Wine & DVD - Testarossa Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow and "The Shape of Things"

Testarossa Pinot Noir Sleepy Hollow Vineyard 2006 - from the Santa Lucia Highlands of California, this wonderful red was made from some of the oldest Pinot Noir vines in North America. Beautiful brick red in color with dark cherry aromas. Crisp and vibrant palate loaded with dark fruits and a bit of spice. Lovely!

"The Shape of Things" - released in 2003 and starring Paul Rudd and Rachel Weisz. Paul plays Adam, who is a shy and introverted security guard at a museum. Rachel plays Evelyn, an art student who Adam meets at the museum when Evelyn steps over the roped off area in front of a statue that she was about to deface. They begin dating and Adam starts to change, much to the chagrin of his friends.

The acting, in my humble opinion, is only so-so, but the story is excellent. This psychological drama is heart-wrenching, funny, sad and, most of all, unbelievably messed up. Hubby figured out almost from the beginning what Evelyn was up to, but I try not to look that far in advance. I follow the movie and just watch as things unfold. I was blown away at how she...

Nah, you'll just have to watch it for yourselves.

Wine & DVD - Marquis Philips Sarah's Blend & "Charulata"

Marquis Philips Sarah's Blend 2006 - a blend of Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot clocking in at 15% alcohol (no wonder I was a bit loopy!). Rich, full of delicious dark fruit. Even at that level of alcohol, it was still smooth and very succulent. Great QPR. We got it on sale for $11.99 per bottle and bought a case.

"Charulata" - (in black & white) released in 1964 and set in 1870's India, it's about a young wife (Charu) whose husband is too concerned with his newspaper to give her any consideration. Her loneliness is evident and he asks his brother (in-law?) to keep her company. Can you say "love triangle"?

I have several problems, not with the movie itself, but with the production:
The DVD looked like it was copied from a poor quality videotape
The contrast was super-high making watching the film difficult, especially with subtitles
The subtitles seemed to be a poor translation of what the characters were saying. At times the subtitles lingered far too long, at other times they moved too quickly.
The sound quality was pretty bad (pops, static, etc)
As the movie progressed, the picture got darker and darker, making it difficult to distinguish who was speaking.

So it's impossible to give a good review of the film itself since we were so distracted by the poor quality.

But...we DID see a terrific Bollywood film the previous night - "Saawariya", another love triangle theme. Released in 2007, this was the first Bollywood film to be produced and released by a Hollywood production company (Columbia TriStar), and the first Indian/Bollywood film to be released on BluRay disc.

The scenes were lavish - gorgeous cinematography, rich colors. Based on Dostoevsky's "White Nights", it was a story about Ranbir Raj who meets the lovely Sakina who is waiting for the return of Imaan. The acting was wonderful, the singing and dancing were great, the costumes...wow! This film was a visual feast. I enjoyed it so much I'd like to purchase the BluRay disc so I can watch it again (and again).

Featured Product at Wine Diva Designs

Starting this month, I will be featuring one of my products at Wine Diva Designs. This month it's "The Usual Suspects" Tote Bag, marked 20% off for the month of June!



Check it out!

A Bottle of Wine and a DVD (New Series)

I've really been neglecting my blog and I have no excuses. I'm going to do my best to get back into it though.

Pretty much every night Tom and I watch a DVD (we LOVE Netflix!) and share a bottle of wine. So as well as reviewing the wine, I'll review the DVD, too. Tonight it was Bodega Norton Malbec Reserva 2005 and The Hanging Garden.

The malbec was a beautiful dark garnet color with wonderful ripe fruit aromas. It had a nice, bold palate filled with dark fruits and a bit of tobacco. The finish lingered for a good 30 - 45 seconds. A terrific QPR at only $10.99 per bottle!

The Hanging Garden was filmed in Nova Scotia. It was about a young man who, as an unhappy obese teen, ran away from home. He comes back after 10 years, and no contact with his family, to attend his sister's wedding. There's a series of flashbacks that left us wondering if everything really was as it seemed. In parts it was lighthearted, sad and thought-provoking. Definitely worth watching!

Look what I found on Etsy...

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Etsy, it's a website where you can buy and sell handcrafted items.
Today while I was browsing the site I found this clever wine crock, made by Amanda Moon.



I thought it was just too unique not to share it with my readers :-D

New and Improved Website!

Ever since I created my (very first!) website a couple of months ago I felt that it was lacking in quality. I thought that it looked like a first website and I wanted something better.

I checked out a website called Free Website Templates and found exactly what I was looking for. With just a few minor (okay, not so minor) alterations, the new Wine Diva Designs is up.

When you get a free moment I'd love to know what you think!

For the most part everything is up and running. There are a few changes I want to make, but they're not critical.

Bennett Family Cabernet Sauvignon The Reserve 2004

photo © Linda Blakely 2008

We took this wine with us to dinner tonight. When we first opened the bottle, the wine seemed a bit thin and flabby. Tom said to let it open up a bit and not to judge it right away. With dinner it was a bit better, having some more body and fruit. We didn't finish the whole bottle, so we corked it back up to finish at home. It didn't hold up. It seemed too astringent and made my face scrunch up when I drank it. Needless to say, I didn't finish it. Definitely not impressed, especially at $25.00 per bottle.