

Imported to the US by Southern Starz

New Blog!

Published by brandon 3 years, 5 months ago in peanut butter. 0 Comments

So, I’ve just switched from running this blog off of Blogger to running it via WordPress on my own FTP. This is a big change, so it’ll take some time to making the blog look great.

Democracy in Action

Published by brandon 38 years, 11 months ago in Politics. 0 Comments

That’s what reporters called the fillibuster when Senator Jefferson Smith of Montana fillibustered the appropriation for Willett Creek Dam in Frank Capra’s 1939 film, “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.”
Now, Senate Majority Leader, Bill Frist calls Democrats obstructionists for filibustering the most far-right ideological judicial nominess of President Bush’s. Of course, the Republican spin-masters call this the “constitutional option,” as opposed to preferred nomenclature of Democrats, the “nuclear option.” Now, if the 14 moderate Senators wouldn’t have given in and agreed to use the filibuster in only unique circumstance, Frist would have blown up the Senate to get Bush’s nominess pushed through.

Why is it that Democrats get all the blame? President Bush gets only sympathy because the Republican spin machine says so. President Bush nominates judges SO extreme that it nearly forces the Senate to change the rules that have governed the most-respected legislative institution in the world for the past centuries? Wow, the spin-master blow me away.

Thank you Frank Capra for making such a brilliant film, showing “democracy in action” in “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.”

Andrew Bird @ Iota Cafe - Arlington, VA

Published by brandon 38 years, 11 months ago in Music. 1 Comment

Tuesday, 5/24, I saw the great Andrew Bird at the Iota Cafe in Arlington. Absolutely fabulous.

Setlist: