Wine Review: Graham’s 10 Tawny Port-Just a Touch of Portugal

If you are looking for a sweet wine that is so smooth it feels like silk on your taste buds and satin sheets on your bed you might want to sip a glass of Graham’s 10 Tawny Porto. At an affordable price of $23, it provides a great taste and the feel of luxury without having to pay heavy for it. The wine pours a smooth golden brown color when held to the light. The taste is nutty and dry with high alcohol content.  It does not take much to put a smile on your face.

Graham’s 10 is a 10-year old brandy fortified wine was stored in oak casts on the Douro River in Portugal. If it were designated as a 20, 30, or 40 it would mean the wine has been seasoned for a corresponding amount of years.  The longer the port wine has been stored the smoother the taste and higher the quality.  Of course quality doesn’t come free and one should expect the price to rise as well.

Tawny Port wine is often severed as a dessert wine after a meal. It is sweet, dry, and full of flavor. Such wines have higher alcohol content and can be quiet powerful in their spirit allocations. Generally, such wines are expensive due to the amount of years they have been kept in storage. This cellar time raises both its value and its taste.  The wine may equally be used as a toasting and sipping wine for long drawn out conversations.

W & J Graham’s was formed in the 1820’s from two Scottish families in Portugal. Since that time, the family vineyards have grown in both stature and quality. The Graham family had other interests in England and India making their empire wide and powerful. The families were seen as one of the “merchant princes of Great Britain”. Today the company maintains an important historical connection to the past. 

Port is a fortified wine that takes its unique genre from the town of Oporto in Portugal. Prior to this non-fortified wines became a major export after the establishment of the Kingdom of Portugal in 1143. The Treaty of Windsor in 1386 offered an ever large wine trading partnership between Portugal and England. Merchants moved to England and set up shipping establishments that created greater opportunities for maximum exports.

A trading conflict between England and France further pushed the development of Portuguese wine. Accordingly, in 1667 Louis XIV of France banned products from England. Not to be outdone the English retaliated by banning wines from France. The merchants from Portugal were so busy they ran short of supply and started to water down their products. 

Wine traveling such large distances needed to be fortified to maintain its taste. Merchants began to add a little brandy to each bottle just before shipping. Through this, they found that by fortifying their wines during the fermentation process it made the wines taste both sweater and more fresh.  The process not only created long bottles for storage like the ones you use today but also allowed for such wines to be stored longer. 

Blog Ranking: 4.6/5

Price: $24

http://www.grahams-port.com/

The Cultural Factors of Organizational Innovation

Organizational culture is an important but often overlooked aspect of the innovative process. Without the right cultural tone the overall amount and quality of new products and services are likely to be reduced. The strength of the cultural underpinnings influence the success of employee thinking and supports the proper experimental mindset. 

When it comes to knowledge of innovative processes the literature is revealing. Yet there are other contextual factors that influence the success and contribution to such process. The literature is weak on the concept of tacit and difficult to define cultural factors of innovation (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995). It is these cultural influences that determines the mental state and commitment to the success of future innovations. 

Those who support that culture are often seen as entrepreneurs.  Such innovative entrepreneurs are risk takers who seize upon opportunities to develop something new (Sarasvathy, Dew, Velamuri & Venkataraman, 2003). It is the creation of new products and solutions to produce higher levels of development for personal and professional gain that seems to take precedence. 

Yet understanding who is willing to create innovation and the process of innovation doesn’t tell us how to engage in innovation on an organizational scale. The research on contextual culture and its impact on innovation are weak. Understanding how organizations develop and create an innovative culture is important for higher levels of performance. 

A case study of Tele by Meissner and Sprenger (2010) looked at innovative from a contextual, procedural and cultural perspective. The purpose was to determine the interdependencies and communication patterns that give rise to organizational innovation. The researchers used interview questions the company to help determine the most appropriate factors in developing this culture. 

-Aversion to experimentation impacts innovative growth within organizations.

-Power dynamics reduced the successful completion of projects. 

-Management education and learning predispositions impacted the effectiveness of innovative cultures. 

Analysis:

Culture factors are not easy to see or determine from standard analytical investigation. However, it is these cultural factors that impact the organizations predispositions to developing innovative products and services. Organizations that have a proper culture will make adequate cultural acceptance for experimentation, minimize power abusers and brokers, and continuously develop their management teams. Failure to provide the right context increases resistance to new ideas and thoughts that leads to higher avenues of revenue generation. 

Author: Dr. Murad Abel

Meissner, J. & Sprenger, M. (2010). Mixing methods in innovative research: studying the process-culture-link in innovation management. Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 11 (3). 

Nonaka, Ikujiro & Takeuchi, Hirotaka (1995). The knowledge-creating company. New York: Oxford

University Press.

Sarasvathy, S., Dew, N., Velamuri, R. & Venkataraman, S. (2003). Three views on entrepreneurial opportunities. In Zoltan J. Acs & David B. Audretsch (Eds.), Handbook of entrepreneurship research (pp.141-160). New York: Springer.

The Mythical History of Fort East Martello in Key West Florida

If you are in search of a historical get-a-way with a little bit of mystery you might want to visit Fort East Martello in Key West Florida. The old fort is located right next to the airport so you cannot miss it on either your way in or your way out.  It is both educational and thought provoking. Families can enjoy teaching their children about the history of the Civil War as well as the freakish nature of the Chucky Doll. If this hasn’t scared them into your arms then you might want to read some of the spooky letters of customers who did not believe! 

During the civil war Fort East Martello was designed as additional protection for the Key West Island. Construction began in 1862 but was halted and eventually abandoned by the U.S. Army at the end of the Civil War. Not a single battle was won or fought in the West Keys region throughout the entire era of this conflict. It remained a place of teenage fun and partying until the Historical Society adopted the fort in the 1950s. Through both local and national donations they were able to clean up, restore and open to the public a little piece of history and wonderment. 

Within the museum visitors will see a variety of wooden art pieces by Mario Sanchez and metal works by Stanley Papio. Displays also include the history of the Island, WWI, WWII, The Spanish-American War, and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Cannons still face the water as if to protect the fort from the onslaught of present day skidoos, surfers, and wind sailors. The site also hosts a gift shop with the local writings from Ernest Hemmingway, Key West history, Ghost Stories and other historical tid bits. 

Walking into the gallery one gets the sense that history is not so far in the past. From the dust covered floors, the eerie walkways, and the horse drawn hearse you become aware that this is a place of mystery. Among the relics of the Union Army is the knowledge that two swaths of yellow fever and a devastating hurricane slowed the construction of the fort. Carpenters changed effort from building the military instillation to building coffins for solders who suffocated under muggy hot weather.  The fort was never completed and became a lost cause.  

The abandonment of the fort is part of the haunted legend of the area. Some say that new exploding cannonballs made the fort useless as a military instillation. Others indicated that the fevers, death and setbacks were part of the haunted history of a project that ended in disaster. Whatever the reason the fort was abandoned it is seen today as a remarkable piece of military history and local historical legend. 

One of the mystical stories of Fort Martello remains encapsulated with Robert the Doll. As the legend states, a young Haitian girl made the straw doll for Robert Otto. As a boy, Robert had a natural inclination for mischief making and boyish trouble. When he was caught he would say, “Robert did it!” and point to the doll.  The saying was adopted throughout the Key West area as a way of skirting responsibility.  If there is no one to blame- it must have been Robert!

Further legend indicates that Robert the Doll was made with Haitian voodoo magic and can cause all types of havoc in people’s lives. This doll was further characterized into the modern movie starring Chucky from Child’s Play that has frightened an entire generation. The doll took on the personality of his ill-tempered owner Robert Otto and spreads this evil spirit into other’s lives. 

Before being relocated to the museum Robert Otto placed the doll in the attic and forgot about it until his death.  At such time neighbors began to recall an “evil giggle”, followed by a rustling noise, coming from the attic. A few have even witnessed the doll peering down from the window in the darkest hours of the night. Today letters flood the museum, posted on its wall, asking Robert for forgiveness as their lives and relationships have been ruined after failing to ask permission to take his picture. 

The battery and center tower are a great place to look out over the bay. There is no wonder why the military chose this spot as an ideal location to build an instillation to protect the local islands. Inside each of the rooms are large fireplaces still blackened from the fires of the original military inhabitants. Parts of the fort have crumbled away but have only succeeded in improving its overall charm. It is worth the $7 admissions and the hour you spend exploring the past. 

Robert the Doll-The inspiration for Chucky in Child's Play

I can’t remember if you were supposed to ask for permission to TAKE the picture or LOOK at the picture? Oops…I guess I should have mentioned that earlier. 

3501 S. Roosevelt Blvd.
Key West, Florida 33040
1 (305) 296-3913

http://www.kwahs.org/visit/fort-east-martello/

The State of Business Communication Course Development in the U.S.

Business and personal communication are seen as some of the fundamental cornerstones of developing a successful career. With proper communication it is possible to influence people, understand people, and share your views with others. Through communication we are able to understand and relate to each other in important ways that further not only our interests but the interests of others. Research helps colleges understand how current communication is being taught and the subject matter of those courses.

According to Du-Babcock (2006), “Business communication has established itself as an important subject area and has become an integral component of business and school curricula” (p. 254). Since communication is so important in life it has been adopted into university business curriculum and continues to evolve. Through the development of student’s communication abilities they are able to expand their horizons.

”The limits of my language means the limits of my world.” -Ludwig Wittgenstein

As a representation of life, the language we use determines how we see the world. To communicate that effectively in a business setting means to influence the perceptions and abilities of others. It provides future businessmen and businesswomen opportunities to influence their environment in unique ways. Seeking to create higher levels of communication is effective in everything from interpersonal relationships to the selling of products.

The teaching of communication is on a continuous growth pattern in universities. A number of audits over the past 30 years have examined the evolutionary pedagogical and programmatic developments of courses (Wardrope & Bayless, 1999). Modern courses may seek to include new forms of communication such as texting and videoconferencing as well as older forms such as face-to-face and formal letters.

The study conducted by Russ (2009) surveyed 505 faculty members from 321 U.S. colleges and universities to determine who the major departmental sponsors of communication courses are, the level that introductory courses are taught, the average size of the introductory course, the medium of such courses, the depth of topics covered, and the types of assignments. The study’s findings are as follows:

-The study found that the most common curriculum in business schools was written communication, public speaking, persuasive and ethical communication, employment communication and mediated communication (email).

-The least taught education communication included interpersonal communication, mediated communication (text and video conferencing), and communication theory.

-The business department has grown in terms of hosting communication courses.

-Juniors and sophomores are the target of most introductory communication courses.

-The majority of students were in larger classes (over 30 students).

-The majority of teachers facilitate the courses in a traditional classroom setting (73.5%), online (3%) and a hybrid format (23.6%).

Analysis:

A vast majority of schools focus on traditional communication mediums which help to prepare students for a wide variety of employment situations. In the future, schools can consider the faster incorporation of new communication tools to help students prepare for changing markets based upon emerging technologies. Theoretical understandings of communications are not being taught at a satisfactory level even though such understandings create a context for future communication method incorporation. However, such theoretical understandings are likely to be offered in graduate courses but should briefly be introduced in later year undergraduate courses. The mechanical bases of communication are heavier in freshman and sophomore years to foster the development of rudimentary writing skills and higher levels of college academic performance.

Author: Dr. Murad Abel

Du-Babcock, B. (2006). Teaching business communication: Past, present, and future. Journal

of Business Communication, 43, 253-264.

Wardrope, W. J., & Bayless, M. L. (1999). Content of the business communication course: An

analysis of the coverage. Business Communication Quarterly, 62, 33-40.

Russ, T. (2009). The Status of the business communication course at U.S. Colleges and Universities.

Business Communication Quarterly, 72 (4).