lummi island wine tasting august 19 ’16
(note: some photos will enlarge when clicked)
Friday Breads (email us to get on the preorder mailing list! )
Cinnamon Raisin – NOT a soft bread with just a spiral of cinnamon and raisin! instead, this is a delicious artisan bread with crisp crust and cinnamon and raisin throughout. Made with fresh milled whole wheat, rolled oats, milk to tenderize the crumb and some honey for sweetness. Makes great toast, even better french toast!- $5/loaf.
Honey Wheat w/ Poppy Seeds & Lemon – Some of you may remember that this is the bread that was made into dinner rolls for the Heritage Trust dinner in March and received raves from diners at the event. Made with bread flour and fresh milled white whole wheat, honey, poppy seeds and fresh lemon zest. A really delicious bread – $5/loaf.
Pastry this week: Palmiers, (aka Elephant Ears) – Always popular and usually sell out quickly. Made with a butter filled puff pastry pastry, rolled out and spread with sugar before folding, slicing and baking. Yum, yum – 4/$5
L’Aietta
L’Aietta means “little farm courtyard.” At age 18, Francesco Mulinari discovered that a one-hectare “family picnic spot” his father had bought long ago in Montalcino was legally registered for growing grapes for one of the world’s highest-valued wines (Brunello di Montalcino). As any(!) 18-year old high school student would do, he got excited and got to work, producing his first vintage of Brunello in 2001, and has persevered.
He later studied oenology, took jobs at other wineries, and replanted sangiovese grosso vines on his land. The vineyard is very steep, maintained by hand by Francesco alone. Now 30, he is on his 12th vintage. His Rosso di Montalcino comes from a younger vineyard nearby, with a total production of only 166 cases– a true “Artisan Wine!” read more
Discrimination
Cognitive discrimination is the fundamental ability that differentiates human beings from every other known organism. It is the ability to tell this from that, one from two, gray from black. Our ability to think, especially to think critically, depends entirely on our ability to observe differences in quantities and qualities. This ability to differentiate, a highly developable ability, is the primary characteristic of the process we call “thinking,” especially “critical thinking.” While all humans (and many other organisms) have the sensory ability to discriminate tastes (salty, sweet, sour), feelings (pleasant, unpleasant), and numbers (more, less), the ability to discriminate among abstract ideas and values (fairness, honesty, credibility, integrity) is to a large degree a function of study and learning.
The best model I have encountered for exploring these ideas was put forth by William Perry from data gathered in the 50’s and 60’s. Perry’s research found that in general, a student’s college experience could be called “an intellectual Pilgrim’s Progress” in which a student’s way of thinking evolved from “a world of Absolutes and Truth into a world of contexts and Commitments in which one must take stands and choose as a way of making meaning of one’s life through identity choices.” All you need to know is that it is a Long Road, with a lot of Building.
The data strongly suggested a common process of increasing discriminatory sophistication. Beginning students right Out of the Box generally fell into the realm of Level 1, Duality: (right/wrong, good/bad). With study and reflection, that gave way after a couple of years to Multiplicity, which first adds a layer of “don’t know,” followed by a more relativistic layer of “it depends.” Position 5, as it turns out, is a major evolutionary step: “This transition represents a fundamental transformation of one’s perspective–from a vision of the world as essentially dualistic, with a growing number of exceptions…to a vision of a world as essentially relativistic and context-bound with a few right/wrong exceptions.”
The Big Takeaway here is that Human Beings right Out of the Box are going to hang out at Levels 1-2 until they Learn Otherwise; with age and education some will get to Levels 3-4. But to get to Level 5 and beyond– which is really a Threshold of sorts– takes opportunity and personal commitment. We live in Complex Times, folks. Our Greatest Enemy might be found in HL Mencken’s quip, “For every complex problem there is an answer that is Clear, Simple…and Wrong.” Like, you know, the policies (I use the term loosely) of the last few decades, maybe.
Criteria
As it turns out, Discrimination isn’t very useful for Decision Making without Criteria that give Meaning to our observations. Pat and I had an interesting discussion at dinner tonight (Niçoise salad and rosé on the deck…yum!) about Current Politics. To some degree one of the fulcra of the discussion was the degree to which the actions of our Elected Officials in the last decade or two have reflected the concerns of our Citizens…you know, like Us! A Pretty Big Question, but one that is at the very Root of this year’s election choices. By the way, the lead-in to this discussion was the about the value and importance of third-party voices.
That, of course, brought up the fact that until 1988, Presidential Debates were managed by the non-partisan League of Women Voters, who then ran afoul of the Republican and Democratic Party Establishments by insisting that Third Party Candidates had a Valid and Important Role to play in the National Debate, and that they were withdrawing support for the debates because “the demands of the two campaign organizations would perpetrate a fraud on the American voter.” Debates were then taken over by the Federal Elections Commission, a joint operation of the Republican and Democratic National Committees, which set the criteria for third-party candidate participation in the Debates as polling 15% of the likely vote in five national polls…a Really Big Hurdle for getting Into The Game, even if you had Equal Access to Big Media.
At the end of this discussion, I listed Five Inter-related Concerns (there are many more) I have that neither of the Two Major Parties seems willing to address:
- Climate change
- Global Refugee crisis
- Wealth and income Inequality
- Money in Politics
- Social Justice in its Myriad Forms
One very good thing about Third Parties, when they get a Voice, is that they Name these Concerns and the Entrenched Failures of the Two Parties to address them. It would be a Good Thing to have the Green Party Candidate and the Libertarian Candidate sharing the Spotlight with the Major Candidates. Just as Bernie Sanders brought a much-needed Voice of Truth to the table during the Primary Season, so would these candidates enrich our understanding of the choices before us and the options available to us.
This week’s wine tasting
Sanguineti Vermentino ’14 Sardinia $14
Zesty, clean, and aromatic. A staple on the Italian coast, excellent with everything from Scampi with fresh herbs, to Spring
pea risotto, or a spread of Italian cheeses.
Perazzeta Sara Rosato ’15 Italy $14
From the same grape as Brunello (sangiovese grosso), this beautiful rosato is rich, bold, and flinty while also crisp, summery, and light.
Anciano 5-Yr Tempranillo Riserva ’08 Spain $11
Aromas of damp earth, mocha, tobacco, and black cherry. On the palate it is sweetly fruited, easy-going, and nicely balanced leading to a seamless, fruity finish.
Verso Nero d’Avola Terre Siciliane ’14 Sicily $12
Unctuous style with “the structure of Trapani, the aromatics of Siracusa, and ripeness of Palermo.” Plus: 10% of the grapes are raisined, yielding rich notes of cranberry, black fruits, and sage.
L’Aietta Rosso di Montalcino ’13 Italy $21
Quintessential Rosso di Montalcino, with mouthfuls of wild cherry and mineral, and impressive structures and depth…intensely floral and bright with rich, ripe fruit, uplifting minerality, and hefty structure.
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