Grapes of rock

IF we'd ever been asked what line of alcoholic beverage might be marketed by AC/DC, we would not have guessed it would be anything grape-based.

IF we'd ever been asked what line of alcoholic beverage might be marketed by AC/DC, should the redoubtable rockers ever turn their attentions to the booze business, we would not have guessed it would be anything grape-based.

How wrong we would have been. Yesterday, a box arrived for our colleague, music writer Iain Shedden, jingling like sleighbells and packed with Acca Dacca plonk. With labels bearing the hallowed images of Angus and Malcolm Young and Brian Johnson, they are Back in Black shiraz, Highway to Hell cabernet sauvignon, and Hells Bells sauvignon blanc, as well as one which sounds like something we once drank in our late teens: You Shook Me All Night Long moscato. Reading out the name of the latter, one of Strewth's libation advisers was heard to note, "A young wine, then."

A Rudd for his back

THERE was some fun to be had listening to Ian Macfarlane on ABC radio's AM, not least trying to imagine who'll be deciding what constitutes the "prime agricultural land" his leader, Tony Abbott, will be protecting from gas miners. But before Macca started shutting things down with a beloved Gillardism ("Well, that is for others to commentate on"), he ruminated thus: "Well, there is a legal process and in this country we have always followed legal processes. I think the moment you step away from that you are in very dangerous territory. These are mineral assets that belong to all of the people of that state." That last bit makes us fret for Macca as it doesn't sound a million miles away from one of Kevin Rudd's arguments for the mining tax, and look where that got him.

In a jim jam

NOT even the name of a Liberal MP was enough to sway Labor's Amanda Rishworth from revealing the threat apparently posed by a purveyor of upmarket pyjamas:

Journalist: "John Alexander says that penalty rates should be either drastically reduced or abolished. He says they're stymieing job creation and productivity. Does he have a point?"

Rishworth: "Well look, what we see once again is the Liberal Party's addition to WorkChoices. I mean this is what, ah, Jo -- uh Peter Alexander is clearly saying, that they want to go back to WorkChoices."

DSK forever

AMANDA Rishworth is not, of course, Robinson Crusoe when it comes to misidentification. The International Monetary Fund appears to be under the impression, at least in one corner of its website, that its managing director is still Dominique Strauss-Kahn. There's even a link to a video interview with Strauss-Kahn, which when clicked takes you to website that also alerts you to a selection of other videos that includes "Beach bunny swimwear", "My drunk kitchen" and "We're all bozos on this bus".

Chants of a lifetime

LIFE after power as former NSW premier Kristina Keneally prepares to appear before an audience as part of the Music and Me series. She will "introduce a selection of her favourite pieces of music [to be performed live], and reflect upon the connection of the music to pivotal moments in her life." Says she: "From musical theatre in and about Ohio, to orchestral pieces, to monastic chants, this concert might have something for most tastes."

Oo er, missus

THERE we were, pondering the possibility there was something rutting in the state of Fairfax (Strewth, Saturday), impressed as we were by the friskiness marking a batch of pieces being promoted prominently on the main page of The Sydney Morning Herald's website: "Porn for powder hounds: the best of this season's ski films"; "Sexual timing: to do it, or not to do it?"; "Ardour starts to cool in our frenzied affair with bricks and mortar." They were at it again yesterday with "Westpac pulls out of brothel project". All in all, an encouraging sign that spring is nearly upon us.

No shot in the dark

IT wasn't until we tried to take a photograph of our nine-year-old daughter dancing on stage on the weekend that we truly understood what it meant to be disciplined. Enforcement came flying out of the darkness of an outer-Sydney school hall in the shape of a woman, who fell on us with the information that filming was quite out of the question. We regret to say this stirred our inner pedant, which caused us to point out we weren't filming, just taking photos. "No photos, either." Our inner pedant pushed us on to also point out -- helpfully, we thought -- that particular ban wasn't mentioned on the myriad "No" signs adorning the stage in a string of negative imperatives: no videoing, no mobile phones, no this, no that. We were then informed with admirable terseness that it was a Strict Rule written in the program (available for $2.50 at the door). Not, we suppose, that it really mattered in the end, as by happy coincidence, one was able to buy photos of the day from the professional snappers who were on hand. Incidentally, all the kids at the Hills Dance Spectacular were terrific. We'll be taking photos next time; all parents should.