Vinicultured: A Wine Blog

I just received word that The Wine Specialist at 2115 M Street has received its exemption from the ban on the single sales of beer.  Trey, one of their associates, tells me that they’re getting beers back in stock but that it might take a little while for The Wine Specialist to get back to its former beery glory.

One note: the days of the “mix and match” six pack are over.  DC won’t allow mixed-producer packs, though it will allow singles of specialty beers (e.g. Belgian and German beers).

That being said, head on over to The Wine Specialist and receive a special 15% discount on singles of specialty beer until March 7.  I wonder if there are any other stores that have received an exemption…

Today I woke to gorgeous weather: the bright sun shining unhindered by cloud, smog, or fog, the temperature reading at a relatively warm 55 degrees.  I then had the good fortune of scheduling a Sunday brunch with my friends Dre and Mia from California (Dre works in California, and Mia works for the State Department), and, feeling warm and good and content I decided to postpone work by calling Megan for a cappuccino at Illy.

Based on Alex’s early-morning observation that a jacket was unnecessary, I decided to dress in a shirt and light sweater, and instead of wearing shoes decided on my much-neglected pair of Rainbows.  Thus clad, I went outside and was greeted by the most beautiful weather I had experienced in a while.  It was so wonderful, in fact, that Megan and I decided to take our drinks outside, where we talked at the little patch of grass between 22nd, M, and New Hampshire.

There are certain moments that seem archetypal, aren’t there, where sipping a coffee in the sun isn’t just a contemporaneous event but a continuance from your past.  It’s like having two mirrors facing each other: you look at one mirror and see your reflection repeated endlessly and endlessly behind you.  This moment with Megan drinking coffee on the bench transported me back to memories of Berkeley, where you could find me on any number of their infinite perfect days reading a novel with an iced Americano underneath shady trees.

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After a light day at school, I am at home relaxing with a tuna-and-olive oil sandwich and a glass of Brasserie Dupont’s Foret, a delicious organic Belgian Saison ale that clocks in at a very moderate 7.5% ABV.  It is a darker amber color, with a nice head and a taste evocative of pine and apples (maybe even a touch of pineapple).  It’s a good combination with the (canned) tuna, which I mixed with olive oil, a bit of mayo, dried dill, pepper, and a bit of Hungarian paprika.  The beer even goes well with the song I’m listening to: Dylan’s “Goin’ to Acapulco” as covered by Calexico and vocals by Jim James of My Morning Jacket.  (Thanks to my roomate Alex for this musical recommendation.)

Unfortunately, the reason I am drinking Foret at 2:15 in the afternoon is that I bought a bunch of single bottles of great Belgian, German, and American craftbrews at the Wine Specialist at a markdown of 20%.  A markdown of 20% is awesome for anyone, but that markdown was caused by a recent DC council resolution that bans single sales of beer, including 40s of malt liquor but including things like singles of Coors or 750 mL bottles of Brasserie Dupont’s Foret.

Apparently such a ban had been in effect in various DC wards for over a year, but is now being implemented on a larger scale.  Local liquor stores such as the Wine Specialist and Riverside Liquors are applying for exemptions, but the exemption process may take up to two or three months.

The ban takes effect on Monday, February 9, which means that you won’t be able to buy singles of any beer or malt liquor at most places until at least April or May.  You will, however, be able to purchase single bottles at Whole Foods, which was able to get an exemption.

This ban implicates issues of public safety, littering, alcoholism, crime, etc., etc.  I can see the logic behind it, but the method certainly seems draconian.  I am tempted to say that only certain types of alcohol should be subject to the ban, such as malt liquor, but then socioeconomic factors and equal protection concerns come into play.  Some suggestions are that beers below 70 ounces but above 40 ounces should be allowed, or beers above $4.00, but the same issues arise.  On the other hand, the Wine Specialist estimates that beer sales make up about 11-12% of their total sales, which could mean the difference between profitability and bankruptcy in these tough economic times.

In the short term: go to your local liquor/beer/wine shop and buy beers!  The Wine Specialist, as I mentioned above, is liquidating its singles stock at 20% until Monday, February 9.  Other shops probably have similar deals going on.  In the long term–tighten your belts around your livers.

Dude, what the fuck.

Sorry, I have to use profanity here.  Hersey, which bought Scharffen Berger back in 2005, said Tuesay that it plans on closing its West Berkeley chocolate factory sometime this year.

Hershey already makes most of the chocolate labeled as Scharffen Berger at its Robinson, Illinois plant.

Hersey spokesman Kirk Saville said: “We will continue to source the world’s best cacao to create our rich and distinct chocolate.  We will maintain the highest quality standard for all our artisan productions.”

That’s like someone saying they’re going to make Burgundy in California.  Californian pinot noirs can be great, but they are never going to be Burgundies.

What a terrible time for Sharffen Berger fans, Berkeleyites, and foodies everywhere.  What a terrible time, too, for John Sharffenberger, who in 1996 founded the company with his doctor friend Robert Steinberg.

Steinberg died of cancer in September of last year.  Deborah Kwan, a publicist for Sharffen Berger, uttered perhaps the saddest words I’ve read in a while: “I’m glad Robert is not alive to see this.

“If the lymphoma hadn’t taken him, this would have.”

(Thank you to the SF Chronicle for the primary article and North Bay Bohemian’s BohoBlog for the picture.)

During law school orientation we had a speaker talk to us about the dangers of drug and alcohol addiction.  As could reasonably be deduced, lawyers were disproportionately likely to become addicted to AODs.

(All throughout that presentation, heads turned back and forth and bodies shifted a bit in their seats.  If orientation was any indication of our future careers in law, we were all doomed.)

I came across an interesting blog post from the New York Times tonight regarding alcoholism.  What’s especially interesting about it is that it emphasizes the environmental or social aspect of alcoholism:

If alcoholism is an addiction — which it is — how can people control their drinking just because it is no longer acceptable to get drunk? What about smoking, another addiction? Addicts are supposed to be powerless; is a little social disapproval more powerful than all the rehabilitation centers and 12-step programs and fancy new drugs?

Does fashion trump addiction?

Addiction specialists and scientists have identified three causes of most addictions: early trauma, genes, and environment. Still, addiction has eluded all attempts at a precise definition or a complete understanding. In most models, environment is thought to be the least of the three so-called causes. But maybe environment is the elephant in the room. In an environment where it is not attractive to get drunk, no one gets drunk.

No one likes a sloppy drunk, but everybody likes to have a good time.

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