Well, now my Rio Car is here resting at my desk. This deserves a toast. Not an ordinary one, as the empeg is no ordinary car-fi stuff. So, it's decided. I go downstairs. What will it be? a californian cabernet? not really. Lacks strenght in most cases, IMHO. Well, this is it: a 1997 Undurraga Founder's Collection Cabernet Sauvignon, Premium Chilean Wine. Don't ask for the price, but let me tell you it's worth it.
Of course, such a magnificent wine needs a magnificent glass. My Riedel Sommeliers Bordeaux Grand Cru will do the job.
I'm in heaven. Love my job, too.

Salute!

My wife (and most people I meet), are hoping that one day I'll grow up enough to be able to drink wine.

I keep telling her, at least I grew up enough to eat guacamole! (an avacado dip, takes some getting used to).

I'll hoist an Eigil's Gull, Tuborg, or Mythos to the Empeg guys any day!

Greg

Love my job, too.

And what job is that, wine taster?

Food & Beverage consultant, indeed. But mostly I work in the wine industry. Also some knowledge about HACCP, but that's way too off topic.

That's why this is the off-topic forum! Technically it would be against the spirit of the forum if you DIDN'T go on wild tangents

Heh, I thought I was making a joke. :-)

You're making me thirsty for wine now.

Calvin

In reply to:

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You're making me thirsty for wine now.

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Me too! I could drink a whole box of wine right now! *grin*

Actually every friend of mine thinks that my job is drinking expensive wines all day, when actually my working time is spent studying new food production processes and sanitary control systems. Of course there's wine tasting every day, because you have to be up to date... Actually it gets annoying. Have you ever felt that, when you begin to do something you really enjoy in the context of your job duties , and it looses "it"? that's how it feels tasting wine as a job. But, when I get home, your senses get somewhat liberated and all the drinks I love regain those glorious feelings...

On the other hand, I've just discovered the most annoying computer task ever: editing my ID Tags.

Have you ever felt that, when you begin to do something you really enjoy in the context of your job duties , and it looses "it"?

I have to agree, that much to my disgust I discovered this with electronics and computing back in '79. I've been paying for that mistake ever since.

I've just discovered the most annoying computer task ever: editing my ID Tags.

There's no gain without pain ... Seriously, although this can be seen as dogwork, it is possibly the most important aspect of using your empeg. It becomes onerous if you do it after the fact; if you just take a little longer to set up your rips properly before you start each one, it becomes easier. The tags, in the end, determine how you access your music at a later stage in the game, so more effort now means more enjoyment later on. Also - bear in mind that you have just got the empeg, you're probably gasping to get as many CDs onto it as possible as rapidly as you can, so you're facing a steep mountain face of work as a result.

Use the experience of your profession - take your time and enjoy the pleasure of appreciating getting the job done a little more slowly; you'll enjoy the quality of it more. Don't forget, it's not a race - this is an absorbing hobby with rich rewards, and I for one plan on having my empegs running for the next 10 years at least. That's time enough to fill up the disk slowly

A technical question:

There is a Croatian grape called 'plavac mali crni' ('plavac' is derived from 'plavo' - blue, 'crni' means 'black' and 'mali' means 'tiny' - therefor dark-blue with tiny er, berries?) which yields strong, very dark, somewhat tangy dry wine (named either generically 'plavac', or after the region ('Peljesac', 'Dingac', 'Postup', 'Pharos') or after the producer, some traditional name etc). There is a Chilean winemaker of Croatian origin, Grgic, who grows it in Chile (probably there are more). Finally, the question: do you know for this sort of grapes and if so, how is it called in English?

I know the Plavac, tasted it sometimes, not my kind of wine. But strangely enough, haven´t heard of someone growing Plavac Mali in Chile. I'm asking right now fellow sommelier Pascual Ibañez about it and he hasn't heard of too. We believe if someone is growing and making some Plavac, they may be exporting the whole production. There are many wines we have no access to becase of that. We will do some more research, of course. Do you know the name of the vineyard? Because we don't know anyone named Grgic too... this demands some field work maybe :-)

Errr, ummm, I double-checked, and indeed, Grgic grows his Plavac Mali in California, not Chile I cannot immagine how I managed to miss the whole continent... I mean, there are winegrowers of Croatian origin all over the globe (mostly economic emigrants from Dalmatian islands in 1930-ties), but still...

I suppose you find Plavac too, say, harsh (I am not good as wine-tasting terminology)? I am almost raised on it Anyway, I just wanted to know whether the particular sort of grapes is also known as Plavac in English.

Thanks and sorry for the stupid mix-up.