Photos with Knef

Jun 25, 2008 by Dan Taylor    2 Comments    Posted under: Photography

Knef aka MasterKnef is really an interesting guy.  I’ve known Knef for about 6-7 months now through Ludwig.  While I’ve drank many beers with Knef, DJed his 30th birthday party, and had some good conversations with him, I still feel as though there is much more about Knef to be learned.  He’s still a bit of an enigma to me.

I know for example that he has (had?) a band.  Apparently the band was pretty darn good, as he vividly described a festival that the band played at in Slovenia (i think?) a few years ago.  From the sound and imagagry of his description, it didn’t sound like some 10 person festival in a field somewhere, but rather, a 10-15k person festival organized in a field just outside Ljubljana or Maribor.  I also know that Knef is the kind of guy that will (and is planning on) starting out in Upper Austria, and walking/hiking cross country and arriving somewhere in Salzburg.  All the while, never desending below 1000 meters.  In other words, 2 weeks alone up in the mountains, never coming down into the valley.  Likewise, I know that Knef is an avid mountain and rock climber.

I’m not exactly certain what Knef does to pay the bills.  I know he’s a radio DJ, but I’m not certain if that’s an everyday gig, weekends only, or what?  Somewhere in a former lifetime, I’ve heard stories that he was also a cameraman for ORF, the major television network in Austria. And so…it didn’t surprise me when he sent an email my way the other day and asked for my help both as a friend and as a photographer.

It appears that RedBull is now starting up an ‘arte’ format television program.  Knef is applying to be one of the hosts of this network.  These photos should serve as his ‘headshots’ and overall appearance.  Of course I wanted to make him look his very best, but I also wanted to try to get a bit of that enigma that I see in him in these photos as well.  I think I did a pretty ok job….what do you think?  Leave me some comment love below.

To view the entire series, visit the Photo page.

Oh, and if some super stunning pictures weren’t enough for you, Knef’s music video:

Wine Library with Gary Vaynerchuk

Jun 20, 2008 by Dan Taylor    4 Comments    Posted under: News

Wine. Whine? WINE!

Ok, if you’ve been reading my humble blog for a while now, you’re most probably aware that my liquid pleasure comes in two forms: Beer and Whiskey (preferably not together though). While I’d consider myself an average connoisseur of the brew, meaning I can tell and taste the differences between a lager, ale, pilsner, hefe-weissen, and if it has a sweet, bitter, or sharp taste to it, I’m still a beginner when it comes to whiskeys.

I feel at some point I’ve almost been spoiled. My whiskey intake thus far has been rather limited. I’ve sampled all of the Jack Daniels brands, and had a glass of Caol Ila, courtesy of Trude at the now defunct ‘Greenfield Lounge’ (may she RIP). And now for the spoils…my good friend Ludwig treated me to a glass of Johnny Walker Blue about a week ago. For the record, the bottle was approximately 10 years old, and we didn’t finish the minor bit that was left. I know JW Blue ain’t exactly what one would call cheap, but drinking one bottle over the coarse of 10 years….yeah, I think that’s acceptable.

Right. Now to the point regarding the posting title. Bigbluebottle has been my go to guy for a long time regarding wine. Admittedly, wine is not my deal, and I really don’t know too much about it. I know what tastes good, and what doesn’t, but at the end of the day, I don’t really know what I’m tasting. I couldn’t tell you about the hint of pomegranate juice melting into the oak barrel flavor.

Bottle’s pretty darn good….but Gary Vee is better. If you enjoy wine (or even if you don’t) I can guarantee that you’re going to like Gary Vee. He’s quickly coming up on his 500th video at tv.winelibrary.com, and what a fun ride it’s been thus far. Gary’s parents owned a liquor store, and working as a bored teenager he began reading Wine Spectator and Wine Advocate. Now I don’t know about you…but as a teenager, I certainly wasn’t picking up copies of Wine Spectator as light reading. In other words, Gary Vee knows his stuff.

So a healthy tip from your non wine drinking author, give Gary Vee a view. In the words of Bottle, “I think this guy might be slightly crazy”, and I agree. Gary Vee is slightly crazy. Everything from his Gonzo style journalism to his impressive collection of Jets memorabilia (to be fair, I’m also a Jets fan), this guy is a bit off. But it is exactly this wackiness that sucks you in a makes you want to watch even more.

Vodka – The multifaceted wonder drink!

May 26, 2008 by Dan Taylor    2 Comments    Posted under: News

Ah yes, Vodka. Na zdorovya comrades! While I’ve written about the beauties of beer making you smarter, Let’s delve into the other drink you’ve probably got around the house: Vodka. Personally, I’ll take a bottle of bourbon any day over the clear, odorless, tasteless stuff, but that doesn’t mean that I can\’t appreciate the beauties of Vodka. As a matter of fact, If I’m going out for cocktails, I always make sure that the ladies have at least one round of French Martinis (or…as I call it, the LadyKiller; in so much as, they’re sweet, tasty, and if you’re not careful, they’ll f(*)& you up REAL fast).

But enough with the drink, there are in fact a number of other uses for our favorite flavor from Russia with love:

1. To remove a bandage painlessly, saturate the bandage with vodka. The solvent dissolves adhesive
2. To clean the caulking around bathtubs and showers, fill a trigger-spray bottle with vodka, spray the caulking, let set five minutes and wash clean. The alcohol in the vodka kills mold and mildew.
3. Clean jewelry. Soak the jewelry in vodka for five minutes, then rinse, and dry.
4. Clean lipstick from clothing. Rub the stain with vodka, then throw into your regular wash.
5. Remove the glue left behind by a bumper sticker. Rub the glue with a soft, clean cloth soaked with vodka
6. Prolong the life of razors by filling a cup with vodka and letting your safety razor blade soak in the alcohol after shaving. The vodka disinfects the blade and prevents rusting.
7. Spray vodka on vomit stains, scrub with a brush, then blot dry.
8. Using a cotton ball, apply vodka to your face as an astringent to cleanse the skin and tighten pores.
9. Add a jigger of vodka to a 12-ounce bottle of shampoo. The alcohol cleanses the scalp, removes toxins from hair, and stimulates the growth of healthy hair.
10. Fill a sixteen-ounce trigger-spray bottle and spray bees or wasps to kill them.
11. Pour one-half cup vodka and one-half cup water in a Ziplock freezer bag and freeze for a slushy, refreshable ice pack for aches, pain or black eyes.
12. Fill a clean, used mayonnaise jar with freshly packed lavender flowers, fill the jar with vodka, seal the lid tightly and set in the sun for three days. Strain liquid through a coffee filter, then apply the tincture to aches and pains.
13. To relieve a fever, use a washcloth to rub vodka on your chest and back as a liniment.
14. To cure foot odor, wash your feet with vodka.
15. Vodka will disinfect and alleviate a jellyfish sting.
16. Pour vodka over an area affected with poison ivy to remove the urushiol oil from your skin.
17. Swish a shot of vodka over an aching tooth. Allow your gums to absorb some of the alcohol to numb the pain.
18. Soothe a sore throat. Add a tablespoon of vodka to glass of warm water and gargle. The alcohol helps numb the sore throat.
19. Eliminate swimmer’s ear. If you don’t have rubbing alcohol, fill an eardropper with vodka, and squeeze it into the affected ear, then let it drain out.
20. Forget about a crappy day. After a long and crappy day, fill one tumbler half full with ice. Remove bottle of Vodka from freezer and fill the rest of the glass. A number of mixers can be added to this base, but remember: Candy is dandy, but (Pure) Liquor is quicker.

Not bad eh? Ok, you got me, I slipped #20 in there just because it hadn’t already been mentioned. I actually just did #9 this morning, so lets see if these recently shaved locks can grow back any healthier than the last time.

Enjoy, and oh….order me a double next time, eh?

At long last PROOF! Drinking Beer is Good for you!

Apr 5, 2008 by Dan Taylor    6 Comments    Posted under: News

A (semi) recent publication over at the Scientific American reveals that drinking a moderate amount of beer per day can improve recall of both visual and emotional stimuli.  In other words…1-3 beers a day can actually improve your memory…and make you smarter!  And really let’s face it, by this point I should be a genius!  Yay beer!

If you want to read the whole article, it’s located Here, but if not, no worries, I’ll save you the time.  First, go to the fridge, grab an ice cold half liter (or a third of a liter if you happen to live in North America) of malt-hops beauty in a bottle and return.  I’ll wait…..no really…do it…..it’ll make you smarter.

Right…now that you’ve taken that glorious first sip, let me break it down quick and dirty style.  Basically it works like this:

“There are human epidemiological data of others indicating that mild [to] moderate drinking may paradoxically improve cognition in people compared to abstention,” says Maggie Kalev, a research fellow in molecular medicine and pathology at the University of Auckland in New Zealand and a co-author of an article in The Journal of Neuroscience describing results of a study she and other researchers performed on rats. “This is similar to a glass of wine protecting against heart disease, however the mechanism is different.”

In other words…1-3 (or maybe even one more…depends on your individual tolerance) glasses of beer a day helps to improve memory, by way of strengthening the NR1 receptors, a subunit of N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptors (right, if you’re so inclined, click the link).  More so than those that do not drink a beer (or two…or three) per day.  Basically, the same concept that we’ve heard for a few years now, “Drink wine…it’s good for your heart”.

Hmm…I wonder…so if I have a glass of beer before dinner, and a glass of wine a bit later on in the evening, am I actually improving my quality of life?

In more ways than one I do believe!

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