Pepé le Pew - Little Beau Pepé

You ask "Jacqueline, what does Pepe le Pew the skunk have to do with a blog about wines and spirits"? Well let me tell you....

Imagine for a minute, it's your professional job to nose a.k.a. smell things for a living. This is my job. My sense of smell is quite a heightened affair wherever I go. Breathing is what we all do without a giving it a second thought. We breathe to stay alive. We are after all mammals.

For one whose job it is to decipher scents, interpret them in the context in which the note presents itself, my journey on the streetcar the other day got me to thinking about this cartoon character. No, no I was not sitting beside anyone with an off odour....although I have in the past, I will not tell a lie. No, I was thinking about the current story I am working on (more on that in another blog!) and how to approach it, which brought me to Pepe le Pew.

I was thinking about how Pepe the skunk was oblivious to his scent he puts out to the world and in particular to one Miss Penelope to whom Pepe believes to be a member of his animal kingdom. Unbeknownst to him, Penelope is actually from the pussycat family who accidentally had a stripe painted down the centre of her back.

As Pepe is a charming skunk ladies man, his attempts to woo Miss Penelope.....well, watch the video to see what I mean. Pepe is drunk with love and she is sick with le stink of Pepe. At one point there is a reversal of fortune and the chaser becomes the chasee!

This is a child's cartoon however the jokes are most definitely for the adults. One must pay attention to the humorous words of Monsieur Pepe le Pew.

It's all about the scents and scents ability! Welcome to my world!

Have a great day!

Let's get this party started!

It's a new year. You've made resolutions. It's February. It's the shortest month, but ohhh so the longest to get through. Your feeling weary and tired. The days are getting longer (yay) but not quite there yet. You've put your resolutions on hold temporarily because, well, it's February and you're "Il fatigue" as the french say. In my first blog of this year 2010 my promise was to not only enhance your world of wine and spirits, I was going to introduce you to people that I thought you should know.

As I was navigating the bloggers-sphere world low and behold Abby was brought to my attention. It seems Abby is a sixteen year old girl whose goal it is to circumnavigate the world in a solo venture on a sailboat. Apparently her brother Zak has completed the task and she wants to be the youngest person to accomplish this feat.

Okay, are you re-thinking your resolutions? Are you feeling somewhat inadequate? Are you in need of a little self butt kick, you know, when you lean forward with your chest, then bend your knee in the only direction it can go (hopefully backwards, otherwise you'd better get to a doctor soon!) and attempt to reach up as far as you can and kick your own behind?

Abby's blog is http://www.soloround.blogspot.com/. Her website is http://www.abbeysunderland.com/. Her other website is http://www.abby16.com/. At this site you can see her interview with Good Morning America. I wanted to upload it from youtube but unfortunately embedding has been disallowed.

So far Abby has 27,000 followers! 27,000! I'd better get up to scratch..........................

Mmmm...just as soon as I finish this glass of this Spanish Rioja wine called Arnegui. It's from the latest Vintages release. Can you say yummy with a cherry on top. Fabulous wine. Crianza 2006, $15.95. Medium to Full bodied, ruby red colour (which shows an indication of age, purple would indicate youth) Cedar, tobacco, chocolate notes, blueberry, mint, just ripe enough plum which is a good thing, fresh acidity making for a lovely non cloying wine. Fresh and lively for a red wine. CSPC #146274. Excellent value for your canadian dollars!

Now, as for your resolutions....and mine......as Pink says "I'd better get this party (re) started"!

Here's to Abby!

Melinda Doolittle - My Funny Valentine

I was looking for a version of this song to post for you and I discovered this from American Idol. Melinda Doolittle blows this song out of the water.

Her version of this classic is incredibly moving. Each time I have listened to it I get goosebumps every single time. I only wish it was a full version. I would more than likely be in tears at the beauty of her interpretation.

Melinda also reminds us that a Valentine need not only be a lover.

Enjoy Melinda, her voice and her oh so beautiful spirit along with a glass of La Grande Dame, Veuve Clicquot Champagne. Two extraordinary women in their own genres. A perfect match!

Happy Valentine!

Ah qui, nobody sings about l'amour quite like the french. Open a bottle of Cru Beaujolais, a Morgon or Fleurie perhaps. Something light-hearted and oh so debonair. C'est magnifique!

Au revoir pour nous.
Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Scotland and then some continued!

Continuing on from my last blog, here a just a few more photos of bonnie Scotland. I promise not to be wordy!! I have more photos that I will scan and post, for instance the photo of me in Robbie Burn's wee bed and at the pub he frequented, also climbing Ben Nevis. Let me tell you now that was no small feat! I was suddenly shrouded in mist so thick I couldn't see my own hand right in front of my face! More on that later.

Enjoy these few photos!!

What's a photo of Scotland without a sheep. This was on my way to Balmoral Caslte.

Awesome isn't it! This is Loch Lomond on what was an overcast day. Wait a second, now that I think about it, it's overcast most days in Scotland. They have sunshine and then a bit of rain and then windy and then........all four seasons in one day. You don't go to Scotland for the weather. It wouldn't have its appeal if it were a blazing, scorching, sunshine of a place now would it. Well it wouldn't for me. I always expect and look forward to the ambience of the scottish weather. It is after all surrounded by water. Oh look there I go again, and I promised not to be wordy. I just can't seem to help myself.
NEXT!

This is Glen Coe which you pass through enroute to Fort William and Ben Nevis. Is this not just fantastic! The three mountains on the left are known as The Three Sisters. And I took this picture. Love it!

Once again enroute to Fort William. In this photograph you can get a sense of the size of these mountains. To the right of centre is a house that sits curbside to the motorway. You can also see the burst of sun rays off in the distance. From where I was standing taking this photo it was misty with rain.

Glorious St. Andrew's, home of the famous golf mecca of the world! This is a ruin that I photographed at dusk.

In the near future I will be offering a trip to Scotland and its distilleries. Keep tuned in!

Cheerio

My Bonnie Scotland - Whisky country and then some!

Bonnie Scotland! Where the air is fresh and the whisky is bountiful!

The photos you are about to look at are from a holiday I took many moons ago. I was on a driving trip throughout Scotland. I went up one side, down the other and directly through the middle.

From the lowlands of Dundee, Robbie Burns country, where I lay in his bed to the Highlands of Fort Williams and Ben Nevis the highest mountain in all of Britain, which I climbed to the top, Scotland is a stunningly beautiful country. It is often said that Scotland is a miniature version of Canada.

Imagine if you will not only was I manoeuvring along twisting and winding roads that you cannot avert your gaze for one second, I was also navigating on the left hand side of the motorway and seated on the right side of the car. Oh and did I mention it was a stick shift I was driving. Are you impressed with me!!!

What made me look for these photos was because I was in the LCBO the other day having a wee look 'round when I saw a whisky that I hadn't seen on their shelves before. It was the single malt whisky Royal Lochnagar.

I was instantly transported back to my trip. I remembered that I had been to this distillery long before Jacqueline had any vision or inclination towards being a sommelier. Yes, this was back in the day when (as you read in my very first blog entry Guess who's coming to dinner) I only partook in the hops beverages. Well, beverage, singular. I wasn't adventuresome back then. You know, stick to your brand and all! I was loyal!
Upon arrival home I kicked off my boots, whipped off my coat and left it where I stood as I rushed to my book case shelves in search of my trip down memory lane. I could hear the bagpipes playing, roaring in my head, beckoning me to the book case. Okay, so I've embellished a little but what the hey. I was really excited to search out the photos.

Now when I say photos I do mean as in get the film developed, pick them up in a week's time photographs. I took them all myself with my Canon Sure Shot camera that my mum had bought for me. As I look back at them they are pretty good if I do say so myself!

The reason I was at this distillery was because it is approximately one mile away from Balmoral Castle, the Scottish Highland home of the Royal Family, which is where I was heading. The first picture is of the countryside en route to Balmoral. These trees suddenly came upon me as I turned a corner. They were as far as the eye could see and as tall as you can imagine. They almost seemed like cyprus trees that are planted down the Rhone Valley to slow down the mistral winds.

The second photo is of the Royal Lochnagar Visitor Centre. The third photo is of whisky moonshine caves that were abound in the 19th century. The fourth photo is of the actual distillery.

Royal Lochnagar dates back to 1826 and was awarded its Royal Warrant in 1848 after a visit from her Royal Highness Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.
"The event came about after the distillery manager John Begg (somewhat cheekily) dropped a note to their Royal Highnesses directly inviting them to pay a visit and sample the delights of the distillery (and rather impudently, he mentioned that if they didn’t arrive by 6pm they would miss the distillery in operation. To him, there was no question that he would extend the routine to accommodate his royal guests). What happened next was quite extraordinary – without fanfare, Victoria and Albert paid an impromptu call and were suitably impressed. The rest, as the saying goes, is history. The Royal connection has meant that the distillery has played host to a string of famous visitors, many of them British prime ministers taking an hour or so off between meetings with the monarch of the day at Balmoral."

This is thee Royal Mail Box at the entrance to Balmoral Castle. Of course it's on the side of the grounds which we the commoners are allowed.

If you look at the sign to the right hand side it says Balmoral Private Estates No Admittance. It's a good thing I didn't see it before I entered on the other side. LOL!

Oh look there's that sign again!

This is a part of the Dee River. Remember the photo of Prince Charles with wellies on up to his thighs, fishing. This is a part of that river.

As we know it's all about the water in whisky. What topography it flows threw and around, imparts the many different characteristics we've come to know when describing a whisky. For instance minerally, peaty, mossy, fern like, heathery, medicinal, iodine, are just a few of the desciptors.

From the gentler style of the Lowlands to the bold and beautiful of the Highlands there is most definitely a whisky to suit every palate. The choices are vast and varied.

It truly is funny how you just never know where your life may lead you!! Who knew that I would one day recall these photographs and look at them from a totally different set of eyes....and palate!

Look for the signs (and the posted ones.......OPTIONAL). You just never know where they may lead you!

As the scottish say "What's for you won't go past you"!

Cheers

Jacqueline