Archive for June, 2006

I had dinner at a great restaurant not long ago with a couple friends and one of them brought along a 1994 Opus One cabernet. This was definitely one of the best bottles of wine I have ever experienced. A bottle of “1994 Opus One” would probably cost upwards of $300 if you were to find it on a wine list at a nice restaurant. This got me wondering… just how much can you spend on a bottle of wine?
Well, in the mid-’80s, billionaire Malcolm Forbes paid approximately $155,000 for a bottle of wine at an auction . The bottle, which was believed to have come from Thomas Jefferson’s own collection dated back to 1787. However when the bottle was mistakenly put on display under strong lights at the wrong angle the cork deteriorated, fell into the bottle, and the wine lost its value and was thrown away.
Below is a list of 5 of the most expensive bottles of wine that are currently on the market and available at fine wine retailers. (As we all know, wine is highly collectable and prices at auctions, and in the secondary market can be much much higher).

Chteau Valandraud Saint-Emilion 1995
Valandraud comprises approximately 10 small parcels of land totaling 35 acres. This wine has been made with care and is quite rare, hence the price. Firm tannins define its rich and spicy structure; it is bolder than later vintages. Chteau Valandraud Saint-Emilion sells for approx. $668 dollars.

Chteau Latour Pauillac 1990
Among the raciest wines of the Mdoc region, Wine Spectator selected Chteau Latour Pauillac as the single best wine of 1993, bestowing on it a perfect score. An everlasting finale is the masterstroke of this vintage, which favors caramel, chocolate, licorice, dark cherry, and roasted fruits. The mouth is opulent and wholly composed. The 1994 vintage is also highly sought after. A bottle of 1990 Chteau Latour Pauillac willl cost approx. $774 dollars.

Chteau Le Pin Pomerol 1999

Chteau Le Pin Pomerol is truly one of the most illustrious wines to come out of Bordeaux. Its fullness comes from the downy levels of mocha, black cherry and currant flavors. It’s a favorite of serious wine collectors. A 1999 Chteau Le Pin Pomerol costs approx. Read the rest of this entry »

Isla de sa Ferradura has been crowned “World’s most expensive private island in 2006.” Isla de sa Ferradura (AKA Isla del Bosc) is a 14 acre private island in the Mediterranean Sea that lies just off the northern coast of Ibiza, in the bay of San Miguel. The average temperature in the summer months is about 85? F and the sun shines 300 days out of the year.

Edged by dramatic cliffs, the resort island is dominated by a luxurious white hacienda featuring a large salon, home theater, professional kitchen, dining room that seats 14 and several terraces, including a revolving one (pictures below) overlooking the swimming pool. The pool also has its own waterfall and bar. There is also a cave complex built to house a whirlpool, solarium, steam bath and other amenities. Ferradura can be reached by boat, helicopter or by the small private road that connects it to the main island.

This private island can be purchased for a cool $37.9 million. If you don’t feel like dishing out $40 million just yet you might consider renting the island so you can “try before you buy!” For about $115,000 you and 13 guests can enjoy an all inclusive week on this private island.

More pictures and details about this exclusive private island: Read the rest of this entry »

I was searching for a good digital camera today and came across the Pentax Optio T10. From all the research I have done the Optio T10 is the best of the best in terms of simple point and shoot digital cameras. It is slim and stylish and easily fits into a purse or pocket.
My favorite feature is the T10’s large 3 inch LCD screen with touchscreen navigation. The impressive 3.0 inch LCD touch-display allows for intuitive and trouble-free touch panel operation. You can either use the incuded stylus or your finger for logical feature navigation via the capture and Playback mode palettes. You can even Decorate your images with the creative Drawing Function, Stamp Modes, Image cut-out and built-in Picture frames.

The camera also features 6.0 megapixels and a 3X zoom. If you want to shoot video the Optio T10 records movies at 640 x 480 (30 fps) with sound. The T10 also has 12MB built-in memory plus a SD/MMC card slot
For those of you interested in buying one an Optio T10 I have seen them for sale for between $280 and $350.