text:
What's New at Shafer
by the numbers
Number of raw variety mentions of chardonnay on social media in 2012, making it the most-talked about varietal
Acres of chardonnay grapes planted in California as of 2010
Percent of core wine drinkers in a 2012 survey who said they currently consume chardonnay (pinot gris was second with 44 percent)
Sources: Wine Institute, Wine Market Council, Vintank
Chardonnay Close-up
Once teetering on extinction, the most popular grape in the U.S. today comes in a surprising array of styles
By Michelle LockeTweet
Chardonnay is the diva of diversity.
Corseted, but not too tightly, in French oak, the wine is full-bodied, rich, and lavish. Stripped down to its essence in stainless steel tank fermentation, it's sprightly and fresh with a zingy bite of green apple.
So it's hardly surprising that chardonnay reigns as the queen of white wine, the most popular single varietal, red or white, in the United States and one of the most widely planted grape varieties in the world.
But did you know chardonnay was almost wiped out in California during Prohibition because the thin-skinned grape couldn't survive the journey back east for the still-legal home winemaking that kept the industry alive? Or that prior to 1968 chardonnay production in the Golden State was so low that the variety was put into the "miscellaneous" category by state agricultural officials?
Turns out chardonnay's back story is as multi-faceted as the wine it produces.
"If people say, 'I don't like chardonnay,' then they're not drinking the right chardonnay," says wine expert and author Leslie Sbrocco, who calls versatile chardonnay the "basic black," of wine. "There are lots to choose from. You can go from completely bone-dry, unoaked, mineral-y styles all the way to lush, big and full."
French ancestry
Chardonnay is named for the French village of that name in Burgundy. Genetically, it's a descendant of a red grape, pinot noir, and gouais blanc, a rather undistinguished white grape. Chardonnay is the primary grape of white Burgundies as well as blanc de blanc Champagnes. Chardonnay has been planted in California since the late 1800s, but production was limited. After Prohibition, the grape was largely uprooted to make room for thick-skinned varieties.
In 1962, the French government went to the trouble and expense of diverting the new Paris-Lyon auto route away from the chardonnay grapes blooming in the 18.5-acre Le Montrachet vineyard, a hallowed source of white Burgundy.
But in the '70s, as the renaissance of California winemaking dawned, chardonnay began to make a comeback. In 1976, the grape took another leap forward at the famous Judgment of Paris tasting when California chardonnays took four of the six top places.
White House wine
Shafer Vineyards scored an early success in 1980 when its chardonnay was poured for a state dinner for Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, the first Shafer wine served in the White House. But the 1985 vintage earned a disappointing 67-point rating from Wine Spectator, prompting one of Doug Shafer's three attempts to resign, he recalls in the recently published winery history, A Vineyard in Napa. Luckily, Shafer stayed put, taking the advice of his father, winery founder John Shafer: Figure out the mistakes, stop making them and "get back to work."
One of the improvements was to source the grapes from Carneros, which is at the southern end of the Napa Valley and gets the cool weather that chardonnay needs to stay fresh and lively. Doug Shafer, working with winemaker Elias Fernandez, also began minimizing the juice-to-skin contact to keep flavors pristine, putting whole clusters in a Champagne-style press which gently pushes out the juice.
In recent years there's been hot debate over chardonnay styles, with a backlash against very ripe and oaky styles that spawned the ABC (Anything But Chardonnay) movement. Even that didn't do much to dent chardonnay's dominance, although it has prompted producers to offer leaner, racier styles.
Shafer Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay steers a middle course. The wine does not go through malolactic fermentation, a process that amps up the buttery factor, sometimes producing wines that are criticized as "fat" or "flabby" — hardly diva attributes. But Shafer chardonnay does spend some time in French oak, producing an elegant wine that balances the lushness of tropical fruit with a bright acidity.
Bright and Beautiful
Wondering what style of chardonnay suits your palate? Master Sommelier John Ragan, wine director for Union Square Hospitality Group, suggests one way to sample the many personalities of chardonnay is to take your taste buds on a tour of Burgundy.
Alexander Dumas, author of "The Three Musketeers," thought so highly of the chardonnay produced by Le Montrachet that he said it should be drunk "on one's knees, with hat in hand."
Start up north in Chablis and you find wines that are high in acid with green orchard fruit flavors. Move on to bottles from Puligny-Montrachet and Meursault where there is more limestone in the soil and the wines "have a little bit more generosity to them, a little bit more body." For a third take, head south to Poully-Fuissé and Montagny for wines that "reflect the sunshine. They're a little bit riper, a little bit rounder."
What's next for chardonnay? Ragan thinks winemakers are resisting the itch to add elaborate touches to the wine. "Obviously, there are a lot of non-negotiables. You need great clones planted in great terroirs, the right climate," he says, "but if you have all of that you don't necessarily need to put a lot of makeup on it."
Michelle Locke is a San Francisco Bay area writer who covers wine, food and travel for the Associated Press and other publications. She blogs at www.vinecdote.com.Tweet
The Story Behind A Vineyard in Napa
― By Doug ShaferTweet
Ever since I can remember, I've been surrounded by great storytelling. My dad has always relished recounting funny, surprising, and moving slice-of-life stories and telling jokes with obvious enjoyment. At family dinners or around holiday tables, it was always a noisy mix of funny, odd and unusual memories and anecdotes from uncles, aunts, grandparents and cousins. Good stories have a timing and a cadence to them. The best ones are those that you can't forget. They become part of you.
Here at the winery, without really thinking about it, storytelling became the basis for how we've run our business. We've never been geared toward hard sell. When Dad and I uncork a bottle with a distributor, sales rep, or a restaurant wine buyer, instead of doing a traditional sales pitch, we'd much rather tell you about the time Elias and I had to pull an all-nighter because our press broke down or when our sprinkler irrigation system blew up the first time we turned it on.
From the Ground Up
Almost 10 years ago Dad started work on a book that came to be called From The Ground Up. The winery was going to celebrate its 25th anniversary and Dad and I both thought it'd be fun to put some of our stories from the early days down on paper. Dad would write out long passages by hand and worked with a writer, Andy Demsky, who produces a lot of our printed material and website, to shape and help edit the material. Our long-term designer, Michael Kavish, did a beautiful job designing the book and overseeing its production and printing.
The year we kicked off our 25th anniversary, in 2004, we released 2,500 copies of this 75-page hardbound book, which we hoped was a fun, quick read that gave some background on life here at the winery.
The book got a nice response. We heard from a number of people who'd picked up a copy that they'd enjoyed it quite a bit. Of course, most of these were friends or fans of the winery and what are friends for if not to tell you that you've done a good job?
In 2007 my daughter Katie was an intern at a literary agency where she showed an agent, Kelly Sonnack, a copy of Dad's book. To my surprise, Kelly contacted us and said "I think you guys have a real book in you."
November Release
It's hard to believe that was five years ago. In a few months the result of that conversation hits bookshelves – A Vineyard in Napa was purchased by University of California Press and will be released this November.
As it turns out the release of the book coincides with the 40th anniversary of my dad's purchase of our vineyard estate here in Stags Leap District (before it was called Stags Leap District.) The memoir charts the enormous changes that have taken place both on our property and of course throughout the Napa Valley. When our family moved here in January 1973, we were arriving at a party that was just getting started. The Valley had been a pretty quiet, rural place after the devastating effects of Prohibition – lots of cows, hay fields and walnut orchards. Things in the wine world started to perk in 1966 when Robert Mondavi founded his now-iconic winery on Highway 29. Within a few years the Valley began to see a whole host of new faces and new wineries with names that have become very well known – Schramsberg, Chateau Montelena, Stags Leap Wine Cellars, and Diamond Mountain, among others.
Behind the Scenes
Of course it's a personal story too. Our family experienced a lot of ups and downs when it came to, initially, becoming grape growers, and later building and launching a winery. The start of the winery in 1979 and then my arrival as winemaker in 1983 took us into unknown territory and was an era of tremendous difficulty.
I think even people who know us well will be surprised by how much of the curtain we lift with the book. We didn't just struggle a little bit; there were times we struggled a lot.
As the book began to take shape we were fortunate to uncover an archive of documents related to the formation of the Stags Leap District — my dad's handwritten notes, letters between vintners, drafts of petitions and other material that's never before seen the light of day.
More than anything I hope what the book shows is that success for Shafer Vineyards has not been magical. We've worked steadily for decades to grow the best grapes we can, make the best wine we know how and to run a winery with the goal of being world-class. We've had many disappointments along the way, many setbacks, many nights when it's been hard to sleep – but we've kept on. The whole team here has worked together, encouraged each other and challenged each other to be their best.
If you'd asked me ten years ago if I had a book in me, I'd have laughed off such an idea. It's come about in an almost accidental fashion, and initially it seemed tremendously daunting, but it's been a wonderful journey and I hope it's a great read for those who add it to their bookshelves.Tweet
"Petite Sirah became an anonymous, workhorse variety, contributing depth and longevity to Zinfandel, breadth to Carignane, fruit and flesh to Mataro, stuffing and color into just about everything it touched..."
Syrah and Petite Sirah: their Curious History together
― By Patrick ComiskeyTweet
Blends of Syrah and Petite Sirah like Relentless, Shafer's inky red produced since 1999, are somewhat rare in California, even though they seem like an inevitable pairing. Syrah, after all, is one of Petite Sirah's parents, a cross between that noble variety and the relatively obscure Peloursin.
Petite Sirah was discovered and isolated as a seedling among Peloursin vines by a French nurseryman named Francois Durif. The vine yielded a deep-colored wine of stalwart black fruit and sturdy, gripping tannins, and proved to be especially resistant to downy mildew, a quality that evidently pleased Durif enough to name the cross after himself in 1880.
Coming to America
Four years later, in 1884, Charles McIver of San Jose imported Durif cuttings and planted them at Linda Vista, his 400-acre vineyard near San Jose, alongside a number of other progressive French varieties, including what we now know as the true Syrah, which had been in California as early as 1874, and was known by a bewildering number of names, including Sirrah, Syrah, Serine, Sirac, Petite Sirrah, Petite Sirah, and other variants. We don't know why, but almost as soon as he had imported the variety, McIver started referring to his Durif by the name Petite Sirah.
We know about McIver's name-swapping because of the confusion it caused his friend and fellow vintner, Hiram Crabb, a winemaker and proprietor of one of Napa's largest and most prestigious properties, To-Kalon Vineyard, in Oakville.
In 1892 Crabb made a number of published observations about McIver's new import, in which it's plain that Crabb knows he is dealing with two different varieties, and tries at length to distinguish them. In April, Crabb reports in the St. Helena Star that McIver has imported a vine to Linda Vista Vineyard that was supposed to have been the true Syrah, but wasn't. That same month, Crabb speaks of the variety again, this time addressing directly McIver's confusion surrounding this variety in this curious passage:
"Called by C.C. McIver, Esq., of Linda Vista Vineyard, Mission San Jose, the 'Unknown', " he writes, "it was imported eight years ago for the Petite Sirrah, but it proved to be a different variety. It is a very heavy bearer, excelling his other varieties (of which he has a large number) and a short pruner; makes a very fine wine, intensely dark and beautiful and retains its color for years."
A Grape With No Name
Crabb's persistent uncertainty on the matter is strangely compelling: eight years after importing it, it's still known only as "Unknown." Crabb may be poking gentle fun at his fellow grower, as if the two spent more than a few afternoons on the veranda vigorously debating the true nature of the wines, with McIver insisting that the wine was the Syrah of the Hermitage, and Crabb insisting otherwise. Unfortunately McIver's opinions on the topic were never recorded.
Despite Crabb's best efforts, the Petite Sirah moniker stuck. Most producers ended up adopting the name, and when Crabb himself planted Durif on his property, presumably from cuttings given to him by McIver, he too called it Petite Sirah.
In the period following the California phylloxera epidemic and the economic decline of the 1890s, California winegrowers rallied around two grape varieties, Zinfandel and Petite Sirah. Thousands of acres were planted in the decades leading up to Prohibition. Its range expanded into Lodi and the Livermore Valley, where it was planted in 1911 by the Concannon family; 54 years later, that winery would be the first to bottle a varietal Petite Sirah. NowherewasitmorecommonthanintheNapaValley, where it dominated vineyard acreage well into the 1960s, and was second only to Zinfandel in Sonoma County.
Varietal labeling was rare in California, and at the time varietal marketing mattered so little that vineyards, including the property John Shafer purchased in 1972, were rarely planted to not just one variety, but several – the so-called 'mixed blacks.'
Petite Sirah became an anonymous, workhorse variety, contributing depth and longevity to Zinfandel, breadth to Carignane, fruit and flesh to Mataro, stuffing and color into just about everything it touched, possessing a Zelig-like capacity to fill out the whole but remain relatively impassive when other varieties had more to express.
Vineyard Pets
It became such a valued component to the field blends of the era that the moniker Petite Sirah or "Pets" became virtually synonymous for all of the vines in mixed black vineyards, the adopted name for Beclan, Serine, Lenoir, Mataro, Trousseau, Poulsard, Carignane, Mourastel, and Mondeuse, Peloursin and of course itself – which is to say Durif. Only Zinfandel, with which Petite Sirah fused so seamlessly, retained its identity outside of this catchall term.
And oddly enough it's here, in the haven of mixed black vineyards, that Syrah was preserved in California soil, well before its revival in the late seventies. For not all Syrah vines would have been ripped out in the late 1890s; not all succumbed to phylloxera, or to Prohibition's ravages. Indeed, Syrah survived in old mixed black vineyards like Stags Leap Winery's Ne Cede Malis block in the Napa Valley, like Rossi Vineyard, employed by Sean Thackrey in his Orion bottlings, like the Sonoma Valley vineyard plots used by Morgan Twain-Peterson, and countless other unmapped "Pets" vineyards, many of which contain at least some fraction of true Syrah in their vine rows.
And it accounts for UC Davis Professor Carole Meredith's curious initial findings in the mid-nineties, when she tested for DNA in old Petite Sirah vineyards and typically found as many as a half dozen distinct varieties, including Syrah. Thus Syrah managed to survive not only the ravages of phylloxera and Prohibition, it survived within the ranks of the vine that usurped its identity, alongside which it hid in plain sight for decades.
Patrick Comiskey writes for Wine & Spirits Magazine, the Los Angeles Times, zesterdaily.com, the LA Weekly, and other publications. He lives in Los Angeles. This story draws from a chapter of his forthcoming book on the American Rhône wine movement.Tweet
An Insider's Guide to Buying Wine at Auction
An Insider's Guide to Buying Wine at Auction ― By Peter D. MeltzerTweet
Anyone serious about wine collecting should take wine auctions seriously because they are one of the most effective means of procuring fine and rare wine. Auctions offer top-quality vintages that are not readily available through traditional channels at a rate which normally falls well below retail.
Classified red Bordeaux constitute the lion's share of wine sold at auctions, followed by Burgundy and, increasingly, premium and California cult wines. The cast of cult wines includes Araujo Eisele Vineyard, Bryant Family Vineyard, Colgin, Dalla Valle Maya, Grace Family Vineyards, Harlan Estate, Screaming Eagle, Scarecrow, Schrader, Shafer Hillside Select, Sine Qua Non, Sloan, and Switchback Ridge. These wines are extremely scarce and expensive, and unless you are on their mailing lists, auctions are often the best means of securing them.
Mastering the auction ropes is fairly straightforward. Before attending a sale, cross-reference retail prices against auction estimates, for there is no point in paying more than a wine merchant is charging. The Wine Spectator auction price database is a tremendously valuable tool for analyzing current auctions. Available by subscription at www.winespectator.com, it tracks prices and performance for more than 10,000 collectible wines. A condensed version appears in the magazine bi-annually. Winesearcher.com is a great source for obtaining prices culled from more than 30,000 wine stores.
Probably the biggest surprise for first-time auction-goers is how fast the process goes – often as many as 200 lots per hour. Under the circumstances, it's best to make your decisions and devise a buying strategy before arriving in the salesroom.
Almost all wines offered at auction have a reserve – the sum below which the wine cannot be sold. It's usually set between 75 and 100 percent of the low estimate, but never above it. So don't expect to snare a wine for half its estimated value. Remember that estimates are a guideline, not a guarantee. Once you've done the math, set a ceiling for your maximum bid. Don't fall prey to auction fever. Few collectible wines qualify as unique items that justify frenzied bidding.
The most sought-after lots are those that have been consigned directly by a winery or château, followed by single-owner collections acquired upon release. Because these wines haven't budged since cellaring, their condition should be impeccable. Pristine provenance may significantly raise the stakes, yet serious collectors feel the benefits are worth it, especially now that fakes have emerged in the marketplace.
Wines kept in a professional storage facility or in a temperature- and humidity-controlled home cellar are preferable to ones housed in natural underground cellars. If you are considering the purchase of an extremely valuable lot of wine, try to ascertain everything about its history.
Unlike a restaurant, where you can send back a wine that you don't like, at auction, you are basically buying "as is." All major auction houses carefully inspect the wines they sell, and unless there was something patently wrong with their descriptions, you have little recourse. Where possible, try to attend a pre-sale tasting and make your own conclusions. Study the wine levels (also known as "ullage") which are usually listed in the catalog. They're the barometer of a wine's health. Simply put, you run a high risk with lower-than-average levels.
Seasoned auction-goers develop personalized bidding techniques. Some raise their paddle at the outset of a lot, only to lower it when they have either secured the item or exceeded their budget. Another effective tactic is to enter the fray at the very last minute when the high bidder thinks the lot is his.
Remember to factor in supplementary charges that will be added to your bill. A successful $350 bid can transmogrify into as much as $475 once the wine is delivered, because auction houses levy a buyer's premium ranging from 15 to 22.5 percent of the purchase price. Sales tax, shipping, and insurance can add another 15 percent. It is surprising how many buyers fail to factor these costs into their bidding strategies.
Worldwide commercial auctions brought in a record $478 million in 2011, up 17 percent from 2010, according to Wine Spectator. The major factor behind the increase was Hong Kong where sales rose 39 percent to US$230 million. Domestic totals fell a modest 5 percent to $146 million. First-growth Bordeaux and their equivalents softened as the year progressed because collectors switched their focus from Bordeaux to Burgundy. Last December in Hong Kong, Acker Merrall & Condit, the world's leading wine auctioneers, sold a 55-bottle "superlot" of DRC Romanée-Conti spanning 1952 to 2007 for a whopping $813,333 against a high estimate of $300,000.
California cults and blue chips rose 11 percent in the first quarter of 2012, according to the Wine Spectator auction index. The 1994 and 1999 vintages saw significant growth, with Phelps Insignia 1999 gaining 54 percent to average $156 a bottle and Opus One 1994 up 27 percent to average $282 per bottle. Shafer Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon 2000 rose 21 percent to average $193 per bottle.
"What has been really interesting," says Jeff Zacharia, president of Zachys' auction division, "is that over the past few months I'm very aware that people have started to take another look at California collectibles." John Kapon, CEO of Acker Merrall & Condit auctioneers concurs. "In 2011, 76 percent of the cult wines we sold were up at least 20 percent or higher. So I'd say that California cults are doing well!"
Peter D. Meltzer is Wine Spectator's Auction Correspondent and author of Keys to the Cellar; Strategies and Secrets of Wine Collecting (Wiley, 2006)Tweet
Californian wines also age well
A vertical tasting of Shafer's Hillside Select lays to rest the idea that American wines cannot withstand the years
Who said that Californian wines don't age well? In order to disprove this widely accepted idea of those in the French wine industry, the distributor Valade & Transandine, which imports some of the best foreign wines, organised an exceptional vertical tasting in Paris of 15 consecutive vintages of one of California's greatest wines, Hillside Select, a cabernet sauvignon from Shafer.
Shafer Vineyards is situated in Napa Valley, 100km north of San Francisco. This 30km by 4km valley is divided into sections, one of which is Stag's Leap. This is where Hillside Select is produced; the vines are situated on hillsides that eventually lead to San Pablo Bay at the end of the valley, a location that provides excellent airflow and freshness.
This part of the vineyard is planted exclusively with cabernet sauvignon, the greatest variety in Bordeaux and especially in the Médoc region. The vertical tasting of this wine, which has achieved a cult-like following in America, included fifteen consecutive vintages from 1993 to 2007, and was co-led by Doug Shafer, the President of Shafer Vineyards.
A first observation, each and every vintage was top-quality, a feat which very few of the world's wines can boast, especially as the influence of each vintage's unique characteristics was clear. Of the younger vintages, the 2001 is particularly impressive in
its vigour and vitality. Second observation, a good decade is needed before the wine reaches its peak.
The sumptuous 1998, for example, showed a stunning development and a near-peak maturity, a pattern confirmed by earlier vintages. In the great châteaux of the Médoc region it is common to blend cabernet sauvignon with a greater or smaller proportion of merlot, but cabernet sauvignon is the only variety used in this perfectly aging Hillside Select, something which suits it very well.
MARCH 15, 2012, NAPA VALLEY – Shafer Vineyards is pleased to announce the University of California Press will publish Doug Shafer's winery memoir "A Vineyard in Napa" with a foreword by Danny Meyer in fall of 2012.
"In the forty year span since our family moved here and established our winery, we've seen Napa Valley transform from a rural backwater to one of the top wine-producing regions in the world. The book gives a behind-the-scenes look at what it's been like for our winery and our neighbors to ride the ups and downs of the past four decades," says Doug Shafer, president, Shafer Vineyards. "We're referring to this as a winery memoir because the focus is more on the establishment of the vineyards, winery, wines, and the appellation."
Doug Shafer's father, John Shafer, purchased the family's 209-acre vineyard in 1972 and the family moved from Chicago to Napa Valley early in 1973. Moving from a sprawling Midwestern city where he'd a been a top executive at the Scotts Foresman publishing company, John Shafer had to trade his three-piece suits for jeans and a pair of work boots to get a start in the grapegrowing business.
By the mid-1970s he began planting Cabernet Sauvignon on his hillside property and in 1978 harvested his first vintage of Cabernet Sauvignon. John Shafer released that initial wine in 1981 and Doug Shafer joined him at the shaky family-run enterprise as winemaker in 1983. Doug hired Elias Fernandez as his assistant winemaker in 1984 and this trio worked together to create what they hoped would become a world-class winery.
"I think even people who know us well will be surprised, and maybe even stunned, by some of what we talk about in the book," says Doug Shafer. "We had some extremely tough years and spent a long time on the thin line between success and failure. On top of that we owe a lot to some people who helped us along the way."
Names who play a key role in "A Vineyard in Napa" are Louis P. Martini, Nathan Fay, Tony Soter, Warren Winiarski, Larry Hyde, Amigo Bob, Danny Meyer, and Tom Colicchio.
The book sheds new light on Napa Valley life in the early 1970s, the difficulty of winning the American public over to red wine, the up and down jolts resulting from economic booms and busts, the creation of appellations including Stags Leap District, wild fire, the creation of Auction Napa Valley, the emergence of cult wines, the changes forced by phylloxera, and scrambling to keep up with the Internet.
The book's foreword is written by legendary New York restaurateur Danny Meyer, a long-time Shafer friend who, in the late 1990s, played a key role is helping Shafer formulate its own core values, a process which Doug Shafer believes played a vital role in the winery's success.
"A Vineyard in Napa" was written with collaborator Andy Demsky, who has freelanced for Better Homes & Gardens magazine, Los Angeles Times Magazine, San Francisco Chronicle and is a former editor and columnist for the Napa Valley Register. In 2004 he produced Shafer's "Line on Wine" book and today, among other projects, writes all the winery's materials.
The book is represented by Kelly Sonnack of Andrea Brown Literary Agency and was acquired for University of California Press by senior sponsoring editor Blake Edgar.
Shafer Vineyards is a 32,000 case winery in Napa Valley's Stags Leap District managed by the father and son team of John and Doug Shafer. The Shafer family owns and farms 200 acres of vineyards, sources for Shafer's Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot and Syrah.
Discovering Great Conversations About Wine Online
The new world of wine on social media
By Heather John
Each morning I check my Twitter feed, and it feels a lot like standing around the water cooler with some of the world's greatest wine writers and bloggers. Want to know what New York Times wine critic Eric Asimov drank with dinner last night after his Tomiki aikido session, or listen in on the chatter between Jancis Robinson and Travel & Leisure's Bruce Schoenfeld about Sine Que Non's pricing, or perhaps what Vinography blogger Alder Yarrow — who pulls no punches — thinks of Beppi Crosariol's latest column in The Globe? Thanks to blogging and social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook, there are more voices joining the wine conversation than ever. But for those of us drinking the stuff, who do we trust?
Pre-Internet Info
When I was a student at UC Davis in the archaic early 1990s — you know, before the Internet — we relied on books, magazines and those relics we call newspapers for our wine information, which was written by a handful of big guns such as Jancis Robinson, Gerald Asher, and Robert M. Parker, Jr. As a result, wine — and those who wrote about it — became a deified and rarified commodity. But perhaps most frustratingly, wine was a one-way conversation.
Today, thanks in part to social media, information about wine is far more accessible. "It's about building relationships with readers — that magic of having conversations with readers on Twitter or on your blog," says Alder Yarrow, who founded Vinography.com eight years ago and is considered wine blogging's greatest success story. He sees about 90,000 unique monthly visitors and recently signed on as a contributor at JancisRobinson.com. "I think traditional media is failing to connect as well with the younger generation of wine drinkers, who are much more likely to look online than in a magazine. Most of all, traditional media is failing the relationship game, the ultimate power of social media." Compared to the 950,000 circulation of Food & Wine or 1.4 million of Bon Appétit, Vinography probably won't run traditional print media out of business anytime soon, but the numbers do speak to a growing phenomenon: Social media and wine pair very well
Craving Context
Some of my favorite voices out there aren't bloggers or journalists at all, but simply super-smart wine geeks with a Twitter feed, like Lou Amdur. A former software consultant and current owner of Lou on Vine restaurant in Los
Angeles, Amdur is passionate about natural wines and indigenous antique varieties and counts wine writers like Asimov, Ray Isle of Food & Wine and Alice Feiring of TheFeiringLine.com among his Twitter followers. He tweets about everything from the Jersey Shore's Snooki to carbonic macerated Airén from Vinos Ambiz, and has enlightened opinions on both. Amdur agrees that crowd-sourcing and new media, particularly when it comes to wine, don't always mix well. "The more noise there is out there, the more I crave authority," says Amdur. "I don't want to know about the delicious Madeira lyou drank llast night if you just tweet, 'I drank this delicious Madeira (and you didn't).' That's just an emotivist grunt of approval. On the other hand, if you tweet, 'The old Sercial we had last nite was great w/oysters' you've contextualized it, expressed something more than a grunt, and gave me a new idea of what to drink with oysters."
Reporting vs. Opinionating
"There are a heck of a lot more voices out there," agrees Tom Wark, a wine publicist and blogger at Fermentation.com. "But while they might not have the same reach as Wine Spectator and Bon Appetit, bloggers are having a much larger impact, particularly on influencing the trade." With 25,000 unique monthly visitors, Wark's blog reaches more readers than some trade publications, he says, "and I'm doing this in my pajamas with my computer and no budget. Today there is no barrier to compete with the mainstream media. As a result we have so many voices, many of them really good. One day, a former blogger will be editing the Wine Spectator."
"I think at best wine blogs are kind of like a trade publication. I don't think of myself as being in the wine trade," says Bruce Schoenfeld, wine editor for Travel & Leisure. "When a blogger decides to take on the issue of synthetic corks, I don't care. I care about wine because I care about the places and people and a means to tap into geography. The great stories have very little to do with trends and rarely to do with blogging."
And Wark concedes that wine blogging is still finding its way. He recently tweeted: "I'm convinced that more original reporting (versus opinionating) by Wine Bloggers would raise the general profile of wine blogging." It's a comment that got a lot of play on Twitter and clearly struck a nerve in the community.
In fact, it is my old-fashioned belief that reporting versus opinionating is the very reason seasoned journalists like Asimov, Steve Heimoff of Wine Enthusiast and Jancis Robinson remain some of today's most reliable and relevant voices — both online and in print. But they've also been joined by credible bloggers like Yarrow and Wark, as well as Tyler Colman of Dr.Vino.com, David White at Terroirist.com, Mike Steinberger at Wine Diarist, and Neil Dorosin from Brooklyn Guy's Wine and Food Blog, to name a few.
Ultimately, like any fine wine, only time will tell who ages well online.
Heather John is a Los Angeles-based journalist, creator of TheFoodinista.com blog and the former wine and spirits editor at Bon Appétit magazine.


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This ABA-approved program will consist of courses, supplemental lectures and tours, including a bus tour of Berlin, a tour of Cecilienhof where the allies decided how to create a German democracy in 1945, and an English-speaking tour of the German Parliament. Students can also go on an optional tour of a German concentration camp.
Berlin is a city of major importance in the history of war and peace. It is the new capital of Germany and of major importance on the European and world stage. The city is full of art galleries, great museums, theaters, music and new architecture. There is an exciting and vibrant night life. Numerous connections link Berlin to all parts of Europe.
©2017 Touro Law Center.
All Rights Reserved.
Home | Germany | Vietnam | Contact

subset: commoncrawl


text:
This library allows command-line tools to encapsulate their usage as a
comment at the top of the main file. Calling
RDoc::usage then
displays some or all of that comment, and optionally exits the program with
an exit status. We always look for the comment in the main program file, so
it is safe to call this method from anywhere in the executing program.
RDoc::usage( [ exit_status ], [ section, ...]) RDoc::usage_no_exit( [ section, ...])
the integer exit code (default zero). RDoc::usage will exit the calling program with this status.
an optional list of section names. If specified, only the sections with the given names as headings will be output. For example, this section is named 'Usage', and the next section is named 'Examples'. The section names are case insensitive.
# Comment block describing usage # with (optional) section headings # . . . require 'rdoc/usage' # Display all usage and exit with a status of 0 RDoc::usage # Display all usage and exit with a status of 99 RDoc::usage(99) # Display usage in the 'Summary' section only, then # exit with a status of 99 RDoc::usage(99, 'Summary') # Display information in the Author and Copyright # sections, then exit 0. RDoc::usage('Author', 'Copyright') # Display information in the Author and Copyright # sections, but don't exit RDoc::usage_no_exit('Author', 'Copyright')
Dave Thomas, The Pragmatic Programmers, LLC
Copyright © 2004 Dave Thomas. Licensed under the same terms as Ruby
Commenting is here to help enhance the documentation. For example, code samples, or clarification of the documentation.
If you have questions about Ruby or the documentation, please post to one of the Ruby mailing lists. You will get better, faster, help that way.
If you wish to post a correction of the docs, please do so, but also file bug report so that it can be corrected for the next release. Thank you.
If you want to help improve the Ruby documentation, please visit Documenting-ruby.org.


text:
NYC Resources
Office of the Mayor
Home Page
News and Press Releases
Mayoral and City Agencies
Executive Orders
Photo Gallery
En español
Items 51- 60 of 102
Housing Preservation and Development, Department of
Using a variety of preservation, development, and enforcement strategies, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) strives to improve the availability, affordability, and quality of housing in New York City. As the nation's largest municipal housing agency, HPD works with private, public, and community partners to strengthen neighborhoods and enable more New Yorkers to become homeowners or to rent well-maintained, affordable housing.
Human Resources Administration
The Human Resources Administration (HRA) assists individuals and families in achieving and sustaining their maximum degree of self-sufficiency. HRA provides temporary assistance and employment services or referrals at 31 Job Centers, 11 providing specialized services and 8 Model Offices designed to streamline workflow and enhance access to services. HRA also offers public health insurance at 19 Medicaid Community Offices (18 Model Offices) and food stamps at 30 offices. Support services to individuals with AIDS and HIV-related illnesses are provided through 12 centers (4 Model Offices); protective services to adults through 5 HRA borough offices and 4 contracted programs; and services to victims of domestic violence through 45 State-licensed residential programs, 15 nonresidential programs, and various HRA programs. HRA determines the home care eligibility of disabled or frail Medicaid recipients through 9 Community Alternative Systems Agency offices, contracts with 95 home care provider agencies, and assists New York City families in obtaining support orders and receiving child support payments at 4 borough and 5 Family Court offices.
Human Rights, Commission on
The City Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) investigates an average of 1,000 allegations per year of discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations, as well as bias-related harassment. In addition, the Commission initiates investigations and prosecutions of systemic Human Rights Law violations. The Commission provides pre-complaint intervention and promotes positive intergroup relations through conferences, workshops, and training sessions conducted by its Community Relations Bureau.
Immigrant Affairs, Office of
The Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs and Language Services promotes the interests and needs of immigrants and provides language-related services to immigrants and others with limited English language skills.
Independent Budget Office, NYC
The Independent Budget Office provides non-partisan budgetary, economic, and policy analysis for New York City residents and elected officials, and increases the visibility of the budget process.
Information Technology and Telecommunications, Department of
The Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DoITT) works with City agencies to manage information systems that support City operations and public access to City services. DoITT operates the City's 311 Citizen Service Center, which provides the public with information and services for over 300 agencies and organizations. DoITT also manages and operates the City's data center, Web site, telephone systems, fiber-optic network, radio network, internal data network, and television and radio stations. In addition, DoITT administers the City's telecommunications franchises including the "high capacity" fiber, cable television infrastructure, public pay telephones, and mobile telecommunications equipment that is installed on City property and in City streets.
Intergovernmental Affairs, Office of
The Office of Intergovernmental Affairs coordinates the City's interaction with state and federal Legislative Affairs offices, as well as the offices of the City Comptroller, Public Advocate, and Borough Presidents. The office keeps the Mayor and the Deputy Mayor for Operations informed about intergovernmental issues and is the liaison between the City and other governments, seeking to foster constructive links between the Administration and these entities.
International Affairs, Mayor's Office of
The Mayor's Office for International Affairs is the first point of contact for foreign governments and the diplomatic and consular community for any City-related requests or issues.
Investigation, Department of
The Department of Investigation (DOI) promotes and maintains integrity and efficiency in City government operations and services by investigating and referring for prosecution City employees and contractors engaged in corrupt activities or unethical conduct. It has oversight of more than 70 agencies and 150 boards and commissions that employ more than 300,000 staff members. The Department studies City agencies to determine if corrective action is necessary and recommends actions to prevent criminal misconduct and waste. In Fiscal 2005 the Department received 11,609 complaints and conducted 1,729 investigations.
Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary
The Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary recruits, evaluates, and nominates highly qualified judicial candidates for appointment to the New York City Criminal, Family, and Interim Civil Court. The Committee also evaluates incumbent judges for reappointment to these courts.
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text:
GENESIS SOLAR ENERGY PROJECT (09-AFC-8). Possible adoption of the Committee's Presiding Member's Proposed Decision - September 29, 2010
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text:
WCA Hospital to showcase new orthopedic center at open house Sunday
JAMESTOWN-The WCA Center For Orthopedics, Sports Medicine & Rehabilitation physicians and staff will host a Community Open House, Sunday, April 21 from noon to 3 p.m., marking the grand opening of its state-of-the-art orthopedic center. The newly renovated and remodeled Center is located directly behind WCA Hospital, 31 Sherman Street Building, Jamestown. Follow the Open House signs. The event is free and open to the public. Convenient front door event parking available.
The community is invited to meet the orthopedic and rehabilitation physician specialists, and members of the WCA Center For Orthopedics, Sports Medicine & Rehabilitation who will be on hand to answer questions, including William Fritz, M.D., board-certified orthopedic surgeon, Peter Robinson, M.D., board-certified orthopedic surgeon, and Brooke Kelly, D.O., P.C., board-certified physiatrist and medical director of the WCA Inpatient Medical Rehabilitation Program. Members of the rehab and medical office staff will also be on hand to answer questions and tour guests through the Center.
"There is something for everyone to enjoy," said Betsy T. Wright, WCA Hospital President/CEO. "Our open house will provide an opportunity for our guests to tour our spacious, exquisite patient-centered complex and meet the physicians and staff. We encourage one and all to stop by, partake in our free wellness screenings and activities and enjoy complimentary refreshments."
Guests can take a self-guided tour through the orthopedic complex and sign-up for free speech, hearing and swallowing screenings and register for a free foot bone density screening (individuals must pre-register for foot bone density screening by calling WCA Hospital Wellness at 664-8677 before the event). Additional wellness activities offered during the open house include free blood pressure checks, carpal tunnel testing, grip strengthening demonstrations, fall risk assessments, and bone strengthening exercise demonstrations. Kids and family members alike can play Wii-HAB!
The public will also enjoy a Photography Exhibition during the event. A collection of photographic works will adorn the new Center presented by Jamestown photographers, Andy Palermo and Daniel Swackhammer. The artists will explore their personal vision of people and beautiful Americana surroundings in an exhibition that will include over 25 photography images.
In addition, open house attendees will have a chance to enter a raffle to win a 32″ HD LCD Flat Screen Television. Proceeds from the raffle will benefit the WCA Center For Orthopedics, Sports Medicine & Rehabilitation. The first 500 guests will receive a free monogrammed tote bag.
The WCA Center For Orthopedics, Sports Medicine & Rehabilitation brings together one team for a wide range of treatments and rehabilitation including orthopedic care, sports medicine, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech and hearing services. The Center boasts a new spacious and beautifully decorated waiting room, new PT/OT gym, state-of-the-art sound room for hearing tests, and a centralized registration and reception area-all handicapped accessible with front-door parking for patients.
For more information or questions about the Open House visit www.wcahospital.org or contact Linda Johnson, WCA Hospital Public Relations & Marketing at (716) 664-8614.


text:
Here's how RW members rated this race in the past (593 votes).
In short: Wow!In full: well, i've done the terminator(twice)the stickler (twice) over the hills, the monty and the horror.. but this was the one! The hardest thing I have EVER done (well in my moderate 3 years of running anyhow)!. Maybe it was the added 'moisture' from the evening before or the fact that I had to literally stop 3 times in the river/bog/quicksand to stop myself from hyperventilating myself to death :) - a big thanx to everyone there who encouraged me along.. spectators and runners alike. Anyone who has not yet taken the plunge...sorry about the pun! get this in your diary for next yearDate of review: November 9, 2008
In short: Wet conditions made it the most challenging Slog I've done In full: My 4th time at this excellent race and I reckon the conditions made it the hardest yet.Shame about the course changes-I love the lake!Thanks to the excellent marshalls as usual in particular the man at the end of the underpass near the finish who called be gorgeous when I definetely was n't!!Looking forward to doing it all again next year.Date of review: November 9, 2008
In short: I can still taste the mud. Glorious.Date of review: November 9, 2008
Visit the official Runner's World page
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About Runner's World


text:
Next week, the Union College community will hear from one of only two women in the United States to be exonerated from death row.
On Wednesday, Nov. 20, Sabrina Butler, who was released from death row after a long and horrific battle, will be on campus as part of the "Kentucky Exoneree Tour." She will be speaking at noon in the Patridge Conference Room inside the Patridge Campus Center. This event is free and open to the public.
According to the Rev. David Miller, college minister, her story is "one any young parent could relate to."
On April 12, 1989, Butler found her nine-month-old son unresponsive and not breathing. After trying to revive him through CPR, she took him to the hospital where he died. The bruises on her son's chest from CPR were incorrectly identified as a result of child abuse, and within hours, 17-year-old Butler was charged with capital murder. She was convicted and later sentenced to die by lethal injection July 2, 1990.
After five years in prison and 33 months on death row, Butler was exonerated after new evidence surfaced indicating her son actually died from a kidney disorder.
She will be on campus to share her experience as a death row inmate and speak about her stance against the death penalty. A representative from the Kentucky Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty will present a copy of her book, Exonerated: The Sabrina Butler Story, to a member of the audience as a door prize.
For more information about the event, contact Miller at 606-546-1291. For more information about Butler and her story, visit her website at http://sabrinabulter.webs.com.


text:
Bella Hadid Goes Braless in Completely Sheer Top. See the Eye-Popping Pics
- 10:45 AM, Jan 21
Broadcast Television Journalists Association's 3rd Annual Critics' Choice Television Awards
Photo credit: FayesVision / WENN
To fit your screen, we scale this picture smaller than its actual size. The original picture size is 687x1000 pixels and this photo has been viewed 2698 times since June 10, 2013


text:
E-Z UP 10' x 10' Express II Canopy Duralon Sidewalls
Product Information:
Turn your Express II Canopy into a one-room privacy shelter with the E-Z UP® 10' x 10' Express II Canopy Duralon Sidewalls. Don't let rain and wind ruin your picnic, attach these sidewalls to your current tent and zip together the corners for 360° protection and privacy. Sidewalls are crafted from 250D polyester fabric and are water and flame resistant.
- Designed for use with Express II 10' x 10' canopy
- Perfect way to obtain privacy, security and shade in open areas
- 250D polyester fabric
- Flame resistant materials meets CPAI-84 requirements
- Zippers on vertical edges make joining walls easy
- 4-pack includes 3 standard and one mid-zip wall
Country of Origin: ChinaWeb ID: 13292686
Customer Reviews:
Rated 3.7 out of 5�by 9 reviewers.
Rated 5 out of 5�by Jeff sidewalls Love them, they work great. Keeps telling me my review is too short. I will not volunteer my opinion because I have limited time. They work great for me. The end May 12, 2016
Rated 5 out of 5�by john was surprised to see it was acutal ez-up product GREAT have had my ez-up canopy 10x10 for 15 plus years ,this was the only part never bought ,wish I would of years a go ,ez-up products I can say are of QUALITY , been used primariley for scouting so as anybody knows how children can be this canopy has held up and by the way no velcro to close the front GREAT and YES I would recommend to ANYBODY September 24, 2015
Rated 1 out of 5�by Gemwueen Overpriced These are overpriced and poor quality . Will not holdup on bad weather September 16, 2015
Rated 5 out of 5�by Nrose29 Excellent! For those who were expecting the canopy AND the sidewalls, I say READ THE DESCRIPTION. No need to dig deep... July 2, 2015
Rated 5 out of 5�by wolfbrowneyes E-Z UP 10' x 10' Express II Canopy Duralon Sidewalls people need to read better even i could tell it was just the side walls. this was very easy to put up and it did its purpuse March 15, 2015
Rated 1 out of 5�by dissapointed Thought it was the whole canopy... I purchased this for a bridal event I have coming up quickly and was very disappointed. It just showed up and is only the sidewalls. It may be my fault for overlooking it, but I didn't know I needed to dig so deep to see that I was only purchasing the sidewalls. January 6, 2015
Rated 2 out of 5�by dickie ONLY WALLS NOT ENTIRE SET thought it was the whole tent, came only with walls July 2, 2014
Rated 4 out of 5�by ALLEYC GOOD QUALITY I THOUGHT IT WAS A COMPLETE CANOPY BUT WAS ONLY THE WALLS. March 14, 2014
Rated 5 out of 5�by fishbuster Ez up sidewalls excellent product, good material much better quality highly recommend. Set comes with 4 sidewalls. January 18, 2014
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text: Henry Rounsaville Dusenbery (1794–1852) of Rowan County, NC, was the son of Samuel Dusenbery (1758–1829) and Leodocia "Docey" Rounsaville (b. abt. 1769). A merchant, tanner, and farmer, he served as a postmaster (1818), justice of the peace, and elder of the First Presbyterian Church of Lexington, NC (1832). He married Lydia Davis (1797–1857) in 1819, and they became the parents of eight children: Mary, James Lawrence, Edwin Lafayette, Laura Ann, Henry Mcrorie, Cornelia Lydia, William Brevard, and Mary Elizabeth. Before his death he invested in a mill and in the North Carolina Railroad, which reached Lexington in 1856. By 1850, according to census data, he owned 800 acres and approximately $10,000 worth of real estate. He and his wife are buried in the Lexington City Cemetery.


text:
Our most durable 3-layer performance riding jacket, the Primo Jacket has a highly articulated fit for freedom of movement and is built for the abuse of charging day after day. Constructed with 3-layer GORE-TEX® fabric for durably waterproof/breathable and windproof protection.
The construction of 3-Layer GORE-TEX® Products is unique. A 3-layer GORE-TEX® membrane is sandwiched between a soft outer material and a knit polyester backing material that increases durability. These garments keep you comfortable and protected from the elements without adding extra bulk or weight.
The GORE-TEX® membrane has 9 billion pores per square inch, with each pore 20,000 times smaller than a water droplet. These tiny holes are too small for water and wind to pass through from the outside. But these same pores are large enough for moisture vapor to pass through, so your body's perspiration is able to escape and you won't feel clammy or uncomfortable inside your jacket.
We promote fair labor practices, safe working conditions and environmental responsibility throughout the Patagonia supply chain.
Below are the suppliers that impact the Patagonia Men's Primo Jacket
View our supply chain


text:
Alex and Conner Bailey's world is about to change, in this fast-paced adventure that uniquely combines our modern day world with the enchanting realm of classic fairytales.
The Land of Stories tells the tale of twins Alex and Conner. Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, they leave their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic where they come face-to-face with the fairy tale characters they grew up reading about.
But after a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.
©2012 Chris Colfer (P)2012 Hachette Audio
"The kids loved it- and so did we!"
I downloaded this book for a car trip with our 9 and 6 year olds. The story was very engaging- they even put down their Nintendo DS's in favor of listening to the book! The review I read indicated it was for 6-11 year olds; not happy about the word 'bastardized' in the first few chapters (luckily it went over their heads). My only other negative is that the narrator did not always annunciate well, so although it was a usual speech pattern that we hear, it was sometimes hard to understand.
"Delightful! Entertaining! And beautifully written!"
I Seriously LOVE this book! It was well written, it brought back to life the fairy tale characters I grew up with. I loved the back stories to many of the characters, as well as the new characters added. I wish this were a book when I was younger. I am 22 and still appreciated this book. It was a treat to read, I was sucked right in. I had it on my iphone so I listened to it where ever I went.
There are so many, where to begin? Well for once it made me laugh. I loved the part where Conner thought that Alex was going insane. I also liked Goldilocks's character.
This is his first, and it was done spectacularly! His vocal range is amazing allowing him to voice the male and female characters quite well. His "classic" accent was just adorable.
YES! Absolutely! I couldn't because it was 9hours. But that didn't stop me from trying.
I loved this book! It brought back memories of fairytales I've listened to when I was a little girl. I'd recommend this to anyone. All ages.
I'm a mother, a teacher and terribly dyslexic. I spend a lot of my time listening to podcast, or audiobooks whilst doing other boring tasks.
"Read just how you'd want a fairy tale to be read!"
Yes, I believe it is as you gain insight into how he envisage this world. When you listen to this author telling the story it is quite clear that it means a great deal to him. He uses different voices for each character, which is just how a fairy tale should be read. The book is aimed at 8 and above so for children who may struggle, as I did as a child, to read by themselves the audio version is the perfect companion to the written text.
The emotions felt by each and every character leave a lasting impression. The way the story reminds us that each and every one of us has a story of how we are who we are today. Also he has obviously thought a lot about this fairy tale land and has included details that make you feel like you know the place too.
The different voices, intonation and stresses he gives to the words clearly gives you a better idea, and feeling, for what is really happening in the story. You are able to form a first impression quickly, just like you do in real life, with greater ease than if you read it yourself.
The beginning of the book made me cry, really cry. The empathy for the children was built quickly as you felt you knew them. I also laughed at the on going sarcasm of the young boy in the story.
This story is magical and I strongly recommend it. You may not want to read it to younger than 8 as its plot may be a little over the heads of most 7 year olds (causing them to be continually asking you questions..which can be good but also annoying!). I'm quite sure my 5 year old would be rather scared by some parts and very sadden by others. Other people may also not want there under 8s to hear slightly "bad" language (depending on your definition of bad, crap is said once I think) so really it's far from offensive.It has also made me go back and read the original fairy tales, I read as a little girl, to my daughter.. Not all of them as she's a scardy cat! Hope you enjoy the book, I did and I'm way outside its intended age bracket, then again I was with Harry Potter too!
"so much potential!"
I really, REALLY want to love this book ... but, I just can't ... yet!
The creative story line is fabulous! The repetitive use of words, isn't.
On occasion, a passage with repeated words adds to a scene. Over use of such passages simply irritates. (This isn't from the book, but something akin to the kind of thing I mention: "he sat up and found himself in complete darkness. she also found herself in darkness. they couldn't see anything in the darkness. how would they find the path in this darkness? they couldn't see each other in the darkness. all around them was darkness. even shadows went unseen, blending fully into the darkness."
I generally LOVE when an author reads their own book. And this author does a great job at character voices. However, I found it feels like speed reading at times; almost tripping over words.
I could not wish more that this was a pre-screen of the book before editing ... so I could look forward to hearing the "final version."
"Kept my kids quiet for hours!"
Haven't yet had a chance to read the print version, but the audio book was so compelling, we're buying a copy soon.
The story was well told and not at all "dumbed down" for the kids.
He performs each character differently which makes it much easier for the kids (and grown ups) to keep track of who is speaking. He is a fabulous storyteller.
We listened to much of this audio book in the car on a long trip. It kept my highly energetic kids (7 and 11) quiet and riveted for nearly 10 hours!
I have fallen in love all over again with reading. Only now I do it with my ears instead of my eyes!
"Really Interesting"
I'm 7 years old and I loved this audio story. My favorite part was when Goldilocks saved Alex and Connor.
"Great Audible listen!"
I would listen to "The Land of Stories" again because it is the most entertaining, adventurous, and magical tale of any that I have listened to since joining Audible (and maybe even of any that I have read on my own). Sometimes you just need a lovely story to lift your spirit. I laughed, felt empathy for the characters - both villains and heroes alike, and rejoiced when the feel-good ending I anticipated could finally come true. This story fulfills a bunch of requirements for me, wrapped up into one fantastic book. That's why it's an instant classic and favorite for me, and I am eagerly expecting a sequel! Thank you Chris Colfer!
SPOILER! When Alex and Conner Bailey start to realize that their father had a special connection to The Land of Stories, it seems to empower them by giving them a deeper sense of self-worth as well as the hopeful feeling that their father's legacy is continuing even after his death. I felt a unique connection to this story because I read it after doing a lot of family history research and realizing the amazing family that I have come from (almost like getting to know them after they're long gone). My own awareness of my family's character and achievements has made me feel like a stronger person just as I'm sure Alex and Conner would have felt after learning of their father's family history, so that part of the story gave me a lovely and heart-felt personal connection to savor.
While I'll agree with other readers that this story contains a lot of tales that have already been told, I can't agree that this story is old in and of itself. I really appreciate the way Colfer incorporated the familiar stories and characters with a completely new take on those characters' perspectives, motives, and their current day existence in another dimension. He adds to the complexities of the old stories by further developing them in surprising ways. I'm not a particularly big fan of fairytales, but I wanted to read this book because I'm a fan of Chris Colfer's acting in Glee and I'm also an elementary school educator, so I was naturally curious about the book on different levels. Not only was I pleasantly surprised that Colfer's first book was so completely entertaining (especially the Audible listen - so fun) and thoughtful (there are some really inspiring quotes in this story), I think a large range of kids will enjoy this story as well. It is amusing to have a more modern perspective from the Bailey twins on the fairy tales we already know. If you're looking for a fun, feel-good listen then this could be it!
"Not just for the little ones"
I thought of this one for grandkids and found that I really enjoyed this read. A whole new look at the classic fairy tales that truly drew me in. I would be interested in more from this author and would not hesitate to download more if offered on Audible.
"Good plot line but bad writing ruins it."
A different narrator. Chris Colfer should not be reading his own story. As a matter of fact, he should not be writing this story. The Land of Stories is overrun with simple statements, cliches, and similes to the point that I had to stop listening to it.
The action does not even begin until Chapter 5. I was continually rolling my eyes as I listened along to this terribly written story. There are much better children's book authors out there to listen to than waste time on this.
He read the book as if it was the first time he had ever seen the words. I was stunned to learn that he was an actor.
The plot idea was a good one. This audio book needed an author with talent and a background in writing. Simple sentences and similes do not a good book make.
The longer I listened to the story, the more I disliked it and the author. Stopped at Chapter 13. I just could not tolerate a minute more of Chris Colfer reading in a See Jane Run style of sentences.
Report Inappropriate Content
If you find this review inappropriate and think it should be removed from our site, let us know. This report will be reviewed by Audible and we will take appropriate action.


text:
Are you about to start your online college career? Did you know that many …
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text:
Celestron AstroMaster 90AZ Telescope
- 90 mm (3.5") diameter refractor
- 1000 mm focal length (f/11)
- Altazimuth mount
- Built-on StarPointer finderscope
- 20 mm eyepiece (50x) 1.25"
- 10 mm eyepiece (100x) 1.25"
- Erect image diagonal 1.25
- Adjustable height 1.25" steel leg tripod with accessory tray
- "The Sky X" First Lightedition CD-ROM
The AstroMaster 90AZ Refractor by Celestron is a great beginner telescope . User-friendly with minimal set up and maintenance, the Celestron AstroMaster 90AZ Refractor features great optical and mechanical quality, so instead of fussing too much with the equipment, you can enjoy the view. Using a lens system to produce images, this Celestron AstroMaster 90AZ Refractor is a great portable telescope for night lunar, planetary, star and daytime terrestrial observation.Features and Benefits:
If you're looking for a dual-purpose telescope appropriate for both terrestrial and celestial viewing, then the AstroMaster Series is for you. Each AstroMaster model is capable of giving correct views of land and sky.The AstroMaster Series produce bright, clear images of the Moon and planets. It is easy to see the moons of Jupiter and the rings of Saturn with every one of these fine instruments.
Please note: this item is excluded from storewide promotions
Read MoreLess
More Details
- Weight: 20
- Dimensions: 42"L x 15"W x 10"H
(This product includes a shipping surcharge of $4.95.)
Availability: In Stock
Ready to ship in 3-5 BUSINESS DAYS


text:
You signed up _just_ to write indecipherably and defend a dead girl from a forum known for being assholes to the living She's dead, fam. She doesn't need defending. She doesn't care. I don't care. Do any of _you_ care?
^ _ ^ :3 Omigoddddddd
Hey SHITHEAD!!!
Looks like u cared enough to give ur brainless opinion. Speaks for yourself bc there are people that cares and she definitely cared. Just bc she's dead to u doesn't mean she's dead to others. What a bunch of pussies acting tough talking shit on a dead 15 yrs old girl behind ur computer screen. Lets said some asshole kills ur entire family bc they raised a careless asshole like u... Are u going to tell the cops to forget it bc they're dead??? They're dead so why defend them right??? Put a dildo in ur mouth and stop eating shit bc u are what u eats...
That was literally the worst analogy I have heard in months


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Michael,Looks goodglad you are getting closer to the pizza of your memories...! Was this recipe with yeast?
Mike: That is a great looking pizza there! I have been looking for a pizza this same way myself and have come close with BTB's Thin crust Semolina dough. By any chance would you be willing to share your recipe?? Would greatly appreciate it. I too have missed the pizzas that I had up north before moving to Florida. NO good pizza here in Orlando unless I make it myself. Thanks for the memories!
what is "KAAP and 40% KABF"? Why is it necessary to use letters instead of complete verbs? Is it that you all can't spell?
Oh we can spell alright....can you? G-L-O-S-S-A-R-Y !!!
Here lay the obstreperous issue with composing, typing and posting 5+ posts per day, consistently spelling out King Arthur All Purpose flour =or= King Arthur Bread Flour; this is a protracted episode of boring frustration (and maybe even tiring to keyboard hovering hands). Abbreviation is really an exercise of circumventionhonestly.
Looks like a very tasty curve.
. I wonder what these forums would be like if the responders were to respond less frequently and when they did respond, the response would have enough substance that it would be deserving of complete sentences that would convey a complete thought process that would allow casual readers an opportunity to learn of your wisdom without having to search for the beginning of a thread.
I find it hard to believe that you would be bored with spelling out words. That my question generated so many responses leads me to conclude that your boredom cannot be blamed on my question but perhaps on the fact that you really have nothing to say but that void doesn't deter you from responding whenever you have the opportunity to do so. I wonder what these forums would be like if the responders were to respond less frequently and when they did respond, the response would have enough substance that it would be deserving of complete sentences that would convey a complete thought process that would allow casual readers an opportunity to learn of your wisdom without having to search for the beginning of a thread.As it is, your abbreviated comments are not sufficient to entice the reader to benefit from your knowledge, that is, if your knowledge actually exists.In this particular instance, I am curious why King Arthur brand flour is so important to producing cracker crusts. Is this just a name dropping or is there something unique about the King Arthur flour? I am sure there is more than one grade or characteristic of that brand of flour. The fact that a blend was suggested and that the non-King Arthur portion of the blend was not particularly specified ( unless you consider all-purpose as being specific), leaves me with the feeling that the specifics of the flour are not really that important. Therefore the use of KABF was superfluous had it been written out, I would not have wasted everyone's time with the question.
First and foremost, this thread/conversation is going nowhere and not particularly pleasantly eitherbad places for pizzamaking.com in particular. I have been reading and learning, posting and actively participating in this community for over 5 yearsand unlike many other forums I have participated in (including various interests such as aquaria, other forms of home cooking, vintage sports cars, dogs, parrots, and professional companion animal grooming), pizzamaking.com has almost universally been a very friendly and upbeat and non-confrontive and supportive place that is very focused on what the topic of the site ishome pizza making of various styles with sharing of knowledge and techniques (often in extensive detail including photography). So I apologize if I went smart-ass on your comment about abbreviations. It just is so common here among the regulars; as well as being so uncommon around here to have negative criticisms concerningwell, almost anything. So, for me (and I invite all others), enough of this conversation with a critical edge and un-helpful slant...
This episode has prompted me to think about putting together a list of some of the most common abbreviations used by members on the forum, especially since the forum's search engines other than the Google Custom Search feature do not do a good job on abbreviations for some reason. That list might be put in the form of a sticky on the Forum Information board of the forum and referenced whenever a member raises a question about a particular abbreviation. The existence of that sticky might be made a part of the introductory process used by the forum.


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Compare Jaguar Garages and Specialists in Wolverhampton with Who Can Fix My Car.
Enter your registration to check prices and reviews, and get your Jaguar booked in today!
Compare Jaguar Garages and Specialists in Wolverhampton with Who Can Fix My Car.
Currently they have my freelander to do a head gasket replacement Confirmed on numerous occasions that it will only take 2-3days ...so knowing that I need my car in Working order this Friday (meaning tomorrow) I arranged for it to be collected on Tuesday giving them plenty of time and even confirming again that I need my car back on Friday ...'yeah no problem they said' So today I give a call only to be today that it will take till Monday as someone is off...now that is not my problem! From I confirm not once note even twice but 5 times that it will take a Max of 3days and that I need it back by Friday and I'm told 'no problem' I expect as the customer for my expectations to managed accordingly others wise I would of had someone else do I have now been told hopefully it should be done by tomorrow and it needs to as I have to move out on Saturday Worst thing is no one called me to update me I had to call myself. Really hoping I get it back tomorrow as I don't like leaving a bad review on my experience Join has not been completed
Great job, replaced the belt in about half an hour and I was away. I'll happily come to them the next time my banger acts up. They're a couple of doors away from the Rob Lock academy; small sign on the door - just in case anyone else gets the same Google-confusion as me. Cheers guys
first class service
Excellent service very helpful would recommend and use again
Price as quoted, excellent customer service and quick rear brake replacement while I waited. Would recommend and use again. Thanks very much!
Excellent service throughout.. Very reasonable quote (1/3 of the price quoted by the garage which failed the MOT) and a quality job. Advised of additional work needed and evidenced it, carried it out with minimal increase to original quote. Made an error in costing (in my favour) and honoured it despite my insistence I'd happily pay. I can't fault the guys at M8, they're honest and reliable and take pride in carrying out a top job.
Spot on, quick appointment, very reasonable price, great service, really can't fault them at all! Thank you, iv found my new garage!
Good Guy, Very fair and helpful...thanks David
Thanks for the efficient and effective way that you treated my repair and maintenance of my car both by your mechanics and by your excellent and generous price quote.
great and friendly service, very happy to use them again. would recommend them to anyone. a big thank you to M8 Gear House. full service and mot done for me.
Had my clutch finally give up just after Christmas so looked around for a good price ....also needed a new alternator belt....Booked in first day back after new year, they identified a couple of issues but didnt feel like I was been bounced into getting work done that could wait . Got the additional bits fixed that needed fixing at a reasonable price ....Was concerned about going to a garage I've never been to before (small 2 man operation) but can honestly say if asked to recommend a garage they will be at the top of my list.
Quick and excellent service will definitely use again and highly recommended
Very good I will recommend this garage
Great guys. Jobs was completed fast with no hassle.
Being let down by a previous garage I asked Hayers if they could get the rear brake pads for my van. They called me back within 2hrs saying they had them. They stayed till 7.20pm to fit brakes and do tracking as I turned up late. Brilliant service really friendly staff. Will definitely use these guys again
Fantastic Garage. It's now my 2nd time at Danks Auto Repairs. They work super fast, while making sure that the job is done to a very high standard. Prices are fantastic and the staff are very freindly. My favourite garage to go to in the West Midlands. Superb!!! A++++
Great job, nice people, would use again
Took my car in to get the front part of the exhaust fixed, another problem occured as he was removing the exhaust, the back part had rusted away and fell off, he showed me the parts that were faulty and managed to get a replacement delivered and fitted quickly and at a decent price. Overall I would recommend this garage and I will be giving them a call next time I need any work doing.
Had my timing belt changed, a while back. At a very good price. The service was good, as they were willing to pick up and drop off the car for me. Which was a huge plus. Also they did my full service at the same time at a really good price. So all in all they ticked all the boxes
Great service. Picked up and delivered which was a bonus. Had to have extra work done due to a siezed bolt on suspension, which was extra cost but overall a 5 star service. Will recommend and use again.
Quality service, amazing facilities, all round top notch, will definitely use them again
Great customer service! Higly recommended!
The staff are very friendly there has a good vibe about the place and staff ran me through everything that had been done the only thing i would change is the qouting Was originally qouted £240 but once i had dropped the car off and left i recived a phone call to say it would now cost me £370 to do the job but the work has been carried out to a high standard and am very pleased
Brilliant no fuss service! Will definitely use again. Cheers!
Best garage I have ever been too. Very helpful and gave honest advice. Darren provided lots of information about what was carried out . You can tell they put customer service first. Can't recommend enough.
Premium parts used as requested. A great job I would definitely recommend
Did front brakes and oil change for me. Excellent service,at an excellent price. I will be using this guy for all of my service needs in future.
Happy, would use again!
I would recommend this service to anyone Reece was polite and prompt. Nothing was a trouble to him and he checked a couple of things that I wanted looking at. All in all a pleasure to deal with will definately use again


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Many ways to carry on a on-line discussion
There are many ways to carry on discussions and debates on the internet: among
the most widespread tools for such an activity A/I Collective provides
Mailing lists.
Recently since a lot of mailing lists where being used as newsletters we decided to provide a specific tool to manage such communication activity.
Before proceeding further be sure to have read our policy and remember our project survives solely thanks to our users donations and to the collective members voluntary work!
Mailing lists and Newsletters
A mailing list is basically a list of email addresses to which one wants to deliver messages: a mail is sent to a specific address on our servers and a software delivers it to all the accounts included in the list.
A mailing list can be open to anyone to write (open lists) or limited to subscribed mail addresses, or even to some specific ones (closed lists). Furthermore archives of the list messages can be available on the web for anyone to read (public lists) or limited to those wielding a subscription password (private lists). In any case the messages will be delivered to all those subscribed (ie: included) in the list directly in their mailboxes.
Important warning on privacy: mind that if a list is public, the messages sent through it will end up sooner or later on Google and other search engines, so think carefully where are you sending your emails.
Mailing list are very useful communication and coordination tools especially for projects involving people very far away one from the others. There are no fixed guidelines on how to write on a list but be sure to check out local customs and etiquette.
If you want to know which public lists are being hosted on A/I servers, check out our hosted list page and our public list archive.
If you simply want to subscribe to a list click on it on our mailing list page and fill in the
form. Depending on how the list is configured you will be asked to confirm your
subscription or to wait for the administrator opinion on it.
If you want to open a new public or private list please proceed to our request page. Mind that if you want a tool to send periodic news around about your or your organization activities you'll want to ask for a newsletter and not simply for a mailing list. Be sure to check the right option in our form!


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Top 10 Typecast Male Action Stars
An action movie is just another feature full of explosions if it doesn't have one of these guys! As we all know, over the top violence goes well with muscle-clad heroes that spout kick ass one-liners... but more importantly, there are few other kinds of movies these guys are right for! Join WatchMojo.com as we count down our top 10 favorite Typecast Male Action Stars.


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Pure Encapsulations, Hyaluronic Acid, 180 Capsules (Discontinued Item)
Shipping Weight:?0.2 lbs (0.09 kg)Shipping WeightThe Shipping Weight includes the product, protective packaging material and the actual shipping box. In addition, the Shipping Weight may be adjusted for the Dimensional Weight (e.g. length, width & height) of a package. It is important to note that certain types of products (e.g. glass containers, liquids, fragile, refrigerated or ice packed) will often require protective packaging material. As such, these products will reflect a higher Shipping Weight compared to the unprotected product.
- Product Code: PES-00604
- UPC Code: 766298006048
- Package Quantity: 180 Capsules
- Dimensions: 2.3 x 2.3 x 3.9 in, 0.15 lbs (0.07 kg)
- Pure Encapsulations- Your Trusted Source
- Hypo-Allergenic Dietary Supplement
Hyaluronic acid, or HA, is a naturally occurring polymer found in every tissue of the body. It is particularly concentrated in the skin and in synovial fluid but decreases with aging. Many sources of HA consist of large molecular weight compounds that are too large to be absorbed in the intestines. HyaMax sodium hyaluronate provides a low molecular weight source of hyaluronic acid produced through fermentation. In a pharmacokinetic study, orally administered HyaMax hyaluronic acid was incorporated into joints, connective tissue and skin, with a particular affinity for cartilaginous joints. HA functions include attracting and retaining water in the extracellular matrix of tissues. For skin cells, this is essential for proper cell-to-cell communication, hydration, nutrient delivery, and waste and toxin elimination. It also appears to support the skin by promoting healthy turnover and renewal of keratinocytes, moderating the appearance of fine lines and age spots. For joints, HA is especially supportive of healthy lubrication and shock absorption. Furthermore, in vitro studies indicate that HA modulates prostaglandin production, providing additional support for joint function.
Suggested Use
As a dietary supplement, take 1-2 capsules daily, in divided doses, with or between meals.
Other Ingredients
Hypo-allergenic plant fiber (cellulose), vegetarian capsule (cellulose, water)
This encapsulated product contains no hidden coating, excipients, binders, fillers, shellacs, artificial colors or fragrance. Contains no dairy, wheat, yeast, gluten, corn, sugar, starch, soy, preservatives or hydrogenated oils.
Store sealed in a cool dry area
Tamper Resistant: Use only if safety seal is intact.
If pregnant, consult your physician before taking this or any other product.
Keep out of the reach of children.
|Supplement Facts
|Serving Size: 1 capsule
|Serving Per Container: 180
|Amount Per Serving
|%Daily Value
|Hyaluronic acid (low molecular weight)
|70 mg
|*Daily Value not established.


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Here's how RW members rated this race (311 votes).
In short: very enjoyable & good courseDate of review: March 26, 2007
In short: Excellent marathon training, scenic, nice supportersDate of review: March 26, 2007
In short: Good pre- London Marathon race when ran as a training runDate of review: March 26, 2007
In short: Well organised and thank you to marshals for their supportIn full: Only thing I would add is that if slower people are starting at the front, can they please not run 4 abreast on the first few narrow roads thus preventing people from getting past and into their stride. Otherwise a great run.Date of review: March 26, 2007
In short: One of the best races aroundIn full: Excellent marshalls, friendly runners, great country running and the best value run around (£7 for 21 miles!). Date of review: March 26, 2007
In short: Great run for marathon training In full: I tried not to race this event as I am running Boston marathon next month, but got swept up and ran a little quicker than expected.The mile markers were spot on, drink stations at the right places, well marshalled & good signage.Only minor niggles- would be nice to have some nosh (mars bar pieces/raisons etc) especially in the latter food stations; a drink table at the end of the funnel is also needed. I'll be backDate of review: March 26, 2007
In short: very well organised, stewards where one would expect them and enough drinks stationsIn full: a warning to other runners, don't wear a thermal vest on such an event under two other tops, it doesn't help performance. A timely reminder for London! Only just made the cut, the stewards were standing there with the tape poised and struggled due to the above for the final loop. Definitely one for London preparation. Date of review: March 25, 2007
In short: good sign posting and well marshalledDate of review: March 25, 2007
In short: Flat 21.2 Miles, A Few Loops, Early StartIn full: :-)Seems to always be the day the clock goes forward and with a 9am start that means you are really on the start line at what seems like 8am.Mile markers, excellent water/squash station provision, good marshalling and the mental torture of a 'decide during the race' 15.1 mile or 21.2 mile option. This means that all the way from mile 12 your mind will be playing tricks on you trying to tell you that the sensible thing to do is to take the 15 mile finish.Ideal pre-FLM race. Enter early, it fills up fast.Date of review: March 25, 2007
In short: Date of review: March 25, 2007
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