revtothelimit - motorbike forum

ZRX61 wrote: Thu Jun 25, 2026 2:43 pm but the effect is fairly short-lived in 2% humidity.

2%! I'd take that right now. Just checked and it's 76% at the moment and a low today of 54% with a current temp of 34 and 23 overnight. Sleeping is horrible, upstairs in the house is like satan's armpit.

It's a Heat Dome don't you know!

Just like the Thunder Dome off Mad Max, but way more dangerous.

I guess no one in Europe is aware of this thing:

https://www.instructables.com/10-minute ... cooler-AC/


& yes, they work quite well

ZRX61 wrote: Thu Jun 25, 2026 3:56 pm I guess no one in Europe is aware of this thing:

https://www.instructables.com/10-minute ... cooler-AC/


& yes, they work quite well

I'm on a Speed Triple, that'd fall off the pillion seat.

Ava_Banana wrote: Thu Jun 25, 2026 4:16 pm

ZRX61 wrote: Thu Jun 25, 2026 3:56 pm I guess no one in Europe is aware of this thing:

https://www.instructables.com/10-minute ... cooler-AC/


& yes, they work quite well

I'm on a Speed Triple, that'd fall off the pillion seat.

You want a TEMU are con unit.

The way I'm surviving the heat is to put the red wine in the fridge. This may sound like the actions of a heathen, but it doesn't spoil the drinking experience and the folks in the south of France do it, and they know their onions. And garlic. And wine.

mangocrazy wrote: Fri Jun 26, 2026 9:18 pm The way I'm surviving the heat is to put the red wine in the fridge. This may sound like the actions of a heathen, but it doesn't spoil the drinking experience and the folks in the south of France do it, and they know their onions. And garlic. And wine.

Do they? I've just come back from ten days in Marseille and drank red every day and none of it was chilled. Sounds like the actions of a mad man.

You might be better off keeping the red wine out of the fridge and you sitting in the fridge. That way you stay cool and your wine isn't chilled.

dern wrote: Fri Jun 26, 2026 10:53 pm

mangocrazy wrote: Fri Jun 26, 2026 9:18 pm The way I'm surviving the heat is to put the red wine in the fridge. This may sound like the actions of a heathen, but it doesn't spoil the drinking experience and the folks in the south of France do it, and they know their onions. And garlic. And wine.

Do they? I've just come back from ten days in Marseille and drank red every day and none of it was chilled. Sounds like the actions of a mad man.

You might be better off keeping the red wine out of the fridge and you sitting in the fridge. That way you stay cool and your wine isn't chilled.

Some reds are ok chilled - the lighter stuff with low tannins and they do drink it like that in some areas - it might perk up some cheap bottles but you wouldn't want to ruin your fine burgundy collection.

On the flip side reds are often served overly warm (room temperature used to be lower) and whites over-chilled (instead of at cellar temperature). But, modern wines are often designed to cope with thermal abuse.

The other option is a bottle or two of chilled, decent, rosé. Or go the whole hog and get a £4 bottle of Aldi red and put ice, a slice and mint in it...better still, drink beer.

Edited: I put high tannins before....and that's exactly what you don't want. Oops.

dern wrote: Fri Jun 26, 2026 10:53 pm

mangocrazy wrote: Fri Jun 26, 2026 9:18 pm The way I'm surviving the heat is to put the red wine in the fridge. This may sound like the actions of a heathen, but it doesn't spoil the drinking experience and the folks in the south of France do it, and they know their onions. And garlic. And wine.

Do they? I've just come back from ten days in Marseille and drank red every day and none of it was chilled. Sounds like the actions of a mad man.

You might be better off keeping the red wine out of the fridge and you sitting in the fridge. That way you stay cool and your wine isn't chilled.

I have a house in the centre of the Cotes du Thongue IGP region and the village is completely surrounded by vineyards. Drinking chilled red is very much a recognised option, as of course is drinking chilled rose or white. Or beer, if you must.

There's nothing mad about it, it makes perfect sense. The taste of the wine does change a little, I found that a favourite red of mine actually became smoother and more velvety and had notes of chocolate where none was present before. I can't speak for how your favourite red may taste chilled, but I'd at least try it before dismissing it out of hand.

mangocrazy wrote: Fri Jun 26, 2026 9:18 pm The way I'm surviving the heat is to put the red wine in the fridge. This may sound like the actions of a heathen, but it doesn't spoil the drinking experience and the folks in the south of France do it, and they know their onions. And garlic. And wine.

My brother swears by chilled red wine. I'm not a wine drinker and definitely not a connoisseur, but I'd take a chilled drink in this heat over a room temp one right now!!

mangocrazy wrote: Sat Jun 27, 2026 9:06 am

dern wrote: Fri Jun 26, 2026 10:53 pm

mangocrazy wrote: Fri Jun 26, 2026 9:18 pm The way I'm surviving the heat is to put the red wine in the fridge. This may sound like the actions of a heathen, but it doesn't spoil the drinking experience and the folks in the south of France do it, and they know their onions. And garlic. And wine.

Do they? I've just come back from ten days in Marseille and drank red every day and none of it was chilled. Sounds like the actions of a mad man.

You might be better off keeping the red wine out of the fridge and you sitting in the fridge. That way you stay cool and your wine isn't chilled.

I have a house in the centre of the Cotes du Thongue IGP region and the village is completely surrounded by vineyards. Drinking chilled red is very much a recognised option, as of course is drinking chilled rose or white. Or beer, if you must.

There's nothing mad about it, it makes perfect sense. The taste of the wine does change a little, I found that a favourite red of mine actually became smoother and more velvety and had notes of chocolate where none was present before. I can't speak for how your favourite red may taste chilled, but I'd at least try it before dismissing it out of hand.

Wot AI sez:

'Light-bodied, fruity red wines with low tannins and high acidity are the best choices for chilling. The cooler temperature keeps them refreshing and enhances their bright berry flavors without making the wine taste overly astringent.'

So I should have said 'with low tannins' earlier.

The red I chilled would not be described as being 'low tannin' - it's a Cab Sauv/Merlot blend that originates from an excellent domaine about 3-4 kms away from our village and was from the 2014 vintage. If anything it enhanced the already smooth tannins. I guess that every wine is different and you would need to experiment to see which wines lend themselves best to chilling.

You learn something new every day

As an aside, we did a wine tasting in Marseille which was good fun. We're definitely not knowledgable about wine (see above) but when he gave me some expensive chateauneuf-du pape to taste, it was one of those "ah, bollocks, everything else tastes a bit less good now" moments. Very much liked it.

dern wrote: Sat Jun 27, 2026 10:56 am You learn something new every day

As an aside, we did a wine tasting in Marseille which was good fun. We're definitely not knowledgable about wine (see above) but when he gave me some expensive chateauneuf-du pape to taste, it was one of those "ah, bollocks, everything else tastes a bit less good now" moments. Very much liked it.

Good Chateauneuf will put most wines in the shade...

I've been a fan of Rhone valley wines for almost as long as I've been drinking wine, and Chateauneuf is a southern Rhone wine that rather dominates the landscape. Gigondas is another southern Rhone in the same vein, and prices are following Chateauneuf. The price-conscious buyer looks for Cotes du Rhone Villages - these have achieved higher quality than ordinary Cotes du Rhone and the best have their own appellation; villages like Seguret, Chusclan, Vacqueyras and Vinsobre.

Rhone wines are ace...

I know this is veering off-topic, but if anyone wants to know more about the wines in our little corner of France, there is an excellent website (in English) that does a great job of introducing people to wines of the Cotes du Thongue and explaining why it's an IGP and what benefits that brings.

https://www.cotesdethonguewines.co.uk/

mangocrazy wrote: Sat Jun 27, 2026 4:10 pm

dern wrote: Sat Jun 27, 2026 10:56 am You learn something new every day

As an aside, we did a wine tasting in Marseille which was good fun. We're definitely not knowledgable about wine (see above) but when he gave me some expensive chateauneuf-du pape to taste, it was one of those "ah, bollocks, everything else tastes a bit less good now" moments. Very much liked it.

Good Chateauneuf will put most wines in the shade...

I've been a fan of Rhone valley wines for almost as long as I've been drinking wine, and Chateauneuf is a southern Rhone wine that rather dominates the landscape. Gigondas is another southern Rhone in the same vein, and prices are following Chateauneuf. The price-conscious buyer looks for Cotes du Rhone Villages - these have achieved higher quality than ordinary Cotes du Rhone and the best have their own appellation; villages like Seguret, Chusclan, Vacqueyras and Vinsobre.

Rhone wines are ace...

I used to buy southern Rhones 'in bond' most years. Built up quite a collection in the Wine Society storage place. Drank them as they came into full bloom and some of them were epic.

However, the prices have got silly over the last 10 years. The attraction was buying 'cheap', paying to keep them properly stored and having the patience to wait. Then drink wine that you'd think twice and blink thrice at paying for at the going price*. They've priced in the increase in value so, even bought in bond they're pricey. The Wine Soc just released some of their 2016-2020 Rhones. The prices are a bit

https://www.thewinesociety.com/buy/wine ... gion=14885

* my approach was 'I may end up a pauper in retirement but I'll drink like a lord'. ) Now my alcohol intake is minimal....but there's still some left in store, so, once a year I have a week of hedonism.