Every now and then, seemingly on a regular occasion, representatives of publishing, including bloggers (even WINE bloggers) engage in a conversation about "objectivity". It's a good conversation to have because a good publisher needs to be as objective as possible about the information they provide their readership with. Of course this need for objectivity is not universal. For example, I'm probably not the right person to ask to be objective on the issue of direct shipment of wine. That is…

As 2008 draws to a close, I've been thinking about what's happened to me over the past 12 months. In doing so, I can't seem to get my mind off of one of my favorite philosophers. Epicurus lived in Samos, in Greece, in the 3rd and 4th Century BC. His philosophy of life, in its simplest form, boiled down to this: In order to best honor this life, in order to best live a good life, one minimizes pain and…

Famed wine importer Joe Dressner has brain cancer. That's not so much my worry as is the sorry condition the cancer will be in when Joe gets done reducing it to a pulp. Joe's not someone you screw with, particularly if all you've got in your arsenal is a bit of cancer. For those of you who are not aware, Joe is one of the most respected importers in America, perhaps the very first wine blogger, and someone with literally…

If the Holidays are nothing else, they are indulgent and reverential traditions wrapped around culture and imbued with great meaning for many. I happen to like traditions very much, whether ecclesiastical or cultural. I like how they mark and illuminate profound ideas. But for someone like myself, who isn't quite as taken with the full set of traditions and meaning associated with the Christian and Jewish holidays that mark this time of year, or even with their cultural and merchandising…