National Poetry Month: April 3, 2020– Bruce’s Birthday Bubbles
Clos des Amis Chambang Rose Sparkling wine made by birthday boy Bruce Freeman from grapes from Saticoy near Ventura not far from the beach
Bottling Bruce’s birthday bubbles by hand in sun is messy business.
April is National Poetry Month so I’m going to post an American sentence or two every day along with some image — art or a photograph. Allen Ginsberg came up with the concept — an American sentence is like a haiku in that it has 17 syllables but it’s not three lines in a stanza but one. As a haiku seeks to conveys an image that generates emotion and conveys a moment in time, the best Sentences do more than just offer a sentence in 17 syllables.
I learned about American Sentences from Paul E. Nelson who I met at the Taos Poetry Circus in 2000.
According to Paul, the key to writing a good American Sentence comes from Ginsberg’s notion that poets are people who notice what they notice.
He has been writing one a day since January 1, 2001. Learn more about American Sentences and how to write good ones from Paul here.
In January 2019, I began a series of articles on Wine Predator about Clos des Amis, where you can find wines that are locally grown, locally made, and locally owned here in Ventura County. I’ve been going out there a few times a month or even several ties a week to learn about growing grapes and making wines — and most of this goes on just a few miles from my home!
My mentor in this process winemaker Bruce Freeman has planted or been involved with planting many of the vines in Ventura County. To read more of this series, check out:
- March 2020: Bud Break, Spring Break, Jailbreak, Chavez Break: Ventura County Vineyards Report March 2020
- February 2020: Lions and Tigers and Bears Oh My: New Wood and Old Cars in Ventura County Vineyards
- January 2020: Deadwood
- December: 2019 Going Out with a Chambang!
- November: Dormancy and Syrah
- October: Final Harvest and #MerlotMe
- September 2019 in Ventura County Vineyards: Focus on Grenache
- August 2019: Fogust Harvest — Chardonnay for CHAMBANG!
- July 2019: No Sky July and Verasion
- June Gloom and Etiolation
- Ventura County Vineyards 2019: May Gray
- April 2019: Leaf Pulling
- March 2019: Gretel Mays Compton
- February 2019 in Ventura County Vineyards
- January 2019: Pruning
Learn more at the Clos des Amis website where you can order wines online for home delivery; if you join the wine club they are very affordable!
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