Sunday, December 25, 2011 at 01:04PM Today Christians around the world celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. I would like to think, like Crocodile Dundee, that Jesus and I are mates. And I say Happy Birthday to Jesus, and Merry Christmas to all who celebrate His birthday with me. This is a joyous day!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011 at 11:40AM On June 30, I retired from my career of 28 years at the Department of Energy. It was a great career, but in later years my dormant entrepreneurial gene exploded into my life and I find much pleasure in private small business.
Thus, the primary reason I retired is so that I can now work on some plans and aspirations I have had for The Cellar now for over three years but have never had the time to accomplish them.
Stay tuned for more on this, but here is a preview of a couple of our plans:
Ask me about these and more ideas next time you are in, which I hope will be soon.
Let's taste a wine and chat.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 at 01:17AM 
So today is Michele's Birthday. I don't think she is all that excited for another year to have passed, but it is what it is. She turns %#&@#*! today, I think. Recently I talked a bit about how we met, but here is how I won her heart, at least according to my memory, which is razor sharp. The picture here is of Michele as she turned 16 years old - I had known her since she was 14, and by this time I was thinking she was way too cute to just be friends with. A good friend and I had gone up into the San Bernardino Mountains near Big Bear (if you know where that is I'm impressed). I knew I wanted to ask that 'stone fox' out, but needed something to break the ice. So I cut down a small pine tree and brought it back to town where I presented it to Michele as an off-the-wall way of saying "I like you". Well - she must have liked the tree, because when I asked her out a few days later she said yes. Our first date was on December 12th, my dad's and her brother's Birthday. The rest is our history. It took me a very short period of time to fall in love with her, and it has only grown since then. BTW - I have a picture of her with the Christmas tree, but couldn't find it. But I will soon, and will publish it as well.
Happy Birthday, Michele.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010 at 04:39PM I will mince no words. Inviting comment and argument.
There are two wines that are perfect with Turkey: Pinot Noir and Dry Riesling.
A good earthy Pinot Noir will pair perfectly with the vegetables and mushrooms and potatoes and gravy used with turkey. It is not too heavy to cover up the meal, but holds its own well both the turkey itself and nearly all accompaniments.
A good dry Riesling - Alsace and German are my favorites - with just a touch of sweetness in the front palate and plenty of acidity and minerality to compliment the food, is just the ticket for those who enjoy white wine over red with a nice meal.
While Pinot's can be pretty expensive, they are worth it for this special occasion - and there are several that can be purchased at good value. Try River's Edge from central Oregon - very nice. And, you can find a good Riesling very reasonably priced at any wine shop and many nicer grocery stores.
Happy Turkey Day.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010 at 10:42PM No matter where you choose to eat, and especially at home, more people are recognizing the importance of eating fresh and healthy foods. Seasonal fruits and vegetables help keep our bodies in balance and provide alkalinity to counter-balance all of the acids we tend to eat too often.
Try fresh parsnips and beets and fennel and brussels sprouts next time you feel like just roasting some fun vegetables. And don't be shy about asking a local chef how to prepare them to maintain as much nutrition as possible.
Also consider more salads with large varieties of lettuces and other vegetables - they are wonderful at cleansing your system.