Get Prepared
https://www.saanich.ca/EN/main/community/emergency-program/get-prepared/practical-prep.html
make a plan
https://www.saanich.ca/EN/main/community/emergency-program/get-prepared/make-a-plan.html
Monthly Archives: January 2023
Check Out Sarcasm
Nice that HE agrees with US
New research commissioned by Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris into intergenerational wine consumption says only 26 per cent of regular wine drinkers are between 18 and 39 (gen Z and Millennials) versus 48 per cent aged 55-plus (Boomers). Gen X and Boomers see wine as integral to their informal, daily routine; gen Z views wine as an accessory to highly social, festive moments. Millennials sit somewhere between the two, opting for wine on special occasions but also for taste and relaxation.
Also, gen Z and Millennials have a finely tuned appreciation for which drinks fit which consumption moments, drawing on a much wider beverage repertoire than older consumers.
Gen Z, for example, regularly consumes white spirits, cocktails, beer and cider, whereas, for Boomers, the list of regular wine alternatives shrinks to just beer and gin.
Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it’s the first prerequisite for any wine-drinker interested in expanding their palate. The question is, where do you go from here?
The good news is that your choices are limitless. You only need to move a metre or two off of the beaten track to discover the richness of the wine. It may also provide relief from the relentless gouging going on in the mainstream market.
There is far too much junk wine in the marketplace and way too much overpriced price wine in the system, so any decline in sales may be just what is required to correct the category. Furthermore, wine does not need to be for everybody and hence doesn’t have to be watered down in flavour or discussion to widen its audience.
Anthony Gismondi
Remember, the curiosity mentioned above and a sense of adventure are all that is required to escape the dross of everyday wine.
Wine and Germany
The wide range of grape varieties cultivated in Germany is impressive, from “A” as in Acolon, to “Z” as in Zweigeltrebe. Whilst almost 100 varieties are planted, around twenty of these are of greatest commercial importance, above all, Riesling and Müller-Thurgau, also called Rivaner. These account for a good third of the 103,079 hectares of vineyards in 2019. In the case of red wine varieties, Pinot Noir and Dornfeld cultivation are of the greatest importance.
Germany now produces nearly 67% white wine and 33% red wine, in regions extending from the Elbe to Lake Constance. Some areas, such as the Moselle, Saar and Ruwer, are almost exclusively dedicated to white grape varieties. In contrast, regions in the south, such as Württemberg and Baden,and the Ahr in the north, have a longstanding red wine tradition. The trend towards red grape varieties has been unmistakable in all growing areas over the past few years and has now probably passed its peak. The most extensive red grape cultivation is in the two largest growing regions of Rheinhessen and Pfalz. Another recent trend is the shift towards white and red Burgundy varieties and the renaissance of classic grape varieties.
Red Grapes
Around a third of the German vineyard area is planted with red grape varieties. There are currently changes: a shift towards Burgundian grapes and the renaissance of classic grape varieties. Pinot Noir leads the red wine varieties, whilst classics such as Portugieser, Schwarzriesling, Lemberger or Saint Laurent, also play an important role. Newer varieties such as Dornfelder, Regent and Merlot have also now established themselves. Here you will find an overview of the red grape varieties grown in Germany.
Viognier (Rhone)
Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir)
Dornfelder, new)
Portugiese (Danube Valley)
Trollinger
Blauer
Lemberger
Schwarzriesling
Domina
Cabernet Sauvgnon
Regent
St. Laurent
Merlot
Syrah/Shiraz
Cabernet Franc
Malbec/Cot Acolon
White Grapes
In 2019, white wine varieties (68,911 ha) accounted for exactly two thirds of the national vineyard area of 103,079 ha. Riesling remains Germany’s most important grape variety, with a quarter of the vineyard total planted with it. Other white grape varieties, such as Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay, are playing an increasing role. In our overview you can see a list of the white grape varieties.
Riesling, ancient
Silvaner, ancient
Müller Thurgau, (Rivaner)
1882 in Geisenheim, (Riesling x Madeleine Royale)
Grauburgunder, (Pinot Gris, ancient)
Weißburgunder, (Pinot Blanc, ancient)
Elbling, ancient)
BacchusKerner, (Trollinger x Riesling)
Gutedel (Chasselas, Fendant, ancient)
Huxelrebe (Gutedel x Courtillier)
Gewürztraminer (red or yellow Traminer)
Chardonnay (ancient)
Sauvigon Blanc
Scheurebe (Riesling x Bukett)
Ortega (Mueller Thurgau x Siegerrebe)
Bacchus (Silvaner x Riesling)
Morio Muskat (Silvaner x Weissburgunder)
Faberrebe (Weissburgunder x Mueller Thurgau)
Back to Simplicity
Apples and peaches up front. Balanced and a crisp acidity throughout.
Who cares which season, you’ll enjoy this any time of the year in any weather.
By itself as an aperitif, or with fish, or just a salad. Just simply enjoy it for what it is. Good wine at
a good price .. and it’s BC.
Beware … it might all disappear in one sitting!
Mission Hill FIVE VINEYARDS – PINOT BLANC
$16.49
12.5% Alcohol
UPC: 00776545995889
Life behind the postcards
The result is a portrait of a Greek village in transition and an American woman’s metamorphosis. Thordis learned the meaning of hospitality from a goatherd who inhabited an exalted mountain realm; she learned patience from a local carpenter who defied his own deadlines; she learned the meaning of wit and wisdom from a great-grandmother who was unschooled. Above all, Dancing Girl acknowledges the ties that bind us all: feelings that need to be expressed and a human spirit that wants to be set free.
Dancing Girl: Themes and Improvisations in a Greek Village Setting
Theordis Simosen
ISBN-13 : 978-0962976643
The daughter of migrants goes back to the land of her ancestors to discover the generosity, passionate politics of rural life.
Living abroad for extended periods gives the author an opportunity to sort out ancient myths, and try to understand the paradoxes of national identity.
There’s more than one side to your heritage.
I bent down to the vine,
it’s leaves shaking, to drink in
it’s honey and it’s flower;
and – my thoughts like heavy grapes,
bramble-thick my breath –
I could not, as I breathed,
choose among the sents,
but culled them all, and drank them
as one drinks joy or sorrow
suddenly sent by fate;
I drank them all
….”The First Rain: Angelos Sikelianos
The Olive Grove, travels in Greece
Katherine Kizilos
ISBN: 0-86442-459-0
The morning after the night before
Score one for the Goalie
The region is located in an almost contiguous area of hills, the Mecsekalja and the Villány Hills, which is characterised by plenty of sunshine and a strongly Mediterranean mesoclimate. Its soils are varied, comprising limestone blocks in the Mecsek, loess-loam in Villány or clayey hills.
The areas south of Lake Balaton, clearly yields softer acidity and riper, more balanced black grapes than the wine districts north of Lake Balaton. White wines from here are less vibrant, rather soft and subdued. The soils are diverse, with areas of loess, luvisol brown forest soils and limestone typical. It is the home of full-bodied wines with big tannins. Varieties that have difficulty in ripening in other parts of the country can happily be grown here.
Extra dry and medium bodied; flavours of citrus, apple and other tree fruit; medium finish.
Simply: A Fun wine! Just the ticket to partner with seafood, poultry, or pastas.
Dunavar Pinot Grigio
$10.99 regularly $11.99
11% Alcohol
UPC: 05998623530026
Full Tank
I don’t often reconnect with old college buddies but when I do it’s because my wife asked me to get their new address because our Christmas card came back.
A minute of silence for all those husbands who believed in their wife saying, “no gifts for Christmas this year”
The road to parental sanity is paved with all of the things you swore you’d never do if you ever have kids of your own.
My 5yo asked my 9yo if he was eating spaghetti. My 9yo very disappointed, “it’s rigatoni… learn your pasta.” I didn’t know it was that serious.
Me: Completely silent for an hour. Husband: *turns on the tv* Me: Immediately asks him 20 questions.
So excited for my kids to go back to school and I especially like the part where they bring home a new illness for the next month.
I think the reason it’s cloudy is because the sun wanted to sleep longer. -my 4yo, the meteorologist.
wife: could you clear the table? me: ok but I’ll need a running start wife: what
I know my 4yo found the gallon of ice cream I bought because I heard him yell across the house “YES WE GOT A FULL TANK OF ICE CREAM!!”
I never really thought about couple’s therapy until my husband entered his third week of having a cough.
Secret to peaceful parenting is to never tell your child the plans for the day
waiting for my wife to approve my new year’s resolution of making independent decisions
Dating romance: share a candlelight dinner Married romance: devour a slice of cake together over the sink so you don’t have to share with your kids.
Enjoyable Rascals
The 250-acre Fontanafredda property is the single largest contiguous wine estate in the Langhe and includes 247 acres of vineyards, 30 acres of woodland and 10 acres on which the cellars and village buildings lie.
If you enjoy the cleanliness of Pinot Grigio and the depth of a chardonnay, this is the best of both worlds in wine. Arneis means the little rascal in Italian and that’s exactly what it is, a rascal that will woo you away from your normal white.
The grapes are harvested into small containers and immediately undergo soft pressing when they reach the winery. The must is transferred into cool, stainless steel tanks, where – after chilling and static racking – it ferments at a low temperature (64 °C). Following fermentation, the wine is stored at 41 °F to avoid malolactic fermentation.
The wine refines in steel for 4-5 months at a low temperature and left on its fine lees to increase aromatic complexity and fullness on the palate. The wine is then cold-stabilized and bottled.
Intense straw-yellow with greenish highlights. Soft, sweet and nicely mouth-filling on the palate, with a crispy fresh.
LANGHE ARNEIS – FONTANAFREDDA BRICCOTONDO
$17.99 regularly $19.99
13% alcohol
UPC: 08000174350026
