lummi island wine tasting july 7 ’17
(note: some photos will enlarge when clicked)
Bread this week
Rosemary Olive Oil – made with bread flour and a bit of freshly milled white whole wheat for a little more flavor and texture. Fresh rosemary from the garden and olive oil to make for a nice tender crumb and a nice crisp crust. A great all around bread – $5/loaf
Black Pepper Walnut- made with a nice mix of flours, bread flour, fresh milled whole wheat and rye. A fair amount of black pepper and toasted walnuts give this bread great flavor with just a bit of peppery bite to it. Would go well with all sorts of meats and cheese – $5/loaf
And for pastry this week…
Pain aux Raisin – made with the same laminated dough as croissants. The dough is rolled out, spread with pastry cream and sprinkled with a mix of golden raisins and dried cranberries that have been soaked in sugar syrup. Rolled up and sliced before baking. These are my favorites! As always, quantities are limited, be sure to get your order in early – 2/$5
A Single Blade of Grass
Somewhere I have a calligraphy sketch (as well as other paintings and books of poetry) by an old friend and well-known Northwest Poet, Robert Sund. I met Robert in the eighties when I was a potter and had a little gallery in Laconner. Robert, along with many other artists and writers (Guy Anderson, Tom Robbins, et al.) had found a haven in Laconner and the waterways around it, living simply, making a community, and developing their arts.
Like most artists, Robert tried many ways to make a living with his art, and this particular form was called a “Wind Letter.” It consisted of a torn strip of parchment paper about a foot long and 5 inches wide. He would find a Haiku or similar Short Poem and render it in calligraphy on the paper, often including what he called “Mountainous Revisions,” in which he would cross out mistakes and make them look like mountains and trees. Anyway, the point of this is one Treasured Wind Letter based on a poem by the Zen Poet Ryokan:
“To judge the direction of the wind it is enough to see a single blade of grass.”
Since I can’t find the Wind Letter at the moment, click on the image for one of Robert’s related poems. As for the Wind Letter…every breeze in Our World is telling us a Thousand Times a Day that a Petulant Four-Year-Old holds the Destiny of Our World in his Tiny Hands. Time for Sane Adults to Step Up, Step In, and Take Action if we are to Avert Disaster.
Full Moon and Tides
This weekend the moon is Full, just rising in the East as the Sun is setting in the West. Sometimes this time of year the full moon and setting sun are both in the sky at the same time. At Full Moon all the water on Earth is trying to get to either the Moon in the East or the Sun in the West, making for high High Tides and low Low Tides. Whatever the phase of the moon , Moonrise is always a time of High Tide.
The problem we have with visualizing these relationships is The Six-Hour Lag, which is not generally shown in the diagrams. Fact #1 is that, as the diagram shows, when the Moon is at First or Third Quarter, the overall range between Low and High Tide is at a monthly minimum, aka “Neap Tides.” However, to predict the location of the Moon from observing the Tide or to predict the Tide from the location of the Moon right now, relative to the Earth’s rotation, this general picture must consider where the Moon is Right Now, and therefore where the Tide is Right Now, and in particular compensate for the fact that the Tide is always six hours behind the Moon. Therefore the occasion of the Full Moon provides The Same Takeaway as last week’s First Quarter: when the Moon is Full or New, tides are Low at Noon and Midnight, and High at morning and evening. When the Moon is at First or Third Quarter, Tides are High at Noon and Midnight and Low at morning and evening. Your Homework Assignment: notice the tide today at noon and at dinnertime and consider: where must the Full Moon be right then?
Mar a Lago Update
I love this Duck. No matter How Bad things get, I feel I can look at this Duck and think, given his obvious Innocence, his Ambitions appear Modest: Swim a little, Catch a Few Rays, Dominate the Public Eye…you know, “Play the Role,” as we used to say. Silly, Juvenile, Annoying, but mostly, you know, Harmless.
Unfortunately, This Relatively Benign Fantasy is being increasingly challenged by Daily Deterioration in both Domestic and Global politics. Although an Impossibly Ignorant, Incompetent, Self-Centered, Petty, and Sulking Child has been handed the reins to the most Powerful Country on Earth, he is at Best Basically Benign, and At Worst, Basically Incompetent, so Nothing Really Bad is going to Happen. Right…?
On the other hand, the longer this goes on, the more it sinks in that By His Command, at any moment, he could Destroy the Entire Planet and Every Living Thing on it, including, you know, All of Us. Sobering, n’est-ce pas?
Recently I spent a few days with an old friend and Annapolis classmate who had spent a Career in Submarines, adding up to about Four Years of His Life Underwater! His mission all that time was to be ready at Any Moment to launch as much destructive power as All the bombs dropped by All the Sides in WWII against a nuclear adversary, i.e., Russia. That was the Cold War, and that was the Insanely Rational, or Rationally Insane, Calculus of Mutually Assured Destruction, i.e., Everyone Loses Big Time so much that no Sane Person would ever Cross This Line. Yes, it is a Totally Crazy Idea. It is also Entirely Possible that the Philosophy of Credible Mutual Deterrence through the Cold War was actually Successful in Eliminating a First Strike Nuclear Attack as a viable Geopolitical Option.
So now I see a Problem with this Duck, and his Inarticulate Webbed Feet: Ill-prepared for Nuance, Untrained for Diplomacy, and Ill-tempered for Subtlety, he is Simplistic, Volatile,Defensive, and Reactive. A Dangerous Combination.
Saint Nabor Gris de Gris Rose ’12 France $10
Bouquet of red fruit and honeysuckle with linden-tree nuances; light, crisp and easy drinking, with palate of wild strawberries and blueberries with mineral nuances.
Chevaliere du Clos Cote de Roussillon ’08
Dark and rich, with notes of cherry, plum, and fig with a hint of spice; complex and round, and full bodied on the palate with fully developed tannins; a great value red.
Rubino Punta Aquila Rosso Italy $15
Fragrant and rich, with fascinating mineral aromas, with notes of brandied cherries, mulberry jam, blueberry and blackcurrant, and spices; warm, complex, generous and vibrant.
Robert Ramsay “Le Mein” Red ’12 Washington $30
Grenache, Mourvedre, Counoise and Cinsault; rock-solid aromas and flavors of lavender, leafy herbs, flowers and black berries; Medium-bodied, round, ripe, and supple, with a lovely,fleshy mouthfeel.
lummi island wine tasting june 30 ’17
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Bread this week
Whole Wheat Levain – This particular dough is made with levain and bread flour and about 25% fresh milled whole wheat. I like to say it has a ‘toothy’ crumb, it has great texture and flavor and a nice crisp crust. A nice artisan loaf that is a great all around bread – $5/loaf
Pear Buckwheat – the preferment here is a poolish, made with bread flour, a bit of yeast and fermented overnight. Mixed the next day with bread flour and fresh milled buckwheat. The addition of toasted walnuts and dried pears soaked in white wine makes for a really flavorful bread – $5/loaf
And for pastry this week…ooh la la)
Chocolate Croissants – Croissants are made by mixing a dough with a bit of sugar and butter and then laminating the dough with even more butter and, in this case, rolling it out and filling with dark chocolate. The end result is a delicious flaky pastry with rich dark chocolate. – 2/$5
Reality Check
Despite the Relentless Coverage of Every Tweeted Syllable, Every Tweeting Day in our present Alternative Reality, precious little has been said about the Alternate Alternative Reality we were Hijacked from last November. While lots of Pols emphasize Over and Over that Oh, No, No, No, Monsieur, Russians Did Not Tamper with our Precious Voting in the last election, it has been widely implied but rarely discussed that there was a substantial Russian effort to discredit Candidate Clinton, and that it was Successful Enough to have turned Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania for Trump.
About a year ago I posted that I had become Increasingly Puzzled by the Hateful Rhetoric aimed at Hillary Clinton, especially by those who have long professed to be Progressives. Fast forward to what is generally referred to as “Now” here in Liberal Purgatory, and it is as good a time as any to reflect on What Exactly was Wrought under the guise of “Free and Fair” Elections. The required Reading Assignment for this Reflection can be found here on Daily Kos, and raises dozens of questions framed as “Would Hillary Clinton have Done This: (see list).” The Surprising Takeaway from scrolling down this long list of things we can be Sure she would Not have Done is the Sudden Realization of How Much we have lost as a Nation from the Russian Interference. While scholars may quibble about what behaviors rise to the level of being Presidential, a glance at this list will grab you in the Gut. OMD, you’ll think, how can we all keep pretending This is Normal?
More On Tides
This weekend the moon is at First Quarter. That means it is halfway between New and Full. When the Sun is overhead (aka “Noon”) the Moon is just rising over the Eastern horizon, and the tide is therefore High. This is not because the Sun is overhead. Rather it is because the Moon is just rising in the East, and the Tide is six hours behind the Moon. You could think of the High Tide as a kind of a Wave, or Bulge of Water trying to get to the Moon. Think of the Moon as a Magnet, and the oceans as piles of iron filings, and though the magnet is not nearly strong enough to pull the filings across space, it is strong enough to pull a Ripple of filings behind it.
Tides at the First and Third Quarter are called Neap Tides, when he difference between High and Low tides approaches a monthly minimum. When the Moon is Full or New, Moon and Sun pull along one axis, making for the Month’s Highest High Tides and Lowest Low Tides. Right now, while the Moon is at First Quarter, look for smaller differences between High and Low tides, with High Tides at Noon and Midnight, and Low Tides at morning and evening.
So this is a Takeaway: when the Moon is Full or New, tides are Low at Noon and Midnight, and High at morning and evening. When the Moon is at First or Third Quarter, Tides are High at Noon and Midnight and Low at morning and evening.
Dreamtime Update
Dreamtime has been in the water for two months now; didn’t get nearly enough necessary work done at her temporary slip in Bellingham. But it has definitely felt Summery the last week or two, and tomorrow we sail her out to the Island for the Summer on a secure mooring.
Here’s hoping for an uneventful crossing!
This week’s wine tasting
Domaine Girard Chardonnay ’14 France $13
Medium- bodied with fleshy notes of fresh-picked apples and pears; no oak, but spends time on the lees to give it richness; clay soils at a higher elevation impart a delightful freshness.
Borsao Rose ’15 Spain $9
Spicy aromas and flavors of ripe red berries, orange, and pungent flowers; nicely concentrated and supple,gaining weight with air, picking up bitter cherry and melon notes and a lingering red fruit liqueur quality.
Spindrift Pinot Noir ’14 Oregon $16
Aromas of red fruit, cherry, earthy and toasty notes. Big cherry flavors with some oak, sweet tannins, bright acidity and lingering finish.
La Mijane Arpege ’13 France $14
Oceanic influences create an alternation of warm sun and cool breezes, which develop complex, original and balanced wines.
Celler Can Blau Can Blau ’14 Spain 91pts $15
Aromas of ripe black and blue fruit with smoky mineral and licorice notes; Seamless texture, with sweet boysenberry, floral pastille and snappy spiciness. Finishes silky and long, with a sneaky tannic grip.
lummi island wine tasting june 23 ’17
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Bread this week
Buckwheat Walnut & Honey – a nice flavorful artisan bread. Made with fresh milled buckwheat and bread flour. A little honey to balance the earthiness of the buckwheat and some toasted walnuts for a nice crunch. This bread goes well with meats and cheeses – $5/loaf
Spelt Levain – Spelt is an ancient grain similar to wheat and has a nutty, slightly sweet flavor. It has gluten but it isn’t as strong as the gluten in traditional wheat. This bread is made with a levain, or sourdough, traditional bread flour and about 1/3 spelt flour and fresh milled whole spelt. – $5/loaf
And for pastry this week…
Hamburger Buns – made with bread flour and freshly milled whole wheat, some milk and butter for a tender crumb and topped with a flavorful onion topping. These are nice soft buns that go well with everything. – 4/$5
Why Republicans Really Hate the ACA
The Affordable Care Act was paid for by cuts to several areas of government spending and by increases in revenue in several others. Savings of some $700 billion came from cutting payment rates to doctors and hospitals for services to be paid for by the system. And some $900 billion of new revenue was raised through penalties on those choosing to remain uninsured ($55 billion), penalties on employers ($106 billion), an excise tax on “Cadillac health plans” ($111 billion), a 3.8% tax on those earning over $200,000 on investment income ($318 billion), and $87 billion in fees on certain manufacturers and insurers. The old adage of Following the Money provides considerable insight into Why the Republicans have been Frothing at the Mouth over the ACA all these years: because it dared to take proportionally more from the Rich than from the Middle Class or the Poor– an example of progressive taxation, which they have been trying to Stomp Out of Existence since 1980.
Since the 1950’s, tax rates on the wealthiest Americans have dropped some 40%, while tax rates on everyone else have remained about the same. The idea behind Progressive Taxation is that a given tax on a subsistence income is more burdensome than a tax on those who earn far more, so it takes a larger share from the More Fortunate to Hurt as Much as a smaller share from the Less Fortunate. But for the past forty years Republicans have been Asserting that the Marginal Value of a Dollar is Independent of how many you already have!
They Hate Obamacare because it Robs the Deserving Rich to prop up a Bunch of Losers. And as the Great Reagan Taught them, there is No Room in the Lifeboat for All Those Losers. However, Studies at the IMF have demonstrated clearly that “Specifically, increasing the income share to the bottom 20 percent of citizens by a mere one percent results in a 0.38 percentage point jump in GDP growth…But when the income share of the top 20 percent increases, then GDP growth actually declines over the medium term.” Which is to say, Sorry, don’t expect Anything to Get Better Any Time Soon for the 99%. And which is also to say, transfers of income from the richer to the poorer are not just good for the Soul; they are good for the Bottom Line.
Solstice and Tides
Okay, tides have very little to do with Solstice, except that we just experienced Summer Solstice two days ago as this is being written. Actually tides have very little to do with the Sun at all, compared with the effect of the Moon, but still, there is a solar effect. All of this comes up because for the last few weeks I have been trying to teach myself how I can look at the Tide and know where the Moon must be, or vice versa.
As shown in the model, gravitational attraction between the Earth and the Moon are more or less constant, and on any given day, the moon is relatively fixed in space relative to Earth while the Earth rotates. In a 24-hr cycle, the Earth makes a full rotation relative to the Sun and the Moon, while the Moon moves 1/28th of the way in its path around the Earth. The image shows how the Earth’s oceans try to catch up with the Moon, but don’t show that the tide is always about six hours behind the Moon.
That’s because there is a lag between the maximum gravitational pull of the Moon (when the moon is at zenith above or at its nadir below on the other side of the Earth) and how fast the Earth’s oceans can flow to follow the Moon. It turns out that the flood tide is about six hours behind the moon, so when the moon is at the horizon the tide is high, not when it is overhead. When the moon is overhead (or at nadir) the tide is therefore low. More or less. Sadly, this image and most available don’t show this 6-hr lag, and that is confusing if you are looking at the tide and trying to figure where the moon is right then, or looking at the moon and trying to figure out where the tide is right then. Of course, this isn’t an issue many of us think about very often, but not so many years ago, such knowledge was second nature and essential.
Mar a Lago Update
It’s hard to imagine that Anyone in the Republican Leadership is happy with the Tweetster. And for sure No One in the Democratic Leadership is either, except maybe for the Death Spiral he Continually Courts for the entire Republican Party, and That of course would make it Almost Worth It. So today’s Fantasy is Wouldn’t it be Interesting if…
Consider: wouldn’t it be Logical for the FBI Director to have access to very sophisticated listening and recording technology? And wouldn’t it be entirely Reasonable for such a Director to employ that technology to record any discussions with Pwesident Tweetster as a far better method of documentation than post-meeting notes? And then to keep them Secret until they become, um…”useful…?”
Consider: wouldn’t it be Logical for the Privileged Committees of the Congress to gather Evidence wherever they can that would Incriminate the Notoriously Impulsive Mar a Lager (now available in Growlers!) for Something Substantive Enough for some kind of Removal? After all, he has already Broken all Kinds of Rules: Withholding Financial Disclosures, Violations of the Emoluments Clause, Layers upon Layers of Nepotism…and while he demands Loyalty, he doesn’t seem to give much back in return. So why should they Trust him or Support him?
Of course all this is just Wishful Thinking. Being Old in this country right now is pretty Disorienting. Everything I ever Believed about America has been Shattered to Bits. I can’t bring myself to Believe that all those people really Voted for this guy, or that if they did they can for very long maintain the Illusion that he is on the Side of the Worker. And then, the Painful Realization…OMD, this Nightmare could go on for a Long Time. Wow. Sobering, huh…?
Thank Heaven we have the Wine Shop, a friendly place where we can all Huddle Down and fine Warmth during these Dark Times!
This week’s wine tasting
Elk Cove Pinot Gris ’16 Washington $17
Golden straw in color, this fresh white wine approaches with aromas of Asian pear, honeydew melon and hints of lemon thyme and ginger. The palate bursts with star fruit, tangerine and apple pie mingling with notes of pithy lemon-peel and white tea.
Regaliali Nerello Mescalese
Deep salmon-pink in color, with delicate aromas of cherry, raspberry, blackberry, and-appropriate to its name-rose petals. Rich on the palate with refreshing acidity and a long, flavorful finish, this is what Sicilians enjoy in the summertime.
Virginia Dare Pinot Noir ’14 California $17
Uncomplicated but entirely engaging with notes of blackberry, ground black pepper, and black olives along with typical Russian River notes of strawberry and pit fruits.
Lar de Maia 5° ’13 Spain $15
Tempranillo, Garnacha and Syrah; mouth-filling notes of concentrated fruit leather with lingering notes of cherry and pomegranate; lively and fruity with hints of vanilla, coconut and liquorice.
Ded. Reckoning Flintlock Merlot ’13 Washington
Ripe and rich with layers of berry syrup, cassis, raspberry preserves, milk chocolate and baking spices. Big and fat, with soft tannins and gentle acids. Beautiful and supple now, it does have the capacity and structure to age for 5 or more years.
lummi island wine tasting june 16 ’17
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Sorry, No Bread this week
Sorry, Janice our Baker is away this week, attending a Breads of the World workshop in San Francisco. No doubt she will return with a stack of new techniques and recipes…the writeup says something about “discover the unique flavors and textures of breads baked around the world. Create exotic breads, including Germany’s Heigebrot Bread, Indian Parathas, and Mexican Bolillos.”
Which all sound kinda yummy…!
Two Montepulcianos
Montepulciano No. 1 is a hilltop town in southeast Tuscany. It is particularly famous for its Vino Nobile de Montepulciano, made primarily from the grape sangiovese, the dominant red grape of Tuscany, and known in Montepulciano as Prugnolo gentile. Among the many “Nobles” who have enjoyed this wine over many hundreds of years was Thomas Jefferson, who called it “a very favorite wine…most superlatively good.” Today’s Vino Nobiles show flavors of dark ripe berries, with notes of plum and hints of earthiness, and generally age very well.
It is easy to confuse the distinguished Vino Nobile de Montepulciano with Montepulciano D’Abruzzo, a red wine grape grown in the Abruzzo region of east-central Italy, stretching between the Apennine mountains of Italy’s spine and the Adriatic coast. The wines made from this grape are often highly aromatic with earthy black berry notes and an inky-purple color with a thick, almost syrupy mouthfeel. They will maintain their freshness for ten years or more, but do not evolve complexity in the bottle over time like Vino Nobile. Nevertheless, as this week’s La Quercia Montepulciano Riserva demonstrates, it’s pretty good stuff!
Utopian Desperation
The recent shooting episode targeting the Republican Congressional baseball team is deeply Disturbing on many levels. While Right-wing Nut Jobs regularly engage in mass shootings, wimpy left-wingers typically choose less dramatic forms of protest. Which begs the Question: has Something Changed?
I think a lot of us Old Liberals can relate to the Desperation and Depression that may have driven Mr. Hodgkinson. Sanders supporters in particular fought hard to create a little Window of Possibility that our Nation would move toward a Thomas More-ian Utopia, where “Kindness and good nature unite men more effectually…than the bond and obligation of words.” But instead, we find ourselves in that world’s Dystopian Opposite, and that is an Ongoing source of Grief and Loss to many of us. If Utopias represent our Dreams of an Ideal Possible Future, available and beckoning if only We Take the Right Road, Dystopias are the Nightmare Societies waiting for us down All the Wrong Roads.
Over half our population are now living a Worst Possible Dystopian Nightmare as Giddy Republicans Take Aim to Roll Back the Twentieth Century with regard to economic justice, environmental protections, public education— Everything we hold Dear. Maybe this Near Miss can shift the Rhetoric toward bringing some much needed “kindness and good nature” back to our National Dialogue. Seems unlikely, but one way or another, we need an overall Realization that Partisanship has become the Enemy of the Common Good.
Mar a Lago Update
One of my Zen teachers often used the phrase “Not Enough Water to Float a Boat,” generally a commentary on someone’s Level of Development. So now every time the Tweetster in Chief falls out of his Nest at Three in the Morning and starts Tweeting in Distress, the phrase comes back. Maybe that’s why I so like this little picture of the Duck Doll with Shades that I took a few years ago at a little pool next to the Friday Harbor Marina. I immediately recognized Who it Was. Which serves to demonstrate that a Plastic Duck can Float in a lot less water than a Creature with Actual Substance. Swim even, after a Fashion.
I also mentioned a month or two ago the Story of the Three Envelopes. Tonight as we go to press, with the Baseball Shooting, the Expansion of the Special Investigation to include The Tweetster Himself, the VP’s hiring of Legal Counsel, the Congressional Mandate against All Things Russian, and the latest series of Pwesidential Tweets about the Unfairness of it All, we are Comfortable Saying that it is Time for The Tweetster to Open the Second Envelope, which as you might recall, advises “Blame Congress!” Stay tuned!
Wild Roses
Our daily dog walk generally goes by the wetland across Legoe Bay Road from the old Aquaculture School. Every day though the scene is the same, the Light is different, the Content is slightly different, the Weather and Wildlife are different, and the Feeling is Different. In general that means that the same scene always has a New Feature to Delight the Eye.
Today the Wild Roses were showing magnificently, despite the overcast sky and intermittent rain. And although this photo doesn’t do the scene Justice (clicking on it will help!), suffice it to say that these are probably my favorite flowers, and at the moment they are Shining Brightly with Color and Fragrance all over our little Island, and we are all Lucky Ducks to have them to Share the Day with!
This week’s wine tasting
Aravo albarino ’13 Spain $14
A one-of-a-kind, lush, medium-bodied Albariño that fills the mouth with apples, lime, peaches, flowers and grass, with bracing acidity and cleansing minerality.
Chapoutier Belleruche Rosé ’16 France $13
The Grenache in this food-friendly Provencal-style rosé adds bright red stone fruit flavors; the Cinsault brings its delicate strawberry aroma; and the Syrah adds body, making for a great pairing even with the intense flavors of seafood.
Borsao Garnacha ’15 Spain $11
From 100-yr-old vines; heady, perfumed bouquet of ripe red and dark berries, incense and candied flowers; intense raspberry liqueur and cherry-cola flavors blending power, depth and finesse beyond its modest price point.
La Quercia Montepulciano Riserva ’12 Italy $18
100% organic montepulciano from low-yield vines; rich, port-like nose of candied cherries that carry through on the expressive, rich, earthy palate; nice balance of fruit and acidity.
Syncline Subduction Red ’15 Washington $18
Syrah dominant Rhone blend; perfumed aromas of fresh blue and purple fruit, spice, and herbs lead to rich fruit flavors and a plush texture that persists effortlessly through the finish. Delightful!
2072 Granger Way