Sunday Musings, and Formula one thoughts

 

Another week another F1 race as we enter the second week of a triple header.  But before the race one must have coffee.  This weeks coffee comes from Houston roaster Ten Fold which I have talked about before.  I have really enjoyed all their coffees and this one was no different.  This coffee is a single estate from Burundi, and is absolutely beautiful in a pour over.  Vibrant, bright, acidity, white grapes, fruity, almost floral notes.  Not quite tea like, but nuanced and layered.  Just lovely.

No real recommendations this week, so let's jump into the race.

Formula One

This week the paddock traveled to Austria and the Red Bull Ring.  The home race for the two Red Bull owned teams.  It was a good start to the weekend, as the McLaren team did very well the first couple of days, finishing 2 and 3 in the sprint race getting them much needed points, but unfortunately Max finished in P1 extending his lead at the top of the championship.  For qualifying both McLarens looked like they were in P2 and 3, but Piastri had a track limits violation so fell to P7.

As for the race itself, it was a hell of a race by the time the checkered flag flew.  Initially all cars were on Medium tires and it started without incident. Max in the lead with Norris chasing him.  Although the LeClerc Ferrari sustained some front wing damage on the first lap and had to pit for a quick change out and he fell to P19.

After about lap 20 drivers started to pit switching to hard tires, Norris and Verstappen both pitted in lap 24 going to Hard tires.

Piastri moved into P1 since he hadn’t pitted, but ended up being called to Box Box at last 25 allowing Max and Lando back into P1 and P2 respectfully.  Oscar came out in P6.

Both Perez and Hamilton were given 5 second penalties for separate pit lane incidents, but that ended up not playing much a role in the race itself. 

Even though Norris has gotten fasted lap, Verstappen continues to open a gap leading by almost 8 seconds by lap 34.  However, by around lap 45 Norris seemed to start gaining on Max, whether this is a tire wear issue or something else was unclear, but Norris had narrowed the gap to 6.4 seconds.

Another round of pits happened at this time as well, Sainz pitting at lap 48 Piastri moving up to P3 as Hamilton complained about tire wear. Verstappen and Norris both pit again at lap 52.

McLaren had a much much better pit than Red Bull as they struggled with a tire change.  A large pit different  of 2.9 seconds to 6.5.  Now Norris is now only 2 seconds behind the leader

Even after pitting Verstappen complains about no grip, Norris is well within DRS zone at lap 57, and starts to make some moves, he made an attempt to pass but went off track so Max remained in the lead.

Norris did try another pass at lap 63, Verstappen goes off track and kept his lead, but I don't think he should have.  He should concede the position back just like Norris did earlier in the race.

For sure Norris is right at the line of exceeding track limits, but Verstappen is reverting to his old self, being overly aggressive and swerving, not maintaining his line which isn't legal either.

At lap 64 it all came to a head as Norris and Max collide each puncturing a tire, but Norris sustains some significant damage to his underside.  Russell takes the lead while both damaged cars limp back to the pits.  Verstappen is able to change out his tire, but Lando unfortunately has to retire his McLaren car.

Oscar moves up to P2 trying to make a move on Russell, Max is back in P5, and gets penalized for 10s, but that has no impact as he has a 15 second gap.

George Russel wins, Piastri gets P2 and Carols gets P3.  Norris for the first time this season gets a DNF.

The race was super frustrating as a McLaren fan.  Happy for Oscar, but dissapointed for Norris.  As stated earlier Norris was aggressively driving and you could mark him for exceeding track limits at times, but there is no question that Max was the cause for the incident.  There is a reason why Max was called Crashstappen in his early career, this is what he does.  We haven't seen it for a while since he has had such a lead on other teams, but once the pressure is on, he will crash other drivers, and make illegal moves on track.  It will be interesting to see if F1 does anything, but I won't hold my breath.

The Drivers Championship remains mostly the same: Verstappen 237l Norris 156; LeClerc 150; Sainz 135; Perez 118; Of note Oscar is right on Perez's heels with 112 points and I expect him to pass the Red Bull Driver next week.

The Constructors Championship standings: Red Bull 355; Ferrari 291; McLaren 268; Mercedes 196.

Sunday Musings and the Spanish GP

 

It's a race day!  My favorite day of the week, but before we get to that a few other things to write about.  Firstly coffee!  Today I am using beans from a bookstore, well kinda.  Iconic Houston book store, Murder by the Book purchased another iconic place, Houston's House of Beans which is next door.  House of Beans was probably Houston's first non chain coffee shop. They have been roasting and selling beans since 1973!  When the owners wanted to sell, their next door neighbors stepped up because what's better than a book and coffee.   Recently when I went in to the book store, I saw this specific blend, Brew-Dunnit and had to pick it up.  Mystery themed bag of beans, why not!  Made a pour over this morning, and this is a slightly darker roast than I normally brew.  But it's full of dark dried fruits, raisins, dark chocolate, cinnamon.  Some acidity, some sweetness.  Well balanced for a more darker roast.  Very enjoyable.

I have two recommendations today, the first is the book in the picture that I picked up during my visit to Murder by the book.  A fantastically fun thriller.  Imagine John Wick going to an AA type group for reformed assassins, and then having folks go after him, but he can't kill.  That's the book.  And it's a ton of fun, so highly recommend.

My second recommendation is a new documentary on Hulu, Brats.  The story of the 80's group of actors the Brat Pack.  Directed by brat pack member Andrew McCarthy it shows the impact that one single story and one label had on this group.  Some never got out from under being called brats and being labeled as not being serious actors.  As a child of the 80's this was really interesting and full of nostalgia.  Andrew did an outstanding job of directing and pulling in as many of the members and near members as he could.  Well done and worth a watch for sure.

Formula 1

This week the paddock went to Spain, specifically Barcelona for the Spanish GP.  The weekend started off well for McLaren as Norris captured pole position ahead of Verstappen.  Although it wasn’t a perfect day for the papaya team as Piastri was at P10.  But it still set the team up well for the race.  Unfortunately it was not a great start as Lando gets pushed to third with Russell and Verstappen crowding him out and the Mercedes driver jumping to first, Verstappen staying in second.  By lap 3 Max had passed Russell and moved into P1.  This stayed fairly consistent for the next handful of laps, Norris, stayed very close to Russell, with Verstappen able to open up a couple of seconds gap.

Around lap 16 drivers started to pit around lap 16.  At lap 18 Verstappen pitted allowing Norris to get back in P1.  The McLaren drivers waited as long as possible to pit, a very different strategy than other drivers.  Piastri ended up pitting at lap 22.  Went in at P4, went out at P11.

Lando pitted at Lap 23, in P1, good pit at 2.4 seconds came out at P6 just behind Sainz.

Lando doing a good job of climbing back up, and moved into P4 as of lap 27.  Piastri back in the points at P10.

Lando made an outstanding pass of Hamilton to get into P2, but Verstappen had opened up quite a gap, at this point it comes up to pitting strategy and tire management.

Based on lap times, it is obvious that the McLaren has pace as it consistently gains on Verstappen chipping away at the lead.  

Verstappen took his second pit stop at Lap 45, great pit stop at 2.8 seconds, switched to the soft tires that will need to last 21 laps.  The pit allowed Norris to move into P1.

Piastri takes his second pit at Lap 47, out at P8, with a new set of Soft tires.  Lando pitted at lap 48, he came in at P1. Unfortunately they had what looked like a slow pit stop at 3.6s, but he still was out at P2 ahead of Russell and Hamilton.   Gap to Verstappen is 8 seconds with less than 20 laps left.  Lando may have enough time to track down the Red Bull driver as he initially gained 1.5 seconds in the first couple of laps after the pit.

Over time however, the race balanced out and Norris wasn’t making as big of strides as he once was, only getting within a coupe of seconds of Verstappen, but couldn’t close the gap more than that even though he was constantly getting fastest lap.  I wouldn't say the race was boring, but there was a surprising lack of back and forth outside of around the pits.  Everyone finished the race and there wasn't a lot of thrilling over takes which I didn't expect.  

For the finish Verstappen gets P1, Norris gets P2, Hamilton, for the first time this year gets a podium finishing in P3.

The other Mclaren driver finished in P7.  So another race with double points, should help in constructors especially now that  Norris is now P2 in drivers championship.

So for the season the drivers championship looks like: Verstappen 219; Norris 150; LeClerc 148; Sainz 116.

Nice to see Lando for the first time in his career in second place in drivers championship.

Constructors Championship: Red Bull 330; Ferrari 270; McLaren 237; Mercedes 151

McLaren keeps slowly gaining on Ferrari and Red Bull, Its going to be a fun second half of the season.

Wednesday Whiskey err Beer and Cigars

 

A special Wednesday pairing post.  While I drink more whiskey than beer these days, I still enjoy a good beer and cigar pairing.  As with most things, some beers make much better pairings than others those are usually darker, barrel aged beers.  This particular beer is one of those great cigar pairing beers, but it is so much more than that. This beer celebrates Houstons own Saint Arnolds 30th Anniversary.  30 years brewing craft beer is a tremendous feat, especially when you look at how many craft breweries have either shut down recently, or sold out to a a Macro brewer, or even tried to combine forces with other smaller craft breweries.  Saint Arnold has stayed true to its roots, and has stayed independent throughout it all.  While I haven't been in Houston for all of Saint Arnolds existence, I started visiting the brewery back in 2002 when they were in an un-airconditioned warehouse. Summers were fun.  I've written about them many many times in the past on this blog, even getting the opportunity to interview the owner Brock Wagner.  I am very happy to toast Saint Arnold and their 30 successful years with this outstanding beer.

The Beer

The beer is called a Grand Cru, which has no real meaning, but for Saint Arnold it means taking their imperial stout Commitment, aging it in bourbon and whiskey barrels for 2-4 years, then finishing it in Tokaji, Madeira, or Port barrels before blending it all together to create something that is incredibly unique.  The beer pours a dark opaque brownish black with a thin quickly dissipating copper colored head.  Bourbon, booze, oak, and vanilla spice on the nose.  The mouthfeel is viscous, thick, heavy.  Rich and creamy, wine like on the palate.  Notes of port, dried fruits, slight oxidation.  Cherries, tobacco, chocolate, slight acidity.  Damn this is superb.  It's been a long time since I have had a beer this complex, and enjoyable.  Outstanding job by the Saint Arnold team.

The Cigar

When I smoke a cigar, I don't always want something that is going to last me an hour or more.  Sometimes, I want something that is a shorter smoke, I am not in the mood to have a long sit down.  When I am in that mood, I usually reach for a Nub, a small short stubby brand of cigars from Oliva Cigar company of which I have spoken about many times before.  Nub makes a fairly wide range of small stubby sticks, in various shapes, but all are thick gauged.  This particular stick is from their Nuance line, specifically their Single Roast.  This is one of the few flavored type of cigars I have smoked as it is infused with coffee flavors and has a sweet cap on the wrapper.  An Ecuadorian wrapper with Nicaragua filler, and very thick gauged this is not a harsh smoke at all. This is a creamy milk chocolate bomb, with a slight spice and cedar plank finish.  It worked well with the beer, but I could have actually used a little more robust cigar I think to play off of the beer.  Something I will have to try in the future.

Wednesday Cigars, Whiskey and Watches

 

If you can, everyone should take a little time midweek for some you time.  Time to relax with whatever you want, but just to relax, no TV, no noise, just you enjoying something.  For me that's sitting down with a cigar a scotch, and maybe a book, or maybe just sitting outside.  In addition to a smoke and dram there is a new watch to my collection to talk about!  Excited for this one.  But first....

The Scotch

I've talked about Ardbeg before, it's my favorite peated Whisky and in my mind one of the more complex balanced smoky drams you can find.  This however, is not that.  This is full on peat in the face, beating you back and forth until you ask for mercy.  On the nose it's smokey, yes SMOKEY!  There is an almost cloying sweetness behind the smoke, some stone fruits.  The mouthfeel is oily, it coats the tongue and won't let go.  There are notes of leather, peaches, vanilla, tanic like a dry red wine, coffee grits like I used to get from my grandads percolator coffee.  It's unbalanced, but almost in a good way.  I am not sure I would drink this on the daily, but every once in a while it's a wake up call for what over powering peat can be.  

The Cigar

I smoked an AVO for the first time not to long ago, and am quickly becoming a fan.  I believe this is the third expression from them that I have tried and it holds up very well to the intense scotch.  The AVO Expressions is a limited edition cigar that has an Ecuadorian wrapper with American and Dominican filler tobacco.  It's a medium bodied smoke which is my particular zone.  It lights well, notes of vanilla, white pepper, and cream, as you smoke it down you get some cinnamon toast.  It's mild, but not weak at all.  I think it balances the power of the scotch with its mildness.  I think if you had two in your face things it would be to much, with this there is a yin and yang that play well with each other.  It's a great cigar to sit down for a good long session as this lasted me a little over an hour and a half.  Definitely a good pick up and one that I would recommend.

The Watch

As I said above, I am excited to talk about this watch.  I posted an unboxing video on my Instagram page as well as YouTube a couple of weeks ago and have been wearing this watch regularly since then. Dufrane is based out of Austin, TX and has been making some beautiful watches over the last few years. Each watch is put together in Austin.  I've been looking at their watches for about a year, looking to purchase one since I thought it was cool that there was a good Texas Watch maker (and there are a couple more out there like Trafford that are worth looking into).  I never pulled the trigger however, until I got an email a few months ago announcing the release of their new GMT watch.  I figured this was the perfect time to make the move and pre-ordered the watch. The fine folks from Dufrane did a good job of keeping folks updated on the progress until it showed up on my doorstep.  I was excited to open it up and let me tell you this watch for the price is stunning.  It's got incredible finishing, I love the blue dial as I think it absolutely pops.  The watch has very good lume as well with it being easily read in the dark.  The bracelet is fantastic as well with easy release and easy adjustments standard (this should be standard for all watches, looking at you Tag Hauer).  The watch is the first from Dufrane to have the Made in Swiss statement on the dial. Unlike his previous watches this one is assembled in Switzerland and then shipped over here, vs being put together in Austin. But this office GMT style watch offers a lot of bang for the buck with its finishing, beautiful dial, bracelet, and leather strap that comes with it, as well as just good solid functionality.  Overall this is a great watch, by a great Texas company.  My full review of the watch is below.  Check it out and like and subscribe for more content on YouTube.

Sunday Afternoon Musings

Posting a Sunday afternoon musings instead of Sunday morning due to the afternoon start of the Canadian Grand Prix.  But I still have to talk about this cup of coffee from Greater Goods that I had this morning.  Used my normal pour over method to make this cup and it was tremendous.  Strong flavors of peach tea throughout. Just tremendous. It is such a unique cup that it explodes with the tea flavors, bergamot, and then subtle notes of peach came underneath.  Lovely bright cup.  

I'll hold off on my recommendations as I plan to post that on my Instagram page tomorrow, a very specific book related recommendation so be on the look out for that.

Formula One

The Montreal GP weekend started off interestingly enough.  Not only did the newly signed to a long term contract RB Driver Perez fall out during Q1 for the second race in a row, but his teammate failed to top the pole and settled for P2.  Another surprise was both Ferrari drivers didn’t make it out of Q2.  Mercedes sat atop the Pole with Russell in P1, McLaren did well with Norris at P3 and Piastri at P5.  The biggest concern going into the actual race on Sunday though was the weather.  It had rained some during the practice session, and threatened during qualifying, but race day looked like it could be seriously affected by weather.

Both Sauber cars had to start from the pit lane due to having to fix some their cars after qualifying.  

The Grand prix started with some rain, with cars choosing to be on the intermediates except the Haas team that was full wet tires.

Surprisingly clean start to the race.  Shots of spray at the start, but through the first few turns the cars were able to stay clean and on the track.  Initially the HAAS decision to start on Wets seemed to be a good one as they climbed up the grid, both in the top 10 through the first few laps.

By Lap 5 the Ferrari paddock was reporting to LeClerc that they were seeing engine problems with the car.  Not clear on the issues, but they were working it, doesn’t sound like it will be a good day for the red team.

Lap 6 one of the Williams cars wen toff track, but they were able to get back on which cleared the section specific yellow flag, and by lap 7 the sun started to come out which should help dry the track up.

Haas driver Kevin Magnussen went into the pits in lap 8 to switch from full wets to intermediates.

Fellow Haas Driver Nico Hulkenburg pitted at last 13, which then caused both of the cars to fall out of the top 10.  

With the track drying DRS was finally enabled at lap 18.

Lap 21 Lando was able to use that DRS to bypass Verstappen and get into P2. And then a little later in that same lap Norris passed Russell to get into p1!  Lap 25 Logan Sargent went into the wall bringing out a yellow flag and then a safety car.  Unfortunately Norris’s pace was so quick that he couldn’t pit, but everyone behind him did pit, including his McLaren teammate Piastri.  Teams were putting on another set of Inters preparing for an additional rain storm that was forecasted to be coming shortly.  Norris pits on Lap 26 putting on Inters, unfortunately he came out in third behind Verstappen and Russell behind the safety card.

Reports of rain coming down again in lap 28.

Safety car out at lap 29.

By lap 36 it looked like the rain had passed.  The question will be how long will the intermediate tires last, and if the teams will need to pit again before the race ends after lap 70.  Intermediate tires don’t tend to last very long once they are on a dry track so the teams are going to have to use some interesting strategy as the race goes on.

Ferrari ended up retiring LeClerc’s car at lap 43.  A few cars started pitting to switch from inters to slicks.  I think it may be a couple of laps to early, but expect to see more cars pit by lap 46.

Hamilton came in at lap 44 to switch from inters to Mediums.

McLaren driver Piastri went in to pit at lap 45 and switched to mediums.

Verstappen who was in P1 was called into pit at lap 45, Russell followed him, but Norris stayed out which put him in P1.  Norris is being called to Box at the end of lap 47.  He is over 20 seconds ahead of P2 and could get out ahead if there is a good pit.  McLaren puts on medium tires, but Norris wasn’t able to stay ahead of Verstappen.  As of Lap 48, Verstappen is in P1, Norris in P2, Russell in P3 and Piastri in P4.  A little over 20 laps left, can Lando make a move on his Red Bull rival?

Unfortunately Russell passed Norris in lap 50, around the same time that Max started complaining of issues with his car.  At lap 51 Russell ran wide, blew across a curb and Norris was able to get P2 back.

Lap 54 it looks like Sainz and Alton made some contact and spun each other around brining out a yellow flag and a safety car.

Sainz ended up retiring shortly there after, Hamilton pitted and switched to hard tires, and Russell got Medium tires on, both hoping that it will help him make a move through the remainder of the race.

Safety car ended after lap 58.

After Piastri and Russell got into a skirmish, Hamilton ended up passing the McLaren driver in lap 66 and into P3.

A hard fought race by all the drivers, 5 drivers fell out due to crashes or mechanical problems, but Verstappen was able to get back on top, with Norris in P2 and Russell in P3, Piastri did well and finished P5.  Overall an exciting race after the bore that was Monaco a couple of weeks ago. The off and on rain lead to some great strategies being deployed by the different teams and made for some back and forth racing.  Overall a fun race and happy for team papaya.

Some additional thoughts:
1) I’ve said it all season, but I will say it again, I don’t understand Red Bull’s love of Perez.  He has shown that he is an OK driver when everything is working, but if he is challenged he falls apart. He could well be the reason they don’t win the constructors cup this year and they won’t win it next year because of him.  So why did they re-sign him?  Because he doesn’t threaten Verstappen, and Max’s weak ego who can’t handle being challenged by a teammate.

2) McLaren continues to show they are the second best team on the grid.  Yes Ferrari is ahead in the constructors championship, but by the end of the season McLaren will be head of them.  

3) Good to see Ricciardo finish in the points today at P8.

4) Aston Martin had a rare race this season with double points with their drivers finishing P7 and P6.

5) For the season the Drivers Championship looks like: Verstappen 295, LeClerc 138, Norris 131 Sainz 108, Perez 107

6) For the season the Constructors championship looks like: Red Bull 301, Ferrari 252, McLaren 212, Mercedes 124, Aston Martin 58

Sunday Musings Its June

Happy Summer to all.  For most, the school year is over, which means summer vacations for most.  Mine will hopefully be later this summer, but in the meantime I am enjoying this amazing coffee from Texas roaster Greater Goods.  This Finca Rosita is from Bolivia, it's a lighter roasted coffee that I think is highlighted by doing a pour over which was my method this morning.  This is a smooth cup, notes of citrus, cinnamon, churros, a nice rounded cup.  Not overly acidic, just a hint, but its smooth, gentle cup that is a really nice cup of coffee.

Unfortunately the Premiere league season is over, and Forumla 1 is an off week, but there are still some things to talk about.  But first a recommendation.  I've been on a bit of documentary kick lately and that continues this week with a new movie on Disney Plus celebrating the life of the great Jim Henson.  Henson the creator of the Muppets, and really being groundbreaking in showing what muppets, and puppeteering can do.  His ideas of ability to communicate to children and adults is something that is all to rare these days.  He and his muppets whether on Sesame Street or the muppet TV shows and movies was a HUGE part of my childhood.  The documentary goes into detail on Jim and his wife Jane and how they started the Muppet company and brought in other amazing puppeteers not the least of which is Frank Oz.  how they struggled to show producers and other industry people that these muppets weren't just for children and are just another form of entertainment for all to the creation of the aforementioned Sesame Street.  I didn't realize that it took the brits to get the muppets on TV, with the first Muppets variety show being produced over in London.  The show overall is worth checking it out, it definitely brought back some great memories and really made me think about what would have happened if Henson hadn't passed away at such a relatively young age.

While I don' have a lot of EPL things to discuss, I did figure I could chat about Formula 1 for a bit.  Just some bullet point thoughts:

• I wonder if Sainz's team knows what they are doing.  It seems like they had an opportunity to sign with some teams earlier for less years, but may end up being left with only Williams and Audi as an option. While I think Williams is stepping up and has potential in the next couple of years, that is a huge step down from Ferrari, or Mercedes and of course Red Bull who were both rumored to be options in the past.  He's a great driver, and better than what Ferrari will have next year, so it's a shame that he won't be in a great car.
• Will Estaban Ocon be racing in Canada this coming weekend?  Seems like there are mixed signals, with some saying that he is going to be replaced for one race due to his idiotic decision making at Monaco, but he released a statement earlier this week that sure indicated he was going to be racing.  I honestly don't think he should.  The guy has had a conflict with EVERY driver he has been partnered with.  He may be a good driver, but he is not a team player, and I wouldn't want him on my team.  
• I'll put a prediction for next week down on paper (well virtual paper at least).  I think the Canadian GP may be another race that RB doesn't finish 1st.  That track isn't set up to their strengths, and I think they have way more weaknesses than anyone thought after pre season testing and the first couple of races of the season.  Now who will step up to finish P1? Ferrari or McLaren?  That I won't predict, but am hoping for team papaya.
• Shockingly it looks like RB is going to re-sign Checo, which I just don't get.  He is 35 so he is getting to the downside of his career (unless you are Alonso, but even he is struggling this year) and he is already starting to struggle this season.  I believe that RB's decisions will directly lead to them losing out on the constructors cup this season and next season as well.  They will have the best driver, and probably win the drivers championship this year, but won't win the constructors cup due to not wanting to rock the boat for Verstappen's fragile ego.  

That's all for now, see you next week after the Canadian GP.

Sunday Musings, Monaco Edition

 

It's Sunday, time for a great cup of coffee and a Formula One race.  Not just any race mind you but the iconic Monaco Grand Prix.  But before I get to the race, let's have some coffee and recommendations.  For the coffee today, I used Onyx's Tropical Weather, and my. Aeropress.  To make the aeropress, I use the inverted method, which means, I turn the Aeropress over, and make the coffee upside down before flipping it over to press in the cup.  I prefer this method to putting the coffee and water in with the Aeropress upright.  It ensures that the coffee and water can fully mix without any water seeping out early.  Additionally, I used the Fellow Prismo Attachment made specifically for the Aeropress that adds additional pressure.  Overall makes for a tremendous rich intense cup of coffee.  Not quite espresso, but not like a normal cup of coffee either.  Silk, oily mouthfeel.  

Quick Rec

A quick recommendation for today.  Disney+ has released a tremendous documentary on The Beach Boys.  Recently there have been a couple of great docs on the Beatles, so it is nice to see something diving into what was one of their biggest competitors in the 60's.  Competitor may be the wrong word, they were really each other's driving inspiration. They went back and forth creating albums that would try to one up eacother from Revolve, to Pet Sounds, to Seargent Peppers they went back and forth expanding what music really could be.  The doc is enjoyable and shows the fragile mental state of Brian Wilson throughout this time period.  Overall worth a view.

Formula 1 race

It's Monaco time!  One of the most iconic, but boring races on the calendar.  Track is too small for the wide cars of today which leads to hardly any passing, and actual racing.  It's more about qualifying, and then managing tires for the entire race hoping that you don't have to pit and can stay ahead of the drivers behind. 

During practice sessions, Norris didn’t look great, but once qualifying started, he turned it on and qualified P4 with his McLaren teammate at P2 and the two Ferrari cars at P1 and P3.  Interestingly there were no Aston Martins qualified in the top 10.  So with qualifying being critical for Monaco, this isn't a bad start to the weekend.

The start seemed clean with no one having issues through the first turn, however, Sainz got a tire puncture and seemed like he was going to be out of the race, but shortly thereafter a red flag started waving due to a bad crash between red bull and Haas, the side pods of Perez’s red bull almost disengrated as he ran into the wall and then the second Haas car was taken out. To the surprise of no one Kevin Magnussen was involved in the crash.  Was it his fault?  Probably not a hundred percent, but he should have backed out especially in Monaco.  So barely into lap 1, 3 cars are out and the race was stopped. 

Depending on how things go, this can end up going well for McLaren as they should be able to gain on Red Bull in the constructors championship.

Additionally during the down time we learned there was contact between the two Alpine cars with one driving the other into the air.  It turns out that Esteban Ocon damaged his car so much he too was out.  So now 4 cars were out of the race.  

Once the Red Flag clears it will be standing restart.  Sainz will be able to start back at third, so the red flag ended up saving him and keeping him in the race as I don’t think he would have been able to return back to the pit if the cars were at full race speed.

For the restart, the top 4 drivers put on Hard Tires that could allow them to make ti through the end of the race.

Everyone made it through the first few turns unscathed this time.

Once the race started going, and the drivers got into their comfort zone it really began being more about tire management than racing, as expected.  

About a third of the way through the race, the top four drivers, Leclerc, Piastri and Sainz and Norris had made a fairly large gap to the rest of the pack, with a 13 second lead between Norris at P4 and Russell at P5.

Lots of tire chat on the team radios, talk of abrasion and graining.  Real riveting stuff.

As is typical, other than the craziness at the start there wasn’t much action. Very little passing, and a lot of tire management.  But overall happy with the results, McLaren won P2 and P4 which will help them in both the drivers and constructors champsionship.  It was very nice to see Monaco native Charles LeClerc to win the race after being 0-16 from the Pole recently.  Well deserved win for the Ferrari Driver.

After Monaco, the 8th race of the season we are a third of the way through the season.  Some takes on the season:

• We all thought Aston Martin was going to push McLaren and Ferrari and there would be 3 teams and then Red Bull.  Sadly that is not the case, between issues with the car, and Lance Stroll not being a very good driver, the Aston team just isn’t a competitive.
• We don’t have to fear this season being a repeat of the last two.  Yes Verstappen may and probably will win the drivers championship, but he isn’t going to run away with it.  Out of 8 races he has lost 3.  Additionally, I think there is a decent chance that Red Bull doesn’t win the constructors cup.  After a good start to the season Perez seems to be reverting back to last years form.  If he does that, the way Ferrari and McLaren are driving, either one of them could win the constructors championship.
• Speaking of Perez, if he doesn’t come through in one of the next two races and finish second, I think his time at RB is done.  The question will be is if they can sign Sainz, or if Sainz will have already signed with another team.  IF thats the case, who teams with Verstappen?  Tsunoda?
• For the Drivers Championship the top 5 look like this: Vestappen 169; LeClerc 138; Norris 113; Sainz 108; Perez 107.
• For the Constructors Champion the top 4 look like this: Red Bull 276; Ferrari 252, McLaren 184; Mercedes 96

Tag, Cognac and Cigar

 This Wednesday its not about Whiskey and Cigar pairings, but Cognac and Cigars, oh, and a Tag too.  But first the dram.  

Cognac is a liquor distilled from grapes and made in one region of France.  This specific Cognac comes from Famille Vallein Tercineier, a producer for over 150 years.  This particular expression the Napoleon Vieille Reserve is fantastic.  I actually won this in an auction a couple years ago at the Houston based Southern Smoke Festival, a wonderful and amazing charity for folks in the restaurant business.  So I don't break this out very often, but it is worth it when I do.  This is a blend of older and younger spirits with notes of citrus and vanilla on the nose.  The mouthfeel is smooth, unctuous, sweet, floral, orange marmalade.  It's nice, if not overtly complex, but as someone that doesn't know a ton about Cognac I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The Cigar

For whatever reason I was feeling in a special mood, not only breaking out the Cognac, but smoking one of my favorite special occasion cigars.  This cigar was one of the first that I had that really blew me away with its complexities, robustness and flavor.  It comes from my favorite cigar brand Oliva and is their Serie V Melanio.  This won Cigar Aficionado Cigar of the year back in 2014 few years back, and unfortunately the prices went up and they can sometimes be hard to find, but when I was introduced to them about a decade and a half ago I felt like they were a steal.  Now that's not necessarily the case but I still consider it a well priced smoke.  This is their Toro sized cigar and is one of my favorites.  Ecuador wrapper with fillers and binders from Nicaragua.  This is a full bodied cigar full of black pepper, bitter chocolate, leather, creamy coffee notes.  While it's robust and full flavored it's not harsh, I find this an exceptionally smooth smoke.  One of my most highly recommended cigars for those interested in something that is full bodied.  

Tag

My newest edition to my watch collection comes from Tag Hauer one of the brands that falls under LVLH brand.  Originally called just Hauer they are the maker of one of the most iconic watches in the world, The Monaco thanks to Steve McQueen.  The brand was purchased by TAG back in the 80's and sometimes gets a bad rap for the quality of watches they produced after TAG bought them.  However, in the last couple of years they are producing some amazing watches.  Last year they introduced a glass box Carrera their round dialed chronograph to the delight of many.  This year they took it a step further and introduced this vintage inspired panda dial with brushed silver steel and black sub dials.  This watch is absolutely stunning hands on.  It shines with radiance.  As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to have it so I called up my local watch store (Houston's own Zadok Jewelers) to see if could put my name down for one.  Not only did they do that, they got me the first one.  Amazing customer service!  I've had the watch for a couple of weeks now and I have really enjoyed it.  I've worn it on several different straps including the steel bracelet it comes on, some NATOs and some nice leather rally straps.  My favorite is the rally strap as that is the iconic look for these Carreras.  

It's well proportioned and the sapphire glass box allows you to read the dial from almost any angle and adds some depth that I think would be missing with a standard flat crystal.  The legibility is perfect and spot on.  The chronograph buttons have a nice give to it, and let you know they are engaged with a noticeable click sound.  My one complaint on the watch is the bracelet it comes with.  It looks great, but I am not a big fan of its comfort nor of the lack of micro-adjustment.  If you are buying a luxury watch it should come with the ability to do easy micro adjustments, so I do think Tag missed the boat. But for the watch itself?  It think they absolutely nailed it.  My full thoughts are at the video below.  Check it out.

Sunday Musings, F1 and the final day of Premiere League

 A fun sports Sunday with a F1 Race and the final day of the Premiere League season.  But coffee and recommendations first.  The coffee today comes from local Houston roaster Fusion Beans.  I've been enjoying Fusion Beans since they were selling them direct to customers at the Seabrook farmers market years ago, even before they opened up the fantastic Southside Espresso that has now sadly closed.  A great team that I always wish good things for.  This particular coffee is a single origin Guatemala coffee.  Used a Chemex to make this cup and got some really wonderful notes of chocolate, cream, and tropical fruits.  Lacked a little clarity, but that could have been my fault as I haven't dialed in the grinder for the Chemex filter.  Still a great cup, but will try this in my normal pour over to get the clarity and acidity I typically enjoy.

My recommendation this week is the newest season of Dr. Who which is now streaming on Disney+ here in the US.  I think that Jodie Whitaker gets a lot of undo flack for her time as the Doctor.  In mind the blame lies at the feet of the writer, so I was extremely happy to see Russell T. Davies back at the helm, along with the newest Doctor Ncuti Gatwa.  A couple of episodes in and I am thoroughly enjoying myself.  It's a mix of pushing the current boundaries while also being a bit of a throwback, a bit silly, but fun as Dr. Who should always be.  Can't wait for the rest of the season.

Formula 1

Today was the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola, the first of two GPs in Italy.

Overall McLaren had a good start to the weekend.  Both drivers were in the top 5 in qualifying.  Oscar was actually P2 after Q3, but got penalized 3 positions due to a run in with Magnussen in Q1, which put Lando at P2 and Oscar fell back to P5.  Surprising no one Max Verstappen was once again a top the Pole.

The start of the race was fairly pedestrian with most drivers starting on Medium tires.  Not a lot of crazy passing or anything at all really.  Imola can be a tough track to pass, with only one DRS zone, as well as being fairly narrow compared to other tracks not named Monaco.

The top of the leaderboard started pitting around lap 22 with Mercedes Driver Russell the first in the pit.  Followed by Lando pitting in lap 23 switching from Medium tires to Hard.  Lando tried to come out in front of Red Bulls Perez but the team just didn't time it right, however within in a lap he had passed the driver from Mexico.

Piastri also came in and pitted in lap 24 also switching to hard tires.

Norris eventually got up to P2 as others pitted, but he still felt like he wasn’t getting pace of the drivers behind him.  The McLaren crew fell that the other drivers were burning through their tires at a much higher rate than Norris was and that in the end it would work out.

Norris was solidly in P2 but it was obvious that this was yet another race where Verstappen and the Red Bull car were on another level.  At least for a little while, as the laps progressed Norris  started to nibble at Verstappen’s heals, as Max started to complain that his tires were shot.  LeClerc who had been attempting to get within striking distance of the McLaren driver began to fall back a little bit.  With11 laps to go at this point, the question was if there was enough left in the race for Norris to pull closer.

Norris showing once again that he is truly a tire whisperer, doing an outstanding job of nursing his tires allowing him to have some left for a fight at the end of the race to battle Max.

The last 5 laps Norris was pushing incredibly hard.  Some of the best driving I have seen all season.  Not just nibbling, but gulping down the space between him and the leading Red Bull. Getting it down to 1.5 seconds with 4 laps left.  Getting within DRS zone striking distance.

This was a rare race that actually had some excitement at the end of the race.

But it was for not. Norris may have pushed his car and tires to the limit and started to complain that he had lost all grip on his tires.  He still valiantly fought on through the remaining 3 laps, still nibbling, still fighting.  While Norris was running out of tires, Verstappen's battery was running out.  A great finish to the race with two drivers leaving it all on the track.  Unfortunately, Lando just ran out of time, narrowing Max’s lead to almost a half a second by the end of the race, but ultimately finishing P2 with Oscar finishing P4 and LeClerc at P3.  Some great points for Team Papaya.  Lando gaining on LeClerc in the Drivers championship and McLaren gaining on Ferrari and RB on the constructors championship.

Ferrari finally got on the podium at Imola for the first time since Schumacher thanks to the hard driving of LeClerc.

7 races into the season and we see some shuffling in the drivers championship:

Verstappen at top with 161 points,

LeClerc passed Perez and has 113 points to Perez's 107 and Norris is at 4th with 101 and Sainz rounding out the top 5 with 93 points.  Very close 2-5.

In the constructors championship, Red Bull stays atop with 268 points, Ferrari with 212 and McLaren gaining a little ground with 154 points.

Premiere League

I love how the EPL finishes their season.  All teams playing on the same day at the exact same time.  It makes for a great time of flipping among channels to see how everyone is doing especially when your team is playing for the championship.  Alas that is not the case for the reds this season.  They unfortunately played extremely poorly down the stretch.  They seemed lackluster and played with very little heart which was the most disappointing thing to see especially considering that this is to be Jurgen Klopps last season with the Reds.  Klopp came into a team that was struggling and in a short time has lead  them to multiple championships winning multiple different types of titles.  I had hoped that they would win another premiere league for him this year, but it wasn't meant to be.  

One of the coolest scenes today was the crowds lining the Liverpool Streets as the team bus made its way to Anfielf, the fans singing and changing for Jurgen showing him a tremendous amount of love and appreciation for all that he has done for the city.  He will go down as one of the great managers that Liverpool has had and is incredibly beloved by every Reds fan.

While the Reds didn't have anything to play for today, I had high hopes that they would step and play their hearts out for Klopp, especially considering there were some players like Mo Salah who were probably playing their last match for LFC.

A rather frustratingly lack luster start to the match.  At the 28th minutes, a Wolves es player got sent off with a red card leaving them a man down for the rest of the match.  McAllister finally put one in the net for the Reds at the 34th minute.  Giving them the lead hopefully for the rest of the match.

Shortly after Quansah scored on an assist from Salah to make it 2-0 at the half.  The reds slowed down the second half, but still gave Klopp a win in his final match.  It was nice to see him give the fist pump one last time and the crowd was amazing in their outpouring of love to Jurgen.

They started chanting for him with 5 minutes left in regular play and kept it up throughout extra time and afterwards.  I can't imagine what it must have been like to be there live, how loud and loving it would ben.

Overall after having some high hopes for this season, I end on a disappointment.  Yes the Reds win, but Man City once again finish the season on top of the table.  Worse, I have to believe that the Reds are going to take a big step back next season.  While I think Slot will be a good manager he will need a season or two to put his stamp on the team.  Plus I believe there will be significant turnover with not only Salah leaving, but a few other players as well.  The team will look and feel completely different next season so not sure how far up the table they will finish.  Cheers to Jurgen and all the success he has had with this team.  He has done so much for the team and the city, I wish him all the happiness in what ever he does next.