Gastronomic extravagance

I have a lot to say, because I'm a narcissist and I want to impose myself onto YOU, whether you like it or not. Photos to follow, tomorrow.

Started the weekend off well, with a fresh seafood-themed dinner, highlighted by an incredibly delicious pan-seared bream with tofu soup, followed by a battered and fried blue crab. Paired with a lovely NV Champagne and an old riesling. Amazing combinations of flavours, and a very satisfying Friday. Capped the night off with a few glasses of whisky and early to bed.

Started drinking on Saturday early - still had a bit of the Champagne left, which worked nicely with a strawberry shortcake. Sometimes you're a bit wary of serving a more acidic wine like Champagne with something sweet, but this bakery makes the most perfect cakes, with not a lot of sweetness. Perfect for my palate - I don't have a taste for sweets. Then, off to a friend's place to begin one of the more extravagant dinners I've been to this year.

I chose the wines with a specific pairing in mind. Four bottles, 9 people. Two bottles of Spanish Cava, Brut that I wanted to pair with scallops and salmon. A bottle of Pouilly-Fumé to marry with the oysters, bien sur, and a bottle of New Zealand Sauvignon blanc, to cook and drink with mussels. Fantastic. I was itching to get started.

We started with the most wonderfully fresh Kumamoto oysters. Small in size, but big in flavour. Just phenomenal. So rich, so creamy, all balanced with a hint of brininess. Absolutely delicious, and achieved perfect harmony with the Pouilly-Fumé. I'll elaborate on that in a later post, with the exact bottle we drank.

Onto some salmon sashimi. I'm not a man in love with salmon. But my friend had procured a whole salmon, which he filleted and sliced himself. So fresh, with the most beautiful depth in colour and shade. Absolutely amazing. This was the most flavoursome salmon I've ever tasted, with all the richness and delicacy salmon possesses. He cooked it two ways - the second dish was a spiced filet of salmon barbecued on a cedar plank. Incredible. Cooked to perfection - a bit of crust on the outside, wonderfully moist and tender on the inside. Phenomenal. Very smoky, with a savoury quality not unlike a piece of smoked meat. The cedar adds a very subtle layer to the flavour, which is very nice.

Mussels. Not quite in season yet, but these were all alive and fresh. That's already a step up from the bags you find in the supermarket. Our local store is fine and all, but I'm always prepared to throw away 5-10%. Cooked simply, with lots of onion and olive oil. A bit of butter for weight, then white wine, a New Zealand sauvignon. It has all the bright fruit and high acidity to balance out the richness. Some herbes de Provence to give complexity, season to taste. Mussels were done in 50 seconds. Incredibly delicious, with bread to dip in the broth. Came out as white as milk, and exactly as I had hoped. Scallops, pan-seared with minimal seasoning, finished with some butter. Simple, fresh, delicious. Paired well with the first bottle of Cava. This surf and turf obsession has got to stop. Rich seafood and rich meats don't go well together, you need balance.

Finished the meal with some Malpeque oysters. A bit brinier than the Kumamoto, but very refreshing. Perfect with the Cava. Bubbles are a wonderful way to close a meal, as they cleanse the palate, and prepare you for the desert. Excellent. Tiramisu - same bakery, perfectly low in sugar, moist and flavoursome.

Cleared the table, onto the mojitos. And that's when I should have called it quits. I started shooting rum instead. Mojitos are wonderful but sometimes you just need fire down the throat. Sweaty and anxious, because I wanted everything to come out so perfectly. Rocky pulled it off. How am I going to top this? Well done. Excellent food.

I think I know why I felt so shattered yesterday. Maybe I was a bit too intense for dinner. When you want everything you plate to be perfect, you completely drain yourself. Even though it was a casual dinner, you still want to share your enthusiasm and get your friends excited about the oysters and salmon and scallops we were eating, and the wine it was being paired with. It's not about ego, it's not about showing off, but if that intensity and energy rubs people the wrong way - that's just how it is. Or rather, that's just how I am. You can't expect me to sit there and taste these wonderful flavours, where the food matches perfectly with the wine and not expect me to start hyperventilating with excitement.

I don't know how to be diplomatic when I'm talking about food. Or someone else's palate. How do you say, 'you have the palate of a 3-legged dog - something's missing', without coming off as a total asshole? No, I'm not diplomatic about food. Rocky's quite skilled at it though. Maybe I should just eat in the kitchen. You wouldn't know by looking at me, but I have a big mouth when I start drinking. I have the tolerance of a f*cking whale, but when you've been drinking for 8 hours straight, who knows what'll happen...

Roar

It's damn frigid outside, isn't it? Unbelievable. What's more unbelievable is that September is here. Again. Shit, what happened to summer?

Whenever I'm a bit pensive, stressed, upset, aggravated, or any combination of the four, I wash my car. It's incredibly therapeutic to carefully brush the rims clean, to gently apply soap, and to thoroughly rinse all the dirt away. Took me two hours, but she's shining, and I think I feel a bit better.

Why are people so insecure about their palate, and food in general? I understand how food is becoming a status symbol - the one who serves filet mignon will always trump the one who serves Boyardee. But why is it that no one will really be honest about their palate, and admit that the only reason they enjoy a food is because of the perceived status it brings, instead of taste? Insecurity is a bitch.

I want people to call me out on it, when we have differences in palate. I welcome it. Tell me you disagree that something is undercooked, overseasoned, or the like - just don't try to impress on me the fact that I should enjoy something because it was expensive, or because feelings will be hurt. Food is food. It's never personal. The way I talk about food has nothing to do with who bought it, the cook's skill, or who's hosting. I absolutely don't care. The only thing I care about is what's on the plate, and I'm not about to blow smoke up someone's ass and tell them I find something delicious, if I'm being served a plateful of shit. Nothing personal, you see. When I say a dish is shit, I don't mean you are.

Call me on my bull, if you disagree. Don't pansy around with me, because I take food very seriously. Palate insecurity is very unappealing.

Let's leave it at that. I don't know a thing about food, but I do understand my palate, and I'll fight to the death to defend my taste.

---

Blogger's note: 7:25 pm

Just got back from a friend's place - I am exhausted and I don't know why. The cold is completely sapping all my energy. I think it's time for bed.

Next door to a dictator

Wow, my neighbour just stepped out of his car, and he looks exactly like Kim Jong-Il today. No jokes, it's a striking resemblance.

Short puffy hair, big blind man sunglasses, ill-fitting grey slacks, and grey polyester coat. They're about the same height too. Wow.

Hot or cold

Wine does two things: it either elevates you spiritually until you're at peace with everyone and everything, or, it just turns you into a really ornery bastard.

I'd like to think that I belong to the former. Which one are you?

Twitchy

Just out of the shower. Up at 10:52 am today. AM. On a Sunday, with about 6 hours of sleep. What's going on? Ooooo, I have a hangover.

I was in rare form yesterday, in all my gesticulating, hand waving, fist slapping, twitchy glory. It was a sight to behold. And that was before I started drinking. You guys shouldn't encourage me. Certain things make me excitable and it's just not a pretty sight to see me get all worked up about something that quite frankly, no one gives a damn about. We talking about how water temperature affects taste of oysters, of course.

I become a raving lunatic. I mean, Monday to Friday, I think I'm pretty straightlaced. Work out everyday, no alcohol, work hard, sleep early. And then the weekend shows up, I'm with friends, and I lose all self-control. But I love food and if I had to deny myself those simple pleasures, then what's the point of living?

Great dinner last night. I think I have a few photos. Incredibly fresh seafood, full of flavour and texture. And that's what it's all about. Forget dining in expensive restaurants, forget all you think you know about food. When you're given ingredients as fresh and as high quality as the Kumamoto oysters, salmon, mussels and scallops as we did yesterday, you do the bare minimum, and let the true taste show itself. No theatrics in the kitchen - just simple, timely cooking. Wonderful, and absolutely delicious.

Onto the next dinner. Since fall is coming, I'm very excited to be seeing the vegetables and fruits beginning to pop up at farmer's markets. There's a few fall-themed dishes I want to try. And of course, shellfish will really be starting to come into season. I just don't think I can pull off having 10 people come over. I need a bigger kitchen at home. I can't host these parties of 6+ people. Just don't have the space for everyone to feel comfortable.

Wow, no comment

Geez, you're thin-skinned. If I knew you were like that, if I knew I had to tiptoe around your f*cking feelings like that, I'd have kept my mouth f*cking shut like a trapdoor.

I'm not a passive-aggressive blogger. No, I'm not going to start talking shit. All is well and fine, because I owned up and manned up to the situation.

The ego is talking now. But y'all knew that. Refer to this. And grow a f*cking set of bollocks.

So is anyone going to help?

Just came back from LCBO. Picked up a few bottles of Lan Gran Reserva, 2001. A beautiful wine. They still haven't stocked the Daniel Schuster riesling I was looking for, so I went up to a white shirt and asked for help.

Why the f*ck do they call them Vintages Consultants if they don't consult? If you don't offer any help to your customers, then what the f*ck are you doing there? What do they pay you for? Lazy f*cks, each telling me to go ask someone else, each deferring responsibility. That's what happens in a monopoly. There's no accountability to get the job done.

I guess the only thing these chumps do well is stock shelves. Well, if that's your only function, then I'm going to start talking to you like a common stockboy. Jackass.

Smashed

I am so f*cking smashed right now. This is my higher plane of consciousness.

My mother says I swear too much. I think it gives me character.

Liquid comfort

The golden rule of blogging is to never blog about work and never blog about your friends. In general, don't talk shit about people, and if you are, don't be specific.

I had a rough week. In general. I'm drinking my sorrows away. Sometimes you need something with a little more punch than riesling.

This weekend is going to be a weekend of fantastic seafood. We started tonight with an absolutely delicious dinner. Sea bream soup and fresh water crabs, all paired with a wonderful Champagne and old riesling. Incredible.

But sometimes you just need to drink. The time is now. My drink of choice is whisky. Let's see if my inevitable hangover will continue to tomorrow's dinner. Looking forward to it very much. Picked out some wines already. This is going to be a good weekend!

The moment

We need to live in the moment.

I never really had a typical, carefree childhood. Summer time wasn't for playing - it was to catch up on all the things I didn't have time for during the school year. That meant mostly piano exams - theory and history. Also, lots of art class and math tutoring. Usually, that meant I only really had the last week or so of August to just hang out and be a kid.

But I don't regret it. Idle time is wasted time, and while I never had the cottage getaways, or golf camps, or whatever the hell rich kids do in the summer, I always felt like I was doing something to improve myself. Is it worthwhile? Perhaps. I think I'd be a much duller person if I was left to my own devices.

But live in the moment. We do all these things, like go to school, in the hope that it'll better our future. Sometimes we forget to enjoy things while we're doing it. A friend posted a link on FB telling us to stop looking at life through a viewfinder. It's absolutely true. How many times do you see tourists, with a camera permanently anchored to their face instead of enjoying everything? So while you're busy and doing these wonderful things to prepare for a great future, enjoy your life while you're doing it.

I'm reminded of this, because in wine, we often forget to enjoy what's going on in the glass now. Too often do we pour a glass, only to say that it'll be better in 10 years, instead of appreciating the experiences it's giving us now. And that's very sad. I love to drink for the experience now, and I try never to lose that perspective. Well, I love drinking period, but the point is, life never goes as planned, and it would be a terrible shame if you forget to enjoy it.

Done. I need a glass.

As the artists do...

Now I understand artists' obsession with absinthe.

All things are better once you're a little buzzed. A little toasted. A little clattered. I'm definitely a better pianist if I have a little wee in my step.

Aren't all winos just glorified alcoholics? I think I qualify.

2005 Chianti Classico Riserva

2005 Barone Ricasoli Rocca Guicciarda, DOCG Chianti Classico Riserva

This was my second Tuscan wine in as many days. Let's hope this one isn't a dud. This bottle is a bit pricier than I normally drink, so already, my hopes were high. I believe this is 100% sangiovese - if not, the remainder is all indigenous varietals. Should be classic southern Italian.

Dark colour, with great saturation to the rim. Quite a powerful nose of dark fruits, berries. It was throwing off a lot of cedar notes, with this strange mustiness. I was convinced that it wasn't corked, so I decanted. I was right - the repulsive oakiness blew off after about 2 hours. It develops a richness, and a smokey and meaty character - it's quite savoury in fact. Good complexity and ripeness. No doubt a 2005.

In the mouth, there's good weight, with a sweetness that reminds of merlot, or some kind of Bordeaux-style blend. Good fruit, with enough earthiness to keep things interesting. Very fine, well-integrated tannins. Lingering finish.

Not a bad wine at all, but again I ask - what bit of this wine tells you that it's a Chianti, or even a southern Italian wine? I'm getting impatient with paying a lot for these homogenous wines, no matter how technically correct they may be. Not everyone has to be French to be interesting you know!

Hot intensity

Intensity in wine...I use that term a lot, but I can't figure out a way to explain what it means to my friends.

A few weeks ago, I was sharing a bottle of German pinot noir with a friend, and I was trying to impress on him the fact that while it was a lean wine, it still had intensity of flavour. He understood texture, weight, and flavour impressions - it was intensity that was confusing. I described an intense wine as a wine with very focused flavours. There I go with yet another ambiguous term.

Focus and intensity. I'm really a bit stumped about how to explain that concept. Think about it like a person. An intense person doesn't necessarily have the loudest, or the flashiest personality. It's a quality of how they say things, how they do things. Same with wine. An intense wine doesn't need to be heavy or powerful. But there's just that quality of taste that makes a huge impression on your palate.

This would work much better with a glass in hand.

Monsieur Moueix, for a price

This strapping young gentleman is Edouard Moueix, from the grand Moueix family of Bordeaux. He's in town to do a dinner and tasting. I really, really want to go. Of all the wines he'll be showing, I'd like to taste the Dominus the most. A Californian, claret-style wine combining power, elegance, and purity of fruit? Really would like to experience that. And then I checked how much the dinner was.

I'll pay for a good meal, but $295 a head is pushing it. Considering that I probably wouldn't go alone, that's $590 for two people. Unless they were serving albino sturgeon caviar (they're not) or 1961 Pétrus (again, not happening), I find that price hard to justify.

But I'd really, really like to attend this dinner, with a like-minded food & wine lover bien sur.

2005 Vino Nobile di Montepulciano

2005 Pasiteo Fassati DOCG Vino Nobile de Montepulciano

Before my mind goes to shit, I'm reminded that this is a wine blog. Or is supposed to be. This will be my 86th post this month, and with less than a week to go, my mark for August should be apparent by now.

It's been a while since I've tasted an Italian red, and so with a dinner of spaghetti on tomato and wild mushroom sauce, what could go better than a Tuscan wine? This is 100% sangiovese, more and more of a rarity it seems, as Italians seem determined to stamp out all their heritage in pursuit of making the 'Tuscan claret'. Wankers.

Did not want to taste this wine upon smelling it, and I shouldn't have. Dark colour, which should have told me something already. Overbearing nose of over-extracted fruit, layered with shit oak. Insipid. Very oaky on the palate, with the artificial sweetness that wood brings. Just that hankered fruit and woody burn reminiscent of very cheap cabernet. Disgusting. A very poorly made wine, and quite honestly, I would eat a cork before I served this for human consumption. Very, very disappointing.

Skankusations

Read this Globe article first: The Model, the blogger, and the Web giant

This is a lesson to all of us bloggers. Don't write shit about other people. And if you are, at least make a coherent, rational argument. Don't call people hoes and skanks. That's not classy.

I'm actually a bit scared now. Damn, girls are vicious. This chick isn't some ugly fat loser either. I mean, really, not bad for both of them. How can pretty girls be so cruel? Wow. I visited her site when I first heard this story, a few months ago. It was brutal. Skanks was probably the tamest term used.

Watching myself, before I wreck myself.

A higher plan of consciousness

On the beach at Centre Island, there was a group of people sitting nearby. I thought it was any other Sunday gathering of buddies - how wrong I was. Pretty soon, I heard the hollow thumping of a drum. And then much, much more.

They started chanting. Creepily. In a foreign language. It looked a bit cultish, and more than a bit strange because the entire group was white. And of course, the clown in the blue tank started prancing around in the middle of the circle. Finally, one of us figured out what they were going on about. It was a group practicing the Hare Krishna Mantra. Yeah, totally - a group of all white people, sitting on a beach on Centre Island, chanting an ancient, Hindu mantra.

Thanks to Wikipedia, I learned some things. These people apparently worship Krishna as the all-powerful god. I still don't quite understand the purpose of it all, but the mantra goes like this:

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare

I guess they believe that through chanting this mantra over and over, it's possible to achieve a more powerful level of consciousness. Right. Wrong skin colour guys - why are all religious fanatics caucasian? Stop embarrassing yourselves, don't you have your own religions?

Anyways, at least the sun came out. So I guess it wasn't all for nothing. This is what the beach looked like soon after:

Sublime agony

Revised, from an original post, dated August 17, 2009

---

I tried very hard today, but failed, yet again. Failed to get the attention of the pretty little thing in tights, in the machine across from me. Great to see a girl who understands that there are other things you can do to look smashing and to feel good about yourself than just food deprivation and low-cut dresses.

I love working out because it's not fun and games. I love working out because you need anger to get those last 10 reps in. And I love working out because it's a sublime agony.

Waddup, esé

On my way out of the gym today, my trainer said, 'Catch you later homes'. Hmmm. Now, neither of us are Mejicanos. So how does that work...................

And holy shit man, I keep getting a massive number of hits for this obscure porn reference I accidentally made. Damn, this is getting ridiculous, homes. Please f*ck off, you sick, dirty, skeevy little pervs.

I'm deleting the post.

The Island ferry

I've stopped going in recent years, but I was a frequent visitor to Toronto's Centre Island in my childhood. School trips and the like - also, being a poor immigrant, it was a good place to go to enjoy the day without spending a fortune. Maybe my tastes have changed - in any case, I still don't mind going.

My favourite part of the day was taking the ferry. Like the two above, I used to go on tiptoes to peer over the rail, to stare at the sailboats and seagulls. I miss the innocence, and to some level, the naïveté.

One thing I noticed taking the ferry is the people. Where you live says a lot about the type of people you see everyday, and taking the Island ferry gives you the opportunity to see people from generally all demographics. Interesting. People are................different.

Now, if only they set up a decent pub by the beach....yes, I'd be much more eager to visit the Islands.

Correction

I recently posted a piece titled, 'Be(ay)utiful agony'. Check the spelling, just don't want anymore google searches leading to this page. I've been wondering why there's so many hits for it - people are googling this term, which is leading them to LCF. I just googled myself, and found out why.

B.A. - attention, I'm not writing it out fully again - is a porn site, where the premise is headshots of people getting themselves off. The name derives from the facial expressions of people as they achieve orgasms. Wow. That is not what I had in mind when I wrote my post.

Ok, so now I know what this is, I want to make clear that it was never my intention to reference porn. I thought I was quite clever, coming up with that. This is not a porn blog. That shit's sick man. You sick motherf*ckers. Why would you google that stuff, man? I want more traffic, but geez, not this kind. Stay the f*ck away!!

I just edited that post. Will not make the same mistake again.

Nope, can't do it

A party involving 19 year olds slapping each other on the elbow for entertainment and drinking beer like thas wassup is something I don't need to be a part of.

Sorry. Just can't do it. Barely legal lightweights trying to look cool - acting obnoxious and pretending to nonchalantly drink beer doesn't make you the shit, it exposes how shallow and quite frankly, how intellectually bankrupt today's kids are.

But don't take it personally though. It's not you, it's me.

---

That's a horrible thing to say. Just to be clear, I'm not talking about anyone in particular. Just in general. And yes, I'm an awful person.

Ferried

Ok, so I didn't get my pint today. A little disappointed, but did I really expect to find a bar serving Boddington's on Centre Island? It's fun for the whole family, but in this context, family constitutes middle age, two kids and a dog. So no, there was no drinking.

Back from a back-to-back gathering/party/engagement. I'm exhausted. I don't understand why I don't get enough rest, even on weekends. Maybe I just need to bar the door and be forgotten. I just feel shattered right now.

Top of the morning

Up at noon, heading out..........I need a pint.

Guilty

This is the bottle that's been causing all the mischief. 2006 Royal Tokaji Furmint Dry. The troublemaker.

Cigarillo

Smoking cigarillos with a glass of Chianti Classico actually works. You just have to keep puffing, because the damn thing's gone out at least 5 times already. No romancing the stick.

Rules of seduction

Ok, so you take a girl you quite like to a nice restaurant. You want to share dessert, you want to stare into her eyes, you want to say all the right things..............you order a bottle of wine right? That's romance, no? But what if she knows nothing about wine? What if she sticks to the whole red meat with red wine, fish with white schtick? What if she has the palate of a wet donkey? Uh ohh...........................................

Money

I think I've discovered the meaning of money.

Easy come, easy go...............................but only if it's worth it.

Tawdry bastards

This is what I received in the mail on Friday. LCBO's 3rd offer for 2008 Bordeaux En Primeur. What a cheap, transparent campaign to capitalize on Parker's recently released scores.

Okay, the full story: as you may have noticed, I began writing about 2008 Bordeaux Futures a while ago. 2008 was an excellent vintage; certainly, the quality was much higher than speculated last year. To account for the economic downturn, and price gouging for 2006 and 2007, the Bordelais agreed to reduce prices, at up to 40% off from last year. Fantastic right?

LCBO released two offers already: one in May and the other in June. These two offers all came without Parker scores - he was among the last to release. The general consensus among wine writers and critics was that although 2008 was a wonderful vintage, it was not as legendary as 2005. What does Parker say? He places 2008 on the same level as 2005, and of course, prices for the First Growths instantly shoot up.

Which leads us to this 3rd Offer. The only reason for LCBO to release another offer is for an opportunity to leverage Parker's scores for more sales. You cheeky little git. The new releases are pitiful. 6 or 7 wines, with the centerpiece being Lafleur at about $650+ a bottle. Down with monopolies!!

---

Ask and you shall receive. I wrote earlier this week about the lack of decent Champagne being released by the LCBO. Next week's release will feature two Grand Cru Champagnes, at relatively reasonable prices. Bubbly, anyone?

There and back again

So, returning the corked bottle back to LCBO went off without a hitch. She refunded in cash as well. Beautiful. Needless to say, I'm done with Hungarian wines. For the time being.

There was a very pretty girl at the front, handing out tiny booklets for Bombay Sapphire Gin. She wore a bright blue dress, to match the bottle. They were serving shots of Tom Collins, made with fresh squeezed lemon juice and Bombay Sapphire Gin, of course. There was an even prettier model at the bar, handing them out. Very, very pretty. I didn't know where to look, because it was impossible not to look sleazy/leeringly/checking her out. Wow, she was good looking. I apologize, but I am just a man. If you see a pretty girl and don't stare, well then...............

I just recently discovered that there was an Apple store at Fairview, so I wanted to check out the 13.3 inch MacBook Pro for myself. It is as divine as advertised. This kid set off the alarm, and being Chinese, the first words out of his mother were, 'What are you doing????!!' Biding my time, waiting for Snow Leopard to be released and a possible hardware upgrade...

At Leonidas, I saw an old gentleman having a coffee. Alone. Some people might find it quaint, but I see it differently. I hope, for my own sake, to not end up like that. A little decrepit, a little senile, and a little lonely. Oh I hope I don't end up like that.

Corked

I was looking forward to a wine last night, a dry Hungarian white. Opened it up, and immediately noticed the telltale musty aroma of a corked wine. Damn. My first TCA bottle of the year. I was hoping to get through at least this month without coming across one.

Cork taint is the result of 2,4,6-trichloroanisole (TCA) in the wine. TCA occurs when airborne fungi permeate cork trees, and the resulting corks produced are not properly sterilized. Lazy cork making, in other words. A corked wine can show this flaw in many ways, but the most common are odours of mustiness, damp newspaper, moldy basement - you get the idea. In less obvious cases, the wine is dull, and lacking any sort of fruit. While TCA is harmless when ingested, it does ruin your wine experience.

LCBO's policy for cork taint is full refund. I'll test that later today, when I go to BV. Too many people mistake cork taint for a bad wine, but take notice - a corked wine is just a bad bottle, not a bad wine. If you notice these characteristics, make sure you return the bottle. Don't drink the wine, and think that the producer is shit. It's the cork's fault.

District 9

I went to watch District 9 with friends yesterday. It was as good as the press is reporting, and really, is one of the more original movies I've seen in a long while.

The premise is that aliens have arrived in Johannesburg, hovering above the city in a gargantuan spaceship. There's no movement at all, and when humans finally cut their way into the ship, they find millions of aliens - "prawns" - inside, in filthy conditions. There is no leadership, and the aliens seem to exist in a caste system - there is a clear hierarchy of command and worker aliens, and the ones in the ship all appear to be simple-minded beasts. After 20 years, the citizens of Johannesburg begin rioting against the aliens, as they begin to commit crime. So, the prawns all get herded into a ghetto, District 9. Control of the aliens has been outsourced to M.N.U., the largest weapons manufacturer in the world, who want to understand how to work alien weapons, which require alien DNA. They want to relocate the prawns to District 10, 200km away from the city. An M.N.U. man, Wikus van de Merwe, is sent to collect eviction signatures. He happens upon a cannister of alien fluid, which sprays his face. It begins to alter his DNA, and his left arm begins changing to a prawn arm. He has to work with an intelligent alien, Christopher Johnson, to retrieve the cannister from M.N.U. and help him get back to the mothership, where there are medical machines which can reverse the transformation. In the end, he succeeds in helping C.J. get to the mothership, although he has to wait 3 years until C.J. returns. Wikus fully transforms into a prawn, and the last scene shows him folding scrap metal roses for his wife.

This is a very creative and original film. People want to look into it as an analogy for apartheid, but maybe we're trying to take things too literally. This is a film about diversity, about recognizing and respecting differences, and about tolerance. So maybe it is about apartheid. The actor playing Wikus is brilliant. Alternately a geeky straight man, and at times unintentionally hilarious, Sharlto Copley plays him perfectly. Very impressed.

It's difficult to come to terms with, but you end up sympathizing with the aliens. The prawns look disgusting - tentacles and antennaes, eerily reminiscent of bipedal cockroaches. Wikus seems nerdy enough, but he actually turns into a huge manipulative prick once he enters District 9. I can't believe I was cheering for C.J. and his little alien son. Smart little bugger.

I'm so glad they didn't elaborate further on the "inter-species prostitution". And I'm going to start saying 'fuck' in a South African accent.

Morning after

My hand's been cut in two places, instead of the one long slash I was treating. Ugly. It's swelling up, but at least the blood flow has stopped.

Last night was interesting. I'm so done with this supposed culture of clubbing and drinking yourself comatose every week. What is this? Is this really supposed to be fun? Screaming at each to be heard, getting your ear drums jackhammered by bad music, and drinking cheap disgusting alcohol, overpriced to match the egos of the douchebags who come to these places? I'm so done.

We were at C Lounge last night in downtown Toronto, to celebrate with a friend who was leaving for school. My views on what constitutes nightlife here has nothing to do with this friend, or why we were out. I'm just so opposed to this idea that this is what young people should do to have a good time. Vapid. Cheap.

Or maybe I'm just the oldest f*cking 23 year old in the world.

I got a feeling...

...that tonight's gonna be a good night.

Sliced my left hand making dinner, I'm leaking blood everywhere. Drank a f*cking dreadful Italian wine today. But still - tonight's gonna be a good night.

2005 Baden

2005 Königschaffhauser Steingruble Pinot Noir Trocken, QbA Baden

Germany, as you know, produces some of the most sublime white wines in the world. I've always known that it produces red wine as well, but my experiences with it have been mediocre at best. Most of the production is in pinot noir, or spätburgunder in the local tongue. This bottle labels it as pinot noir, which is a bit worrying - I'd very much prefer to see the German name, but again, never judge on label.

I'm glad I didn't. This was a spectacular wine. Deep cranberry red, with a luminous robe. Such an intense nose, with a lot of pinot noir character. Roots, bramble, earth, strawberries, and a lot of sour red fruit. Very intense, with excellent oak use. In the palate, this is a leaner style, but with lots of character. Sharp, austere, with good fruit and minerals. Lovely. Very silky texture, with a lot of presence. Long finish. Wow! What a delicious wine.

Very pleasantly surprised with this bottle. Not for everyone, but this is what a complex pinot noir should be like. Nuanced, austere, with lots of character and personality. Wow I love Germany.

Pump it bro

Update on the personal trainer situation. A few weeks ago, Mr. Filipino told me that due to circumstances (fight with a manager), he had handed in his resignation. However, there was no word that he couldn't train me anymore, so we kept going. Until today. When the man simply failed to show up without so much as a call.

New trainer. Good guy. Big, tattooed, but he wears a cross, so he has to be righteous. And he put me through some shit today. I feel like my arms were mashed into jello and then chewed down by a rottweiler. It was dirty, but oddly gratifying.

We'll see how this goes. I hope it works out, for my sake, but regardless, I'm not quitting. Recognize, I never quit at anything.

The world is ending!

Is anyone else seeing this? I've never seen a storm like this before. What is this, our version of typhoon season? A tornado in downtown Toronto? My goodness, the world really is going to shit.

2008 Mantinia

2008 Boutari Moschofilero, ACQS Mantinia

The second wine of the night. Or evening I should say.

Light straw in colour - almost changes a few shades as you go towards the rim. Good, fruit-forward nose. Lots of waxy fruit, melon, pear, and honey. In the palate, there is good texture, with a weight and creaminess that you don't expect. Glossy. Good length on the finish.

Greek white wines are a subject area that I definitely want to explore further.

1992 Rheingau

1992 Hans Lang Hattenheimer Hassel Riesling Spätlese, QmP Rheingau

The first wine of last weekend's barbecue. An old riesling is the greatest thing you can drink, and I always always feel.......elevated when I drink one.

Dark gold colour, maintaining its saturation. Beautiful in the glass. Lots of honey on the nose, very rich. Stewed fruits, apple and pear, with lovely minerality. Good sweetness in the mouth, with a mineral finish. This wine has length. Holding up every well for a 17 year old. Delicious.

No bubbles

I love bubbles. Bubble baths, carbonated water, and of course, Champagne. I mean, you basically have to be brain dead with the palate of a wet donkey not to enjoy Champagne.

Which is such a shame that there has yet to be an LCBO release this year which focusses on this delightful wine. The last major Champagne release was about June of last year - I still have the bottles because as much as I'd like to drink bubbles daily, there's never really an occasion that seems appropriate enough to pop a cork. That will change.....................as soon as I have a proper cellar. Where I don't have to drive 40 min to a friend's place to pick up a bottle.

So what's up LCBO. How come no decent Champagne. The economy's in the shit, we all know that.....what better to bring us out than the most sublime expression of joy that wine can bring?

Please, stop depriving us. The next bottle of Salon Champagne I see, I'm getting. Oh, and any and all 2002's.

Movie and a pinot

Blockbuster movies are the best because sometimes you just need to be entertained by a movie. What's this snobbiness about these gay artsy movies? I mean, they're fine and all, wonderful, but sometimes you just need to see nude women and shit being blown up. Mindless entertainment. And what better to go with these blockbusters than alcohol being served in movie theatres?

We're so backwards. The new theatre at Fairview has a bar, but you can't take it to your seat. I don't understand. Just don't get it. The movie (especially a bad one) would be SO much more enjoyable if you had a slight buzz going on.

This Friday, we're going in for District 9. I think we should pre-drink a little, no?

Lily is lovely

Lily Allen is the shit. I don't know how I've never heard her music until now, but I'm just in love with this chick. Youtube won't allow you to embed her MV, but here's a live performance. I liked this song the first time I heard it, but I just realized that it's about a guy - nice guy, wonderful, but completely sexually inept. Geez, it's hard enough with girls, and now it's 'not fair' if she doesn't get off? Sweetheart, that's cold....real cold.

Pow!

How's this for blowing shit up - Bryan Colangelo just dumped two more players. Yup, he just sign-and-traded Delfino and Ukic to Milwaukee for Amir Johnson and Sonny Weems.

I like it. Johnson should have some impact. And really, everyone was getting sick of seeing Roko completely ignore the two best players on the court in the dying seconds of a quarter to try and force his way to the hoop for a weak shot. You know, it only works if you can score - otherwise, you're just another selfish wanker who loses his mind on critical possessions.

So now, we have 12 new players, with only CB, Calderon, and Bargnani coming back from last year. Talk about taking a f*cking sledgehammer to the roster. Really really excited to see how this team plays together. I predicted 50 wins last season. Let's be more conservative: 45-50?

Dorian Gray

The artist is the creator of beautiful things.

I don't read fiction, but Oscar Wilde's writing is profound. One of the most beautiful stories I've ever read is The Selfish Giant.

'Who hath dared to wound thee?' cried the Giant; 'tell me, that I may take my big sword and slay him.' 'Nay!' answered the child; 'but these are the wounds of Love.' Beautiful.

So, it's with great excitement that I see a movie coming out in September, titled Dorian Gray. Based on the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, they certainly got the lead actor right. Pretty boy. But what I'm really excited about is Colin Firth cast as Lord Henry Wotton. Lord Wotton is my favourite character in the book - a far more subtle and infinitely more interesting, multi-faceted character than Dorian Gray. Colin Firth should do a smashing job. The actress they cast for Sibyl Vane works too - pretty enough, but more importantly, she has a 19th century face.

Really looking forward to this film. Please, please, don't Hollywood the shit out of a wonderful story and stick to the novel. Please don't ruin this masterpiece.

周立波

Ahh, this man is just blowing up. I've written about this Shanghainese performer already but the Globe and Mail just picked up on his story. Big time, but that's how my people roll. It's just great to see this kind of intelligent, subtle comedy being recognized. This guy's my favourite.

The Globe article: A political jokester where dissent is hardly routine

Just watch - this is only a portion of a 2 hour show. Bask in the brilliance!

Boom boom...

BOOM! I'm still the greatest. Many thanks for everyone who's visited, please keep me in check and help me with keeping the quality of the content high. Boom!

Video: 2008 Boutari Moschofilero

The video is finally ready to be unleashed, and I'm actually horrified. The shirt felt like a great idea at the time - I was going to dinner at a neighbour's house, and I didn't want to dress too formally. It, however, was not my intention to mirror a gigolo. Or a Chippendales dancer. I don't have the chest hair to pull it off. Sorry for the eyesore, it won't happen again.

I talk about a few things in this shorter video: St Peter's English Ale, Löwenbräu Original, and the main subject, the 2008 Boutari Moschofilero. As always, comments are welcome, and appreciated.

Uploading...

Finally, finished editing a video I've been sitting on since the long weekend. Uploading and rendering, will be posted soon. Please come back!

Oh no...

...this can't be a good thing right? Like, dude, this cannot be good.

I'm opening a bottle of Hungarian wine tonight, a dry tokaji. You know, just because.

(My) Hand in fire

When the steaks on the grill start to sizzle and the flames reach eye level, the smart thing to do would be to hand the tongs to someone else and say, 'good luck'. Unfortunately, I fancy myself as a cook, so when the fires start, I want to get in on the action. That's my right hand, turning the steaks. You can feel the fire licking your fingers, but at the risk of cooking yourself, you keep going. But it's ok - my fingers came away relatively unscathed.