Château Margaux expert to breathe new life into historic California winery Perhaps Francis Ford Coppola made him an offer he couldn’t refuse, or perhaps wine expert Phillipe Bascaules just loves the smell of Napa Valley in the morning: either way Coppola, director of film classics such as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now has lured the prominent winemaker from Château Margaux to breathe life into his California winery. Coppola said his aim is to make the estate the finest in America for the production of Old World wines, as he announced he has also bought the historic trademark Inglenook. Bascaules takes over from Scott McLeod, who had resigned as the estate’s winemaker. Inglenook occupies an important part in the development of wine in the US. The winery was founded in California’s Napa Valley in 1879 by a Finnish sea captain, Gustave Niebaum, who established it as one of the finest in the world. Niebaum brought some of the best European grapevines to Napa. Coppola bought part of the Inglenook property in 1975 with the profits from The Godfather. He spent the next two decades adding bits to re-establish the old estate, but the trademark had eluded him until now. Coppola said the arrival of Bascaules was intended to hour the estate’s heritage and restore its legacy. He said he wanted to help with “invigorating the vineyards, planning a new state-of-the-art winemaking facility, and focusing on what it would take to achieve my goal of restoring this property into America’s greatest wine estate.” Bascaules, in the same statement, said: “I was charmed by the beauty of the estate and its unique environment. I found the tasting of 1959 Inglenook astonishing with regard to its freshness and complexity, and when I tasted some samples of the 2009 vintage, I recognized the incredible potential of this property. I understand Francis Ford Coppola’s desire to bring the quality of the wines to their fullest potential and I’m excited to explore new methods to reach this goal.” The statement continues: “Rubicon will continue to be the proprietary name of Inglenook’s flagship wine, and Bascaules, who spent the past 21 years at Château Margaux, will lead a team of talented winemaking professionals dedicated to the goal of making Rubicon the finest New World estate wine produced in the Old World style.” Bascaules served as estate director for 11 years at Château Margaux. Francis Ford Coppola Ewen MacAskill guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Château Margaux expert to breathe new life into historic California winery Perhaps Francis Ford Coppola made him an offer he couldn’t refuse, or perhaps wine expert Phillipe Bascaules just loves the smell of Napa Valley in the morning: either way Coppola, director of film classics such as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now has lured the prominent winemaker from Château Margaux to breathe life into his California winery. Coppola said his aim is to make the estate the finest in America for the production of Old World wines, as he announced he has also bought the historic trademark Inglenook. Bascaules takes over from Scott McLeod, who had resigned as the estate’s winemaker. Inglenook occupies an important part in the development of wine in the US. The winery was founded in California’s Napa Valley in 1879 by a Finnish sea captain, Gustave Niebaum, who established it as one of the finest in the world. Niebaum brought some of the best European grapevines to Napa. Coppola bought part of the Inglenook property in 1975 with the profits from The Godfather. He spent the next two decades adding bits to re-establish the old estate, but the trademark had eluded him until now. Coppola said the arrival of Bascaules was intended to hour the estate’s heritage and restore its legacy. He said he wanted to help with “invigorating the vineyards, planning a new state-of-the-art winemaking facility, and focusing on what it would take to achieve my goal of restoring this property into America’s greatest wine estate.” Bascaules, in the same statement, said: “I was charmed by the beauty of the estate and its unique environment. I found the tasting of 1959 Inglenook astonishing with regard to its freshness and complexity, and when I tasted some samples of the 2009 vintage, I recognized the incredible potential of this property. I understand Francis Ford Coppola’s desire to bring the quality of the wines to their fullest potential and I’m excited to explore new methods to reach this goal.” The statement continues: “Rubicon will continue to be the proprietary name of Inglenook’s flagship wine, and Bascaules, who spent the past 21 years at Château Margaux, will lead a team of talented winemaking professionals dedicated to the goal of making Rubicon the finest New World estate wine produced in the Old World style.” Bascaules served as estate director for 11 years at Château Margaux. Francis Ford Coppola Ewen MacAskill guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Château Margaux expert to breathe new life into historic California winery Perhaps Francis Ford Coppola made him an offer he couldn’t refuse, or perhaps wine expert Phillipe Bascaules just loves the smell of Napa Valley in the morning: either way Coppola, director of film classics such as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now has lured the prominent winemaker from Château Margaux to breathe life into his California winery. Coppola said his aim is to make the estate the finest in America for the production of Old World wines, as he announced he has also bought the historic trademark Inglenook. Bascaules takes over from Scott McLeod, who had resigned as the estate’s winemaker. Inglenook occupies an important part in the development of wine in the US. The winery was founded in California’s Napa Valley in 1879 by a Finnish sea captain, Gustave Niebaum, who established it as one of the finest in the world. Niebaum brought some of the best European grapevines to Napa. Coppola bought part of the Inglenook property in 1975 with the profits from The Godfather. He spent the next two decades adding bits to re-establish the old estate, but the trademark had eluded him until now. Coppola said the arrival of Bascaules was intended to hour the estate’s heritage and restore its legacy. He said he wanted to help with “invigorating the vineyards, planning a new state-of-the-art winemaking facility, and focusing on what it would take to achieve my goal of restoring this property into America’s greatest wine estate.” Bascaules, in the same statement, said: “I was charmed by the beauty of the estate and its unique environment. I found the tasting of 1959 Inglenook astonishing with regard to its freshness and complexity, and when I tasted some samples of the 2009 vintage, I recognized the incredible potential of this property. I understand Francis Ford Coppola’s desire to bring the quality of the wines to their fullest potential and I’m excited to explore new methods to reach this goal.” The statement continues: “Rubicon will continue to be the proprietary name of Inglenook’s flagship wine, and Bascaules, who spent the past 21 years at Château Margaux, will lead a team of talented winemaking professionals dedicated to the goal of making Rubicon the finest New World estate wine produced in the Old World style.” Bascaules served as estate director for 11 years at Château Margaux. Francis Ford Coppola Ewen MacAskill guardian.co.uk
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Fukushima Daiichi power plant emergency is now on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl warning Japan is to raise the nuclear alert level at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant to a maximum seven, putting the emergency on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. Nuclear safety officials had insisted they had no plans to raise the severity of the crisis from five – the same level as the Three Mile Island accident in 1979 – according to the international nuclear and radiological event scale. But the government came under pressure to raise the level at the plant after Japan’s nuclear safety commission estimated the amount of radioactive material released from its stricken reactors reached 10,000 terabecquerels per hour for several hours following the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country’s northeast coast on 11 March. That level of radiation constitutes a major accident, according to the INES scale. The scale, devised by the international atomic energy agency, ranks nuclear and radiological accidents and incidents by their severity from one to seven. Japan also temporarily issued tsunami warnings for parts of the north-east coast on Monday following another powerful aftershock. It is exactly a month since a magnitude-9 earthquake created huge waves that left an estimated 28,000 people dead or missing. NHK, the public broadcaster, warned of a tsunami up to 2 metres high on the coast of Ibaraki prefecture after the magnitude-7.1 quake. Although the waves were estimated to be much smaller than those that hit on 11 March, the meteorological agency warned people in Ibaraki to evacuate to higher ground. The warnings were later lifted. The aftershock came as the government said it was widening the evacuation zone around the plant due to high levels of accumulated radiation and fears about long-term effects on residents’ health. A fire that broke out at the plant’s number four reactor at 6.38am local time was extinguished, the operator, Tokyo Electric Power company (Tepco), said. More than 14,000 people are still missing following the disaster, and 152,000 survivors are living in evacuation centres. The prime minister, Naoto Kan, placed a message in newspapers in several countries, including Britain, China and the United States, thanking the international community for its support. Kan said the generosity shown towards Japan in its time of need demonstrated the human capacity for kizuna , or bonds of friendship, and vowed that Japan would emerge a stronger nation. “We deeply appreciate the kizuna our friends from around the world have shown and I want to thank every nation, entity, and you personally, from the bottom of my heart,” he said. The government’s chief spokesman, Yukio Edano, said the current 12-mile (20km) evacuation zone would be extended to five other communities, including the village of Iitate, which lies 25 miles from the plant. Japan disaster Nuclear power Japan Energy Justin McCurry guardian.co.uk
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Fukushima Daiichi power plant emergency is now on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl warning Japan is to raise the nuclear alert level at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant to a maximum seven, putting the emergency on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. Nuclear safety officials had insisted they had no plans to raise the severity of the crisis from five – the same level as the Three Mile Island accident in 1979 – according to the international nuclear and radiological event scale. But the government came under pressure to raise the level at the plant after Japan’s nuclear safety commission estimated the amount of radioactive material released from its stricken reactors reached 10,000 terabecquerels per hour for several hours following the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country’s northeast coast on 11 March. That level of radiation constitutes a major accident, according to the INES scale. The scale, devised by the international atomic energy agency, ranks nuclear and radiological accidents and incidents by their severity from one to seven. Japan also temporarily issued tsunami warnings for parts of the north-east coast on Monday following another powerful aftershock. It is exactly a month since a magnitude-9 earthquake created huge waves that left an estimated 28,000 people dead or missing. NHK, the public broadcaster, warned of a tsunami up to 2 metres high on the coast of Ibaraki prefecture after the magnitude-7.1 quake. Although the waves were estimated to be much smaller than those that hit on 11 March, the meteorological agency warned people in Ibaraki to evacuate to higher ground. The warnings were later lifted. The aftershock came as the government said it was widening the evacuation zone around the plant due to high levels of accumulated radiation and fears about long-term effects on residents’ health. A fire that broke out at the plant’s number four reactor at 6.38am local time was extinguished, the operator, Tokyo Electric Power company (Tepco), said. More than 14,000 people are still missing following the disaster, and 152,000 survivors are living in evacuation centres. The prime minister, Naoto Kan, placed a message in newspapers in several countries, including Britain, China and the United States, thanking the international community for its support. Kan said the generosity shown towards Japan in its time of need demonstrated the human capacity for kizuna , or bonds of friendship, and vowed that Japan would emerge a stronger nation. “We deeply appreciate the kizuna our friends from around the world have shown and I want to thank every nation, entity, and you personally, from the bottom of my heart,” he said. The government’s chief spokesman, Yukio Edano, said the current 12-mile (20km) evacuation zone would be extended to five other communities, including the village of Iitate, which lies 25 miles from the plant. Japan disaster Nuclear power Japan Energy Justin McCurry guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Fukushima Daiichi power plant emergency is now on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl warning Japan is to raise the nuclear alert level at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant to a maximum seven, putting the emergency on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. Nuclear safety officials had insisted they had no plans to raise the severity of the crisis from five – the same level as the Three Mile Island accident in 1979 – according to the international nuclear and radiological event scale. But the government came under pressure to raise the level at the plant after Japan’s nuclear safety commission estimated the amount of radioactive material released from its stricken reactors reached 10,000 terabecquerels per hour for several hours following the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country’s northeast coast on 11 March. That level of radiation constitutes a major accident, according to the INES scale. The scale, devised by the international atomic energy agency, ranks nuclear and radiological accidents and incidents by their severity from one to seven. Japan also temporarily issued tsunami warnings for parts of the north-east coast on Monday following another powerful aftershock. It is exactly a month since a magnitude-9 earthquake created huge waves that left an estimated 28,000 people dead or missing. NHK, the public broadcaster, warned of a tsunami up to 2 metres high on the coast of Ibaraki prefecture after the magnitude-7.1 quake. Although the waves were estimated to be much smaller than those that hit on 11 March, the meteorological agency warned people in Ibaraki to evacuate to higher ground. The warnings were later lifted. The aftershock came as the government said it was widening the evacuation zone around the plant due to high levels of accumulated radiation and fears about long-term effects on residents’ health. A fire that broke out at the plant’s number four reactor at 6.38am local time was extinguished, the operator, Tokyo Electric Power company (Tepco), said. More than 14,000 people are still missing following the disaster, and 152,000 survivors are living in evacuation centres. The prime minister, Naoto Kan, placed a message in newspapers in several countries, including Britain, China and the United States, thanking the international community for its support. Kan said the generosity shown towards Japan in its time of need demonstrated the human capacity for kizuna , or bonds of friendship, and vowed that Japan would emerge a stronger nation. “We deeply appreciate the kizuna our friends from around the world have shown and I want to thank every nation, entity, and you personally, from the bottom of my heart,” he said. The government’s chief spokesman, Yukio Edano, said the current 12-mile (20km) evacuation zone would be extended to five other communities, including the village of Iitate, which lies 25 miles from the plant. Japan disaster Nuclear power Japan Energy Justin McCurry guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Fukushima Daiichi power plant emergency is now on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl warning Japan is to raise the nuclear alert level at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant to a maximum seven, putting the emergency on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. Nuclear safety officials had insisted they had no plans to raise the severity of the crisis from five – the same level as the Three Mile Island accident in 1979 – according to the international nuclear and radiological event scale. But the government came under pressure to raise the level at the plant after Japan’s nuclear safety commission estimated the amount of radioactive material released from its stricken reactors reached 10,000 terabecquerels per hour for several hours following the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country’s northeast coast on 11 March. That level of radiation constitutes a major accident, according to the INES scale. The scale, devised by the international atomic energy agency, ranks nuclear and radiological accidents and incidents by their severity from one to seven. Japan also temporarily issued tsunami warnings for parts of the north-east coast on Monday following another powerful aftershock. It is exactly a month since a magnitude-9 earthquake created huge waves that left an estimated 28,000 people dead or missing. NHK, the public broadcaster, warned of a tsunami up to 2 metres high on the coast of Ibaraki prefecture after the magnitude-7.1 quake. Although the waves were estimated to be much smaller than those that hit on 11 March, the meteorological agency warned people in Ibaraki to evacuate to higher ground. The warnings were later lifted. The aftershock came as the government said it was widening the evacuation zone around the plant due to high levels of accumulated radiation and fears about long-term effects on residents’ health. A fire that broke out at the plant’s number four reactor at 6.38am local time was extinguished, the operator, Tokyo Electric Power company (Tepco), said. More than 14,000 people are still missing following the disaster, and 152,000 survivors are living in evacuation centres. The prime minister, Naoto Kan, placed a message in newspapers in several countries, including Britain, China and the United States, thanking the international community for its support. Kan said the generosity shown towards Japan in its time of need demonstrated the human capacity for kizuna , or bonds of friendship, and vowed that Japan would emerge a stronger nation. “We deeply appreciate the kizuna our friends from around the world have shown and I want to thank every nation, entity, and you personally, from the bottom of my heart,” he said. The government’s chief spokesman, Yukio Edano, said the current 12-mile (20km) evacuation zone would be extended to five other communities, including the village of Iitate, which lies 25 miles from the plant. Japan disaster Nuclear power Japan Energy Justin McCurry guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …In Jamaica, the popular trend of skin bleaching has reached disturbing and dangerous heights, doctors say. Despite public health campaigns warning against the practice, many residents purchase concoctions—sometimes from roadside vendors—that claim to lighten the skin. One dermatologist even had a patient who started bleaching her baby. “She…
Continue reading …Reese Witherspoon never regrets becoming an actress, but she does miss one thing: her privacy. “I parted with my privacy a long time ago,” she tells Vogue in a new profile. “We went different ways. And sometimes I mourn it. Sometimes I will sit in the car and cry. Because…
Continue reading …Want to eat at Next, the highly anticipated new restaurant from top Chicago chef Grant Achatz? Then expect to pay quite a bit for the experience. Unless you can snag your own ticket (which isn’t cheap at $85 per person), a ticket bought on Craigslist or eBay will set you…
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