Insanity of the wine industry

Ist es, ist es nicht?

M.

Too bad about the Z-H and the CLos St Hune. They can be found online but I'm not sure of the international shipping policy of many internet auction/retail outlets. The Z-H is a deep rich style and more overt than Trimbach but delicious in a different way. The make some terific VT's and SGN's. Clos St. Hune is a bit more restrained and perhaps more delicate than the Cuvee F-E but it ages gracefully and gains depth and complexity with time. Bi!!

Ah, you beat me to it! Btw, also available directly from TT at

Dale

Dale Williams Drop "damnspam" to reply

Great quote, Max. And surely the late Ms. Sayers stands alone as the only well-known mystery writer to have published a (well-received) translation of Dante's Divine Comedy. For the record, the story I mentioned describes a blind tasting of some magnificent wines, though Ian will probably quibble with her characterization of Royal Tokaji. ;-)

Mark Lipton

Nils, While I cannot present myself as anything like an expert in "kookology," I would offer a different perspective on the distinction that you draw. Trolls will often respond, oftentimes ad naseum et ad aeternum. To me, the difference lies in sincerity: kooks honestly believe their own drivel, whereas trolls are as insincere as the day is long.

However, YMMV YHBT HAND ;-)

Mark Lipton

Michael, you are entitled to your opinion just as I am entitled to mine! I stand by my earlier statement. Now, please stand still so that I can heap more laurels upon you. ;-)

Mark Lipton

Sicher.

Mark Lipton

Salut/Hi Max Hauser,

le/on Thu, 8 Apr 2004 22:51:43 -0700, tu disais/you said:-

Couldn't agree more. I still await an actor who can play Lord Peter with as much assurance and accuracy as we have been privileged to see in recent years with other fictional detectives such as Sherlock Holmes, Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot, and Inspector Morse.

A common need with all convincing interpretations of such detectives is that one HAS to be able to believe that these characters had a rat-trap mind, an utterly ruthless determination to discover and punish wrongdoers, and that they hungered and thirsted after the truth. That was the problem with previous actors, who for all their eminence, completely missed that and created buffoonish caricatures. I'm thinking of Margaret Rutherford, (the dreadful bumbling mumbling Dr Watson of ?? whom a real Holmes would have himself murdered) and Ustinov as Poirot. Ian Carmichael was in that mould, playing the accent and the toffery (vital elements admittedly) but missing out completely the man shaking with fear after his WW1 nightmares, the sensitivity of his courtship of Harriet, and the intellect of a man sent off as a highly trusted diplomat and capable of inspiring jealousy amongst dons in an Oxford college.

My quotation would be from Busman's honeymoon.

"Bottles?" said Bunter. "What bottles?" A frightful suspicion shot through his brain. "What have you got there?"

"Why", said Mrs Ruddle, " one of them dirty old bottles you brought along with you." She displayed her booty in triumph. "Sech a state as they're in. All over whitewash."

"Woman!" cried Bunter, and snatched the bottle from her, that's the Cockburn '96!"

"Oh, is it?" said Mrs Ruddle, mystified, "There now, I thought it was summink to drink."

Bunter controlled himself with difficulty. The cases had been left in the pantry for safety. The police were in and out of the cellar, but, by all the laws of England, a man's pantry was his own. He said in a trembling voice:

"you have not, I trust, handled any of the other bottles?"

"Only to unpack 'em and set 'em right side up" Mrs Ruddle assured him cheerfully. "Them cases'll come in 'andy fer kindling."

"Gawdstrewth!" cried Bunter. The mask came off him all in one piece, and nature, red in tooth and claw, leapt like a tiger from ambush. "Gawdstrewth! Would you believe it? All his lordship's vintage port!" He lifted shaking hands to heaven. "You lousy old nosy-parking bitch! You ignorant, interfering old bizzon! Who told you to go poking your long nose into my pantry?"

"Really, Mr Bunter!" said Mrs Ruddle

....

Bunter took up the violated bottle of port and cradled it mournfully in his arms.

"All the port! All the port! Two and a half dozen, all shook up to blazes! And his lordship bringing it down in the back of the car, driving as tender and careful as if it was a baby in arms."

How do you stack up the two? In Riesling , I give a Trimbach the edge. To me the best Z-Hs are the late-harvest Pinot Gris bottlings and the Gewurztraminers. In general I find Z-H to be occasional change of paces, but I can drink Trimbachs quite often. Dale

Dale Williams Drop "damnspam" to reply

I suppose a lot of it depends on ones taste preference but I prefer Trimbach. I think that you are spot on regarding the late harvest stuff from Z-H. In general I find Z-H produces wines that are very close at times to being over-the-top with a rich, unctuos mouthfeel and deep color and intensity in flavor. Most of my Z-H is late harvest Pinot Gris or Gewurtz. I like the Z-H Clos Jebsal and Clos Windsbuhl Pinot Gris and the Clos Hauserer Riesling. Their Clos St. Urbain Rangen de Thann Riesling is top notch Riesling and ranks right up there with Trimbach's Clos St. Hune and Cuvee F-E. The VT Clos St. Urbain is very tasty and has the ability to match well with so many foods literally from soup to nuts. Bi!!

Funny that you should say this, as Jean and I were recently debating the portrayals of Ian Carmichael and Edward Petherbridge. Of the two, I prefer Carmichael's on several counts.

Nigel Bruce, perhaps? Of course, Basil Rathbone's Sherlock was also a horrid caricature of Conan Doyle's Holmes.

and Ustinov as Poirot. Ian Carmichael was in that mould,

Carmichael never played AFAIK the Harriet Vane trilogy. Have you seen any evidence to the contrary? I agree with you that he missed the shell-shocked aspect of the character, although in "Bellona Club" we did get a sense of his feeling about the experience.

ROFL!! Jean and I both adore that scene in particular. Another topic of our recent conversation was that no production has been made of Busman's Honeymoon. Jean had some recollection of a copyright problem. Any insight?

Mark Lipton

Salut/Hi Mark,

le/on Fri, 09 Apr 2004 13:58:39 -0500, tu disais/you said:-

I agree, he's better. But FAR behind Edward Suchet, for example.

Yeah, that's the guy. It's true that in Conan Doyle's books he doesn't shine as a great mind, but he "IS" a doctor (medical) and as I said, he can't be THAT dumb, or Holmes would have gone mad.

Doyle's Holmes.

Quite.

Nono, you're right, but in all the books, the _person_ is there, multifacted, and complete, and so far we've not found an actor capable of playing such a person, IMO.

You can see it, can't you! Poor Bunter.

None whatsoever. (as usual when it comes to matters literary).