I just received an electronic spank from the lovely Steve, long-term friend, gifted chef and author of blogfromthebarn and cookingfromthebarn. As an ardent blogger himself, he has expressed disappointment at my recent lack of communication by sending me this cunning little graphic, lifted from my very own blog title.
So, as I am not actually in Singapore, I will nevertheless woman up and produce some words of wisdom in the form of musings from southern France. Let's start with the weather.
I was very glad to be absent from Singapore during the recent haze, which was about the worst it's ever been, but it seems that it may be about to make a re-appearance - due to hot spots in Sumatra - although in a much milder form than previously. The June pollution caused a difficult political moment between Singapore and Indonesia, as the haze was allegedly caused by "slash and burn" farming techniques on palm oil plantations. Cutting down rain forests and then burning it to clear land for the planting of palm oil trees is cheaper than using bulldozers and diggers. The fact that it's illegal doesn't seem to stand in the way of the people doing the burning, despite the horrendous environmental effects. I never use palm oil in cooking or buy anything where it is listed as an ingredient, but it is very popular in the food industry because it is cheap and efficient. If you'd like to know more about palm oil and take a view about whether or not to use it, have a look at what Greenpeace has to say at http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/forests/palm-oil.
The weather here in France has been creating some problems too, particularly for grape growers and wine makers, as the months of May and June were unusually cold and damp, which has held up the maturation of the grape crop by a number of weeks. Limoux is the centre of the Blanquette industry, Blanquette de Limoux being the very first fizzy wine ever to have been invented (by accident, by a local monk, as it happens) - some time before Champagne.
Limoux was also the centre of "Pinotgate" in 2010, when it was discovered that local distributors of Merlot and Syrah were passing off these grapes as Pinot Noir in the U.S. Cue shock, horror, scare, probe! as well as a great big dollop of schadenfreude on the part of those French - and Brits - who were laughing their socks off at the inability of the U.S. imbibers to tell the difference........
The scandal sent shock waves through the wine-making fraternity, but how does that scandal compare with the outcry over Miley Cyrus's energetic twerking (if you don't know what it is, Google it and get down with the kids) at the recent MTV VMA ceremony? Have a look at this and judge for yourself......
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31AhaWyY1y4
So, as I am not actually in Singapore, I will nevertheless woman up and produce some words of wisdom in the form of musings from southern France. Let's start with the weather.
 |
| Not a black and white photo from the olden days, but a picture of modern Singapore under the haze of June 2013. |
I was very glad to be absent from Singapore during the recent haze, which was about the worst it's ever been, but it seems that it may be about to make a re-appearance - due to hot spots in Sumatra - although in a much milder form than previously. The June pollution caused a difficult political moment between Singapore and Indonesia, as the haze was allegedly caused by "slash and burn" farming techniques on palm oil plantations. Cutting down rain forests and then burning it to clear land for the planting of palm oil trees is cheaper than using bulldozers and diggers. The fact that it's illegal doesn't seem to stand in the way of the people doing the burning, despite the horrendous environmental effects. I never use palm oil in cooking or buy anything where it is listed as an ingredient, but it is very popular in the food industry because it is cheap and efficient. If you'd like to know more about palm oil and take a view about whether or not to use it, have a look at what Greenpeace has to say at http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/forests/palm-oil.
The weather here in France has been creating some problems too, particularly for grape growers and wine makers, as the months of May and June were unusually cold and damp, which has held up the maturation of the grape crop by a number of weeks. Limoux is the centre of the Blanquette industry, Blanquette de Limoux being the very first fizzy wine ever to have been invented (by accident, by a local monk, as it happens) - some time before Champagne.
 |
| The Merlot/Syrah blend was sold under E & J Gallo's Red Bicyclette label. |
Limoux was also the centre of "Pinotgate" in 2010, when it was discovered that local distributors of Merlot and Syrah were passing off these grapes as Pinot Noir in the U.S. Cue shock, horror, scare, probe! as well as a great big dollop of schadenfreude on the part of those French - and Brits - who were laughing their socks off at the inability of the U.S. imbibers to tell the difference........
The scandal sent shock waves through the wine-making fraternity, but how does that scandal compare with the outcry over Miley Cyrus's energetic twerking (if you don't know what it is, Google it and get down with the kids) at the recent MTV VMA ceremony? Have a look at this and judge for yourself......
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31AhaWyY1y4
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