#wine guide

[thefinestitalianwine]

Pairing Chianti with Pasta: The Ultimate Italian Wine Guide

Why Chianti and Pasta Are a Match Made in Italy When it comes to classic wine and food pairings, Chianti and pasta is right up there with Champagne and oysters. Chianti — the bold, flavorful red wine from Tuscany — is one of the most Google-searched Italian wines in 2025, and for good reason. It’s incredibly versatile, full of character, and pairs effortlessly with a variety of pasta dishes. In…

[cluster-ayyy]

Mmmhm..

[frownyalfred]

Okay, another little lesson for fic writers since I see it come up sometimes in fics: wine in restaurants.

When you buy a bottle of wine in a (nicer) restaurant, generally (please note my emphasis there, this is a generalization for most restaurants, but not all restaurants, especially non-US ones) you may see a waiter do a few things when they bring you the bottle.

The waiter presents the bottle to the person who ordered it

The waiter uncorks the bottle in order to serve it

The waiter hands the cork to the person who ordered the bottle

The waiter pours a small portion of the wine (barely a splash) and waits for the person who ordered it to taste it

The waiter then pours glasses for everyone else at the table, and then returns to fill up the initial taster's glass

Now, you might be thinking -- that's all pretty obvious, right? They're bringing you what you ordered, making sure you liked it, and then pouring it for the group. Wrong. It's actually a little bit more complicated than that.

The waiter presents the bottle to the person who ordered it so that they can inspect the label and vintage and make sure it's the bottle they actually ordered off the menu

The waiter uncorks the bottle so that the table can see it was unopened before this moment (i.e., not another wine they poured into an empty bottle) and well-sealed

The waiter hands the cork to the person who ordered the bottle so that they can inspect the label on the cork and determine if it matches up; they can also smell/feel the cork to see if there is any dergradation or mold that might impact the wine itself

The waiter pours a small portion for the person who ordered to taste NOT to see if they liked it -- that's a common misconception. Yes, sometimes when house wine is served by the glass, waiters will pour a portion for people to taste and agree to. But when you order a bottle, the taste isn't for approval -- you've already bought the bottle at this point! You don't get to refuse it if you don't like it. Rather, the tasting is to determine if the wine is "corked", a term that refers to when a wine is contaminated by TCA, a chemical compound that causes a specific taste/flavor. TCA can be caused by mold in corks, and is one of the only reasons you can (generally) refuse a bottle of wine you have already purchased. Most people can taste or smell TCA if they are trained for it; other people might drink the wine for a few minutes before noticing a damp, basement-like smell on the aftertaste. Once you've tasted it, you'll remember it. That first sip is your opportunity to take one for the table and save them from a possibly corked bottle of wine, which is absolutely no fun.

If you've sipped the wine (I generally smell it, I've found it's easier to smell than taste) and determined that it is safe, you then nod to your waiter. The waiter will then pour glasses for everyone else at the table. If the wine is corked, you would refuse the bottle and ask the waiter for a new bottle. If there is no new bottle, you'll either get a refund or they'll ask you to choose another option on their wine list. A good restaurant will understand that corked bottles happen randomly, and will leap at the opportunity to replace it; a bad restaurant or a restaurant with poor training will sometimes try to argue with you about whether or not it's corked. Again, it can be a subtle, subjective taste, so proceed carefully.

In restaurants, this process can happen very quickly! It's elegant and practiced. The waiter will generally uncork the bottle without setting the bottle down or bracing it against themselves. They will remove the cork without breaking it, and they will pour the wine without dripping it down the label or on the table.

[paperzest]

Origami Miles Edgeworth. 2nd fold of the new color change version! Designed+folded by me, one uncut square of about 35 cm before folding. Red on one side and silvery on the other. This version is holding a crane! I used some of the would-be finger flaps to fold a crane for him to hold as I've been thinking about that one conversation since playing Trials and Tribulations.

Edit: Added photos I took of the sheet before folding under the cut, link to first fold here

3rd fold here

Phoenix here

[miss0atae]

All the reasons why your "fake dating" is in fact "real dating":

You draw a heart where they wrote their name inside and you added yours behind it.

You wrote inside "advice" to date someone, but you'll do the dating part as "a trial".

You both want to teach the other one how to do date (when you could just really date because let's face it, in dating you're learning from each other).

You call each other "special" and it's well known that in relationship some people like to give each other cute nicknames.

And finally you're really into skinship, staring longingly at each other and kissing of course, very "fake dating" behavior. 🤡

[monkeycharles]

They said I got wasted like all my potential SO I decided to prove them right and spend my time doing this, aka a guide to help people understand the beauty and magic of ✨BARGIGLI✨ and appreciate how fine Valentino Rossi is aging.

Follow me for more useless italian lessons you absolutely don't need to know.

This was pretty much made for my lovely gf @camilleisback 🤌🏻

[shou-jpeg]

I am so tired of the grind, fam.

[tapeworrmart]

Been replaying gtav (again) to give myself some serotonin and yeah. So. Still obsessed with Mr Philips. Expect more art of him perhaps

[thefinestitalianwine]

The Rise of Africa as a Wine Market: A New Frontier for the Global Wine Industry

For centuries, Africa has been a relatively small player in the global wine industry, with South Africa standing out as the continent’s dominant producer. However, a new trend is emerging—Africa is not just producing wine; it is becoming a significant consumer market as well. With its expanding middle class, evolving taste preferences, and increased exposure to international wine culture, Africa…

[brickcollector]

my camera roll from nema is like one million photos but I got to visit some of the Newport RI mansions and UGH screaming crying throwing up it was so cool

[insoukokuhell-434]

Soukoku Fic Rec - FLUFF :]

The format I’m using is:

Title - writer (ao3 link) Fic length Time period (teen/mafia skk, 22! Skk, all ages) Additional tags (Tags in bold added by me for extra info) TW

Some fics have parts of the summary/ comments added for additional info

30 Kisses - setosdarkness

19.2k ALL AGES - AU AU - Modern: No Powers, Childhood Friends, High School, College/University Fluff and Humor, Developing Relationship, Getting together, Poet Chuuya, Port Mafia Boss Dazai, skk's unconventional mating rituals, Ficlet Collection, 30 kisses challenge

From summary: "30 kisses between Dazai and Chuuya, starting from highschool, all the way to adulthood.

It starts when Dazai steals Chuuya's first kiss and Chuuya convinces himself it's just how alien mackerels greet each other…"

it must be because i love you - communist_sasuke

5k MAFIA SKK (15, SB), 22 SKK Mutual Pining, Love Confessions, Falling In Love, Fluff and Humor, Dazai is Whipped, Developing Relationship, Post-Corruption Ability Use, First kiss

From summary: "(Or: A series of incidents in which Dazai and Chuuya can't gather their thoughts around each other, and a couple of clues as to why.)"

Chuuya Nakahara's Guide to Winning Gay Chicken - Zombiemarker

9k ALL AGES Gay chicken, canon compliant, they're both idiots, Kouyou is the best

From tags: World's longest running game of gay chicken, because they're both emotionally stunted teenagers who are far too competitive for their own good, at least it works out for them

Happily (n)Ever After - Memos

14k  22 SKK + flashbacks Romantic Comedy, Light Angst, Bad Decisions, Alcohol, Suggestive Themes, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Assault With Flowers, Don't Be Like SKK Kids, Drunk marriage, Reconciliation

Twin Flame - insi 

10.2k 22 SKK Soulmate AU, Dazai is Bad at Feelings, Chuuya is Bad at Feelings, Non-Sexual Intimacy, It's okay they're working on it, Ambiguous Relationships, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Light angst

Summary: Soukoku go through a soulmate au speed run

A chance to start again - Root (Fyki)

4.4k 22 SKK Mutual Pining, Getting Together, First Kiss, Fluff, Introspection, they work they shit out

Without Words - StarshipDancer 

11.5k 22 SKK Caring Chuuya, Domestic Fluff, Light Angst, Getting Together, Moving In Together, Literal Sleeping Together, Cuddling & Snuggling, video game references, sticky notes, Love Confessions, Idiots in Love, Soft skk, skk’s Unconventional Mating Rituals, 5+1 Things TW - Dazai-Typical Suicide Mentions 

The Only Present Worth Having - StarshipDancer 

3.5k 22 SKK Birthday Fluff, Arcades, Flowers Language of Flowers, Getting Back Together, Soft skk, Implied Sexual Content

castles out of couches - halfbloom (diphylleias)

14k >22 SKK Established Relationship, Living Together, Domestic Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Light Angst, Snippets, No Plot/Plotless, cute cohabitation chronicles, Implied Sexual Content, Healing

partners -  setosdarkness

39.6k ALL AGES Canon Timeline + Post-Canon Slow Burn, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Mutual Pining, oblivious to love, Idiots in Love, Enemies to Friends to Lovers Wedding Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Cuddling & Snuggling, Literal Sleeping Together, Breakfast in Bed, Stuck in the Rain, Moving In Together, Food Fight, Marriage Proposal, Actual Marriage (LOL), Crossdressing(the origin of ojou-sama chuuya)

From tags:

"they go to wedding fairs because they're broke": the fic

"dazai tricks chuuya to signing the marriage register": the fic

"soukoku is married since day 1": the fic

"chuuya overreacts to dazai possibly getting injured": the fic

Wet Bandages - StarshipDancer

3.7k 22 SKK Domestic Fluff, Literal Sleeping Together, Morning Cuddles, Couch Cuddles, Established Relationship, Idiots in Love, Fluff and Angst, Implied Sexual Content, Caring Chuuya , Soft skk, POV Chuuya

A Night In - StarshipDancer

4.3k 22 SKK Domestic Fluff, Light Angst, Surprises, Valentine's Day, Established Relationship, Soft skk, Idiots in Love, POV Chuuya

Moving Pains - cactusnamedbob

1.9k 22 SKK ADA Chuuya, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Literal Sleeping Together, Sleepy Kisses

realizations in a shared hotel room - setosdarkness

4.6k 22 (Post-Canon) this is a "soukoku gets quarantined together" fic, Fluff and Humor, Sharing a Bed, Feelings Realization, Protectiveness, Domestic Bliss

Only for You - StormDew2

9.9k MAFIA SKK (post 15) Literal Sleeping Together, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Kissing, First Kiss, chuuya gets banned from drinking so dazai gets him some wine, Underage Drinking, Light angst

A Game of Honesty - StarshipDancer

3.1k 22 SKK Established skk, Domestic Fluff, Literal Sleeping Together, Lazy Mornings, Teasing, Sleepy Kisses,  Idiots in Love, soft skk, POV Dazai    

for the rest of the hour - photography_tea

1.3k 22 SKK in bed thoughts and fluff, Because They Deserve To Be Happy Dammit, reference to dead apple

Please like/reblog if this helped u find a fic, I'd be delighted to know asjsj <3

I haven't included many "literal sleeping together" fluff fics , check out this list if you want some of those :]

Soukoku Fic Rec Masterlist

[bobbile-blog]

Arknights Lore Recap: End of 2023

Here I was, thinking my last post would be sufficient, but they keep on adding more gosh darn lore. Half a year has gone by since my last post, so I thought I'd update things and make another post of "where is everyone at the moment" to help keep all these plotlines straight. So, here's the sequel! More events, more organization since it's no longer a half-assed post I wrote on my phone in an hour, and you'd better believe we've got more lore to get through.

(Of course, spoilers for the current state of basically everything in Global, though they'll be the kind of "current events" spoilers to help you understand where we are at the moment)

Currently Active Plotlines:

Main Story act II: Main story chapters/ What the Firelight Casts, Amiya/ Siege/ Stainless/ Shining/ W/ Kal'tsit/ Doctor/ Closure/ etc.

Act 2 is in full swing, and oh boy do we have some politics to wade through. The general idea, minimizing spoilers, is that the Royal Court of the Sarkaz have taken over Londinum and intend to expand further using the catastrophe-creating superweapon The Shard. They're led by Theresis and the (mostly) united Sarkaz lords, and with a mercenary army they basically rule Victoria as an occupying power. Their power is concentrated in Londinum, the only city they really formally occupy, but as they control the seat of the country's power they effectively have the rest of the country at their mercy.

Opposing them are a number of factions. Firstly, the coalition of Victorian Nobles that have ruled the country (and that technically invited the Sarkaz to Victoria in the first place) want the throne again. There are a few specific nobles we deal with in ch12 but the implication is the politics will be elaborated on in the next chapter so we'll leave it there, the point is that they're the Victorian establishment trying to go back to old Victoria which means they suck. They're also working with Dublinn, who are collaborating with the Duke of Wellington(?) who is sympathetic to their causes. The Nobles have just recently gone to formal war with the Sarkaz, but they also all hate each other and will absolutely stab each other in the back whenever possible.

Besides them, there are also a couple of smaller underground resistance factions. The Londinum Self-salvation Corps, or Eartha, is a guarilla resistance movement who is currently getting their asses handed to them by the Sarkaz. They basically existed solely because the Sarkaz hadn't bothered to wipe them out yet, and have currently evacuated all of their surviving personnel out of the city. Additionally, there's a group of Victorian soldiers led by Commander Skamandros who have been sticking their noses into things. If I recall correctly, they're trying to evacuate Londinum as well.

Finally, we have Rhodes Island. We're here because of the classic D&D reason of "well all our plotlines seem to end up in this general area so I guess that's where we're going". Amiya and Kal'tsit feel somewhat responsible for not stopping Theresis and Amiya specifically is probably the only person with the right to challenge Theresis for the throne of the Sarkaz. Bagpipe and Reed (and Ch'en) are dealing with Dublinn things, so they have to be around here. Shining is a Confessarius and her evil wizard family is supporting Theresis so she's got stuff to do there. Siege is the last surviving member of the Victorian Royal family, so she's bound by blood and obligation to reclaim the throne, as well as just generally wanting to help the people of Victoria. Hoderer is currently in the employ of the Sarkaz and Innes is working in Londinum as a spy for Rhodes Island, so W wants to head there too. There's a lot going on, far too much to describe, so I'll leave things at "we have half a dozen personal plotlines to pursue there" so I can move on to the actual side events.

The Devil's Dragonball Fusion Dance: Ancient Forge(?)/ Who is Real/ Invitation to Wine/ Where Vernal Winds will Never Blow, Nian/ Dusk/ Ling/ Chong Yue/ Lava/ Kroos/ Lee/ Waai Fu/ Lin/ Zuo Le/Liang Xun

This one is updated pretty regularly as the CN new year event. The short lore overview is that Yan used to be populated by godlike beings called Feranmuts. Feranmuts fought a war with people, which concluded when a Feranmut named Sui betrayed his people because they wanted to be the only one with their kind of powers. After the war, the emperor of Yan (China analogue) split him into 12 fragments which eventually developed their own identities and personalities - these are the Sui siblings, i.e. Nian, Dusk, Ling, Chong Yue, etc. Once all twelve of these siblings meet again, they will reform back into Sui and they'll probably take over the world or whatever. We don't know exactly but it won't be good.

There are currently three parties interested in gathering the siblings, and one trying to prevent them. Firstly, the Second Brother (who is currently unnamed) is just a little crazy, and is currently working with the Yanese ministry of rites to revive Sui. We don't know a ton about him, but we know he's somehow split himself into fragments and scattered himself across the land. Secondly, Ya is another Feranmut that survived the old war and wants revenge on Yan and Sui. They want Sui revived so they can have a proper form of revenge on Them, and are currently in control of the Shanhaizhong bandits kinda just causing issues wherever They can. Finally, Nian and her siblings at Rhodes Island also want to gather the siblings, but not to re-form Sui. She has some sort of plan to bring the siblings together without losing themselves, and is working with Rhodes Island to accomplish it. Similarly, we don't know a lot about her plan, but they're generally the protagonists of the events. Finally, Zuo Le is an official in a Yanese organization called the Sui Regulator, whose job is to monitor and secure the remaining Feranmuts and the fragments of Sui. Zuo Le is doing his best, but he's a little out of his weight class, so most of what he does is follow the Sui fragments around and try to figure out what the hell is going on.

The Call of We Many: Grani and the Knight’s Treasure/ Under Tides/ Stultifera Navis/ Mizuki and Caerula Arbor (Integrated Strategies 3), Skadi/ Specter/ Gladiia/ Kal’tsit.

Was updated pretty frequently as an anniversary event, but they seem to have thrown us a big lore dump with Caerula Arbor and left it at that for the time being, which is understandable. The lore here is the Seaborn are a race decended from some early Feranmuts who are basically a constantly-evolving devouring swarm. They exist to consume and assimilate all of the life on the planet, and unless we are very very careful and work very very quickly they are going to do just that.

The state of the plot at the moment is a little odd. Because Mizuki and Caerula Arbor isn't canon, the plot is still at the end of Stultifera Navis. Specter has recovered her self, and the team of Abyssal hunters is delving deeper into the current state of the seaborn. Their former leader, Ulpanius, has shown up to warn them not to return to Aegir, and while the Stultifera Navis sank the lighthouse was recovered and some trinkets from the ship made it back. We aren't really sure where we're going from here, but it's not necessarily to Caerula Arbor. Basically, the canon lore of IS3 is that on a mission to the Iberian Coastline, the Doctor and Mizuki found a weird seaborn monument, and Mizuki used their connection to the Seaborn's minds to look into alternate timelines and show them to the Doctor. That means that while the events of the story are not canon, the Doctor may still know and reference the events in the story. I'm not going to go over all of IS3 because there's so much of it but you can find a rough summary here.

Fangs of the Signiori dei Lupi: Hinted earlier in the main story/ Il Siracusano, Texas/ Emperor/ Lapland/ Projekt Red/ Lunacub.

This is the newest of these plots, set up in Il Siracusano and presumably proceeding from there. The Feraerus are supernatural talking animals that we’ve encountered a couple of times throughout the story, like the High Priest or the Emperor. They are connected with the land and are almost akin to guardians of it. They don’t need Originium for their magic, and are tied to the setting in ways we don’t quite understand yet. More importantly to us, though, they’re involved in their own power struggles and contests among each other. This underscored the drama in Il Siracusano - the whole Bellone family was propped up by the wolf Feraerus Zarro as part of an ancient game in which the wolves pick champions, called Fangs, who fight each other in a Battle Royale to decide the pack’s next alpha a la the fake wolf study. We know a couple of the fangs - Lunacub is one and Bernardo was another before his death, but Projekt Red is also a Fang, as well as Crownslayer’s mentor, so we’ll probably be coming back to this conflict in the future. It's unclear how we'll approach it, though, as Bernardo and Lunacub's files seem to imply that the eventual goal will breaking free of this game.

Law and Otherwise: Guide Ahead, Fiametta/ Mostima/ Andoain/ Cecile/ Lemuen/ Pope Yvangelista XI/ Law/ Executor/ Enforcer

This one hasn't been super developed yet, but it's worth including with both Hortus de Escapismo and Zwillingstürme im Herbst coming up. Laterano, the city of the Sankta, is governed by immutable laws that are engraved onto the very bodies of the Sankta. In Guide Ahead, Andoain seeks to ask the Pope the question of why the Sankta do not help the people of the world. He learns that the laws that bind the Sankta are real, physical commandments enforced by Law, a robotic entity similar to the Preserver from Lonetrail, and the consequences and exceptions relating to the law are entirely at its discretion. The law is what it is because Law says so.

The Sami Icefields

This hasn’t technically gotten an event yet, besides that one story in Operational Intelligence, but I’m including it as an honorable mention because we’re going there for IS4. The Icefields are up north of Ursus, and they are terrifying. You remember the Emperor’s Blade, the one that kicks your ass in WD-8? Yeah we only see three of them in the game because the rest are busy fighting against the Eldritch demons constantly invading from the Sami Icefields. Let’s please never go there ever, thanks.

Finished Plotlines:

These two are complete plots, which I'm including for posterity and the worldstate. Spoilers for all of these events, but I'll try to keep things to the present so as to not spoil too much.

The Grand Knight Major: Maria Nearl/ Pinus Sylvestris/ Near Light/ Obscure Wanderer, Blemishine/ Zofia/ Nearl/ The Followers/ Flametail/ Ashlock/ Fartooth/ Wildmane/ Justice Knight my beloved/ Gravel/ Platinum/ Roy/ Monique/ Młynar.

Margaret Nearl won the 24th Major and became the Grand Knight, and has since stayed in Kazimierz to improve living conditions for the infected and push back against the General Chamber of Commerce. The Armorless Union has mostly been decapitated - the Platinum defected, the Lazurites have disappeared and taken on new identities, and the Darksteel has promised to stay away from Margaret and Rhodes Island. Pinus Sylvestris and most of the rest of the Nearls are now on the landship, working for Rhodes Island.

A New Age is Upon Us: Mansfield Break/ Dorothy’s Vision/ Lonetrail/ the second Records of Originium comic (which has an official translation that you should absolutely read it’s really good)/ the Friston-3 event whenever Yostar decides to get around to releasing it, Silence/ Ptilopsis/ Saria/ Ifrit/ Dorothy/ Mulesyse/ Ferdinand/ Rosemontis/ Ho’olheyak/ Kirsten.

After the events of Project Horizon, Terra has forever been changed. For just a fleeting moment, every living being in Terra looked up and saw the stars for the first time. The consequences of this aren't totally clear just yet, but it will almost have rippling effects across the world and marks a shift in the game's story as a whole. We also received confirmation of just who the Doctor truly is, and a look behind the curtain of Terra's history. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that nothing is the same after Lonetrail.

In more specific character terms, though, Saria is the new control of Rhine lab, with Silence as her assistant and ethics advisor. Ifrit is a big girl now, and practically a different character entirely from who she was at the start of the game - seriously, her character arc might be my favorite in the game. Rosemontis has also similarly faced her past and come out stronger, and not only Directors Dorothy and Mulesyse but also Maylander agent Ho'olheyak have come over to Rhodes Island in the chaos after Project Horizon. Finally, Rhodes Island has uncovered the real powers lying behind the scenes of Columbian Politics, but have in turn been noticed themselves. We are no longer in the shadows, and it would be wise to keep that in mind.

[waugh-bao]

Marc Lavoine performs “C’est ça la France” in Nantes (June 15th, 2025)

[the-romantics-guide]

Second day of college roundup

• Blasted Iron and Wine in my heaphones on the bus to feel autumnal and all that jazz

• Blasted jazz as well actually

• Spent all of graphics gazing vainly into my reflection (I’m kidding, we had to draw four self portraits)

• Claimed a corner of the library with my friends where no one goes because it’s the children book section.

• Learnt how to paint with Quink and bleach in fine art. Managed to not get ink on my cream trousers thank the lord

• Attracted new friends by wearing sword earrings!!

• Bought a tea and sat outside enjoying the cold

• Wrote a load of poetry in lit and then begged to get an assignment early because I have to miss a lesson for medical reasons and do not want to fall behind

• Also sat awkwardly through lit because I found all the lesson slides on Google classrooms already last night and knew exactly what we were doing

[dirt-mann]

why is it so fucking hard to set up zoo tycoon on wine why is nothing WORKING GGGG (cursed eye begins to glow)

[liaprime]

Shoutout to the peeps on Tulak Hord :D

And Happy New Year to everyone here! °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°