Best of 2005
Well, it seems that another year approaches, so I wanted to give a bit of a review of the Best of 2005 from my vantage. I have managed to maintain and reaquaint relationships with new and old friends, and have managed to keep my job for another year (lucky me). Keeping with the R4NT minimalist philosophies, on to the best:
Best Restaurant
Vietnam Restaurant
227 12 Avenue Southeast, Calgary, AB T2G 1A2
(403) 263-0995
This is my absolute number 1 place to eat in Calgary. What I love about Vietnam restaurant is the service and the speed in which food is delievered. I have sampled several selections off their menu and I must recommend the 67 and the 56. I eat there about 2 times a week and I was pleasantly surprised when I took my wife their, she enjoys it as well. This is one restaurant we both enjoy where we can eat for under $20.00 I recommend going 15 minutes early at lunch if you plan on getting a seat. Make sure you bring your appetite with you too, as I have never left Vietnam Restaurant feeling hungry.
Best US Destination
San Francisco, California
http://onlysf.sfvisitor.org/
I was in San Franscisco this year through work, but I wanted to bring it up as I found it to be one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been to. The city itself is huge with tons of interesting architecture and sights to see, but the best thing I found was that it was warm and humid and the people were so friendly there. I know understand why people flock to San Francisco; I mean you have a ton of museums and culture to behold, Napa Valley to the North and a hundreds of places to see within the city such as the Golden Gate Bridge and the Zoo. What I really loved about San Francisco was the ability to get lost and just be, a true must stop for those travellers out there.
Best Energy Drink
Monster Energy Beverage
http://www.monsterenergy.com
For those of you that know me, I am a huge fan of energy drinks. Over the past year, I have tried to sample as many as I could and easily, my number one choice is the Monster. What I like about Monster is its flavour, I find that most of these drinks have a distinct medicine like aftertaste to them and with Monster, that is just not there. I find that it is a fantastic pick me up for the day after the night before or as a sub for coffee or tea during the day. Monster also acts as an excellent mixer for those nights where you want to party. Widely available (look for the big black can with the Green M) and cheaper than Red Bull, Monster gets my vote this year.
Best Concert Event
Audioslave
http://www.audioslave.com/
What can I say about this show? Ok, I got free tickets which kicked ass but the finer parts were the people there. I was in line for a drink when these two cougars got behind me. Of course, I am half corked and I started to chat these ladies up. Number one rule for a older woman; make sure you guess their age and subtract that number by 10. Anyway, what made the show great was getting down to the floor, and witnessing the events from there. Tons of headbangers and plume of potsmoke. I am not a huge Audioslave fan, but I must say they did a fantastic job of bringing together two distinct sounds ( R.A.T.M. and SoundGarden). I also enjoyed their rendition of Hunger Strike by Temple of the Dog. Great band, free show…absolutely the best of the year for me.
Best Stampede Memory
The Trews on the Coca-Cola Stage
http://www.thetrewsmusic.com/
I am not much of a Stampede guy, I like to get dressed up one day and get absolutely shitfaced. This year was no exception, but one bright spot in that Stampede melee was seeing The Trews on the Coca – Cola stage. These guys rocked, and I mean rocked the crowd. There is nothing that is complicated about their music; simple and straight forward rock and roll. The crowd kept asking for it and The Trews delivered. These guys are going to be huge and I love to see bands before they get there.
Best Club Event
Paul Oakenfold at The Whiskey
Paul Oakenfold is a legend, I mean when I started listening to electronic music, he was the shizzle. I had seen him once before in Edmonton at the infamous Ascension rave, and I had a hankering to get down to his beats again. Oakie brought his prized tracks from the Creamfields (Grammy Nominated) mix and let the crowd have them. Best memories of the show were the U2 tracks (Vertigo and Beautiful Day), Red Bulls and Vodka (Rocket Fuel) and the hoard of little hotties trapsing around the club wearing nothing at all. Be sure to catch Oakie the next time he is in town, he is royalty and can still lay it down.
Best Podcast
Tiki Bar TV
http://www.tikibartv.com/
Ok, I admit, I am a friggin geek, but this podcast keeps me coming back for more. First off, Lala is a cracker, I mean that bird is friggin gorgeous. Secondly, the comedy is right up there. I love when iTunes tells me there is a new chapter at the Tiki Bar and Dr. Tiki writes another script for a new forbidden cocktail.
Best T-Shirts
Threadless
http://www.threadless.com/
I highly recommend a stop by the Threadless site to have a gander at their wares. Their shirts are a bit expensive, but they foster design creativity through the submissions of designs by its users for printing on its shirts. Create an account and you too can rate the designs. Also, look for their 10 buck a shirt sales, making these little beauties a bit easier on the wallet. I own 2 shirts myself and have bought several for others. Shibby.
Best Wine
2003 Clos de Los Siete (Vineyard of the Seven)
I picked up a bottle of this at Richmond Hill Wines along with a few others to make an assorted case. It absolutely blew me away with an unbelievably powerful taste and great finish; it knocked my socks off. You know a wine will be exciting the moment it is poured into the glass and this one did not disappoint. The 2003 vintage consists of 40 percent Malbec, 20 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 20 percent Merlot and 20 percent Syrah. This is a rich, thick and complex wine, carrying flavors of dark berries with a dash of raisin. If you are into wine, buy as much of this pup as you can.
So ends my best of 2005, if you get a chance, try out some of the above… you’ll be glad you did.
- Best of 2005
- by Adrian Bryksa
- Published on January 1st, 2006
More from Adrian Bryksa:
-
Esser Cellars Chardonnay
Coming out of the bottle, it exhibited a pale honey straw-ish color and the nose is delivered a bit of baked apple and honey along with some toasted oak, which almost makes it seem like apple pie.
-
Book Review: Stop Working
So, what would you do if you didn’t have to work? Most people I talk to say that they wouldn’t know what to do with themselves. This is the challenge that Derek Foster puts to the readers of his book Stop Working: Here’s How You Can.
-
Caves Alianca Quinta dos Quatro Ventos Douro
I immediately thought that this wine would be an excellent contender for the cellar as in my experience, they often are much better in a few years time when they have had a chance to mellow out in bottle.
-
Sustainable Dining at Red Door Bistro
Using local and provincial producers, Red Door Bistro has tried to ensure that where possible, their materials are as organic and are as free from hormones, pesticides and all those other undesirable ingredients as possible.
-
Bodegas Enrique Foster Reserva Malbec
Due to the fact that people know I drink wine, it seems to be the standard gift gesture when people come to my home as a guest. Conversely, when I go to someones house, I like to do the same.
-
Zimmermann Rosshimmel Riesling
As I continued to sip, the terroir to which the grapes were grown continued to shine through with those much desired flint, rock and mineral aspects pouring through.
Other recent features:
-
O Restaurant & Lounge revisited
Calgary has a diverse set of urban communities, most of which have the ubiquitous strip mall watering hole. In the South West community of Marda Loop, a reinvention of this paradigm has been established.
-
Predictions 2010.. and beyond!
So 2010 eh? Almost but not quite (no year zero they say) another decade? It seems like just yesterday that the world was waiting for Y2K. R4NT started publishing in March 2001, so we’re not quite 10 years old yet, but in internet years we are already a senior citizen.
-
Invictus
No matter what, the reality of Nelson Mandela is something that deserves screen time. Should this film even remotely intrigue the masses to take interest in this figure, the world would likely benefit greatly from it.
-
The Road Less Traveled.
The 3PO characters take on a life of their own, for the cartoonist, a serious approach to the development of the characters is taken to deliver Rankel’s ideas in the best possible light, in the most humoring light.
-
Rocky Mountain Food and Wine Festival 2009
For the first few years, we saw it through the eyes of guests and we kept coming for the wide assortment of beers, spirits and wine. We enjoyed the wide swath of restaurants and retails showing off their samples of delectable nosh.
-
Runnin The Poirier Riddim
If you can’t handle hard hitting, body jerking, up tempo beats and heavy bass fused together with dancehall, kuduru, soca, afrobeat and blaring horn sounds, then you are in no way ready for the riddims Poirier has to deliver.