Van Halen 1984

Hey there. Sorry it's been so long since we posted. Busy, busy, busy! Let's jump right back in.(no pun intended) I was listening to "Hot for Teacher" on the radio the other day and was reminded about how awesome 1984 by Van Halen is. Pure party vibes are the order of the day. Even when they get a little synth twattie (yeah i'm looking at you "I'll Wait") this album still rocks. By the time you get to "House of Pain" you are completely spent from air drumming, air guitaring, and doing those fucked up karate kicks like David Lee Roth. (Sadly there is no reason to play the "air bass" on this album, because the bass playing could have been done by a 3 year old, sorry Michael)Try listening to this album and not smiling and banging your head. Go ahead, I'll wait. See, I told you, it is impossible!

Anyway, as I'm listening to the album, only one wine could stand up to this behemoth and that is the Rosenblum Zinfandel Paso Robles Appelation Series. From the berry and chocolate fragrance on the nose to that first pepper sensation on the pallate you get that same exhiliration that you felt hearing "Hot for Teacher" for the first time. What a rush! The gentle spice and cherry that follow set you up for the oak that lingers on the finish, creating the perfect yin to "panama"'s yang. I'm getting flushed just thinking of them together. Runnin a little bit hot tonight, yes, you definitely are. Thank you David and co. and thank you Rosenblum. You two are a match made in heaven. Oh yeah.....Striped spandex=hot.

PS, sorry about another Rosenblum wine review, but damned if they don't make fantastic wine!!!!

Chris

Cowboy Junkies - Pale Sun Crescent Moon

I don't think I have ever been able to or ever will shake the drone, smoke and literary spice of Pale Sun Crescent Moon by The Cowboy Junkies. It absolutely haunts my soul. And I let it. I let it drag me outside only to leave me lingering in the harmony of a bright moon and the chalky smell of the earth.

This album conjures up aromas of old, simplicity and longing. Wild poems and stories of fantasy complete with unicorns - no seriously. Sad, leathery sighs from stoic maverick cowboy types. A shiny trailer-like diner with a whiff of rye bread sandwiches. The tenderness of tea. The big smell of corroding iron railings.

It all happens so slowly. Moments seem to hang and ring out at times in the darkness to feel around for something to lean against. And the taste and smells are right there confined to one dreaming body.

Without question these are the same weighty images that came to fruition with a Rosenblum Heritage Clones Petite Sirah San Francisco Bay 2006. This wine could have been written by Michael Timmins from the Cowboy Junkies. From the moment I opened the bottle this Petite Sirah seemed to open like a storybook. It smelled and tasted of cold, smoke, leather, pepper, darkness, longing, touch, moonlight, licorice, cherries, coffee and earth.

I drew in every sniff and taste as I did every song and it seemed that each had something revealing at the surface. For me almost every savoury delight of the wine cumulates into Ring On The Sill. It seems though that every song seems to speak for the wine. There really is a magic to Pale Sun Crescent Moon by the Cowboy Junkies that is complimented so well by the accompaniment of the Rosenblum Heritage Clones Petite Sirah.

Jim

D-Bridge - The Gemini Principle

Deep, dark, and heavy. Precise and polished. These words can describe the wine and the album of todays post. I first tried the Atteca 2006 Old Vines Garnacha (100% Grenache) around July of this year. It burst with blackberry and raspberry flavors from the outset and finished with a lingering chocolate essence. It is drinking fantastic right now but I think it will be even better in another year. The soft, easy tannins make this a stand-alone kind of wine.

The description of the wine is also exactly what I think of D-Bridge's first album - The Gemini Principle. This album is an almost overwhelming experience. Tracks like Blush response (with Instra:mental) are a lesson in clinical, yet deep and hypnotic, tracks. "Creatures of Habit" is a dreamy, melancholy triumph. As usual his ear for detail is impeccable. This song defines D-Bridge. It truly shows his genius. Actually, the whole album is filed with one phenomenal song after another.

This wine and this album create a beautiful atmosphere. You can feel your head nodding while you take another sip from the glass. As I said before, deep, dark, and heavy. Enjoy. I'm turning up the music and pouring a glass.

chris

Dr. Dre - The Chronic

I think I was 18 when this album came out. Maybe 19. Anyway, what an impact. This album is what summer days and barbecues are all about. Classic after classic, this album doesen't quit. You just catch yourself smiling and bobbing your head the whole time it's playing. "Nothin' but a G Thing" just improves your mood no matter what's going on around you. While skits like "Deez Nuts" and " the $20 sack pyramid" just crack you up every time.

This album is perfectly matched with Jaboulet Cotes du Rhone Parallel 45 Rose. A perfect summertime wine with a floral, sweet nose and amazing strawberry fruit flavors. Listening to "Let Me Ride" while sipping on this rose enhances the whole experience. I know some may say that a rose is not masculine enough for this album, but I disagree. Bitches may be nothing but hoes and tricks but this rose would definintely keep 'em coming back for more.

No disrespect meant to the ladies. Only the bitches, I guess. Sorry in advance.

Chris

Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures

I would be hard pressed to find an album as perfect as Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures. From the opening of "Disorder" through to "I Remember Nothing" it stands as one of the most emotional, dark albums of our times. It is layered with Ian Curtis' beautiful and dreary lyrics. You can almost feel his abandonement of hope. This melds perfectly with the outstanding basslines from bassist Peter Hook. Despite the more uptempo numbers, you are still left with this sense of sublime pain.

As I tasted the 2005 Turkey Flat Shiraz the other day, "New Dawn Fades" almost instantly came to mind. This wine was a dark, inky purple color and as dense a wine as I've tasted. A whiff of chocolate and dark berry fruit on the nose tried to prepare you for the experience to come. Black cherry flavors hit you first as it settles into a velvety softness with subtle hints of spice lingering. A wine this deep and complex is the only thing I could think of drinking while "Candidate" plays.

Just as the emotion builds every time I listen to this album, the same can be said of this Shiraz while drinking it. Both will continue to reward you over time.

Next time I'll turn the lights back on and try to lighten the hell up. What's with this serious business. Hey, at least there were no suicide jokes. Next time.

chris

Jodeci - Forever My Lady

Nothing conveys thoughts of sexy and smooth like Jodeci's first album. The kind of soul/r&b that was very new at the time. The thrilling sensation of hearing "Come and Talk to Me" for the first time was very similar to the first sip of Kopke 1997 Vintage Port that I tasted. This silky, smooth wine was elegant and seductive but still had a bit of a sleazy swagger (and I mean that in a good way).

Both are an experience that defines love, whether for man, woman, or wine. Each song on the album serves up seduction. Each glass of Kopke is a mouthfull of chocolate and fig flavors. These two were made for each other. You will find yourself staring with as much passion at the deep, dark ruby colors of the wine as you will on your significant (or temporary) other. I'm scared to think which passion will burn longer. I guess it depends on how much port is consumed.

All I know is that when I open a bottle of this wine and "Stay" begins to float out of the speakers, I feel as though I should be wearing a velvet robe of some kind and have plenty of lubrication available.

Chris

Poison - Look What The Cat Draged In

Last year Chris gave me a bottle of Rumball Sparkling Shiraz that changed my mind about drinking sparkling wines.

At first taste there was this exuberant, warm, jolly, energetic feeling that came over me. Upon drinking more I could hardly contain myself. While I felt like bursting right out of my socks there was this soft glow nestled inside that kept me anchored to my soul.

I had to know right away how a Sparkling Shiraz is made and Chris broke it down for me that it is fermented, liquored and left to process in the bottle in the way that Champagne is made but with red wine instead.

There is a fervor with Sparkling Shiraz that makes me beg the question: what does a Sparkling Shiraz sound like? What kind of music would I pair with a Sparkling Shiraz?

The aforementioned feelings of excitement and warmth I had combined with the almost unorthodox method in which Sparkling Shiraz beckons me to pair it with the 1986 album Look What The Cat Dragged In by Poison. To this day I can still feel how wild-eyed I was and how amused I was when I first heard the album. I listened to Talk Dirty To Me from the album recently and I immediately drew a parallel between it and my first taste of Sparkling Shiraz.

The flare in the song reminded me of both the sparkle, spice and big-hitting flavour of a Sparkling Shiraz. And the method in which Sparkling Shiraz is made brings to memory the flamboyance of Poison particularly on the Look What The Cat Dragged In album.

Whew! I think it is time to go enjoy a bottle together with the album. If you need more proof I encourage all to at least try.