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Israel and Iran Share Most Negative Ratings in Global Poll
March 22, 2007
Full Report (PDF)
Questionnaire/Methodology (PDF)
Published on 6 March 2007
A majority of people polled for the BBC World Service across 27 countries believe Israel and Iran have a mainly negative influence in the world with almost as many saying the same about North Korea and the United States.
Respondents were asked to rate 12 countries — Britain, Canada, China, France, India, Iran, Israel, Japan, North Korea, Russia, the USA, Venezuela — and the European Union, as having a positive or negative influence.
Canada, Japan, the European Union, and France were judged most positively. Britain, China, and India received more positive than negative evaluations while Russia was viewed slightly more negatively than positively. Opinions about Venezuela were evenly divided.
The BBC has been tracking opinions about countries' influence in the world over three years (2005 – 2007). Nineteen of the 27 countries have been tracked over the entire period. During that time most ratings have remained relatively stable. There has been improvement in ratings of India, a slight decline in views about Britain and a significant fall in positive evaluations of the United States. Russia, China, and France also lost ground over the period, mainly between 2005 and 2006.
"It appears that people around the world tend to look negatively on countries whose profile is marked by the use or pursuit of military power," said Steven Kull, director of PIPA. This includes Israel and the US, who have recently used military force, and North Korea and Iran, who are perceived as trying to develop nuclear weapons."
"Countries that relate to the world primarily through soft power, like Japan, France, and the EU in general, tend to be viewed positively," he added.
GlobeScan president Doug Miller said: "India is the only country that has significantly improved its global stature in the past year, and is now even with China. Britain, while slipping a bit since 2005, appears to be avoiding the steep decline that its war partner, the US, is suffering. And it is fascinating that Chavez's Venezuela seems to be appealing to as many people as it is displeasing."
The poll was conducted for the BBC World Service by the international polling firm GlobeScan together with the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland. GlobeScan coordinated the fieldwork between November 2006 and January 2007. Each country's rating is based on half-samples.
Israel is viewed quite negatively in the world, possibly because the poll was conducted less than six months following the Israel/Hezbollah war in Lebanon. On average, 56 percent have a mainly negative view of the country, and just 17 percent have a positive view, the least positive rating for any country evaluated. In 23 countries the most common view is negative, with only two leaning towards a positive view and two divided.
Unsurprisingly, the most negative views of Israel are found in the predominantly Muslim countries in the Middle East, with very large majorities in Lebanon (85%), Egypt (78%), Turkey (76%), and the UAE (73%) having negative views.
Large majorities also have negative views in Europe, including Germany (77%), Greece (68%) and France (66%). Indonesia (71%), Australia (68%) and South Korea (62%) are the most negative countries in the Asia/Pacific region. Brazilians (72%) are the most negative in Latin America.
The two countries that tend to view Israel positively do so in modest numbers. Forty-five percent of Nigerians and 41 percent of Americans have positive views of Israel's influence in the world, while nearly one-third in each country has negative views. The Kenyan and Indian populations have divided views of Israel.
Because this is the first time the survey has included Israel among the countries rated, there is no evidence that its current ratings are better or worse than before.
Iran continues to receive quite negative views worldwide, with the exception of some predominantly Muslim countries. On average this year, a majority of 54 percent view Iran's influence negatively, while just 18 percent say it has a positive influence.
Out of 27 countries, 21 view Iran negatively. Four countries lean positive and two others are divided. Among the 19 countries polled in both 2006 and 2007 the average views have remained essentially unchanged.
Countries in Western Europe and North America have the largest majorities expressing a negative view of Iran, though some have seen dramatic movements in opinion over the past year. Negative views among Americans have dropped sharply (81% to 63%) while negative views in France have jumped 18 points (68% to 86%). Large majorities in Italy (84%), Germany (78%), Portugal (77%), Canada (76%), and Great Britain (76%) have negative views of Iran's influence in the world. Widespread negative views are also found in Australia (75%), South Korea (69%) and Brazil (69%).
The positive views of Iran are primarily in the Muslim world where there have also been some dramatic positive movements over the least year. Positive views are found in Egypt (51% up from 38% in 2006) and Indonesia (50% up from 39% in 2006) with the UAE leaning positive (29%), but many not answering either way. Turks, however, have mostly negative views (46%) and have grown more negative by 13 percentage points over the last year. Indians lean slightly positive (27%) with many not answering.
Kenyans have grown sharply more negative with negative views rising from 37 to 60 percent. Negative views have also risen in Chile from 42 to 51 percent and in Nigeria from 40 to 48 percent, but have moderated in Argentina from 53 to 45 percent.
North Korea
North Korea is also seen as a mainly negative influence in the world. Out of 27 countries polled, 20 have mostly negative views, while five lean towards seeing it positively, and two are divided. On average, 48 percent see North Korea as a negative influence and 19 percent believe it has a positive influence.
Some of the most negative views of North Korea can be seen in North America and Western Europe. Nearly three-quarters in Canada (74%) and the United States (73%) see North Korea as having a negative influence. An overwhelming majority in Germany (87%), France (75%), Great Britain (70%), Italy (70%), and Portugal (68%) have negative views of North Korea's influence in the world. In the Asia/Pacific region, Australians (86%) and South Koreans (78%) are also quite critical.
No country has a majority with a positive view of North Korea, but views lean slightly positive in a number of Muslim countries including Lebanon (38%), Turkey (31%), and the UAE (29%). Nigeria (42%) and India (26%), which have large Muslim populations, also lean positive. In general, Muslims throughout the world lean towards a positive view of North Korea (34% positive to 26% negative). This may be an expression of support for the way that North Korea has stood up to the US in regards to its nuclear program. Egyptians, however, are evenly divided (18% positive, 18% negative), with nearly two-thirds not taking a position. Indonesians are also divided (40% positive, 37% negative).
Two key countries that have often stood by North Korea also lean negative on its influence– Russia (37% negative, 20% positive) and China (39% negative, 34% positive).
United States
As reported earlier, worldviews of the United States continue to worsen, with most countries having a largely negative view of the US. Across all 27 countries polled (excluding the US self-evaluation), half (51%) now say the US is playing a mainly negative role in the world. However, among the countries that on average are viewed negatively, the US has the largest percentage–30 percent–saying it has a positive influence.
Across the 18 countries (other than the United States) that have been polled for the last three years, the average percentage saying that the United States is having a mainly positive influence in the world has dropped six points from a year ago after having dropped four points from the previous year.
Among the 26 countries polled this time (excluding the US), in 20 the most common view of the United States' influence is negative, while in just four it is mainly positive and two are evenly divided. Negative views are particularly widespread in Europe (especially Greece 78%, Germany 74%, and France 69%) and predominantly Muslim countries (Indonesia 71%, Turkey 69%, Egypt 59%, and Lebanon 58%). The only countries with positive majorities are found in Africa (Nigeria 72%, and Kenya 70%), and the Philippines (72%).
Some of the sharpest drops in positive ratings over the last year have occurred in four countries that tended to be quite positive about the United States. Poland's positive ratings dropped 24 points, from 62 percent a year ago to 38 percent today. The Philippines dropped 13 points, from a very high 85 percent to a still-high 72 percent. India fell from 44 percent to 30 percent. And Indonesia plunged 19 points–from 40 percent to 21 percent positive–perhaps due to the waning of the positive effect of the American aid to Indonesian tsunami victims.
Additionally, the number of American respondents who believe the United States is having a positive influence in the world has also decreased six points, from 63 percent to 57 percent, and has dropped a total of fourteen points (from 71%) from 2005.
Japan remains one of the most positively viewed countries worldwide. On average this year, 54 percent gave Japan a positive rating, while just 20 percent say its influence in the world is mainly negative. Out of 27 countries polled, 24 give Japan a positive rating, with just two giving it a negative and one divided. Among the 19 countries polled in both 2006 and 2007, positive views of Japan slipped slightly by 1 percentage point.
The two exceptions to this positive reputation for Japan continue to be its neighbours, China and South Korea, where majorities rate it quite negatively. Views are somewhat less negative in China compared to a year ago (71% down to 63% negative) and slightly more negative in South Korea (54% to 58% negative).
While the overall picture remained the same, positive views of Japan increased significantly in Turkey (42% to 51%), France (47% to 55%), Canada (62% to 74%), and Great Britain (57% to 63%); while positive views decreased somewhat in India (48% to 37%) and Brazil (73% to 64%).
In contrast to China and South Korea, other countries in the Asia/Pacific region have quite positive views of Japan including Indonesians (84%), Filipinos (70%) and Australians (55%). Indians also lean positive (37% positive to 16% negative).
Positive views of Japan's influence in the world remained largely steady among Americans (66%), Russians (56%), Germans (54%), and Italians (52%). Japan is also well-regarded in the Middle East, with majorities in Lebanon (58%), the United Arab Emirates (56%), and Turkey (51%) as well as a plurality in Egypt (33%) having positive views.
European Union (EU)
The European Union receives very positive ratings on its role in the world. Positive evaluations of the EU are the most common view in 24 out of 27 countries polled, while in just two countries the dominant view is negative and one divided. On average, 53 percent see the European Union positively, while just 19 percent view it negatively, making it the most positively evaluated international entity behind Canada and Japan. Among the 19 tracking countries, views of the EU have been unchanged in aggregate, though specific countries have shown some substantial shifts.
Unsurprisingly, the European Union is viewed very positively by the EU member countries that were polled, though some countries have more lukewarm views than others. Seventy-nine percent of Portuguese have positive views of the EU, as well as large majorities in Italy (76%), Germany (73%), Poland (70%) and France (68%). Smaller majorities are found in Greece (63%) and Great Britain (59%). The newest EU member polled, Hungary, gives it the lowest positive ratings (50%), but only 11 percent give a negative rating, while a large 39 percent do not take a position.
Positive views of the EU are not derived primarily from EU countries, however. When EU countries are excluded, the average rating is still 48 percent positive and 22 percent negative.
The EU is also highly regarded in North America, where positive views of its influence are widespread and improving. A large majority in Canada (70%, up from 51%) and a growing number in the United States (53%, up from 42%) give it positive reviews.
Attitudes about the European Union in Turkey are quite mixed and growing more negative, perhaps an indication of its struggles to become a member state. Turks are now evenly divided between positive views (30%, down from 40%) and negative views (32%, up from 16%), while a large number declined to answer either way.
Views of the European Union are mixed among the other three Middle Eastern countries polled. In Egypt and the UAE very large numbers do not take a position and those that do, lean to the negative: in Egypt, 33 percent negative and 10 percent positive; in the UAE, 33 percent negative and 25 percent positive. However, in Lebanon a clear majority (54%) rates the EU's influence positively (27% negatively).
Very positive views of the EU are found in Africa. Majorities in Nigeria (64%) and Kenya (62%) view the EU's influence as positive.
In the Asia/Pacific region, numbers are positive and improving in Australia (59%, up from 46%) and the Philippines (49%, up from 39%). Views are positive but declining in South Korea (63%, down from 71%) and India (29%, down from 37%) though many did not express an opinion. Views are positive and stable in China (58%) and Indonesia (52%).
Publics in Latin America also tend to view the European Union positively, though Brazilians are now the exception. The EU receives widespread positive evaluations among two-thirds (66%) in Chile, as well as in Mexico (43%) and Argentina (35%). More Brazilians, however, now view the EU's influence unfavorably. Thirty-eight percent say its influence is mainly negative, the highest out of any country, while just 31 percent view it as mainly positive (down from a 45% plurality a year ago).
Views in Russia are firmly positive with 46 percent saying that the EU is having a positive influence and just 18 percent saying it is having a negative influence.
France continues to be viewed quite positively by the rest of the world, though less positively than two years ago. The only country that does not view France's influence positively is Turkey, while the United States is divided. On average, 50 percent see France as having a positive influence in the world (21% negative).
The countries with the most positive views are found in most world regions: Kenya (66%), Portugal (65%), Chile (64%), Russia (63%), Italy (63%), Nigeria (63%), China (62%), Greece (60%), Germany (60%) and Lebanon (60%). Generally, views of France in Latin America tend to be more moderate, with pluralities having positive views of the country.
While average positive views of France dipped from 2005 to 2006, this year they have remained steady. However, this masks some sharp shifts in specific countries. Especially in some European countries, ratings of France have returned to the higher levels found in 2005, after the 2006 dip that may have been influenced by the widespread urban rioting in France that year. In Italy, 63 percent are positive (up from 50% in 2006); in Russia 63 percent have a positive view (up from 57% in 2006); and in Britain 54 percent now see France positively (up 19 points from the previous year). Other countries that warmed towards France in the past year are Canada (55%, up from 45%), Kenya (66%, up from 44%), Australia (48%, up from 41%) and Mexico (36%, up from 30%).
American views have also improved notably. Americans' negative ratings of France continue to drift downward from 52 percent in 2005, to 48 percent in 2006 and 41 percent in 2007. For the first time in three years views are now roughly divided (38% positive, 41% negative).
In some cases, views of France sharply worsened, most notably in Turkey, where negative views jumped from 39% in 2006 to 69%, likely due to the French government's opposition to Turkey joining the European Union. Positive ratings also declined in South Korea, dropping from a very high 74% in 2006 to 55%. Indians also show cooler attitudes towards France, falling from 42 to 32 percent positive, while negative views increased from 11 to 19 percent. In Brazil positive views dropped from 60 to 46 percent, but remain a plurality.
China continues to enjoy mildly positive ratings worldwide, with 16 out of 26 countries polled this year (excluding China) having mainly positive views of its influence, nine having mainly negative views and one divided. On average, China received a positive rating from 42% and a negative rating of 32%. Following a sharp drop (8%) in the previous year, views of China on average have remained largely stable over the past year among the countries polled in all three years.
Positive views of China remain highest in African and some Middle Eastern countries. Majorities in Kenya (70%), the United Arab Emirates (68%), Lebanon (66%), and Nigeria (66%) view China positively. Interestingly, a plurality in Turkey (39%) sees China's influence as negative. Latin Americans tend to view China somewhat positively, with a majority in Chile (62%), and pluralities in Brazil (46%) and Argentina (32%) having this view, though Mexicans remain divided in their views of China.
The most negative views are found in Europe and the US. Of the nine European countries polled, six view China negatively including majorities in France (59%), Portugal (58%), Italy (58%) and Germany (53%). Among Americans 44 percent see China as mostly negative while 34 percent see it as positive. Britons, however, now lean positive on China (49% positive to 34% negative).
A few dramatic changes occurred over the last year. Britons went from leaning slightly negative to leaning mainly positive with a nine point increase in positive views. Russia went from being divided to leaning positive (up six points). Canadians slightly reversed their downward trend from the previous year, and now a plurality (46%) views China positively, up from 36% the previous year. American views of China are slightly less negative than a year earlier, falling from 53 percent in 2006 to 44 percent today, but positive views held steady at 34 percent.
Average ratings of China in the Asia/Pacific region also remained stable overall, with only slight shifts in views. In terms of individual countries, negative views of China in South Korea dropped from a majority to a plurality (58% to 48%), however positive attitudes fell dramatically in the Philippines (54% to 44%) and India (44% to 35%). Attitudes about China remained steady in other countries in the Asia/Pacific region, with Indonesians (62%) and to some extent Australians (43%) continuing to see China's influence as positive.
Though still largely positive, views of Britain appear to be slipping towards the negative in a number of countries. Overall, 17 countries out of 26 polled have positive views of Britain, while just seven have negative views and two are divided. Among all countries polled (excluding Britain), an average of 45 percent have a positive view, while 28 percent have a negative view.
Among the 18 countries (other than Great Britain) polled the last three years, positive views have slipped from 50 percent in 2005 to 46 percent, perhaps due to Britain's continuing involvement in the unpopular Iraq war. Most significantly, views of Britain plummeted in Brazil, dropping from 49 percent in 2006 to 24 percent today, with a plurality of 33 percent now holding a negative view of its influence. In France positive views have slipped from 50 percent last year to 44 percent today, while negative views jumped from 32 to 42 percent. In Turkey negative views grew from 41 to 54 percent. In Lebanon, as compared to 2005, negative views jumped from 34 to 53 percent. Those who still view Britain quite positively, but have seen decreases over the past year include South Korea (75% to 61%), Nigeria (75% to 64%), and Poland (72% to 62%).
Majorities continue to view Britain positively in the United States (67%), Portugal (65%), Australia (60%), Canada (59%), Italy (56%), and Indonesia (56%). Positive views are up among Kenyans (60% to 74%), Russians (45% to 55%) and Germans (43% to 51%).
India's image appears to be improving significantly in some regions of the world, though in many countries numbers are divided with many not providing a judgment one way or the other. Out of the 26 countries polled in the current year (excluding India), 17 give it a positive rating while only 3 give it a negative rating and 6 countries show divided opinions. On average, 37 percent view its influence positively, 26 percent negatively, and 37 percent do not give an answer.
The strongest positive views can be found in Indonesia (61%), Canada (59%), Great Britain (53%), Russia (49%), Nigeria (49%), and the US (48%). Only three countries lean to a negative view and all of these do so with fairly small numbers: Brazil (40%), Portugal (32%), and Hungary (25%).
Of the 18 countries (other than India) polled in the previous cycles, on average, positive opinion has increased from 34 to 39 percent. The number of countries with positive views of India has grown from 9 to 12. Four out of the five countries that leaned negative in 2006 now have divided views of India.
Positive opinion of India in North America and some European countries has grown significantly over the past year, with substantial jumps in positive views in Canada (34% to 59%), France (27% to 40%), Germany (30% to 39%), the United States (38% to 48%), and Italy (31% to 38%).
In the Asia/Pacific region there have been some sharp changes. Positive views increased in Indonesia (50% to 61%) and two countries that had somewhat negative views warmed considerably. While Filipinos had 57 percent expressing negative views last year, this has now dropped 25 points, so that views are now divided. Among South Koreans negative views dropped from 47 to 37 percent.
Indians also rate themselves more highly than the previous year, moving from 47 percent to 55 percent who view their country's influence positively, though Indians remain lukewarm about themselves in comparison to most other countries.
Russia's influence in the world continues to be viewed as largely negative, with views becoming more negative, especially in European countries–presumably a response to some of the energy and industrial policies of President Vladimir Putin. Out of the 26 countries polled this year (excluding Russia), 18 have negative views of Russia's influence in the world, while seven countries have positive views and one is divided. On average 28 percent view Russia as having a positive influence, while 40 percent see it as having a negative influence.
Among the 18 countries (other than Russia) polled three times since 2005, average positive evaluations, after dropping from 37 to 29 percent last year, have remained largely stable (27%) this year. Negative views after staying steady last year at 40 percent have increased slightly to 43 percent.
The only country that continues to have a majority positive view of Russia is China with 59 percent (12% negative). Fifty percent of Nigerians hold a positive view.
Europeans have become more negative towards Russia in the past year with negative views growing in France (77%, up from 62%), Italy (56%, up from 45%), and Germany, (54%, up from 45%). Negative attitudes about Russia in South Korea grew to a majority (48% to 56%), as well as in Australia (43% to 51%). Americans' negative views are also up (40% to 46%). Additionally, a growing plurality in Turkey (38% to 49%) has a negative view of Russia's influence.
A few countries have shown some improvements in attitude. Filipinos reversed the dramatic increase in negative attitudes about Russia from the previous year, with negative attitudes dropping from 52 to 35 percent. Positive views are also up among Kenyans (28% to 43%).
Overall world public opinion is closely divided about Venezuela, led by the charismatic but polarizing Hugo Chavez. Of the 27 countries polled, in 13 countries the most common view of the oil-rich Latin American nation is mainly positive, while in 13 others the dominant view is mainly negative and one country is divided. On average, equal numbers (27% each) see Venezuela as having a positive or negative influence, with 46 percent declining to offer an opinion. In no country does a majority hold a positive or a negative view and in most cases the divide is quite narrow.
This divided attitude towards Venezuela is spread across nearly all regions. Its fellow Latin American nations are divided: While positive views are held by pluralities of Mexicans (40%) and Argentineans (31%), negative views of their neighbour are held by pluralities of Chileans (40%) and Brazilians (41%). In Europe, small pluralities of Russians (33%), Greeks (33%), and Germans (30%) have favourable views while pluralities of Portuguese (42%), Italians (40%), French (37%), and Britons (36%) have unfavourable views. In the Asia/Pacific region, South Koreans are the most negative (45%) of all countries, along with pluralities in the Philippines (31%), and Australia (29%). However pluralities in Indonesia (39%) and India (21%) lean towards a positive view.
Surprisingly, given the criticism of President Chavez by American leaders, only a modest plurality of Americans (40%) have a negative view of Venezuela, while nearly as many (34%) have a positive view.
Lebanon is the only country where a significant plurality (48%) holds a positive view of Venezuela, but this opinion is not widely shared throughout the Middle East. While quite small pluralities in the United Arab Emirates (28%) and Egypt (22%) view Venezuela's influence positively, Turks are divided (19% positive, 16% negative).


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Travel & Landscape Photography from 100 countries around the world
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."
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There is a scholar, call him Mr X, who received his training within the academy, but who found it wasn't enough. He wanted more: to move outside of his wonky circle of colleagues, to engage the public, to communicate ideas in a manner that was artful as well as illuminating.
While his peers wrote difficult books and debated obscure issues at their meetings, Mr X took part in the communication revolution that was bringing academic ideas into greater contact with the wider world. He wrote shorter pieces for broader audiences, telling one colleague "Publish small works often and you will dominate all of literature." So when Mr X was offered a position far away from his bustling city home, he took it, feeling that his community was no longer defined by geography but by ideas, communicated through the new social technologies.
The new social technologies wern't blogs or Web 2.0 applications, but the pamphlet and the salon. Mr X is not Steven Jay Gould or PZ Myers but Pierre-Louis Moreau de Maupertuis, an 18th century French explorer and polymath who led a geodetic expedition to Lapland in 1736.
Maupertuis is usually remembered as the scholar who described the actual shape of the earth by measuring a degree of arc at high latitude. In so doing, he helped settle a dispute with French cartographer Jacques Cassini over whether the earth was prolate (that is, longer along its N-S axis), or oblate (longer along its diameter at the equator). Cassini believed that the earth was prolate like a lemon. Maupertuis, following in the footsteps of Newton, helped prove that it was oblate like a jelly donut.
Yet as Mary Terrall points out in her book The Man Who Flattened The Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences of the Enlightenment, Maupertuis's most interesting work takes place back home as he tries to make a name for himself in this new theater of conversation, a world that connects elite academies and educated polite society.
As I read about the radical effects of social technology on academic writing and reputation today, I wonder: how much of this is really new? Perhaps the boundaries between elite institutions and general public have always been squishier than we've made them out to be. Blogs and twitter feeds feel so new, so world changing, because they have in fact changed the world we live in, the way we communicate with friends, peers, and random passers-by. Yet it's bound to feel like this. The flood feels strongest when you're standing in the middle of the stream. The story of Maupertuis makes me think that it is a seasonal event, a spring flood that returns with some regularity, the latest iteration of social technology (and sociable science writing) that probably dates to the printing press. Vive le café.


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Let's not sugarcoat this: Chelsea has become a glittering straight jacket for any artist who actually wants to experiment. The collector market tethers these artists to calculated production where artistic value and cost never seem to go hand in hand. This makes it hard to get too excited about opening night in Chelsea, and in fact, but for a handful of openings, we're not. This is what we recommend.
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There were 33 medals handed out to White Blends at the 2018 WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada; seven Golds, 17 Silvers and nine Bronze. Quietly, stealthily and without great fanfare the strength of the white blend category has taken NWAC18 by storm. The quality of the wines entered has never been higher, visibly and notably spread across the country. The time has come to establish party lines, to create truly parochial white appellative blends under appropriately chosen names. Nova Scotia has long been there with their apt-scripted Tidal Bay. Ontario and British Columbia should heed the economic and marketing success enjoyed by their maritime cousins and join the appellative party.
Related – Results of the 2018 WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada (The Nationals): Best of Blends: Red, White and Tidal Bay
The French regions of Bordeaux and the Rhône Valley are clearly the benchmarks and the inspiration for Canadian-made emulative examples, first from a sauvignon blanc-sémillon connection and then with blends that make use of marsanne, roussanne and viognier. A testament to expatriate excellence is noted in the seven overall Gold Medals in this year's judging and no less than six others finishing at high Silver status on the cusp of Gold. I for one awarded five 90-plus scores to wines I clearly deemed worthy of such accolade and esteem.
It is interesting to note that White Blends centred by sauvignon blanc in the Okanagan Valley rely on much higher percentages of sémillon than their counterparts in Ontario. The simplest explanation tells us that the grape variety has trouble surviving harsh Ontario winters, especially when we look back at 2015 and 2016 when much of the province's vines were killed by sub-25 degree temperatures. But it's more than that. In B.C. sauvignon blanc can get pretty ripe, tropical and zaftig so it is sémillon that helps to mitigate, temper, inject a flinty-smoky-mineral streak and ultimately bring balance to the relationship.
There was a time not too long ago when after the best juice was chosen for varietal wines producers then needed to find a way to use up the dregs of their white ferments. White blends came about out of economic necessity, but like Rosé production in this country so many are now produced with a purpose. As a farmer, if you know specific blocks of sauvignon blanc are destined to join with other plots of sémillon you're going to prune, pluck, green harvest and ultimately pick in very specific ways. Appellative blends have become a year round occupation. That much is clear.
Related – Tasting Ontario Part Four: Gamay
The top scorers at this year's Nationals have been awarded to seriously and thoughtfully crafted wines. The winners are not entry-level, introductory products at the lower or lowest common denominational levels. They are not simple aromatic blends of vague fruit and sweet impression, in fact many are graced by beneficial and forward thinking structure. The future certainly looks white blend bright. Here are 36 recently tasted Ontario varietal whites and appellative white blends.
Sprucewood Shores Pinot Grigio 2017, VQA Lake Erie North Shore, Ontario (426577, $14.95, WineAlign)
Just a hint of contact it would seem, leading to a not so obvious result in platinum gold hue but more so into the floral nature of its aromatics. Some sweet melon and pear fruit with good concentration and equal if necessary acidity. Can certainly drink a glass of this. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 sprucewoodshores @SprucewoodWine @SprucewoodShores
Château Des Charmes Aligoté 2017, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (296848, $15.95, WineAlign)
The Château des Charmes self-proclaimed "pinot grigio" alternative was never more truthfully written than in reference to this 2017 aligoté. Screwy wet summer merging into crazy hot autumn weather made for one of the latest harvest dates in the estate on the York Road in St. Davids storied history. The rare Niagara Peninsula varietal vines are planted primarily at St. David's Bench and Paul Bosc Estate vineyards but more are going in, surely out of testimony to the sales of this more than apropos local grape. Surely no one knows aligoté like the Bosc family and yet even they could not have seen this peachy, melony, fleshy and ripe one coming. It's like a hyperbole of Val do Salnés in Rias Baixas albariño, crisp, aromatic and marched along by natural acidity. It seems sweet but trust me it's not. It's the long-hung, fully phenolic fruit and higher pH talking. This is not your average Bourgogne aligoté, searing, taut and intense. It's a departure for the house but if it could always be made this way I think they would gladly go for the style. Waxy finish too, bringing an added note of complexity. Very cool. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted July 2018 chateaudescharmes @MBosc Château des Charmes
Nyarai Cellars Pinot Gris 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $20.95, WineAlign)
This is quite a striking, rich, creamy and yogurt-leesy, a.k.a. Loire chenin blanc, fixedly in the guise of pinot gris. More skin contact then some plus so much yeasty texture combine to make for the fullest of an Ontario gris expression. This is the sort of feeling that normally comes from multi-varietal, dry white appellative Niagara blends but in a solo pinot gris it's nothing short of remarkable. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted February 2018 #nyaraicellars @NyaraiCellars Nyarai Cellars
Tawse Winery Pinot Gris Redfoot Vineyard 2017, VQA Lincoln Lakeshore, Ontario (Winery, $24.95, WineAlign)
From out of the dense Lincoln Lakeshore clay comes this flush and luxurious pinot gris, literally rolling in it. It makes for a highly aromatic take on the grape, all in for gris and not to be confused with lighter, less meaningful grigio. The Redfoot Vineyard is clearly earmarked for such a purposed way of interpretation and though the clays of the double L sub-appellation are best with syrah and cabernet franc there can't be any reason not to allot 10-15 per cent of acreage to white plantings. In the hands of Paul Pender it seems obvious that pinot gris is the one. This dry take is just about perfectly right, with citrus and wet stone hanging around the fruit. Leaner might be more suitable but ultimately it's balance that is most important for this rich fruit raised by the pottery soil. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted June 2018 tawsewinery @Tawse_Winery @tawsewines
G.Marquis Sauvignon Blanc The Red Line 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $13.95, WineAlign)
Big love, big fruit, all about texture and juicy fruit on the palate but with some fine, wound acidity. Excellent. Drink 2018-2021. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 g.marquisvineyards @GMarquisWines @G.MarquisVineyards
North 42 Degrees Estate Winery Sauvignon Blanc North 43 2017, VQA Niagara Lakeshore, Ontario (547836, $14.95, WineAlign)
Quite the character this North 43/North 42 degrees sauvignon blanc, fruit amassed on the nose, from canteloupe to underripe passion fruit with a wet, coppery alloy build that translates across latitudinal lines onto the palate. The metallic flavours are undercut by an herbal tonic with a spoonful of tinned fruit cup. Drink 2018-2019. Tasted April 2018 north42wines @StratusWines North 42 Degrees Estate Winery & Bistro 42 @north42degrees
Château Des Charmes Sauvignon Blanc 2017, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (296848, $15.95, WineAlign)
Interesting take, quite a mineral salt wiring through the green apple fruit, here some feel of barrel but not the malo-creamy effect created. Goes quite juicy and crunchy without resorting to tart. A bit more acid intensity would have sealed the deal. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 chateaudescharmes @MBosc Château des Charmes
Lakeview Cellars Sauvignon Blanc 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (483958, $17.95, WineAlign)
An interesting sauvignon blanc for the Peninsula because the pungency is quite Marlborough but the relaxed state and relative weight is all Niagara. Very easy drinking as far as SB is concerned with notable extraction and a green streak, herbal mostly, running through. Drink 2018-2019. Tasted April 2018 lakeviewwineco @LakeviewWineCo @LakeviewWineCo
Kacaba Susan's Sauvignon Blanc 2017, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $17.95, WineAlign)
Quietude in such a lovely way, mineral meets orange blossom, soft and amenable through the middle, quiet and mellow, fades off slowly, into the sauvignon blanc sunset. Drink 2018-2019. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 kacabavineyards @KacabaVineyards Kacaba Vineyards and Winery
Stratus Wildass Sauvignon Blanc 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (376814, $18.95, WineAlign)
t's more Stratus than sauvignon blanc, even by regional varietal standards, whatever that is, due to the ripe flavours and long-developed phenolic ripeness. Ultimately it is the quotient of a cup of fruit cocktail and an energy level that serves to encourage a sitting back with a glass in meditative state more than a mind stimulated to invigorate. Drink 2018-2019. Tasted April 2018 stratuswines @StratusWines @StratusWines
Organized Crime Sauvignon Blanc 2016, VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (396275, $18.95, WineAlign)
Sometimes sauvignon blanc goes tropical and green at the same time, or at least it is the two poles by picked grapes that combine for such a layering. Citrus and bitters mix into the two sides and all the components walk along, separate and alone together, without making any real contact. Maybe a year will tie the room but the acidity is low so waiting is a counterintuitive idea. Drink 2018. Tasted April 2018 organizedcrimewinery Organized Crime Winery
Henry Of Pelham Fumé Sauvignon Blanc 2016, VQA Short Hills Bench, Ontario (444268, $19.95, WineAlign)
With a wink and a nod to Mondavi this lays the lumber in smoulder upon sauvignon blanc with just a wisp, like cold smoking salmon so that it breathes cool and mentholated, without char and a real smoky feeling. The fruit is light and even a bit precious, the weight quite lithe and the overall notation one of gentle demure. You have to appreciate the deft, slight of winemaking hand approach. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted February 2018 henryofpelham @HenryofPelham Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery
Meldville Wines Sauvignon Blanc 2016, VQA Lincoln Lakeshore, Ontario (Winery, $20.20, WineAlign)
Derek Barnett's sauvignon blanc may be the fleshiest of the Ontario lot, ripe, tropical and impressively coaxed from off the vine. The phenolic aggregate is a 2016 triumph even while it dances a funky step into botrytis-like rhythms. Notes here and there of herbs and tonics add to the mystique and the rapport. So bloody interesting, singular and meditative for the grape. Drink 2018-2021. Tasted February 2018 meldvillewines @meldvillewines Meldville Wines
Peller Estates Private Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2017, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $20.20, WineAlign)
Massively fruit aromatic sauvignon blanc, all gathered in a tin cup found in the exotics isle. Juicy melon meets passion fruit and so much more in between, then with a side of metalloid. Raps so commercially viable and succesful it hurts my ears and my eyes. "Any awards show or party I'll get fly for it, I know that it's coming I just hope I'm alive for it…I just wanna be, I just wanna be." Remarkable success for sauvignon blanc, in Ontario. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 pellerwines @PellerVQA @PellerEstates
Redstone Sauvignon Blanc Limestone Vineyard 2016, VQA Twenty Mile Bench, Ontario (Winery, $23.15, WineAlign)
There isn't a ton of sauvignon blanc grown up on the Limestone Ridge but as a top level Twenty Mile Bench riesling terroir it changes the varietal course with considerable concern. As far as it goes this is quite an alloy challenged, mineralized expression, not quite flinty but certainly feeling like a mouthful of richly compressed, calcareous stones. The fruit is so anti-tropical it's almost reductive and most certainly draws its tang from the soil. Such a curious sauvignon blanc with almost no frame of reference, save for a moment to consider Sancerre, but yet another successful effort from winemaker Rene Van Ede. Drink 2018-2021. Tasted February 2018 redstonewinery @RedstoneWines Redstone Winery
Traynor Sauvignon Blanc 2016, VQA Prince Edward County, Ontario (Winery, $25.00, WineAlign)
Reductive, not flinty or smoky, but reductive. This carries the gooseberry-passion fruit suitcase of fruit. I like the fruit-acid balance and the way it delivers semblances of tart and tangy. Really nicely judged wine. Drink 2018-2021. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 traynorvineyard @TraynorVineyard @traynorfamilyvineyard
Hidden Bench Fumé Blanc Rosomel Vineyard 2016, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (68825, $29.95, WineAlign)
The vineyard gains another year, the farming and winemaking too and so fumé blanc out of Rosomel gets better, as things often do with age and wisdom. 'Twas a great year for growing grapes on this amphitheatre of a vineyard block up on the Bench and no love lost for sauvignon blanc neither. There is tension, wound intensity and fierce competitiveness in the '16, perhaps the most Sancerre and least Pouilly-Fumé it has ever been and so the declaration leans to saying it is "a mineral year." Nothing against the fruit because the personality cult of lean, crisp and crunchy is in full order, though each sip after sip speaks in those Sancerre or Chablis by way of Saint Bris terms. Stellar, as always, in continuance, moving towards the best it can be. Drink 2019-2024. Tasted May 2018 hidden bench markanthonyon @HiddenBench @MarkAnthonyWine Hidden Bench Estate Winery Mark Anthony Wine & Spirits
Trius Showcase Clean Slate Sauvignon Blanc Wild Ferment 2016, Niagara-on-the Lake, Ontario (Winery, $31.95, WineAlign)
Quite flinty, barrel-aged sauvignon blanc, buttery nearly, banana and cantaloupe. So much fruit along with the toasty-creamy barrel. Almost perfectly in balance but it's wildness and sweet-yeasty lees cumulative turns to a bit of caramel and only accentuates the vanilla. A really cool take on the grape with exceptionally developed flavours. Drink 2018-2019. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 triuswines @TriusWines @TriusWines
Two Sisters Sauvignon Blanc 2017, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $34.00, WineAlign)
Excessive tightness of screw caps does not allow any kept reduction to blow off so winemaker Adam Pearce closed here with a screw cap threading just a bit less rigid. A fine detail but an important one and the only wine to receive this attention, so just a minute amount of oxygen transfer can occur. Just released 11 days ago. The big change is now a fruit vineyard blend that is 70 per cent Four Mile Creek and (30) Twenty Mile Bench. From a cool, wet and rainy season so really it's all about the grower in a vintage where the varietal struggled with mould and mildew. Eight per cent barrel ferment was used to augment the leanness, for body and peace of mind. A bit reductive and tight with good acid structure to the peach-yellow-plum-kumquat fruit. Good linger. Delicious. Drink 2018-2021. Tasted July 2018 twosisters_vineyards @TwoSisters_wine Two Sisters Vineyards
Fielding Estate Gewürztraminer 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (146753, $19.95, WineAlign)
Fielding's pays respect to how gewürztraminer has to be made in Ontario with a fleshy, off-dry style though making sure to counterbalance with a fine dose of acidity. From dosage to dose it dances the do-si-so with high quality peach-litchi fruit and grapefruit acidity. If you're in need of a white to compliment some high-octane, multi-seasoned and possibly spicy food, Fielding's is textbook and will do the work. It's a gewürztraminer you can trust. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted January 2018 fielding winery richiewine @FieldingWinery @RichieWine Fielding Estate Winery
Redstone Gewürztraminer 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $21.95, WineAlign)
A sip sends a warm shiver through from a simple off-dry gewüztraminer attack more flat than round earth, trying hard to stay on the dry though the bitters and creamy fruit deliver more sweetness than what might have been intended. Some skin contact deals peach skin and those bitters while the acidity quietly abides. It's nearly, almost and close to cloying by honey mixed in concentrate with a note of alkali. Everything lingers. Drink 2017-2019. Tasted October 2017 redstonewinery @RedstoneWines Redstone Winery
Trail Estate Gewürztraminer 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $30.00, WineAlign)
Few winemakers in Ontario are as curious, aloof and serious about making gewürztraminer like this,"looking through that window, into the delicate place." The changing of mind is so important during the process because it shows an understanding of both mistake and possibility. Mackenzie Brisbois takes a spoon of Niagara Lakeview fruit (Glen Elgin/Wismer farmed), puts it through a whole cluster press, a fermentation in old oak and then wait a minute. An about face transfer to stainless steel tank (just after a few days) because it is too reductive, but then sends it back to old wood where it remains for about nine months. Bottles back in September of 2017. The result is a gewürz that finishes dry (under 3 g/L) so delicate for a customer's palate, with lots of lemon and lime but never searing, perfect for cold smoked or tataki prepared salmon. Bitter pith note but it dissipates, as does the acidity so keep in mind this is floral and fine. "The delicate place. The questions it raise. The delicate place yeah." Enjoy it now and gimme fiction. Drink 2018-2021. Tasted April 2018 trailestatewine mackbrisbois @TrailEstateWine @MackBrisbois Trail Estate Winery Mackenzie Brisbois
Trail Estate Skin Contact Gewürztraminer 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $40.00, WineAlign)
The 2016 gewürztraminer fruit is from the Werscht's (Between the Lines) Niagara farm, super ripe at 24 brix and aromatics on steroids. It clocks in at a healthy 13.5 alcohol, after 13 days on skins and beyond. Close your eyes and the warm pungency will simulate a sensory experience, like standing inside the butterfly conservatory, with all the dessicating fruit, secretions and balmy, humid aromas wafting around. Or maybe even more exotic, like walking past stalls in a south asian market, with fruits cut open so you can see what they are, mangoseteen, marquesa, jackfruit and durian. There is great fun to be had in acidity and spice. Lush, floral and nicely funky. By now an understanding and a level of maturity to think on is as a classic Brisbois white. Drink 2018-2021. Tasted April 2018 trailestatewine mackbrisbois @TrailEstateWine @MackBrisbois Trail Estate Winery Mackenzie Brisbois
Malivoire Viognier Stouck Vineyard 2016, VQA Lincoln Lakeshore, Ontario (Agent, $24.25, WineAlign)
From vines planted in 2010 the magic of excitable youth with just a hint of maturity has brought this block of the terrific Lincoln Lakeshore vineyard to this vintage. Warmth and ultimately ripeness have released the aromatic blessedness of viognier, which along with an unpurposed number of residual sugar will allow this to gain some further complexity with age. May just be the most varietal viognier ever produced out of Niagara but it's obviousness as a regional example can't be denied. It exudes confidence without even trying, is naturally oily and grippy because its acidity matches the high notes. It's a touch boozy at 13.5 alcohol, at times metallic and at others, tropical, because that's what viognier wants to be. It's just a terrific effort from winemakers Shiraz Mottiar and Dan Stouck. Drink 2018-2022. Tasted February 2018 malivoire noble_estates @MalivoireWine @Noble_Estates Malivoire Wine Noble Estates Wine & Spirits
Lakeview Cellars Viognier 2015, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $24.95, WineAlign)
Pretty tart stuff from the get go, full of tangerine and beautifully dry. Gently pressed and kept in spirit high through the use of stainless steel tanks. Quite floral, not potpourri mind you but a fresh blossoming breath of a bouquet. Simple viognier, effectively executed and perfectly correct. Drink 2018-2019. Tasted February 2018 lakeviewwineco @LakeviewWineCo @LakeviewWineCo
Redstone Viognier Redfoot Vineyard 2016, VQA Lincoln Lakeshore, Ontario (Winery, $28.95, WineAlign)
The barrel is a big time influence here, offering a combination of creamy vanilla and yet some reduction. There must be some lush viognier fruit back there somewhere but the wood is really in control. Subtle hints of varietal florals, far eastern fruit and spice linger behind the veil. Tasted blind it is the creamy texture and vanilla that makes cause for it to be considered so much like California chardonnay. Good acidity however rescues and thinks about the future. Drink 2018-2021. Tasted twice, June 2018 and then blind at NWAC18, June 2018 redstonewinery @RedstoneWines Redstone Winery
Calamus Estate Winery White Night 2014, VQA Ontario (484014, $13.95, WineAlign)
A very good use of vidal (85 per cent) gets an apple jolt from chardonnay in this very peach and grapefruit oriented white. It's like fruit cocktail in a glass but drier than off-dry and quite savoury. Stage right spicy too, like clove and capsicum, in a way akin to Kiwi sauvignon blanc but in the end it's white appellative blend in hybrid dominance, running all the way. Drink 2017-2018. Tasted January 2017 #calamuswinery @calamuswinery Calamus Estate Winery
Featherstone Four Feathers 2017, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (341586, $14.95, WineAlign)
Varietal birds of four feathers (riesling, chardonnay, gewürztraminer and sauvignon blanc) flock together for a wild ride in aromatics, texture, tang and acidity. Here a notable waxiness from the gewürztraminer does oily, glück potpourri with outgoing nature and a sweet meets sour set of flavours. Runs from orchard fruit with bite into the tropical and then some bitters. Nothing simple and quite stirred. Drink 2018-2019. Tasted April 2018 #featherstonewinery @featherstonewne Featherstone Estate Winery
13th Street White Palette 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (207340, $15.95, WineAlign)
White Palette is at the top of its hyperbole game in 2016 with a light's glare flooding a room of high aromatic and flavour intensity. Glade, polish, wax and major citrus all max factor the scents and smells. Lemon and caramel well through the palate and funky emissions deal in Peninsula clay with obvious earth. It's a case of the curious and not fully expected in 2016. Worth a look nevertheless, with fresh seafood off the coals. Drink 2018-2019. Tasted May 2018 13thstreetwinery @13thStreetWines 13th Street Winery
Rockway Vineyards Chardonnay/Riesling 2015, VQA Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario (545905, $16.95, WineAlign)
The varietal get together is both convenient and seamless, in delivery of a cool climate nose and a ripeness to imagine a warmer climate palate. It's layering is one stacked by alternating textures and walks straight ahead, simple and for the sake of nothing, but for to enjoy. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted April 2018 rockwayvineyards @RockwayVineyard Rockway Vineyards
The Hare Wine Company Crown Land White 2016, VQA Niagara On The Lake, Ontario (Winery, $18.95, WineAlign)
The blend of 60 per cent gewürztraminer and (40) riesling is a lovely mix of lemon, apricot and mild barrel notes. It's a pithy affair, mildly battered and of a soft demeanour. Fresh with fruit skin scents, a passion fruit tang and acidity that's pretty darn close to spot on. Chewy texture, finishing strong and long. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted February 2018 theharewineco @TheHareWineCo The Hare Wine Co.
Kew Vineyard Estate Marsanne 2016, VQA Beamsville Bench, Ontario (Winery, $18.95, WineAlign)
The dominant marsanne (90 per cent) is joined seamlessly by viognier in a white blend rich with barrel notes, nutty and toasty. Perhaps a touch less interesting on the palate but it's welling with presence and persistence. Metallic and effective, with great finishing bitters. Drink 2018-2020. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 kewvineyards @kewvineyards @kewvineyard
Pearl Morissette Cuvée Blu 2016, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario (Winery, $25.00, WineAlign)
Cuvée Blu is an appellative blend like no other, amphora fermented, 100 per cent whole cluster chardonnay, with pinot gris, riesling and sauvignon blanc. The group spent three and a half (no, not a typo) months on skins, pressed and aged in foudres. I taste this and self-reflected that I would need to taste this once a day for two weeks to wrap brain, heart and imagination around its mythology. I'd also need to understand how it pushed further then just about anything and to see what would happpen, over and over, again and again, each time anew. You can drink this immediately or anytime over the next six years. What's the difference? How can you know what to do? Self-described by the PM team as "a chameleon charmer and a poem built from the taste of colours." Memories of a 2017 summer recall the whimsy of hues. "Yellow, orange," smiled Svetlana Atcheva, "it might as well be blue!" Drink 2018-2024. Tasted July 2017 pearlmorissette @PearlMorissette Pearl Morissette
Southbrook Vidal Skin Fermented White 2016, Small Lot Natural Wine, VQA Ontario (Winery, $29.95, WineAlign)
The first time I tasted this blind (at Terroir Symposium) I noted it to be "vidal-like," a touch oxidative, of this elegant paste or salve, with notes of green plum and just a touch of grapefruit. The second pass confirms it to be a fine vidal orange wine, with more texture than should or would be expected. It delivers lemon and tannin, plus a calculated layering of ample and enough acidity to carry it along. A fine example. Really mouth coating and so tannic. Takes what was learned from 2014 and 2015 experiments and with VQA category approval in its back pocket, begins the true journey forward. Drink 2017-2020. Tasted blind at NWAC17, June 2017 and February 2018 southbrookvineyards thelivingvine @SouthbrookWine @TheLivingVine Southbrook Vineyards The Living Vine inc.
Stratus Vineyards Stratus White 2014, VQA Niagara Lakeshore, Ontario (660704, $38.20, WineAlign)
White assemblage under the Stratus label is not like spinning a single record, it's like Rock 'n Roll radio. Opening a bottle brings great excitement and anticipation, with a sense of wonder. What songs am I going to hear or more to the point, which grape varieties am I going to taste, in which percentages and in what order? In 2014 it's a medley of chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, viognier, sémillon and gewürztraminer. The blend spent 21 months in (15 per cent) new oak. The fruits are varied and each one (or mélange of several) represented a hit in their own right. Tutti frutti, orange blossom special, little green apples, the lemon song, kiwi, peach, tangerine and forbidden fruit. In the end I heard it through the grapevine, by way of a conduit provided by great and necessary acidity. A top quality Stratus White, worthy of repeat plays. Drink 2018-2025. Tasted twice, May and June 2018 stratuswines @StratusWines @StratusWines
Hidden Bench Nuit Blanche Rosomel Vineyard 2016, VQA Beamsville Bench, Ontario (Winery, $40.00, WineAlign)
It's primarily sauvignon blanc (94 per cent) but don't discount the effect created by sémillon. This is a really lovely barrel fermented stroll through a fresh morning glade, with ripe fruit everywhere and a perfectly pointed and lifted flinty nose. A bit reductive and fresh, as it should and absolutely must be, with hints of vanilla and caramel. Quite ambitious and serious with a focus and a precision that speaks to the acumen of a specific cru that in the end, instructs for sauvignon blanc meets sémillon education. Drink 2019-2024. Tasted blind at NWAC18, June 2018 hiddenbench markanthonyon @HiddenBench @MarkAnthonyWine Hidden Bench Estate Winery Mark Anthony Wine & Spirits
Good to Go!
Twitter: @mgodello
Instagram: mgodello


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Lots of us liberals felt sorry for Dan Rather for having used what turned out to be fabricated documents in reporting on George W. Bush's derelictions of duty while using the Air National Guard to dodge service in Vietnam. Some of us even suspected that he'd been mousetrapped by Karl Rove: that the phony documents had been planted on Rather, or on his source, for the purpose of discrediting a true story.
But once the fabrication had been brought to light, no liberal blogger – let alone any liberal politician – called Rather a "hero" for running with his story.
Contrast Mike Huckabee, who – if he's right that America's sinfulness has drawn down on it the Wrath of God – might actually be President some day. He's "shocked" that the "hero journalist" Lara Logan has been suspended from her job at CBS.
It's simply not the case that the Red Team and the Blue Team are symmetric. Yes, they both act factionally, and both camps include some lunatics. But we don't let ours run the asylum.
[Cross-posted at The Reality-Based Community]


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Annunaki: Those who from Heaven to Earth Came. The literal translation of the word. It is believed by some and Ancient Astronaut theorist that the Annunaki were actually a race of extraterrestrial beings from an Outer Planet (Nibiru) that has an enormously large and wide orbit around our sun, roughly 3,600 years. According to Sumerian text, the Annunaki genetically engineered the Homo erectus genetics which in turn created Homo Sapien, the modern man, 'US'… So when they say, I'm made of Tiger Blood… I say! F🖕🏾🖕🏾k Tigers Blood, we here at DarqMatter Design know it's about the Annunaki Blood flowing thru our veins and DNA. The chest print details the sacred flower of life also is the cross-section of our DNA when viewed at this angle. The Nephilim were real.. Their genetics are still expressed in many people in many races throughout the world..
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Review: Kōloa Kaua`i Gold Hawaiian Rum
Posted by Arctic Wolf on August 19, 2010
Nestled on the Island of Kaua`i, the Kōloa Rum Company is making history. It started nine years ago when the company was first incorporated. A seven-year struggle through red tape and government bureaucracy ensued before the necessary permits and licenses were granted, and finally on April 1, 2009, the Kōloa Rum Company was granted a license to distill their rum. The first legally distilled rum in the Island's history.
The Kōloa rums are not made from traditional molasses, rather they are distilled from the crystallized sugar produced at the local Gay and Robinson Sugar Factory. This sugar, produced from 100% Kaua`i cane, has a higher than normal molasses content, and as such, the sugar is a good starting point for making artisan rum. All of the rum is distilled using a vintage 1210 gallon copper pot still which was purchased in Kentucky, and transported first by train, and then by boat all the way to Hawaii.
My introduction to the Kōloa Rum Company's Hawaiian rums was at Rum Renaissance in Miami, Florida. The Kōloa Dark Rum won a Gold Medal at the festival in the Rum XP Tasting Competition, and this was my first clue that something special might be happening in Hawaii. A gold medal rum, produced by a company which was just beginning to spread its wings…. I decided to investigate.
After contacting the Kōloa Rum Company, I was sent samples of their entire range for my review. I decided to start the review series with the Kōloa Kaua`i Gold Hawaiian Rum.
Here is an Excerpt from my review:
"…A surprising mild flavour is the initial impression I received when I sipped the gold rum for the first time. Again the flavour of the Gay and Robinson crystallized sugar comes though very clearly. It is a honeyed, caramel flavour which is sweet and inviting. Citrus zest, and light peppery spices follow with perhaps a little plantain or banana in the mid palate…"
You may Read the Full Review Here:
Review:Kōloa Kaua`i Gold Hawaiian Rum
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Right on the heels of my post on the toe-tapping Longitude and Latitude song, a bit of background information on my other favorite coordinate-oriented song, Map Ref. 41° N 93° W by Wire. I quoted a bit of the lyrics from this song in the Making Maps book, to close the Geographic Framework chapter:
An unseen ruler defines with geometry
An unrulable expanse of geography
An aerial photographer over-exposed
To the cartologist's 2D images knows
The areas where the water flowed
So petrified, the landscape grows
Straining eyes try to understand
The works, incessantly in hand
The carving and paring of the land
The quarter square, the graph divides
Beneath the rule a country hides
Interrupting my train of thought
Lines of longitude and latitude
Define and refine my altitude
A email query about the song was answered by Graham Lewis (here, here),Wire's vocalist/bassist:
In 1978 Wire made their debut in the USA playing at CBGBs in NYC for 5 nights. When this engagement was completed I flew to LA to meet my girlfriend of the time and have 2 weeks vacation staying with friends. At the end of this I flew back to New York to hangout.
On the return daytime flight the visibility was perfect and I experienced a stunning aerial view of the Rockies and the vast Mid-Western plains…this was the inspiration for the first part of the text. I studied Geography at both O & A level and developed a fascination for maps and their reading… On this occasion one was able to read the epic landscape…vast gorges, an incomparable 2D flatness, meandering rivers, levees, oxbow lakes etc….with an unrelenting gridded road system imposed on top).
Some months later I had a similar sensation whilst traveling by road through the reclaimed agricultural lands of Holland. Whilst in the US it had been the road system here it was a grid system of drainage dikes. The vast green/ glass houses also made a memorable impression sparkling in the autumn sun…."Crystal palaces for floral kings"
The two pieces of writing dovetailed to produce one text on 2 locations…the title was conceptual… notionally the very centre of the Mid-west…I guessed and found a place called Centreville nearby… this seemed appropriate, poetical yet hardly scientific!
I knew a geographer had to have written the song.
Map Ref. 41°N 93°W was Wire's sixth single, taken from their third album (one of my favorite albums of all time), 154.
The cover for the single opens this post.
Other album covers with maps here.


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KU tears down building that stood since 1915
Structure housed offices, high school, faculty lounge through the years
The Associated Press
LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas has demolished its nearly century-old University Relations building on the far northeast end of campus.
The Lawrence Journal-World (http://is.gd/FSaBcN) reports that over the years, the house-like structure also had served as a high school, a faculty lounge and offices for the KU Endowment.
But the university's deputy director for Construction and Design Management, Paul Graves, says the building had become structurally unsound and posed a safety hazard. The Kansas Board of Regents rated the building's condition as "poor" in its 2012 facilities inventory.
Graves says there are no immediate plans to build anything on the site where the building had stood since 1915. Demolition took most of last week.


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The Stop Online Piracy Act, the subject of a hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee Wednesday, has generated heated debate since lawmakers introduced it on Oct. 26.
The bill, called SOPA, would allow the U.S. Department of Justice and copyright holders to seek court orders requiring online advertising networks, payment processors and other organizations to stop payments to websites and Web-based services accused of copyright infringement.
Supporters of SOPA argue that U.S. law enforcement officials need new tools to fight websites, particularly foreign sites, that sell infringing products, including music, movies, clothing and medicine. Some infringing products are dangerous; others cost U.S. companies billions of dollars a year, supporters say.
Current copyright enforcement laws in the U.S. have little effect on hundreds of foreign websites that sell counterfeit products or pirated music and movies, SOPA supporters say. While U.S. law enforcement officials can shut down infringing sites in the U.S., they generally can't reach foreign sites, supporters say.
"The sale of counterfeit products and piracy of copyrighted content online not only undermines our nation's economy [but also] robs state and local governments of much-needed tax revenue and jobs," Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna said in a statement released Wednesday. "Even worse, some counterfeit goods can pose serious health and safety hazards to consumers. Rogue sites legislation seeks to clamp down on this scourge."
Opponents of the bill argue it would empower litigious copyright holders to seek court orders targeting many legitimate websites, including sites with user-generated content such as Twitter and YouTube. The legislation would overturn the notice-and-takedown process in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and would slow U.S. technology innovation, with new Web-based services likely targeted by copyright holders, critics say.
SOPA would lead to censorship of legitimate websites and protected free speech on sites that may contain some infringing content, critics say. The bill is inconsistent with the U.S. Department of State's push for Internet freedom worldwide, they say.
"This is a bill that would eviscerate the predictable legal environment created by the DMCA, subjecting online innovators to a new era of uncertainty and risk," said David Sohn, senior policy counsel at the Center for Democracy and Technology. "It would force pervasive scrutiny and surveillance of Internet users' online activities. It would chill the growth of social media and conscript every online platform into a new role as content police."
What's in the bill?
SOPA, introduced Oct. 26, would allow the U.S. Department of Justice to seek court orders to stop online ad networks and payment processors from doing business with foreign websites accused of enabling or facilitating copyright infringement.
The DOJ-requested court orders could also bar search engines from linking to the allegedly infringing sites and order domain name registrars to take down the websites and Internet service providers to block subscriber access to the sites accused of infringing.
SOPA would also allow copyright holders to seek court orders requiring online advertising networks and payment processors to stop supporting the alleged infringers if those businesses do not comply with requests from copyright holders. The court orders requested by copyright holders could target U.S. websites and services that enable or facilitate copyright, in addition to foreign websites.
Section 102 of the bill would set up the process for the DOJ to ask for court orders targeting online ad networks, payment processors, search engines, ISPs and domain name registrars. The DOJ would have to notify the owner of the allegedly infringing website that it is seeking a court order. The DOJ would decide if a site infringes copyright and it could determine a site is infringing if a "portion" of it has copyright violations.
Section 102 also says that ISPs, search engines and the other services ordered to stop doing business with an allegedly infringing site cannot be sued for cutting off service to that site.
Section 103 of the bill sets up a process for copyright holders to request that payment processors and online advertising networks stop doing business with sites alleged to "engage in, enable, or facilitate" copyright infringement. If the processors and ad networks refuse the request, the copyright holders could seek a court order. The payment processors and ad networks have seven days to show the court they have complied or will comply with the order.
If a copyright holder knowingly misrepresents that a site is dedicated to infringement, or if a respondent to an infringement claim knowingly misrepresents that a site is not dedicated to infringement, they can be liable for damages, including court costs and attorneys' fees.
Section 104 of SOPA gives legal immunity to any service provider, payment network provider, Internet advertising service, advertiser, Internet search engine, domain name registry, or domain name registrar for voluntarily taking action against websites dedicated to infringement.
Section 106 directs the U.S. registrar of copyrights to conduct a study on the effectiveness of SOPA and on "any need to amend the provisions of this title to adapt to emerging technologies."
Section 201 would make it a crime to stream, on the Web, works protected by copyright without permission. The maximum penalty would be five years in prison for a first offense of streaming 10 pieces of music or movies within six months.
Supporters and opponents
The 25 sponsors of SOPA include Republican Representatives Lamar Smith of Texas, Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Mary Bono Mack of California; as well as Democratic Representatives Howard Berman of California, John Conyers Jr. of Michigan and Melvin Watt of North Carolina. Smith is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.
Several lawmakers have also voiced opposition to the legislation. They include Democrats Zoe Lofgren, Anna Eshoo, Mike Honda and Doris Matsui, all representing districts near Silicon Valley in California, Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania, and Republican Representatives Darrell Issa and John Campbell of California, and Ron Paul of Texas.
Several groups have voiced support for SOPA, including the Motion Picture Association of America, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Better Business Bureau, the National Consumers League, 43 state attorneys general, the National Fraternal Order of Police, the AFL-CIO, the Independent Film and Television Alliance, the American Federation of Musicians, the Directors Guild of America, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Screen Actors Guild.
Organizations opposed to SOPA include Google, Yahoo, Facebook, eBay, Twitter, Human Rights Watch, Public Knowledge, Free Press, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Computer and Communications Industry Association, the Consumer Electronics Association, the conservative group Americans for Job Security, the liberal group Demand Progress and Consumers Union.
What's next?
SOPA is similar to, but more expansive in some ways than the Protect IP Act, a bill awaiting action by the U.S. Senate. The Senate Judiciary Committee approved Protect IP in May, but Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, has blocked the bill from coming to the floor of the full Senate.
If the House Judiciary Committee votes to approve SOPA, it would then move to the House floor for a vote. The Senate would also have to approve SOPA or similar legislation before the bill is sent to President Barack Obama for his signature or veto.
Grant Gross covers technology and telecom policy in the U.S. government for The IDG News Service. Follow Grant on Twitter at GrantGross. Grant's e-mail address is email@example.com.


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The bringing up of repressed material can lead to anger, a common and potentially destructive feeling that urgently needs to be given more thought. Plato does not discuss anger in any depth, and tends to bring it up only in the context of pleasure and pain. In the Philebus, he says that good people delight in true or good pleasures whereas bad people delight in false or bad pleasures, and that the same goes for pain, fear, anger, and the like – thereby implying that there can be such a thing as true or good anger. Later on, he says that pleasures of the mind may be mixed with pain, as in anger or envy or love, or the mixed feelings of the spectator of tragedy or of the greater drama of life – this time implying that anger can be pleasurable as well as painful. In the Timaeus, he lists five terrible affections of the mortal soul: pleasure, the inciter of evil; pain, which deters from good; rashness and fear, foolish counsellors; anger, hard to appease; and hope, easily led astray. The gods, Plato tells us, mingled these affections with irrational sense and all-daring love, and thereby created man.
Unlike Plato, Aristotle discusses anger at great length. In Book 2 of the Nicomachean Ethics, he appears to agree with Plato by saying that a good-tempered person can sometimes get angry, but only as he ought to. A good-tempered person, he continues, might get angry too soon or not enough, yet still be praised for being good-tempered; it is only if he deviates more widely from the mean with respect to anger that he becomes blameworthy, either 'irascible' at one extreme or 'lacking in spirit' at the other. He then – famously – tells us,
For in everything it is no easy task to find the middle … anyone can get angry – that is easy – or give or spend money; but to do this to the right person, to the right extent, at the right time, with the right motive, and in the right way, that is not for everyone, nor is it easy; wherefore goodness is both rare and laudable and noble.
Aristotle also agrees with Plato that anger involves mixed feelings of pleasure and pain. In Book 2 of the Rhetoric, in discussing the emotions, he defines anger as an impulse, accompanied by pain, to a conspicuous revenge for a conspicuous slight that has been directed either at the person himself or at his friends; he then adds that anger is also attended by a certain pleasure that arises from the expectation of revenge. A person is slighted out of one of three things, contempt, spite, and insolence; in either case, the slight betrays the offender's feeling that the slighted person is obviously of no importance. The slighted person may or may not get angry, but he is more likely to get angry if he is in distress – for example, in poverty or in love – or if he feels insecure about the subject of the slight. On the other hand, he is less likely to get angry if the slight is involuntary, unintentional, or itself provoked by anger, or if the offender apologises or humbles himself before him and behaves like his inferior. Even dogs, Aristotle tells us, do not bite sitting people. The slighted person is also less likely to get angry if the offender has done him more kindnesses than he has returned, or reverences him, or is feared and respected by him. Once provoked, anger is calmed by the feeling that the slight is deserved, by the passage of time, by the exaction of revenge, by the suffering of the offender, and/or by being spent on someone or other. Thus, although angrier at Ergophilius than at Callisthenes, the people acquitted Ergophilius because they had already condemned Callisthenes to death. (Footnote: Callisthenes concluded a premature peace with Perdiccas, king of Macedonia, while Ergophilus failed in an attack on Cotys, king of Thrace.)
There is clearly a sense in which Plato and Aristotle are correct in speaking of such a thing as a good or right anger. Anger can serve a number of useful, even vital, functions. It can put an end to a bodily, emotional, or social threat, or – failing that – it can mobilise mental and physical resources for defensive or corrective action. If judiciously exercised, it can enable a person to signal high social status, compete for rank and position, strengthen bargaining positions, ensure that contracts and promises are fulfilled, and even inspire desirable feelings such as respect and sympathy. A person who is able to express or exercise anger judiciously may feel better about himself, more in control, more optimistic, and more prone to the sort of risk-taking that promotes successful outcomes. On the other hand, anger, and in particular uncontrolled anger, can lead to loss of perspective and judgement, impulsive and irrational behaviour that is harmful both to the self and to others, and loss of face, sympathy, and social credibility. Thus, it appears that the sort of anger that is justified, controlled, strategic, and potentially adaptive ought to be demarcated from and contrasted with a second type of anger (let us call it rage) that is inappropriate, unjustified, unprocessed, irrational, undifferentiated, and uncontrolled. It goes without saying that the anger that arises from bringing up repressed material is of this latter, insightless and destructive kind. The function of rage is simply to protect the ego: it causes pain of one kind to detract from pain of another, and is attended by very little pleasure if any at all.
Another, related, idea is this. Anger, and particularly rage, strengthens correspondence bias, that is, the tendency to attribute observed behaviours to dispositional or personality-related factors rather than to situational factors. For instance, if I forgot to do the dishes, I am under the impression that this is because I suddenly felt very tired (situational factor), whereas if Emma forgot to do the dishes, I am under the impression that this is because she is useless (dispositional factor). More fundamentally, anger reinforces the illusion that people exercise a high degree of free will, whereas in actual fact most of a person's actions and the neurological activity that they correspond to are determined by past events and the cumulative effects of those past events on that person's patterns of thinking (see The Art of Failure, Chapter 2). It follows that the only person who can truly deserve anger is the one who acted freely, that is, the one who spited us freely and therefore probably rightly! This does not mean that anger is not justified in other cases, as a display of anger – even if undeserved – can still serve a benevolent strategic purpose. But if all that is ever required is a strategic display of anger, then true anger that involves real pain is entirely superfluous, its presence only serving to betray … a certain lack of understanding.


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In the last few years, the competition between Nvidia and AMD has been quite interesting. At the 40nm generation, Nvidia chose to focus the Fermi architecture on throughput computing, blazing a trail to a new market. The GF104 was a derivative of Fermi, and tailored a bit more towards graphics, forming the second prong of Nvidia's strategy. In contrast, AMD's Cayman made no compromises in pursuing graphics performance. Consequently, AMD held a clear advantage for the graphics market, while Nvidia has been the only real option for GPU computing. At the 28nm node, it appears that Nvidia is continuing the existing strategy to diverge the graphics and compute products. This article gives a brief impression of Kepler, the focus on graphics and power managment and an analysis of Nvidia's overall strategy and future compute products.
The Kepler architecture is the successor to the GF104/GF114 and swings the pendulum back, to focus more on graphics workloads, at the expense of general purpose computation. At a high level, the Kepler core (which Nvidia calls an SMX) is significantly larger than those found in GF104/GF114 (described as an SM). Each Kepler core can execute 192 single precision FMAs per cycle, four times the 48 FMAs in a GF104 core. The first Kepler product, the GTX 680 (or GK104) packs in 8 cores, the same as the GTX 560 (based on GF114). In essence, all the benefits of moving from 40nm to 28nm were used by Nvidia to design a much more powerful core. While a number of other aspects of the GPU changed, this article is chiefly concerned with the shader cores, rather than the fixed function graphics hardware.
Graphics First
The high level details of the Kepler core show a de-emphasis of general purpose workloads in favor of graphics. Kepler scaled up the computational capabilities of each core significantly, but the memory hierarchy did not keep pace. The first part of Table 1 compares the core computational and memory resources for Fermi, GF104/GF114, Kepler and AMD's GCN. Work-item is used according to the OpenCL definition, however the term thread is not part of the OpenCL lexicon. The term thread refers to the microarchitectural unit of execution and control flow; a warp for Nvidia (with 32 work-items) and a wavefront (with 64 work-items) for AMD. As Table 1 indicates, Nvidia's cores have a unified L1 data cache and shared memory, while in GCN, the two structures are separate. The second part of Table 1 compares the memory resources available to each work-item, and the bandwidth per FLOP provided by the cache.
Looking at the cache and shared memory available for each work-item, Kepler decreases capacity by 25% compared to the previous generations. The difference is about 10B, or two 32-bit data values. While this will hurt compute performance, it is not a huge change to the balance of resources. Moreover, Kepler's register file capacity per work-item has increased by about 50% compared to both Fermi and GF104. For graphics, this should more than make up for the decrease in shared memory and data cache.
Table 1. GPU Core Computational and Memory Resources
The real change lies with the bandwidth from the data cache and shared memory, which is critical for shared data. The graphics pipeline is constructed to generate largely independent chunks of work, whether it is pixel or vertex shading. There is little communication between different work-items or work-groups, and almost all data stays in the private register file. However, general purpose workloads are an entirely different beast altogether. The vast majority of efficient HPC algorithms rely on sharing data, and truly general purpose workloads are even worse. For instance, in fluid dynamics the behavior at a given point typically depends on neighboring regions. In practice, most workloads need to communicate a certain amount of shared data for every computation, which is expressed as a ratio of bytes/FLOP. When a workload requires more communication bandwidth than is available on the hardware, performance suffers accordingly.
The shared data bandwidth for the Kepler core is 0.33B/FLOP with 32-bit accesses, just half of GF104. But the standard for general purpose workloads is not GF104. Fermi has 3× the shared data bandwidth (1B/FLOP) compared to Kepler. In comparison, AMD's GCN has 1.5B/FLOP, demonstrating the advantages of a separate L1 data cache and local data share (LDS). The significant regression in communication bandwidth is one of the clearest signs that Nvidia has backed away from compute workloads in favor of graphics for Kepler. Note that using 64-bit accesses, the shared data bandwidth is actually 256B/cycle, which works out to 0.66B/FLOP (hence the asterisk in Table 1). However, existing CUDA programs are almost exclusively written with 32-bit accesses because earlier designs were fairly slow for 64-bit accesses.
The other architectural change that favors graphics is simplified scheduling. The JIT in Kepler's graphics driver is now responsible for scheduling instructions that can execute without any register dependencies. The cores have eliminated register dependency analysis, although there is still scoreboarding for long (or unpredictable) latency instructions such as memory accesses. This approach saves power and area for graphics, which is relatively easy for a compiler to optimize. However, general purpose workloads are far less predictable and benefit from more dynamic scheduling; there is a reason that Fermi had such hardware in the first place.
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Pat Griffiths
(Australian Associated Press)
Australians are disenchanted about where the world is headed after a turbulent year in international politics, the latest Lowy Institute poll has found.
Terrorism and North Korea's nuclear arsenal rate as top concerns, but Australians are still pragmatic in the face of rapidly changing global challenges, according to the annual poll released on Wednesday.
"On more than one occasion I wondered whether we were living in Bizarro World," said Michael Fullilove executive Director of the Lowy Insitute said in reference to the upended comic book fiction.
In 2016, Britain voted to leave the EU, populism and protectionism gained traction and the US elected Donald Trump, an unbeliever in the global order in which Australia is a player.
The poll found 80 per cent were dissatisfied with the world's direction.
"However, it is striking that they are still largely outward-looking and positive about Australia's global engagement," Dr Fullilove said.
To that end, 78 per cent of Australians believe globalisation is 'mostly good' for Australia.
Democracy too has its stalwarts with 60 per cent of Australians including 52 per cent of people 18-29 agreeing that democracy is the preferred type of government.
Trust in Australia's chief ally, the US, to act responsibly has halved since 2011, to 20 per cent.
Sixty per cent of Australians say Donald Trump has damaged their opinion of the US, but only thirty per cent think Australia should distance itself from that relationship.
As a result, the US has dropped from Australia's 'best friend' in the world to second place, with New Zealand assuming the top spot.
In contrast, only eight per cent of respondents regarded China as Australia's bestie.
Nearly half of Australians also think China will pose a military threat within the next two decades.
At the same time, more Australians regard China as an economic partner than a threat.
"When they think about Australia's relationships in Asia, they see China as Australia's best friend," Dr Fullilove said in the report.
Feelings about safety are also at their lowest point in the 13-year history of the Lowy poll, with only 20 per cent of Australians saying they felt "very safe".
Climate change ranked as the third greatest perceived threat, behind terrorism and North Korea.
Eighty per cent of us wanted the government to focus on renewables – a majority also believed global warming to be a pressing problem
Less than 20 per cent wanted a focus on traditional fuel sources such as coal.
Australians show less concern about aid budget reductions. Nearly three-quarters of Australians say the current aid budget of $3.8b is either too much or the right amount.
The Lowy Institute's poll surveyed 1200 Australians for the annual poll in March.


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Friends, Romans, Countrymen– welcome back into the fold. As you have surely noticed, yes, things are slowing down- down, but not out. There is more to come and much to look forward to: the ever expanding release of Moonrise, award season, more information about Movie #8, films by related artists, and new features (!) on the site. But for now, let's get to it.
- (Above) Marta Does 365 does Moonrise Kingdom. I think she captured Sam very well.
- Got a hankering for Tenebaums-inspired paper crafts? Look no further than A Pazitive View. She created an impressive centerpiece for her graduation party.
- Wes wedding items seems to be a trend in the Friday Round-Up and this week is no different. Matt and Jackie's WA-inspired Save the Date is spot on and is just about perfect– funny, charming, and sweet.
- Vanity Fair interviewed Wes recently and while they covered a lot of familiar ground, there were a few great tidbits about living with Bill and Jason and his appreciation for detail.
- NPR asks and answers "Why Is There So Much Britten in Moonrise Kingdom?" Spoiler alert: because he's fantastic.
- Style.com rounded up a few Andersonesque designs and boldly asserts that fashion is having a Wes Anderson moment. Why not, right?
- Bob Balaban told Rotten Tomatoes his five favorite films and answered a few questions about Moonrise Kingdom and his career.


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Mixer Wagons
Published on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 2:45pm
We know you want the best nutrition possible for your herd and your operation, but we also know that there are a lot of options out there when it comes to TMR (total mixed rations) mixers. We've compiled some options that are on the marketplace today – whether you're looking for a mixer that can be hauled with a truck, a tractor, or one that's in a fixed location, we want to help you make the best decision for your cattle and your situation.
With a complete TMR mixer line on the market (147-110 cubic feet of mixing capacities), Kuhn North America has a mixer to meet your needs, whether you're mixing 100% hay, 100% grain, or any ration between. Vertical Maxx Mixers mix the widest variety of feedstuffs, including round bales, while the Botec 4-Auger machines allow incorporation of up to 50% alfalfa hay and require less horsepower than other types of mixers. You can watch videos of all of Kuhn's products at www.kuhnnorthamerica.com
• Reel Mixers
• 4-Auger Mixers
• Single-Auger Vertical Mixers
• Twin-Auger Vertical Mixers
• Truck and trailer models available
1501 West 7th Avenue
Brodhead, WI 53520
Fax: 608-897-2561
Patz - Model 1100 TMR
Vertical Feed Mixer
Increased milk production, butterfat and protein reports are the result of healthy dairy cows eating a well-balanced TMR. The Patz Vertical Mixer combines large volumes of assorted material for a uniform mixed ration. Using one large vertical screw, the ration is combined fast and efficiently without crushing the ingredients.
• Thorough, consistent TMR, regardless of batch size
• Handles all feedstuffs - round or square bales, wet or dry
• Fast mixing to save valuable time and fuel
• Delivers 300-690 cubic feet of mixing capacity
• Available in trailer and truck mount models
917 Business 141
P.O. Box 7
Pound, WI 54161
Fax: 920-897-4312
Penta - Model 8020 H.D. Twin Screw Trailer
This model is just one of the many mixers Penta offers to help you give your cattle the nutrition they need. Just some of the standard components on this model include a heavy 3/4 –inch floor, a 2-speed gearbox, planetary drive on twin screws. Penta also offers a plethora of additional options, like an extended six-foot conveyor, a rear commodity door, a 16" hay extension, or a tight turning walking axle. Visit their website to see which options are the best fit for your operation.
• Wall thickness 3/8"
• DIGI STAR 6 point weighing, with model EZ 2000 indicator
• Super heavy plate frame with 5" axle
• 16 hardened cutting knives
• Walking axle undercarriage
4480 Progress Drive
Petrolia, Ontario N0N 1R0
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
RotoMix - New Staggered Rotor Mixer
The new Staggered Rotor style GeneRation II mixer gets the job done when it comes to mixing feed, especially wet and sticky rations that include wet distillers grain. Lifting and tumbling action requires less mixer revolutions, translating to less wear and maintenance. The optional super duty drive package for some models allows for increased load capacity. The new Staggered Rotor Mixer is available in Roto-Mix Commercial Series mixers 540 cu. ft. to 920 cu. ft. and the Forage Express 270 cu. ft. to 410 cu. ft. mixers. For more information and an online video, visit www.rotomix.com.
•Unique staggered paddle design equals a more even mix
• All models are available in truck, trailer or stationary units
• No springs or spring boxes, reducing maintenance costs
• Fast mixing time results in less fuel and less time spent
• Optional super duty drive package
2205 E. Wyatt Earp
Dodge City, KS 67801
Fax: 620-225-6370
Supreme International
Supreme International's all-in-one mixers are built with high quality all the way to the finish. Supreme uses the industry's heaviest duty components and a patented auger designs for their mixers. Supreme has been providing equipment to cattlemen for 57 years and offers the 'Supreme Performance Guarantee.' They offer mixers in pull-type, truck mount, stationary, environmental, and custom, with many options available to fit your herd.
• 2 patented augers can process TMR from high grain rations to high roughage
• Made with AR200 steel and heavy-duty 2 stage planetaries
• Optimized designs and engineered tubs for best mixing results
• Unique second cutter option for bedding and processing straw for faster mixing
• New models available in 2011
1101 S 2nd Ave
P.O. Box 1637
Dodge City, KS 67801
Fax: 780-352-6056
Sioux Automation Feed Mixers
No mixer is right for every ration. Sioux Automation Center manufactures feed mixers to meet the needs of today's top producers no matter the ration. Many feed mixer manufactures only produce one style of mixer, believing that this one type of mixer is going to work for every producer in every application. Based on 50 years of experience in the feed mixer industry, Sioux Automation Center understands that one mixer is not the right fit for every situation. This understanding has led them to produce a variety of mixers to meet the individual producer's needs no matter the ration being fed.
• MaxiMixer 2000 Series Mixers feature 1 or 2 horizontal augers with sickle knives for cutting long stem hay
• The MaxMixer 3500 Series Vertical Mixers are available in sizes from 360 ft - 1120 ft
• The 4-auger design of the MaxiMixer 4000 Series mixers provides a through and efficient blend of ingredients in a ration containing roughage or commodities
• Sioux Automation Center offers the Turbo-Max line of reel mixers
• All models are available in truck, trailer or stationary models
877 1st Avenue NW
Sioux Center, IA 51250
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com