Five for Friday VII

Another beautiful day here in the ATL. Days like this perk the spirit and soul, plus they make being sick a whole lot easier to deal with. I’m trying to kick this cold with some echinacea, something I’ve never tried before. I have to say that from last night to this morning, I really do feel better already. A combination of good old stinky Vapo Rub, some solid sleep and a little echinacea have me on the mend already.

Photo credit to mrbill on Flickr

Why do American elementary schools equate wine and pot?

Experimentation: A Word I’d Like To Reintroduce into the American Wine Lexicon

These two are listed together because the first one inspired the second. In our house, the children are all encouraged to smell wine or other alcoholic beverages we may consume. They tell us what they think and all have pretty good descriptions, though sometimes they say it just smells bad. The older two are allowed to take tiny sips and most of the time they pass, though there have been times when the older one has tried and liked it. Those tend to the be the sweeter or fruitier wines. We offer to give her a 1/2 water, 1/2 wine glass, but she always declines. They see us drink wine with our meals and we make sure they understand that drinking wine in moderation is a normal and healthy pursuit. When you pull things out of the dark shadows, they are better understood and often, less enticing. The second article is really, really good.

Eat, Live, Run gets a book deal!

Anytime a blogger gets a mass media deal, it’s a good thing. The success of one legitimizes all the other hard working souls who pour their passion into a keyboard, hit [ENTER] and hope someone enjoys what they are saying. I know I get a kick out of the comments I get here and from Twitter or Facebook. It is a powerful stroke to the ego to think someone cares about what you have to say. I say congratulations to Jenna! (Plus, she is a fan of Kevin Gillespie, so that makes her doubly alright in my book!).

Amazing Soda Shop

What the? Yes, a video about a soda shop. This 13 minute video appeals to me on several levels. John Nese, the owner of Galco’s Soda Pop Stop is obviously following his passion and as Gary would say, he’s totally crushing it. I also love the idea that there is a place in the world where you can buy over 500 different kinds of soda and I totally wish there was the equivalent here in Atlanta. Another reason I love this video is you can just feel his enthusiasm oozing through the screen. Finally, I love when little guys help each other out and make it a win-win situation. John is doing that by providing an outlet for small, artisinal soda producers. If I owned a large liquor store, I’d have this same concept next door so kids would have a place to browse and find treasures of their own like we adults do when we browse the wine aisles.

Grower vs. “Big House” Champagne

Farmer fizz. Grower Champagne. For the last few years, this has been gaining more and more buzz in the wine world. You’ll even see Whole Foods feature grower Champagnes in their advertising. This video features Hardy Wallace and Peter Wasserman, one of the leading importers of fine French wines, briefly discussing the differences between grower and “house” Champagnes. As we head into the most popular time of year for bubbles, you may want to consider getting outside your comfort zone and trying something different. Grower Champagne is a good place to start, though they will be more expensive than many of the big houses.

Sulfites in Wine: The Myths, the Facts and the Truth

I can’t tell you how many times people told me they didn’t care for red wine because it gave them a headache and it must be the sulfites. Actually, it was probably because you drank too much, got dehydrated and had what we call a hangover. Take two pain killers and call me in the morning. This article gives a detailed explanation about sulfites, so if you have any questions regarding the topic, I suggest reading it and then passing it on to your friends.

If you dig what I’m doing, please leave comments and or share with your friends. If you want to see the latest news on my 2010 quest to sample 365+ sparkling wines in the year, click here.

Have a GREAT weekend!

Cheers,
Kevin

P.S. Just noticed the irony of posting the 7th Five for Friday on Friday the 13th, since the two numbers are often considered one good and one evil. Interesting.