Q: My favorite Dubonnet red has become almost impossible to find. Can you help? Thanks. — Chris Lydle, Marietta
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
A: In the mid-1800s, Joseph Dubonnet, a French chemist, first developed the fortified wine to disguise the bitter taste of quinine used by the French military, including members of the French Foreign Legion in North Africa, to combat malaria. Dubonnet Rouge, boasting port-like notes, still contains small amounts of quinine. In France, Pernod Ricard produces Dubonnet. Heaven Hill, a family-owned distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky, known for its whiskies, including Elijah Craig and Evan Williams, turns out the U.S. version, which has a slightly higher alcohol content than its European counterpart. I found 750-milliliter bottles of Dubonnet Rouge for $19.99 at Total Wine & More, 740 Ernest W. Barrett Parkway, Kennesaw, 678-354-0168.
Q: Please help me find someone who could re-string natural bamboo blinds. Your help is greatly appreciated. — Kavita Dalal, email
A: Blind and Shade Repair of Atlanta, 2730 Mountain Industrial Blvd., suite 109, Tucker, 770-270-0849, is the authorized service center for Hunter Douglas window coverings in Georgia. Owner, Rick Pleva, works on various brands of blinds, shutters and shades, from replacing broken strings to repairing motors on electronic window treatments. You can drop off your blinds or mail them to the service center. If you’re in metro Atlanta, Pleva can do the work on-site with an additional service charge. Check out bsratl.com for more information.
You can stop looking
Susie Malone of Roswell used Amish Secret Handmade Wood Polish years ago and hoped to find it again. The furniture polish was an As Seen on TV Telebrands product, and as with many infomercial items, they come and go fairly quickly. Amish Secret hasn’t been available for several years, even though you can still see it listed on the ASOTV website. I found a couple of bottles on eBay for about $50, and one looked pretty banged up. The other was made in 2014. I’m not sure about the shelf life, but that seems like a pretty risky purchase for the price.
Having trouble finding a particular item? Sabine Morrow will try to help you locate it. Because of the volume of mail, we cannot track down every request. Email sabinem.morrow@gmail.com (include your name, the city you live in and a daytime phone number) or call 404-526-5931 and leave a voicemail with that information.
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