Let me start this off by asking, do you like sardines? Yes? Keep reading. No? Keep reading. So I tried to do a rift of of St Anselm’s Grilled Sardines – Grilled Sardines with olive tapenade on crunchy bread and a spritz of lemon. I was too lazy to grill the sardines, so I just …
Wine labels
A cute label with good stuff inside…
La Boutanche Pet Nat. A great price point (around $20), a crazy label with fizzy fun! From the Loire Valley. Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. Bubbly. Crisp. Citrus. Apple. Enjoyed it with a Market Salad with crispy fried chicken. Purchased but currently sold out at Domestique (DC). *The cork had wine diamonds aka tartrates (potassium bitartrate). …
Gulp!
I have to be honest and say the label caught my eye. But after a little research, I realized there was more to this wine than the label. Longavi Wines is a collaboration between Chilean producer Julio Bouchon and South African winemaker David Nieuwoudt. So it’s more than just a cute label. Made using native …
Come one, come all…
SCFTW (Screw Cap For The Win)! This Chardonnay by House of Brown is part of the Brown Estate family – Napa’s first Black owned estate winery (their Zinfandel is fire!). It’s a little hard to find but keep searching. It’s totally worth it! HOB’s motto is “Come one, come all.” That’s definitely the vibe we …
Yup, there’s drinking in Morocco…
To be honest, prior to planning a trip to Morocco, I figured it was going to be mostly a “dry” trip. I prepared myself to be sober for a few weeks. Yikes! I naively thought that the North African country seriously frowned upon all drinking. Well, all things except Moroccan Whiskey aka Mint Tea. Ya’ll …
Chillin by the Ocean…
La Corniche is a really popular area in Casablanca where you can find locals and tourists hanging out together. It sits along side the Atlantic Ocean with restaurants, hotels, pools and it’s also an excellent place to people watch. We decided to have a seafood lunch with wine at La Terrazza. In the background people …
Wines made by the Oceano…
I had the pleasure to sit and chat with Rachel Martin, Owner/Vintner of Oceano Wines (Marbue Marke is the Winemaker). If her name sounds familiar it’s because she used to work with her family at Boxwood Estate Winery (Middleburg, VA) before starting Oceano. We sampled two Chardonnays – 2016 & 2017. This beautiful expression of …
Viewing Wines Through The Lens of Diversity…
My final session of SommCon was Viewing Wines Through The Lens of Diversity. The session not only included a dynamic discussion but we also followed along as the panelists did a blind tasting of wines from around the world. The wines were from China, Mexico, US, Israel and South Africa. The first picture shows wine …
White Burgundy Without Wood…
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.
Stranger Things…VA Wine edition
As a lover of VA wine, it was pretty cool to assist and sit in on the SommCon session Stranger Things: New + Experimental Wines of Virginia session. This session shows that there are a wide variety of delicious and fun wines for folks to try that are unfamiliar with VA wines. King Family Vineyards …
New Horizon of Asian Wines…
Fresh off my trip, I was able to get it together to volunteer for this year’s SommCon DC (read last year’s post). The first session I assisted with was New Horizon of Asian Wines, World Class Chinese and Japanese Wines. The session was moderated by Toshio Ueno – VP & Executive Instructor, Sake School of …
A wine tasting dream…
To me, a dream combination of wine tasting is a female winemaker and beautiful wine. I achieved both at Corison Winery. The owner and winemaker is Napa superstar Cathy Corison. Even though it was a rainy day in Napa, walking in the doors of Corison made me smile. I mean how can you frown when …
A pretty wine label with yummy wine inside…
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 …
Women in wine…
Monday night I got to witness a panel of four bad ass Women in Wine – Elizabeth Parker, Williams Corner Wine; Ashli Johnson, Old Westminster Winery; Michelle Lim Warner, DCanter Wines; and Vanessa Cominsky, St Anselm DC. This event was held at DCanter Wines and moderated by Ashley and Dianka from Winona DC. The guests …
The end of WA Wine Month…
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 …