Wine Blogging

Finalists for the 2009 American Wine Blog Award.

Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica.

At the risk of allying ourselves with Dwight--really, it's just the beets that catch our attention--God, does this soup look good.

Worth Every Penny.

Or, more aptly, worth every dollar: Hamersley's Bistro.

There Is Nothing New Under the Sun

Other People's Money--And How the Bankers Use It, published in 1914. Via.

In Defense of Pink Drinks

David Wondrich is breathing new life into Esquire's formidable Drinks Database, starting with this raspberry pink cognac-based smiling handgun.

How could we miss this?

Fatwa on Rushdie now 20 years old.

Entry post-dated for dramatic effect.

The Ultimate in Personal Music Recommendations

People's Music Store--a commie-sounding mp3 site--takes amazon's "people who bought this also bought X" to the next level, web2.0 style, by letting you roll your own music store with mp3s from their catalogs. Right now, the stock is mainly indie, with big labels testing the waters. We're exploring the stockroom now and will keep you updated, but expect a forthcoming Notions Oceans Music Store. Via.

Gramophone Archive Goes Live

The entire archived issues (1923-present) of Gramophone, the classical music rag, are now available online. Unlike the New Yorker, they're free!

Remember the End of Grapes of Wrath?

Intellectually, it seemed so optimistic when Rose of Sharon put aside all pretensions to help a stranger in need. Viscerally, it made us want to vomit.

Salma Hayak went with the first response, and somehow, Salma doesn't make us want to vomit:

Via.

New Cocktail: The Sully

Honor Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, the pilot who gracefully ditched US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson last month after the plane was struck by geese in mid-flight, by raising one of these:

The Sully
Two shots Grey Goose
A splash of water

Wonder what Salon's Patrick Smith would say to this...

Plants to Green Up Your Air

From TED 2009 comes a presentation summarizing a 15-year effort to green up a New Delhi office building:

How to Grow Your Own Fresh Air - TED 2009 Talk

View more presentations from jaymeattle. (tags: plants greenhouse)

Practically speaking, we think that if you had 4 "shoulder height" palm trees, 6-8 "waist height" plants, and 1-2 bushy things for good measure per person in your living space, you'd be living in a jungle. Via.

Tropicana's New Label

Looks like the sort of package generic drugs would come in.

Yummm!

Bet on Movies

This has been around for a while, but still compelling in its own way: HSX.com, the Hollywood Stock Exchange. You bet, with fake money, on how much movies will gross at the box office. This has the side effect of keeping you in the know about upcoming flicks.

Creepy Creeperson

"Hi Doc! I just got married!"

"Congratulations!"

"Yeah, the paperwork is all done, and in April, I am going to China to meet my bride!"

True story. No joke. We still feel dirty for congratulating him.

2009 Bloggies

Vote!

Adopt-a-word

Secability, n: the ability of an object to be cut. See SaveTheWords.org.