Road races at west Limerick village in the balance following Governing Body agreement
The Southwest Road Racing Club Athea's will have to wait another two weeks before confirming if their planned road racing event this September can go ahead.
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Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
Should I add water to my wine? Perhaps just a teaspoon
Adding water to wine does not always go down well with the purists, but it has been done for centuries, as far back as Ancient Greece and Rome. Not only is it acceptable, but in some cases, adding a drop or two of water can actually improve your wine. Wine is about 85 per cent water. The rest is alcohol, but also small amounts of acid, phenolics and minerals that add the all-important flavours that make wine taste so nice. You may already be drinking diluted wine, as spritzers and wine coolers are simply a mix of sparkling water and wine, sometimes with other fruit flavours added. On a hot sunny day, adding a little sparkling water or a few cubes of ice can make it so much more refreshing. In Ancient Rome and Greece, wine was usually watered down to avoid drunkenness, while also making the water safe to drink. The Greeks, apparently, added seawater – not something I've ever tried but it doesn't sound great. They also flavoured wine with herbs, spices and honey, probably to make old, oxidised wine more palatable. At home, I tend to avoid the big, powerful alcoholic reds, partly because I don't want to ingest too much alcohol, but often because I don't like the flavours. My job obliges me to taste them, but not necessarily to drink them. Over the last few decades, wine has become more alcoholic. For instance, most Bordeaux was once 12.5-13 per cent. These days, it is more likely to be 14-14.5 per cent and even 15 per cent sometimes. Full-bodied red wines can be very extracted and overwhelm the senses rather than refresh the palate. A while ago, I began adding a teaspoonful or two of water to my glass of big red and found that it transformed the wine. It became much more aromatic and fruitier, turning those jammy prunes and sweet dark cassis into fresh blackcurrants and summer fruits. According to food writer and scientist Harold McGee, alcohol binds to flavour compounds in a wine, masking the flavours a little, and adding water helps release those flavours. READ MORE Now I am not suggesting that you start adding large quantities of water to your finest wines. Adding water also seems to change the tannic structure of a wine and can make it taste a little dry and hollow, so I never add too much, usually a teaspoon or two, and I do not add it to my best bottles. However, on a warm sunny day a few cubes of ice in a fruity white wine will make all the difference. It is one thing to add water to wine; but so far I have failed to turn my water into wine.
Irish Independent
3 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Today's top TV and streaming choices: The Gold, Where the Crawdads Sing and Ocean with David Attenborough
The Gold BBC One, 9pm Cast your mind back to February 2023 when, while we were still reeling from the final scenes of Happy Valley, the BBC launched a new — but very different — crime drama on an unsuspecting world. Entitled The Gold, it focused on the 1983 Brink's-Mat robbery, when six career criminals made off with gold bullion, diamonds and cash now worth £111million from a London warehouse facility. The six-parter proved to be gripping stuff, but there was heaps more of the story to tell. Thankfully, the BBC's bosses knew they were on to a winner, so immediately commissioned a second series — which is about to begin. 'I am delighted that we have been given the opportunity to tell the rest of the Brink's-Mat story,' states the programme's writer and executive producer Neil Forsyth. 'It sees the consequences of the robbery and its aftermath grow only more surprising, dramatic and far-reaching, both in Britain and around the world.' Hugh Bonneville, Charlotte Spencer, Emun Elliott, Tom Cullen and Stefanie Martini return, as does Jack Lowden as Kenneth Noye, one of the criminals involved, although he doesn't appear until the third episode. The story picks up after the conviction of some of those involved in the handling of the stolen goods as well as the theft itself. However, the police are convinced there's more to the story, leading them to investigate international money laundering and organised crime. The Sunday Game Live RTÉ2, 1.30pm The McDonagh Cup final between Kildare and Laois takes place at Croke Park before there's a chance to see Kilkenny face Galway in the Leinster Hurling final. Highlights can be seen at 9.30pm. From that Small Island RTÉ One, 6.30pm ADVERTISEMENT Subtitled The Story of the Irish, this new four-part documentary series, narrated by Colin Farrell, offers insights into the history of the people who have populated the island of Ireland. The opener looks back at the first residents and features a reconstruction of one of our ancestors. Walking with Dinosaurs BBC One, 6.30pm Bertie Carvel takes viewers to Utah 130 million years ago, where a group of armoured dinosaurs are about to reach maturity — if a group of vicious utahraptors don't catch up with them first. Sloinne TG4, 8.30pm Siobhán de Paor investigates the origins of her surname, which translates as Power in English. Along the way she learns about sculptor Albert Power and Dr Sheila Power, who is believed to be the first Irishwoman to be awarded a doctorate in mathematical sciences. The Towering Inferno RTÉ One, 2.40pm All-star disaster epic in which a group of VIPs are trapped in the world's tallest building when it bursts into flames. The plot follows the efforts of its architect and a fire chief to rescue them. Paul Newman and Steve McQueen play the duo. Where the Crawdads Sing RTÉ One, 9.30pm A lawyer sets out to clear the name of a non-conformist young woman accused of murdering her boyfriend in America's Deep South during the late 1960s. Daisy Edgar-Jones and David Strathairn star in this taut drama. The Survivors Netflix, streaming now We're mostly used to two types of Australian viewing: soaps and super-dry (to the point of cringe) comedy. This is different. The drama follows Kieran Elliott's life after two people drown in his hometown of Evelyn Bay, Australia. To top it off, a young girl also went missing. Returning with his family 15 years later, the simmering guilt resurfaces, especially when the body of a young woman is found on the beach… K.O. Netflix, streaming now No one does visceral city grit like the French. Bastien has lived as a recluse since accidentally killing his opponent Enzo in an MMA fight three years ago. Now, Enzo's widow tracks him down as, essentially, he owes her one. Her request? Find her missing teenage son. Tyler Perry's Straw Netflix, streaming now Between this and last month's release of She the People, Mr Tyler Perry is getting himself around. This offering, however, is far more stark than May's fare. Here, one mum's day unfurls as it goes from tricky to catastrophic. Pushed to the precipice by a world that seems indifferent to her plight (until they can livestream it), she soon gets attention when she unwittingly holds up a bank. The Orkney Assassin Prime Video, streaming now The Orkney Isles lie 130 miles north of Aberdeen. It's a peaceful place with a strong sense of community. In June 1994, however, Bangladeshi waiter Shamsuddin Mahmood was working at the lone curry house when a masked man fatally shot him. This documentary revisits one of Scotland's most extraordinary murder cases, examining racism, loyalty, and the impact of trauma decades later.
Irish Independent
3 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Deirdre Reynolds: Being threatened with rape or murder is not just ‘part and parcel' of my high-profile job
In the chip wrapper business, we have this thing known as 'green-ink' letters. Typically penned in green, by an author appropriately mad as a box of frogs, over the course of almost two decades writing for national tabloid newspapers, currently the Sunday World, it is fair to say I have had one or two.
