Mostly on wine. Also: IRM/InfoSec/I-Advisory and -Audit services. Positive contrarian, inspirator, loosen-upper.
Well yes, another episode in the Plusquote saga:
Now you’re accusing me of optimism”
Which works well in these times of stale bureaucracies; is sought after for disruptive value and renewal. And, in general, is something one might aim for, in a way of Summer motto — weather be nice, weather be rain spells, one can attach a positive edge, mode, conclusion.
Also, for the latter:
[Unedited phone pic; giving light in a Larking building style (not -referenced!) atrium; Gemeentemuseum Den Haag]
Whether it would be @ElonMusk himself or @BoredElonMusk or any of you to pick these up… Just putting them out (t)here, for your consideration:
First; there ‘was’ this CVT thing, back in the 80s/90s or so, that didn’t really take off the way it might have.
In particular, since it sounded so ridiculous when revving up/down beyond ‘normal’. Now, with much improved electronic/near-AI engine/car control (and travel/congestion forward-looking (AI) car/engine management), wouldn’t it be possible to apply CVT in a more sensible way, leading to (much) extended range on EVs ..?
We’re thinking small cars first, since the fully-automatic gearbox thing will still not pick up with aficionados except the few that keep silent and cannot stand the discomfort of switching gears in the traffic jams they’re invariably caught in — I mean, thus disclosing themselves as pitiful mediocre-management ‘staff’. But then, with smaller cars and such ‘fuel’ savings, smaller batteries may suffice hence making the total package viable..?
Second; I just learned that Teslas and other EVs are lousy caravan pullers ’cause, though the torque might make them perfectly suited, the acceleration slurps (huh?) the batteries empty way too quickly, leading to much insufficient range. When the caravaners hook up their cabins in particular for day-long travel…
Yes, this may not be a Tesla thing per se, as caravaners and T owners/drivers may be near-completely disjunct groups, but it goes for other, less-suspiciously electric vehicles as well. And caravanning may not be a big thing (anymore!) over in the USofA but still very much is, over here in Europe [disclaimer: I’m most certainly not into it].
Also, T is ‘rumoured’ to have this battery pack thing going on ..? So I wondered what the merits would be of building such packs in a way that they could be fit onto caravans, e.g., onto the adze’s (is that the right word …!?) that have some standardization, or make them easy-fits onto the most common caravan brands, and then either feed straight into the EV or be used as replenishments at stops/stop-overs. Or, just for caravan e-juice during stays anywhere e.g. at ‘campings’…?
Well, no thirds here. Whatever’itis breaking out. Plus:
[When garages were meant to be beautiful; Porto — oh wait they still can be]
Slightly annotated, and not aiming for completeness, as many worthwhile (sometimes quasi- or semi–Quined!) quotes of Ralph Waldo E. have been posted elsewhere; this just my picks because of their profundity. And personal liking…
A cripple in the right way will beat a racer in the wrong; … Vinegar is the son of wine; … Long-lived trees make roots first; …
Yes indeed, when ‘managers’ may be in either, both, or (vast majority) neither situation …
And, one close to heart but one to remember in many a circumstance, like waiting for vindication of one’s insights.
Fast re-pivot, anyone ..?
The same good office is performed by Property and its filial systems of debt and credit. Debt; grinding debt, whose iron face the widow, the orphan, and the sons of genius fear and hate; — debt, which consumes so much time, which so cripples and disheartens a great spirit with cares that seem so base, is a preceptor whose lessons cannot be foregone, and it is needed most by those who suffer from it most.
Clearly, this a summary and precursor to Graeber and, moreover, Piketty.
Moreover, property, which has been well compared with snow, — “if it fall level to-day, it will be blown into drifts to-morrow,” …
Similar, in particular with regard to the latter mentioned author…
Words are finite organs of the infinite mind.
Indeed; I’ve repeated over and over that short sentences not clarity make — or if, then to the simpleton mind.
“The things that are seen, are temporal; the things that are unseen, are eternal.”
Contra the not-giving one-percenters of course.
Empirical science is apt to cloud the sight, and by the very knowledge of functions and processes to bereave the student of the manly contemplation of the whole. The savant becomes unpoetic.
Indeed, the (induction-oriented) Big Data analysts will succumb to dumb conclusions. The manly (note that of course rigour and courage; Aristotelian Virtue is meant here!) contemplation, the deductive parts of True science, should lead naturally.
And the savant… is there a better label for Big Data analysts on average? Note that indeed, some may be on the upper side of the average (as these go), but may be few and far off.
But the old oracle said, “All things have two handles: beware of the wrong one.”
Yes, true even when the thing is bonus incentives. Beware of bankers’ (et al !!) grip on those. But then, this saying may be applied against all of your un-agreeing fellow meeting members.
But genius looks forward: the eyes of the man are set in his forehead, not in his hindhead: man hopes: genius creates.
I couldn’t agree more; that has delivered all the posts you have read (all) on this blog for sure. And again, this is against ‘data scientists’ that only do ‘evidence based’ decision-making: There is nothing more hindheadedness than that. Shove the results in the hind section where the respective feel happy about that.
Only so much do I know, as I have lived.
One that stands out. In The American Scholar but in general, too. Fitting with the whoso shall be a man, shall be a nonconformist elsewhere [Frank Lloyd Wright’s motto — somewhat by necessity one suspects] but Truest of True. A call to arms of the Virtuous (as above).
The man on whom the soul descends, through whom the soul speaks, alone can teach. Courage, piety, love, wisdom, can teach; and every man can open his door to the angels, and they shall bring him the gift of tongues. But the man who aims to speaks as books enable, as synods use, as the fashion guides, and as interest commands, babbles. Let him hush.
One thinks here of the popular among the ‘visionaries’ [e.g., the Dutch Yuri’s calling out bits, no more, of what fashion guides, in a manner that ‘babble’ is positive] that might be capable of delivering or discussing things on smaller-G’s hype cycles but have no hope to ever achieve anything more than upfront vagaries and Calimero’s claims to hindsight correctness.
Whenever the pulpit is usurped by a formalist, then is the worshipped defrauded and disconsolate.
Just fill in the flavour-of-the-day politician(s) for ‘formalist’ as that is about the same thing these days, and you’ll see it’s true.
The vision of genius comes by renouncing the too officious activity of the understanding, and giving leave and ample privilege to te spontaneous sentiment. … Men grind and grind in the mill of a truism, and nothing comes out but what was put in. But the moment they desert the tradition for a spontaneous thought, then poetry, wit, hope, virtue, learning, anecdote, all flock to their aid.
I would agree. In full, quite. Think the PhD thesis with at least three footnote literature references for every ‘the’, ‘it’ and ‘possibly’ etc. My reason not to pursue a PhD..!
The vulgar call good fortune that which really is produced by the calculations of genius. But Napoleon, thus faithful to facts, had also his crowning merit, that whilst he believed in numbers and weight, and omitted no part of prudence, he believed also in the freedom and quite incalculable force of the soul. A man of infinite caution, he neglected never the least particular of preparation, of patient adaptation; yet nevertheless he had a sublime confidence, as in his all, in the sallies of the courage, and the faith in his destiny, which, at the right moment, repaired all losses, and demolished cavalry, infantry, king, and kaisar, as with irresistible thunderbolts.
I am said to have enjoyed good fortune on occasion. But lean more to the second part; though not a fan of said ’emperor’, one would be hard-pressed to not agree with his dictae (as supported by the true sayings of, e.g., Von Moltke the Elder.
Where there is no vision, the people perish.
Which could be a factual quote just like that. But could also be, the need for a lead. A Leader. How dangerous …
… the luck of one is the hope of thousands, and the bribe acts like the neighborhood of a gold mine to impoverish the farm, the school, the church, the house, and the very body and feature of man.
Thus, the 1%-ers lead the underprivileged masses astray at the hand of demagogues. ’nuff said.
… against that frequent misfortune of men of genius, — the taste for luxury. This is the tragedy of genius; — attempting to drive along the ecliptic [as a Prometheus with the Sun ..? ed.] with one horse of the heavens and one horse of the earth, there is only discord and ruin and downfall of chariot and charioteer.
A sure warning for the ‘visionaries’ … Their mortgage doesn’t get paid by being Right. Mortal life is unescapable.
Why needs any man be rich? Why must he have horses, fine garments, handsome apartments [obviously, for one’s mistresses! ed.], access to public houses and places of amusement [one things La Grange; ed.]? Only for want of thought.
Oh how this reflects on the previous, and on the 1%-ers…
Those who are urging with most ardor what are called the greatest benefits to mankind, are narrow, self-pleasing, conceited men, and affect us like the insane do. They bite us, and we run mad also.
What a concise, and very precise, description of regulator, supervisors, oversight boards, et al..!
We do not want actions, but men; not a chemical drop of water, but rain; the spirit that sheds and showers actions, countless, endless actions. … The world leaves no track in space, and the greatest action of man no mark in the vast idea.
So, one should not aim for achievement recognition — as that would undo its very attempt. As so often observed.
The two parties which divide the state, the party of Conservatism and the party of Innovation, are very old, and have disputed the possession of the world ever since it was made.
True, everywhere even when there appear to be more than two parties. Appear, cosmetically.
For as you cannot jump from the ground without using the resistance of the ground, nor put out the boat on sea without shoving from the shore, nor attain liberty without rejecting obligation, so you are under the necessity of using the Actual order of things, in order to disuse it; …
Interesting; “I don’t want to go into politics because you get caught up, will learn to howl” but the only way to change politics is .. to join it. By the way; R. Waldo E. follows on with a discourse on how every progressive turns into a conservative; much worth a study as it paint the picture so inescapably. Even when my ‘soul’ would resist…
Conservatism … always mitigations, never remedies; pardons for sins, funeral honors, — never self-help, renovation, and virtue.
The kick is in the tail…
… a timid cobbler and patcher, it degrades whatever it touches.
Just true, and adding to the insult.
But if I allow myself in dereliction and become idle and dissolute, I quickly come to love the protection of a strong law, because I feel no title in myself to my advantage. To the intemperate and covetous person no love flows; to him mankind would pay no rent, no dividend, if force were once relaxed; nay, if they could give their verdict, they would say that his self-indulgence and oppression deserved punishment from society, and not that rich board and lodging he now enjoys. The law acts then as a screen of his unworthiness, and makes him worse the longer it protects him.
At once, one sees the French revolution brewing. At seconds, one considers modern-day politics…
With this passion for what is great and extraordinary, it cannot be wondered at that they are repelled by the vulgarity and frivolity in people.
Which is why I feel counterforces sometimes / often, against my Good Intent. Right?
Unless the action is necessary, unless it is adequate, I do not wish to perform it.
My motto entirely against Bureaucrats…!
I do not love routine. Once possessed of the principle, it is equally easy to make four or forty thousand applications of it. A great man will be content to have indicated in any the slightest manner his perception of the reigning Idea of his time, and will leave to those who like it the multiplication of examples.
Again, I concur. Fully. Hence, my visionary work does not fall under the header of the abovementioned bumblers. And now for the last one:
… but it has good healthful qualities in spite of them; not least among which a healthy disgust of Cant, and an aptitude to detect her in all the million varieties of her everlasting wardrobre.
Needs no comment I guess. Plus:
[Marker for the End of life reason; Foz]
Combining some recent news, some really old news, and your place in between. Or not.
The recent news: Birds might have tiny brains, but they still may be very intelligent (as animals go). Now, on a related note, discoveries show that the brain cells of birds may be smaller and/or much denser packed than they are in, e.g., humans and family.
The really before-stone-age news:
Combined: Birds have a separate line of descendance from their dinosaur-time quite-close equivalents. Having survived some dino extinction rounds and still remain quite similar in body and operations as before, having kept the same lightweight and small-package brain structure too?
Then, maybe the dinosaurs weren’t so stupid either with their small but possibly also very densely packed neurons and they just had a bad hair day (that’s what you get when a comet strikes your coiffure — footballers beware).
Just a, very,very,very after-the-facts hypothesis… And:
[For wine making; isn’t that obvious !?!?!? Quinta do Vallado; Douro]
[Thread development; under ~ ]
Tell me, did you go to school somewhere? Did you finish it, and/or completed assignments and exams to somewhat satisfactory degrees?
Congratulations… To the ‘common’ wisdom that one only learns from error, you have failed. In life.
Because, according to too many, fail fast fail often is the best way to gain knowledge about what doesn’t work — automatically leading to the assurance that doing things differently, will work. If you tried and the result didn’t fail, you haven’t learned. So, if you just learned what centuries of the most learned men (plus women…) brought to you, and achieved, acquired any compound body of knowledge, you may have knowledge but are useless otherwise, like an encyclopedia without a reader? Like some millennial that can google anything but doesn’t know (sic) how to apply the search results (let alone qualify them in the tremendous bias that’s in there)? Or did you learn about process and application along the way …?
Thus, all that human culture is; transferred knowledge on facts, process and application, is denied. Where even Neanderthals had culture and knew how to learn from what had — positively — shown to work in practice (i.e., application, intelligence), you the fail-oriented stumbler, don’t reach up to their level of survivability.
Which leads to both this and this, with a large dose of this. ‘Traditional’ learning, and building enterprises that can last for centuries (or, until the wisdom is lost due to ‘CEOs’ and ‘managers’ quae non), as an antidote and sensible path.
Now, if you can just leave us sanes, the rest of the world to actually be successful in the long and short runs …? Plus:
[Just two boats, or an Atlantic Ocean of knowledge ..? Off Foz]
To start, an introduction — how unusual:
René Descartes walks into a bar and sits down for dinner. The waiter comes over and asks if he’d like an appetizer.
“No thank you,” says Descartes, “I’d just like to order dinner.”
“Would you like to hear our daily specials?” asks the waiter.
“No.” says Descartes, getting impatient.
“Would you like a drink before dinner?” the waiter asks.
Descartes is insulted, since he’s a teetotaler. “I think not!” he says indignantly, and POOF! he disappears.
As recalled by YouByNowKnowWho from David Chalmers.
Which demonstrates quite a bit about identity, and artificial intelligence.
The identity part: To quote YBNKW, “… that identity is preserved through continuity of the pattern of information that makes us. Continuity allows for continual change, so whereas I am somewhat different than I was yesterday, I nonetheless have the same identity.” — thus, thinking (both the directed, problem solving way and the massively concurrent undirected, associative and ‘unconscious’ way) is what both constitutes and preserves Identity.
The AI part: Being the part where ‘intelligence’ or the I to the A (or human ~, whatever; after Ray you may not care about a hypothetical difference) is the thinking (or not) of René.
So, whether A or not, the I makes the Id. Not the Es in a mother’s darling child sense! there, it is the (‘super’?)ego but that’s another story.
Now, how to translate that to latest developments in the IAM, blockchain-trust, and ANI/ASI arenas ..? Plus:
[Nuclear shelter, a.k.a. know your building history; Casa da Musica Porto but you surely knew that]
Yet another, relatively (sic) random, quote with a kicker in the tail:
In support of this distinction, Chalmers introduces a thought experiment involving what he calls zombies. A zombie is an entity that acts just like a person but simply does not have subjective experience — that is, a zombie is not conscious. Chalmers argues that since we can conceive of zombies, they are at least logically possible. If you were at a cocktail party and there were both “normal” humans and zombies, how would you tell the difference? Perhaps this sounds like a cocktail party you have attended.
Again, from Ray Kurtzweil’s How to Create a Mind (p.202).
And, of course:
[Just like that; Aachen]
Well, yesterday’s post was about just a quote, this one’s about what should be a full cross-post but hey, I’m no wizard I’ll just blockquote it from here because it’s so good (again, qua author):
Society in the Loop Artificial Intelligence
Jun 23, 2016 – 20:37 UTC
Iyad Rahwan was the first person I heard use the term society-in-the-loop machine learning. He was describing his work which was just published in Science, on polling the public through an online test to find out how they felt about various decisions people would want a self-driving car to make – a modern version of what philosophers call “The Trolley Problem.” The idea was that by understanding the priorities and values of the public, we could train machines to behave in ways that the society would consider ethical. We might also make a system to allow people to interact with the Artificial Intelligence (AI) and test the ethics by asking questions or watching it behave.
Society-in-the-loop is a scaled up version of human-in-the-loop machine learning – something that Karthik Dinakar at the Media Lab has been working on and is emerging as an important part of AI research.
Typically, machines are “trained” by AI engineers using huge amounts of data. The engineers tweak what data is used, how it’s weighted, the type of learning algorithm used and a variety of parameters to try to create a model that is accurate and efficient and making the right decisions and providing accurate insights. One of the problems is that because AI, or more specifically, machine learning is still very difficult to do, the people who are training the machines are usually not domain experts. The training is done by machine learning experts and the completed model after the machine is trained is often tested by experts. A significant problem is that any biases or errors in the data will create models that reflect those biases and errors. An example of this would be data from regions that allow stop and frisk – obviously targeted communities will appear to have more crime.
Human-in-the-loop machine learning is work that is trying to create systems to either allow domain experts to do the training or at least be involved in the training by creating machines that learn through interactions with experts. At the heart of human-in-the-loop computation is the idea of building models not just from data, but also from the human perspective of the data. Karthik calls this process ‘lensing’, of extracting the human perspective or lens of a domain expert and fit it to algorithms that learn from both the data and the extracted lens, all during training time. We believe this has implications for making tools for probabilistic programming and for the democratization of machine learning.
At a recent meeting with philosophers, clergy and AI and technology experts, we discussed the possibility of machines taking over the job of judges. We have evidence that machines can make very accurate assessments of things that involve data and it’s quite reasonable to assume that decisions that judges make such as bail amounts or parole could be done much more accurately by machines than by humans. In addition, there is research that shows expert humans are not very good set setting bail or granting parole appropriately. Whether you get a hearing by the parole board before or after their lunch has a significant effect on the outcome, for instance.
In the discussion, some of us proposed the idea of replacing judges for certain kinds of decisions, bail and parole as examples, with machines. The philosopher and several clergy explained that while it might feel right from a utilitarian perspective, that for society, it was important that the judges were human – it was even more important than getting the “correct” answer. Putting aside the argument about whether we should be solving for utility or not, having the buy-in of the public would be important for the acceptance of any machine learning system and it would be essential to address this perspective.
There are two ways that we could address this concern. One way would be to put a “human in the loop” and use machines to assist or extend the capacity of the human judges. It is possible that this would work. On the other hand, experiences in several other fields such as medicine or flying airplanes have shown evidence that humans may overrule machines with the wrong decision enough that it would make sense to prevent humans from overruling machines in some cases. It’s also possible that a human would become complacent or conditioned to trust the results and just let the machine run the system.
The second way would be for the machine to be trained by the public – society in the loop – in a way that the people felt that that the machine reliability represented fairly their, mostly likely, diverse set of values. This isn’t unprecedented – in many ways, the ideal government would be one where the people felt sufficiently informed and engaged that they would allow the government to exercise power and believe that it represented them and that they were also ultimately responsible for the actions of the government. Maybe there is way to design a machine that could garner the support and the proxy of the public by being able to be trained by the public and being transparent enough that the public could trust it. Governments deal with competing and conflicting interests as will machines. There are obvious complex obstacles including the fact that unlike traditional software, where the code is like a series of rules, a machine learning model is more like a brain – it’s impossible to look at the bits and understand exactly what it does or would do. There would need to be a way for the public to test and audit the values and behavior of the machines.
If we were able to figure out how to take the input from and then gain the buy-in of the public as the ultimate creator and controller of this machine, it might solve the other side of this judicial problem – the case of a machine made by humans that commits a crime. If, for instance, the public felt that they had sufficient input into and control over the behavior of a self-driving car, could the public also feel that the public, or the government representing the public, was responsible for the behavior and the potential damage caused by a self-driving car, and help us get around the product liability problem that any company developing self-driving cars will face?
How machines will take input from and be audited and controlled by the public, may be one of the most important areas that need to be developed in order to deploy artificial intelligence in decision making that might save lives and advance justice. This will most likely require making the tools of machine learning available to everyone, have a very open and inclusive dialog and redistribute the power that will come from advances in artificial intelligence, not just figure out ways to train it to appear ethical.
Credits
•Iyad Rahwan – The phrase “society in the loop” and many ideas.
•Karthik Dinakar – Teaching me about “human in the loop” machine learning and being my AI tutor and many ideas.
•Andrew McAfee – Citation and thinking on parole boards.
•Natalie Saltiel – Editing.
And, of course for your viewing pleasure:
[Would AI recognise this, an aside in the Carnegie Library; Reims]
… Just some quote, from a relatively random source, in a series of more of the same:
Some people have complained to me about Siri’s failure to answer certain requests, but I often recall that these are the same people who persistently complain about human service providers also.
From Ray Kurzweil’s How to Create a Mind (p.161), full of these sort (or even wittier; to follow) off the cuff remarks: They make the reading much more interesting; a thing to emulate!
[3 x (4 straight, 1 oaked, 1 reserve) = 18 still wines to assemble into one cuvée, before secondary fermentation; Ployez-Jacquemart (some bottles out of sight, for those who count ;-]
Voor sigaren bepalen we het profiel aan de hand van de criteria Smaak, Balans, Body, Sterkte, Aroma en Finish.
Voor Smaak pakken we het aromawiel erbij. Let wel I; wat u proeft of verwacht, kan gedurende de diverse fasen van het roken nog variëren... En let wel II; er zijn ook aspecten die nog niet zozeer als aroma staan aangegeven in het wiel, we denken aan termen als (ja de sigarenwereld is langzamerhand, helaashelaas US-, Engels geworden) zesty, tangy, floral, en earthy, of soms zelfs metallic. Lijkende termen die een combi zouden kunnen zijn van diverse aromas en papillaire en olfactorische/nasale sensaties en -tactiele invloeden. Hierbij komen termen als 'complex' uiteraard ook bijgepakt, om in dit geval te beschrijven dat er vele aromas herkenbaar zijn. Rustig roken, dat is niet alleen beschaafder en allerlei sigarenrokeneffecten-versterkend maar biedt ook meer kans om aromas te onderscheiden.
Balans is voor de hand liggend; of de zoete, zure, zoute en bittere tonen (OK, en 'umami'...) in balans zijn. Ja, ook bij een sigaar – al zal het meestal gaan over de balans tussen 'creamy' en 'spicy' en gaat het meestal mis door te veel bitter of te veel spiciness.
Body gaat over de volheid, in dit geval vooral te bepalen aan de volheid, dikte, dichtheid van de rook. Die ook een gevoel geeft; 'light' is als een licht bier, 'full-bodied' is als een rechttoe-rechtaan whisky of cognac.
Overigens hoort bij Body ook textuur, 'leathery', 'meaty', 'silky', 'creamy', 'soft', 'succulent', 'woody', 'chalky', 'dry', 'oily' en 'spicy'. Die dus net niet hetzelfde zijn als de aroma-indicatoren uit het wiel; soms overlappend. Niet handig maar zo is het nu eenmaal.
Sterkte is een wat eenvoudiger maat voor het nicotinegehalte van de sigaar. De topbladeren van een tabaksplant heeft meer nicotine dan de lagere bladeren – me(n) dunkt dat de topbladeren zijn waar de plant verder wil groeien en dus betere bescherming nodig heeft van de nico; lager is het wat ouder en 'expendible' dus ga je daar als plant niet je nico op concentreren ..? Waar de sigaar van gemaakt is, heeft dus invloed. Kan je meestal niet kiezen, maar wel proeven. Rustig roken is ook hier handig; om een nico-klap/duizel te voorkomen bij het opstaan.
Aroma dan, vervolgens. Ook hier kan het aromawiel worden ingezet. Vreemd genoeg is het moeilijk de aromas te bepalen als we zelf roken; iemand anders' rook kunnen we beter analyseren. Of we blazen de rook door de neus uit ('retrohaleren'), dan hebben we wel de volle verfijning (ga ik vanuit, lezer!) van onze neus ter beschikking. Bedenk bij het 'benoemen' overigens dat we veel meer uit ons geheugen putten, qua eten en drinken!, dan we wellicht zelf(s) denken. Dus rare smaken herkennen is niet raar.
De Finish ten slotte is kort of lang, naargelang de aromas lang op de tong (sic) blijven hangen. Milde sigaren zijn nogal eens kort – hetgeen niks zegt over de complexiteit, overigens. Hierin zit ook de reden om een zwaar (sterkte)kanon na een milde te nemen, niet andersom.
Als het gaat over de champagnes en hun profielen, pakken we er de (echte en semi-)klassieke wijn-analyses bij die we allemaal wel kennen; onderscheidend in [Hier verder. In ieder geval https://www.wijnwinewein.nl/hoe-proef-je-wijn/ en aromawiel + zuurgraad/tannines/body(viscositeit/alcohol/tannines/smaakintensiteit/mondgevoel)/afdronk + Aanzet/Zuren/Zachtheid/Tannine/Body en alcohol/Afdronk/Smaken dus de aromas bijna-los van structurele criteria. Dan de smaken matchen met die van sigaren, of niet; Klosse's overlap/contrasten erbij halen en dan verder. En toespitsen op champagnes... pak het smaak-plaatje van het CIVC erbij!]
Dear reader; bij deze dus de waarschuwing dat u vanaf hier (?, inderdaad, echt niet alleen hier) serieus te lange zinnen tegenkomt.
Ach, daar ben ik me prima van bewust, mijn hele blog is immers ook een poging tot schrijfoefening in alle facetten. Sommige posts daar blinken uit door korte zinnen en ellipsis; ook deze pagina is opgesteld als tegenwicht. En ik vertrouw erop dat u dat gewoon doorlezend aankunt.
Als voorbeeld: Oplettende lezers zullen opmerken dat onderstaande waar het uitweidingen achter links naar andere pagina's betreft wellicht beter met behulp van OnMouseOver's, alt-tekstblokken of andere tags per pop-uppable item zou kunnen zijn geïmplementeerd maar ik heb het zo gekozen en ik kan best komma's toevoegen in deze zin maar ook dat heb ik achterwege gelaten zonder de leesbaarheid of de begrijpbaarheid in het gedrang te brengen.
Inderdaad, het ontwikkelde, ik schreef, een en ander vanuit een voortdurende, voortgaande research. Na zoeken in het wilde weg algemeen, navraag bij het Comité (iv) Champagne, een aanvullend zelfzoeken met Google Satellite én Street View zowel rond de officiële als in het algemeen, kwam ik tot de Lijst Van (uiteindelijk) 84. De en passant gevonden kaarten leidden tot enige aanvulling. Toen kwam ik Weinlagen.de tegen en tsja dan ben ik niet meer te houden qua sys-te-matisch alle streken én plaatsjes af! Hoewel, ... in onderstaande tabel heb ik maar niet meer voor ieder stuks de Street View erop losgelaten of onderstaand ingevuld. Terwijl ik er vanuit ga dat dit alles nog aanvulling kan krijgen ... Les Clos Inconnus zijn uiteraard zichzelf.
De gangen kwamen al zeer onregelmatig door, en met andere tafels die uitliepen en/of (weer) bijtrokken, tot zeer ver inhalen zelfs, tot gang 6 van de 7 tachtig (schrijve: 80) minuten op zich liet wachten, ondanks diverse malen navraag. Waarna het nauwelijks-opgewarmde pompoen met koude polenta bleek te zijn; "dat hoort zo" ammehoela. Nee, het niet-koude nagerecht erna hebben we niet gehaald; we zijn opgestaan en weggegaan. Die zien ons nooit meer, zeker omdat de bediening ook Zwak was (gangen aan verkeerde tafeltjes serveren want die waren al twee gangen verder), etc. En balsimaco-saus dus, 'et al.'...
Huh, da's écht voor de Insiders..? Inmiddels wel toegestaan als aanplant, maar nog zo'n drie tot tien jaar onderweg voor er de eerste re-de-lijke wijnen van kunnen worden gemaakt en dan is het nog maar afwachten. Je weet het niet van tevoren hè, met zo'n non-Vinifera druivensoort..! En dan had je Floreal, Artaban en Vidoc nog niet gezien. Die mogen (in de toekomst) ook... En dan is het Comité Champagne ook nog bezig met kruisingen van de Top 3, Arbane, Meslier, en Gouais. #feest
En dan komt hierna een nóg spectaculairdere outsider: Chardonnay rose Rs, minder dan een kwart voetbalveldje aanplant...
Mineraliteit verdient een aparte behandeling; vanuit het idee van 'huh er zit echt geen mineraal/steen in je wijn en lik jij aan stenen-dan'-versus-'toch proef ik die sensatie en Ja' tot en met de abstracte benadering van een kennelijke associatie van een gewaarwording als hier, tot een synthese op de as 'bodem-microbiologie'-in-combinatie-met-'feitelijke chemie'. Want, jawel, fenylmethaanthiol zorgt voor vuursteen / aangestoken lucifer, in combinatie met benzaldehyde (uit 'hout') en waterstofdisulfide (uit reductie; en beide uit bepaalde gisten!) leidend tot Vuursteen-herkenning, versterkt bij anorganische ammonia bijvoorbeeld. Vuursteen is geen 'mineraliteit' maar daar wel belangrijk onderdeel van. Dus Ja, er zitten wel degelijk chemische stoffen in (niet alle gelukkig) wijn die een sensatie veroorzaken die op mineraliteit lijkt. Zout, uiteraard, ook, (niet meer maar wel) vaker dan we denken! Alles tezamen een uit-ste-ken-de reden om te spreken over herkenning van Mineraliteit in wijn. 0-10 en een penalty tegen voor de geo-logen.
Laherte Petit Meslier in the tasting round
Yes @laherteaurelien makes a monocépage of this one. Great Meslier it is:
The golden colour would suggest something dosée, but look closer and you notice a hue which points to slight bitter influences. And indeed, on the nose we get a whiff of smoke, certainly straight after the pour; quite an opportunity to use the word ‘empyreumatic’... Did I mention Meslier already? One to one it is. But nothing referring to your cooking qualities; it’s more like a distant secondhand puff of Belinda – I’d not suggest you buy that for comparison; trust me as smoker it’s trash but as Meslier aroma it’s excellent full stop. Crispy dry cigar smoke fits better.
Certainly, since this all is followed up, much more persistently, with quite some mature lemon and a whole slew of herbs and spices notes. It smells like a merry-go-round of eucalyptus, dill, thyme, spearmint, soft mint, basil, anison, verveine... wormwood even; those that know génépi, find it here, too.
The first sip jumps in with a most delicate mousse, a sensible but not too fatty mouthfeel, nicely balanced with lemon dominant in combo, and ginger/pineapple/mirabelle and dry lemon rind flipping back and forth. In the remarkably long finish, the rind does a gentle cleanse.
But I couldn’t find any cardamom that some mention, nor cocoa or coffee. All in all, in cocktail terms it would fit in the range of the French 75 and a Fleurette.
I’ve tried a little bite of camembert, but you shouldn’t. The bitter of the wine is lost but notches up in the cheese, which tastes odd. The fit with lightly aged Comté or same-Gouda is perfect, however. Sushi should work, too, if with a suitably subtle pinch of wasabi, no more – harsh coriander, algae, chervil, wasabi as such weren’t in the nose.
In summary: All of you should have a taste of this one, or one couldn’t be trusted on champagne connoisseurship.
[Degorge 12-2021, hence the progressed maturity]
Links:
https://maverisk.nl/de-forgotten-four/ for Petit Meslier
https://maverisk.nl/champ-sigaar/ on the cigar smoke angle
https://maverisk.nl/geneprima-spul-hoor/ on génépi
https://maverisk.nl/mirabelle-wil-iedereen-welle/ on mirabelle
@champagnepascalmazet make quite an interesting range of wines, fully certified bio since 1980. We tasted the Cuvée Originel bottling of 2014, for its 35% Pinot Blanc of course; interested to learn how such a Forgotten Four lead, with the three Usual Suspects trailing, would work out.
‘Splendidly’ is the answer.
The gold is striking, the nose is suitably complex. One gets mint, cucumber, cornichon tartness (I mean, the true kind of https://www.kesbeke.nl/) and some olive.
On the palate, it switches to agrumes-allsorts. Yuzu, lightly pre-ripened apricot (yes there’s acidity in there), sparkling grape (ah.) and a hint of almond already. This slowly develops into lemon-grapefruit on the one hand, and yellow curry / pineapple on the other, with a tangerine almost orange'y element integrating both sides. I’d say, there’s a marbling of mirabelle (in Dutch: https://maverisk.nl/mirabelle-wil-iedereen-welle/) running through it as well.
‘But’ overall it certainly is far from flubby (the 3g dosage having turned into the above, no sirup) or acidic. The quality of it all, and the light oak touch, twist all the richness back towards the freshness of citrus zest. And did I mention the mousse is still there, slowly releasing?
Towards the lingering finish, this all persists in a extremely well-balanced acidity and a hint of minerality and sophisticated bitterness.
Am I happy to have another one of these standing ready
Marie Courtin Présence
I bought the @ch_mariecourtin for the 1/3 Pinot Blanc (of course: https://tinyurl.com/ForgotFour !). High expectations, exceeded.
First off, the yellow-golden almost amber colour would promise some sweet almost creamy elements. But with a delightfully tingle from a fresh mousse, and a light bitter-tartness in the nose, the picture turns around completely. There’s Mirabelle ..! [As per: https://tinyurl.com/Mirabellepg]
The palate is perfect; not too much mousse so the real ‘wine’ taste is clear, and the Mirabelle keeps on coming. The mouth feel overall is well-balanced, and includes a soft minty/dill side with the lemon (plus some bittersweet orange even), moving into the grapefruit area and then the mirabelle’s back again. The very long finish has the mint/dill combo again, and an inkling of sugar. But with zero dosage, that’ll be the Chard and almost certainly the Pinot Blanc waving goodbye. Throughout, there’s a slight undertow of pickled cornichon (Amsterdam style; what else?)
All in all, it’s a wonderful demo of what Pinot Blanc can bring; lifting the Chard from its average whilst pulling itself up into high performance. Merging the best of both into Something Else of a great wine. This being a zero dosage, zero sulphur added, zero intervention wine, it also proves that ‘natural’ wines need not be f(l)unky. But on the contrary, one would hardly be able to tell.
The Présence is course material in so many ways. Am I happy? Well, not with six other dwarfs but yes, very much so.
The @champagne_gruet Cuvée Arbane …
𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘌𝘭𝘴𝘦 entirely!
100% Arbane yes. Which brings a freshness too long lost. Reminds me of the bone dry styles of yesteryear, in a good, rather great way. Chalky without dust, minerality without flint. A wonderful conversation starter, on the good things of life.
With a fresh and quite light, lemon-white colour through which a very fine and persistent mousse promises delight. Then, on the nose, one gets a first whiff of floral notes; jasmine, elderberry, rose – followed by zingy but ripe lemon. When allowed to mellow in the glass (or a day in the bottle), the lemon slowly brings along some grapefruit, pineapple and (dry white) melon. All within measure, refined, nowhere too in-your-face’y.
The mouthfeel is brilliant with the mousse playing its role to keep the very well balanced aspects all quite light. The dosage is hardly noticeable – from the taste of it, one would estimate 2g. max, and notes of soft white peach, light albedo, with a very long finish on the thyme/mint/dill spectrum with the albedo bitters lingering on.
Would work miraculously with e.g., flounder with serious sauce and herbs, swordfish with almond crusting, maybe tuna or mackerel, or white meat.
Saw a score somewhere of 91/100, but that's too low.
Buxeuil doesn’t have any Arbane of its own (in production), but with this Gruet wine, it has a flagship.
Arbane being at only 0,018% (yes, percent) of Champagne’s acreage, this cuvée highlights the 'need' (want!) for quite an extension of that.
Tasting the Pinot Blanc champagne of Gruet of Buxeuil (@champagne_gruet). That’s right, a pure-bred PB champagne. (Be sure to pick the right one, at https://www.champagne-gruet.com/)
And it is a treat, indeed.
In the glass, we have a very fine mousse, well-integrated - it continues very, very long and doesn’t just give a one-off foam layer – through a pale gold, slightly varietal-typical PB wine.
On the nose, the typical character come through immediately, including a slightly fluffy air of white flowers around light tangerine / (white) peach / mirabelle, and a core of lime – keeping nicely short of being bitter.
The mouthfeel is light, but not fleeting. One gets beautiful straight near-ripe lemon, a waft of mint with white blossom, and some white pepper towards the back. Add to that lemon white skin with edges of red grapefruit.
Mind you; I had kept some for a second tasting, and four days (suitably cool storage) after opening, all this was still as fresh. No ‘dosage plays up after too much air’ or so; great.
A top recommendation, this one. If only to keep the Forgotten Four Cépages alive, as they deserve, but also for sheer tasting pleasure. Or ‘the trick one’ at a tasting experiment. Or for an apéritif or with whitish seafood (if not to lime’y or salty).
The Réminiscence 100% pinot blanc brut nature by @champagneericlegrand via @jeromeschampagne. Supposedly off 65+yr old vines, but one would be hard-pressed to tell that by the wine. What delicious freshness!
For a start: What would one expect from a pure PB champagne? Subtlety indeed.
It starts with a new capsule (for me, to further fill my https://www.deknudtframes.fr/en/catalog/product/s65sz2-/frame-in-black-for-champagne-caps which only applies to *different* capsules I tasted *at home*) – under a muselet to duly impress. After a good whiff, one can immediately pick up the something-different of this one. The first 80% is most clearly artichoke with some mint; not very strange since we just made such a dip for (neutral) crackers five minutes before.
After which, with careful nosing/tasting, we get a white-floral element with traces of almonds and yes even a hint of vanilla and the slightest of dried yellow fruit. This continues in the long developing taste, clearly adding ‘a point’+ ripe lemon (citron), with the etheric element slowly (very slowly) fizzling out. Can I say ‘retronasally’ there? As it tactilely *feels* that way for sure. Add some vanilla points in the long after.
All in all, a thing to be savoured. And, let’s promote these ‘forgotten four’ champagnes! Away with the factory work! (One suspects the 24x range by some famous grand marque points in the right away direction, too, qua hyper-mass production orientation.) The more sure we have of being able to choose to never have to taste a same champagne ever again in one’s lifetime. *If* one would want to – wines like the Réminiscence make one still would want to return often. Extend the plantation!
Another round for Gruet of Buxeuil (@champagne_gruet) – The Cuvée des 3 Blancs (as here)
With its matte gold, almost amber appearance and very fine mousse (hardly foamy but lingering in the mouth for a long, long time), we'd expect the Pinot Blanc to dominate over the Arbane and even Chard. It does. A little. But, as assemblages go, only a little; I'd rather say one can identify the PB by its gently soft but full agrumes/mirabelle character but there's a lot of exquisite light flowers – hawthorn – and herb'iness – in the sage, rosemary corner – already in the aromas. Would that be the continuum of the Arbane and Chard?
If one would want to take it analytically.
Savouring, one would enjoy the all-round calm structure, with a medium to full mouthfeel (nothing sticky). And just the image (?) of a surprisingly light white wine with lots of mature grapefruit, lemon and a slice of lime. From which the little bitter note lingers on in the back, most pleasantly refreshing, nothing astringent or harsh. Overall, certainly not chalky bone dry but a hint of mango.
Would I pair this all with food ..? That would be a. hard; a very careful cheese selection might do, b. interesting, to see where the flavours go (see below), c. not necessary, it's a wonderful treat on its own.
This, in a series of Forgotten Four tastings, as per this 'research'.
And the (aubépine and) mirabelle note, Gruet themselves also list. Nice, yet another example of that great aroma.
Plus, one of course has e.g., this and this book, or quite a few others, already..?
Of boek. Hoewel er een beperkt aantal boeken is dat ik hoog heb, zit er niet een[1] bij die nou net op het onderdeel dat mij respectievelijk interesseert, het α tot en met ω heeft. Waar-om en waardoor ik juist de verdere research wil/ 'moet' doen...
[1] Nou ja, deze komt in de buurt...
Jazeker! Zoveel is zeker: Voor bijvoorbeeld de Fransen is dat een volstrekt normale karakterisering. Het gaat dus niet om NaCl uit een Jozo-vaatje... Eerder "off-vuursteen"; denk ook aan de regio van hints in de verte bij wit-peperigheid en magnesium in de buurt. Niet vreemd, als oesters zeer rijk zijn aan zink (sic), ijzer, calcium (dûh) en selenium. Sommigen in NL zeggen dan dat je geen 'zout' of zelfs maar 'zilt' mag zeggen. 1. Van wie niet ..!? 2. Waarom niet ..!? 3. Dat is toch voor zéér velen de beste karakterisering – niemand beweert dus dat er keukenzout in uw wijn zit en iedereen weten dat de karakterisering losstaat van enige bewering van objectieve chemische samenstelling anders zouden we wijnaroma's héél anders beschrijven!
Of zelfs Philpatrick het moet niet gekker worden ... Dus denk niet dat de spellcheck op hol sloeg.
De Cuvée Métisse, noirs et blancs oftewel 80% PN en, jawel, 20% Pinot Blanc, wederom een assemblage met een van de Forgotten Four. Brut nature dat houdt het puur, klaargemaakt bij de BV Val du Clos dan nemen we ook een verre hint daarvan mee. Van Champagne Olivier Horiot, MeB juli 2020, dégorge 16 jan 2023, grotendeels oogst 2019 plus nog een scheut uit de Réserve Perpétuelle die op eik wordt gehouden – ja ik kwam 'm in een coin oublié tegen maar prijs me gelukkig. Quelle belle ouvrage! Als u denkt: Da's een nogal technisch verhaal – dan is dat juist maar het proeven is gewoon een onbekommerd plezier. Het begint uiteraard met de sprankelende licht-amber kleur en een neus met het lichte bittertje, denk aan het dille-thijm spectrum, van de Blanc. Terwijl dan de eerste smaak van de Noir komt. Hoewel licht door de jaren, en dat pufje bitter komt er snel weer bij. Rijpe-appelzuur, heel lang gematigd door-coastend verdund citroensap met in de verte mango en met witte zest erboven zwevend. Maar wel in complete balans, niet vlak of zo maar juist met transparante diepte. Toen ik er een hapje net-nog-niet-compleet-rijpe ananas(kern) bij nam, was dat een moeiteloze, zowat volledige overlap. Later komt er een onderstroom(pje) van iets dat neigt naar kruiden door de mond. En nog steeds met zeer fijne bulles, by the way; verfrissend zonder prikje. In termen van verwachte aroma's zou ik eerder tussen Chard en Meunier op pad gaan van jong naar iets voorbij het midden, en zeker niet te ver naar de rijpe complexe PN-hoek zakken. Al met al een 'opulente' wijn die verrassend jong van geest is (gebleven). De PN is meer steun dan leider in het geheel; prima! En de PB viert z'n vrijheid om te shinen; uitstekende reclame!
5 Sens: De Oogst-2017, MiB 24 juli 2018, Dégorge 12 mei 2023 ja zo exact, met nul dosage voor slechts 1320 fles plus 90 magnums. Van 5 verschillende terroirs, oude stokken van 5 verschillende cépages – PN, Chard en Meuier, en dus ook Arbane en Pinot Blanc; langzaam vergist en opvoeding sur lies. Dat geeft volgens de makers de vijf (jawel) elementen Water, Aarde, Luchten Vuur – en l'Esprit! Wederom een assemblage dus van Olivier Horiot (op @horiotolivier) met Forgotten Four, klaargemaakt bij de BV Val du Clos dan nemen we ook een verre hint daarvan mee. Zo, dan heeft u de data gehad. In termen van aroma's als op de vaste plaat gaat het alle kanten heen, waarbij we ook (laten we zeggen 'traditionele') Chard- en PN-aroma's tegenkomen. Maar niet te uitdrukkelijk. Om het op een rijtje te zetten: De kleur is vol maar licht goud; De mousse is heerlijk, (nog) ruimschoots aanwezig maar zeer fijn; In de neus krijgen we eerst rozenblaadjes en een tikkie mango, maar zo nu en dan ook een zweem ziltigheid ..? Een ander zou het ook witte-peperigheid kunnen noemen. Sommigen vinden dat Arbane meidoorn en anjer geeft; nou ja dat kan ik begrijpen maar pikte ik niet op. Noch wat appel en kweepeer, dat gewicht trof ik minder: Het volle mondgevoel zit stevig in de citrus-hoek. Denk aan lauwwarme, (over)rijpe citroen met een beetje suikerrijpe peer en (geblancheerde) ananas, op het mirabelle af maar wel met een los zwevend zuurtje dat eronderdoorlangs komt zweven, inclusief een puntje venkel/dille. Ik denk dat hier vooral de wat rijpere Pinot Blanc om de hoek komt kijken. Maar al met al wordt het nergens te zwaar; de wijn blijft gewoon helemaal in balans; De citroen is de core der (talrijke) caudalies; zelfbewust maar niet zwaar. Nou ja, als eindconclusie; deze zit op het niveau van een lichte montbazillac of sauternes met mousse..! Werkelijk heerlijk. Voor zover er wat bij moet worden gehapt, zou ik zeggen: Niet te licht, niet te dicht op de sla/Brillat-Savarin-hoek, of te kale zilte oesters. Eerder oesters met enige bewerking, zou ik zeggen. Als per deze – en een geel- of roodschimmelkaasje kan ook nog prima. (vandaar; lichte sauternes ...) – oh en een salade met cajunkip kan ook ...
Étoiles du Nord, voor uw betere wijnen...
Al is het alleen maar door Il Respiro del Vino te kunnen lezen; geen vertaling tot nu toe dan maar zwoegen.
Le Chardonnay rose est une mutation du Chardonnay blanc que l’on trouve historiquement à l'état de ceps isolés dans les vignobles champenois et bourguignons. La mutation porte principalement sur la couleur de la baie qui est d’un rose foncé à maturité. Cette différence a abouti à la proposition d’individualiser le Chardonnay rose comme une variété distincte de sa forme blanche et de l’inscrire en tant que telle au Catalogue français.
L’origine de ce cépage est difficile à dater. Néanmoins, il existe quelques repères comme la date de son introduction dans la collection de Vassal-Montpellier en 1950 ; deux accessions (ou "introduction" est un clone non agréé conservé dans une collection) de Chardonnay rose y ont été plantées cette année-là. La première, issue de l'ancienne collection dite "de Ravaz" de l'Ecole de Montpellier (donc la date réelle est antérieure à 1950), provenait initialement de la Côte d'Or. La deuxième provenait de la "collection Couvreur Pernin", à Rilly-la-Montagne dans la Marne.
Depuis peu, le Domaine de Vassal-Montpellier possède également deux accessions assainies issues du clone de Rilly-la-Montagne. Récemment de nouvelles accessions de Chardonnay rose ont été recensées dans le vignoble champenois, preuve d’un intérêt croissant pour ce cépage ancien. Cependant, la disparition progressive des veilles vignes ainsi que la pression croissante des viroses, faisaient craindre la perte de diversité génétique au sein de ce cépage et l’abandon de sa culture.
