“Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck in Time”

Where do I start with a review of this documentary? Should I get personal and thank my brother for leaving Vonnegut novels around in the early 70’s which I picked up and read. My first Vonnegut novel was “Slaughterhouse Five” that was unlike any piece of fiction I had read. Billy Pilgrim a prisoner of World War 2 captured in the Battle of the Bulge transported to imprisonment in a former swine slaughterhouse number 5 in Dresden, Germany safely locked in the basement as Dresden was firebombed in 1944 and reduced to rubble. Billy Pilgrim was then unstuck in time travelling from past to future and to different planets. Mating with was it Montana Wildhack a porn star in a zoo on some strange planet. An ophthalmologist from Indiana.

I was suckered into a whole series of novels, “Breakfast of Champions” and “Welcome to the Monkey House” to name a few. I was never a fan of American literature although there have been flashes of brilliance with Ken Kesey’s “One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, Hunter Thompson’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”, James Baldwin’s “Notes From a Native Son” and J.D. Salinger’s “Catcher in the Rye” but has there been the consistency that Vonnegut produced? Now you professors of American literature get your scissors out and cut me up as an ignorant illiterate Canadian!

Director Robert B. Weide (often a director of Larry David’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm”) followed Vonnegut for 40 years before taking a deep breath and crafting this documentary and it is a valiant attempt to compress 40 years into a little bit over two hours.

There is no sense in summarize the documentary. But what will it do? If you are a Vonnegut fan you will understand his background and gain a better understanding of what he wrote. If you are Vonnegut deprived it is a fascinating study of a novelist and his struggle for recognition and the toll such a journey takes upon the writer and his social circle. For me after reading “Slaughterhouse Five” I understand its characters are tied up with Vonnegut’s childhood. God bless Indiana! As Kurt said his role as a journalist in his high school paper was spill the beans in the beginning of the story to get readers interested! That is much in the style of his novels he says.

After 40 years of following Vonnegut Weide could have made a documentary that could have lasted hours with an intermission 2 hours in, Like “Lawrence of Arabia” or “Exodus”. However we get what we get and it is good that it reveals Vonnegut the man. Weide scratches the surface but thank goodness he had the fortitude to condense 40 years into two hours and 27 minutes.

So what is the conclusion to be drawn? All those moldy yellowed books of Vonnegut novels that would have lead to some respiratory disease if they had been kept longer by me need to be replaced.

A fascinating and courageous effort by Weide to present a fair picture of what one day may be said to be America’s greatest novelist’. Vonnegut died after a slip and fall in 2007 aged 84. Rest in Peace with Kafka, Dostoevsky, Balzac, Mann, Richler and Solynetzin.

(“Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck in Time”, Director Robert B. Weide and Don Argott, 127 Minutes, USA, 2021, Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema Nov 24/25/27/29)

The Hot Docs website can be accessed here https://hotdocscinema.ca/

RKS Wine: Dão Delights

130 kilometres southwest of Porto you’ll find yourself in Dão’s capital Viseu which is a quaint city and very much lower key than Porto probably as it is a landlocked area and there are none of the culture killing cruise ships with their ruinous trail of destruction. The Dão landscape is in some parts like being in a different planet with huge boulders littering the landscape. The Dão can produce some excellent wines and the area’s cuisine is top notch. We visited some 10 wineries getting a chance for a deep dive. As for reds you can get the same Douro red grapes but you’ll encounter Jaen (most likely the same as Mencía) and Alfrocheiro. And as in the Douro most reds are blends.

Mushroom Risotto in the Dão: Photo Robert K. Stephen

We try a Bergamota Private Selection which is 80% Touriga Franca, 5% Tinta Roriz, 5% Jaen, 5% Alfrocheiro and 5% others. I have a feeling that this is a negociant wine meaning the grapes or the finished wine were bought from third parties and bottled by ENG No4483 for GOTA LDA in a Viseu industrial park.

On the nose black cherry predominates but there is also cranberry and raspberry and some black licorice. On the palate the tannins are gentle initially but intensify as the wine opens up. There is an interesting taste of cherries dipped in melted chocolate with some rather high-toned red cherry. A simple but intriguing wine with a unique personality. It plays with cherry like a coyote playing with a mouse before it gobbles its poor victim up. So lets just call this wine playful. Being on the Portuguese track why not match this with Cataplana? Being playful let’s go Mexican and mix this with a Red Snapper Vera Cruz? Or how about a vegetarian Putanesca Pasta?

I think it might marginally improve over the next couple of years.

Before I go I should tell you a slightly embarrassing story. The winemakers we visited would always give us some wine to take back on the media bus. Well getting into our hotel’s elevator in Viseu a case carrying 4 bottles gave way and the elevator was awash with a pool of red wine. My face turned the same colour as the pool of wine on the elevator floor. All in the life of a wine writer! At breakfast the next morning there was a slight smell of red wine. Not my fault!

(Bergamota Private Selection 2017, Dão DOC, Gota, Viseu, Portugal, $16.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 646893, 750 mL, 13%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 89/100).

RKS Wines: Wines from the Outer Limits: Portugal’s Tejo

We get more wines from Hungary in the Liquor Control Board of Ontario’s Vintage releases than we do from the Tejo region which runs behind and parallel to the Lisboa wine region.

One has arrived like a spaceship in Ontario and it’s a Quinta da Escusa. It is a white blend of the dry Arinto and Moscatel a heavier and more flavourful grape. It will be interesting if we are getting an off dry wine here.

On the nose you can smell the Moscatel out duelling the Arinto! There is peach, apricot, honey, pineapple and butterscotch. On the palate this is a dry wine without much character. You are getting on the palate the same influences you get on the nose but it is dilute and diffuse. I don’t usually comment on tannins when trying white wine but the cheeks are getting a dose of tannins and the wine has a certain funkiness to it. I am sorry to say this but this wine doesn’t know whether it is coming or going. Even with the discounted price way overpriced.

(Quinta da Escusa Branco 2016, Vinho Regional Tejo, Romana Vini, Portugal $ 31.85 (Manager’s Special $22.15), Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 736172, 750 mL, 12.5%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 84/100).

RKS Wines: White Port You Say? Stay Away Tonic Water!

On my visits to The Douro White Port was rarely seen and so little is imported to Canada. It most often seems to be used in a cocktail of Port and Tonic. It can be refreshing but I will admit it is not compelling but then again the most exotic I get is a Mojito when there is fresh mint in my garden.

Now to be fair a few years ago while in Porto I stumbled across a small bar serving a wide range of White Port most from small producers and the couple I tried were brimming with character.

So let’s give a White Port from Martha’s Wine and Spirits a try. In colour it is not white at all but more of a golden orange. On the nose there is orange, quince, apricot and caramel. Excuse my inexperience with White Port but there are similarities with a Tawny Port on the nose. On the palate electric peach, quince jam, baklava, spice, pear and honey. By Jove this is a complicated creature. A long finish with no presence on the nose or palate of spirits. This one should be chilled and savoured on its own. Do you remember Dorothy throwing water in the “Wizard of Oz” on the Wicked Witch well don’t throw tonic on this beauty or you might kill it.

(Martha’s Fine White Port, Gold Mountains Company, Santa Marta de Penguiao, Portugal, $19.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 249044, 750 mL, 19.5%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 91/100)

Go Go! Clap Clap!

Go Go! Clap Clap!

Of course get your vaccine if you wish!
but you may not have a choice
I think that is called coercion but the apologists for despotism may call it fulfilling the social contract?
but do you recall the initial trumpeting of 96% effectiveness of the V
not quite hearing that now in the media as half the infected every day are fully vaxxed
and the media salivates and promotes the 90% coverage goal like a duty

Clap clap!

Go Go!

Contrary view ignored?

Simply stupid?

Or Hookers for Big Pharma?

History may show they are rotted full of the Clap

Clap Clap!

Go Go!

Robert K. Stephen

Photo Robert Tuomi

RKS Wines: Some Portuguese Wines to Finish Off the Year: Part 1: Vinho do Bispado

After just about finishing off an intensive virtual tasting of Ports from the Douro it might be time to come back to earth and finish off the year with some Portuguese table wines. While there is no real competition to Port there is plenty of competition raging against Portuguese table wines.

The Douro produces some very worthy red wines with mostly indigenous grapes. One wonders how long this rigidity will last. It was the Super Tuscans in Italy that challenged Tuscan categorizations so I query just how long before we see Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah sneaking into the Douro to shake things up. The last thing I want to see is the demise of Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional or Rebigato but the time may come when some excitement will shake up the Douro as it has done in Alentejano or Lisboa.

We try a Vinha do Bispado with a blend of 40% Touriga Nacional, 30% Tinta Roriz and 30% Touriga Franca 40% of which has aged 8 months in French barrels and 60% in stainless steel.

Black cherry in colour. There is a creamy base to the wine on the nose with effusive blackberry, fig, rhubarb, coconut and hazelnut wafer cookies. On the palate the tannins are mild and the palate has a refreshing lightness to it perhaps my reaction to reviewing 6 successive Ports. The light and airy body has blackberry, cassis and cherry pie to it. Could we say “light and airy” gives the wine a dash of “freshness” to it? This lightness is not often my experience with Douro reds but don’t they say a change is as good as a rest?

Can I say not your typical Douro red? In fact its uniqueness is rather enchanting. The finish is short and light. While many Douro reds are ideal for beef, goat and duck this lighthearted wine would suit Bachalau very well which might be a generalization as there are over 300 recipes for this “national” Portuguese dish!

(Vinha do Bispado 2018, DOP Douro, Casa Agrícola A Roboredo Madeira, Almendra Douro Superior, Portugal, $10.30, LCBO #923903, 750 mL,13.5%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 89/100).

RKS Wines: Quinta Da Devesa 30-Year-Old Tawny Port: This Will Take you to where Musk and Branson Were for a Lot Less!

If you have been reading my reviews of Tawny Ports we started with a 10 year old, then a twenty and now a 30 year old Tawny.

This 30-year old’s colour has moved from an orange to a brownish red. On the nose there has been an evolution from a rather flippant 10-year-old to a maturing 20-year-old. This one has a more concentrated Tawny aroma. There is caramel, burnt orange, nuts, smoke and dried apricots. On the palate any vestiges of alcohol have vanished. There is marmalade, nuts, candied pineapple and a strong streak of maple syrup with a twist of root beer. A never-ending finish with a subtle burn but at 20% this is to be expected. But unlike the 10-year-old Tawny no alcohol can be picked up on the nose or palate.

This is one decadent and delicious Tawny that would suit rich mushroom dishes and also egg based desserts like those delicious Portuguese custard tarts (Pasteis de Nata) served warm and freshly baked with this Tawny will take you to where Elon Musk and Richard Branson flashed their obscene wealth in our faces. You can get to the same place for a lot less with this Tawny.

Pasteis de Nata

(Quinta da Devesa 30-Year-Old Tawny Port, Quinta da Devesa, Régua, Portugal, $112.45, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 280296, 750 mL, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 94/100).

RKS Films: “Intimate Enemy”: Who Controls the System?

This Slovakian film was part of the 2021 European Union Canadian Film Festival but I am sure it will be circulating around the globe as it asks an important question and that is who controls the computer system?

The next time you look at a security camera spying on you well this film might come to mind.

Andrej is a developer and his wife Suzana is a sculptress. They are offered an opportunity to live in a smart home Andrej and his company are testing and they move into the smart house that is designed to cater to every wish of its occupants empathetically and humanly.

Well at some point you are going to say this computer has turned evil. Is it a programme fault or is a third party controlling it making it a murderous force? You’ll be surprised by the result which is the system did too good of a job. Its evil was not a faulty system or a third-party hack but simply its own programmed empathy.

We have seen many a film production dealing with rogue computers so that part of the film could be a case of “seen that already” but the conclusion of the film should cause some deep thought about just how smart is smart and when does smart become dangerous. Or it may take you back to the fable of Midas where everything he touched turned to gold. As there is such a thing then as a wish that is apparently too good the same goes for a computer system.

This 109-minute film is directed by Karl Janák.

There are still some films left to watch at the Festival. You can check out their website at https://watch.eventive.org/euff2021

All films in this Festival can only be seen within Canada.

RKS Wines: Taylor Fladgate 20 Year Old Tawny Port

Taylor’s has been a family company since 1692. Walk into any liquor store of repute in the world and you’ll see their Port. You don’t have that longevity without producing a good product. Remember that chilling it will bring down the alcohol and enhance its flavour. It matches extremely well with soft cheeses and egg-based desserts. It will keep well for several weeks once opened provided it is stored in cool conditions.

The Douro Valley: Home of Port Wine: Photo Robert K. Stephen

Like the Niepoort 10 year old Tawny we reviewed recently the colour is similar being orange brickish and transparent. The nose has lost the minute brandy nose the Niepoort had as It has incorporated itself seamlessly into the wine. The nose definitely is heavily influenced by essence or orange, but there are honey, nuts and some chocolate covered cherries. On the palate the first characteristic that strikes you is its long finish and the burn experienced with the Niepoort 10 year old is not there most likely due to the disappearance of the brandy on the nose and palate. Conclusion is that Tawny Port mellows and softens with age. You might pick up some apricot and orange. They often look at me with a puzzled expression in the Douro when I say some Tawny Ports have a touch of raisin pie on the palate as this one does. I think raisin pie has become extinct in Montreal where it seemed to have born! Perhaps I can refer to something Canadians are familiar with being butter tarts and say this Tawny is kissed by butter tarts! There is a hint of Grand Marnier in the palate.

On a personal note one can through descriptive terms wax about the nose and palate of a Tawny Port which is a difficult job as Tawny is a sensory experience. Have enough Tawny Port over the years and you can nod your head. You’ll know it’s a Tawny the minute you taste it. Of course as a wine writer I am supposed to come with magic descriptive words which were so easy for me 7 years ago after my first massive Port attack in Portugal. This week trying Tawny Ports extensively supplied to me through various Toronto agents to celebrate virtual Port Wine Day I struggle to break down such a complicated product into ABC’s. I am either maturing in my appreciation of Tawny Port or in a bad tailspin. I’ll close and say a damn fine Tawny!

If there are Port re-education camps in Porto perhaps they’ll haul me away there for another Port attack!

What I will say I will be ordering a mincemeat pie for Christmas and this Tawny will be at my side. A mincemeat pie is a sort of boozed up raisin pie. Does this make sense?

I recall visiting Taylor’s Quinta Vargellas in 2013 on a media tour with yours truly and a columnist from The Globe and Mail. We had an extensive tasting, a fantastic dinner and after dinner everyone off duty we had some “very special Ports” in front of a blazing fireplace and after trying our hand at poetry we headed off to bed. Vargellas may be the most famous vineyard in the world and staying at the Quinta that night might have been the finest of my life. It was magical somewhat akin to Port. I recall disembarking at the train station in the setting November sun and walking along the railroad tracks towards the Quinta just like it was yesterday. You don’t develop appreciation and true love of Port as a writer you can gain by attending tutored tastings in Toronto. You have to go to the heart and soul of the Douro and you’ll be a happy aficionado for eternity.

(Taylor Fladgate 20 Year Old Tawny Port $69.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 14907, 750 mL, 20%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 92/100) .                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

“Mutantism on the March ” :Chapter 112 Redbeard and Zorollia Start to Wobble

Squid was deeply moved with the warmth of the Zortixians, their openness and concern with the struggles of the mutant community on Earth. Could it be that they realized if they were to visit Earth they too would be considered as mutants? Squid was popular not only because of his Montenez heritage but because of his fierce struggle for mutant dignity. He was surprised to see some of his works available in Zortixian bookstores. Mutant discrimination fascinated the Zortixians and they were delighted when he accepted an honorary professorship at the Zortixian Earth Institute. At his first lecture he gave a moving account of sad conditions of mutants on Earth especially the plight of the mutants in the lesser developed countries and how the ruling classes turned screws on mutants and the poverty stricken through armed force. He was certain if there had been an American embassy on Zortixia it would have been besieged by angry students of the Earth Institute!

Squid spoke with students after his lecture saying, “I am overwhelmed by the attention and warmth which you have showered on me. After all I am but the toe of your Montenez. At best I feel as if I am a half brother to him yet you treat me as a full fledged Zortixian dignitary. If only Earth was permeated with kind people as yourself who treat your own Slug People with dignity and respect. The majority of Earthlings would rather not see or acknowledge mutants as they are a cloud on their day where perfection is a goal and mutants don’t fit into their mold of perfection. Let me give you a example of the Roma people in Europe otherwise known by the name of gypsies. A very bad political leader viewed them as imperfections not fitting into his idea of the perfect race so 600,000 were exterminated. I think Earthlings and Zortixians truly know the line between good and evil. There was nothing evil about the Roma people just a pack of lies fabricated to justify their extermination. Yet we know both Jibers were truly evil and served their execution after a fair trial may I add.

Meanwhile on Zorollia the apprehension amongst the leadership of the Zorollian Opposite party was increasing. Eno Ergot’s threats to topple Redbeard quickly found the ears of Redbeard. Imagine a Zorollian relative of the leader of Zorollia threatening to topple him. This gave food for thought of the masses. The fabric of Redbeard’s leadership was rotting away about him. There were general strikes. Even the media had fired up the masses with increasing virulent attacks against Redbeard and his ruling circle. His media censors were losing their authority and even a few choice assassinations of journalists could not stem the tide. Jails were full and his blackbooters fearing reprisals from the population refused to carry out executions of political opponents.

The earlier rule of Redbeard was somewhat bearable and profitable for the elite but as economic conditions deteriorated so did the mental health and alacrity of Redbeard. There were food shortages and inflation was creeping its way into the faltering economy. The population was at the breaking point. Too many family members had mysteriously disappeared. Zorollia was restless. Redbeard and his ruling circle were rotten apples reading to be cut off the tree.