Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Brews and Bikes: The best bike-related summer beers
Leave it to Bicycling Magazine for good lifestyle stories. Here's one you can taste: (offer void where prohibited) Slideshow
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Imperial Beer
Imperial lager hails from Costa Rica and has just appeared in Birmingham (according to my vast experience scanning the beer aisle). It's a really light, crisp summer brew - great for hot weather and quick quaffing. Lighter than Corona, I think. Reminds me a little of tasting my father's brews e.g. Falstaff, Old Milwaukee, Schlitz when I was a kid.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
New Local Beer Site (mmm ... beeeer!)
Want to know about the latest beers hitting the Magic City? Check out Beermingham.com.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
More on the cycling nymph
Everyone is having fun with the Alabama ABC Board's puritanical ruling on Cycles Gladiator wine. If they ran the Birmingham Museum of Art the next person offended by a renaissance booby would get the place shut down.
Doug's column at AL.COM provides some nice background. More about Doug on BUMP's site.
Doug's column at AL.COM provides some nice background. More about Doug on BUMP's site.
Teira Zinfandel
I think Jeff Porter's description is right on and I excerpted it below. See more of his reviews at www.drinkeatlove.com.
Tasting Notes for Zinfandel: This wine is a home run. [... It] really changed my perspective of what ZIN can been when it is picked at the right time (not too late so it becomes like blueberry syrup) and is not so high in alcohol I feel like I'm doing shots at the frat house. I imagine this is what ZIN was like prior to the "monsterization" of wine in California. Teira Zin has aromas of crushed red raspberries, plump cherries, dried currants, sweet and savory spices. The nose is so appealing that I bury my face in my glass and just take deep breaths. The palate has all the same fruit profiles but where you might think it would be gushing with sweetness it is well balanced and has a structure that you might find out of a Primitivo from Puglia not a Sonoma County Zin under $20. We enjoyed the wine so much we polished it off and were sorry we did not have any more. ZIN's in general are good with BBQ and similar foods but Teira ZIN has more than just one trick in its pairing arsenal. While great with BBQ, Italian dishes make a great pairing as would Mexican cuisine that tends to earthier flavors versus super spicy (think chicken mole). We enjoyed the wine with a flank steak that was seared with wasabi, hoisin, and miso, it was good. The wasabi's heat is subdued by the sweetness of the hoisin and miso.
I brought to a friend's house when they made ribs and it was a hit.
Tyler says it is on sale at Whole Foods right now for $13 (down $3). GET IT!
Crane Lake Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
I picked this up off the display because 1) it was cheap 2) it was from California 3) I had never heard of it. Turns out that it is a blend of Napa and Sonoma wines, probably bought surplus and blended. Anyway, it turned out well. This is a nice medium bodied Cab with moderate fruit and toasty fruit nose. Goes down easy and I don't think it will offend anyone. Buy a case.$6.99 at Whole Foods
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
Cycles Gladiator Wine Banned: Alabama Bans Nude Nymph Wine Label, Increases Its Sales
The Huffington Post
PHILLIP RAWLS | 07/31/09 07:09 AM
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama's ban on a wine that features a nude nymph on the label became a business opportunity for a California vintner who is preparing a marketing campaign to capitalize on being "Banned in Bama."
The Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board recently told stores and restaurants to quit serving Cycles Gladiator wine because of the label. Board attorney Bob Martin said the stylized, art-nouveau rendition of a nude female with a flying bicycle violated Alabama rules against displaying "a person posed in an immoral or sensuous manner."
Bill Leigon, president of Hahn Family Wines in Soledad, Calif., said Thursday that visits to the company's Web site have increased tenfold since news of the ban broke late last week, and callers from across the country have been asking where they can buy the wine.
Because of the interest, he's developing store displays that say "Banned in Bama" and "Taste What They Can't Have in Alabama."
Hahn said he will never miss the 500 cases sold annually in Alabama. "There is going to be a significant increase in our sales," he predicted.
Rosanna Guardagno, a social psychologist at the University of Alabama, said a ban often increases people's interest in a product.
"The ABC Board, without realizing it, is going to boost their sales," she said.
The wine's label is copied from an 1895 French advertising poster for Cycles Gladiator bicycles. It shows a side view of a full-bodied nymph flying alongside a winged bicycle.
Story continues below
Martin said the ABC Board rejected the label last year, which meant the product wasn't supposed to be sold in Alabama. A citizen recently sent a bottle to the board to show it was still being sold in the state, prompting the letter to restaurants and stores to stop sales, he said.
Hahn's president said he was unaware of the ABC Board's rejection until the letter was sent to retailers. He said the poster is a classic piece of art, with originals selling for as much as $50,000.
Although nude art bothers the alcohol board, it's not a problem for some other branches of Alabama government.
The Alabama Tourism Department distributes a brochure with a cover featuring Hiram Powers' 19th century nude statue, The Greek Slave, which is on display at the Westervelt Warner Museum of American Art in Tuscaloosa. It is available in museums statewide, interstate highway welcome centers and visitors' bureaus statewide.
"We haven't had any concerns about it," Tourism Director Lee Sentell said.
And Alabama's Capitol has historic paintings on display, including two that show several topless female Indians.
Guardagno, who studies social influences, said people allow more freedom of expression in art than in advertising.
"With art, you have to be really explicit with how a person's body is displayed before people are offended," she said.
___
On the Net:
Hahn Family Wines: http://hahnfamilywines.com
PHILLIP RAWLS | 07/31/09 07:09 AM
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama's ban on a wine that features a nude nymph on the label became a business opportunity for a California vintner who is preparing a marketing campaign to capitalize on being "Banned in Bama."The Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board recently told stores and restaurants to quit serving Cycles Gladiator wine because of the label. Board attorney Bob Martin said the stylized, art-nouveau rendition of a nude female with a flying bicycle violated Alabama rules against displaying "a person posed in an immoral or sensuous manner."
Bill Leigon, president of Hahn Family Wines in Soledad, Calif., said Thursday that visits to the company's Web site have increased tenfold since news of the ban broke late last week, and callers from across the country have been asking where they can buy the wine.
Because of the interest, he's developing store displays that say "Banned in Bama" and "Taste What They Can't Have in Alabama."
Hahn said he will never miss the 500 cases sold annually in Alabama. "There is going to be a significant increase in our sales," he predicted.
Rosanna Guardagno, a social psychologist at the University of Alabama, said a ban often increases people's interest in a product.
"The ABC Board, without realizing it, is going to boost their sales," she said.
The wine's label is copied from an 1895 French advertising poster for Cycles Gladiator bicycles. It shows a side view of a full-bodied nymph flying alongside a winged bicycle.
Story continues below
Martin said the ABC Board rejected the label last year, which meant the product wasn't supposed to be sold in Alabama. A citizen recently sent a bottle to the board to show it was still being sold in the state, prompting the letter to restaurants and stores to stop sales, he said.
Hahn's president said he was unaware of the ABC Board's rejection until the letter was sent to retailers. He said the poster is a classic piece of art, with originals selling for as much as $50,000.
Although nude art bothers the alcohol board, it's not a problem for some other branches of Alabama government.
The Alabama Tourism Department distributes a brochure with a cover featuring Hiram Powers' 19th century nude statue, The Greek Slave, which is on display at the Westervelt Warner Museum of American Art in Tuscaloosa. It is available in museums statewide, interstate highway welcome centers and visitors' bureaus statewide.
"We haven't had any concerns about it," Tourism Director Lee Sentell said.
And Alabama's Capitol has historic paintings on display, including two that show several topless female Indians.
Guardagno, who studies social influences, said people allow more freedom of expression in art than in advertising.
"With art, you have to be really explicit with how a person's body is displayed before people are offended," she said.
___
On the Net:
Hahn Family Wines: http://hahnfamilywines.com
Monday, August 03, 2009
New beers
On Friday there was a tasting of about 8 beers at Western in Mt. Brook. They were featuring Durango Brewing Company, Great Divide Brewing and 2 Belgian ales (Piraat Triple IPA and ?). These 2 made the ride home with me.
Durango Amber Ale
American-style amber ale with medium body and mild hop bitterness.
Great Divide Titan IP
A big, aggressively hopped India Pale Ale brewed for hop disciples. It starts out with piney hop aromas and citrus hop flavors, and finishes with a nice rich, malty sweetness that is balanced with crisp hop bitterness. 7.1% ABV
Durango Amber Ale
American-style amber ale with medium body and mild hop bitterness.
Great Divide Titan IP
A big, aggressively hopped India Pale Ale brewed for hop disciples. It starts out with piney hop aromas and citrus hop flavors, and finishes with a nice rich, malty sweetness that is balanced with crisp hop bitterness. 7.1% ABV
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