Dr Vino's wine blog

This seen by our undercover operatives at Pottery Barn: a bag of 55 wine bottle corks for $14. Not a wine stain on any of them! Stumped by why they were being sold (home winemakers wandering through the store perhaps?), our agent then spotted a square vase filled with the display corks. A good look, but a little sterile since the corks were mere props.

Just think that 55 bottles of $10 wine is only $550 — pleasure, memories, and, yes, corks, included. Then you can apply the $14 saved toward the cool vase. I’m looking forward to the bag of 55 screwcaps, due out soon.

What do you do with your used corks?

Related:
–Reduce, reuse…recork?
–13,500 bottles of wine ARE the wall
–To Cork or not to Cork, a giveaway

Had a bad wine experience lately? At a shop or a restaurant or at home? And you don’t have a blog of your own to bitch about it? Consider this your open mic thread and let us know your wine disappointments. Hopefully we can collectively offer some advice or suggestions–or just laugh with you to ease the pain.

Vent! Rant! Bring it on!

(Image, cropped, resized)

What would you think if I told you that an armed robbery was averted because of wine? No, not a broken bottle waving sort of thing. But a sipping leads to a change of heart sort of thing. Sound implausible?

One evening last month, just such an event occurred in Capitol Hill. Read the astounding and bizarre full story here in the Washington Post. Truth sometimes IS stranger than fiction.

Wouldn’t that be great if everyone kept a bottle of wine at home to foil would-be attackers? Too bad the story doesn’t state the vintage of this Malescot St-Exupéry.

It’s a tough week for fashionistas (and it’s only Monday!). Paris Hilton is in jail. And Tyra Banks doesn’t like wine but orders it to look sexy. Roll the tape from her personal website [via M&C]:

I recently went to Napa, California, and I learned how to pair wines with certain tastes, how red wine tastes good with salt and bitter things like lemon. So, every now and then I’ll order some wine at the table. I’ll only take two sips, but I’ll keep holding the glass cause it makes me feel sexy, but I still don’t drink it because it still tastes kind of nasty to me. (emphasis added)

Wow, the classic pairing of red wine and lemon–no wonder the former top model thinks wine’s nasty! Help her out with some newbie wine suggestions in the comments. I’d start her off with a sangria if she wants to give red wine with citrus another try.

Hey, can this magician do this with $2,000 bottles of Petrus? If so, he’s invited to my next party!

Winery trivia: which winery is this? (click to enlarge) First correct comment will win…I dunno, something! (Probably your name in lights and our admiration)

Photo sent in by reader Alastair. Send in your photos!

The following photo may be too gruesome from some readers (it’s still safe for work though, just not for the faint of heart). Thus I have put it after the jump. It awaits your captioning! Read more…

What’s your caption for this photo? Have your say in the comments below.

Thanks, Maureen!

5/2 UPDATE: Details now posted in the comments about the spa’s location–including two accounts from people who have been!