In the past few years, the offer of our national souvenirs has taken a huge step forward! Wines, traditional alcoholic drinks and liquors, dry fig spreads and even chocolates are available in all better souvenir stores. However, the prices are sometime really high and preventing even better sales.
One of the better stores in terms of offer and price is most certainly Delicum Nostrum in Trogir!
Delicium Nostrum, Obrov 2, Trogir
Tucked in a small alley just off the main promenade, Delicium Nostrum even from a distance shows that this place offers nice collection of Croatian souvenirs.
Everything worth noticing can be found here: from traditional sweets to olive oils and modern, organic cosmetics
The offer
The store has a more spacious ground floor and a more exclusive second floor where a nice selection of wines can be found. Also, the prices are better than in other places of the same type. We have also partnered to organize some wine tastings at the store as well!
The second floor
Delicium Nostrum
For authentic Croatian souvenirs in Trogir, there is no better place than Delicium Nostrum and I just hope that they go national with the brand. The times are tough but with the right offer and good prices, they can really make a name and have a good and recognizable brand.
Wine #2
Qupé Syrah
Central Coast
California
2007 $18-20
Opaque Ruby,
Purplish color.
Nose:
Black cherry.
Raw blackberry. Rhone-style.
Black pepper.
Jammy. Cigar.
Palate:
Ripe, black
Jammier fruit.
Chewy compote.
Toasted barrel.
Burnt wood.
Wine #3
J.Vidal Fleury
Crozes-Hermitage
France
2006 $ 22-25
Dark ruby,
opaque color.
Nose: Hermitage terroir.
Jammy. Plummy.
Black fruit.
Figs. Dates.
Ripe Raisins.
Mushrooms.
Palate:
Tannic grip.
Ripe fruit. Complex. Yummy.
Very yummy.
Three stars.
Pair with:
Game, grouse,
Venison, lamb.
(2006 2nd
hottest year,
yields ripe fruit.)
Wine #4
Bonny Doon
“Le Pousseur”
Central Coast
California
MMV $18-22
Crazy winemaker,
the great
Randall Graham.
Dark garnet,
almost opaque.
Great Nose:
Fruit forward. Jumps out.
Feminine. Elegant.
Black cherry.
Currants. Gunpowder.
Peppery compote.
Palate:
Lighter tannins.
Soft. Elegant.
Oak. Yummy. Three stars.
Wine #5
D’Arenberg
“The Footbolt”
McLaren Vale
Australia
2007 $?
Dark color.
Nose:
Black fruit.
Licorice. Candy.
Cherry. Coffee.
Chocolate bon-bon. Juicy. Lip-smackin’.
Palate:
Smooth. Chewy.
Few tannins.
Leather. Yummy.
Wine #6
Marquis Philips
McLaren Vale
Australia
2008 $22 Shake well.
Release esters.
Inky-black color.
Nose:
Gamy, meaty.
Bacon fat.
Dark chocolate.
Bittersweet.
Palate:
Luscious. Full.
Not sweet,
but sweet.
Barely tannic. Powerful bold,
yet Soft.
Big. Thick.
Juicy. Jammy. Four stars.
February 25th is National Chili Day. With Spring is not too far away and a chill still in the air, the notion of cooking up something warm and spicy is appealing. Everyone has their own favorite recipe, many handed down from generation to generation.
The name Chili con carne ( literally chili with meat) often known as simply chili, is spicy stew. The name “chili con carne “is taken from Spanish and means “peppers with meat.” Traditional versions are made minimally from chili peppers, meat, garlic, onion and cumin, along with chopped or ground beef. Beans and tomatoes are frequently added. Variations, both geographic and personal may involve different types of meats as well as a variety of spices and other ingredients. Chili can be found worldwide and also in certain American style fast food restaurants.
The variant recipes provoke disputes among afficiandos. Chili lovers and cooks defend their personal resipes and hence why many host chili cook-offs in the spring. Speaking of Chili-Cook off, Partners in Wine and Rocky Hill Inn will be hosting a Spring Chili -Cook off. Stay tuned for more information.
Now to the wine pairings: Try a Chilean Malbec or even a Spanish wine. For a complete list of chili recipes or more wine pairings visit Chef E. for suggestions
As an inexperienced wine drinker, I have quite the problem on my hands: I can’t stop buying wine. Like…lots of wine. It started with ordering bottles based on the trendy packaging (I know, I know…a big slap on the wrist from any wine connoisseur). But c’mon, you gotta ’go with what you know’ and I KNOW trendy packaging when I see it;) Ever since jumping on the WineLibrary.com bandwagon (see post) I have been shamefully ordering many bottles of the juicy stuff. SO folks, I have decided to bust out my wine dictionary and begin adding wine reviews using my crazy/quirky palate. Please do not be offended if I describe a Pinot as tasting like Beyonce’s rehearsal shoes. Thanks!
To get us started, I thought I would pick a grape that I know little about but find myself ordering all too frequently: MALBEC. And to be more specific, Argentinian Malbec from the Mendoza region. Todays pick:
Label: 2006 Tierra Divina Old Vine Malbec Valle de Uco
Price: $14
Color: deep ruby
Smells Like: bright citrus, jammy, berry
Tasting Notes: rhubarb, light bodied, full flavored. fruity but not gay – much like Jason Mraz. so..a metrosexual wine.
Best song to pair it with: “Lucky” by Jason Mraz
Lucky Jason Mraz (on tour)
We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. (2009)
French intoxicant has been renowned worldwide for hundreds of years, and ease enjoys a strange reputation today.
France’s climate is perfect for viticulture, and intoxicant is produced all over the country in different regions such as Rhone, Provence, Loire, Lanquedoc, Champagne, Burgundy, Bordeaux and Alsace.
The most famous of all land intoxicant is Champagne, embraced all over the concern as a celebratory tipple. Strangely enough, the fizz and pop that Champagne is famed for was originally deemed to be a intense thing, and something that land intoxicant makers strived to eradicate, without success.
Now of course, the bubbles are Champagne’s main selling point. Champagne itself is mostly very expensive, although in past times supermarkets have partaken in toll wars which have seen many bottles of Champagne being oversubscribed at half price.
Even if you don’t want to spend a aggregation of money, you can ease savor some fizz because France produces some great sparkling intoxicant that isn’t Champagne, and therefore has a far cheaper toll tag.
This sparkling intoxicant isn’t of poor quality, it’s got a huge following in its own right. Only intoxicant produced in the region of Champagne is permissible to feature Champagne on its label, and the intoxicant producers of this region fiercely defend this rule.
French intoxicant is famed for both its red and white varieties of wine, and it would be wrong in some ways to feature that land intoxicant has its own distinct identity. It is much more genuine to feature that each region has an identity as the wines vary greatly from region to region. The grapes grown in each region are very different and there are also differing production methods.
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If interested in California wine, here is a tasting.
————————————————
Celebrate the new Calistoga AVA with Chateau Montelena
Chateau Montelena would like to invite you to join us on March 11th in celebration of the newly appointed Calistoga AVA, the 15th appellation in the NapaValley. 7 long years ago our winemaker, Bo Barrett, on behalf of Chateau Montelena petitioned to have Calistoga formally recognized as an American Viticultural Area, and as of January 2010, we are proud to say that it has been approved.
To celebrate this achievement, we will be pouring a 3-year vertical of our acclaimed Estate Cabernet. One of the most significant contributing factors to making a wine unique is the place that the grapes are grown, and our vineyards in Calistoga and their diverse soils are what make our Estate wine special and exemplary of the essence of the Calistoga AVA.
For our vertical tasting we will be pouring the 1997, 1998 and 1999 vintages of the Montelena Estate Cabernet and will be offering a charcuterie selection to accompany the wines. In addition we will have maps and information to educate you about the Calistoga area and how it influences our winemaking style.
This is a rare opportunity to taste 3 highly acclaimed vintages side-by-side and space will be limited. Tickets will go on-sale Wednesday February 24th and will be $40 per person. The tasting will take place in the Private Dining Room at Press Club and will begin at 6pm and we will pour until 8:30pm. Tickets will be available exclusively at Press Club from the Chateau Montelena representatives or through a retail associate.
*This post belongs to this week’s edition of Wine by Cush Magazine blog and published early in World of Cush also.
This is my second attempt at writing for the day. I started a few hours ago, ready to comment on how Rocket and I went to our winery wedding venue for our walk through…which despite the snow covered fields and hills, is set for our nuptials in three weeks.
The Vines at the Winery--- the snow is unlikely to melt in three weeks.
Instead, my evening took a very immediate turn a few hours ago. Rocket’s humble abode has been on the market since the fall. Month after month, I have been nervous about it selling (or not) and how it would impact our starting our married life together. In many ways, his wonderful house was becoming my nemesis. I should be clear–I love his house. It is beautiful. But it is nestled in the woods, more than an hour away. And as much as I love Rocket, I am not the type of girl that appreciates waking up to watch the deer in the forest (now, if Nieman Marcus or Saks Fifth Avenue were visible—that, that would be heaven).
So tonight, we got a phone call—from a realtor (a real live realtor!!! ) The couple that came for a showing on Thursday and then again on Friday was making an offer….an actual offer—and it was within the range of his asking price! You would think it would take a while to read a 63 page sales contract….but there is an art in skimming–and we perfected it (I also perfected the art of jumping up and down in excitement—there may have also been some shrieking!).
Waiting an hour to hear back from the realtor about our counter offer was grueling–but so very worth it when the call finally came. It is as if today was a day that will go down in Cara Mamma and Rocket history— a wonderful walk through to plan our wedding, an impromptu tasting by our caterer of very very very yummy tapas, a visit to our future home site to find the construction site buzzing with activity, and then… the planets and stars aligned.
Not even the black mud of the winery parking lot could dampen my spirits today.
I know I know, nothing is ever a guarantee with real estate until the ink has dried on the closing forms—but really…this is tremendous. And for the first time in a long time, I feel elated. I have written alot about in the last few months about the power of positive thinking–but sadly for Rocket, I have not always been the best model of this when it came to his house and how we would transition into married life with two homes. It did not help that wedding plans seemed to be unraveling with Rabbi Cool’s back surgery or that my many family members and friends were going to be unable to join us for the wedding—but somehow today….everything changed. And now, I can officially say— life is good, very very good.
… That’s probably one of my favorite pastimes. One of my most exciting arty projects has been my cork board. Made of real corks. A lot of dedication went into it to get all those corks, but in the end, I couldn’t be happier. It has been completed for a little while, but as I was going through my photos to try to organize (another of my favorite pastimes) I found these… And realized I never posted them. So here is a run down on how this magnificent art piece was created.
I first needed to get all my necessities set out…
corks – check
beer – check
hard working assistant – check
Then the assembly process began. I used a frame from Ikea that originally had glass in it. After I broke the glass in a move, I decided that would be the perfect frame for my cork board. I started in a corner and hot glued them all together from there. If I was to do it again, I would probably put a backing on the frame and glue them to that as well as the edges. I noticed that the corks started to bow a bit as I got more towards the center. Not so much that I cant use it but enough that it was a bit annoying when putting more corks into the board.
And another shot of my assistant. He was a helper when it came to trimming corks to fit in the tiny nooks. But more so, he just made cork towers.
And the final product! Complete with a glass of wine from the last bottle needed to complete the project. Thanks Charles Schaw, for being so delicious!
Book Selection: The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
Food: Hummus, pita, veggie tray, cheese, shrimp
Best Wine of the Night: Zinopolis, California Zinfandel, 2007 $17.99
Month: February
I am not sure what I expected from this book – I know that when it was first published and flying off the shelves, I was reluctant to read it, although everyone I knew was raving about it. It seemed like it was going to be depressing, and I wasn’t in the market for sad at that time.
So when I read it for book club, I was surprised it was not as depressing and bleak as I had thought it would be. Don’t get me wrong, it is still a disturbing topic, the rape and murder of a young girl. But I think Sebold wrote this novel in such a way that the reader is able to distance themselves from the horror of the act, by writing the book from the viewpoint of Susie Salmon as a heavenly narrator.
I loved the heaven aspect, the fact that Susie could watch people, and design her own heaven. And I loved that Holiday was there with her eventually. I know as a pet owner, that I hope my animals will be with me in eternity one day. So I liked that part.
The novel raised many questions in me, and in my book club companions – it was an interesting discussion. All of us felt that the book started out strong, it fizzled out near the end, and seemed to just run out of steam. But perhaps this was Sebold’s intention as well, people move on, large life changing events remain large and life changing, but in time they become the past, literally and emotionally, as newer large and life changing events take place. For Susie, that was it for her; she never grew up, moved on, had other experiences, while her friends and family did move on, grow up, lead lives, never forgetting Susie, but dealing with it the best they could. Except for the mom, in my opinion. I was so angry at her! I could not believe a mother could leave her other children like that- it is so completely wrong to me. I felt she was a weak woman, who had to run away from her emotions rather than face them and raise her remaining children. I realize I have no idea of how it would feel to be in her position, and I hope if I have children, I never do. I hope though that if I would eventually be strong for my other kids, even if inside I were struggling and wanting to run away and disappear. Buckley and Lindsey lost not just a sister, but a mother too.
And Mr. Harvey! What a villain to create. I was waiting on the edge of my seat for hard core justice, which never came. I sympathized with the father, who was obsessed with finding evidence that Mr. Harvey was the evil monster that he believed he was, and his desire for Mr. Harvey to get what he deserved. All those girls, all those women, all the families in their lives lost as well. I didn’t think what happened to him was enough, but Alyssa pointed out that he didn’t matter anymore; the damage had already been done. And maybe that is the case, I can see that. I don’t necessarily agree, but I can see the point. I compare this to Joyce Carol Oates’ novel Rape: A Love Story, and what happened to the rapists in that story, and I feel that although I thought their punishment was too strong, at least there was a consequence.
Parts of the novel were a little weird, parts were a little obscure; but no matter what this novel made you feel, anger, disgust, wonder, sympathy, sadness – it definitely made you feel something. I don’t think it is possible to read The Lovely Bones without leaving with some sort of feeling about it one way or another; it is impossible to be ambivalent.
This is actually Random Acts of Kindness Week, so I hope you tried doing something nice for someone. The Kind Over Matter blog has some suggestions if you’re stumped.
My Happiness Project is more about nonrandomness, although random is OK, as long as it makes someone smile. And without further ado, here are my week’s nicenesses:
NRAoK 43: Hosted après-ski for two ski bunny friends, both of whom I’ve known since boys had cooties (and one of whom is my much-missed Roomie). It was nice to catch up!
NRAoK 44: The Sherpa and I had a little Valentine’s Day celebration, and I made him a mix tape (OK, a CD) of a lot of my favorite songs and gave him some treats from Cherry Republic (a cherry-based food empire based in the Michigan town I go to in the summer). What made him smile the most about it all was the card that came with the cherries, which was a handwritten version of the greeting I typed, but mixed up so that it looked like it was FROM him. What, so a woman can’t get a man chocolate for Valentine’s Day??
OK, and on a side note, something that made us both smile on Saturday was the bottle of wine that he brought to dinner. He said he’d been saving it for a special occasion, but we discovered that the wine actually made the occasion! (Thank you again!)
NRAoK 45: Introduced The Sherpa to the better-than-average sushi at Wegman’s. I think he was pleasantly surprised!
NRAoK 46: Signed up for the March of Dimes, in honor of the Chicken Noodle. Natalie was born 8 weeks premature on 12/29/09 and thankfully her NICU physicians and nurses took amazing care of her and she’s happily and healthily chugging along at home now! I’ve set a goal of $200. Donate here or click to the right!
NRAoK 47: In the course of watching LOST with the Chicken, I typed the answer to a trivia question for her on ABC’s LOST blog while she fed the Noodle. We won! Sweet.
NRAoK 48: Had a nice laugh-in with a friend over sushi. I think we both needed it.
NRAoK 49: This one’s about me, and I’ll post more about it later, but I got on the scale this morning and was down a couple of pounds from last week! With all the bike time in my future, being a little lighter will help (especially since I’ve had those heart issues while trying to climb hills), so this made me smile.
And now that we’re at the magic number 50, I’m going to start updating about the Happiness Project only every 50 days. So look for a post about my First 100 Days in another 50.
Casting on a new project at the start of class on 2/13/10
This past Saturday was our third week of knitting class at Mass Ave Wine Shoppe, and our first week with finished knitting projects! We had a brief hiatus last week while I took the day off for my birthday, and that gave plenty of time for a few finished projects. I’m so proud of these knitters who didn’t know a stitch when class started one month ago!
Eleanor with her first finished project: wrist warmers!
The first week of class we focused on learning the knit stitch and the second week on perfecting the purl. Eleanor (above) is showing of her ribbed wrist warmers, and Karen (below) shows off her knit scarf!
Karen shows off her knit scarf!
We had a really good time this week. Some of us enjoyed snacking on a goat cheese, basil pesto, and sun dried tomato torte with toasted batard, while others had croque mermaid sandwiches or cheese and crackers. Of course we all enjoyed various wines. This week I split a bottle of La Marouette Chardonnay with some of the ladies. Everything was fantastically fun!
The delicious, organic La Marouette
This coming Saturday, class will kick-off at 4:30. $15 will get you a glass of wine and a knitting lesson. This week the “regulars” will be learning how to knit on circular needles to make a hat, but you don’t need to know anything about knitting to come. Any one is welcome at any time and I am there for constant coaching and one-on-one lessons and help. I hope you will join us!
February has been a busy month here at taste cookies. The double chocolate, espresso brownie has been a HUGE hit! Lots of orders for Valentines Day.
Last week I was involved in a great event- Wine and Chocolate- at Hudson Terrace. This was an event where chocolate and wine were the main focus. I took along my triple chocolate chip with pecans; old fashioned chocolate chip; white chocolate macadamia nut with dried cherries; chocolate with dried cherries and my double chocolate espresso brownie with and without walnuts. I gave away around 1,000 samples. People seemed to love taste cookies! The favorites of the night were the old fashioned chocolate chip and the double chocolate espresso brownie. The triple chocolate chip with pecans was a close third (it is my favorite too). I must say, it was a great night. I want to thank Cari at Discosushi for inviting me to be a part of the night. I look forward to working with Cari and her team again.
Next week I am going to be involved with The Bailey House ( www.baileyhouse.org/auction ) Benefit Auction. This is a great cause and I am very excited to be invited to be a part of this event. I will be providing around 1000 cookies for dessert for the auction attendees. Tickets are still available if you are interested in supporting this organization.
At the end of March, taste cookies will be providing cookies for the Wine and Wishes Benefit Auction which serves the Make a Wish Foundation ( www.metrony.wish.org/ ). This is an amazing organization and I am honored to be involved with this event.
Then in May, taste cookies has signed on to take part in New Taste of the Upper West Side. This should be a fantastic weekend of events. taste cookies will be at the Divine Desserts portion on Friday May 21st from 9pm-midnight. I am very excited to be able to be involved with this event. As a 12 year resident of the Upper West Side, this event is very important to me. Tickets are on sale now at ( www.newtasteuws.com ).
Another event in May that taste cookies will be supporting is the West Side YMCA Strong Kids Campaign. Each year the tendercare program of the UWS branch hosts a Touch a Truck fundraiser. This is a great event for the whole family. West 64th street between Broadway and CPW is closed off and teh street is transformed into a street fair. Last year there was an ambulance, mail truck, garbage truck, ConEd truck, live music by Hot Peas and Butter, a bouncy house and lots of food. This is a great event and a great cause. taste cookies will be set up selling cookies with the proceeds going directly to the Strong Kids fund. As soon as I know the exact date I will post it here.
I need to sign off for now. My kids are out of school this week on winter break and I need to go get them ready for swimming class. After that, it’s back to the kitchen I go. trying out a few new recipes this week- looking for the March cookie of the month!
It’s truly awesome when plans come to fruition. All that hard work, sweat, tears (in some cases) adding up to success.
I’m of course talking about a couple of things: my sister coming to visit, my dinner party going without a hitch, and a good Valentine’s Day.
My left shoulder is finally healed from the trip I made to the grocery store on Saturday where I ended up getting 61 pounds (I weighed it when I got home) of groceries and carrying it back from the Harris Teeter a mile back to my apartment. Near the end, it did become a struggle!
The dinner party did not go as planned, as my attempts to clean my apartment, get groceries, and prepare the food went with a few hitches. For one, I had bought dry chickpeas that day and started boiling them. They took… forever. Three hours, in fact, before they softened up enough to be pureed in with the rest of the ingredients for the hummus. Luckily, my sister arrived at the party in time to help me set up everything else. I was able to get the brownies and roasted/curried nuts done, and was in the middle of preparing the chicken for the chicken cordon bleu when the first guests arrived. Not thinking properly, I answered the phone (hooked up in my apartment for the doorbell) with chicken covered hands. Yes, I know, gross. And at that point, the party was on!
I was still stressed, running about the kitchen (which only has about 20 square feet of room) getting this ready and that cooked, when one of my friends chipped in to help. Haha, he works next to me at my job too, so we were used to working in close quarters! With his help and my sister’s help, we got most of the food out to my guests. After the rest of the chicken cordon bleu was cooked, all that was left were the corn soufflés. I don’t think I’ve ever made something so fast, with lightning quick moves to separate all the 6 egg yolks, then get the mixture ready, and lastly put it in the oven. My friend asked me, “Hey is there anything else I can get you?” and I immediately said “A beer.” It was definitely satisfying.
The food ended up being a hit once it had gotten to everyone. It went well with the assortment of wines that everyone had brought. On a side note, my fridge is again filled with alcoholic beverages. Once the corn soufflés were ready, everyone loved them. I had the Olympics on for people to watch (muted) from time to time, with conversations pausing when a crazy trick was made in moguls or a crash in speed skating. With the moguls, I think everyone that watches it feels the pain in their knees from the competitors!
All in all, it was a great party. Lessons were learned about preparing food ahead of time, but a lesson from my previous party was also learned. There was absolutely no parking chaos to be had, as I was recommended a certain church parking lot by my dad and it worked out perfectly. Another lesson: before boiling chickpeas, soak them in water the night before!
Sunday I spent with my family, showing my sister the Kettler and even watching the end of a Challenge Cup game (junior women’s hockey) that had some hard hits but a lopsided score (an 11-1 beatdown). I eventually made it to my parents’ house for the first time since the snowpocalypse. I would spend 5 hours (with a break in the middle) shoveling out a parking spot in a 4 foot tall snow bank. I have finally stopped feeling sore from that a full day later.
Picked up the game Tatsunoko vs. Capcom Ultimate All Stars and I am absolutely loving it! Basically if you’ve never heard of the game it’s exactly like the Marvel vs. Capcom games with 2 on 2 tag based gameplay. The characters and environments, however, are made in complete 3-D with cel-shading. I was really happy to recognize some of the old Tatsunoko anime characters that I have only seen at past Otakons where I had no idea who they were at the time. There’s a lot to unlock in this game, so I’ve got a lot to do with the game!
This weekend was absolutely awesome, but now I must get to bed for another day of work. Here’s to another good set of days!
Currently listening to (and watching): Tatsunoko vs. Capcom Ultimate All Stars
As the adage goes, “It’s not how we love someone when we love them, but how we love someone when we hate them that counts.” How easy it is to love someone who conveniently fits into and aligns with our values, ideas, purposes or interests. The challenge and opportunity comes when we’re faced with a choice in that moment when it may be difficult not to react or to send them love. The light that is revealed when we disarm someone with love is tremendous. It is easy to imagine what we might do or say in a potential situation where it is extremely difficult to love somone; however the true test comes when the situation presents itself and that goodwill we were sure we would have suddenly feels stripped away.
If we shifted our perspective when it came to how we view other people’s behaviors in situations it would be much easier to transform and heal the events around us that are taxing or difficult to understand. At the risk of oversimplification, it is true nonetheless: Every thing anyone ever does is either an act of love or a cry for help. This family was sitting down to dinner and robbed at gunpoint. In that moment, they had a decision. To act from fear or to act from love. The outcome of their decision was powerful.
Intruder Pulls Gun on Dinner Party, Then Asks for Hugs
(AP) July 13, 2007
WASHINGTON — Washington, D.C., police are baffled by an attempted robbery in the Capitol Hill neighborhood that began with a handgun put to the head of a teenager and ended in a group hug.
It started about midnight on June 16 when a group of friends was finishing a dinner of marinated steaks and jumbo shrimp on the back patio of a District of Columbia home. That’s when a hooded man slid through an open gate and pointed a handgun at the head of a 14-year-old girl.
“Give me your money, or I’ll start shooting,” he said, according to D.C. police and witnesses.
Everyone froze, including the girl’s parents. Then one guest spoke.
“We were just finishing dinner,” Cristina “Cha Cha” Rowan, 43, told the man. “Why don’t you have a glass of wine with us?”
The intruder had a sip of their Chateau Malescot St-Exupery and said, “Damn, that’s good wine.”
The girl’s father, Michael Rabdau, 51, told the intruder to take the whole glass, and Rowan offered him the whole bottle.
The robber, with his hood down, took another sip and a bite of Camembert cheese. He put the gun in his sweatpants.
The story then turns even more bizarre.
“I think I may have come to the wrong house,” he said before apologizing. “Can I get a hug?”
Rowan, who works at her children’s school and lives in Falls Church, Va., stood up and wrapped her arms around the armed man. The four other guests followed.
“Can we have a group hug?” the man asked. The five adults complied.
The man walked away a few moments later with the crystal wine glass in hand. Nothing was stolen, and no one was hurt.
Once he was gone, the group walked into the house, locked the door and stared at each other — speechless. Rabdau called 911, and police came to take a report and dust for fingerprints.
Police classified the case as strange but true. Investigators have not located a suspect. The witnesses thought he might have been high on drugs.
“We’ve had robbers that apologize and stuff but nothing where they sit down and drink wine. It definitely is strange,” said Cmdr. Diane Groomes, adding that the hugs were especially unusual. “The only good thing is they would be able to identify him because they hugged them
Sometimes through the courageous act of choosing love over fear that light completely dissolves the darkness. I remember when my brother finished medical school and he had to focus on under-served areas under the stipulations of a scholarship. He spent some time volunteering in homeless shelters, seeing patients in ghettos (and the coup-de-grace), imagine my reaction when he told his big sister that he – fearless as he’s always been - was toying with the idea of doing work in prisons. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but this is where I draw the line. You are not working with ex-convicts. You don’t need to martyr yourself to help the world.” Of course, I was petrified at the thought of what I perceived as his naivete, but he taught me something very valuable. In situations where most of us would act in fear (being closed, choosing self-protection and “safety”) he walks straight into the darkness without judgment and in love and utter fearlessness, and the sum of what he produces is always beautiful. People who, for most of their lives, have been treated as outcasts or hardened criminals greeted with fear, are given trust and love and miraculously that dissipates a lot of the darkness and illusion. Through his fearlessness, non-judgment and respect, the respect and love they showed him in return was double. Every last trace of fear around the situation, gone.
That is exactly what this family did. One could read this story and think, “Are you out of your mind? Are you naive? This man has a gun and you’re going to invite him to sit down to dinner?” But this fear is an illusion and it’s a bubble that can be popped with arrows of love and kindness. For every argument someone gives against matching fear with more fear, there are a million other examples where love won out and created light in a seemingly hopeless situation.
The end of Week 6 of 12 in my goal to find a job has come to a close, celebrated by my least favorite holiday… Valentine’s Day. While things have been looking up for quite some time now in my love life, thanks to Miss Fancy Boots, my employment life is also starting to take shape albeit slowly.
Tomorrow I have an interview with Currituck County Emergency Management for a position as an EM Program Assistant. I’m excited to see what opportunities come out of the interview since there was not much information provided in the position listing, including a salary figure! The location is pretty sweet in terms of proximity to the beach but not so much in terms of proximity to friends. The closest friends would be Miss Sassy Pants (the original who I highly recommend) in Raleigh– but only for another 5 months, Sir Sailor up in Norfolk, and Frenchy (akaClassy) in VA Beach. Neither of those locations are really within “go out for the night” driving distance, in fact their more like “spend the weekend visiting” distance. This really puts a big ole fat negative on the list of pros/cons for this particular job. So like I said, we’ll see what comes out of the interview tomorrow morning and I’ll keep you updated. By the way… anyone else find it a bit ridiculous I’m interviewing with a local government on a Federal holiday?
In other news I’m looking forward to staying with Park Ranger in his sweet new condo for my interview on the 27th in DC with Fund for the Public Interest. This is an opportunity I’m really excited about so keep your fingers crossed for me.
Bring on the vino! Check out this bottle from one of my new favorite wineries Oveja Negra (Black Sheep) who puts a unique spin on a white blend combining Sauvignon Blanc and Carmenere (yes that’s a red grape). So how do they keep the wine “white” if there’s a “red” grape in it? Well my friends they simply avoid skin contact with the Carmenere to avoid tinging the wine with the red color. This is an interesting and exciting blend I highly recommend.
The past week has seen me foray into new culinary territory, some of it much-hyped, some not. In order of ingestion:
1. 2007 Clos Roche Blanche Touraine Cuvée Côt: I recently sampled this small vineyard’s 2008 Cuvée Gamay and really enjoyed it (so much so, in fact, that I am enjoying a glass from a second bottle as I type). I am no expert –– far from it –– but my oenophile friend T, on learning that I was impressed by the Gamay, suggested I try their Cuvée Côt, or Malbec, and so I picked up a bottle at Slope Cellars here in the hood to bring to a dinner last weekend. What an odd, flowery, decidedly funky wine, filled with hints of lavender and herbs and mushrooms and parma violets. I loved it, but I couldn’t imagine pairing it with food.
2. Stumptown Coffee: This coffee has earned many column inches (if one can still talk about such things these days), but the two cups I’d had to date –– at Brooklyn’s Trois Pommes and Baked –– had not left a lasting impression. So when R said he was going to pick up beer supplies at the new Brooklyn Homebrew just round the corner from us, I asked him to pick up a bag of Stumptown so that we could brew and test it for ourselves. He chose their organic Holler Mountain Blend, which was smooth and tasty and all things good, but still left me wondering quite what all the fuss is about. It is more expensive and less expansive that our usual brew (Gorilla’s Poco Fundo). We finished the bag in four days. Now I admit this might say more about our caffeine habit (we have a five-month old! cut us some slack!) than the quality of the beans, but still.
The relationship between items 1. and 2. is as follows: I would rather drink bad wine than bad coffee. In certain situations, I am quite happy to down plonk; I am never content to swill sock juice coffee.
3. Jasper Hill’s Winnimere, a raw cow cheese aged 60 days and washed in lambic. Delicious.
4. SCRATCHbread’s chocolate chip scone. I’ve been eager to sample a SCRATCHbread creation since reading that the baker does all his work overnight, using the oven of a local pizzeria. So when I was at Gorilla this morning with H and saw that they are now carrying the stuff, I let myself forget about the postpartum weight loss (yeah, like the aforementioned wine and cheese didn’t screw that already) and indulged. Perhaps my mistake was to go with my primal chocofiend urges, rather than opting for the more interesting ginger & lemon offering. It may be that I was underwhelmed because I had to juggle scone, coffee, groceries, stroller and icy sidewalks all while performing the puddle ballet required of New Yorkers after a significant snowfall; however, underwhelmed I was. ‘Twas a dry, crumbly and insipid effort –– the kind of thing one might qualify as meh –– even if the darker-than-usual chocolate chips were a pleasant surprise.
We were young, we were broke….we were living in rural Iowa, for God sakes.
My roommate Jim had a girlfriend, and one Friday night he was going to impress her with a nice, home cooked meal and an evening of romance. This necessitated me finding somewhere else to be for the night, which was no problem, but his plans also included a bottle of wine to go with his home cooked feast. This was a bit of a problem.
SEE: ‘we were broke’, above.
A plan was concocted to overcome both limited funds, and lack of quality and variety (fancy-schmanzyism, as the locals might say) in the local municipal liquor store wine selection. Keep in mind this was Marshalltown, Iowa 1979 – stocking both Mogen David and Boones Farm qualified as ‘wide selection’. Part one of our scheme was to procure the container, and Jim had a friend who worked at a nice restaurant and got Jim an empty French wine bottle – cork included.
French! Even better than Jim had hoped for – and it had the cork, to boot.
Jim cleaned out the bottle, then we made a trip to the grocery store for the ingredients necessary for one bottle of Jim’s date-night wine; Welch’s grape juice, a bottle of vodka, a box of Alka-Seltzer tablets, and a funnel.
Returning home, Jim poured a couple of small glasses of the grape juice, in varying amounts, then added the vodka. A quick sampling led us to the conclusion that a 50/50 mix was pretty close (remember, our young palettes were far from being developed) to real wine – real FRENCH wine – save for the fizz.
Taking the funnel, Jim filled his empty French wine bottle half-way up with the Welch’s, then he filled the remainder of the bottle with the vodka. He then opened the Alka-Seltzer, and opened a pack of two tablets. We had to break them to get them down the neck of the bottle, and once inside they began to fizz and foam, threatening to overflow the bottle, before settling down. Two tablets didn’t seem to add enough fizz (maybe for a domestic, but not for French wine) so he ended up opening two more packets of Ala-Seltzer and repeating the procedure until his concoction seemed to fit the bill. A couple of sips convinced him that he had hit upon the recipe for date night success, so he was able to get the cork in the bottle, and the bottle in the fridge for proper chilling.
1 bottle of Jim’s Impress-A-Chick; vintage, Thursday, under four dollars.
Jim’s date night went off without a hitch – his home cooked meal, the accompanying wine both a big hit – though their evening ended a bit earlier than he might have wished. You see the wine was cheap and easy, the girl wasn’t.
So you have put off your plans, got no idea what to do, and are scrambling for someway to celebrate V-day. Okay, here are a couple quick easy last-minute, no frill, but really cool and sexy drinks.
Cinn-ful Love
1 oz cinnamon schnapps
1 dash peychaud bitters
5 oz sparkling wine
Build in a champagne flute and garnish with a couple of heart-shaped hard candies (Ya know the one you bought cause the drugstore was out of chocolates)
And since you missed out on the chocolates…..
Sexual Chocolate
1 oz Godiva White chocolate
1 oz Frangelico
1 oz Vodka
Combine in a shaker with ice and shake. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass decorated with hearts drawn in chocolate syrup.
Hope everyone has a wonderful celebration with their loved one. And if you are not spending Valentine’s day sans another, remember, your significant other doesn’t have to be a person. Personally I have a date with my girl for lunch and the evening I will be spending with my other true love……my bar.
Chris spends part of his morning as a guest of the Sto:Lo Nation in Mission, British Columbia. He tours the original 9,000 year-old village site and the Xa:ytem Longhouse before turning his hand to make a traditional First Nations drum. Chris then heads to Domaine de Chaberton Estate Winery in Langley where he learns the art of fine winemaking from the Fraser Valley’s oldest and largest winery. He remains in Langley to catch up with the Olympic Flame at that community’s Torch Relay Celebration.
In addition to wine I like tea. Well, coffee too, but this is about tea. And wine.
In a moment when I felt like splurging (the trip to Paris was out, a new car was out, buying first-growth Bordeaux was out), I thought I would go to a very high end tea specialist to purchase some interesting teas that I cannot get at my favorite tea store. (I don’t want to mention the name as that would be unfair free advertising for them. But if I did want to mention them, I would say Peet’s Coffee and Tea.)
So I head off to Oxbow Market in Napa, home to my favorite suppliers of exquisite provisions (love that word, provisions), and immediately went to my favorite store there, Kara’s Cupcakes. Oh, wait, this is about tea. I meant Tillerman Teas. Their tea list is extraordinary. “Tea List”? WTF is a tea list? Obviously it is a list of their teas. But they don’t just have black tea, green tea, oolong tea, etc. They have 9,000 Darjeelings, 4 million Oolongs, even more green teas, and so many black teas that a list of them cannot be printed without destroying all the remaining forests in the world. And believe me, I am not one prone to exaggeration.
I was sniffing, smelling and deciding what Oolong tea to buy. Did I want Alishan Spring Harvest or Alishan Winter Harvest? Was I interested in Jade Oolong or Roasted Oolong? Was my preference an Oriental Beauty or an Oriental Concubine? (Well, both, but never mind that. This is about tea.)
The person selling the tea began to explain a tea ceremony, the proper preparation of tea. The pot, the cups, the water temperature. He asked how I heated the water. Well, I said, I put the water in a cup and put it in the microwave…..OMG, he collapsed on the floor. “A microwave? Oh, no!!” he cried. “Never boil water in a microwave. This destroys the oxygen!”
All I wanted was some nice tea to enjoy on a cold and damp day (of which we have many lately). And now I was told I couldn’t simply enjoy the tea, but I had to do it properly or it doesn’t count.
So this leads me (finally) to say that is this what we wine people do with wine? Do we take all the pleasure out of drinking wine because we tell them the proper temperature to serve the wine, the proper balance of flavor, mouthfeel, tannin, acid? Do we explain why this vintage is better than that vintage? Do we do all this ad infinitum until the poor person who just wanted a nice bottle of wine is totally confused?
When we pair wine with food, do we insist that only an unoaked Chardonnay will work or a Pinot Noir from the Russian River? Do we say a wine should be cellared because it will be better in 2 ½ years? Do we just take all the enthusiasm out of a wine purchase just because we know about wine and know what we like?
Might it be better to ask what they have liked before and find something similar without going into historical references and flavor profiles? Does someone who does not like Cabernet be told that this Cabernet got 95 points?
I know why we say this. But does it turn some customers off and they figure they’d rather not appear ignorant and serve or order the “wrong” wine?
At a tasting one man was explaining to a novice wine drinker that you never ever hold the glass by the bowl, only by the stem, so as to not heat the wine. Well, bull. Maybe the wine is too cold. Maybe the customer likes it warm. Maybe it’s just easier to hold the glass by the bowl and not worry about it. I wonder if that novice wine drinker ever went to another tasting.
If a customer wants to know the trellising system in the vineyard where these particular grapes come from fine. Tell him. But if someone else just wants a good red wine, ask him what he liked in the past, and find something you think he’d like now. He may enjoy it far more not knowing anything about it. And maybe you can turn people into wine lovers. Enjoying wine really shouldn’t be work.
This is one of the most expensive periods of the year, when allocations seem to come in droves. In the last few weeks, I’ve been hit by Aubert, Marcassin, Kosta Browne, Turley, Linne Calodo, Saxum, Carlisle, Rivers Marie, and Outpost. Sine Qua Non is probably right around the corner. It usually evens out for the next several months until the rush come August/September. I kind of wish I could commit to the wines in advance, but pay over the course of the year–it sure would make it easier on my credit card
Many people are asking themselves why the would buy allocations, given the ever-increasing prices, the terrible economy, and the fact that often, previously hard-to-get wines can be had for less-than-retail prices in shops. For me, however, the mailing lists are mostly worth it. Don’t get me wrong–I get frustrated if I pay $X and hear that the same wine is available for 10, 20, or 30% less. But I like knowing that I’m going to get the wine for sure. I like the fact I do not have to chase the wine, running from shop to shop, begging for a bottle here, and a bottle there. I used to do that, but life has gotten busy enough that the small premium I pay is worth the time I don’t have to spend. Not to mention that I am assured of provenance.
Please join Ikal 1150 vineyard proprietors, who hail from Tyler, as they pour their award winning Ikal 1150 wines from Argentina at the 2010 Off the Vine, Wine Gala and Auction.
The event will benefit The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) of Smith County, Parents Anonymous® Inc, and All Saints Episcopal School.
Join chef Dean Fearing, of Ritz-Carlton fame for a pairing of his creations with the Ikal 1150 and over 30 other wines from around the world.
WHEN: Saturday, September 27, 1:00PM-3:00PM
WHERE:
KE Bushman's Winery & Celebration Center
2418 Sunset Blvd
Houston, TX, 77005
(713) 524-6318
www.offthevinetyler.com
Join Texas Winemakers
Join Ikal 1150’s vineyard owners, two Texans, as they pour all three of their 2007 release wines from Mendoza, Argentina.
For more information please visit Off The Vine, Tyler Texas Wine Gala, Tasting, and Auction.
Single varietal wines are probably the ones most American consumers have historically identified with and looked for. There now seems to be a growing segment in the US that realizes the power of blended wines. As we mature as a wine consuming culture in the US there are more and more folks that are comfortable straying outside of their safe zone and experimenting. Blended wines, whether classic Bordeaux style blends or otherwise can offer many positives. Of course at their best the goal is to achieve the best possible wine using the highest quality fruit a producer has available. In addition to that sometimes its as simple as some Merlot being blended in to a Cabernet for additional complexity. In any case while the single varietal expressions have their place too, blended wines are their own unique discipline. Today I’ll look at one from Bodega Septima.
The Bodega Septima 2007 Gran Reserva was produced using fruit sourced in several distinct parts of Mendoza. This wine is a blend of Malbec (50%), Cabernet Sauvignon (40%), and Tannat (10%). Each varietal was barrel aged separately in a combination of French and American oak. After 12 months in barrel the final blend was assembled prior to this offering being bottled. The suggested retail price for this wine is $25.
When this 2007 blend is poured, the deep purple hue is striking. Blackberry, blueberry and vanilla aromas waft enticingly from the nose of this wine. The palate is loaded with intense layers of fruit flavor. These are joined by spice and chocolate notes that coat the tongue and back of the throat with flavor and good intensity. Espresso, earth and mineral reference points make up the lengthy finish. This wine has firm tannins and good acid structure. In it’s powerful youth this wine will work best paired with hearty, full flavored dishes that can match its intensity.
What I like best about this wine is the balance on display between the Malbec and the Cabernet Sauvignon. The lusty fruit of the Malbec shines through, along with the depth of flavor and structure that the Cabernet provides. The softer and lighter bodied Tannat acts as a bridge, bringing it all together. While this wine is delicious now, particularly after a solid decanting, it will undoubtedly improve for the next 5-6 years and drink well for several after that. A nice wine and a very good value.
First of all, I have to give a big up to my neighbor Butch for snow-blowing our driveway this morning. I think I’m going to bake him some cookies.
I ran five miles in the snow and now my left hamstring is killin’ me. Actually, it was a little tender before I ran and now it’s worse. (Though, on a lighter note, my ankle doesn’t hurt at all! Meh.)
Sidenote: There’s a dude in my neighborhood who I see running all the time. He’s middle-aged, a little thick, and pretty slow but he’s dedicated as hell. I didn’t even know where he lived until I ran past his house today while he was shoveling the driveway. He yelled to me, “good job!” and gave me a salute. It totally made my morning. Maybe I’ll make him cookies too. Health cookies, because he’s a runner.
Even though we got about 7 inches yesterday, the run wasn’t too too bad. There were a couple of deep drifts (and some 30 mph wind gusts, ick) but the plows came through last night so the snow was pretty packed down in most places and there was minimal ice.
I actually felt pretty good after running but I probably didn’t stretch enough and I’ve been getting progressively stiffer all night. I’ll probably close out the evening by icing my thigh in bed with a glass of wine.
And we’re supposed to get even more snow next week –
It’s supposed to start around 1 a.m. Monday, so my drive into work Tuesday should be just FANTASTIC.
And, just a few thoughts about the Super Bowl:
A) I hate the Colts;
B) I think it’s lame that the Super Bowl has turned into a platform for social commentary. I know some people are complaining it was unfair for CBS to reject the ManCrunch ad, and I’m inclined to agree, especially since they did choose to air FOTF’s Tebow pro-life ad, but if you’ve actually seen the ManCrunch ad, it’s just kind of silly and ridiculous. I just don’t think it’s meaningful enough to be a significant setback for the gay rights movement.
My theory? ManCrunch made an idiotic video on purpose. They knew CBS would reject the ad and the ensuing shitstorm combined with the “REJECTED” video going viral on the Internet would be much more effective (and cheaper) advertising than a Super Bowl ad could ever be. It’s almost too easy.
Lucky Jason Mraz (on tour)
We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. (2009)
Hostess: Mary 2
The intruder had a sip of their Chateau Malescot St-Exupery and said, “Damn, that’s good wine.”
Single varietal wines are probably the ones most American consumers have historically identified with and looked for. There now seems to be a growing segment in the US that realizes the power of blended wines. As we mature as a wine consuming culture in the US there are more and more folks that are comfortable straying outside of their safe zone and experimenting. Blended wines, whether classic Bordeaux style blends or otherwise can offer many positives. Of course at their best the goal is to achieve the best possible wine using the highest quality fruit a producer has available. In addition to that sometimes its as simple as some Merlot being blended in to a Cabernet for additional complexity. In any case while the single varietal expressions have their place too, blended wines are their own unique discipline. Today I’ll look at one from Bodega Septima.
