http://www.denbushi.net hi there. i'm michael, and this is my blog. i recently moved to a new server and some things aren't where they used to be. if your page wasn't found you can search it for using the nifty form below. Tue, 29 Jul 2008 14:55:31 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I picked up this exceptional Pinot for around 50% off the list price at Enoteca's online store. (They have a clearance page which changes often and offers some great deals on good wines.) Many medium- to high-end New Zealand Pinots offer an astonishing balance of acid, fruit and alcohol, and this ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/07/29/koru-pinot-noir-2005/ We took a trip to the beach yesterday, joined by a couple that lives in our building and their 2 year-old daughter. Our destination this time was a new beach we'd never visited, down past Zushi and Hayama near the bottom of the Miura Peninsula. We tried a different day ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/07/27/miura-peninsula-%e4%b8%89%e6%b5%a6%e5%8d%8a%e5%b3%b6/ I've been making paella now for a few years, trying different varieties and generally trying to perfect my technique. Had another go this weekend and came away with a few general pointers. Stock is everything. The finest ingredients and perfect cooking are not going to produce a good paella if your ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/07/26/tips-for-awesome-paella/ The daycare that Mia and Shione attend had their annual natsu matsuri (Summer Festival) last weekend, which was a good chance for the girls to dress up in Summer yukata and for us parents to get our first glimpse of just how hot this Summer is going to be this year. ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/07/20/%e5%a4%8f%e7%a5%ad%e3%82%8a-summer-festival/ It's been more months in the works than I want to think about, but we've finally launched our online wine shop. We partnered with local wine importer and restaurant operator Le Petit Tonneau ("the little barrel") to launch this new web shop for their range of French wines hailing mostly ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/07/19/our-wine-site-is-online/ Stumbled across this while scrolling through my local Picasa library of photos and remembered by how much I like it. While it looks like the bridge of some massive vessel, this shot was actually taken from the observation deck of the 海ほたる (umi hotaru), the artificial island built atop one end of ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/07/15/mia-at-the-helm/ This Shibuya noodle shop is a favorite of locals and cross-town lunch commuters alike. You show up any time between 11:30 and 13:30 and you'd better be ready to wait in line, and today was no different for us. However, these つけ麺 (tsukemen, a type of ramen) noodles are worth ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/07/03/%e3%81%99%e3%81%9a%e3%82%89%e3%82%93-suzuran/ I uploaded the pix from our 2006 trip to Myanmar. R and I went for a week (thanks to the in-laws for looking after Mia!), exploring mostly Yangon and Bagan. It was a wonderful trip and the people there were friendly, inquisitive and very hospitable. See the photos in the ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/06/28/myanmar-trip-photos/ Uoki sushi in Ark Hills (Akasaka) has long been one of my favorite kaiten sushi restaurants. Consistantly fresh, the portions are large and the quality exceptional. Not too expensive, either, when you consider the building it's in. (You can't swing a stick in the place without hitting a French investment ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/06/14/whats-the-opposite-of-appetizing-again/ I've become a bit of a ramen maniac since coming to Japan and now always look forward to finding a new good place for steaming noodles. Recent trips to the Shinagawa/Takanawa area (trying to get some bussiness) introduced me to an interesting walk-o-ramen called 品達 (shintatsu) under the Yamanote Line ... http://www.denbushi.net/2008/06/04/%e3%81%b2%e3%81%94%e3%82%82%e3%82%93%e3%81%9a-higomonz-ramen/