Jobs's Dead Man's Chest

Frankly, I have a strong impulse to short AAPL after it hit $700. However, one big concern is I don't know what Jobs has left in his dead man's chest that was handed over to Tim Cook. iPhone5 is certainly not something from the chest. So we are still waiting. The chest may contain some disruptive idea that would rock the world like a black swan but it's also possible the chest contains nothing. Either way, a volatility play is much safer than directional bet.

Jiro Dreams of Sushi

虽然Jiro是一个寿司制作的大师，然而为人却略显苍白，导演未能将整个影片的节奏置于自己的控制之下，使得整个纪录片内容感觉单薄。

Heroic Polonaise

Arthur Rubinstein, Vladimir Horowitz, Yundi Li的演绎在我听来是三个境界。Horowitz的技巧无可挑剔，但Rubinstein的版本却似乎是更具感染力的表达。

Ardbeg 10yo

Spotted an old Ardbeg 10yo in McTear's auction, probably bottled  in 60s or 70s. A little surprised to see it was estimated 100-200GBP. I was determined to pay 500GBP. And then the auctioneer said, "we will start the bid at 900GBP".... It was finally sold for 1200GBP.

I have no problem with the price given the popularity of Ardbeg and the rarity of 60/70s bottles .. But it is out of my reach.

Some observations on China wine market I

China effect?

China has become the buzzword in the wine industry in recent years. Most of the time, the reference to China effect is used to justify skyrocketing wine prices, especially those of Bordeaux and Burgundy.  After the past few go-go years, it seems everyone is now taking a break and tries to figure out where the China wine market is heading in the future.

I am not a wine expert or wine dealer. However, I do have my own first-hand experience about the China wine market. Given the great misunderstanding that I read everyday on the Internet, I would like to provide some of my own observations on the China wine market.

When talking about the China wine market, people will probably think of Chateau Lafite at first. I still remember when I bought a case of Carruades de Lafite IB and sold back to the dealer just a few months later at twice the previous price. While this is an impressive case, it doesn't provide much information. First, in terms of this part of market, China is the same as all other wine-consuming countries, i.e., dominated by the basic supply-demand relationship. Given a limited supply (well, let's not consider those fake bottles at the moment), increasing demand leads to increasing price. Second, Chateau Lafite is not big enough to benefit anyone (excluding the halo effect at the moment). So I guess people may be concerned about two more fundamental  questions: What is the real driving force behind the Lafite frenzy? And, for those wine producers and dealers who can't get their hands on Lafite, what is the meaning of a prospering China wine market to them?

Bought an antique bowl accidentally

Its accurate description should be 清广彩开光人物故事大碗. The decoration and drawing on the bowl indicate that it should be made and exported in late 19th century.

I am into whisky now...

Forget about wines. Start my investment in whikies, but only at reasonable prices.

First batch:

Brora, Macallan, Laphroaig, Lochside

晴耕雨读烧酒

萨摩本格芋烧酎。也就20度左右，在常温喝水味较重，冰后在0-5度品尝反而更有风味，果香米香更为明显，酒精的配合也恰到好处，口感更为醇厚。