Brenda Boykin is an American
singer who earned her reputation in the San Francisco Bay area as an excellent
interpreter of jazz and blues material from big bands, old blues bands and
honky-tonk artists.
According
to blues historian Lee Hildebrand "Brenda Boykin has the most authentic
and most inventive female jump blues vocal stylist of her generation".
Brenda calls it “Bourbon and Cornbread,”
the musical mixture of jazzy sweetness and down-home sass.
Enjoy
this up-tempo jazzy swing number "Hard
Swing Travellin’ Man" by one of today’s finest jazz singer Brenda
Boykin.
"Hard
Swing Travellin’ Man" appears on Brenda Boykin's album 'Chocolate & Chili' released in 2008
on Chinchin Records.
Roaring Forties Blue is a mild
pasteurized cow's milk blue cheese produced by King Island Dairy in Australia.
King Island is located in Southern Australia south of Melbourne in the Bass Strait above the
north-west tip of Tasmania.
The
cheese is named after the notorious Roaring Forties gales which bring winds of
more than 100 km per hour to King Island, which is located on the 40 degrees
latitude.
The
Island's dairy herds graze on lush, dense pastures and their rich diet is supplemented
with kelp that gets washed up after heavy storms. King Island cows have become
renowned for producing the purest, sweetest, creamiest milk which is the secret
behind the fine dairy products and award-winning cheeses produced by the King Island Dairy.
King
Island Dairy's head cheesemaker is Swiss-born Ueli Berger, who studied cheese-making in Switzerland for three
years before moving to Australia. He's been head of the cheese making team at King Island
Dairy since 1998.
Roaring
Forties Blue is a rind-less cheese that has matured in a dark blue coloured wax
coating. The wax covering cuts off the oxygen supply to the cheese while
maturing to promote a sweet fruity flavour. The wax coating also helps in
retaining the cheese's moisture which creates a lovely buttery smooth texture.
Roaring
Forties Blue is a rich flavourful blue veined cheese with a sweet presence of
honey, slightly nutty flavour and a great creamy aftertaste.
Roaring
Forties Blue pairs nicely with an Australian Shiraz wine.
King
Island Dairy suggests serving Roaring 40's Blue with maple syrup spiced dates,
fresh pears and sliced fruit bread. (To prepare dates; cut 12 dates in half,
remove pips, combine dates with a tablespoon of maple syrup and 1/2 teaspoon of
mixed spices and let stand for a minimum of 20 minutes before serving.)
http://kingislanddairy.com.au
View
The King Island Dairy Story - The Island, The People, The Dairy...
Preston
Singletary is a Native American glass artist who masterly combines traditional
Northwest coast Tlingit themes in his modern dynamic glass works.
Preston
Singletary grew up in the Pacific Northwest. In 1982, Preston started working
at a Seattle, Washington glass blowing studio as a night watchman, but his
interest in the art of glass eventually saw him joining one of the studio's
production teams. He learned the art of glass blowing working with artists in
the Seatle area, including Benjamin Moore and Dante Marioni. As a student and
assistant, Preston initially focused on mastering the techniques of the
European tradition.
It was
when Preston began to experiment using designs from his Tlingit cultural heritage
that his work began to take on a new purpose and direction. Over time, his
skill with the material of glass and traditional form line design has
strengthened and evolved, positioning him as a highly influential contemporary
indigenous artist.
Today,
Preston Singletary’s artworks are found in museum collections from The British
Museum in London, UK, The National Museum of the American Indian in Washington,
DC, the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, NY to the Handelsbanken in
Stockholm, Sweden.
I love
how Preston Singletary's works of glass, revolutionizes the belief that Native
artists are only best when traditional materials are used.
Le Cornebique is a soft delicate little
farmer’s goat-milk cheese produced by La
Chèvrerie Mathurin located in Ste-Sophie d'Halifax in the Centre-du-Québec
region overlooking the Appalachians.
Le
Cornebique is shaped in the form of a small log (8 cm long and 4.5 cm wide)
with a cream coloured natural rind. The white coloured paste is chalky in the
centre but extremely creamy along the inner rim.
Le
Cornebique is a young pasteurised chèvre, matured for only 14 days. It has a
mild to medium goat milk flavour with a more intense creamy nutty finish.
Delectable!
La Chèvrerie Mathurin is operated by
Chantal Mathieu and her partner Raphaël Morin. The Mathurin farm is comprised
of a herd of over 100 goats which most are Alpine breeds and a few are mixed
with Nubian or LaMancha breeds. La Chèvrerie Mathurin also produces bottled
non-homogenised pasteurised goat milk, yogurt, and fresh goat-milk & feta
cheeses.
I
remember hearing I Like It by The Blackout AllStars
for the first time
in 1994. Let me tell you, it was so infectious. For days, all I would sing was
"Stomp your feet if you like my
beat, Clap your hands if you want some more... I like it, I like it, I like it
like that".
'I Like It' has remained one of my all-time favourite tunes. The version I most enjoy, is this Bobby D'Ambrosio ClubMix
that runs 7 minutes. This is an excellent rhythmic version, that just gets you
up dancing and stomping your feet to the beat.
The
Blackout Allstars was a Latin super-group that was formed to record "I Like It',
for the title theme song of the comedy-drama film "I Like It Like That" released in 1994.
The
Blackout All-Stars' line-up consisted of musicians; Tito Puente and Sheila E.
(percussions), Grover Washington Jr.
(sax), Ray Barretto (congas), Paquito D'Rivera (clarinet & sax), Dave Valentin (flute) and Tito Nieves on vocals.
When
doing my research on this song, I learned that 'I Like It' is a cover version
of a 1967 boogaloo hit "I Like It Like That (A Mi Me Gusta Asi)" by Pete Rodriguez. A great new discovery! I Like It. I Like It.
L'Hercule de Charlevoix is a firm,
washed rind, non-pasteurized cow-milk cheese. This large artisanal mountain-style 12
kg (26.5 lbs) wheel is produced by La
Laiterie Charlevoix, located in Baie-St.-Paul in Québec's Charlevoix
region.
L'Hercule
de Charlevoix has a firm, cooked paste and is aged anywhere from 8 to 24
months. The washed rind has a golden
pinkish hue and the smooth paste is dark yellow. The texture is firm and
slightly granular and becomes creamy in the mouth. L'Hercule is very flavourful
with notes of nuts and butter then developing into a more fruity finish on the
tongue.
Opt for
the older 24 months aged L'Hercule, its sharper taste and more complex flavours
are quite a delight. L'Hercule pairs nicely with a white French Chablis or Riesling.
L'Hercule
de Charlevoix was named after Baie-St.-Paul native Jean-Baptiste Grenon. In 1759, Grenon had been captured by General
Wolfe's troops and was quickly released due to the fact that they were unable
to overcome the powerful physical strength of this man, who was known as Hercule du Nord.
The
milk used to produce L'Hercule de Charlevoix comes from the milk of a herd of
Jersey cows from the neighbouring Stessi Farm located less than a kilometer
from the dairy.
La Laiterie Charlevoix was founded in 1948, it has been owned and operated by the Labbé family for four generations. The successful
Charlevoix dairy recently won an award in sustainable development for two major
environmental projects they have incorporated on their premises; an innovative
water treatment process and the conversion of whey into energy.
La
Laiterie Charlevoix also produces cheddars, a fondue, Le Fleurmier de Charlevoix and now they produce 2 cheeses made
exclusively with the milk of the Canadienne breed of cows; L'Origine de Charlevoix and Le
1608. Le 1608 of La Laiterie
Charlevoix will be one of Quebec's first cheese to receive Quebec's AS
(Appellation de Spécificité), a Designation of Specificity - for cheese made
with the milk of the Canadienne breed of cow.
American
singer-songwriter Joan Osborne sure
kicks ass in this excellent rendition of Shake Your Hips. This
song was written and originally recorded by blues musician Slim Harpo in 1966. The Rolling
Stones also recorded a great version of this song on their 1972 album Exile on Main Street.
Joan
Osborne has been recording albums covering many musical genres, since 1991.
Shake Your Hips is taken from Joan's seventh studio album Bring It On Home, an excellent collection of vintage blues, R&B
and soul songs. Bring It On Home is nominated for the 2013 Grammy Award - Best
Blues Album.
You
can't go wrong with a cute heart shaped French cheese, good crusty bread and
your favourite bottle of wine.
Neufchâtel - Coeur de Bray is a soft bloomy
rind, cow’s milk cheese from the Pays de Bray located in the French region of
Normandie. Neufchâtel received its AOC (Appelation d'Origine Controlée)
designation in 1969.
Neufchâtel
is believed to be one of France's oldest cheeses dating back to the Middle
Ages.
The
white edible moldy rind of Neufchâtel is dry and velvety. The lightly pressed,
uncooked, cream coloured pâte is firm yet supple and slightly grainy. After an
affinage of 8 to 10 weeks, the mold starts flavouring the cheese leaving a
pleasant mushroom aroma and a salty sharper flavour.
The
popular shape for Neufchâtel cheese is the heart, but the AOC allows it to be
made in six different sizes and forms of either briquette, cylindrical or
square.
Neufchâtel
pairs well with a nice Bordeaux red such as a Pomerol - Château Treytins.
Neufchâtel
can be found as a farmer, industrial and artisanal cheese. Here is a list of
the official AOC Neufchâtel producers in the France's Normandie region.
There
are other heart-shaped cheeses that can be served on Valentine’s Day, such as
the Coeur du Berry a lovely French
goat-milk cheese.
Parked is the story of Fred Daly a
middle-aged Irishman, who is down on his luck. The role of Fred is superbly
played by Irish actor Colm Meaney (Hell on Wheels, The Perfect Stranger).
Fred has just returned home to Ireland after living in England and discovers
there's no work to be found. With no means to support himself, Fred lives in
his car parked by the sea in a car-park.
Life
changes for Fred when a young dope-smoking Cathal played by Colin Morgan (The Adventures of Merlin, Island) moves his car in the same
car-park and starts living there. The two befriend each other and help each
other out.
Cathal
introduces Fred to a nearby pool where they can clean up and enjoy a swim. This
is where Fred meets Jules, an attractive music teacher played by Finnish
actress Milka Ahlorth. The three
grow closer to each other and are set on a course that will change their lives
forever.
Parked
is at times a comedy and at other times dramatic, but it is consistently
engaging and quite moving, a good directional film debut for Irishman Darragh Byrne.
Le Clandestin is an exquisite soft, washed rind cheese made with the pasteurised whole milks of both cow and sheep.
Le
Clandestin has a lovely soft orange hued washed rind lightly specked with
white. The sumptuous rich white coloured paste becomes very creamy after an
affinage of five weeks.
Le
Clandestin has a rustic farmer’s aroma. The cheese has a somewhat marked lactic
flavour slightly acidic yet without being too aggressive.
Le
Clandestin is produced by Fromagerie LeDétour located in Notre-Dame-du-Lac in Québec's Lower St-Laurence region in
the Lake Témiscouata area near the New-Brunswick and the USA's Maine borders.
Fromagerie
Le Detour is run by husband and wife team Ginette
Bégin and Mario Quirion. They
have been making artisanal cheeses since 1999. They produce a variety of milk
products; butter, cream and hard, soft & semi-soft cheeses among them Magie de Madawaska and the lovely chèvre
Grey Owl.
Le
Clandestin pairs well with a classic Italian Chianti from Toscany. La
Fromagerie Détour suggests pairing it with an Irish Malt Whiskey from Islay.
Splendid!
