I am of the age when Tom Jones entertained and the women used to run up to the stage and throw their thongs or panties at him, which I might add wasn’t seen on his television show.  On our way to Caesar’s Coliseum, we did loiter at Riverside Park in Windsor, admiring the coastline of Downtown Detroit, as I wondered what changes will occur in the near future.  My Bride also got excited looking at some of the antique engines that were on display, because in an earlier life she worked for Grand Trunk Railway, which was the American version of Canadian National Railway and she still has a fondness for trains.  As for me, I can appreciate the trains, but I was happy that walking to the Coliseum was just a few blocks, compared to walking from one casino to another in Las Vegas.

I was remembering the only other time that I had seen Tom Jones and that was at Caesar’s in Vegas, back in the old days, when the men wore suits and the women wore dresses, if not gowns to see a star.  It was also back when you could get a “line pass” if you were fortunate, and the dinner show of Surf & Turf was a filet and lobster tail.  Not to mention a bottle of G.H.Mumm & Co. Cuvee Rene Lalou (vintage unknown).  Our table was adjacent to the stage, the staff was clearing off the tables, just leaving the Champagne, Icer and glasses, when the lights dimmed and a huge illuminated staircase appeared and you heard “This is Tom Jones.” It may not have been as dramatic now, but as I was looking around, there wasn’t a bad seat in the house, especially courtesy of the monitors.  At 84, he was still belting out the songs, in his full baritone voice that wasn’t the worse for the age, and the show was called “Ages & Stages” and it showed how he was enjoying tunes that one didn’t associate with him, though there were plenty of his standards as well.  We were on the aisle, and there were mature women dancing in the aisles, he was still rocking it.  Though, as I looked, the youngest members of the crowd were probably in their forties, and there were plenty of his contemporaries in the audience, and he sang for almost two hours with no dancing or an opening act.  It was real entertainment and made us nostalgic. 

There was no Mumm’s, mostly beers, but I got us some very generous pours of Colio Estate Select Chardonnay Ontario VQA NV in plastic glasses.  Colio Estate Wines is in Harrow, Ontario, Canada in the heart of Essex/Pelee Island Coast Wine Country and they are the first licensed winery in Southwestern Ontario.  The winery was created by three Italian bricklayers, who attempted originally to get help from Udine, but eventually got help locally.  There is really a dearth of information on their website, but this is a bulk wine that carries the Ontario VQA appellation, instead of the Lake Erie North Shore designation.  There is a photo of Stainless-Steel tanks, and since the wine was young, fresh, and crisp I will safely go out on a limb and aver that the wine never saw an oak barrel, unless there are some for ambience in the winery.  The wine was a pretty golden color and offered notes of tropical fruit and citrus.  On the palate there were tones of white fruits, citrus and a tinge of pineapple, it was crisp and an easy drinking (quaffing) wine and fine for the venue.  It was a charming evening, and a shame that the original purchasers of the tickets could not attend, as it was well worth the price of admission.