When the days start to shorten, the cold soon sets in. If you are having trouble finding the perfect gift for someone this autumn/winter, you can give them something useful. Whether you need a ‘get well soon’ gift to lift someone’s spirits or a birthday present that you know will come in handy; there are some top gifts to keep them toasty this season. Look for a Le creuset sale from great retailers like www.cookandbakeware.co.uk

www.cookandbakeware.co.uk

Snug Rug – The revolutionary snug rug has taken the world by storm. The innovative design allows you to snuggle up on the sofa, stay warm and continue with reading or eating without having to escape the warmth of your blanket. The snug rug is essentially a blanket with sleeves but this toasty topper makes a great gift as it comes in a variety of colours and different thicknesses to suit every taste.
Microwaveable Soft Toys – If you are looking for something for the kids this winter, microwaveable soft toys are the younger generation’s answer to a hot water bottle. Their favourite animal can be heated in the microwave and give them something warm to snuggle up to on those cold winter nights.
Novelty Hot Water Bottle – If you want a gift that is a little more personal, you could warm their hearts this winter with a novelty heart-shaped hot water bottle that includes a heart-felt message.
Animal Head Slippers – For a more amusing gift, give them something silly like animal head slippers. They keep your feet warm and give you a giggle along the way during those dark and drab wintery nights.

Concerned winemakers are using asset labels to combat the future growth of high-value wine fraud

Concerned winemakers are using asset labels and cutting-edge technology to fight the future growth of high-end wine fraud – where bottles of inferior plonk are passed off as valuable vintages.

It may seem hard to believe that billionaires can be the victims of fraud – and equally hard to believe that a bottle of wine can cost $100,000 (£50,000). But both can happen, and cases of knock-off Rioja and fake Burgundies are burgeoning as the wine ‘label fraud’ industry goes from strength to blockbusting-Shiraz strength.

In one recent case a Florida billionaire sued a German wine dealer for selling him five bottles of 18^th century wine – allegedly owned by Thomas Jefferson, the US president and sometime envoy to France – for half a million dollars. The wine’s labels and bottles offer the only clues to its authenticity: the Age of Reason was not enlightened enough to consider using asset labels to label its assets.

Asset labels common everywhere

The value of using some kind of asset label to validate or authenticate a product can hardly be overemphasised. Almost all of us will have several such asset labels close at hand – bank cards are an obvious one – on things worth a lot less than £50,000 in most cases.

It is no surprise, then, to see an article on wine writer Jancis Robinson’s website pointing out that, “An increasing number of fine wine producers have been developing varied new ways of protecting the authenticity of their products. An early measure, for example, was Château Pétrus’s label markings that could be read only under ultra-violet light. Others have been engraving bottles, or linking microchips to the process of pulling the cork. Understandable secrecy surrounds the detail of some of these measures but we can be sure that fine wine will be a useful market for security-linked technologies.”

Asset labels not just for the classic vintages

Robinson is understandably vague on the details – although she seems to be suggesting some kind of RFID tag – but is undoubtedly correct and may even underestimate the problem. Wine label fraudsters do not just target classic vintages – there is a market for relatively young vintages from a vineyard like Pétrus that could have been prevented by introducing more sophisticated asset labels earlier.

It is therefore pleasing to hear that several wineries in California are taking the threat seriously and, it was reported in June 2007, will be using anti-counterfeiting technology developed by Kodak – which uses asset labels with ink that is invisible to everything except special readers – to prove the authenticity of their wines.

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/wine/

One very interesting facet of London dating is the party scene. You have your mundane to your all-out theme celebrations.

Just look at the numerous parties a lot of singletons are attending for instance. That’s pretty much what London dating is all about. It is about singletons having a wonderful time as they go about searching for a mate. One example of such parties is a wine tasting event. As the name suggests, this occasion has for its main theme, wine tasting. It is not a simple tasting event however. Why?

Its main objective is to allow people the chance to experience some of the best wines in the world. Moreover, this event gives singletons a chance to meet other singletons as well.

Apart from the opportunity to taste some the best wines, you will likewise be taught how to become a wine connoisseur in your own right. Picture this: you arrive at the event early in the evening. Upon arrival, you are greeted with your first full glass of fine wine. Just to give you a taste, so to speak. That is not all. The organisers will be providing you with 5 half glasses of some of the best tasting wines as well. Of course, dinner is always served.

For the singletons, your time might just be now. This is because you will be allowed to mingle with other people while savouring some of the most exquisite wines. Here, you can chat and talk about wine, or whatever suits your fancy.

If you think however that this is all the organisers have to offer, then you are wrong. The main event of the evening is the “Around the World” wine tasting challenge. Taking a queue from the name of the activity, your knowledge of wines will be put to the test. Four equally interesting stages have been put together. Thee include: wine tasting, telling the difference between old and new wines, food and wine matching, and knowing what wine is served to you – while being blindfolded. This line-up of activities is a sure-fire way of impressing your date. You need not worry if you are not a wine expert. The challenge is designed in such a way that you will be educated on wine basics.

So why not read up and start tasting those wines today. There are some fantastic fine wine sellers around. Who knows? That glass of wine may hold the key to a successful London dating activity.

For many people, cooking healthily is just as daunting as eating properly.

In order to achieve your weight loss goals, you not only have to start thinking differently about the way you eat, but also the way you cook. It is lovely to look at a pile of beautiful fresh vegetables, but if you go ahead and cook them in a lot of butter, you’re reducing their effectiveness in your weight loss plan. Similarly, the use of saturated fats in cooking can do you far more harm than good. It may take you a while to get used to some different cooking methods, but it will be worthwhile when you next get measured or weighed.

Healthy cooking involves a whole range of things. You are the head of your kitchen, and the food that gets cooked in there is entirely of your own making. It’s up to you whether to use low fat spray or butter for your stir fry, or whether to top your baked potato with low fat yoghurt rather than sour cream. What you eat and how you cook it is entirely under your own control, but we do have some hints to help you on your way:

Nibbles

Whether you’re having guests for a Barbeque or for dinner, most people put out something to go with drinks when people arrive. This is usually dips, with crisps, breadsticks or vegetable sticks. You can still keep the nibbles, but substitute low fat dips for the full-on variety, and use all vegetable sticks and no crisps or other fried snacks.

Meat

If you’re roasting meat, roast it on a rack over a tray. This will allow the fat to drop down into the tray and not collect around the meat. Baste the meat in orange juice rather than the meat juices, to avoid introducing any fat back into the meat.

For other meats, try grilling or stir frying. Grilling, like roasting, encourages the fat to leave the meat, and stir frying allows small strips of meat to be cooked quickly and healthily, as it requires very little oil for cooking.

Vegetables

Wherever possible, steam vegetables to retain as many of the nutrients as you can. Avoid sauces, or adding butter to the vegetables at the end. Vegetables can be added to a stir fry, which cooks them quickly.

At SureSlim, we can help you with other healthy cooking methods that will help you to manage your weight loss and reach your target weight.

http://www.tescodiets.com/index.cfm?code=350262&gclid=CKWOrJXWwK4CFeImtAodWzPT0g

Changing your diet isn’t just about eating different foods; it’s about preparing and cooking them differently too.

The cooking methods you choose can have a big effect on your diet. Cooking vegetables with saturated fat like butter, for example, can go some way to neutralising the benefits of the vegetables. In order to lose weight successfully, you need to look at the way you cook your food, and adopt healthier styles of cooking that will help you to reach your target weight. So, get out your saucepans and get cooking, the healthy way.

Steaming

Steaming is the best way to cook vegetables. Not only does it avoid using any type of fats in the cooking process, but because the vegetables are in a basket, protected from the water, none of the vitamins and nutrients are lost to the water and drained away. Wherever possible, you should steam vegetables, and some steamers can also be used for other foods, such as fish.

Baking

As long as you don’t smother your meat or vegetables in butter or oil, baking is a good way to retain flavour and cook healthily. It’s much better to bake chicken and fish than to fry them, and by adding herbs, naturally sweet vegetables and citrus juices, you can create a delicious meal with no added fat content at all. If you are roasting or baking meat by itself, put it on a rack over a tray so that the fat drips off away from the meat, and baste with lemon juice rather than oil.

Grilling

Grilling meat also reduces the amount of fat. Grilling bacon, for example, rather than frying it, allows all the fat to drip away from the meat and is therefore much healthier. Grilling is also good for fish and produces great flavours from some types of vegetables.

Stir-frying

Stir-frying is a great, low-fat way to create an interesting meal. You can use a small amount of low-fat spray to fry, or substitute wine or a little seasoned stock. The rapidity of the stir-fry method means that the vegetables hold their nutrients and all their flavour.

There are other ways of cooking more healthily, including not cooking at all; making salads from raw vegetables is a great way to fill you up and ensure that you don’t lose any of the essential nutrients from the ingredients. Avoid deep frying and shallow-frying wherever possible, as these methods add a high level of fats to your diet, which is something you’re trying to reduce.

If you’re buying a Costa Brava property and you’re planning to live there for all or part of the year, you’ll want to know more about what life is like. To find out more visit: http://www.overseasliving.co.uk/

TheCosta Bravahas been popular for many years, with people of varying nationalities choosing to live amongst its rocky coastline and stunning beaches. Many people from theUKbuy a second property in theCosta Bravaregion, either to live in themselves, to use as a holiday property, or to rent out. There are a number of things that attract people to the area, not only as a holiday destination, but also as a place to live permanently.

The Weather

The better weather is something that attracts many people from theUKto the warmer parts ofEurope. In southernSpain, the weather is very warm all year round, and particularly hot in the summer. One of the benefits of the Costa Brava is that the weather is warm, but not as hot as further south, which means that you can enjoy yourCosta Bravaproperty in comfort all year round.

The Economy

The Costa Brava is withinCatalonia, which has a strong economy and low unemployment rates. The tourist trade is an important part of the economy and, in some places, is a year-round business, as visitors come for the sun and the sea in the summer and for more energetic pursuits such as trekking or skiing in the colder months. Be aware though, that like many holiday resorts, some parts of the coast are deserted during the winter, with stores and restaurants closing for the season. The region is well-served by airports, trains and motorways and is close to the major Spanish city ofBarcelona. The cost of living is very reasonable.

Other Residents

TheCosta Bravais very cosmopolitan. Unlike many other areas that are rich in ex-patriots, there are no areas or estates where people from the same country live closely together. On the contrary, everyone mingles well, and if you take advantage of the activities and culture on offer, it is quite easy to make new friends. This can be very useful as they will be good sources of advice on local services, amenities and legislation.

Before buying your Costa Brava property and committing to living in a new country, take some time to visit the areas you are interested in; both in and out of season so that you make sure you will be happy with your new lifestyle.