Thauvenay

Yesterday I finished off a bottle of one of my favorite white wines, Chateau de Thauvenay Sancerre 2004, France. I had opened it a couple of evenings ago when we had filet of sole for dinner, and then I finished it last night while cooking for my wife and my parents. First of all, it's a great deal - one of the cheaper Sancerre's I have found, and it's been pretty consistant bottle to bottle (I've opened 3). It's a very bright and crisp wine, with citrus and some flowers and a nice minerality to it. The wine's website says that it finishes with flavors of raspberries, but we think it has more of a taste of green apples at the end. Whatever it is, I like it and I will buy more.

NP: Yankees vs. Detroit Tigers, YES Network

Accident? What accident?

So, after writing my comments about the many injuries of Carl Pavano, it was revealed that he was in a car crash. This crash caused him to fracture 2 ribs. Normally, this kind of injury isn't really a big deal, but when you're getting paid $40 Million to (not) pitch, it's a huge deal. Now, no one expects this chump to pitch again this year. Derek Jeter had this to say about the whole thing:

"I can't worry about guys who are not here," Jeter said. "It's not a letdown if you're not counting on it. It's not hard to believe. That's what's been happening all the time."

Think he's annoyed? I would be too. Damn Pavano...

NP: The Colbert Report, Comedy Central

Carl Pava-NO

Years ago, when Carl Pavano first got drafted, a friend of mine who went to high school with him had a bunch of bad things to say about him. There was no question about his pitching talent, but there were a lot of things said about his make-up and personality. I thought it wasn't fair, and I honestly didn't care much about him then. Now, however, he's on the Yankees - or at least that's what his contract says. I don't think I've ever seen a professional athlete with such a consecutive string of lame injuries in my life. No one should be sidelined from their job for 3 months by a buttock injury except a porn star. Now, just as he is finally finishing his rehab assignment another injury pops up. According to the Daily News, the latest injury went down like this:

After finishing the game - in which he allowed two runs in six innings - Pavano seemed okay, sources said. About 20 minutes after Columbus manager Dave Miley informed Pavano of the Yankees' plans, however, he mentioned that he had been feeling some pain in the lower chest and oblique area on his right side, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. Now, it's unclear - again - when he'll be able to pitch.

They even quoted one Yankee Official saying Pavano is "scared stiff" to pitch again. I wish the Yankees could just dump his sorry ass and move on. If only we didn't have the pitching woes we do, then maybe we could. I know they were hoping he could make a strong return at the end of the season to help with the playoff run. Now, I think they're just hoping they can avoid a complete mental breakdown.

NP: Crazy, Gnarles Barkley

Mmmm... Guinness

Yesterday we went to my wife's grandmother's 80th birthday party out on Long Island. It was a really good time, and I had a lot of fun. The party was held at this Irish Pub/Restaurant out by the docks where the ferry goes back and forth from Fire Island. The party had an open bar policy - but the "free" beer was only supposed to be Bud and Coors Light on tap. I didn't know this the first time I went up to the bar and ordered myself a nice cold Guinness. When I found out I needed to pay, I was like, "what the hell, I'm not drinking that other crap - it's not like I'm at a baseball game or anything." So, I took out the cash, and was ready to pay for my beer. However, the bartender ended up giving me free Guinness all day since I was the only one drinking it. Nice, eh? And for whatever reason, they were tasting extra good yesterday.
Drinking Guinness always reminds me of my college days...

Baby countdown: 6 weeks...

Las Ramblas

I love tapas. After going to Spain a couple of times, I realized I loved the food. My favorite tapas place in the city is Tia Pol on the West Side, however Las Ramblas in the West Village turned out to be really good too. We had the patatas bravas, tortilla espanola, chorizo with white beans and a special - grilled prawns. I also had a couple of glasses of Monte Real Crianza (Rioja) Spain 2002. It was a lighter Rioja with a fruitiness to it.

Check out the short film, Las Ramblas, at Atomfilms.com

NP: Black Pearls, John Coltrane

The Capital, Part 1

So, for the past 6 days or so I was in the nation's capital, Washington DC. I was down there for a class, but while I was there I got to catch up with a couple of friends and see the city a little bit. My wife came with me for the weekend, and we stayed with our friends in their house. On Saturday night, I went to see the Nationals vs. the Mets at RFK Stadium. This is only the 4th baseball stadium I've ever been to. Besides RFK, I've been to Yankee Stadium (more times than I can count), Shea, and Fenway Park. Although all of those stadiums are old, I truly enjoyed the crazy 1970's feel of RFK. I felt as though everyone should have feathered hair, bushy moustaches, tinted glasses and be wearing shades of brown courduroy. I had a great time at the game. Unfortunately, the Mets won, but I did get to see my two favorite former Yankees - Alfonso Soriano and Nick Johnson hit home runs. Also, they served Dos Equis on tap and the grilled sausage and peppers was awesome.

NP: Miss Murder, AFI

The Flying Hot-Dog

Yesterday I was walking to work, heading toward the subway when I suddenly heard someone sneeze very forcefully and loudly. I looked forward and to my right towards the hot-dog stand on the corner, and I saw this guy violently sneezing and convulsing enough to send the hot-dog in his hand flying out of the bun and through the air until it smacked hard into my chest, leaving a nice greasy mark right in the center of my shirt where the hot-dog hit. I was attacked by a flying hot-dog. Luckily the guy didn't want any condiments on his frank or else it could have been worse. Of course, I had to work all day with a nice grease stain on my shirt.

Maya

Wow. Maybe it's because we went here on a whim, but we had a great dinner at Maya last night. I got home from work a little on the later side, and we weren't really sure what to do about dinner. My wife was in the mood for Mexican, which is usually a bit of a problem in our neighborhood. There is good Mexican in the city, but it's few and far-between. By our place, there isn't much, except a couple of dive-y type places. We were going to go down to Rosa Mexicano, but then I remembered hearing that Maya had good food so we decided to check it out. Unfortunately, the reviews I read were correct about one thing - the place is incredibly noisy. I don't know what's wrong with the acoustics in this place, but it was LOUD. On the plus side, the reviews were also right about the food - it was great. We started with the Tamal al Chipotle (a corn tamale with shredded chicken and a sweet chipotle sauce). With the first bite it seemed too sweet, but it quickly grew on us and ended up being terrific. For my main course, I had the Alambre de Rib Eye (organic rib eye skewers with chorizo, bacon, peppers, mushrooms, gouda cheese and a tomtatillo-chile morita sauce). The beef was cooked perfectly and everything had the smokey taste of bacon and the spicy taste of chorizo. Nice! My wife had the Enchilada de Pollo (chicken enchiladas with a roasted tomatillo-chile morita sauce and gouda cheese), which I think were the best enchiladas I've ever tasted. I paired all of this with some Negra Modelo (no wine for me tonight). For dessert, we split the Crepas de Cajeta (which were crepes with caramelized goats milk, bananas, walnuts and cinnamon ice cream), which was a terrific way to end the meal. I did walk out of there feeling very bloated, but happy. Also our service was great. It was a great meal.

Feeling Sick In The Heat

Damn it's been hot lately. I know this isn't news to anyone, but come on! It's like 105 degrees here in New York City. Our air-conditioner has been putting in overtime the past few days. Gotta keep the apartment cool. Although we've been trying to be good and keep the electrical use to a minimum, you've got to live your life.

Then last night I got sick. I think I was hit with a stomach virus - and it was not fun. Luckily I had the day off today, so I've been just relaxing, getting some energy back and re-hydrating (got to love the Gatorade). Just finished taking in an excellent Yankees game. They won again, completing the sweep of the Blue Jays. So far, the trade with the Phillies seems to be working out well. Yeah, it's only been 3 games, but Abreu has been hitting for average and getting on base, and Lidle pitched a really good game today. Maybe this trade will be the difference maker. The verdict is still out on Craig Wilson for me. He just doesn't seem to fit. We'll see how it goes.

And I know I'm way late on this topic, but it really seems like Mel Gibson has screwed himself this time. It's like he bent over and told all of Hollywood to give it to him. Too bad Mel. We used to all love ya.

NP: Ride The Lightning, Metallica

Those Italians

I read about this wine in Wine Spectator Magazine, and I had spoken to a couple of guys in various wine shops throughout the city. Everyone said it was a great wine, especially for the price (I got it for $7.99). Falesco Vitiano, Umbria Italy 2004 is a terrific wine and it comes cheap. It has a deep ruby red color and flavors of blackberries, plums and chocolate with hints of pepper and licorice. It's got a nice smooth finish and went well with my Bolognese sauce. The wine is a mix of Sangiovese, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. It scored a 90 from Wine Spectator and Wine Advocate gave it an 89. I would go out and get this wine. It's great for your everyday drinking.

NP: Yankees vs. Blue Jays, YES Network.