| Notification System |
[ December 7th, 2009 | 1:15pm ] |
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Hey Guys,
Unfortunately with our last release, and its instability, we were forced to roll back releases. Unfortunately in doing so, it would seem that our notification system has been broken somehow. Our engineers are working on this issue as quickly as possible. We hope to have a patch within the next day, so we can deploy our code and fix the notification system at the same time. Please *bear* with us ;)
Currently all notifications are being queued up so they can be processed as soon as the fix is pushed and verified to be working correctly.
Thank you,
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| 12/08/09 Homepage Spotlight |
[ December 7th, 2009 | 9:46am ] |
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) freeskiers
While some of us long to escape the cold, dark stretch of winter for hot tropical beaches, for others, there's nothing quite like whoooooshing down those shimmering sugar alps. If you're fond of freestyle skiing, get ready to slide down the slippery slopes in good company. This passionate, international community shares travel/gear tips, anecdotes, photos, and videos for those who can't get enough of the sweet stuff.
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| 12/08/09 Homepage Spotlight |
[ December 7th, 2009 | 9:45am ] |
seasonal_icons
Need some extra twinkle to decorate your place? Check out these dazzling holiday-themed icons. If you're an artist, you can post your own creations, provided you abide by the simple rules (which is to say, all cheer and no politicking). Be sure to comment and give credit if you wish to borrow a little spirit (no direct links, please). If you're feeling a touch of humbug this season, this is an instant shot of festivity.
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| 12/08/09 Homepage Spotlight |
[ December 7th, 2009 | 9:43am ] |
handmade_gifts
High on creativity, but low on cash? You'll find tons of brilliant suggestions for do-it-yourself crafts sure to please everyone on your holiday gift list. Offering detailed instructions, photos, budgets, timelines, and active support, you'll soon turn spare remnants of fabric and time into cherished keepsakes. Be sure to search entries and read user guidelines before you post for help!
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| Chimney Rock 2003 Stag's Leap Cabernet Sauvignon |
[ December 5th, 2009 | 7:10pm ] |
Bought this about a year ago (with as snobby as they are, they gave me the evil eye when I hopped in randomly from my bike ride on the Silverado Trail near my home. And they also aren't part of the "Napa Neighbors" program, so they refused to give a free tasting or any discount to locals... lame. But they did end up pouring after we convinced them we would buy a bottle if they wouldn't charge us their ridiculous $20 tasting fee)
It's been a long week and I was really craving some good cab to celebrate surviving it, so I popped this open last night.
Very, very good (as well it better be for $75/bottle.) Complex but subtle flavors, tannins present but oh-so-silky smooth. This is not your typical "claw your face off" tannic cab. (I have definitely noticed that, when it comes to cabernet, you get what you pay for; in fact, most cabs under $50 are not so good, and almost all of the ones under $20 are horrendous. I can deal with Liberty School -- a good buy at $12 -- but this Chimney Rock is in a whole other league. However, I've also noticed that cellaring makes a huge improvement on many of the cabs, as well. They usually seem to be released too young)
I don't want to wholeheartedly recommend Chimney Rock, because their tasting room prices and policies are ridiculous, and their wines are expensive (in my mind, I'm still on the fence about whether any bottle of wine is worth spending more than $50 on), but I can say this is easily in the top 5 cabs I've had (and definitely the best that I've ever actually owned a whole bottle of.) If you don't mind parting with the $$$, you might want to give this one a try, even if (or especially if) you are not normally a cab person. Also, I remember their 2004 was also good, so that would be another safe bet.
For what it's worth, my gf said it was on par with the $30 glass of Caymus (also very good, and very expensive) she had at Ruth's Chris Steak House.
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| Ice Wine |
[ December 4th, 2009 | 8:37pm ] |
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Mom finally opened her Casa Larga Ice Wine (Rochester, New York, area) and it is absolutely exquisite!!!
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[ December 4th, 2009 | 8:19pm ] |
Brr it's a cold rainy day here! There's no better place to be on a cold day than in a hot bath :)
( Read more... )
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| Beer Battles: Ale vs. Lager |
[ December 4th, 2009 | 3:10pm ] |
The world of beer is expanding, in both flavor and appeal. Craft brewing has taken the beer-drinking community to new heights and innovations. The time to learn about, explore, enjoy, and appreciate this sacred beverage has never been more exciting. But how does it all break down? How can one begin to decipher the differences between styles and sub-categories of beer? How can anyone truly appreciate beer without a basic understanding of beer’s ingredients and flavor profiles? Have no fear, LifeEpicurean’s Beer Battles: 101 series will break down basic concepts such as the difference between ales and lagers, highlights of various beer styles, proper pouring and tasting process, and the appropriate glassware for different brews. Pay attention-–class is in session. READ MORE HERE.
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| Unusual wine racks? |
[ December 2nd, 2009 | 4:30pm ] |
While I would very much love to turn my entire dining room wall into a nice walk-in wine closet, well, that just isn't going to happen. I have a 1-BR place and the amount of floor space is great, it's the storage capacity that leaves something to be desired. I've been using a small 6-bottle rack, but liked the idea of a more visible display rack in a more sensible location - close to the kitchen.
As I started painting and reorganizing my dining room/living room, and I realized I had collected quite a bit of wine over the past two months. I haven't taken the plunge to invest in one of those 35-50ish bottle size wine fridges, so this was the best I could come up with:
A) on short notice,
B) a small budget (this costs $49),
C) that integrated really easy with my existing decor.
 I used an Ikea "Benno" CD/DVD rack which integrates with Ikea's "Billy" bookcases (which I already had). I cut small pieces of cushioned anti-slip shelf liner for each nook. At the configuration pictured (click on the picture for a bigger view), I can fit two regular-size wine bottles side-by-side on each shelf, or at least three half-bottles per shelf. (For this picture, I just put single bottles in the slots and tilted them sideways so the labels could be more easily read.) The shelves are adjustable, but I really wouldn't put anything bigger than a regular-sized bottle in there. It may not the most gorgeous of wine racks, but it'll do for now!
I would LOVE to see what other folks have done to creatively display, organize, or store their collections (no matter how big or small). I especially love seeing items that have been "repurposed".
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| MogileFS Maintenance |
[ December 2nd, 2009 | 12:18pm ] |
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Bad Religion - Stranger Than Fiction |
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**EDIT Thu Dec 3 23:24:15 UTC 2009 **
Hey Everyone, we are about to run the last alter job that we need to on our database servers. This will effect userpics / scrapbook / vgift images for the next few hours. Have no fear, your images aren't lost, there is just a really intensive process running on the servers which store the information for mogilefs. Thank you for your understanding and all the LJ love...
Hey LJers,
I just wanted to let you all know that we are going to be performing some mogilefs maintenance over the next few days. We will be upgrading our current version to latest stable as well as changing some db config information to better handle the amount of files we are currently hosting. This shouldn't cause a big impact on site stability, but you may see some minor delays with userpic / scrapbook images appearing or other requests associated with our mogilefs. We would love to not have that happen, but unfortunately with some of the steps we need to take we have to cause a delay with images. I figured this was a better solution than taking down all of LiveJournal because well lets face it, we all need our daily LJ fix ;)
Thanks,
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| Perhaps in Ten Years and with the Grace of God: Trapiche Tasting |
[ December 2nd, 2009 | 12:13pm ] |
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C&W and Tango |
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Perhaps in Ten Years and with the Grace of God: Trapiche Tasting
As you know if you read this blog, I spend a lot of time sampling, thinking and writing about Texas wine drinking, but also focus on another topic: Wine drinking in Texas. Today, I am thinking about what things might be possible in Texas in ten or more years in and around its developing wine industry. What might it be like?
What got me started on this mental juggernaut was a recent opportunity to sample a selection of wines from a far distant land. The land was Argentina and the wine producing area was the region they call Mendoza (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendoza_wine). It is a land of high, dry plains not too much different from our own Texas High Plains (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_High_Plains_AVA). The Mendoza was originally tamed by men of true grit and determination making their livelihoods on horseback. The legacy of the Argentine Gauchos recalls many of the same attributes of our Texas Cowboys.
Texas and Argentina are also linked in history by an ancient grape called Criolla that was brought from Spain to Argentina in 1550s. During the next half century, this grape made its way up South and Central American into Mexico, making changes along the way up north. In this process, Criolla evolved into the hearty red wine grape vine of choice for Spanish missionaries that settled the new Mexican frontier land they called Tejas. What I saw in the Argentine wines that I tasted was a vision of what Texas could become in ten years, maybe more, if we might have the grace of God on our side.
Linked in Time: Trapiche to Texas
More at: http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=1286
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| 12/01/09 Homepage Spotlight |
[ December 1st, 2009 | 12:23pm ] |
backpacking
Want to embrace your wanderlust on the cheap? If you're high on adventurous spirit, but low on funds, this community can help you plan a trip to anywhere. Offering plentiful tips on how to travel light, you can post about inexpensive hotels and youth hostels if you're into urban exploration or discuss camping gear and mosquito netting for the great outdoors. Hitch your backpack, pitch your tent, and carpe diem!
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| 11/30/09: Homepage Spotlight |
[ November 30th, 2009 | 9:39am ] |
bookfails
Planning to do your part to help boost the declining publishing industry this holiday? Better check here first. Sure, there are plenty of folks who post glowing reviews of their favorite books. But what about the epic fails? Compose and/or discuss snarky, incisive critiques on the books you despise most.
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| 11/30/09: Homepage Spotlight |
[ November 30th, 2009 | 9:38am ] |
foundphotos
Ever stumble across a frayed photo in your grandmother's attic? How about a faded picture tucked in the sleeve of an old novel at a used book sale? This is the place to post them. An amazing, eclectic collection of photographs sure to delight anyone with a penchant for history or nostalgic memorabilia.
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| 11/30/09: Homepage Spotlight |
[ November 30th, 2009 | 9:37am ] |
note_to_cat
Having trouble conveying the concept of accountability to your cat? Now you can share letters to your significant felines and give public witness to your declarations of love and domestic negotiations. Whether you want to publish an apology for falling short on your cat-nip obligations or you need to raise a delicate hygiene issue.
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| Texas Vineyard Scenes - Splendor in the Vines |
[ November 27th, 2009 | 9:39am ] |
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Texas Vineyard Scenes - Splendor in the Vines
Texas Hill Country AVA View, Central Texas: The Vineyard at Florence (www.thevineyardatflorence.com)
“The southwest wine traveler reaps the benefits, not just of the natural beauty of the area, but of a local industry with vintners and other professionals who are world-savvy, educated, and widely experienced, but who are also dedicated to supporting their local economies, keeping their wines natural and ecologically sustainable, and providing a personal touch for visitors.”
Many people can't imagine Texas as a new wine producing region. They say, "After all, isn't it all dessert and cactus?" Well, take a look. Interest thing is that it is a warm growing region, making Mediterranean varietals like Grenache, Tempranillo and Sangiovese good choices. However, it also has to deal with blasts of late spring freeze that makes varietal and vineyard site selection important factors in this region that is about the same size of France.
More scenes and description at: http://vintagetexas.com/blog/?p=1267
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| charles smith SKULL Syrah 05 |
[ November 27th, 2009 | 1:27am ] |
man he just cant go wrong, I love this wine, thick and fruity with out losing background or style its not cloying or mega concentrated
man I love it
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| Inexpensive Thanksgiving Wine |
[ November 25th, 2009 | 12:51pm ] |
Hey all, I know this is a basic question, but the boy and I have been tasked with bringing some wine to Thanksgiving dinner and we are really strapped for cash (as is everyone this year) and I am wondering if anyone has some tasty dinner wines for super cheap that you know well and would stand by.
We prefer reds (Oregon Pinot Noirs are out favorites) but are open to bringing maybe one red and one white. Nothing too sweet preferably.
We are located in Northern Illinois, if that is helpful at all.
Thanks!!
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