2004 Chateau Beauchene Chateauneuf du Pape Review

On Thursday, I was at a lovely wine bar called Splash and I only had one taste. I could’ve gone with something different, but the price of this Chateauneuf was too good to pass up. This Chateauneuf du Pape was average, flabby, and lacking of structure. There was too much alcohol, which may have been from being opened for more than two days. There were subtle hints of wild cherries or rasberries. At $28 this is an inexpensive Chateauneuf, so this could be a nice introduction for new Chateauneuf drinkers. However, if spend $10 to $20 more you can get a totally awesome Chateauneuf that will knock your socks off.

1.5 out of 5 Corks

LeapFish Review

LeapFish Review

This is a review of LeapFish, a new search engine that’s trying to break into the market. I’ve been an online marketer, search engine marketing specifically for over three years now. So by day I’m a SEM Dork and at night I’m the Cork Dork. Anyway, I digress.

The engine allows you to easily see different search engine results pages from Google, Yahoo, and MSN. I first learned about this engine from reading today’s post in PPC Hero (this is most informative blog out there in regards to Paid Search). What I found very interesting was the engines PPC pricing model; buy keywords at a specific ad position for life; no CPCs (cost per click) or CPMs (cost per impressions); it's yours forever. So basically you’re banking on the engine becoming popular and the value of your keywords increasing.

The search results are accurate and populated very quickly. After playing around on the site I was interested in maybe buying a few keywords. That all changed when I read a posting from Tech Crunch illustrating someone’s poor experience with one of LeapFish’s sales representatives. Basically, the advertiser did not want to advertise with LeapFish and the sales representative clicked on the advertiser’s Google ad 50 times in an effort to make the advertiser pay for each of those clicks. And how did the advertiser know it was 50 times? The sales representative told him in an email. The CEO of LeapFish confirmed the actions of the sales representative and is no longer working with the company.

The moral of this post is, I was interested, but now, I’m not at all because I would be upset if someone clicked my ads that many times because now you’re taking money away from me. Now I admit only 1-3 clicks I would be charged for, but it’s the principal of the representative’s action. I’ve received many calls and sat through presentations from other start up search engines, but none of the sales representatives we’re nearly as bad as was described.

2007 Bodegas Alto Almanzora Este Review

Ah, it's been awhile since my last post. Anyway, let's get to it like Pruit. My first impression of this table wine was this was a blend of mourvedre and tempranillo because it has soft fruity flavors with good structure. However, I was only partly right. This wine is a blend of mostly monastrell and tempranillo with the rest being syrah, grenache, merlot, and cabernet sauvignon. WOW. I knew there was a lot going on in this wine but I didn't know it was this complex. For only $10 this wine is a steal and is bottle you should be on the lookout for. I think almost all of my wine reviews end with that line, but it's true. I think it's true because I buy most of wine at wine stores rather than the supermarket. I guess what I'm trying to say is visit your local wine store. There's always knowledgeable people who will point you in the right direction within your budget. The Bodegas Alto Almanzora is basically the same price of a bottle you're paying for at the supermarket.

4 out of 5 Corks

Leffe Blonde Belgian Pale Ale Beer Review

This is an awesome beer. I'll admit I'm biased toward Belgian beer and specifically their pale ales. I tried this after a bottle of Hoegarden and it was night and day. The Leffe was easier to drink with a lot of subtle flavors such as lemon and bananna. This is a perfect beer for anyone going to the beach on a Saturday afternoon. Actually, that's a great idea; I'll bring some to the beach this weekend. That was a mental note I decided share with you all and I'm proud of it.

You have to watch out for this one because it will jump on you (6.6% ABV). I wish I had this on draft instead of a bottle.

4.5 out of 5 Corks