Ideal Room Temperature

Pour debuts wine vending machine

Open just three weeks, Pour, a little wine bar and eatery on the Square at River Ranch, which offers automat-style tastings, has attracted standing-room-only crowds, including a couple of patrons who've expressed interest in

becoming franchisees.

"I definitely want to do Pour in other areas, said Jude Tauzin, executive chef and general manager. "But we want to make sure we have our feet on the ground and have our policies and procedures in place first."

While Pour serves some high-end beers and one can also order scotch, cognac or Grand Marnier, its raison d'être is a glass-enclosed display of 48 different wines with a mechanism that pours tastes, half glasses, or full glasses with the swipe of a special card customers load according to how much they want to spend.

From the standpoint of practicality, the Enomatic brand pouring system — manufactured in Italy — doesn't allow air to enter the bottles. That lengthens their shelf life, Tauzin said.

Appealing to customers is the opportunity it gives them to sample different brands and types without the expense of buying a bottle or even a full glass, he said.

While not entirely new, automated wine pouring systems are more likely to be found in big city bars, and Pour is Lafayette's first, said Robert Daigle, who developed River Ranch, and is a partner in Pour.

Aside from offering a smorgasbord of wines that are rotated on a regular basis, the whites are kept at the ideal temperature of 42 degrees, while reds are kept at 60 degrees, Daigle pointed out.

"Serious wine drinkers appreciate this, and almost no restaurants or bars serve wines at the temperature they're supposed to be served," Daigle said. "Generally speaking whites are pulled right out of a

refrigerator, and they're colder than they should be, and 95 percent of the time reds are served at room temperature and they should be at least 10 degrees cooler."

Daigle has one partner, Kirby Pecot, in the endeavor, as well as two silent partners. He agrees with Tauzan that the

concept "has legs."

"By that I mean the concept could be franchised or licensed out," he said. "Jude has done a great job of simplifying the business."

That extends to the décor. The colors he chose for the furnishings, wall coverings and flooring of the 1,400-square-foot enclosure are black, white and gray. It's a simple

palate, but it acts as a frame for the bright, abstract and impressionist paintings that adorn the walls.

What is the ideal room temperature for a newborn baby? :Car baby ...

An infant car seat must always be rear-facing and never face forward. When a baby is in a rear facing car seat, she will be pushed into the shell of the car seat, which cradles her and supports her whole body. The neck and head (which is relatively big for a baby) are cradled by the car seat and the baby has a very high chance of surviving the car crash. It is crucial that the head and neck of the baby must be supported in this way if involved in a crash.

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