A friend recently demonstrated to me the perfect gift
for sedentary and boozing lounge lizards. It is a device
that will definitely get them out of their city doss houses
into a life of camping, hiking and breathing fresh mountain
air, filtered only through roll-yer-own ciggies. The name
of this miraculous invention is the Camelbak HAWG -www.camelbak.com
- a backpack type collapsible bag designed to carry liquid
refreshment whilst traversing the great outdoors. These HAWG
packed liquids are taken orally (rather than intravenously)
via a flexible sucking tube.
The HAWG holds up to three litres and is insulated. This
means that you can hike to your heart’s content with
the equivalent of four bottles of your favourite chilled
riesling or chardonnay on your back and, as it were, on tap.
Thus you will arrive stimulated refreshed at your camping
spot after a modest 20 or 30 kilometre stroll up the side
of the nearest glacier.
Sadly, at the moment the HAWG comes only in the Dromedary
(that is, single hump) model. But I’m told that R&D
scientists at Camelbak are, as we speak, working on the Bactrian
(i.e. two humped) version. The Bactrian, when eventually
released, will enable the hardy hiker to carry four bottles
of white and four of red in relative comfort. On that joyous
day I shall air the tent, rub Dubbin into the hiking boots,
pack my patented Swiss Army Waiters’ Friend and, whistling
a few bars from Edelweiss, march happily into the unknown.
In the meantime I’ll sit and watch the World Cup on
the new telly.
The HAWG is available at all good camping stores for $US100.
Wine etiquette
Hi Martin, does white wine 'age' in the fridge? I've run out of space in my
wine rack so I save it for the reds and keep all of my whites in the fridge
but I'm wondering whether this stops them from further developing? And, what
is the correct pronunciation of shiraz? My father insists on calling it shir-ahhz
(and cabernet car-bernet). Is he being a wanker or is it me who's ignorant?
Look forward to reading your thoughts on these. Astrid of Alphington.’
Astrid, Yes white wine will age in the fridge, but very
slowly. The ageing of wine is basically a chemical reaction
and I recall someone telling me that the speed of any such
reactions will double for every increase in temperature of
10C. I imagine that the converse is true and that the rate
of refrigerator ageing will halve for every decrease of 10C
(except of course when you reach freezing point). Detrimental
effects of fridge cellaring could include undue vibration;
precipitation of deposits in wine that hasn’t been cold-filtered;
and, as the fridge is a dry and dehumidified environment,
the drying out of corks. This last could eventually lead
to some leakage and evaporation. Of course if you keep screw-capped
whites in the fridge this last problem should not occur.
NB. Unlike corked bottles screw-capped bottles can be cellared
standing up. They can also be recycled as containers for
tomato sauce, decanted wine etc.
As for the correct pronunciation of grape names and without
wishing to cast aspersions upon your dear father, I’ve
got a friend who still pronounces reezling as ryzling. And
I’ve heard shiraz pronounced as shy-raz, shyrah, shiraahz
and sh’raz. I think Australians favour the last one.
And as for cabernet: there’s carbernay, (lah di dah);
kabinay (Aussie) and sohvinyon and savvynyon. There’s
no accounting for taste in pronunciation but check out the
Living Audio Wine Dictionary for another opinion. Note, tradition
has it that the worst selling wines in restaurants are those
which are difficult to pronounce. Customers clearly do not
wish to make fools of themselves in front of their guests
or sometimes haughty sommeliers.
Research on breathing wine
Martin, On breathing wine: we performed a breathing of dry red wine exercise
at our Wine Dine Academy in 1975. Using techniques I learned at Uni of California,
we had 71 participants, all of whom had just finished our six week wine appreciation
lecture series. Half the bottles of a Penfolds Private Bin (like Bin 389)
were opened at noon and decanted. The other half were opened at 7:55pm, say.
Each participant was given 15 tries to distinguish which was the odd glass
of three they had poured for them, two being noon opening, one being opened
five minutes before tasting. We had a statistics professor from La Trobe
Uni participating and at the end of the arduous exercise, using his pocket
calculator, he pronounced that as a group, we could not tell the difference
between what had been opened at noon and the same wine opened five minutes
previously!! Ian Hickinbotham
Martin, On breathing wine, the intrepid John Clarke had
the following to say. ‘Puttin’ an open bottle of
red in front of me and tellin’ me to let it breathe,
is like slappin’ a T-Bone steak in front of a Blue Heeler & sayin’ ‘Sit!!’ Let
it breathe? I’ll give it mouth to mouth.’ Richard
Thomas.
Tasted recently
Delatite Pinot Gris 2001. Cellar to 2006. About $20. KKKK
Central Victoria. Near water pale, hint of green. Aromatic floral, fresh-picked
pears and faint almond bouquet. Elegant in the mouth with generous flavours
of pears and apples, finishing dry with soft acidity.
Jansz Cuvée 1997. Cellar to 2010. Around $30. KKKK
Pipers River. Very pale, slight yellow, medium bead. ‘Methode Tasmanoise’ according
to the blurb – I like it. Light yeastiness and floral notes on the nose.
Crisp and clean on the palate with hints of strawberry, and Granny Smith apple
acidity at the finish. Excellent aperitif style. Although most people don’t
cellar bubbly this one will last the distance if so desired.
De Bortoli Deen Vat 4 Petit Verdot 2001. Cellar to 2005.
Around $9. KKK½
Riverina region. Youthful purple tones. Plenty of spicy fruit on the nose.
Sweet berries and American oak in the mouth, substantial and chewy texture
finishing firmly. Top food style and bargain priced.
Quote
Reality is an illusion created by lack of alcohol. N. F. Simpson.
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