2007

Shafer Vineyards Releases 2007 One Point Five

by Michael B. Dougherty (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine

Napa Valley's Shafer Vineyards, recipients of the James Beard Foundation's 2010 "Outstanding Wine and Spirits Professional" award, recently released their 2007 One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon.

Located in the Stag's Leap District of the region, Shafer has continuously produced top-rated Cabernets, Chardonnays and Merlots under the guidance of winemaker Elias Fernandez, and this release is no exception. Comprised of 99% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Petite Verdot, the 2007 spent 20 months in 75% new French oak and 25% one-year-old French oak barrels.

Aggressively jammy notes greet the nose and are followed by plum and musty barnyard scents. A pleasantly dryer alternative to the much-maligned "fruit bombs" of the area, the palate receives gamy flavors and lots of clove. The finish is short without being fleeting.

Shafer recommends pairing with everything from Ahi tuna to roast lamb loin, although I served the bottle with shrimp and mussels in a spicy tomato sauce over fresh linguine, to praise.

And while the name One Point Five may elicit thoughts of a software upgrade its provenance is actually a bit of a familial in-joke: Doug Shafer joined his father John in 1983, just two years after Shafer's initial release. It wasn't so much a new generation taking over as a son catching up to his father. Nearly 17 years later, that partnership has been recognized by the James Beard Foundation for its fecundity.

(750ml, $70)

Tags: 2007, cabernet sauvignon, doug shafer, james beard awards, john shafer, one point five, petite verdot, ShaferVineyards, stags leap, wine, wine review, wine reviews

Moscow Tops Priciest Cities List, Again

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

The list of 2007's priciest cities is out, and Moscow gets spot #1 for the second year in a row. The top 50 includes a whopping 30 European cities, with London jumping 3 spots to claim 2nd place and Copenhagen, Geneva, Zurich, and Oslo also making the top 10. It looks like New York was the highest ranking U.S. city, falling in the teens just behind Milan, St Petersberg, and Paris.

A number of factors contributed to the high cost of living ranking for so many European cities, and the Swiss consulting firm Mercer that conducted the survey credits both rises in accommodation prices (especially in London and Moscow) and the strength of the various European currencies.

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Tags: 2007, cities, city, cost, cost of living, CostOfLiving, costs, expensive, london, moscow, most expensive, MostExpensive, priciest

10 Must-Drives In 2007

by Anton Friant (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Forbes just put together an impressive list of 2007 model year must-drives – impressive not only because of the hyper-sophisticated technology inside top-doggers like Audi's new $120,000, 420-horsepower R8 (pictured), but also because a lot of this technology is finding its way into relatively reasonably priced vehicles like Volvo's first V8 sedan, the S80, which starts below $40,000. So there you go, motorheads! Ten not-so-boring Sundays await you. Check out Forbes' entire list in a slideshow here.

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Tags: 2007, auto, automobile, car

Proenza Schouler for Target

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel

Continuing the very successful GO International line at Target this spring will be Proenza Schouler . The design team of Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough gravitate towards clothing that is young with a modern edge to it. In light of this, it isn't surprising to hear that they worked with Michael Kors and Marc Jacobs before joining up in 2002. The collection, from what we can see so far, looks fun and perfect for spring, with lots of bright colors and soft fabrics. Previous GO International lines have included Behnaz Sarafpour, Tara Jarmon, Paul & Joe and Luella Bartley.

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Tags: 2007, apparel, designers, fashion, Proenza Schouler, ProenzaSchouler, spring, target

Wellendorf 2007 Ring of the Year

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

In 2005, Wellendorff gave us the sun as their ring of the year, last year's ring featured stars and shooting stars made of diamonds set against against a night sky of deep blue enamel. What will next year hold? If the Wellendorff ring is any predictor, we are looking at fireworks. Their 2007 Ring of the Year features rays of red and orange fire in a dark sky. The revolving Ring of the Year 2007 uses a new lacquer technique that causes the colors to merge into each other. The ring features .07 carats of diamonds for just a hint of sparkle and is a limited edition of 2007.

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Tags: 2007, jewelry, ring, wellendorff

2007 Mercedes Benz E

by Trey Evans (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Autoblog has a link to some info, including spy shots, on the 2007 Mercedes-Benz E-Class. The plastic-clad mule shows a bit of a grille change, but overall it's still an E with some styling cues from the 2007 S. The sloping hood reminds me a bit of the (Mercedes manufactured) Maybach. No specs, just speculation.

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Tags: 2007, e class, EClass, mercedes, mercedes benz, MercedesBenz

Hybrid Escalade

by Trey Evans (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Sister site Autoblog has some information on the ultra sexy new Escalade Hybrid. Not only are the 07 Escalades absolutely beautiful, but it seems that there will be a fuel-efficient option with an increase of "25 percent" mileage. Estimates are saying close to 30 mpg, which is awesome because mine gets like 12 city / 18 highway. The two other SUVs that share the platform, the Yukon and the Tahoe, will also benefit from a hybrid option. Now all we have to do is wait and see if GM adds a stupid three letter designation like they did with the ESV, EXT, and SRX ... perhaps the Escalade MPG?

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Tags: 2007, escalade, hybrid