...speaking of bitter beer face...

remember these commercials from Keystone Light?



If anyone has actually served Keystone Light at their wedding, I WANT TO SHAKE YOUR HAND!

Bitter Beer Face

So, someone caught me passing out in my beer.

Wrong again, Flanders. I'm obviously going for a hilarious "mad dog" impression, covering my whiskers with the heady foam of a N'ice Chouffe, a decidedly dangerous (and delicious) strong Belgian winter ale. In fact, the bottle features pictures of little gnomes on it. Now, I like to think I can hold a drink (notice the Irish red in my beard), but I swear-you drink about 2 of these, and those friggin' gnomes start talking to you.

Anyway, I had more than two. Yikes! The hangover the next day was wicked, but it was worth the goodness served up by The Brick Store Pub, just east of downtown Atlanta. Hands down, THE BEST beer bar in my known universe if you're after the good stuff. There are two bars, one of them dedicated entirely to Belgian beers, if you're up to paying the price later (is it the wild yeasts and fermentation by-products in Belgians that make for such bad hangovers, or am I just getting old? Someone fill me in).

Thanks to my buddies Mariko and Brent for making me famous on the left coast.

Fortunately, my mad dog was not caught on film, as my feline-agility cleaned my face before they could capture it...my friend Dave is obviously amazed:

Off to the big "Fantasy Island" in the sky...

So long, Mr. Roarke. Ricardo Montalban (pictured, right) passed away yesterday in his Los Angeles home, due to "complications from advancing age," according to Wikipedia (yes, I think Wikipedia is more reliable than the news...big whoop, wanna fight about it?). Montalban was 88.

But don't let this devastating news trouble you. I'm sure Heaven is exactly like Fantasy Island. Everyone wears sweet, all-white suits, and everyone has their own, personal Hervé Villechaize (pictured, left).

But, despite Montalban's success on Fantasy Island as the mysterious Mr. Roarke, I'll always remember him most fondly as Khan Noonien Singh in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Indeed, Montalban's character's fake chest made me someday aspire to have fake muscles.

And, so, to send Mr. Montalban off in style, here's a website that really sends him off in style.

Goodbye, Ricardo. May your casket be lined with rich, Corinthian leather...

The Fitz lost a bet

Future internet celebrity Rob Fitzgerald going for a new look.



Be on the lookout for "In Rob We Trust" gear, coming SOON!

Wine Tasting part 1

Happy New Year to everyone! I hope 2009 brings a delicious cocktail of fun, prosperity, and harmless shenanigans to all!

Wanted to comment on a wine tasting hosted by some pals in the 'hood back in December. We tasted 5 chardonnays and 5 zinfandels, provided by the guests (thanks again, Amy and Scott!):



Clos Du Bois 2007 North Coast Chardonnay: meh. nothing special. Oak, butter, vanilla...didn't blow me away, as it tasted like most California Chardonnay

Tormaresca 2006 Chardonnay (IGT Apulia, Italy): Wow. What a worthless website (perhaps mine is too)...anyway, interesting wine from the south of Italy. Apulia is Italian for what we call "Puglia", or the "heel" of the boot. This area is known for robust red wines made from the Negroamaro grape, but this Chardonnay was leaner and cleaner that the California counterparts, with an old-world nose that gave me whiffs of black-eyed peas, which I always seem to get in Mediterranean chardonnays. As with many European wines, this would go well with food, as there's not too much fruit to overwhelm your fish, etc.

Simi 2007 Sonoma County Chardonnay: see "Clos Du Bois"

Blackstone 2007 Monterey County Chardonnay: I like Blackstone's wines generally. This one was more balanced than the Clos or the Simi...fruit, acid, and oak in relative harmony

Frei Brothers 2007 Russian River Valley Chardonnay: the champ, mostly because of balance. Very rich, but not over-oaked or exceptionally overrun with the traditional apple, pear, citrus, toast, and vanilla. Good acidity, good fruit, good wine (in my opinion)

Zinfandel report coming soon. Try these wines, and please let me know if I'm full of mularky. The great thing about wine is that nobody's opinion is more valuable than how the wine tastes to you. What I like might not jive with your palette, and vice versa. I guess that's why people throughout history have drank too much wine, then argued. In vino veritas...