Merlot Reaches the Big Easy

Greetings Voignier and Kind readers,

This holiday season has yielded numerous opportunities to gather significant amounts of market research related to consumer's underlying motivations and dispositions toward boxed wine. Dr. Emily and our staff have hosted several blind taste tests with the aim of finding that elusive consumption hot button, if you will that will lead North America to boxed wine merchants and distribution points throughout the country. Ralph and James ran into a minor scuffle in New Orleans when a work crew demanded third and fourth helpings of white wine samples outside the French quarter near Funkybutt, a world renown venue for music and drinking. It appears the Ralph, who was somewhat disturbed by the worker's insistence, made the offer of another drink subject to the two workers agreeing to blind fold themselves for a blind tasting test. Ralph then handed them Craw' Daddy (live) which preceded to bite their index fingers and lips. Fortunately, Mr. Ito was on hand to diffuse the situation, if you will.

Our blind taste testing revealed an interesting finding, as those who were giving the choice to "redrink"of Boxed Merlot, Boxed Chianti, Jug Red (or Dago Red, as it were), and bottled merlot options after a certain stimulus were statistically more likely to choose boxed blends over jugs or bottles. The stimulus, of course, has to remain under wraps, as it were, while we retest it to make sure the effect is in fact vigorous. Moreover, the effect will also then be a basis for our next research grant proposal, which Dr. Emily has been busy scripting between DVD rentals on our interactive research tour bus.

By the way, several of our DVD rental have proved most entertaining. Some old and some new, including The Village, Strangers on a Train, A Sheltering Sky, Washingon Heights and Laws of Gravity. I shall be reviewing these films in turn in my next study in DVD rentals.

Needless to say, our meals in New Orleans have been wonderful, and those of us who ate were quite content with the fresh oysters, Po'boy sandwitches, King cake and other regional favorites, as we prepare ourselves for Marti Gras, all death of the flesh, if you will. And we were able to supply plenty of boxed wine to wash down the hot and spicy foods.

Our time in New Orleans has proved to be most unusual. Having been here several time before, with crews of workers wrapped tight in toxic waste disposal suits with masks and heads covered tight. Clearly, much needs to be done to return the city to its former glory, however unsafe andunprotected from water based disaster threats as was made real in Katrina, to a time when eating a Hot Dog from a Hot Tog stand after a night of drinking a bit too much was the greatest health risk for a tourist, and every man was considered a king. A massive 60 foot concrete wall around the city may be the required fix. Perhaps well managed canals, like other great cities, such as Venice or Amsterdam could fix the troubles the city faces. We are not engineering experts, and shall not speculate outside our area of expertise. We shall focus these next few days on the drinking and eating offered here, even in the wake of Katrina's oddities.