Well that's...specific.

Defenestrate. - (verb)

-to throw a person or thing out of a window.

Defenestrate.

Could you use it in a sentence?

"I defenestrated my wife's nude lover. I'm now a murderer because it's a very expensive condo."

Defenestrate.

Awesome.

Palm Trees in Los Angeles, Fireworks in the Sky

I was recently visited by my girlfriend from Illinois who had never left the midwest. Shocking, I know. Despite picking her up from LAX at 11:00pm she was floored and excited by, what else, palm trees. She stuck her head out of the window like a puppy and gawked at the shadows of the tropical giants. I more than understand her excitement as palm trees symbolize vacations, hot climates, and exotic locales. The next day we drove around and hit the beach so we could see the palms in all their glory, setting the perfect background with the waves as we took our picture.


While she was in town I had remembered reading an article that palm trees weren't actually native to southern California. Gasp. I found the article.
I put it at the bottom.

As it turns out, there is one species of palm native to California. The California Fan Palm. This sad looking excuse for paradise that needs a trim. However this tree didn't exist along the coast. It only grew near naturally occurring oasis's in the desert areas.


The palms I remember reading about were the Date Palms. These were brought over by Spanish Franciscan and Jesuit missionaries to California in 1769. And later in the early 1900s, date palm seedlings were brought from Egypt, Algeria and Iraq. The date palm joins roughly a few hundred species of other palms that were brought over from the east coast, Asia, Mexico, etc.

Upon further reading, I got really bummed out. In the coming years California will be pretty devoid of palm trees. Here's why:


Because palms produce neither shade nor marketable fruit, they are a completely ornamental tree. They simply make people feel like they're living a Jimmy Buffett song. Which is fine by me.
These palm trees were originally planted in 1931 as a "beautification process" and as unemployment relief fund. This $100,000 program employed 400 workers to plant 40,000 palm trees, and many of these palms are still alive. But they are approaching the end of their lifespan. 

The LA Department of Power and Water has indicated that they will not be replaced with more palms since they require lots of water and are not fit for this desert region. You may have to travel just a bit farther to see palms in the future.


http://www.kcet.org/updaily/socal_focus/history/la-as-subject/a-brief-history-of-palm-trees-in-southern-california.html

http://www.metafilter.com/110578/A-Brief-History-of-Palm-Trees-in-Southern-California

A Quick Lesson on Brandy. Not to be Confused with Moesha.

Not too long ago I began working at BevMo! as a way to pay the bills and I can honestly say I've enjoyed my time and have had a great experience there. I've learned more about alcohol than I thought I would and it's time I start sharing. What's first? Brandy!
(Shortened from Brandywine, dutch translation "burnt wine")

So what is it?
Brandy is distilled from the fermented juice of grapes or other fruit.

So it's wine?
It is wine. SINCE wine is the fermented juice of grapes, BUT then they distill the wine to produce brandy.

Distilling?
I'll let wikipedia handle this one.

"Wine with an alcohol concentration of 8% to 12% ABV (16 to 24 US proof) and high acidity is boiled in a pot still. Vapours of alcohol, water, and numerous aromatic components rise and are collected in a condenser coil, where they become a liquid again. Because alcohol and the aromatic components vaporise at a lower temperature than water, the concentration of alcohol in the condensed liquid (the distillate) is higher than in the original wine."

So it's got more alcohol in it than wine does and they repeat this process over a few times until distillation yields a product whose alcoholic content is approximately 140 proof. This is known as the "heart" and is the distillation you imbibe and enjoy after it's aging process in a barrel. Neat.

So what's the difference between Brandy and Cognac?
There isn't one, in that Cognac is a variety of Brandy. Let me explain:

Brandy, much like wine, is categorized by the region in which the grape grew or by the other fruit it was made with.

A brandy made from grapes in the U.S.A. is called "American Brandy". A brandy made from grapes in the specific region of Cognac, France is called "Cognac". A brandy made from cherries anywhere in the world is called "Kirshwasser" or simply "Kirsh". Got it? Cool.

Remember, brandy, like wine can be made from any fruit or other things like rice and honey.
For a fuller list of different brandies, see below.

Notes on Cognac
-Cognac, pronounced CON-YAK, is the benchmark by which all other brandy is judged. 
-It is made from only 3 grapes. 
(Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche, and Colombard)-These are varietals of grapes.
-It is distilled slowly in pot stills and then aged for a minimum of 2 years in French Limousin oak barrels. (These are oak trees that were grown in the Limousin Forest)

Now you've probably been at your local Jewel-Osco, Ralph's, Marsh's, Safeway, etc. and seen some huge letters on brandy and cognac bottles exclaiming, V.S. or V.S.O.P. and your asking what does it mean and what's the best? I'll tell you.

V.S. : stands for Very Superior, and is used to describe brandy aged for at least 3 years.

V.S.O.P. : stand for Very Superior Old Pale. These brandies are aged in oak for at least 4.5 years.

X.O. : stands for Extra Old and refers to brandy aged in oak for at least 6.5 years.

Napoleon : a grade equal to X.O. in terms of minimum age, but it is generally marketed in-between V.S.O.P. and X.O.

Also should you see a brandy, like Hennessey Black and are wondering what the "Black" refers to it simply means the inside of the oak barrels it was aged in were charred which gives it a smooth, honey taste and a pale gold color. Or colour. We are dealing with french shit. This is a lower end cognac sold at a high price for it's aging, V.S.  It's a brandy to mix with, maybe make a Stinger or a Sidecar.

You want other suggestions? Go see a bartender.

List of Different Brandies

AMERICAN BRANDY made from TABLE and WINE GRAPES in the USA

ARMAGNAC made from GRAPES in FRANCE

BRANDY DE JEREZ made from GRAPES in SPAIN

CALVADOS made from APPLES in FRANCE

COGNAC made from GRAPES in FRANCE

FRAMBOISE made from RASPBERRIES in FRANCE

GRAPPA made from GRAPE POMACE in ITALY

KIRSH/KIRSHWASSER made from CHERRIES in FRANCE/USA

MARC made from GRAPE POMACE in FRANCE

METAXA made from GRAPES AND MUSCAT WINE in GREECE

PISCO made from GRAPES(MUSCAT) in CHILE/PERU

POIRE made from PEARS in FRANCE/USA

SLIVOVITZ made from PLUMS in CROATIA/CZECH REPUBLIC

BRAN'NU made from Brandy Norwood on THE UPN.

Imbibe responsibly.