Jet Cannon

winery, new zealand, mercury bay-782704.jpg

Pinot Noir

Food and Drink / By

August 18 is National Pinot Noir Day.  Celebrating a red wine in the middle of summer may seem a bit counter-intuitive but maybe National Days in winter were taken. That said, the Pinot Noir is lighter than most reds.  In addition, it can be served slightly chilled.  

The pinot noir grape originates from France but some of the best regarded grapes are grown in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.  Pinot Noir wine received a boost in popularity starting in 2004 from the movie Sideways.  Miles Raymond, played by Paul Giamatti, speaks fondly of Pinots while disparaging Merlots.  That proves that Pinots are good.

So summer is not just for white wines or a bottle of Rose.  Not convinced? Then you’ll get nothing and like it!

Cheers!

– Jet Cannon  

constellation, constellation map, zodiac sign-3301770.jpg

LEO (July 23 to August 22): Watermelon Margarita

Food and Drink / By

We’re very thankful for astrology.  It’s so helpful to have guidance you can trust.  Because today is the big day!   I checked with thekitchn.com to find out what my birth drink is.

“For a drink that’s as popular and spirited as you, Leo, serve watermelon margaritas. The key? Premium tequila and lots of pretty (dare we say over-the-top) garnishes.”  

So there it is. Luckily, I like watermelon margaritas.  I was afraid I was going to have to change my birthday.

Cheers!

– Aging Prop-Jet Cannon

melon cocktail, watermelon, melon-3542609.jpg

Barreled Gin from tennessee

Food and Drink, Travel / By

 

We recently sampled some Barreled Gin from Nashville’s Corsair Distillery.  The gin spent some time in used spiced rum barrels where it does this, per Corsair’s web site, “Classic gin forward nose evolves into a spice medley of cinnamon, clove and coriander. Anise, black licorice, clove hit the pallet initially but give way to vanilla and rum notes before a clean dry finish.”  Now we didn’t quite detect all that and we generally don’t like craft distilleries taking too many liberties with good old gin but we enjoyed this Barreled Gin in a dry Martini.  It definitely has a little something extra without betraying its “gin forward nose.”

Corsair says this barrel-aged style of gin is becoming increasingly popular.  You may not be able to find Corsair in your neck of the woods but there are a number of other distilleries giving barrel-aged gin a go.

– Jet Cannon

Hiding from the feds in nashville

1 Comment / Food and Drink, Good Clean Fun, Travel / By

There are a lot of bars in Nashville.  The Broadway District has over 30.  And there are many, many more throughout the city.  On Broadway, there’s Kid Rock’s, Blake Shelton’s Old Red and many more.  You have to see it to believe the loud country chaos.  Lots of fun.

My favorite bar this trip was located I-don’t-know-where (you can look it up online).  I wasn’t driving.  There’s no sign.  It’s a speakeasy in the Prohibition tradition.  Old Glory is hiding in what used to be the towering boiler room for White Way Cleaners, formerly one of the largest steam cleaning facilities in Nashville. The space features the original electrical boxes, coal hopper, and smoke stack that were in use in the 1920s. Today it’s dark with lots of candles.  The Feds will never find us here.

The craft cocktail bartenders are something special in their own right.  Give them a hint on what you like and they will rise to the challenge and provide you with a visually-pleasing, palate-pleasing taste treat.  They use ingredients that might as well be French to me.  Turns out some of them are French.  And I don’t have them on the shelf at home which is why I need to spend more time in speakeasies.  I tried a Last Word which is gin, green chartreuse, maraschino liqueur, and lime juice,  Excellent.  I also asked for a “surprise me” gin martini.  It came with Ford’s Gin and a vermouth-like ingredient plus some orange blossom and bitters.  Also excellent.

Here’s to Prohibition and Old Glory!

– “Vito” Jet Cannon

Nashville Caffeine Buzz

Caffeine, Food and Drink, Good Clean Fun, Music, Travel / By

Nashville is on the steroid juice when it comes to drinking, live country music, party buses, cut-off jeans, cowboy boots and hats, and roof-top bars.  I just wasn’t expecting art in my coffee.  Yet, plenty of caffeine is a requirement for this Baby Boomer to keep on rockin’ in this town.  Whoa!!  It’s fun.  It’s overload.  It’s draining.  But it’s a hoot!

– “Johnny” Jet Cannon

Just Plane Drinking

1 Comment / Food and Drink, Travel / By

Business.  Vacation.  Doesn’t matter.  It’s nice to have a cocktail at the airport and onboard just to unwind and relax.  Pricey?  Yes.  Worth it?  Yes.   

Onboard, Captain Tony recommends always ordering a double.  In First Class, Business Class or Premium Economy, when they offer a second cocktail they’ll likely bring you another double.  In economy, order a double because you don’t know if or when the cart will be back.  

My only issue with Plane Drinking is the  lavatories.  You just don’t want to overdo the liquid consumption.  Particularly as some of us Baby Boomers find ourselves frequenting more frequently.  Back to the lavatories.  Tiny. Overused.  There is nothing good about them and I try to avoid entering at all costs.  

Meanwhile, the Cheese Platter on my favorite airline, Alaska, reminds me what a gift cheese is to the planet.  Wish I would have invented it but I thoroughly enjoy the fruits of the talented animals and people who make such a wonderful variety of mouth watering sensations. But I digress. 

Plane drinking.  I enjoyed my first crystallized lime powder in my gin and tonic.  Cute little packet.  And it  worked!  Tasted pretty great.  Some say that actual lime slices in cocktails are only a notch cleaner than airplane lavatories because you don’t know everyone who has handle the lime or what they were doing right before that.  

As I write this, it is a fact that alcohol hits harder at 35,000 feet.  Which, given the fact that most airplanes don’t have walk up bars or lounges, AS THEY SHOULD, it’s good that a little bit…. goes a little bit further.  

I hope you’ve enjoyed flying with Jet Cannon and we look forward to seeing you again soon.  

⁃ Jet Cannon

beer, pouring, glass-820011.jpg

Hail India Pale Ale

Food and Drink / By

Thursday August 5 is National IPA Day!

Per nationaldayscalendar.com, “the IPA seems to have developed out of an idea from the 1700s. When shipping ale to India, adding hops to the beer increased the longevity of the brew. Brewers thought that hops preserved the beer for long voyages to hot climates. One London brewer gained attention for his ability to brew this particular style of beer. George Hodgson shipped many casks of pale ales to India from London. However, no one knows for sure when or who coined the name India Pale Ale.”

So grab yourself an IPA on a hot summer day!

Cheers!

– Jet Cannon

glass of beer, beer, glass-3444480.jpg

2020 Tokyo Olympics Silver Medal Sake Martini

Food and Drink, Recipes / By

Olympic Silver Medals are totally underrated.  Second-best in the world at anything is pretty darn great.  Here’s a second best cocktail that celebrates the Tokyo Olympics.

  • 3 oz vodka
  • 1 oz sake

We’re replacing dry Vermouth with sake so make it to your own clean/dirty preferences.  Mix in an ice-filled shaker, pour into a martini glass and garnish with a peeled cucumber slice.

For what is worth from an Olympic athlete health standpoint, sake is high in amino acids, naturally gluten-free, and consists of simple ingredients.  Except that we’ve offset any benefit with the vodka.  Details. 

Cheers!

–  Jet Cannon  

Remembering Dusty Hill

Music / By

Many Buzzed Boomers are mourning the recent loss of ZZ Top bass player Dusty Hill.  He passed away July 27th in Houston at age 72.  

ZZ Top started in 1969 and with Billy Gibbons on guitar and Frank Beard on drums the power trio played on for over 50 years.  Very, very few bands make it that long with the same lineup.

Dusty started out playing the cello but picked up the bass at age 13 and learned to play on stage; embarrassment being a motivator to learn his new instrument.  We saw ZZ Top in 1973 and most recently in 2019 and they hadn’t lost a beat.  Check out the ZZ Top rockumentary on Netflix.  Among other credits, Dusty appeared in Back to the Future Part III, Deadwood, and The Drew Carey Show.  

Joseph Michael Hill and ZZ Top were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004.  Per Dusty’s wishes, guitar tech Elwood Francis will play bass for the band. 

Rest In Peace Dusty.

– Jet Cannon

Photos nbcnews.com and ultimateclassicrock.com

grand central station, new york, new york city-690180.jpg

Superiority in Numbers

Cannabis, Endorphins, Fitness, Food and Drink, Good Clean Fun, Trending / By

There are approximately 70 million Baby Boomers living in the United States right now.  70 million!!  And some interesting things are emerging.

  • We are the most intelligent of all the generations
  • Our musical tastes are acknowledged to be more sophisticated than those of other generations
  • We make the best cocktails
  • Our exercise habits are second to none
  • If video gaming is added to the Olympics, Baby Boomers are expected to dominate despite advancing age.  We’re just very good at games
  • We travel more than other generations and are steadily chipping away at bucket lists
  • Our sexual skills are advanced and imaginative
  • We have mastered utilization of marijuana hybrids and CBD  to achieve a perfect Buzz while minimizing pain and facilitating deeper sleep
  • No other generation comes close to Baby Boomer BBQ skills

Now, none of the above is backed up by any facts or data.  But does it matter?  It feels good!  It feels right!  It must be true!

– Jet Cannon

baby boomer, healthy, old man-442252.jpg

Gorging on Country Music

Cannabis, Endorphins, Food and Drink, Music, Travel / By

As music festivals go, Watershed is right up there among the great ones mixing partying, country music, and spectacular scenery.  The Gorge Amphitheatre sits high above the mighty Columbia River in George, Washington.  Add theme-based, colorful camping and country music stars like Tim McGraw and you have the ingredients for three days of serious fun.  This year the event runs from July 30- August 1 and a few tickets may still be available, probably due to pandemic concerns.  Normally Watershed is sold out.

If country music isn’t your cup of tea, check out georgeamphitheatre.com for tickets to acts like Phish, Dave Matthews, Tame Impala, and KISS.

– Jet Cannon