Don Lupara and I left the family compound after a hearty breakfast of fruit, smoked ham and Napoli croissants loaded with his wife’s stupendous orange marmalade from oranges from the family orchards in Ischia. With food like this perhaps the “Fat” in “Fat Fox” might have referred to the effects of all the tremendous NeapolitanContinue reading ““The Penniless Pensioner: Misaligned, Maligned but Marvellous”: Chapter 32: Scampia, Naples: Down and Dirty in the Cocaine and Heroin Factory and Costco Distribution Centre”
Tag Archives: Robert K. Stephen
RKS 2023 Wine: Elvis Presley and a Certain Chilean Carménère : Kidia 2018 Reserve Carménère
From the Maule Valley this D.O. Valle Pencahue Carménère is new to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. Follow the lead of Elvis and return to sender! Aromatics: Strawberry, stewed rhubarb, blackberry, charcoal and some raspberry jam. Palate: Moderate tannins initially but augment quickly into a firm grip. Bereft of any real fruit. Almost astringent.Continue reading “RKS 2023 Wine: Elvis Presley and a Certain Chilean Carménère : Kidia 2018 Reserve Carménère”
RKS Health; Skyrocketing Health Costs in the United States and Decreasing Healthy Life Expectancy
“Back in 1980, the United States spent 8.2% of GDP on health-care, virtually the same as the second highest spending country (Germany at 8.1 percent) and just 1.7 percent above the average of ten comparable countries. But as discussed in the introduction, by 2019 American health-care spending had skyrocketed to 17.7 percent of US GDP.Continue reading “RKS Health; Skyrocketing Health Costs in the United States and Decreasing Healthy Life Expectancy”
RKS 2023 Wine: Chateau Perbal Carménère: Chile Chugs Along
This Carménère is from the Maule Valley in Chile’s Central Valley Region. The Maule Valley, unlike many Chilean wine producing regions, does not have any maritime influences. Maule Carménère is reputed to be spicy with aromatic intensity. So what does the Chateau Perbal 2018 Carménère have in store for us? Aromatics: Telltale Carménère aromas ofContinue reading “RKS 2023 Wine: Chateau Perbal Carménère: Chile Chugs Along”
“The Penniless Pensioner: Misaligned, Maligned but Marvellous: Chapter 30: Meeting the Cocaine King in Naples: Better Toasted than Being Toast!
Ginevra and I flew to Naples via Frankfurt in mid November. Naples was almost warm when we arrived at 11 a.m. We were met by two burly men in the arrivals area. And wouldn’t you know one of the men was that heavily tattooed man with a scar on his face and Iroquois haircut thatContinue reading ““The Penniless Pensioner: Misaligned, Maligned but Marvellous: Chapter 30: Meeting the Cocaine King in Naples: Better Toasted than Being Toast!”
RKS Health: The Central Strategy of Big Pharma
“Between 1991 and 2017, drug companies paid more than $38 billion in fines and settlements to federal and state governments: many of those companies-including Merck pleaded guilty to having misled doctors and the public about drug safety and efficacy. (GlaxoSmith Kline led the pack with $7.9 billion in financial penalties). Even so that seemingly enormousContinue reading “RKS Health: The Central Strategy of Big Pharma”
RKS 2023 Film: “Backlash: Misogyny in the Digital Age” (Je vous salue salope, Backlash): Revulsion, Disgust and Frustration
When you watch “Backlash: Misogyny in the Digital Age” unless you are a Proud Boy or a January 6th insurrectionist you might be thoroughly disgusted. Women and men from the United States, Canada, France and Italy tell their story of on-line harassment of themselves or their loved ones by woman hating rednecks. It is notContinue reading “RKS 2023 Film: “Backlash: Misogyny in the Digital Age” (Je vous salue salope, Backlash): Revulsion, Disgust and Frustration”
RKS 2023 Wine: Perez Cruz: A Tsunami of Winners: Confessions of a Carmenère Convert!
At the Drink Chile 2022 event held last November in Toronto I tasted the Perez Cruz Limited Edition Carmenère and it suddenly dawned on me that perhaps Chilean red wines had turned the corner and escaped their minty characteristics of a decade ago. That was one reason I took a Chilean red wine hiatus forContinue reading “RKS 2023 Wine: Perez Cruz: A Tsunami of Winners: Confessions of a Carmenère Convert!”
RKS Health: Misleading Physicians to Increase Sales
“The Kaiser v. Pfizer trial provided two key lessons about drug company marketing: First, because drug companies fund most of the research about their drugs and control the resulting data, they can (and do) mislead physicians in order to increase sales. And, second, under our current system, it is more profitable for large pharmaceutical companiesContinue reading “RKS Health: Misleading Physicians to Increase Sales”
RKS 2023 Wine: Viña Tarapacá Gran Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon
It is quite remarkable Chile can offer us excellent Cabernet Sauvignon in the under $25 category. Why muck about with Californians in that price range. You’ll often be disappointed. Years ago one might have avoided Chilean red wines due to that minty touch on the palate as one would avoid South African reds due toContinue reading “RKS 2023 Wine: Viña Tarapacá Gran Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon”
A Bird's Eye View of Fashion, Food, Travel, Culture, Beverage and Curiosity 