After a restful day by the pool, I got busy preparing the evening’s meal. I did the prep work and then went back outside to welcome the sunset. I was accompanied by a lovely bottle of the Cheverny, White Loire wine and a friend. I reviewed this wine on my Day Eight post…no need to go into detail, but suffice it to say, it was quite lovely and didn’t disappoint. We then opened a bottle of 2008 Terra d’Uro Toro Seleccion from Spain. It is 100% Tempranillo grape, also called “Tinta De Toro” It was a stellar wine and went well with the salmon and vegetables. The color was a beautiful garnet with strong tannins that got silkier as the wine opened. I tasted berries, clove, plum and coffee. This was a full bodied wine with a long finish. Superb!! As we dined al fresco, enjoying the evening, we savored the last drops of our wine. It is going to be another beautiful day and it’s time to sit by the pool and read the Sunday paper.
Cheers! Penina After an uneventful train ride into the city, I went to a “hot” restaurant and found myself transported to Rome, Italy. Although the menu was more meat oriented and not to my taste, the wine menu was quite impressive. I’ll keep the name of the restaurant out of this post for now. The wines came from all over Italy. Most of the wines were unfamiliar to me. I should have taken a photo of the wine menu, but that would have been so gauche! We settled on Antinori Guado Tasso Il Bruciato 2012. It is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 15% Syrah. The aroma was “heady” and I could taste the berry and spices before I even brought it to my lips! I tasted dark red fruits, espresso and earth. The finish was long. We were not disappointed. Three weeks to go and the cast comes off. I can’t wait to start knitting again! Cheers!
Penina It was a beautiful late afternoon with a perfect breeze and low humidity. I thought about having a glass of wine, but then decided to have my “go to” favorite spirit…vodka. I consider myself quite knowledgeable on the topic of vodka and have tasted all so many brands and types. For the most part, I’m a purist when it comes to drinking vodka. I like it straight out of the freezer and into my glass…no ice…no fruit…just vodka. When I drink vodka straight up, which is most of the time, I lean towards drinking Grey Goose, Belvedere, Chopin, Van Gogh and Zyr. They are smooth and very tasty. If I’m mixing vodka with anything, I go to the next tier of vodkas. Like wine, spirits and art, it is all subjective when it comes to taste. Whatever floats your boat is the right choice. No judgment from the peanut gallery!
So there I sat at sunset with Grey Goose in good hand, enjoying the flavors and watched the sultry day turn into a sweet evening. Cheers! Penina After pondering over what wine to open last night, the Sancerre won. It was a good decision. I chose a Remy Pannier Sancerre 2012. It was young, but had a wonderful bouquet and all that I expected in a Sancerre…dry with hints of grapefruit, chalk and a long finish. I would have photographed the bottle for you, but being one handed these days, it proved a little difficult.
As my wrist continues to heal, I think that I will start perusing the “yarn” websites for some inspiration with my next project. I’m leaning towards a silky creation. I guess it just depends on what yarns “call out” to me. Until tomorrow… Cheers! Penina Guilty as charged. I played hooky yesterday and didn’t post anything. I’ve been resting my broken wrist and willing it to mend quickly. I’m anxious to start another knitting project. However, I did find a good use for the knitting needles. They make wonderful “itch” scratchers under the arm cast! Today will be a quiet one as I ponder which wine to open at sunset. I’m leaning towards Sancerre or Pouilly-Fume. Both are made with 100% Sauvignon Blanc and come from the Loire Valley. The Pouilly-Fume is a dry wine and full-bodied. Whereas the Sancerre is medium -bodied, dry and very aromatic. Please share your thoughts with me as to what you prefer!
Cheers! Penina Since I still can’t knit, I thought I would show you a summer wrap that I made several years ago. It is quite versatile…it can be used as a shawl or wrapped around the waist over a bathing suit or jeans. It even has Swarovski crystals on the ends of the fringe to jazz it up a bit. Perhaps this will inspire you to get out your knitting needles! I will be back on track with wine tomorrow!
Enjoy your Sunday! Cheers! Penina Happy Summer Solstice!
I was going to continue my dialog on the history of the wine bottle, which I found rather interesting, but I think that I will save it for another day. It is the first day of summer and quite beautiful outside. I think soaking up some of the sun and water energy is just what I need right now. I have a few bottles of white chilling in the refrigerator, that I hope to partake in later. Wishing you all a very happy beginning to a beautiful summer! Cheers! Penina After taking a very bad fall last evening and breaking my wrist, it made me reflect on how much we take for granted with regard to our bodies. Now that my wrist and part of my hand are immobilized, the knitting needles have been retired for a few weeks. Doing everything one-handed is my newest challenge and at times impossible. The bright side is that I can still use my other hand to peck away at the keyboard and most importantly, hold a glass of wine. However, I will have to rely on the kindness of others to open the bottle! Speaking of bottles… There are three “basic” bottle shapes for wine with many variations in-between. Bordeaux-style bottles have straight sides and tall shoulders. Burgundy-style bottles have sloping shoulders and are a tad fatter than Bordeaux style. You will find many Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines use this type bottle. Alsace and Mosel bottles are thin and tall with sloping shoulders. Wines such as Riesling use this shape. All of these shapes allow bottles to be stored horizontally, which keeps the cork moist and the seal good. And now I must rest. I will continue with wine bottles tomorrow.
Cheers! Penina After a quick swim, I got to work last night and completed the fringe on the wrap. This is the finished product. It is light, airy and whimsical. It can be worn with a summer top and pair of jeans or a summer dress. A dear friend called me last evening to share the wine he was drinking…a 2011 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay. How many of you know the story behind this wine? Judgment of Paris ring a bell? No? Well, let me tell you a very abbreviated story.
A blind tasting/wine competition took place in Paris, 1976. Steven Spurrier, a British wine merchant, organized it. Nine French judges carried out two blind tasting comparisons. The wines were top quality California Chardonnays and white Burgundies from France. The red wines were Bordeaux from France and Cabernet Sauvignon from California. A California wine rated best in each category, which astounded everyone! A 1973 Stag’s Leap Cabernet Sauvignon and 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay were the winners. The runner-ups were the 1970 Mouton-Rothschild and 1973 Meursault Charmes Roulot. I encourage you to read The Judgment of Paris, by George M. Taber for all the details of this event that really put California on the map both nationally and internationally. As soon as I receive my very own bottle of Chateau Montelena Chardonnay (which I have been promised), I will share my tasting notes with you. Cheers! Penina Before I launch into my “little” instruction on how to attach fringe to a knitted piece, I’d like to share a bottle of wine with you. I recently enjoyed a 2012 Zinfandel from the Carlisle Winery. It was the color of deep purple with a heady aroma. I tasted spices, blueberries and earth. It had a wonderfully long finish and “gentle” tannins. This is definitely worth adding to the wine collection! And now on to the fringe. First of all, I totally changed my mind on what fringe I wanted to use for the wrap. I discarded the yarns from yesterday and went with this whimsical silk yarn. It was the perfect choice. For starters, decide what length you want your fringe to be and then make a template to wrap the yarn around. When you feel that you have enough for the fringe (you can always repeat this), cut one end of the yarn. You should have long pieces that look like this. Decide how many strands you want to use to get the desired effect. I used 3 strands for this wrap. Next, take a crochet hook and pull the strands through the bottom stitching and then pull the bottom strands through the top of the loop that you just made and pull! Hopefully, it should look like this. Evenly space the fringe across the bottom. And here is one side that is now completed. Enjoy the day and stay cool!
Cheers! Penny |
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