Some More French White

Here's another bottle of French white wine we've tried recently. This one I got at Sherry-Lehmann's in the Upper East Side of Manhattan. This store is great. The people are helpful, and they keep all of their bottles in a wine cellar, so you don't have to worry so much about getting a bad bottle. In fact, I've never gotten one there. This wine I grabbed as I was picking up some Champagne that I wanted to buy while it was on sale. This was something that was relatively inexpensive to drink with my dinner that night. It is the Louis Jadot Macon-Villages Chardonnay 2005. Overall, I remember citrus fruits and minerality. I liked it and would get it again. I keep trying to broaden my horizons on French wines.

In other drink-related news in my life, I had a scare when I thought my espresso machine bit the dust. I was decalcifying the thing when it suddenly stopped working. I thought I blew out the pump motor or something, but I guess it just overheated because after leaving it alone for a few hours it was working just fine again. I've gotten so used to having the thing, I wasn't looking forward to spending more money on a new one.

2 + 1 = 3

So... first James Brown died on Christmas Day and now Gerald Ford is gone. We all know celebrities die in threes. Who's next? Only time will tell.

Merry Christmas!

Well, half of this Christmas is over and we've had a really good time so far. Yesterday we went to my wife's family's homes and celebrated on Christmas Eve. In a little while we're going to celebrate at home with the baby (it is his first Christmas), and then we're off to my sister's for some holiday cheer.
I hope everyone who reads this has a very Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Merry F*&cking Christmas To You Too

Yesterday, my wife and I took her sister and her two children (along with our son) to Rockefeller Center to see the Christmas Tree. Her kids are 5 & 7 years old and had never seen the tree before. We thought this would be nice just before Christmas. They were really excited to go and loved seeing the tree. Besides for a sprinking of rain here and there, it was turning out to be a very nice day. After seeing the tree, we decided to go into Dean & Deluca to treat them all to some hot chocolate - I don't know if you've ever had the chance to have their hot cocoa... it's really really good, especially when mixed with seeing the Christmas Tree on a cool winter day. Anyway, we enjoyed our cocoa and snacks (I had a cupcake) and we decided to head back home. I was carrying the baby around in the Baby Bjorn (if you don't know what one of those is, check out the link) and got up to head out. As we were leaving the restaurant/cafe, this guy barged through the doorway past me and my baby pushing us both (he must have really wanted in). Well, I didn't take kindly to that, and I yelled at him. And you know what? Most people yelled back at me - like I was crazy to be mad that this dude (who was like a foot taller than me) pushed past me and my baby. The only people who agreed with me were the other people with kids. So, I fondly wished them all a Merry Christmas and went on my way. What I would have liked to have done was take a crap in their hot cocoa.
A nice Christmas message will probably be up tomorrow.

NP: Baby Santa's Music Box, Baby Einstein

Your Junk In A Box

The other night Justin Timberlake hosted Saturday Night Live. I actually didn't watch the episode, but I did see this clip online and I wanted to share it. I guess a censored version aired on TV, but this one is the original, uncensored version. Enjoy.

Franch Fries... Franch Dressing...

Over the past couple of weeks we've been delving into a lot of French White Wines. Astor Wines was having a sale on Loire Valley wines a month or so ago, so I went down to the Village and bought a couple different bottles of wine. Then, the other day, I stopped into Cellar 72 on the Upper East Side. They were having one of their many free tastings and I enjoyed the white they were showcasing. I bought a couple bottles of that for the company we were having over later that night.
The first of the three that we opened was Lucien Crochet Sancerre La Croix du Roy, France 2004. This bottle was listed as "textbook Sancerre" in Astor Wines. We had this one night when I decided it would be a good time to take a crack at preparing Skate at home. Overall, the meal was a success, and the wine went well with it. I remember it being very crisp with some limestone, citrus and grass. A nice bottle of Sancerre.
The second bottle we tried was the Philippe Raimbault Sancerre "Apud Sariacum" 2005. This bottle was opened up when a couple of our friends came by to visit our son and ended up staying for dinner. I really enjoyed this wine. In fact, I thought it was a better wine than the Lucien Crochet, which was a more expensive wine. This wine was very crisp, with lemon and lime on the initial tasting and finishing with a strong sense of tart apples.
The last bottle I'm going to talk about today is Vieux Clocher Vacqueyras Blanc 2004. This bottle I knew nothing about before entering the wine shop. I knew we were having people over for dinner and I wanted to grab a couple bottles of wine. I didn't know exactly what I was going to get , and after I tried this wine I thought it might be the one. The clincher was that it wasn't expensive, and that makes buying a couple of bottles much easier. I really don't remember too much about this one, except that I enjoyed it. It went down pretty easy, and went well with the variety of foods we had. I would get it again, and maybe the next time, I'll stay sober enough to remember more about it.

NP: Holiday In Cambodia, The Dead Kennedys

My Super Ex-Girlfriend Sucks Hard

Since there is now a pretty consistant lack of anything good to watch on television, we decided to rent a movie the other night. Unfortunately, we had the misfortune of picking My Super Ex-Girlfriend, starring Uma Thurman and Luke Wilson. I cannot believe Luke Wilson agreed to be in this piece of crap. I hope he was doing it as a favor to someone. After watching (well, suffering) through Uma's other crap-fest, The Producers, I am not surprised to see her in this mess (she should stick to drama), but Luke? For shame!
This really was one of the worst films I've seen in a long time. I believe that the concept could work, but in this case it just didn't. I really don't remember laughing once during the entire film. It just succeeded in making me angry that we wasted our time watching this thing.

Another movie we watched recently was Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Rocky Bobby. Firstly, this movie was not nearly as good as I had hoped it would be. Secondly, I laughed out loud many times, so it's all good. This movie is dumb and stupid, but it's also fun and I enjoyed watching it. Will Ferrell was his usual self, and his buddy (I forget his name) was pretty funny too. Also, the Borat-guy playing the Frenchman was pretty funny as well. All in all, a good movie to waste some time with.

NP: Visit, 311

Maybe I Shouldn't Care

Today I was shopping for some groceries with my wife in the local D'Agostino, and I saw this bottle of extra virgin olive oil by Rachel Ray called "EVOO." Rachel calls extra virgin olive oil on her show "e.v.o.o." It's one of her annoying quirks that makes me want to scream. I don't know if anyone out there reading this watches her show on the Food Network, but personally, I can't stand the lady. She's so freakin' annoying I want to reach through the screen and pull out her vocal chords so she'll shut the hell up. Also, if you watch her cook, she never washes off her meat when she takes it out of the package. I guess you don't really have to do this, but everyone I know does it. Why not Rachel Ray?
Anyway, I saw this bottle in the store, and I instantly felt annoyed that now, when I walk through my local grocery store, I have to deal with Rachel Ray staring at me from the aisles. Damn Rachel Ray...

NP: The Christmas Waltz, Frank Sinatra

Christmas Tree

Yesterday, we made our annual pilgrimage to the area in front of the Duane Reade, to buy our Christmas Tree. We've been buying trees from the same guys (who are from Canada) for the past 3 years. Unfortunately, every year, the price of trees has gone up. I remember when I first moved back to NYC, a tree was about $35.00. Now... well, let's just say it's a lot more than that. We actually had to get a slightly smaller tree this year to fit into our budget, and we still paid more than last year. Although, I did read in the paper that some trees in NYC were going for as much as $400.00! Crazy, eh?
We had decided that we would check out the real trees again this year, and if they were too much, we'd head over to Target and buy a fake one. This may have been the last year we could afford a real tree in NYC. Maybe the bubble will burst on tree prices next year.
We left the tree in the stand overnight and will decorate it tonight. You have to let the branches fully open up before you can start decorating. And we were really tired last night.
Hopefully everyone has a great Christmas this year (or whatever it is that you celebrate)!

Andy Pettite Redux

The Yankees have resigned Andy Pettite to a one year deal for $16 million (pending physical), with a player option for a second year. Overall, I'm very happy about this move. Sure, Andy's not the pitcher he used to be, and a lot of the concerns about his elbow have proven true, but I like him and am happy he's back on the team. I admit that some of my happiness is pure nostalgia for the years when the Yankees dominated baseball and Pettite was a big part of that. However, if he can be close to the pitcher he used to be, he'll be great for the Yanks. He's a lefty, which is important in Yankee stadium (and just about everywhere), and he's proven he can pitch in New York. I was one of the many who cried fowl when the Yankees basically let him walk out of New York three years ago. Let's hope he can bring some magic back to the Yanks. Now the starting rotation looks something like Wang, Mussina, Pettite, Johnson and Igawa (if they sign him). Personally, I hope they can somehow erase Johnson from the mix with either a trade/free agent signing/minor league promotion, but I doubt that'll happen unless his back prevents him from pitching.

NP: Phantom Of The Opera, Iron Maiden

Alternate Side Rules Are Not In Effect

Thank God for the Immaculate Conception. Today, I had planned on getting up and sitting in my car for 1 and 1/2 hours waiting for the NYC alternate side parking rules to pass. Basically, if you own a car in NYC and don't feel like throwing down another $400.00 a month for a parking space, you do what we do. If your car is in a spot with no parking from 9:00 am - 10:30 am on Tuesdays and Fridays, you can either go and look for a new spot or just sit in your car until 10:30. The spots are "No Parking" not "No Standing," so as long as you're in your car you won't get a ticket. The police may make you move - and you'll have to when the street cleaner comes by, but otherwise, it's an hour and a half of boredom to avoid a $150 parking ticket.
I used to grab some coffee and the paper and sit in my car listening to Howard Stern. However, since his jump to Sirius, I can't do that anymore. Now I'll either listen to whatever else is on the radio, read a book or bring my portable DVD player and watch a movie.
So, this morning, I got up, had my cup of coffee and was about to jump in the shower to get ready for a long morning in the car. Since I was at the computer, I thought I would check the alternate side parking calendar, just in case. And guess what? Today, alternate side rules are suspended because of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Nice!

In other news, I got my new Video iPod yesterday. My old iPod bit the dust (battery died) and luckily I had the 2-year Best Buy warranty. So, I upgraded to the Video iPod and just had to pay the difference in the cost. So far, I like it a lot. This is the second time I've had to use my additional warranty on an iPod. Of course I got it on this new one too (it's a 3-year one now - they don't offer a 2 anymore) just in case.

NP: Bonzo Goes to Bitburg, The Ramones

Movie Roundup (Typical Blog Title)

This weekend, we did what we seem to do all the time now, rent some movies. It was finally cold here in NYC, and we didn't want to bring the baby outside in all that. So, we picked up a couple of films. Over the past couple of days, we saw You, Me and Dupree, Scoop and Clerks II.
You, Me and Dupree is totally formulaic, but I enjoyed it. I still find Owen Wilson funny - I haven't gotten tired of his schtick yet. And Kate Hudson is nice to look at. All in all, a funny movie - especially towards the end. I think this one's great if it's on cable for free.
Scoop was a movie I really didn't expect to like. I think with Woody Allen flicks you can go either way - really funny, or a total piece of crap. I liked this one. I actually had a good time watching it, and I can't really remember thinking that about a movie in a while. The conversations are pretty funny, and the actors deliver them pretty well, with a little tongue-in-cheek. It's very easy to guess where the story is going, but I didn't seem to mind that.
I can't believe it's been over 10 years since the first Clerks came out. Getting old... Anyway, I wasn't really that excited to see this movie when it came out. Kevin Smith films have been on a steady decline over the years. However, I feel like he got some wind back in his sails with this one. It's totally crazy and gross, but that's what is so great about it. I laughed a lot with this one. And adding Rosario Dawson to the mix was a nice choice.
I would recommend all of these. They're all comedies, but all very different. Just make sure you're seeing the type of movie you want to.

NP: A Passage To Bankok, Rush

Meatballs and Chianti

Catching up a little with the wine selections. Last night we finished off a bottle of Il Poggio dei Vigneti Chianti, 2004 that we had opened a couple of days ago with another meal. Even after being opened for a bit, this wine retained its smooth texture without a hint of harshness. It has a dark, almost purple hue in the glass, and it has a nice amount of dark red fruit in it. I bought this bottle at Best Cellars for $8.00, and it's definately a steal.

Espresso

A couple of months back, I decided to splurge a little on myself and buy an espresso machine. I really wanted to get one of those ultra-modern-do-it-itself machines, but I don't have a couple of thousand dollars to spend on a coffee machine. So, I got the Breville 800ESXL. It normally goes for around $400.00 but I got in on EBay for $125.00 plus shipping (not bad, huh?). Anyway, this machine works great! I started to enjoy the occassional coffee in college, but have progressed over the years to the cup every morning type of person. Then, I progressed to loving really good coffee while I was in Italy. Stopping at a cafe and grabbing a shot of espresso.
At home, we had one of those older Krups machines that worked on steam pumping, but the espresso never came out the same. No crema on top. It basically sucked. Then I learned that you needed bar-pump pressure (at least 10 bars of pressure to make a nice crema). The search was on. I could never bring myself to spending the money on the dedicated espresso machine, but I couldn't hold back any longer. Now I've got my machine and I love it every day. It even takes espresso pods, which, although more expensive, make the whole latte making experience in the morning much easier when I'm sleepy. I like to get mine from Espresso Tiamo. I've tried a few brands so far, and right now, I still favor the Segafredo Zanetti brand - it never dissapoints. But a new one I've found is Lucaffe, which makes a great espresso as well. I tried the Illy brand too, finally throwing down the big bucks, but I wasn't thrilled with it. Ah well. To each his own, right?

Thanksgiving... Let The Holidays Begin

Yesterday I had a great day spending Thanksgiving with my family. We had good food and crappy wine. It was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, I'm sick as a dog and I think I'm going to cough up a lung at some point. I've been filling myself with every cough medicine and homeopathic remedy I can get my hands on. I really don't want to get my son sick, so it's been a trying couple of days (I hear him crying now). Keep your fingers crossed for me.
Yesterday started the official "Holiday Season" kicked off by the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (or at least that's what they want you to think). Too bad it was so nasty out in NYC yesterday. I felt bad for all the parade-goers.

On a completely different note, we finally got all caught up in Lost. We had never watched it before, and a couple of months ago, we decided to rent Season 1. We were hooked. We DVR'd this season and watched until we caught up. Well... we finally made it. Of course now we have to wait until February for more! Ah well... I'm going to go make some coffee.

VH Reunion?

I can't really explain why I even check on these things anymore, but I do... I looked at the Van Halen Newsdesk today, and all over it were rumors that there was going to be a Van Halen tour this summer with David Lee Roth as the singer of VH again. Is it going to really happen? Who knows? Are people going to go see it? Probably more than who went to see the last reunion tour with Sammy Hagar, but I don't expect it to be the blockbuster tour this would've been had it been done 10 years ago. Personally, I'm not going to go, but I'd be interested in hearing new material.
Also in the news is that Michael Anthony is out as the band's bassist, and Eddie's 15 year old son, Wolfgang is in. At first I felt bad for Mike about this, but then I read that he chose not to come back. The band gave him an ultimatum - either play with Sammy or with VH. He took Sammy. I guess he was finally fed up with the VH brothers crap. Anyway... that's it for now.

NP: Play With Me, Extreme

Lots of Catch Up

So... I've not posted in a while. Having a new baby and working a lot will do that to you. Anyway... here are some things I've been thinking about.

A little over a year ago, we went on a trip to Virginia. Sort of fake camping in a cabin we rented, where we barbecued, hiked in the Shenandoah National Park and went into the caves. One other thing we discovered in Virginia is that there are a bunch of wineries down there. We visited a few, and found a couple that we liked. We ended up buying a bottle of Viogner at the Rappahannock Cellars and bringing it back home with us. A pregnancy followed and the bottle stayed in my wine fridge until last week. It was Rappahannock Cellars Virginia Reserve Viogner, 2004. The thing is, I didn't really like this wine we we decided to buy it. My wife loved it and I just got it to make her happy. But, you know what? I really enjoyed it this time around. It was a really nice bottle of wine.

Another food-related item we tried over the past couple of days was ice cream from 5 Boroughs Ice Cream. This is a New York City based company, and I thought the flavors sounded really good. I got the Staten Island Landfill, which is vanilla ice cream with brownie chunks, chocolate fudge, chocolate crunchies, and cherries and the South Bronx Cha Cha Chocolate which is spicy hot chocolate ice cream with chocolate chips. I really wanted to like these to help support the NYC company, but I wasn't crazy about either. The Cha Cha Chocolate was way too spicy, making it too hot to enjoy. And the vanilla in the Landfill wasn't creamy enough. Maybe I'll try the other flavors, but it wasn't as good as Ciao Bella.

Finally, one last food item (well, drink item), is a bottle of Bordeaux that we bought this past spring while we were in Paris. Last night we made some nice steaks on the grill and wanted to have a nice red wine with the meat. At first we were surprised how harsh the wine was, but either we got used to it or it just needed to breath. In the end, it was really enjoyable. It was Reserve Nicolas Cotes De Bourg, 2004.

One last thing is that the Yankees finally traded Gary Sheffield today to the Detroit Tigers for 3 minor league pitchers. They Yanks got Humberto Sanchez, Kevin Whelan and Anthony Claggett from the Tigers. Personally, I've never heard of these guys, although their minor league stats aren't too bad. But, they are minor league stats. Who knows if they will ever translate into the Major Leagues. I think the Yankees should have held out for more, but I think they were worried that if they got stuck with Sheff he would have become a cancer in the clubhouse. Ah well... There are still too many other things to worry about before Spring Training.

NP: We Care A Lot, Faith No More

Got Crabs?

The other night, we made some Alaskan King Crab legs. Mmm... they were really good. We ordered them from FreshDirect, and they didn't disappoint us. This was the first order out of the past 4 that they didn't screw something up, so kudos to them for finally getting everything right!
Along with the crabs, we opened a bottle of Groth Savignon Blanc Napa Valley 2005. This is by far one of my favorite bottles of white. We first tried it about a year and a half ago in New Orleans eating dinner at August. Since then, I've had a few bottles (always the 2004 variety) leading up to the most recent time. The wine has a nice crisp melon-y taste to it, with some citrus and a bit of creaminess. Overall, we think it's great.

Salute!

The other evening a couple of our friends came over to our place to meet the new addition to our family. While here, we opened up a bottle of Veuve Clicquot NV Brut Yellow Label. Always a winner, it went well with the little celebration we had. It's a classically dry Champagne with tiny bubbles and a nice yellow color. We've gotten a few bottles of this as gifts over the past couple of years and need to break them out every once in a while to make sure they don't go bad. Always a great go-to-bottle of Champagne, at least in my opinion.

Gnocchi

Tonight, my wife and I made these gnocchi (little Italian potato dumpling pasta) for dinner. They were pretty awesome. They're also a lot cheaper than buying them fresh in the supermarket. To make the pasta, all you need to do is add some water, roll it out and cut the little pieces. It was much easier than we imagined. A great dinner. The Ecco La Pasta website is here.

NP: Bleed The Freak, Alice In Chains