While this approach has worked thus far, I’ve reached a bit of an impasse and find myself unable to find certain vital bits of code needed to affect a change in several graphic elements.

So, while I make some new friends on the WordPress forums, I hope you bear with me and ignore the bits that don’t like quite right. They should be fixed soon.

Results to follow.

That’s not happening anymore. My fiancée, for reasons I’m not going to go into on here, broke up with me and so I find myself cut short, trying to restart a life that I’d been busy mothballing for the past couple of months.

Contrary to the typical response exhibited by most people in circumstances like this, I’ve had little desire to drink, much less write, and so this blog has fallen by the wayside.

However, through the prodding of friends and a desire to rekindle my interest in writing about one of my favorite subjects, I’ve decided to shift this blog ever-so-slightly to the left. So why I won’t be able to compare all the wonderful wines and spirits that New Zealand has to offer with those of my homeland, I’ll still be here to document the latest happenings in all things alcoholic right here in Toronto.

It’s an interesting time in Canada. In the next five years, I’m betting we’ll see a loosening of liquor laws as people realize that some privatization won’t cause the widespread social collapse some naysayers are fond of trumpeting.

Already, the Varsity cinema allows patrons to buy a couple of drinks while they watch a film and I wouldn’t be surprised if more venues are allowed to serve during a wider variety of events. Maybe we’ll even see convenience stores being allowed to compete with the LCBO and Beer Store to bring consumers a wider range of product, especially from the smaller guys.

And while I’m no fan of monopolies, I still think the LCBO does a fantastic job with its tastings and I like how its magazine encourages people to expand their cocktail choices beyond the superstars of a couple years back (mojito, “pomtini”, etc.)

It’s a whole new year and I can’t wait to see what it will bring!

“Before we set our hearts too much upon anything, let us examine how happy those are who already possess it.”

Francois de La Rochefoucauld