Angry Eyes

what a shot you could be if you could shoot at me with those angry eyes



ok so the friends of the lady killed in a Buellton ATV accident were angry with me for posting my opinions about what happened, after I read the Noozhawk story which was based on a CHP report...the CHP said they would investigate if alcohol was a factor..now I know the family/friends are grieving and upset, but I'm not emotionally involved so my interest is not at all unusual...even though the story said the accident was on private property, public agencies were called to deal with it..the SB County Fire Dept and CHP...I support those agencies with my tax money, so naturally I'm curious as to what happened...trying to piece together info from the CHP report..nothing mean-spirited about that at all....

so the question is are there too many wineries here, the faux-crop of wine grapes sucking the valley dry?? water that could be used to save the steelhead!! priorities people, priorities

wine in France makes sense...they have plenty of rain..but here in this semi-arid climate, why are people growing grapes??? because it's a fad and trendy

the last thing I want to see is all these flower fields and avocado groves in Carp turned into wineries....like the SantaYnez Valley, Carp could be covered in casinos and wineries and GOD FORBID the obligatory annoying wine tasting rooms....we got enough breweries in Carp to keep the sailors on the USS REAGAN blasted for aweek, so I say no more...residents rightfully fear their bucolic roadways will degenerate into speedways full of drunken drivers.

would that mean I would have to buy a new car, possibly a Land Rover or giant FORD truck so I would fit in with my upscale neighbors?? then I 'd probably have to convert to Republican and learn to speak Chumash!!

but there is something strange about these parched hills....you remember the odd case of Christopher Marks..a few years ago he was found dead at the beach... the bottom of the Shoreline Park bluffs...it remains a mystery to this day with speculation from bad investments to a mob hit...

On Wednesday, more than six months after the body of Central Coast vintner Christopher Marks was found on a beach in Santa Barbara, Calif., his death was ruled a suicide by the Santa Barbara Police Department. A self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head was determined to be the official cause, presumably from a .38 caliber revolver that Marks owned but is still missing today. The owner of Sweeney Canyon Vineyards in the Sta. Rita Hills and an investment advisor for a firm in Los Angeles, Marks had numerous business and legal disputes related to both ventures at the time his body was found in the early morning hours of Sept. 20. Those economic troubles are thought to be what led to the suicide, although they also triggered a rash of conspiracy theories as to possible enemies with motives. Police initially believed he had fallen from the cliffs above the beach until the coroner found out a few days later that he had been shot in the head. That prompted further investigations, including an underwater search by the FBI, but they turned up nothing. Police believe that the gun was likely washed out to sea in the days between when his body was found and when the gunshot wound was discovered. The family was notified March 22, and the case is now closed.

I found a very interesting take on the wine industry that I actually agree with
http://ccwinepress.wordpress.com/2012/01/09/growing-wine-and-progress-in-santa-barbara-county/

Threepenney Opera
and there's some wine wars going on as published by the Wineberserkers and Independent last year...all sorts of accusations against Pence and the winery from a guy named Wes Hagen, from Clos Pepe Vineyards
http://www.wineberserkers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=83016

Here is a letter I submitted to the TTB Enforcement Division today after realizing there's nothing we can do to stop Pence Ranch from misleading the press and consumers:

Mr. XXXXX and Mr. XXXXX:

My name is Wes Hagen, and I am the original petitioner from 1997 who submitted, wrote, researched, perfected the establishment of the Sta Rita Hills AVA in Northern Santa Barbara County, CA. I have also written petitions for Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara and Ballard Canyon AVAs. Your offices have always been extremely efficient and helpful in working with us here in Santa Barbara County.

We have a very troubling situation brewing down here in the Sta. Rita Hills, and we are at the point where the offending party seems to be exhibiting such disregard for our AVA that we feel we need to get the TTB involved.

Patrick Shabram, working for Blair Pence and Pence Ranch has submitted a petition to extend the eastern boundary of the Sta Rita Hills. 100% of the original petitioners and the Sta Rita hills Winegrowers Alliance have voted unanimously to oppose the expansion on the basis of science, history and viticulture. We plan an active and vigorous defense of our original petition during public comment, have requested a year to gather our own data to compare with the Shabram document, and this letter does not serve as a proxy for that process.

It has come to the attention of the winegrowers in this area that Blair Pence and Pence Ranch have been actively and illegally marketing their wines in the press (but not on labels) as Sta. Rita Hills wine. We have assembled some recent and egregious examples that cannot be denied by Mr. Pence, and have included them here in this email. At the least, we expect these to go into the Expansion Petition docket to prove ‘dirty hands’.

We think this is germane to the petition, showing how Mr. Pence has no respect for the proper and perfected process that is required for making claims of AVA inclusion. He’s being tricky. He isn’t using illegal labeling, but then goes to the press and into the market and actively promotes his wines as being from the SRH AVA.

　 well it goes on and on and mentions the News-Press publishing misinformation...that little News-Press troll Sean Lewis who writes about sports and beer and wine got caught up in it
wow! I hope they straightened it all out

but it might be easier just to grow avocados...