XBGuy

OK, after yesterday's Sauvignon Blanc epistle, here is another one inspired by today's New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc Wine of the Day. There used to be a neat restaurant on 6th Street in Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) called Pacific Dining Car. I would guess from the interior design and the menu, it was established in the 1950s. In the 1980s when my office was located in the area Pacific Dining Car was known as the Power Breakfast restaurant. Being just a worker bee, I never attended a Power Breakfast, but that was their reputation. The neat thing about Pacific Dining Car was that it open 24 hours per day. They had a pretty comprehensive menu, and you could order anything at any time. Mrs. XBGuy and I had regular tickets for the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the time and would like to dine after attending a Saturday evening concert. There is not a lot of nightlife in DTLA, So, leaving the concert at about 10:00 pm, there are few restaurant choices. Yes, Tommy's over on Rampart is also open 24 hours per day, but after listening to Radu Lupu perform a Brahms concerto, we want something a bit more sophisticated sitting in our car eating a very sloppy double chiliburger. Pacific Dining car was a good choice. One evening in the early 2000s after we settled into our table at Pacific Dining Car, I reviewed the wine list and ordered a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. The young waiter scurried off, and, soon enough, returned with the wine in hand. He allowed me to check the label, and I OKed it. Then, he surprised the heck out of me. He pulled out his waiter's corkscrew, opened up the blade, and started sawing the metal closure. My eyes widened, and, I have to admit, a smirk appeared on my face. He tried multiple times, but his blade would not cut through the metal. I tried to help him out, "I think that is a screwcap." He would not be denied. He tried again, of course, to no avail. After a few minutes, a much more experienced waiter, the kind you would expect in a 50 year-old restaurant, walked over, took the bottle, gave it a twist, handed the now opened bottle to our waiter, and walked away. The rest of the meal was not as memorable, but I'm sure that it was quite good. Australia and New Zealand have led the wine world in the use of screwcap closures. California winemakers seem to only grudgingly use them It is a bit of a shame. They are really easy go remove. Sadly, Pacific Dining Car did not survive COVID.

I would like to take a moment (or multiple moments) to pontificate about Sauvignon Blanc (SB) @grapau27 has already posted that SB is planted in the Bordeaux region of France. The dessert wines of Barsac and Sauternes are of world class quality and are treasured by wine afficionados. I will add that dry wines of the Entre-Deux-Mers region are also very good and easy to enjoy. By that I mean they are easy to drink, and, at least for the ones that make it to the U.S., are easy on the wallet. The other thing I might add is that for most of these Bordeaux wines Sauvignon Blanc is blended with Semillon--another grape variety that does not get the respect that it deserves. Loire Valley is the other French region that produces highly regarded Sauvignon Blanc wines, particularly, from two regions that are across the Loire River from each other--Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume. Both regions produce wines made from 100% Sauvignon Blanc grapes. Sancerre wines are fuller, and have more citrus flavors. Pouilly-Fumes tend to have more stone fruit flavors and are often described as flinty or smoky. Robert Mondavi coined the term "Fume Blanc" for a California Sauvignon Blanc wine that emulates the Pouilly-Fume style. In the 1990s and early 2000s New Zealand emerged as a major producer of SB wines. I drank a lot of it--mostly, because. not only did I like it, it was very affordable. Over the years, it seemed to me that NZ SBs seemed to have more and more grapefruit flavors. (Other tasters called out a much less pleasant sounding descriptor that I won't mention, here. Once I heard it, though, I saw their point.) California winemakers--often not very imaginative--noting the success of the the NZ example started making SBs that seemed to have more and more grapefruit. I have not had any NZ SBs in many years. Can anybody tell me if they still have serious grapefruit flavors. Happily, California SB makers have moved away from heavy grapefruit influence. It is produced by many makers and is widely distributed. Mondavi continues to offer Fume Blanc (along with a "Sauvignon Blanc" bottling) as do some other makers (Dry Creek Valley winery comes to mind). One of my favorite California winemakers is Bedrock Wine Co. Bedrock is highly regarded for it's red wines--in particular, Zinfandel--but I think their white wines are also outstanding.

What causes water to taste "funny?" My understanding is that pure water is odorless and tasteless. My further understanding is that what we detect as the taste of water are "impurities." Impurities would include minerals that are dissolved in the water from wherever it is sourced or chemicals such as chorine or fluorides that are added by public water providers. My best guess is that "funny" tasting water is water that tastes different from what I am accustomed. The reason that it tastes different is that it has different impurity content. Personally, I regularly drink ship's water. Yes, it tastes different from the water that comes out of the taps at home. Being over a certain age, I take daily prescription meds with a glass of water from the basin in our cabin. In the restaurants and dining rooms, we always ask for flat water.

Also, I might mention that the Chef's Table cannot be booked, at all, prior to boarding. Once on board you can request a Chef's Table invitation by calling the DINE line. If you are in a full suite, the Suite Concierge can help you. My understanding is that the older (e.g., Grand Class) ships now have a designated Suite Concierge even though they do not have a Suite Concierge Lounge. Others here on Cruise Critic have reported that they have engaged the assistance of the headwaiter in various dining venues to make a request for a Chef's Table invitation.

One thing that might be added to the "Pro" side is that some travel agents will monitor pricing on their clients' cruises. If there is a fare reduction prior to final payment, they will go ahead and refare their client automatically. Then, they will advise the client that they have just saved them $X. (My coffee shop buddy's travel agent regularly does this for him.) While some may be uncomfortable with a third party independently taking this action, a variation would be if the travel agent just advised a client of a drop in fare and asked if the client wanted to refare. On the "Con" side I would insert this. Using a travel agent adds another moving part to the mechanism. This can add to failures where the travel agent misunderstands the client, or the travel agent misunderstands something about the terms of the cruise pricing. There is also always the possibility that a travel agent can miss a message (voice mail or email) from a client. Travel agents are entitled to take vacations, too, and it is entirely possible that the backup coverage arrangement can fail. Similarly, the travel agent can agree to verbal instructions from the client, and fail to follow through. Many of these problems are not time critical, and the cruiser can follow-up if he/she does not see action on his/her request. However, one of the reasons to engage a travel agent is to not have to worry about the details. Also, I have read one report here on Cruise Critic where a travel agent failed to make a final payment in time even though the poster had paid the travel agent. Yes, the poster's cruise was cancelled.

@cat shepard, you may or may not recall that about a year ago I posted that “Monastrell” is the Spanish name for the Rhone “Mourvedre” grape. Well, guess what. The Spaniards have another name for Mourvedre—Mataro. Go figure. I suspect, not sure, that the choice in nomenclature is regional. An interesting question is why does an Australian wine use that name? Actually, I am aware of a couple California wineries who call out Mataro instead of Mourvedre. In every one of those cases, the source vineyard for the grapes is quite old. My thought is that the original planter was a Spanish immigrant, and that was the name he used. Maybe some day I’ll have the opportunity to ask Joel Peterson why his wine is labeled “Mataro.”

@lgonquin. you asked about the menu. @Astro Flyer posted some terrific pictures of their UBD, and that is a great representation of the UBD. Here is the menu that accompanied our meal on the Emerald Princess some years ago, Over the years, the menu has not changed that much. The main course is always a choice between Filet Mignon, Lobster Tails or Surf 'n' Turf, In four UBDs I have seen some slight changes in the starters. Also, though, as you might expect, sometimes supplies do not get loaded onto the ship prior to departure, and, so, adjustments might be required. Some people have reported that they have been about to make off-menu requests. We are very OK with the standard choices and have never made a special request. I would think that special requests are at the discretion of the Room Service management. You can instruct them on when to serve beverages. We have always had the Champagne served immediately with the Canapes. We have always requested a glass of wine for our cocktail and ask for that to be served after the canapes. To be honest, the wine is not that great. So, we have bottles of our own wine standing by to enjoy with our meal. Coffee and tea are available and will be brought when you specify.

I have posted many times here on Cruise Critic that the Ultimate Balcony Dinner is the best dining experience on Princess. The thing that wins me over is the superior level of service. Two servers are dedicated to your enjoyment and satisfaction. That is so pleasant compared to reading posts about people getting indifferent service in the restaurants and the dining rooms. Before our first UBD I was a bit concerned about having two servers hovering over us as we were trying to enjoy a somewhat intimate evening, but I had nothing to fear. Once you have settled down to the table the servers disappear. When you have finished one course and are ready to move on to the next, they reappear. Used tableware is removed, and the next course is presented. One of the above photos shows the Chocolate Mousse Raspberry dessert. It is awesome. On our first UBD I was quite surprised that more came after that. After the servers pick up the dessert plates and any other table items that are not being used, they wish you a good evening, but they also leave a platter of more sweets--sometimes it is cookies and sometimes it is petit fours. Believe me when I tell you, you have no room for those. The good news is that you can nosh on them as you wish over the next few days. @karatemom2, you have a specific evening in mind for your UBD. That sounds great. I tell people who are planning for their first UBD that if they do not have a particular date in mind, then try to schedule it early in the cruise. That way you have a few days to enjoy the platter of sweets, and, also, you have a few days to enjoy the floral centerpiece that is on your table.

Here you go, @alwalaska. Reading across the sheet, you can see that my methodology was to items costs for the three pricing scenarios: Standard Pricing (with not package), Princess Plus addon pricing and Princess Premier addon pricing. The reason, neither plan seem to work for me is that we order wine by the bottle, and the 25% discount that the plans offer on bottle purchases do not cover the cost of the packages. While this spreadsheet demonstrates that the addon packages would cost rather than save me money, anybody can modify it to better reflect their cruising preferences, and I would not be at all surprised if it showed that the packages work out to their benefit. I know that some of the amounts that I have entered for some of the items have to be updated. Specifically, Gratuities. I really don't recall where I found that number. Wi-Fi -- We are Captain's Circle Elite Level. We also, really don't use internet access very much when we cruise. So, a single-device plan works fine for us. However, I know that Princess has increased the rate since I built this. I think it doubled. Specialty Dining -- I know there was an increase (18%?) recently. That would have to be added in. The pricing that I used for the "Wines" line item in the "Standard Pricing" column was based on the final folio from a previous cruise--that was our actual consumption. The Plus/Premier entries for that line reflect the 25% discount on bottles of wine. You can see that I created a second version of my spreadsheet starting in row 25. The only difference here was that I inflated the price of the wines in the "Standard" scenario figuring that Princess had increased their prices since my last cruise. I do not expect people to cruise the same way I do. Anybody can take these sheets and plug in the numbers that they typically spend. I like my coffee hot and black. The standard hot-and-black coffee offered in the various rooms is fine for me. Mrs. XBGuy does not drink coffee. If you like custom coffees, then enter a line for that. In addition to not drinking wines by the glass, we do not drink cocktails. If you do, then put in a line for that. We do not attend fitness classes. If you do, . . . . If you require multi-device connectivity, then you would would have to update the Wi-Fi line. We have a domestic situation that precludes us from cruising in the immediate future, When that situation is resolved, I will look at this comparison again, and see whether or not it works for me.

Are all wines on the various Princess lists are available by the glass?

A fun thing that may or may not work out for anybody, is to walk around Vines seating area and check the bottles that they have on display on the shelves. For the most part, these bottles are the same that appear on their printed list. However, I have occasionally found older bottles that have fallen off the list. One one cruise I found a Chappellet Merlot with a few years on it. I asked the server about it, and it turned out he was happy to open it up for me. Now, of course ordering a bottle of wine that has been standing on a shelf for, possibly, years, has some risk. However, I was more than pleased with that Merlot. Subsequently, on that cruise I found a single bottle of Seghesio Dry Creek Valley "Old Vines" Zinfandel. It was equally good. Like I say, it may or may not work out for anybody, but you can look for free.

@Drew B 58, your new approach is completely reasonable. Go for it. I am also an analytical guy. Some time ago I posted a comparison spreadsheet that pretty convincingly demonstrated that neither of the package plans "pencil out" for me. However, what works for me has nothing to do with what works for somebody else. I agree that a cruise should be a "splurge." Don't deny yourself.

This story does not really address the OP's question, but I love telling it. In the early 1980s (This was, definitely, another era.) we took our second cruise--a Western Caribbean itinerary out of Fort Lauderdale. As we pulled away from the dock, we joined other passengers, throwing streamers off the ship--again, a different era. As the ship was motoring out the channel we did some exploring. At the forward portion of the ship we found some stairs that led up. There was nothing indicating that we could not walk up. So, we did. We were on a flying bridge right next to the command bridge. As we neared the exit of the channel leading to open ocean, the door to the bridge opened and out came a white uniformed officer. I was a bit nervous expecting to be told that passengers were not allowed. I was wrong. "Would madame like to blow the horn?" Mrs, XBGuy was pretty stunned, "Me?" He pointed to a button. Mrs. XBGuy is not the most confident person in the world. She hesitantly pushed the button, and the horn sounded for about a tenth of a second. The officer, who I subsequently learned was the captain, covered her hand with his, and together they gave the horn a proper "We're leaving port" blast.

OP, I had the same goal mentioned by @Flatbush Flyer. I wanted to to fly in a DeHavilland Beaver. On our fourth AK cruise I booked an flightseeing excursion in Ketchikan on a Beaver through the cruise line, (My coffee shop buddy did not understand this, "Let me see if I have this straight. You're going to fly in a plane that was designed and engineered in the 1940s?") When we arrived in Ketchikan, it was pretty drizzly. (No real surprise there, Ketchikan is in a rain forest.) We walked off the ship to the dock looking our tour. We found a lady with a clipboard, and she told us that all floatplane excursions were cancelled that day because of the weather, OK, I guess I understand that. Within a day our onboard account was credited to reflect the fare that we had prepaid for the excursion, So, as far as I was concerned that all worked out seamlessly. The next year on our fifth AK cruise, I booked the same excursion prior to departure, It was bright and sunny in Ketchikan when we arrived. Our little trip in the Beaver was great. I don't see any reason not to pre-book your excursion. The weather is going to be whatever it is going to be regardless of when you book. My opinion has nothing to do with a choice of booking through the cruise line or making your own private arrangements. As you can see from my story, there is no downside when booking through the cruise line. I know many people prefer to book their own excursions. That is fine. If the weather prohibits flying on the day you arrive, the private providers will also not be able to fly. They will then refund your money to your credit card account.

There was an interesting article in the Los Angeles Times, the other day, regarding beavers. It seems that aerial photographs of recent burn areas found a number of green "oases" in the middle of larger areas that were totally ravaged by fire. You guessed it--ponds made by beavers. It seems that not only do beavers create ponds by constructing dams, they also dig tunnels under and around these ponds. Water seeps into these tunnels, and, so the area around the pond becomes quite damp and is able to resist the flames of a brush fire,