Last month, I finally crossed one of my dream destinations off my list…Morocco!! I took this adventure with a brave tour guide and 33 women (this included the entire DMV Travel Crew + 1 new friend) and it was an amazing trip. You ever take so many pictures on vacation that you end up not …
Beautiful wines during the SommCon session: White Burgundy Without Wood – Displaying Chardonnay’s True Character. The panelists — Geoff Labitzke – Director of Sales, Kistler Vineyards Robert Jones, MS – Advanced Sake Professional, Kysela Pere et Fils, LTD.
I don’t even know where to start about my “quick” weekend experience. So I’ll start at the beginning. I found out about the Batonnage Forum from Julia Coney on Instagram and thought I NEED to be at this conference! Now if you know me personally, follow me on IG or Twitter or even read my …
I’ve been waiting to try this wine for a while. I decided last night was perfect. It’s made by Cruse Wine Co., a small boutique winery in Petaluma, California. I purchased this bottle at a wine shop in DC called Domestique. They have a lot of different, intriguing wines with very knowledgeable staff. Sometimes when …
Last week I went to a fabulous tasting at Zachy’s DC with Sophia Bergqvist from Quinta De La Rosa — with food from Perfect Little Bites! Since 1906, Quinta De La Rosa has been a family owned business located on the banks of the River Douro (Portugal). The property was a christening present given to …
During the Wine Bloggers Conference on Friday night, there’s a thing called “Mystery Excursions.” You get a random, color ticket from the conference registration desk and at 5:15pm meet in the hotel lobby. The cool thing is you don’t know where you are going! Once the groups were gathered by ticket color, we were loaded …
After the wine class at Maxwell DC, we went to dinner at Tiger Fork. Finally!! The fried, crispy Chili Tofu with crab was the perfect starter. The cocktail was an Old Fashioned but not your usual OF — it was made with Baijiu (a white liquor made with sorghum, wheat, rice, sticky rice and corn) …
Part two of our tour with Force Majeure takes us to the top of some serious uninhabited land in an area called North Fork. The area is named North Fork because the “North Fork of the Walla Walla River runs along the bottom of the canyon.” Since our large coach bus can’t make it up …
What do you do when you have a long layover in Seattle while on your way to the Wine Bloggers Conference in Walla Walla? Well, you rent a car, eat a snack at Von’s 1000Spirits, go wine tasting at SODO Urbanworks (Washington State Wine) then make your way to JuneBaby. You may be asking yourself, …
Founded in 2002, one of the African American Vintners Association’s (AAVA) purposes is to “develop a sense of community among members of the organization through friendly and informal networking and social functions.” This purpose allowed me to have a wonderful time on Sunday at the AAVA tasting held at City Winery. I had been following …
“Come quickly, I am tasting the stars” – I know Dom Pérignon (a Benedictine monk from the famous Champagne House Dom Pérignon) said this but wow this is how I felt the other day. I was so happy to attend the tasting at Zachys DC (I sleep there now, in the warehouse) to try these …
Did I pick this wine because of the label? Yup. I know that’s a no no to some. It’s a pretty wine label created by Brooklyn artist Zimer. Seriously, that’s not the only reason. I also selected this wine because it’s a Cabernet Sauvignon (4% Cab Franc) from Columbia Valley and today is the last …
Since I had wine last night at the Zachys DC Warehouse tasting, I was planning to skip a day. But how can I do that when today is National Red Wine Day! So, I decided to finally use my Coravin on this delicious bottle of Garnatxa from Parés Baltà. One glass. Done! The Coravin will …
I love a casual wine tasting where you can feel comfortable asking questions and nothing is off limits. Saturday was one of those times. It started with a fun and funky wine tasting outside on the patio at Primrose with Sebastian, the chill and vibrant owner. If you follow any wine accounts on IG, you’ll …
I’m supposed to start writing about wine and maybe some other stuff. But when you’re a novice writer, where do you start? Especially where do you start when you have to add wine in the mix? I’ve been told by numerous people, you just start! I have been a wine lover for the last 15-20 years (did I just give away my age??). So it should be easy for me to write about something I love. Right?
I started with White Zinfandel, like most people I know. I left a lot of my friends in the White Zin and Sweet wine category. Sweet wine never worked for me (not that there’s anything wrong with that!). I’ve just always been different. I love the taste of Bourbon/Whiskey and even Tequila. When people turn up their faces when drinking, a big smile comes across mine. So it seemed only natural that my palette gravitated to Full Bodied Cabernet, Syrah and Zinfandels (yes, Zinfandel).
On my first trip to the land of Full Bodied Cabernets (Napa), ya’ll I was hooked! On this trip, I was lucky to take a Wine Immersion Class from Karen MacNeil (Author of the Wine Bible). I even have my signed certificate hanging proudly on my frig. Napa made me fall deeper and deeper in love with wine.
What a journey it has been. From joining tasting clubs, to visiting wineries around the world, to studying and hopefully passing my CSW exam. I don’t know where this wine journey will take me but please join me on this ride! I sure could use a co-pilot!
