January 27, 2010

Wine & Whine O' the Week (v. 1.3)

This past weekend at the Meadows ATM, I played in a 1/2 NLHE game at the same table as the resident Uber-Nit. This is a guy who plays only Top 10 hands, overbets them, and ends up steaming and muttering to himself when his “big” hands either get no action or get snapped off. I’ve seen Uber-Nit walking the halls of the casino, or in the restroom, complaining and cursing about a hand under his breath. It’s always fun to tilt Uber-Nit!

After a couple of hours, Uber-Nit was already simmering from having to lay down a couple of hands to postflop raises. Uber-Nit open raises to $17 from EP, which signaled a hand like a pocket pair 99-QQ, or maybe AK. Folds around to me OTB, and I decide to call with 9c8s, knowing I can steal on the right board, and get paid off if I hit a flop.

Flop is 9 high with two clubs. Uber-Nit overbets the pot, and I call. Turn is the Ac. Uber-Nit checks, so I bet, representing either an Ace or clubs. Uber-Nit thinks a long time, then calls, clearly uncomfortable. River is Qc. Uber-Nit checks. I’m afraid he might have AxKc, JcJx or TcTx, so I check as well.

Uber-Nit: “I don’t have a club.”

Me: “I do.”

I roll my hand, and Uber-Nit gives his patented half glare, half disgusted look. Uber-Nit starts snapping his cards against his hand in agitation.

Uber-Nit: “It had to be the Queen of f@#%ing clubs! Every f@#%ing time!” You call me with 98 offsuit, and then hit a flush. F@#%ing ridiculous!”

At this point he flashes what every player had to know he held—two red Queens—and throws them onto the table so hard they overshoot the muck.

Me [stacking chips]: “What a terrible river card.”

Commence Uber-Nit meltdown …

The Uber-Nit’s sour attitude is best enjoyed with a nice sweet wine. What better choice than the Yalumba Galway Pipe NV Tawny Port? Technically not a true “port” (since it’s from Australia rather than Portugal), it is nonetheless a tasty wine made in the tawny port style, and compares favorably with the better 20 year old tawny ports from Portgual. It has a deep reddish-brown color, with a nice acidity to counterpoint the sweetness. Flavors are typical of tawny port—caramel/toffee in the foreground, a good fig/raisin fruit base, and a hint of honey. Retail price is a good value for a better tawny port, typically ~$30/bottle.




8 comments:

  1. I just picked up a bottle of Sandeman's Founders Reserve. Never tried it - usually go for the Taylor Fladgate or similar. Hopefully the Sandeman's bears scrutiny. If not, at least I have a cool looking bottle to stare at ;)

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  2. Never tried the Sandeman's, either. Let me know what you think. My regular ports are Taylor Fladgate and Graham's. I like both for ruby, LBV, and tawny. My usual ruby is probably Graham's Six Grapes. Quinta do Noval also makes some ports I enjoy, though they are a little pricier.

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  3. Hint: This black text on dark grey background doesn't work very well on some displays.

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  4. "Hint: This black text on dark grey background doesn't work very well on some displays."

    What kind of displays are you referencing? I've viewed the blog on four different computers (all using IE7 or IE8), and my iTouch (presumably Safari?), and have not noticed a problem. I went with the current color scheme in part because I felt it was less stressful to the eye than the usual "black on white" set up. But if readability is a common problem, I would be happy to play around with the color schemes and see if I can improve readability.

    Any input from any readers is certainly welcome! In fact, I'll put up a separate post later seeking comments.

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  5. Works & looks fine in Firefox 3.1.

    My favorite port is Stone Hill Winery's. Fortified with Brandy. Mmmmm.

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  6. Cracked the bottle of Sandeman's tonight. Well worth the money at only $25/bottle. Not as good as the Taylor Fladgates I love, but something I could easily drink on a daily basis. Beautiful ruby color, sweet taste with zero aftertaste, magnificent aroma. All in all, a good example. Glad we tried it ;)

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  7. Thanks for the Sandeman's tip. Will be on the lookout for a bottle on my next wine shopping spree.

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