AAExPlat

No question about that.

josephstern

Sounds like it's coffee all day and alcohol all night for him.

kthpence

It's also funny because his taste in both are extremely faux-refined. That is, he thinks drinking a cappucino and champagne is chic, yet probably knows nothing about coffee and/or alcohol. You can tell that he isn't well versed in really anything other than brands that are well known (Bombay, Dom, Starbucks, etc.). Odd for someone who's traveled the world...

josephstern

As far as wine goes, he (and Gary Leff) just like the most expensive.

TheBOSman

Well bragging about Two Buck Chuck on planes doesn't sell credit cards.

The China Southern Duc De Paris post is nevertheless one of the most classic OMAAT posts.

kthpence

Exactly, which is so ridiculous. He also seems to only drink Champagne and Sauvignon Blanc, which kind of reminds me of the drinks of choice at sorority parties...

kokonutz

Two of the best wines I've discovered in international FC are Kanonkop Pinotage (I know, I know, but this one is GOOD) and Cloudy Bay Sauv Blanc.

Price points: $35.99 and $24.98.

And this was on Lucky's beloved LH F.

@:-)

Don't get me wrong, I like LVMH Luxury brands just fine. But a big part of that price tag is marketing. Crémant de Bourgogne is just as good and far more fun to say. ^

TheBOSman

Well, Cloudy Bay is LVMH .

You should visit their cellar door in Marlborough, NZ. I went as part of a wine tour. We got to try a number of different vintages of the sauv blanc, and thanks to our operator knowing the right people , staff also offered us a taste of a much older vintage, can't remember what year it was but it was 10+ years older. Sauvignon blanc usually doesn't go back that far in vintage at retail unless you seek it out.

josephstern

This is where I put in my plug for California red wines, which I prefer. I can hardly ever find these onboard - even on US airlines.

kokonutz

I did not know that!



Very true. Give me an Anderson Conn Valley, Keenan or even Darioush over that French and South American they constantly push. ^

Flamenguista

That French that they push is usually Spanish plonk grapes trucked into France, to be pushed out asap in a french label.

Bierjunge

I think his value function can be described as follows:

Adam1222

Now this is chutzpah: one of Ben's minions has a post calling United "thuggish." Because he's in a position to call United unethical.

JonNYC

"Thuggish" has nothing whatsoever to do with "ethics" -- the connection you're trying to make (and, yes, I get what you're referencing in regard to Ben and United historically) is an absolutely herculean stretch.

Adam1222

We'll just have to agree to disagree. But when the owner/publisher of a blog posts has a personal history of being blacklisted from the airline because of theft/deceit/dishonesty, I don't think it's herculean to suggest 1) there's a bias that should be disclosed, and 2) it takes chutzpah to make posts about how the airline treats customers poorly/with disregard. Arguments that you should treat customers "right" is really a moral/ethical one.

One way to think about it: would you call Ben as a witness to testify about whether United treats its customers fairly/properly/ethically? Even if you dont think his testimony would be biased, the likelihood of the appearance of bias is quite high given the history between him and that company.