Hitler Wine Bottles?

Italian Hitler Wine Bottles 'Offensive' -- The Telegraph

Wine bottles featuring Adolf Hitler on the label have been called "offensive" after complaints from US tourists in the Italian city of Garda.

Michael Hirsch, a lawyer from Philadelphia, complained to local media after he found a supermarket near his hotel was stocking wine bottles with Hitler in various poses and another bottle featuring an image of Pope John Paul II.

"It is very shocking and startling to us," Mr Hirsch told The Daily Telegraph on Wednesday. "We would think of it as neo-Nazism It makes you wonder about the sympathies of the local people."

One bottle features Hitler with his arm raised in the Nazi, another is labelled 'Mein Kampf" and another was labelled "Ein volk, ein Reich, ein Fuhrer" (one people, one empire, one Fuhrer), Mr Hirsch said.

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My Comment: This is not smart wine marketing.

Talk About Expensive Spilt Drinks

£50,000 Cognac Bottle Smashed By Clumsy Customer -- The Inquisitr

A £50,000 cognac bottle (that’s $77,000 to most of our readers) has been smashed by a clumsy drinker, just days before it was about to be used in the world’s most expensive cocktail.

Judges from Guinness World Records were set to appear at the exclusive Playboy Club in Mayfair, West London to watch drinks supremo Salvatore Calabrese mix an ‘Old and Wise’ cocktail using a bottle of 1788 Clos de Griffier Vieux from his personal collection. The £50,000 cognac bottle works out at £5,050 ($7,800) a glass.

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Update #1: $77,615 Bottle Of 224-Year-Old Cognac Shattered By Clumsy Customer -- Huffington Post
Update #2: $77K booze bottle smashed in London -- Examiner

My Comment: Ouch!

captain Morgan Is Helping To Find Captain Morgan's Treasure

The Underwater Archaeologists Searching For Captain Morgan -- Popular Science

Off the coast of Panama, a team of archaeologists uncovers a ship that may have belonged to one of the most famous pirates who ever lived.

So this is what a pirate's sword feels like.

I wrap my hands around the straight iron blade. It's probably a 17th-century rapier, I'm told, but it'd hard to know for sure. The handle is missing, and though I can see and feel its fuller groove, a layer of sea shells and some sort of hardened concretion cover the blade's finer details. "That's either calcium carbonate or coralline," Texas State University archaeologist Fritz Hanselmann tells me as he takes the blade and places it in a makeshift holder his crew had just MacGyvered from a metal CD rack, rebar, and scraps of a yoga mat.

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My Comment: Not a story about rum .... but definitely a story about a rum company helping to boost it's brand.

Century-Old Whiskey Bottles Found In Missouri Man's Attic

A Missouri man found bottles of nearly century old whiskey in his home that is being renovated. (William Seay/KQTV/ABC News)

Century-Old Whiskey Bottles Found in Missouri Man's Attic -- ABC News

To save money on the installation of central air-conditioning in his St. Joseph, Mo., home, Bryan Fite began replacing the wires in his attic, prying up the floor boards on the rafters. Along with possible savings, he found a treasure beneath the floorboards: 13 bottles of century-old whiskey.

Fite, 40, grew up in St. Joseph, and after working in Kansas City for several years, he returned to settle in his hometown in September 2011. The house he and his wife Emily Fite chose was built in the 1850s and needed work, Fite said.

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More News On Century-Old Whiskey Bottles Found in Missouri Man's Attic

Man uncovers secret stash of more than a DOZEN 1917 whiskey bottles in his attic 'left behind by alcoholic former homeowner' -- Daily Mail
Booze you can use: Man finds century-old bottles in attic -- New York Daily News
Pre-Prohibition booze found in Mo. attic -- UPI

My Comment: This whiskey is not worth that much money .... but it does have history behind it.

Cows Raised On Fine Wine

Jean-Charles Tastavy, who came up with the idea, said the two Angus and one Camargue were initially fed the wine in a mix of barley, hay and grapes Photo: Alamy

French Cows Reared On Fine Wine -- The Telegraph

French cows are enjoying up to two bottles of high quality wine every day as farmers attempt to produce the best beef in Europe.

The extraordinary development has seen a 'Vinbovin' label of meat established which is already being championed by some of the best restaurants in Paris.

It follows an experiment in Lunel-Viel, in the southern Herault region of France, which saw three cows fed local wine for four months.

Jean-Charles Tastavy, who came up with the idea, said the two Angus and one Camargue were initially fed the wine in a mix of barley, hay and grapes.

It soon became clear that they were 'happy cows' who ended up producing an exceptionally succulent meat.

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My Comment: Lucky cows.

What Does A$168,000 Bottle Of Wine Taste Like?

The world’s most expensive wine, Penfolds 2004 Block 42, is housed in 750-ml glass ampoules. Photo: Penfolds

Record-Breaking Wine: What Does $168,000 Taste Like? -- Wired Science

Today, the Australian winery Penfolds announced the world’s most expensive wine sold directly from a winery, eloquently dubbed “2004 Block 42.” The $168,000 wine is a produced from a single vineyard, from what the winery claims are the oldest continuously producing Cabernet Sauvignon vines in the world. It will be sold in 12 glass ampoules (above), which look more like something you’d use to kill a vampire than to serve wine. Each holds the equivalent of a standard wine bottle.

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My Comment: This is overpriced wine .... but I must confess that I do like the design of the bottle.

Beer To Cost £7.23 A Pint At The Olympics

Olympic Beer To Cost £7.23 A Pint -- The Telegraph

Spectators hoping to celebrate British Olympic medals with a drink at the Games face paying the equivalent of more than £7 for a pint of beer, organisers have said.

Bars at the official Games venues will charge £4.80 for a small serving of London 2012 red wine. For visitors with an appetite for traditional British fare, a portion of cod and chips will set them back at least £8.

The London 2012 organisers, who published sample menus yesterday, claimed the prices were “more than comparable” to catering costs at other sporting events.

The public reaction was less forgiving, with Twitter users describing the announcement as “a shocker”.

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My Comment: What a rip-off.

Wine Train Journeys

Napa Valley Wine Train, Hiram Bingham, More Incredible Train Journeys -- Daily Beast

A Champagne dinner aboard the Napa Valley Wine Train, fascinating history on the Venice Simplon Orient-Express—channel the golden age of travel aboard these amazing trains and more. Leigh Crandall offers a tour.

There is something timelessly glamorous about traveling by train. In a world where getting from Point A to Point B as quickly as possible is the goal, luxury rail travel has maintained the elegant features—porter service, bar cars, formal dining, extraordinary scenery, the opportunity for conversation with the other passengers (and occasional characters) aboard—that made getting there half the fun. From a few hours spent rolling through the vineyards of California wine country to a weeklong journey through Thailand, revisit the golden age of travel on seven trains worth hopping aboard.

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My Comment: Did the Napa valley Wine Train .... and yes .... it was worth it.

Now That Is A Bar Bill

Heavy load: Two waiters were required to carry the 99lb double Nebuchadnezzar-sized bottle. Daily Mail

Reports: Financier, 23, Who Ran Up $315,000 Bar Bill Arrested In Trading Probe -- MSNBC

A 23-year-old financier who garnered headlines after reportedly running up a bar bill of more than $315,000 last month has been arrested over suspected unauthorized trading.

Alex Hope's spending during a night out in Liverpool, England, included a near-8 gallon bottle of Armand de Brignac Champagne known as the Ace of Spades that had to be carried to his table by two people. It alone was worth nearly $200,000, "the drinks business" website reported. It said this was a world-record bar bill at a nightclub, beating the previous record of $270,000 by U.S gambler Don Johnson in London last year.

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My Comment: No wonder he ran-up a huge bar bill .... it appears that it was not his money.

Osama Bin laden And A Bottle Of 1870 Château Lafite Rothschild

Leon Panetta’s Bin Laden Bet -- ABC News

It was a bet with CIA Director Leon Panetta that Ted Balestreri never thought would come through.

On New Year’s Eve, Balestreri, a co-owner of Monterey’s Sardine Factory restaurant, was hosting a dinner party with 28 friends, among them long-time friend, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, who at the time was the CIA Director.

Several guests teased Balestreri about when he was going to serve them a bottle of 1870 Château Lafite Rothschild, priced at $15,000, from the restaurant’s rare wines collection.

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My Comment: Of the Premiers Crus .... Lafite Rothschild is great ... but I love Château Margaux (when I can afford it).

California Winery Owned And Operated By Veterans

On the Job Hunt: California Winery Owned and Operated by Veterans -- FOX News

At the Lavish Laines tasting room in Livermore, California, each glass of wine poured represents the achievement of a remarkable winery. It's run not by experienced winemakers, but by veteran soldiers, marines and airmen: ex-military who couldn't find a job, until they found Josh Laine.

"It's all about providing for our own, and that's what I want to do- make sure the veterans are taken care of," says Laine.

The 26-year old former Marine says after he got into California winemaking several years ago, he recruited some of his Marine Corps buddies to help him out with the "grunt work," everything from planting grapes to web design. He soon discovered veterans make terrific vintners.

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My Comment: This is a cause that I can drink to.

The 5 "S"s Of Wine Tasting (Video)

W&S Editor: Jim Campanini's wine epiphany occurred in Italy, drinking local wines produced by family members. Here he describes how to see, swirl, smell, sip and savor your favorite glass of wine.

Most Expensive 'Wine Spill' Ever

An expensive drop ... Bottles of 2010 Mollydooker Velvet Glove (McLaren Vale Shiraz) accidentally destroyed in Adelaide. A total of 46 cases at $185 a bottle was sent down the drain. Daily Telegraph

That’s What You Call A Wine Spill: Fork-Lift Truck Drops $1m Of Top Aussie Wine -- Daily Mail

They say there is no point crying over spilt milk.

But when more than $1 million of high-quality Australian wine was spilt everywhere after a forklift dropped a crate of it, its understandable that the owner might have had a tear or two in his eye.

Some 462 cases of 2010 Mollydooker Velvet Glove shiraz — worth 185 Australian dollars was lost when a forklift dropped the consignment, according to a report Friday.

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Update: Million dollar drop as wine tumbles -- Herald Sun

My Comment: This accident happened last year .... and I still get the shivers when I think about it.

The Moment 6,810 Bottles Of Wine Crashed To The Floor When Store's Shelves Collapsed

Caught On Camera: The Moment 6,810 Bottles Of Wine Crashed To The Floor When Store's Shelves Collapsed -- Daily Mail

It's a wine lover's nightmare - thousands of bottles of the world's finest grape juice crash on the floor, leading to a tsunami of undrinkable vino.

At Superior Discount Liquors in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, that disastrous scenario really did happen.

A 78ft long shelving unit suddenly becoming detached from its anchoring wall.

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My Comment: OUCH!!!!

Europe's Biggest Alcohol Warehouse

Vast: A warehouse worker inspects bottles after they have been filled with wine

Fancy A Tipple Or Two? Europe's Biggest Alcohol Warehouse, Filled With Enough Wine To Fill 15 Olympic-Sized Pools -- Daily Mail

Plant has been running 24/7 for the last two months filling 780,000 bottles per day
The complex can store 9.5million gallons

It's Europe's biggest warehouse and promises a very merry Christmas - if you like wine.

Because between now and the big day an astonishing 11.5 million bottles of wine will be leaving this huge warehouse and wine packaging facility bound for supermarkets, off-licences and bars.

The complex in Avonmouth, near Bristol, can store 9.5million gallons - enough to fill 15 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

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My Comment: OK .... I am impressed.