It's Been Too Long!

Oh, Blog, how I've missed you! Life and work and sleep get in the way so easily of the things you love to do. So much to write about!

I've visited Hong Kong and Japan since I last posted.

I've had so many fantastic wines.

I built a 2' flagstone retaining wall around an unsightly mound of dirt in the backyard.

Winter has come to the low desert.

We've had a couple of freezing nights this week, and I spent the morning cleaning up the frost damage to my summer vegetables, especially the peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes. See you next year, fellas... ;(

Some of the vegetables are in raised beds, others are in Earthboxes. I'm a huge fan of the Earthbox. I felt compelled to write after noticing that the Poblano pepper plant I was cleaning up, which had been growing in the Earthbox, actually grew into the grapefruit tree above it. I was harvesting Poblanos 10 feet in the air! The pepper plant was enormous - I wish I had a picture of it before the frost got to it. Here's a picture of the harvest, again, from a single plant (poblanos on left, a few bells on the right)...

I am such a fan of the Earthbox because it is easy to use. No weeds, low maintenance - especially if you have the watering refill done via drip irrigation. The Earthbox is what is known as a self-watering container. There's a reservoir of water on the bottom, and the plants can drink as much as they like. There's also an air hole, allowing the roots to get oxygenated. It also incorporates slow-relesase fertilizer, allowing the plants to feed themselves as much as they wish. It's an ideal, water and space efficient growing system. The plants do great inside them.

This pepper plant, I gotta tell you, was a tree!

See http://www.earthbox.com for more information. I've ordered some earthboxes, and had others loaned to me by friends. They're also available on Amazon here.

I need a few posts to even begin to open up how inspiring the gardens of Japan were. A few pictures of what I saw...

Koi Pond

Walkway at Fujiya Hotel in Hakone

Zen Garden at Silver Temple, Kyoto

Golden Temple in Kyoto

Grounds of the Silver Temple in Kyoto.

I went to a wine tasting recently featuring Argentinian wines. Argentinian reds are primarily Malbec, Bonarda, and Cabernet Sauvignon. Several wines were featured by winemaker Dante Robino, whose wines I was extremely impressed with.

The Bonarda grape is thought to be originally from the Piemonte region of Italy. There is some uncertainty about which precisely which old world "Bonarda" grape is planted in Argentina, but genetic testing points to Italian Charbono, aka French Corbeau.

A description of the wine from argentinawineguide.com:

"Bonarda wines can be lighter-bodied and fruity, full of cherry and plum flavours, with light tannins and moderate acidity. However with concentrated fruit from older vines, and especially when oak aged, Bonardas can also be big, fruity, dense and tannic wines with deep colour and fig and raisin characteristics."

The wine I am trying is the Dante Robino 2008 Bonarda.

Color: Deep Magneta / Purple

Aroma: Mineral notes. Some blueberry and plum. Not too strong on the nose.

Mouthfeel: Medium to heavy-bodied.

Initial Flavor: Cranberry and raisin. Strong but balanced acidity.

Finish: Long, lingering, nice acidity and tannins.

Overall Impression: Good Wine. Solid B.

(Again, scale is [Crap=F, Okay=C, Good=B, Good-Good=B+, Outstanding=A, Nectar of Bacchus=A+])

Concrete Countertop and An Outstanding Value On A Delicious Petite Sirah

I had the impulse after a long yoga class to do a petite sirah tasting at home. Part of it was the impetus to return to this blog, and have something to inspire me to do so. The two weeks leading up to September 1st were very intense at home and at work, and I've spent the last week feeling a bit hung over from the exertion.

I can't share the fruits of the work work, but the home work was an enormous facelift on our guest house, including new floors and a new kitchen.

(I've been interested in metalwork, stone, and concrete lately. So I decided to try a concrete countertop. Here's some photos...)

Laydown of leftover cabinets, plywood, and wonderboard

Concrete (sand mix, w/ brown powdered colorant added) was added to a form, leveled, and allowed to cure for 24 hrs

The finished kitchen!

I found the following book to be enormously helpful: Decorative Concrete by Sunset Magazine.

So on to the Petite Sirah...

Petite Sirah is an interesting grape. It began in the 1880's at the University of Montpellier, in the Rhone region of France, when Syrah vines pollenated Peloursin vines. The botanist who discovered this was named Francois Durif, and the plant is sometimes referred to as Durif. The resultant vines are highly resistant to Downy Mildew, and the grapes were traditionally used to add body to inferior wines. In California, it is still sometimes used that way today.

The wines made from Petite Sirah tend to be dark, acidic, with herbal and peppery notes, and with flavors of blue fruit, like plums and blueberries.

One of the wines from my Petite Sirah tasting was the 2008 McManis Petite Sirah.

Color: Inky purple.

Aroma: Blue fruit.

Initial Flavor: Strong blueberries, chocolate, and subtle smoke.

Finish: Fruit, Tannin. Paired well with creamy rich pasta sauce. Drops off quickly, typical of petite sirah, but some lingering chocolate.

Overall Impression: Good-Good wine.

Again, scale is [Crap, Okay, Good, Good-Good, Outstanding, Nectar of Bacchus].

I purchased it for $11.55 from my local wine retailer. Outstanding value.

Two Moths Fucking and a Shiraz-Viognier

I saw these two little lovers outside our front door this morning. Isn't the green amazing? It really stood out against the brick. I tried to identify them, but no luck.

I tried a Shiraz-Viognier blend last night. So for me, each wine variety has a personality. Shiraz is a serious, big, bold wine, with an undercurrent of fruit and fun. So is Zinfandel, if made well, even juicier, a little less bold. Cabernet Sauvignon is also big and bold, but with less of a fun side. Pinot Noir is serious, but with a subtler side, refined, sexy. Angelina Jolie. Cabernet is maybe a little more like Condoleeza Rice. I respect it, but wouldn't necessarily want to sleep with it.

I like Shiraz quite a bit, and can't come up with a movie star to describe it. The Marilyn Merlot thing is very wrong. She's not a Merlot. Maybe she's a Shiraz. Or Christina Hendricks / Joan Harris from Mad Men. She's a Shiraz. When I think of Merlot, I think of Rosie O'Donnell. There's more to say here. Maybe more on this later. Comments welcome.

So when you take a Shiraz and blend it with Viognier, what's that do to the personality of the wine? Here's what we tried:

Terlato-Chapoutier Shiraz/Viognier

http://www.terlatowines.com/wines/australia/domaine_tc/product.asp?Id=625

I have to say, I did quite enjoy what the Viogner did. The nose was fruitier, the flavors a little softer, maybe a little diluted from a typical Shiraz, more softly fruity, more apricot than black cherry. I still love the full-strength Shiraz, but this was a nice departure. Stood up to red meat just fine.

Color: Ruby red.

Aroma: Light Fruit / Apricot

Initial Flavor: Balanced mouthfeel.

Finish: Lingering, Gentle Tannin. Nice.

Overall Impression: Good-Good wine.

Again, scale is [Crap, Okay, Good, Good-Good, Outstanding, Nectar of Bacchus].

Explosions

There's pressure built up from the heat and dryness, and it's released with a good, blessed, drenching rain. It's been nice the last few days.

Color Explosion!

The rain has caused the Texas Rangers (Leucophyllum frutescens) to explode in color. Look at the blossoms littering the ground below the shrub! They look like this all over the city. I've had these shrubs at the last two places I've lived, and they're beautiful and really well suited to the climate here.

The other explosion that's been happening in the garden is the dreaded Silverleaf Whitefly. They started showing up around mid to late May, and now they're really thick on the squashes, collards, kale, and to a lesser extent, the tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant. These are some of the toughest pests to deal with.

How do you know you have them?

1) The veins on your squash plants take on a silvery color, which soon takes over the leaves. Stems also become lighter, eventually becoming almost white. This is the signature of silverleaf whiteflies.

Severe Silverleaf Whitefly Damage On Squash Plant

2) When you brush the leaves of your plants, a cloud of white insects flutters around

3) Inspection of the underside of leaves shows the larval stage. These guys are immobile, and are the ones that cause the real damage by sucking plant juices and excreting the silvering toxin.

Whitefly larva on underside of eggplant leaf

Zoom In Showing Whitefly (Bottom Right Center) And Larvae

I've been exploring ways to control them - lately, I've been using a mix of pyrethrins and neem oil, coupled in with some liquid seaweed extract for the health of the plants. This is an organic approach, and requires spraying frequently - weekly, even - but I haven't been able to keep up lately. I read recently that sprays of mild dish soap and water are effective. I've been exploring systemics (oh, no - the dreaded word for organic gardeners!) but I'm not sure I want to go there yet. Yellow insect traps (whiteflies love yellow) are another option. I'm also thinking about just letting the garden go dormant for the summer, maybe Mid May - Late August. Any thoughts out there?

Thunderstorms and Gomphrena

It rained hard here last night. Thunder sounded like bombs going off near the house. Water dripped in through the AC vents in the roof, towels thrown down in the middle of the night. Rivers of pine needles are everywhere, and this morning is hot and wet.

The plants and the people here needed the rain badly. I could hear an irritation in the voices of friends and co-workers, anxious for the final arrival of the monsoon after weeks of teaser showers.

There are two summers here. A hot, dry one, and a hot, wet one. Hot and dry goes from May to June, hot and wet goes from July to August.

Finding annual plants that can take the heat is a challenge. Vincas are a great standby, they are waxy and tough, and almost seem to enjoy the heat. I interplanted them with the tomatoes, which I typically wouldn't do -- so disorganized!!! ;) -- and they look fantastic together, spreading on the ground amidst the tomato sprouts.

I also tried planting Gomphrena this year, also known as Globe Amaranth or Bachelor Button. It's been an outstanding performer, and I love the purple color of the cultivar I chose.

I've also started learning about welding. Here's a welder I found on Amazon, people seem to be raving about it. It says it's a MIG welder, but I suppose you need to purchase a separate tank for the gas. Perhaps getting started with self-shielded flux core (no gas required) is the way to go, especially if it's better for working outdoors.

Sparks

Seems to me like the best blogs have a few characteristics:

1) They're VISUAL. They have lots of interesting and beautiful pictures.
2) They have a POINT OF VIEW. They're inspired by beauty, or wonder, or love. They have passion.
3) They're INTERESTING. They find elements - home remodeling, space, art - that are of particular interest, but with their observations, ...
4) They're BRIEF. They get to the point, and aren't too self-serving.
5) They have an ATTITUDE. (Not all of them, but some of the ones I like!)

I'm going to yoga in about an hour...

One of the rules for this blog is that it's okay to be HONEST here. This is a space where it's okay to be afraid, frustrated, angry, overjoyed. Maybe some of the things society doesn't expect us to ever be. Maybe even BOLD.

I've been thinking about making art lately. We're redoing the cabinets in the laundry room, and I cut a piece of metal bracket with my angle grinder. I loved the sparks and the smell of the metal being worked. I'd like to learn how to weld, make some welded art pieces for the wall. BOLD ones, of course... ;)

Reflections on Big Sur

We spent three days total in Big Sur, staying at the Big Sur Getaway. Really nice hosts, beautiful view. Would recommend it for sure.

Enjoyed our time relaxing on the beaches of Big Sur, enjoying the food, beer and people watching at the Maiden Publick House.

One thing we took away from Big Sur was a bottle of Pepper Plant pepper sauce. We haven't been able to stop eating it. I found some available for order on Amazon. Ooooh, it's so good on eggs. Someone else recommended it on steak. It's just the right balance of tanginess and heat.

I'd like to talk a little bit about Blogging in general. Why do we do it? What's the point? What are the best Blogs, and why? What are the worst Blogs, and why? What purpose do they serve? Are they just lonely egos yelling out into the cybervoid? Hoping someone will hear them, and listen, and follow, and validate them? I'm going to look at a blog of note and think about this...

Back From California, Mercury Rising

Friday, June 19th: Travel from Arizona to San Jose. Stayed with my friend Mike, and his girlfriend Donna, at their place in Los Gatos. Donna's a wonderful cook - homemade cake, lasagne, cupcakes for dinner. Delicious. Mike introduced me to Charlie the Unicorn. He has a series of Charlie the Unicorn shirts. Too funny.

Saturday, June 20th: Breakfast at the Los Gatos cafe. Everything was quick and delicious - especially loved the herbed potatoes. Hiked the Summit Rock Loop. Visited the Thomas Fogarty Winery. Stunning views. Enjoyed the wines, especially the Pinots, but the prices were a little high, and the wines we liked definitely required aging from the point at which we tasted them. After that, stopped at the Cinnabar Winery tasting room. Fantastic wines, comfortable atmosphere. I had the thought to send them a little bit of Cinnabar quartz from Arizona for the tasting room...

My honey and I especially enjoyed the Mercury Rising.

Had dinner at Dio Deka, which was divine. Top marks for their Spanakotiropita "... Oven-baked, crispy phyllo pastries, filled with baby spinach, scallions, leeks, Greek sheep and goat milk cheeses" Little towers of crispy, spinachy, cheesy goodness. The Haloumi cheese, grilled, served atop an heirloom tomato slice was also excellent - salty, oily cheese atop a fresh, tart tomato slice, with just the right amount of olive oil and balsamic.

Sunday, June 21st: Awoke and went to Great Bear Coffee. Stopped back home, then left for the second leg of our trip, but not without a final stop at a winery - Testarossa. Especially loved the Syrah made here, and the pinot we tried was also excellent. I had the humbling moment of trying to swirl the glass of wine hard enough for it to "open" that I spilled red wine all over my shirt. Oh, yeah, there it is - the flush of total embarassment!!! Luckily, I had a change of shirt available. The folks at this winery were very nice and accomodating, and I would visit them for the friendly, authentic atmosphere as well as the quality wines. The history of the winery is also interesting - check it out on the link. I asked the winemaker for advice he had for an aspiring winemaker. He said, "The most important thing to have is patience. Work hard in the field, and go easy in the winery. Let the wine make itself. That, and don't quit your day job." ;)

More on Big Sur and the tasting notes on Mercury Rising soon.

Warrior III and A Nice Zinfandel

Took the dogs to the vet this afternoon. Dogs are so awesome. They tolerate pain with so much grace. (They just got their shots - not a big deal, really.) One of the vet techs said her dog looked exactly like our dog, and asked where we'd gotten ours. Which was a rescue place out on the outskirts of town. Same place as the vet tech. Turns out, our dogs are sisters! Incredibly small world. We'll have a play date after we come back from vacationing in California...

Was trying to do Warrior poses with my sun salutations this morning. I get irritated every time I try to do Warrior III. Got some good advice from Yoga Journal. Here's the link.

I think the key, or the "yoga gold", is what they say about not leaning forward when you get into the pose. It's just about standing up, tightening up your leg. Pose feels much more solid, then. Rather than feeling like I'm going to tip over.

Went to a class tonight. My head hurts from dealing with the world, but I sweated my ass off in yoga, and I somehow feel ... just ... better. I'm thinking about making my way to the Colorado conference in September. Me and my honey are headed to San Jose this weekend for some quality time with friends, followed by time in Big Sur, which I've never seen, and I'm desperately looking forward to.

Had a glass of Dry Creek Zinfandel tonight, purchased at Trader Joe's. Excellent wine!

Dry Creek Vineyard 2007 Heritage Zinfandel

Color: Beautiful deep ruby red.
Aroma: Chocolate/Cocoa. Subtle berry notes as well. I really enjoy the chocolate notes!
Initial Flavor: Jammy fruit, classic zinfandel, good, balanced acidity. A little light in the mouthfeel for my taste.
Finish: Lingering, Gentle Tannin. Nice.
Overall Impression: Good-Good wine. Outstanding value!!!
Again, scale is [Crap, Okay, Good, Good-Good, Outstanding, Nectar of Bacchus].

One of my personal rules for writing this blog is to spend equal time reading someone else's. Read a little bit of "My Place" by Mark Brewer.

I've got to get up early tomorrow to cram some training in at work before our trip. And I'm organizing a retirement event for a member of my team.

Sunflowers Are Glorious

Okay, so I've had a little too much wine last night, don't feel very sharp this morning. I'm up, going to try to focus and do some sun salutations. The sunflowers are glorious in the garden. They are the variety "Lyng's California Greystripe".



The perfect geometry of the center of the flower inspires me.

These should produce a good number of seeds, some of which I will undoubtedly share with the birds.

Sun salutations are a set sequence of postures, beginning with a standing pose, forward bend, a lunge, a push up, upward facing dog, downward facing dog, a complementary lunge, a forward bend, then returning to a standing position. A good friend told me once that beginning your day with a minimum of five sun salutations does wonderful things for you. So that's what I did today. I watch my thoughts as they wander away from the practice, to the past, the future, to ideas of things to build, things to be, to this blog, and as they wander away from the practice, I just notice that they've wandered away, and I bring them back to the practice, to my breathing, to the alignment of the pose.

http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/1040

Seane Corn is one of my absolute favorite yoga instructors. I got to take a class with her at the Yoga Journal conference in San Francisco in January. A quote of hers that sticks with me when I do yoga is, "If you're moving, and you're breathing, and you're connected to spirit, you're doing yoga brilliantly ... beautifully ..."

A Nice White Wine From Argentina

Our dinner tonight was inspired by a trip to Italy, where we ate a delicious, simple salad made of tuna, lettuce, tomato, corn, and a high quality olive oil. We enjoyed this in Florence, with a view of the River Arno. Here's a picture of the dish from Italy.



Okay, so we used sardines instead, because that's what we had on hand. And no tomatoes. But we could have, because I just harvested a bunch from the garden.

We had a wine from a recent Argentina wine tasting, a 2009 Torrontes from La Yunta winery. Torrontes is a white wine grape, known for producing crisp, aromatic wines.



It paired really well with the salad - nice crisp acidity paired well with the fish.

Wine: 2009 Torrontes, La Yunta, Famatina Valley, La Rioja, Argentina
Color: Pale Yellow
Aroma: Faint. Impressions of Green Apple.
Initial Flavor: Crisp, Acidic, Green Apple, Lemon, Nectarine
Finish: Pleasant Acidity
Overall impression: Good Wine.

Scale is [Crap, Okay, Good, Good-Good, Outstanding, Nectar of Bacchus]. I just made that up, but I think it will work.