Wine of Adyar Monastère de Rechmaya 2012

Lebanese Wines: Adyar Monastère de Rechmaya

Name: Monastère de Rechmaya 2012
Type: Red Wine
Grapes: Cabernet-Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet-Franc
Year: 2012
Country: Lebanon
Region: Chouf
Date Consumed: December 9, 2023

It was cold outside,
not as cold as it should have been,
but cold enough for wine to be drunk
to warm our spirits.

“Such a lovely restaurant,” one of us said
as we let the waiter lead us to our table.
Our table faced the fireplace —
“Such a lovely fireplace!” —
where the gentle fire performed
a belly dance.

We ordered arak first,
and then wine,
and then mezze.

And we talked until
our stomachs were full.

I must say,
This is the kindest December I’ve ever met.
It has rained a few times
but not enough times to convince people
that a new season has come.


Smoking an Oliva Serie V Melanio Double Toro cigar at Whisky Live Beirut.

Have a Cigar: Oliva Serie V Melanio Double Toro

Name: Oliva Serie V Melanio Double Toro
Country: Nicaragua
Shape: Box-Pressed
Size: Double Toro (6 inches x 60)
Strength: Medium to Full

I remember smoking my first Melanio, and I remember it like it was yesterday. What a cigar! It really deserved its place in my Top 10 of 2022.

As for this one, the big and beautiful Oliva Serie V Melanio Double Toro, what can I say about it? It is as good as any Melanio I have ever smoked.

Even burn, great draw, creamy smoke, and a harmony of notes. It’s a masterpiece produced to be burned.

Moreover, as I was at Whisky Live Beirut when I was smoking it, I also got the chance to pair it with amazing whiskies: Teeling Blackpitts, Talisker and Mortlach from Diageo’s Special Releases, Super Nikka, and Chivas Extra 13 Tequila Cask Selection.

What more can a dilettante ask for?

“Storm” by Levon Shant

Levon Shant (1869-1951) was an Armenian poet, playwright, and novelist. This is my translation of “Storm” from Armenian to English.

Storm

And outside, an opaque darkness:
the obliteration of light.
I stand facing my window,
silent and lonely.

And suddenly, the wind
sounds like a pack of wolves
howling fiercely to my face.
It howls, and then it fades.

And the rain’s many fingers
on my window pane,
they play one of the wild songs
composed by the chaos in me.