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i agree strongly. see this wtn: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?act=ST&f=24&t=95567

1998 Chateau Faugeres St. Emilion Grand Cru This was tasted in 375ml format. Ruby red, fading to burnt red-orange in the rim. quite abit of sediment was decanted off. Stronf, juivy red cherry/bing cherry aromas. followed by alot of pleasant eucalyptus, mint, and a slight hint of pine. Very dry, with little noticable acidity could ahve used more to be great. smooth, medium body with little, very-well integrated tannins. this was juicy without being jammy, with bing cherry and raspberry flavors and again, strong eucalyptus, mint, and pine afterwards, finishing with a small spice. Long finish with lingering sweet eucalyptus note. This was a darn good wine, not a blockbuster, but tasted more like a $65 bottle than a $28. (note i had the half bottle = $16) Note: drink your 1/2 bottles now, full bottles i would wait maybe 4-5 more years as other reviews i have read on this wine are no where near as wonderful as this was--yet. Serve this with parsleage encrusted lamb chops with roasted yams, chanterelles, brown butter, and mint paint.

ok, so one of my geeky chef hobbies is fruit carving. I mainly stick to watermelons and pumpkins, but do venture off into other stuff too. i wish i had saved pictures of all my previous pumpkins, but unfortunately i only have hard copies and not electronic. anyway, heres four from this year i finished tonight. might do two or three more by haloween. Post your pics pleeeeease!

hmm, im skeptical. i have always washed ALL my wine glasses with soap, noticing absolutely no ill effects...im eagerly awaiting someone who may elighten us. any resident scientists on eGullet?

ok, i fell to the advertising and picked this up, just to see what it had to offer. my fears were affirmed--not much. if offered a bit of complexity, especially for the price, but save the 10 spot and put it toward somthing else. 2004 Goats Do Roam Red Ruby, garnet in color, very clear, with light depth. Coacoa, dark berries, black cherry, slight earth, and sort of a musty alcohol note all came in the nose, followed by an almost minty tone. Moderate tannins and thin. watery feeling in the mouth, not in a good way either, with diluted black cherry and light leather. A small ruby grapefruit note in the end. spicy hot momentarily in the mouth. There is a tangy, almost sour aftertaste, lingering a bit. This wine reminded me of cheap tempranillo. dont get sucked into the advertising campaign.

their newest offering... Fizzy Lizzy Black Currant Dark garnet and maroon color, with a thick doth and some visible pulp. Niagra and Concord grae aromas followed strongly by black currant and an almost meaty (rare roast beef) note. also white peppercorns, and an aroma that reminds me of pears poached in red wine. Acidic bate at first with lovely black currant filling the mouth. blackberries in the end. Lingers 20-30 seconds with firm acidity. This was the most complex nose i have every found in fruit juices/soda/hell, it beats many wines. This was damn good--ridiculously tastey. Serve with coffee crusted steak, seared medium rare and served with wild mushroom sauted in truffle oil, and a cheesy potato gratin....or with a cold roast beef or pastrami sandwich.

Fizzy Lizzy Grapefruit Mellow and thick pastel orange sherbet color. very deep. Ruby grapefruit nose, initially, followed by subtle white grapefruit, pith, white pepper, and ground ginger. Quite naturally acidic with a bitter tinge at the end. Quite like biting straight into a whole grapefruit. Pure grapefruit flavors dominate followed by pith and the ground ginger note. Lasts a while (20sec) with lingering bitterness. Overall: subtle carbonation is very nice. it gets fruitier as it airs in the glass, taking on an orange, juicy tone. I can see this in a vodka or bombay sapphire martini with a little pinneapple juice and a sugar coated rim. or serve straight with soy and honey glazed salmon with a mango and pappya chutney and mint demisalat...or ceviche.

Fizzy Lizzy Passionfruit Thick orange color with lots of sediment nectar, deep color. Powerful aromas of passionfruit and grapefruit juice accents. Hawaiin gauva ntoes, as well as pinneapple after a while. Very light pettillance, strong and thick passionfruit flavor, medium bodied, followed by guava. Quite tart, but matural sweetness keeps it firmly in check. grapefruit rind in the end. Doesnt last more than 8-10 seconds, but cleanses the palate gracefully. acid tartness lingers a bit. Overall this is very nice and would go great with just about anything, especially a turkey and artichoke pannini with mild chipoltle mayo. Note: after warming in the glass, a musty yellow curry note shows in the nose, different, but does nothing to hamper fully enjoying this.. serve well chilled.

ok everyone. i procured a few different bottles of Fizzy Lizzy and let me just say, "Wow these are good...Wow!" There PR says that they are geared toward the adult palate and they suited mine just fine. i couldnt get enough. Please read up on them as they are extremely better for you than traditional sodas and other supposedly good fruit juices. they containe no added sugar or corn syrup, very little juice fillers, and above all, taste great. Let it be known that these juices are more acidic than some might be used to, but they are very refined and go GREAT with food pairings as they are great palate cleansers. I took some notes, and let it be known that i am a big contributor the the wine forum, so my notes might seem a little complex to some. All drinks were tasted in 7.5 oz curved champagne flutes. Fizzy Lizzy Fuji Apple Crystal clear, golden yellow fading into light burnt orange color. There are sweet apple aromas of granny smiths, red delicious, and, of course, fuji. This drink smelled like autumn with a hint of ground coriander on the finish. Theres a light perillance on the tongue and is mediuim bodied, crisp, and clear with refreshing apple flavor. Theres a thick, warm apple note that is held steadfast by an acid spine. This lasts quite a while, and cleanses the palate well. a little seltzer note lingers. Overall this is highly recommended. Out of the four tasted this felt a hair over carbonated, but extremely enjoyable. Serve with Saute duck liver with sweet and sour red onion, honey whipped yukon golds, and apple cider vinegar reduction.

2004 Bonny Doon Big House White I hear many people bashing this wine, and frankly i dont see why. At $8-10, this offers very good value and is quite interesting, refined, with an almost Chablis mineral quality. The color is light hay and very clear, the nose hinting strongly of stone fruits (Peach, Nectarine, and Apricot) and wet river rock. there are also accenting notes of lemon peel, and a slightly floral (lylac comes to mind) character. The fruits and stone echo in the mouth as well, strongly, and crisply. Very old world, refined, with moderate length and a shorter finish. All in all, this is one of the best Bonny Doons to date. would be very nice with mussels and very simply prepared white fish. Tasted wondergul with littleneck clams, sauted with fennel, garlic, and onion, and deglazed with this wine. would purchase again.

heres a link to their website: http://www.fizzylizzy.com/index.asp I found the store locator. duh! but does anyone have any tasting notes for any of these???

Has anyone tried this line of gourmet sodas, they were recently rated rather well in the latest edition of Sante. Anyone have some notes on them? and do you know where i might be able to find them in the chicagoland area? Thanks in advance.

wow, brad those are some wierd ones.. i would have figured you for a real culinarian. to each his own... Heres an update for my list...TAR

cat pee, as well as wet stones and such...i cant think of a culinary situation where i would be eating anything that tasted like wet stones... bardyard-y flavors are in the same boat too.

You know - I haven't had the pleasure of trying the Effen vodka yet. I've heard it's good, but not too many places in Philly carry it so I just haven't gotten around to tasting it yet. I'm actually more intrigued with tasting the Black Cherry flavor. If it were good I have some drink ideas for it. However, the Three Olives cherry flavor is considerably less expensive, so from a commercial standpoint it would make more sense to use that to keep cost under control. I definitely love their ad campaign though. "Give me an Effen Martini!" ← The Three Olives Blacky Cherry is a fantastic flavored vodka. quite smooth, almost robust, yet jammy cherry flavor. i would pick some up and try it for sure. its just as good neat as in mixed drinks. when im looking to try new things i always turn to the Three Olives and see what flavored shcnapps and/or other spirit works well.

ok, while this is a little off topic, i thought i would chime in with an old family story of mine... Back in prohibition, my great grandfather and his two brothers, living in the south side of chicago (56th and kenneth) had had enough, so they decided to make their own potato vodka in the basement. to theit surprise, they had a knack for it and it was really good! lo and behold the neighbors found out, wanted some, more neighbors found out...and wanted some. a few months later, my great grandfather and his two brothers purchased 5 bath tubs and installed them in the basement for a total of six and went to work along with a few mini pot stills. a few more months later, they were supplying high quality neutral spirit to all taverns, speakeasies, and private customers in a 35 miles radius.......untill this one guy found out....none other than Al Capone himself. They proposition was rather straight forward, "Keep doing what you're doing and cut us in and daily life wont change any, or keep doing what youre doing and dont cut us in and there wont be a daily life anymore." They obligied and ran the spirts untill the near end of prohibition. every ten years or so a photo of my great grandfather and his two brother stirring potato voka in the basement, with 6 tubs in the distant pops up. ill see if i can find mind and post it up... Just my family's contribution to the fine spirit consumption of America! lol

i will indeed look for this. Kettle one is one of my favorites, i like many, but it is what i turn to when making just a straight vodka martini with some blure cheese stuffed olives. the Zyr looks nice, just checked out the website. my wife will sure love the fact that its a russian vodka (she 100% ruski) lol. thanks katie Cheers

eh, thats disappointing. thanks for the preview. maybe ill just stick with the kettle one...oh who am i kidding i still want to try this. lol

ooops, dunno what i was thinking there. eh, its all in the same hemisphere, lol. my mistake...

any updates katie? im still looking into where i can find me a bottle of this. my local palces dotn carry it, nor does binny's, which is my old stand by. im think a lavendar and cranberry martini (ok, not really a martini, there's no gin in there right!?) using the Idol would be nice.... untill i find a bottle, i guess ill have to stick with the bombay saphire....oh darn! lol

d' Arenburg "The Dead Arm" Shiraz is a personal favorite of mine. it has stunning complexity and varietial notes without too much oak at all, crisp acidiy, and good ageability. highly recommended. there is some variation year to year, which is to be expected, but overall a stunning wine. check them out here: http://www.darenberg.com.au/default2.php

ooops, thats my dislexia kicking in, lol . yes thats the one i was thinking about. and it sounds wonderful, exactly what i was looking for. thanks

very good point, i know many first time artisianal beer drinkers from America fail to take this into account, unless your from a wine background like I am. Queston: Has anyone tried that Doghouse "Punkin Ale"? I have seen a few on the market and never picked one up. from the sounds of that artical this is supposed to be a very good example of a pumpkin brew. any tasting notes? thanks in advance.. M

I'm considering a subscription to a wine magazine. Can anyone help me with differentiating Wine Spectator from Wine Enthusiast... and marty mccabe also recommends Wine Advocate. What the advantages/strengths/weaknesses/featuers of each? Thanks very much. u.e. ← for me, this is purely a question of your pesonal tastes on wine. wine spectator and the wine advocate and decanter offer distinctly different opinions on wine in general, and on specific wines. while wine tasters should judge each wine without bias to personal preference, we all know that that does not always happen. Robery Parker is continually criticized for this (as well as others). my suggstion would purely be to take a trip to borders or walden books and pick up a few issues of each mag and see what you like best. as you will see each mag offers a different reading experience and only you can decide which is more suitable to your reading style and your palate.

← new river gorge, got it. we were planningon hiking a bit so thats a nicec option. thanks guys M