Fun Summer Wine

Wine is a hobby - no, not just drinking it. But I love learning about it and sharing with others. So, one of the big reasons I started blogging again was to write about wine.

It's hard to find fun summer wines better than the supermarket undrinkable swill. But instead of the standard white, try a Rose' - make that a dry Rose.'

When most people see pink wine they recoil and expect a big glass of Kool-Aid. But the history and tradition of great dry pink wine is substantial. The motherland of great dry Rose is the Tavel region of France.

The southern Rhone region is famous for its dry Rose wines. If you go into a decent wine shop and find the French wines, there is a good chance you'll seem some Tavel during the summer months. The good ones are usually dry to even quite dry. Often there is a strong hint of strawberry to the taste. They're wonderful.

There are dry Rose's being made everywhere from many different grapes. In France, Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache are often used for Rose, syrah has been used to make Rose. A bit sweeter versions have been made from Pinot Noir grapes. They're all over the place.

One of the things I enjoy about my wine hobby is trying new things. So the other day I bought a dry Rose from South Africa. It's called Bon Bon in a floral label. I bought it in a wine shop on Massachussets Ave. in Indianapolis. I had never purchased a South Africa wine before.

The wine wasn't bad for an $11 bottle. It had the hint of Strawberry/cherry typical to the wine. It was dry enough for me. It did improve a little after opening up (being open awhile for the novices). It didn't have as robust a flavor as I would like, but not bad for the price point.

Try a dry Rose this summer. They are a great value. Even great French Tavel's sell for $18-$25 bucks. You can often find others even cheaper. They're great with cheese or fruit for snacking and not overly sweet like some Pinot Grigio or a Reisling!

Despair can be fun!

If you like fun, sarcastic, twisted humor - and who doesn't - this site is for you.

Despair.com has calendars, t-shirts and all sort of products to put a twisted smile on your face. It's brilliantly wicked stuff!

I'm not a total left-wing nut case.

Just to defuse those of you who know/think I'm left of Ted Kennedy - common sense in the news today from a Republican. That much-admired GOP Senator said "Bush's Iraq policy is clearly not working." He also called for a reduction in troops and a new direction.

How darn refreshing. Of course, for a liberal anti-Bush, rhetoric spewing idealogue, I'm also a good Hoosier.

That Republican was Indiana's Richard Lugar. Read the story from MSNBC.com -- here.

Dick Cheney is a very, very dangerous man!

My first entry and it's about Dick Cheney. That really wasn't part of my plan to resume blogging. But I wanted a venue to vent, rant, and ruminate. I'll write about wine, Wabash, travel, and one of my favorite topics - politics. Tell your friends!

Cheney has been back in news for his behind-the-scenes dealings with government agencies - primarily over compliance with an Executive Order required disclosure of how the government handles top secret issues. That's an over simplification, but you get the point. Nothing new about Cheney and secrecy - remember his on-going refusal to talk about his energy advisors? The list for the former Haliburton chief is endless!

This all got started thanks to a Washington Post year-long investigation looked behind the scenes of how Cheney worked to expand presidential powers, and specifically how they re-wrote laws circumventing their own administration - particularly Colin Powell, so Afghan and Iraqi prisoners had no rights. Forget the Geneva Convention, Powell was portrayed as "quaint" before he had the chance to use the long-accepted Geneva convention to prevent the mess at Guantanamo Bay mess.

Go to the Washington Post or MSNBC.com site and read the series of articles. It's startling. It's also an incredible example of good journalism. Those who predict the demise of newspaper due to electronic media, bloggers or whatever, should read this kind of reporting. It's great, great work.

For the past six years I was convinced Cheney would step down in final two years or final year so Bush could hand-pick a successor and potentially give someone a leg up for 2008. I'd have bet money. But the current group of 10 middle age or older white men running for the GOP nomination loathe Bush adequately (in private), even that conspiracy theory no longer holds water.

Well - this qualifies as a rant! But I feel better now.