In Vino Trivia

Vino! The Exciting Game of Wine!, is a wine trivia board game with some pretty easy questions (does Marsala come from Italy, Greece or Spain?), some pretty hard (when was the first Mendocino winery established?). Sometimes you have to propose a toast (the other players decide whether you deserve to get another question), and since this is a wine-lover’s game, everybody gets one card that entitles him to disagree with another player’s answer. Available in wine stores such as Wally’s in West L.A. and Gordon Winery in Thousand Oaks, or by calling (800) 8466-386 (that’s VINO-FUN).

Hey, What Ever Happened to Tin Cans?

“We’re aggressively exploring the shift from aluminum to steel in certain parts of the world,” says Randy Donaldson, a Coca-Cola spokesman. Already about half of Europe’s Coke is sold in steel cans, and the ratio is even higher in Japan. The reason: Since last January, when Russia and Western nations signed a controversial agreement that limits aluminum production, aluminum prices have risen 81%. Steel cans are also sturdier, since they can be made in one piece.

I Coulda Had an X-Tenda

Just in time for the big holiday meals! Alan’s X-Tenda Fork is just like any other fork, except that it can extend to 23 1/2 inches, or long enough to reach most plates on the average table. (The inventor, Alan Lowenfels, also developed Plugra European Style Butter. One concludes that he’s not a dieter.) To order, call (800) 557-1445.

Better Than Onionskin

You want recycled? A company called Real Recycled will sell you paper made by hand in India from all sorts of recycled stuff, including marigold petals, cane fibers and garlic skins ($1.40 per 500-sheet ream). Call (800) 233-5335, 24 hours.

Words to Eat By

“Food Fictions” is an audiocassette “meal” of literary readings, among them a Roald Dahl mystery in which everything is wagered on identifying the chateau and vintage of a bottle of wine, M.F.K. Fisher’s description of a fantasy meal in a French country inn (“I Was Really Very Hungry”) and an excerpt from “Heartburn” read by author Nora Ephron. To order, call (212) 864-1414 Monday-Friday 6 a.m.-2:30 p.m.

Wikket Advice

This may not be the season of the year to use a Wine Wikket, the little metal doodad that keeps your wine glass from tipping over when you put it down on the lawn. Still, Wikkets have all the marks of a classic stocking stuffer. (And maybe they’ll remember you in picnic season.) To order, call (800) WIKKETS.

The Other, Other, Other White Meat

For the cook who has everything, consider “Entertaining With Insects” by Ronald Taylor. Its 95 recipes include cricket pot pie, mealworm chow mein, fudge hoppers and beetle sausage. Also information on how to buy collect and raise insects for food. To order, call (800) 395-1351.

There’s Always a Food Angle

The current issue of Shrimp News International reviews a film entitled “Forrest Gump,” describing it as “a hot new romantic fairy tale of a film containing lots of shrimp chatter.” We understand that the film, apparently all about a shrimp fisherman, is still playing in some theaters; sounds pretty good, you might check it out.