View allAll Photos Tagged cidery,
I had so much fun watching the up up up circus again tonight... i am going to eventually edit my photos and videos in make a youtube clip of them... Their comedy makes me laugh so loud! not everybody seems to get that kind of comedy but I totally get it and I feel a kinship with that sort of Carol Burnett Style.... I don't know what you call that!? extremely absurd ridiculous and yet clever and then it gives me this feeling like I'm in kindergarten again you know like when you're a little kid... And you still just play with people and you're not afraid of them making fun of you or judging you I had this feeling in kindergarten before I learned how mean other little kids were before people taunted me and picked on me and made fun of me I just remember going up to other little kids and going hey want to play and like just singing and dancing and doing funny little Make-Believe games with other kids and I miss that so maybe I can find more adult friends that I can do that kind of thing with... so that's why I love these performers so much they remind me to just be free and play and enjoy being alive as a human with humor and a playfulness literally as silly as that sounds... I think that's mainly why I love them so much...they also are just gifted with comedic timing and acrobatic athleticness and they all play musical instruments and they sing and they dance and they act basically it's all of it ...singing dancing acting and acrobatics... I think that performing artists are my favorite kind of humans... they really truly seem magical to me. And even though I'm a bit shy I think part of me really does like to perform and wishes I could do more of it but I don't know and then this other part of me just wants to hide and be quiet so I guess those two parts of my personality conflict a bit with each other and I guess they're both the real me I think!?
Wed. Aug 10, Skokomish, WA, Private event for Skokomish Youth Program
Thu. Aug 11, Lilliwaup, WA, Hama Hama Oysters, 6pm
Fri. Aug 12, Poulsbo, WA, Bushel & Barrel Ciderhouse, 6pm
Sat. Aug 13, Quilcene, WA, Worthington Park, 7pm
Sun. Aug 14, Chimacum, WA, Finnriver Farm and Cidery, 5pm
Tue. Aug 16, Stanwood, WA, Private event for Children’s Grief Camp
Thu. Aug 18, Whidbey Island, WA, South Whidbey Community Center,
Partnership with Readiness to Learn, 6pm
Fri. Aug 19, Everett, WA, 1814 Hewitt Ave. (across from Black Lab), 6pm
Sat. Aug 20, Olympia, WA, Calliope Farm, 1335 Overhulse Rd., 6pm
Sun. Aug 21, Skokomish, WA, Privat event for Skokomish Celebration
Tue. Aug 23, Bellingham, WA, Bellingham Circus Guild Parking Lot, 6pm
Wed. Aug 24, Bellingham, WA, Bellingham Circus Guild Parking Lot, 6pm
Thu. Aug 25, Seattle, WA, UCUCC Parking Lot, 4515 16th Avenue NE, 6 pm
Fri. Aug 26, San Juan Island, WA, San Juan County Fairgrounds,
Partnership with Alchemy Art Center, 6pm
Sat. Aug 27, Conway, WA, Private event for Happy Little Farm
Sun. Aug 28, Vashon Island, WA, Open Space, 6pm
Wed. Aug 31, Portland, OR, Parking Lot at 900 Hawthorn, 6pm
Thu. Sept 1, Newberg, OR, Chehalem Cultural Center, 6pm
Fri. Sept 2, Bellingham, WA, Sh’Bang! Festival, 6pm
Sun. Sept 4, Guemes Island, WA, Guemes Island General Store
Three Vancouver Island Wineries - 40 images - Olympus E-510 with Legacy Auto-Chinon 1:1.9 50mm (PK mount) & PK-3/4 adapter & Polarizer - Photographer Russell McNeil PhD (Physics) lives on Vancouver Island, where he works as a writer.
Three Vancouver Island Wineries - 40 images - Olympus E-510 with Legacy Auto-Chinon 1:1.9 50mm (PK mount) & PK-3/4 adapter & Polarizer - Photographer Russell McNeil PhD (Physics) lives on Vancouver Island, where he works as a writer.
Three Vancouver Island Wineries - 40 images - Canon EOS 60D with Sigma 18-200mm 3.5-6.3 DC OS (EOS mount) & Polarizer - Photographer Russell McNeil PhD (Physics) lives on Vancouver Island, where he works as a writer.
Three Vancouver Island Wineries - 40 images - Olympus E-510 with Legacy Auto-Chinon 1:1.9 50mm (PK mount) & PK-3/4 adapter & Polarizer - Photographer Russell McNeil PhD (Physics) lives on Vancouver Island, where he works as a writer.
2020 Land Rover Defender 90 review: more than worth the wait
5/5
The pre-lockdown launch of the Defender 110 showed the model's on- and off-road potential but the three-door 90 is the one we wanted to try
By
Andrew English,
MOTORING CORRESPONDENT
2 November 2020 • 8:47am
This has been a “mast year” when the fruiting trees turn it up to 11 and scatter the forest floor with cob nuts, acorns, conkers and chestnuts. I know this because I pocketed a feast’s worth of chestnuts in the steeply wooded hills around Land Rover’s famed test facility at Eastnor Castle last week while I waited for the caravan of new Defenders to catch up.
Motoring hacks blithely witter on about driving over terrain you couldn’t stand up on, but watching David Sneath, Land Rover’s driving experience manager and architect of this tortuous launch route, slide down the gloop like Bambi in wellingtons, was a hilarious exercise in mud overcoming friction.
This was the 1989 qualifying route for the Land Rover-organised G4 Challenge contestants, blazed through the Herefordshire hills that are still used to hone the company’s renowned off-road vehicles.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The 90 maintains momentum on Eastnor Castle's horrendously muddy trails - on road tyres CREDIT: David Shepherd
Tough? What do you think? They’ve got names for most of it, like Nine Rope Hill; a commendable description if you don’t attack it with enough spirit and skill.
The best 4x4 by far
“The best 4x4 by far,” was what they used to say at Land Rover, and in most cases they still are. This £43,625, almost base model Defender 90 had just hauled me through a few miles of sopping, slippery mire you wouldn’t tackle on a goat with crampons and apart from the mistakes of its driver (requiring a short reverse and a bit more commitment next time) it didn’t miss a beat.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
When the going gets tough... CREDIT: Simon Thompson
In one of the Defender-sized potholes, the 2.25 tonne, short-wheelbase 90 actually floated, but gradually settled and with all four wheels spinning like demon Catherine wheels it slowly emerged from the swamp, headlights gleaming like the fierce eyes of Kampos, the mythological Greek sea monster.
Did I mention this was on road tyres? The 20-inch Goodyear Wranglers are the middle all-terrain tyre option costing an extra £275, and the treads were so full of mud they looked like slicks, but they were still extraordinarily effective.
The only other option fitted to this stubby new Defender, which goes on sale this autumn for delivery in December, was the £1,020 locking rear differential.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The all-terrain tyre option is a bargain at £275 for the set CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
A worthwhile addition I’d suggest, as we simply dialled in low ratio on the transmission control panel in the centre of the facia, the mud-and-ruts setting on the Terrain Response control, pushed the button for hill descent control and switched off the dynamic stability control (which stays on but reduces its effect) before waddling into the forest and emerging again a couple of hours later; very muddy but still grinning.
Under the skin
Built at Land Rover’s Slovakian factory on a modified Range Rover aluminium monocoque frame called D7X (X for extreme), the Defender is stronger than the old-fashioned body-on-frame construction of the previous Defender. Off-road body and suspension geometry are also Land Rover’s most extreme. There are no shared panels with the Range Rover and reinforcing everywhere, including beefed-up front and rear steel subframes.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The 90's shorter wheelbase makes it more agile on the road as well as in the rough. Air or all-steel suspension is offered CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Suspension on the short-wheelbase 90 is all-independent wishbone front and integral link rear, with a choice of air or coil-springs-and-dampers steel suspension. The steel set-up is cheaper, arguably more robust if less accommodating on the road, and reduces the ground clearance by 70mm. All the longer-wheelbase 110 models have air suspension as standard.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
A six-cylinder engine with a mild hybrid system is offered alongside four-cylinder turbocharged petrol and diesel units CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Engine choices comprise a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbodiesel with 197bhp or 236bhp; a 296bhp 2.0-litre turbo petrol also with four cylinders, called P300; and a 394bhp, 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder turbo petrol with a mild hybrid system, badged P400. A full plug-in hybrid will be introduced at the end of the year.
All the cars are permanent four-wheel drive with the only transmission being a ZF eight-speed automatic and a set of low-ratio crawler gears.
A sense of occasion inside
Climb in to a Defender of whatever trim level and the sense of occasion is palpable. There genuinely is nothing like this car’s facia, with its magnesium-alloy twin spars running across the dash, the straightforward oblong display and switch panels, and the clear and mostly concise digital instrument binnacle.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
English can't stifle a grin as he puts the 90 through its paces CREDIT: Simon Thompson
I think they could have made the off-road controls more separate and clearer; while the vehicle will do most things, to get it to do that you need to know which buttons to press and that isn’t always obvious.
There’s a long storage tray in front of the passenger, facia-top air vents and the stubby gearlever. One welcome inclusion is the centre seat option, with a full-height seat back that folds flat when not in use. When it is in use, however, you lose the use of the rear-view mirror and though the ‘clear sight’ camera option gets around the issue, it takes some getting used to and the picture is affected by low sun.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
It's comfortable, stylish and durable, too. Note the optional fold-down third seat in the front CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
No one should buy a Defender without the excellent £173 fitted rubber mats option which cover every surface and the door trims in ballistic-grade nylon. The big handles and bare bolt heads are more than just an attractive pastiche of military all-terrain vehicles, they’re genuinely practical, and while I would hesitate to introduce a hose to the equation, you can sponge out this vehicle.
I set my motorcycle TomTom navigation unit to its ‘Wild Ride’ setting and followed the little arrow through Hereford’s cider country, stopping at Newton Court Cidery to buy some bottles of elixir for Mrs English. “Please park here and honk for cider,” said the sign. I did and proprietor Paul Stephens rushed out to see the new Landie, taking photographs and admiring its looks.
He immediately picked up on the low sill height, commenting that “you can just brush it straight out on to the ground.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
Rear seat occupants sit slightly higher than those in the front CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
“Go to Hereford market and you’ll see loads of these things parked up,” he said, gesturing at his venerable Series 2 Land Rover in the yard. “But after you’ve towed a trailer for a couple of hours, you’ll know you’ve been on a journey and folk are starting to look for replacements.”
His cider was excellent by the way…
Three doors and off-road geometry doesn’t make access to the rear seats the easiest, but while it’s a bit of clamber once you are in the back there’s leg and head space to spare for three adults and the seats are pretty comfortable.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The three-door bodyshell dictates a much smaller load area than the 110 version. The rubber mats are well worth specifying CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Rear passengers sit higher than those in the front, so they can see the road (or trail) ahead over the heads of front occupants; it’s what Land Rover calls “stadium seating”. All passengers get a rather wonderful feeling of splendid isolation from the environment, whereas in the long-in-the-tooth previous Defender a great deal of that environment would be doing its best to get inside with you.
The rear seats split 40/20/40, with the middle one also acting as a ski hole.
Options and accessory packs
There are three basic models (Defender, First Edition and X, which is the six-cylinder mild hybrid), then three trim options (S, SE and HSE) and a series of accessory packs: Adventure (with an in-built compressor and rinse system); Country (wheel arch protection, mud flaps and rinse system), Explorer (roof rack and ladder) and Urban (spare wheel cover, scuff plates and alloy trim).
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The interior is indubitably modern in all respects CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Using an update on the electronic architecture of the current Range Rover models, the new Defender is indubitably up to date. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard, together with a 10-inch touchscreen.
The Defender also gets Land Rover's new Pivi software, which allows the connection of two smartphones at once. It comes with camera, radar and ultrasonic safety sensors for the automatic braking, lane-keeping assistance and the plethora of modern driver assistance systems. It can even update its 14 modules over the internet while the car is parked.
On the road
Air or steel suspension can’t completely hide the Defender’s dual purpose and the body moves around more than, say, a German SUV rival, or a Discovery.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
It's not half bad on the road either - light years ahead of its antediluvian predecessor CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
There’s a slightly choppy side-to-side tossing even if the front suspension feels supple rather than pillowy soft. It’s well to remember, however, just how much of an improvement this is over the old model, which if you tried to drive in the same way would exit stage left at the earliest opportunity.
There’s a fair bit of body roll at the front and the steering, while feeling beautifully progressive off the dead-ahead position, isn’t as positive and accurate as the Range Rover Sport, say. But you can move along with alacrity in the Defender, with a comfortable and well-damped ride, and without the spine-jarring jolting of the old Defender. After two and half hours behind the wheel, it still felt comfortable.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
To our mind, the 90 looks better than the longer 110 version and is more reminiscent of the original Land Rover of 1948 CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Of the current engine options, the 394bhp, 3.0-litre straight-six turbo petrol is the most powerful, but it’s almost too much. Not that you feel at risk, but sitting so far off the ground the acceleration is gosh-wobblingly fast and at times it’s as though you inadvertently became a hapless extra in a Bond film car chase.
Having driven the diesel options in the 110 earlier in the year, the 295bhp/394lb ft P300 puts up a good account of itself, with brisk acceleration and enough torque to keep this 2.270-tonne vehicle rolling even at low revs, although with a WLTP fuel economy of 24.6mpg it is quite a thirsty option.
The ZF gearbox changes smoothly and assuredly, and if it’s occasionally slow to respond that’s entirely in keeping with the Defender’s slightly more gentle approach. The brakes are worthy of note, too, being progressive and strong but not over-sensitive, so you can drive smoothly in wellies.
Land Rover Defender 90 commercial
A commercial version with a hard-top roof will be available in 2021
While the D200 and D250 turbodiesels are more expensive to purchase initially, their lower operating costs means that commercial operators will likely take them, or the forthcoming plug-in hybrid. Talking of which, the £35,000 plus VAT commercial Defender hard-top will be available early next year.
Conclusion
Look out of the Defender’s large front screen and a world of adventure and potential beckons, even on the humblest of drives. Get the settings and tyres right and you could retrace Lewis and Clark’s early 18th century expeditions across America.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The new Defender has the most extreme off-roading specification of any current Land Rover product CREDIT: David Shepherd
Get the engine right and you could do the Paris-Dakar off-road race. Yet even trundling down to the shops, there’s an unmistakable impression of strength and security as well as a sense of occasion.
And before you point to the far Eastern opposition, don’t forget that a lot of excellent 4x4s aren’t sold in the UK any more and when they are, it’s very expensive.
Obviously, reliability is the key if you are asking a farmer, builder or an emergency service to place their faith in such an accomplished yet untried machine. Get that right and I’ll vouchsafe that Land Rover won’t be able to build them fast enough.
And while most (60 per cent) of folk will buy the long-wheelbase 110, for my money the greater agility, more pleasing proportions and sheer fun of the 90 would be my choice and I’ll give it five stars to boot.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
Want one? We certainly do CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
THE FACTS
Land Rover Defender 90 P300 SE
TESTED 1,998cc, four-cylinder turbo petrol, eight-speed automatic gearbox with selectable low-ratio crawler gears, four-wheel drive
PRICE/ON SALE from £43,625/now for first deliveries in December
POWER/TORQUE 295bhp @ 5,500rpm/394lb ft @ 1,500rpm
TOP SPEED 119mph
ACCELERATION 0-62mph in 7.1sec
FUEL ECONOMY 24.6mpg (WLTP high)
CO2 EMISSIONS 260g/km (WLTP)
VED £2,175 first year, £475 next five years, then £150
VERDICT We already knew that the new Defender was pretty good in long-wheelbase 110 form but the shorter 90 version is, if anything, even better. With better dynamics, off-road agility and the same lovely interior, it is a complete star – and it looks terrific, too. Time and Land Rover’s reliability will determine how it goes down with the company’s traditional commercial markets, but on this evidence it should be out there doing the tough jobs for years to come.
TELEGRAPH RATING Five stars out of five
THE RIVALS
Toyota Land Cruiser, from £35,295
The all-terrain vehicle of choice for UN peacekeepers and pretty much everyone else, though we don't get the full-size Amazon version any more. £35k gets you a base three-door with a 310lb ft, 2.7-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel running on steel wheels and with a pared-down interior festooned with huge, simple buttons. A five-door seven-seater with the same drivetrain and snazzier trim and wheels is £59,000. Pug ugly, with a body-on-frame construction, but super reliable and brilliant off-road, the Landcruiser is a formidable rival to the new Defender.
Mercedes-Benz G-Class, from £92,070
Undertaking a complete redesign of the car that up to last year was largely unchanged since 1979 was similar to the task which Land Rover faced with the Defender. That Mercedes-Benz kept closer to the roots of the hand-built, military-derived Geländewagen says much about the differences in approach and resources of the two companies. Still awesome off-road and now much better on Tarmac, the G-class is very expensive and very capable.
Mitsubishi Shogun Sport, from £39,140
They closed the Shogun production line and delivered the last 700 European-spec models last year. Now Mitsubishi is mulling a replacement, and this is what we get to fill the gap. It's smaller than the full-fat Shogun, tows only 3.1 tonnes and shares its body-on-frame underpinnings with the L200 pick-up. Mitsubishi says the market for full-size working SUVs is dwindling, but is it right?
Bollinger Motors B1, from $125,000 USD
Looking like a Defender scanned at 150 per cent in the photocopier, the new B1 SUV is built in Detroit, Michigan. Two motors, one in front and one rear, have a total output of 614bhp and 668lb ft, which with a 120kWh lithium-ion battery pack ensures a range of about 200 miles, with eight to nine hours of off-road duty. Each motor has its own gearbox, which gives a high and low range of gears and even in low range these beasts are capable of 68mph and 0-60mph in 4.5 seconds. Also available as a pick-up and a chassis cab. Forget Tesla's Cybertruck, if you want a working battery SUV, this is what you need.
This year’s incarnation of Festive Saison blends a holiday spiced saison with Spinnakers own dry Apple Cider. This once a year treat combines the best of Spinnakers Brewery and Cidery, so enjoy it while it lasts!
A collaboration with Cider Riot! and Beau’s All Natural Brewing. Snakebite really is 2/3 Kölsch and 1/3 cider fermented together with a touch of black currant. The result is light and effervescent, with a cidery fruit character, light hoppiness and a tart, fruity finish. Posh Spice loves to drink snakebites!
Three Vancouver Island Wineries - 40 images - Sony Cyber-shot DSC-F828 with Carl Zeiss Sonnar 1:2-2.8 28-200mm (eq.) & 720nm IR Filter - Photographer Russell McNeil PhD (Physics) lives on Vancouver Island, where he works as a writer.
Denver, CO - Took a stroll through part of downtown and soaked in some culture. Went to a cidery, a brewery, an art museum and had some lunch at restaurant that featured a bowling alley. Gotta to love Denver!
I had so much fun watching the up up up circus again tonight... i am going to eventually edit my photos and videos in make a youtube clip of them... Their comedy makes me laugh so loud! not everybody seems to get that kind of comedy but I totally get it and I feel a kinship with that sort of Carol Burnett Style.... I don't know what you call that!? extremely absurd ridiculous and yet clever and then it gives me this feeling like I'm in kindergarten again you know like when you're a little kid... And you still just play with people and you're not afraid of them making fun of you or judging you I had this feeling in kindergarten before I learned how mean other little kids were before people taunted me and picked on me and made fun of me I just remember going up to other little kids and going hey want to play and like just singing and dancing and doing funny little Make-Believe games with other kids and I miss that so maybe I can find more adult friends that I can do that kind of thing with... so that's why I love these performers so much they remind me to just be free and play and enjoy being alive as a human with humor and a playfulness literally as silly as that sounds... I think that's mainly why I love them so much...they also are just gifted with comedic timing and acrobatic athleticness and they all play musical instruments and they sing and they dance and they act basically it's all of it ...singing dancing acting and acrobatics... I think that performing artists are my favorite kind of humans... they really truly seem magical to me. And even though I'm a bit shy I think part of me really does like to perform and wishes I could do more of it but I don't know and then this other part of me just wants to hide and be quiet so I guess those two parts of my personality conflict a bit with each other and I guess they're both the real me I think!?
Wed. Aug 10, Skokomish, WA, Private event for Skokomish Youth Program
Thu. Aug 11, Lilliwaup, WA, Hama Hama Oysters, 6pm
Fri. Aug 12, Poulsbo, WA, Bushel & Barrel Ciderhouse, 6pm
Sat. Aug 13, Quilcene, WA, Worthington Park, 7pm
Sun. Aug 14, Chimacum, WA, Finnriver Farm and Cidery, 5pm
Tue. Aug 16, Stanwood, WA, Private event for Children’s Grief Camp
Thu. Aug 18, Whidbey Island, WA, South Whidbey Community Center,
Partnership with Readiness to Learn, 6pm
Fri. Aug 19, Everett, WA, 1814 Hewitt Ave. (across from Black Lab), 6pm
Sat. Aug 20, Olympia, WA, Calliope Farm, 1335 Overhulse Rd., 6pm
Sun. Aug 21, Skokomish, WA, Privat event for Skokomish Celebration
Tue. Aug 23, Bellingham, WA, Bellingham Circus Guild Parking Lot, 6pm
Wed. Aug 24, Bellingham, WA, Bellingham Circus Guild Parking Lot, 6pm
Thu. Aug 25, Seattle, WA, UCUCC Parking Lot, 4515 16th Avenue NE, 6 pm
Fri. Aug 26, San Juan Island, WA, San Juan County Fairgrounds,
Partnership with Alchemy Art Center, 6pm
Sat. Aug 27, Conway, WA, Private event for Happy Little Farm
Sun. Aug 28, Vashon Island, WA, Open Space, 6pm
Wed. Aug 31, Portland, OR, Parking Lot at 900 Hawthorn, 6pm
Thu. Sept 1, Newberg, OR, Chehalem Cultural Center, 6pm
Fri. Sept 2, Bellingham, WA, Sh’Bang! Festival, 6pm
Sun. Sept 4, Guemes Island, WA, Guemes Island General Store
I had so much fun watching the up up up circus again tonight... i am going to eventually edit my photos and videos in make a youtube clip of them... Their comedy makes me laugh so loud! not everybody seems to get that kind of comedy but I totally get it and I feel a kinship with that sort of Carol Burnett Style.... I don't know what you call that!? extremely absurd ridiculous and yet clever and then it gives me this feeling like I'm in kindergarten again you know like when you're a little kid... And you still just play with people and you're not afraid of them making fun of you or judging you I had this feeling in kindergarten before I learned how mean other little kids were before people taunted me and picked on me and made fun of me I just remember going up to other little kids and going hey want to play and like just singing and dancing and doing funny little Make-Believe games with other kids and I miss that so maybe I can find more adult friends that I can do that kind of thing with... so that's why I love these performers so much they remind me to just be free and play and enjoy being alive as a human with humor and a playfulness literally as silly as that sounds... I think that's mainly why I love them so much...they also are just gifted with comedic timing and acrobatic athleticness and they all play musical instruments and they sing and they dance and they act basically it's all of it ...singing dancing acting and acrobatics... I think that performing artists are my favorite kind of humans... they really truly seem magical to me. And even though I'm a bit shy I think part of me really does like to perform and wishes I could do more of it but I don't know and then this other part of me just wants to hide and be quiet so I guess those two parts of my personality conflict a bit with each other and I guess they're both the real me I think!?
Wed. Aug 10, Skokomish, WA, Private event for Skokomish Youth Program
Thu. Aug 11, Lilliwaup, WA, Hama Hama Oysters, 6pm
Fri. Aug 12, Poulsbo, WA, Bushel & Barrel Ciderhouse, 6pm
Sat. Aug 13, Quilcene, WA, Worthington Park, 7pm
Sun. Aug 14, Chimacum, WA, Finnriver Farm and Cidery, 5pm
Tue. Aug 16, Stanwood, WA, Private event for Children’s Grief Camp
Thu. Aug 18, Whidbey Island, WA, South Whidbey Community Center,
Partnership with Readiness to Learn, 6pm
Fri. Aug 19, Everett, WA, 1814 Hewitt Ave. (across from Black Lab), 6pm
Sat. Aug 20, Olympia, WA, Calliope Farm, 1335 Overhulse Rd., 6pm
Sun. Aug 21, Skokomish, WA, Privat event for Skokomish Celebration
Tue. Aug 23, Bellingham, WA, Bellingham Circus Guild Parking Lot, 6pm
Wed. Aug 24, Bellingham, WA, Bellingham Circus Guild Parking Lot, 6pm
Thu. Aug 25, Seattle, WA, UCUCC Parking Lot, 4515 16th Avenue NE, 6 pm
Fri. Aug 26, San Juan Island, WA, San Juan County Fairgrounds,
Partnership with Alchemy Art Center, 6pm
Sat. Aug 27, Conway, WA, Private event for Happy Little Farm
Sun. Aug 28, Vashon Island, WA, Open Space, 6pm
Wed. Aug 31, Portland, OR, Parking Lot at 900 Hawthorn, 6pm
Thu. Sept 1, Newberg, OR, Chehalem Cultural Center, 6pm
Fri. Sept 2, Bellingham, WA, Sh’Bang! Festival, 6pm
Sun. Sept 4, Guemes Island, WA, Guemes Island General Store
#AB_FAV_IN_AUTUMN_ 🍄🍁🍂
I've been feeling a damp, drizzly November in my soul, so I headed to the woods.
The weeds now bowing and dark; there was a cidery smell of decay in the air, the dark winter waters lapping high.
I relaxed, breathing in deeply; a little light spilled just enough to make images possible, I tingled and warmed up inside, I’d found my images for the day.
It is a colour photo, not toned B&W. No PP
Wishing you a day full of good light and thanx for your visit, M, (*_*)
Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit permission. © All rights reserved
Water, dark, ripples, reflection, branches, barks, birches, weeds, blue, grey, indigo, lake, shades, colour, landscape, horizontal, Nikon7200, "Magda indigo"
Making mead for the second time. Here's a brief history on the "nectar of the gods"...
"The history of mead may go back more than 8,000 years. The oldest known meads were created on the Island of Crete. Wine had not yet been created. Mead was the drink of the Age of Gold, and the word for drunk in classical Greek remained "honey-intoxicated."
Polish mead produced in LublinMead was once very popular in Northern Europe, often produced by monks in monasteries in areas where grapes could not be grown. It faded in popularity, however, once wine imports became economical. Especially partial to it were the Slavs. In Polish it is called miód pitny (pronounced [mjut pi:tni]), meaning "drinkable honey". Mead was a favored drink among the Polish-Lithuanian szlachta (nobility). During the Crusades, Polish Prince Leszek I the White explained to the Pope that Polish knights could not participate in the Crusades because there was no mead in Palestine.
In Norse mythology, mead was the favorite drink of the Norse gods and heroes, e.g. in Valhalla, and the mead of the giant (Jotun) Suttung, made from the blood of Kvasir, was the source of wisdom and poetry. The nectar and ambrosia of the Greek gods are often thought of as draughts of fermented honey.
In Russia, mead remained popular as medovukha and sbiten long after its popularity declined in the West. Sbiten is often mentioned in the works by 19th-century Russian writers, including Gogol, Dostoevsky, and Tolstoy. Some beer producers attempt to revive sbiten' as a mass-produced drink in Russia.
In Finland, a sweet mead called Sima (cognate with zymurgy), is still an essential seasonal brew connected with the Finnish Vappu (May Day) festival. It is usually spiced by adding both the pulp and rind of a lemon. During secondary fermentation raisins are added to control the amount of sugars and to act as an indicator of readiness for consumption — they will rise to the top of the bottle when the drink is ready.
Ethiopian mead is called tej and is usually home-made. It is flavored with the powdered leaves and bark of gesho, a hops-like bittering agent which is a species of buckthorn. A sweeter, less-alcoholic version called berz, aged for a shorter time, is also made. The traditional vessel for drinking tej is a rounded vase-shaped container called a berele.
Evidence exists that mead was also made in India, Southeast Asia, China, Japan, and Central Africa. Mead is also mentioned in many old north Anglo-Saxon stories, including in the epic poem Beowulf, and in early Welsh poetry such as Y Gododdin.
The word "honeymoon" in English is supposedly traceable to the practice of a bride's father dowering her with enough mead for a month-long celebration in honor of the marriage. Mead is still manufactured in Britain, France, and various other locations, though the traditional status of most such manufacture is dubious. One of the most famous producers is the Holy Island of Lindisfarne in North East England, where mead has been produced since Anglo-Saxon times.
Varieties of mead
Mead can have a wide range of flavors, depending on the source of the honey, additives called "adjuncts" or "gruit" (including fruit and spices), yeast employed during fermentation, and aging procedure. Mead can be difficult to find commercially, though some producers have been successful marketing it. Consumers must bear in mind that some producers have marketed white wine with added honey as mead, often spelling it "meade." Blended varieties of mead can be known by either style represented. For instance, a mead made with cinnamon and apples can be referred to as a cinnamon cyser or as an apple metheglin.
Some meads retain some measure of the sweetness of the original honey, and some can even be considered as dessert wines. Drier meads are also available, and some producers offer sparkling meads, which (like champagne) can make for a delightful celebratory toast. There are a number of faux-meads, which are actually cheap wines with large amounts of honey added, to produce a cloyingly sweet liqueur. It has been said that "a mead that tastes of honey is as good as a wine that still tastes of grape".
Historically, meads would have been fermented by wild yeasts and bacteria [citation needed] residing on the skins of the fruit or within the honey itself. Wild yeasts generally provide inconsistent results, and in modern times various brewing interests have isolated the strains now in use. Certain strains have gradually become associated with certain styles of mead. Mostly, these are strains that are also used in beer or wine production. Several commercial labs, such as White Labs, WYeast, Vierka, and others have gone so far as to develop strains specifically for mead.
Mead can also be distilled to a brandy or liqueur strength. Krupnik is a sweet Polish liqueur made through just such a process.
Different types of mead include, but are not limited to:
Braggot - Braggot (also called bracket or brackett) marks the invention of Ale. Originally brewed with honey and hops, later with honey and malt - with or without hops added.
Black mead - A name sometimes given to the blend of honey and black currants.
Cyser - Cyser is a blend of honey and apple juice fermented together. See also cider.
Great mead - Any mead that is intended to be aged several years, like vintage wine. The designation is meant to distinguish this type of mead from "short mead" (see below.)
Hydromel - Hydromel literally means "water-honey" in Greek. It is also the French name for mead. (Compare with the Spanish hidromiel and aquamiel, Italian idromele and Portuguese hidromel). It is also used as a name for a very light or low-alcohol mead.
Melomel - Melomel is made from honey and any fruit. Depending on the fruit-base used, certain melomels may also be known by more specific names (see cyser, pyment, morat for examples)
Metheglin - Metheglin starts with traditional mead but has herbs and spices added. Some of the most common metheglins are ginger, tea, orange peel, coriander, cinnamon, cloves, or vanilla. Its name indicates that many metheglins were originally employed as folk medicines. (Though the Welsh word for honey is medd, the word "metheglin" actually derives from meddeglyn, a compound word comprised of meddyg, "healing" + llyn, "liquor".)
Morat - Morat blends honey and mulberries.
Omphacomel - A medieval mead recipe that blends honey with verjuice; could therefore be considered a variety of pyment.
Oxymel - Another historical mead recipe, blending honey with wine vinegar.
Perry - Perry-mead blends honey with milled, ripe pears. (See entry for the modern drink Babycham.)
Pyment - Pyment blends honey and red or white grapes. Pyment made with white grape juice is sometimes called "white mead."
Rhodomel - Rhodomel is made from honey, rose hips, petals, or rose attar, and water.
Sack mead - This refers to mead that is made with more copious amounts of honey than usual. The finished product retains an extremely high specific gravity and elevated levels of sweetness. It derives its name from the fortified dessert wine Sherry (which is sometimes sweetened after fermentation, and in England once bore the nickname of "sack".)
Short mead - Also called "quick mead". A type of mead recipe that is meant to age quickly, for immediate consumption. Because of the techniques used in its creation, short mead shares some qualities found in cider (or even light ale): primarily that it is effervescent, and often has a cidery taste.[citation needed]
Show mead - A term which has come to mean "plain" mead; that which has honey and water as a base, with no fruits, spices or extra flavorings. (Since honey alone does not provide enough nourishment for the yeast to carry on its life-cycle, a mead that is devoid of fruit, etc. will require a special yeast nutrient and other enzymes to produce an acceptable finished product.)
Tej - Tej is an Ethiopian mead, fermented with wild yeasts (and bacteria), and with the addition of gesho. Recipes vary from family to family, with some recipes leaning towards braggot with the inclusion of grains.
Mulsum - Mulsum is not a true mead, but is unfermented honey blended with a high-alcohol wine.
Medovina - Macedonian (of the Republic of Macedonia) for mead. Unfortunately, very few people still brew this for their own consumption. It is not available commercially.
Medovukha - Eastern Slavic variant, very alcoholic. In principle, a vodka with distilled honey addition.
Półtorak - A Polish mead, made using two units of honey for each unit of water
Dwójniak - A Polish mead, made using equal amounts of water and honey
Trójniak - A Polish mead, made using two units of water for each unit of honey
Czwórniak - A Polish mead, made using three units of water for each unit of honey
Gverc or Medovina - Croatian mead prepared in Samobor and many other places. Word “gverc” or “gvirc” is from German "Gewürze" and it refers to different spices added to mead."
2020 Land Rover Defender 90 review: more than worth the wait
5/5
The pre-lockdown launch of the Defender 110 showed the model's on- and off-road potential but the three-door 90 is the one we wanted to try
By
Andrew English,
MOTORING CORRESPONDENT
2 November 2020 • 8:47am
This has been a “mast year” when the fruiting trees turn it up to 11 and scatter the forest floor with cob nuts, acorns, conkers and chestnuts. I know this because I pocketed a feast’s worth of chestnuts in the steeply wooded hills around Land Rover’s famed test facility at Eastnor Castle last week while I waited for the caravan of new Defenders to catch up.
Motoring hacks blithely witter on about driving over terrain you couldn’t stand up on, but watching David Sneath, Land Rover’s driving experience manager and architect of this tortuous launch route, slide down the gloop like Bambi in wellingtons, was a hilarious exercise in mud overcoming friction.
This was the 1989 qualifying route for the Land Rover-organised G4 Challenge contestants, blazed through the Herefordshire hills that are still used to hone the company’s renowned off-road vehicles.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The 90 maintains momentum on Eastnor Castle's horrendously muddy trails - on road tyres CREDIT: David Shepherd
Tough? What do you think? They’ve got names for most of it, like Nine Rope Hill; a commendable description if you don’t attack it with enough spirit and skill.
The best 4x4 by far
“The best 4x4 by far,” was what they used to say at Land Rover, and in most cases they still are. This £43,625, almost base model Defender 90 had just hauled me through a few miles of sopping, slippery mire you wouldn’t tackle on a goat with crampons and apart from the mistakes of its driver (requiring a short reverse and a bit more commitment next time) it didn’t miss a beat.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
When the going gets tough... CREDIT: Simon Thompson
In one of the Defender-sized potholes, the 2.25 tonne, short-wheelbase 90 actually floated, but gradually settled and with all four wheels spinning like demon Catherine wheels it slowly emerged from the swamp, headlights gleaming like the fierce eyes of Kampos, the mythological Greek sea monster.
Did I mention this was on road tyres? The 20-inch Goodyear Wranglers are the middle all-terrain tyre option costing an extra £275, and the treads were so full of mud they looked like slicks, but they were still extraordinarily effective.
The only other option fitted to this stubby new Defender, which goes on sale this autumn for delivery in December, was the £1,020 locking rear differential.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The all-terrain tyre option is a bargain at £275 for the set CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
A worthwhile addition I’d suggest, as we simply dialled in low ratio on the transmission control panel in the centre of the facia, the mud-and-ruts setting on the Terrain Response control, pushed the button for hill descent control and switched off the dynamic stability control (which stays on but reduces its effect) before waddling into the forest and emerging again a couple of hours later; very muddy but still grinning.
Under the skin
Built at Land Rover’s Slovakian factory on a modified Range Rover aluminium monocoque frame called D7X (X for extreme), the Defender is stronger than the old-fashioned body-on-frame construction of the previous Defender. Off-road body and suspension geometry are also Land Rover’s most extreme. There are no shared panels with the Range Rover and reinforcing everywhere, including beefed-up front and rear steel subframes.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The 90's shorter wheelbase makes it more agile on the road as well as in the rough. Air or all-steel suspension is offered CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Suspension on the short-wheelbase 90 is all-independent wishbone front and integral link rear, with a choice of air or coil-springs-and-dampers steel suspension. The steel set-up is cheaper, arguably more robust if less accommodating on the road, and reduces the ground clearance by 70mm. All the longer-wheelbase 110 models have air suspension as standard.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
A six-cylinder engine with a mild hybrid system is offered alongside four-cylinder turbocharged petrol and diesel units CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Engine choices comprise a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbodiesel with 197bhp or 236bhp; a 296bhp 2.0-litre turbo petrol also with four cylinders, called P300; and a 394bhp, 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder turbo petrol with a mild hybrid system, badged P400. A full plug-in hybrid will be introduced at the end of the year.
All the cars are permanent four-wheel drive with the only transmission being a ZF eight-speed automatic and a set of low-ratio crawler gears.
A sense of occasion inside
Climb in to a Defender of whatever trim level and the sense of occasion is palpable. There genuinely is nothing like this car’s facia, with its magnesium-alloy twin spars running across the dash, the straightforward oblong display and switch panels, and the clear and mostly concise digital instrument binnacle.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
English can't stifle a grin as he puts the 90 through its paces CREDIT: Simon Thompson
I think they could have made the off-road controls more separate and clearer; while the vehicle will do most things, to get it to do that you need to know which buttons to press and that isn’t always obvious.
There’s a long storage tray in front of the passenger, facia-top air vents and the stubby gearlever. One welcome inclusion is the centre seat option, with a full-height seat back that folds flat when not in use. When it is in use, however, you lose the use of the rear-view mirror and though the ‘clear sight’ camera option gets around the issue, it takes some getting used to and the picture is affected by low sun.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
It's comfortable, stylish and durable, too. Note the optional fold-down third seat in the front CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
No one should buy a Defender without the excellent £173 fitted rubber mats option which cover every surface and the door trims in ballistic-grade nylon. The big handles and bare bolt heads are more than just an attractive pastiche of military all-terrain vehicles, they’re genuinely practical, and while I would hesitate to introduce a hose to the equation, you can sponge out this vehicle.
I set my motorcycle TomTom navigation unit to its ‘Wild Ride’ setting and followed the little arrow through Hereford’s cider country, stopping at Newton Court Cidery to buy some bottles of elixir for Mrs English. “Please park here and honk for cider,” said the sign. I did and proprietor Paul Stephens rushed out to see the new Landie, taking photographs and admiring its looks.
He immediately picked up on the low sill height, commenting that “you can just brush it straight out on to the ground.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
Rear seat occupants sit slightly higher than those in the front CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
“Go to Hereford market and you’ll see loads of these things parked up,” he said, gesturing at his venerable Series 2 Land Rover in the yard. “But after you’ve towed a trailer for a couple of hours, you’ll know you’ve been on a journey and folk are starting to look for replacements.”
His cider was excellent by the way…
Three doors and off-road geometry doesn’t make access to the rear seats the easiest, but while it’s a bit of clamber once you are in the back there’s leg and head space to spare for three adults and the seats are pretty comfortable.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The three-door bodyshell dictates a much smaller load area than the 110 version. The rubber mats are well worth specifying CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Rear passengers sit higher than those in the front, so they can see the road (or trail) ahead over the heads of front occupants; it’s what Land Rover calls “stadium seating”. All passengers get a rather wonderful feeling of splendid isolation from the environment, whereas in the long-in-the-tooth previous Defender a great deal of that environment would be doing its best to get inside with you.
The rear seats split 40/20/40, with the middle one also acting as a ski hole.
Options and accessory packs
There are three basic models (Defender, First Edition and X, which is the six-cylinder mild hybrid), then three trim options (S, SE and HSE) and a series of accessory packs: Adventure (with an in-built compressor and rinse system); Country (wheel arch protection, mud flaps and rinse system), Explorer (roof rack and ladder) and Urban (spare wheel cover, scuff plates and alloy trim).
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The interior is indubitably modern in all respects CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Using an update on the electronic architecture of the current Range Rover models, the new Defender is indubitably up to date. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard, together with a 10-inch touchscreen.
The Defender also gets Land Rover's new Pivi software, which allows the connection of two smartphones at once. It comes with camera, radar and ultrasonic safety sensors for the automatic braking, lane-keeping assistance and the plethora of modern driver assistance systems. It can even update its 14 modules over the internet while the car is parked.
On the road
Air or steel suspension can’t completely hide the Defender’s dual purpose and the body moves around more than, say, a German SUV rival, or a Discovery.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
It's not half bad on the road either - light years ahead of its antediluvian predecessor CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
There’s a slightly choppy side-to-side tossing even if the front suspension feels supple rather than pillowy soft. It’s well to remember, however, just how much of an improvement this is over the old model, which if you tried to drive in the same way would exit stage left at the earliest opportunity.
There’s a fair bit of body roll at the front and the steering, while feeling beautifully progressive off the dead-ahead position, isn’t as positive and accurate as the Range Rover Sport, say. But you can move along with alacrity in the Defender, with a comfortable and well-damped ride, and without the spine-jarring jolting of the old Defender. After two and half hours behind the wheel, it still felt comfortable.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
To our mind, the 90 looks better than the longer 110 version and is more reminiscent of the original Land Rover of 1948 CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
Of the current engine options, the 394bhp, 3.0-litre straight-six turbo petrol is the most powerful, but it’s almost too much. Not that you feel at risk, but sitting so far off the ground the acceleration is gosh-wobblingly fast and at times it’s as though you inadvertently became a hapless extra in a Bond film car chase.
Having driven the diesel options in the 110 earlier in the year, the 295bhp/394lb ft P300 puts up a good account of itself, with brisk acceleration and enough torque to keep this 2.270-tonne vehicle rolling even at low revs, although with a WLTP fuel economy of 24.6mpg it is quite a thirsty option.
The ZF gearbox changes smoothly and assuredly, and if it’s occasionally slow to respond that’s entirely in keeping with the Defender’s slightly more gentle approach. The brakes are worthy of note, too, being progressive and strong but not over-sensitive, so you can drive smoothly in wellies.
Land Rover Defender 90 commercial
A commercial version with a hard-top roof will be available in 2021
While the D200 and D250 turbodiesels are more expensive to purchase initially, their lower operating costs means that commercial operators will likely take them, or the forthcoming plug-in hybrid. Talking of which, the £35,000 plus VAT commercial Defender hard-top will be available early next year.
Conclusion
Look out of the Defender’s large front screen and a world of adventure and potential beckons, even on the humblest of drives. Get the settings and tyres right and you could retrace Lewis and Clark’s early 18th century expeditions across America.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
The new Defender has the most extreme off-roading specification of any current Land Rover product CREDIT: David Shepherd
Get the engine right and you could do the Paris-Dakar off-road race. Yet even trundling down to the shops, there’s an unmistakable impression of strength and security as well as a sense of occasion.
And before you point to the far Eastern opposition, don’t forget that a lot of excellent 4x4s aren’t sold in the UK any more and when they are, it’s very expensive.
Obviously, reliability is the key if you are asking a farmer, builder or an emergency service to place their faith in such an accomplished yet untried machine. Get that right and I’ll vouchsafe that Land Rover won’t be able to build them fast enough.
And while most (60 per cent) of folk will buy the long-wheelbase 110, for my money the greater agility, more pleasing proportions and sheer fun of the 90 would be my choice and I’ll give it five stars to boot.
Land Rover Defender 90 - tested 22/10/20
Want one? We certainly do CREDIT: Nick Dimbleby
THE FACTS
Land Rover Defender 90 P300 SE
TESTED 1,998cc, four-cylinder turbo petrol, eight-speed automatic gearbox with selectable low-ratio crawler gears, four-wheel drive
PRICE/ON SALE from £43,625/now for first deliveries in December
POWER/TORQUE 295bhp @ 5,500rpm/394lb ft @ 1,500rpm
TOP SPEED 119mph
ACCELERATION 0-62mph in 7.1sec
FUEL ECONOMY 24.6mpg (WLTP high)
CO2 EMISSIONS 260g/km (WLTP)
VED £2,175 first year, £475 next five years, then £150
VERDICT We already knew that the new Defender was pretty good in long-wheelbase 110 form but the shorter 90 version is, if anything, even better. With better dynamics, off-road agility and the same lovely interior, it is a complete star – and it looks terrific, too. Time and Land Rover’s reliability will determine how it goes down with the company’s traditional commercial markets, but on this evidence it should be out there doing the tough jobs for years to come.
TELEGRAPH RATING Five stars out of five
THE RIVALS
Toyota Land Cruiser, from £35,295
The all-terrain vehicle of choice for UN peacekeepers and pretty much everyone else, though we don't get the full-size Amazon version any more. £35k gets you a base three-door with a 310lb ft, 2.7-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel running on steel wheels and with a pared-down interior festooned with huge, simple buttons. A five-door seven-seater with the same drivetrain and snazzier trim and wheels is £59,000. Pug ugly, with a body-on-frame construction, but super reliable and brilliant off-road, the Landcruiser is a formidable rival to the new Defender.
Mercedes-Benz G-Class, from £92,070
Undertaking a complete redesign of the car that up to last year was largely unchanged since 1979 was similar to the task which Land Rover faced with the Defender. That Mercedes-Benz kept closer to the roots of the hand-built, military-derived Geländewagen says much about the differences in approach and resources of the two companies. Still awesome off-road and now much better on Tarmac, the G-class is very expensive and very capable.
Mitsubishi Shogun Sport, from £39,140
They closed the Shogun production line and delivered the last 700 European-spec models last year. Now Mitsubishi is mulling a replacement, and this is what we get to fill the gap. It's smaller than the full-fat Shogun, tows only 3.1 tonnes and shares its body-on-frame underpinnings with the L200 pick-up. Mitsubishi says the market for full-size working SUVs is dwindling, but is it right?
Bollinger Motors B1, from $125,000 USD
Looking like a Defender scanned at 150 per cent in the photocopier, the new B1 SUV is built in Detroit, Michigan. Two motors, one in front and one rear, have a total output of 614bhp and 668lb ft, which with a 120kWh lithium-ion battery pack ensures a range of about 200 miles, with eight to nine hours of off-road duty. Each motor has its own gearbox, which gives a high and low range of gears and even in low range these beasts are capable of 68mph and 0-60mph in 4.5 seconds. Also available as a pick-up and a chassis cab. Forget Tesla's Cybertruck, if you want a working battery SUV, this is what you need.
The Averton narrow gauge railway terminates at the Averton Yards where the apple packing sheds and cidery are located. This was taken on a moon-lit night.
Pommies is a local (i.e., neighbouring area, Caledon) cidery.
The Barley Vine Rail Co.; Orangeville, Ontario.
On the way back from Cowichan Valley we stopped for lunch at Merridale cidery.
Sure takes the fun out of flickr when it is soooooo slow.