lummi island wine tasting Spring Equinox ’20
click on photos for larger images
Wine Shop Closed Through March
In Solidarity with our neighbors across the country and across the World, the wine shop will remain closed through the end of March, perhaps longer. That means no weekend wine tasting and no Friday Bread. 🙁
However, in keeping with our long-standing policy to remain a Valuable Community Resource, we will do our best to be On Call for the many Wine Emergencies that are sure to arise under these difficult conditions. We can maintain appropriate social distance while catching up, filling your wine bags, and maybe offering you a sample or two while we visit! Give us a shout.
In the meantime, stay tuned for Updates and stay healthy! We can do this! Yes, we can!
Ten Foot Poles
Our vocabulary has long had expressions about the social distancing that we are now all committed to practicing, usually variations on the theme of refusing to touch something with a ten-foot pole. This is believed to have originated some 2000 years ago with Roman surveyors, who regularly used a measuring rod known as a decempeda (decem pedes = ten feet) in their work. Btw, the “foot” was standardized in 29 AD by Agrippa as 29.6 cm, more or less the same as it is now. Now That is a Legacy!
As to the modern use of the term, we find several noteworthy historical references:
One is from the The North Carolina Standard, 12 June 1839 about the political rise of famous North Carolina politician Henry Clay, that the “whigs” would not touch him with a ten foot pole; but many now declare they will not vote for any one that is opposed to Clay. — (click link to see original newspaper)
Another story has it that New York District Attorney Asa Bird Gardiner, when asked if he might be a candidate for Governor, said, “I wouldn’t touch the nomination with a ten-foot pole.” Btw, his is an interesting story.
Spring Equinox
March is a pretty Big Month when you think about it. You’ve got the Ides, when Julius Caesar was assassinated in the Roman Senate in 44 BC, just about 75 years before Agrippa standardized the length of a Foot. You’ve got St. Patrick’s Day, something of a worldwide excuse to get tipsy all ’round the World. And you have The Spring Equinox, when for a moment the Sun passes directly above a point on the Earth’s Equator on its way north toward its most northerly annual position at the Summer Solstice in June.
By the way, like St. Patrick’s Day, many ancient Christian holidays coincide with ancient pagan holidays, many of which were tied to major events in the solar calendar– solstices, equinoxes, and “cross-quarter days,” which have ancient significance in the human psyche.
This photo was taken at sunset tonight, March 19. From our vantage point the sun is setting just behind Duncan, BC on Vancouver Island, a tad north of West.
Mar a Lago Update: The World At A Standstill
In the last few days even Republicans have started to get it that they are not going to be able to BS their way through this particular Crisis. All the Spin has changed from “Nothing to see here” to “It’s a major crisis and we have it under control due to the brilliant Leadership of the Tweetster.” And even He seems Sobered by the Global Magnitude of the Problem.
At this point we are at a loss for words; it’s just Too overwhelming. But we think THIS will fill in the missing pieces in a holistic, right-brain, and thoroughly enjoyable kind of way…
Strange times. Scary. And yet, more than anything we have experienced before, this Global crisis is touching our common vulnerabilities as a species and uniting the world in poignant and unprecedented ways.
An old friend and colleague had a long-standing theory that only some “Catastrophic Global Crisis” would be able to bring the World together in a Common Defense. Well, at the moment the Virus from Hell and Climate Apocalypse are camped out on the doorstep next to the usual Petty Differences, Corporate Carpetbaggers, and Religious Shills, and for the moment they have our Full Attention. Maybe he was right; something like this Could Pull the World together in Solidarity. Let it be.
Washington Post Tweetster Lie Count to date : 16,241 as of 01/24/20
The wines we woulda tasted this weekend… 🙁
Cana’s Feast Vaso Bianco ’18 Washington $16
Pinot Gris-Chard, Gewürzt-Muscat blend; aromatic and light, with pretty floral highlights and buttery texture; palate of apple and pear fruits with a hint of toast.
Three Feathers Pinot Noir Rose ’18 Oregon $20
Pale pink, with nose of fresh flowers and palate of strawberry, green apple, and melon with hints of brioche. Crisp and refreshing.
Folie a Deux Dry Creek Zinfandel $15
Fermented 20% whole cluster and aged four months in neutral oak; the aromas are pure, bright and fruit filled, with notes of raspberry, ash, cherry and flower; light, elegant, smoky finish.
Cana’s Feast Bricco Red ’18 Washington $16
Ripe raspberry, boysenberry and cocoa on the nose. Full flavors of cherry, brown sugar, and coffee serve as a base for more subtle mineral and iron nuances. Generous acidity and tannic structure support a long, round finish.
Baer Arctos Red ’13 Washington $39
84% Cab, 8% Cab Franc , 8% Petit Verdot; displays rich aromas of black plum and cherry, with notes of pretty violet, anise, bay
leaf, and savory cigar box. Seamless and silky on the palate, with fine tannins.
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