Cash Crop, you say?

From the Contra Costa Times:

Gold rush

Olive oil emerges as California's latest cash crop

So Olive oil has earned its rightful spot towards the top of the list with wine, weed and crystal meth.

Nice work, fellas.

Remember When?

Considering most peoples' attention span consists of about 30 seconds into the future and about 10 seconds in the past, I thought it might be interesting to revisit a little brew-ha-ha from days gone by.

A while back, a whole gaggle of folks figured in true democratic fashion, the French were a bunch of yellow-bellied bastards for not supporting the efforts of the U.S., Britain, et al in effecting some sort of change in the Middle East. For the record, I will refrain from offering my opinion either way on the matter. Ragardless, a great 'boycott' of all things French was 'launched' so as to teach those 'beret-wearin'-fools' a thing or two about how 'we do things'.

Well, the numbers are in. And before you go and break your arm patting yourself on the back, give it a read.

"The unofficial boycott of French wine in the US has cost the country an estimated US$112m (£64m), according to an official study."

That's right... a whopping $112 million American clams. Granted this sounds like a pretty big number, especially if you only have 5 bucks in your pocket but let us put things in perspective. According to the CIA, the estimated GDP of the country of France for the year 2005 is 1.816 trillion dollars. Suffice it to say, that $112m is little more than a bug on the windshield of the Citroën that is France's economy.

Good try, but better luck next time.

Something else to remember from back then:

"Anti-French feeling at the time was running high and many media outlets, including the New York Times, reported on the rejection of French products – most famously with the cafeteria in the US House of Representatives renaming their French Fries as Freedom Fries."

Yep. With myriad things happening the world over and the proverbial 'Shit' about to hit the fan, our elected Representatives felt it absolutely necessary to change the already mis-named fried foodstuff in an effort to show their solidarity.

Unreal.

And lastly the quote of the article:

'I would like to pinpoint a drop in French wine sales to something as specific as opposition to the Iraq invasion, but unfortunately it is more complicated than that,' Barton told decanter.com. 'Statistics are like a bikini – they give you the idea, but hide the details.'

Right on, Barton.

Breaking News!!!!!

Given the current climate of technology, one could make a pretty persuasive argument that the general public is more (and better?) informed on all things wine. I would like to think so but then again maybe not so much:

Blended Wines Gain Popularity

"When you think of red wine, Merlot and Cabernet probably come to mind, but there's a type of red wine that's gaining in popularity; a blend."

Fish on!!! We've got a live one, here. What Channel 10 - On Your Side fails to mention is the simple fact that the overwhelming majority of wine is indeed a blend. That's right, despite that which wineries would like you to believe, they do take a bit of this to round out that and so on.

At the risk of offending a certain population of this great country, it seems the folks in Columbus, Ohio need things spelled out for them, literally.

"Blends use more than one grape...

It's unbelievable.

"Consumer Reports' Maxine Siegel just tested seven different blends, including ones from Kendall-Jackson, Penfolds, and Rosemount Estate.
Industry experts assess each wine, evaluating the color, aroma, and flavors. They're looking for a wine that has a good balance of fruit, acidity and tannin."

So Maxine Siegel just tasted 7 wines, yet others (i.e. the experts) evaluate myriad components when assessing a wine. I guess it's safe to say that Maxine ain't no expert.

Siegel says, "A good blend goes with broiled, roasted, or grilled meats and chicken. It also goes with savory side dishes like yams, squash, and portabella mushrooms."

For the record, how many other ways are there to prepare meats (and chicken for that matter) besides broiling, roasted, or grilled? And I'm sure this is a matter of semantics but the words savory and yams are damn near polar opposites, at least down South.

"When all the tasting was done, Consumer Reports found one very good blend.

Rosemount Estate Shiraz-Cabernet 2004 has rich fruit flavors. It costs $8 a bottle.

If you like Merlot, Consumer Reports tested those, too. The top-rated is Gallo of Sonoma Reserve 2002. It has big, full fruit flavors with subtle nuances and costs $13 a bottle."

So the lesson learned is two-fold: Don't watch Channel 10 News in Columbus, Oh and don't seek wine advice from Consumer Reports.

To be honest, I had no idea that CR was doing wine reviews and I have probably picked up exactly 2 issues of this magazine in 31 years but these recommendations make me seriously question their credibility on just about everything else.