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 Fueled by determination and coffee, I attacked my “to do” list head on yesterday. Not only did I check off a few items, but I also managed to close a small deal.  After a much needed and welcome tea break with a friend, I regrouped and did some more work.  At the end of the evening, I treated myself to a little Prunier VSOP Cognac. It was a recent gift from a friend who obviously reads my blog and saw my SOS post that I was running low on cognac.  Prunier is a decadent cognac. Their VSOP uses only grapes from the Grande Champagne region. Floral aromas mixed with honey, peaches and a hint of orange are just the beginning of the adventure. The palate explodes with butterscotch, caramel, vanilla and subtle traces of fruit and oak. The caramel flavors continue, leading to a long and smooth finish. This is a winner! Prunier’s history can be traced back to the 17th century. Go to their website for more info. http://www.cognacprunier.fr Have a great Wednesday!
Cheers! Penina  It’s Monday and once again the snow, sleet and freezing rain is here to greet us. As much as I like to embrace the winter season, I am reaching my “full” capacity with it all!  I attended a wine tasting at a local wine shop the other day to try a 2002 Château Lanessan from the Haut-Médoc. This Left Bank Bordeaux blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, with a little Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc thrown in, was a deep garnet color. Aromas of plum, spice and cherry “pipe” tobacco gave way to cherry, strawberry and pepper on the palate. It was silky, well balanced and the fruity finish was long. http://www.lanessan.com My knitting project is in a holding pattern, but I hope to complete my design by the weekend.  This is a good day to continue purging rooms in my house while juggling business from home. Until tomorrow… Cheers!
Penina  And the winner is… Yesterday I posted a photo of four vintage wines, one of which was opened Wednesday evening. I asked my friend to randomly select a bottle…and this is what he chose.  1976 Château Dassault, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru. With a little effort, the cork came out. The color was brick red with a very subtle berry aroma, which was encouraging. Surprisingly, the wine still had structure and was very drinkable. Throughout the evening, a mild fruit essence, fennel and spice became more pronounced on the palate. There was very little sediment for a wine of this age. Needless to say, the bottle was fully consumed! http://www.dassaultwineestates.com Château Dassault was created in the mid 1800’s under the name Château Couperi by a member of the Fourcaud family who are best known for creating Château Cheval Blanc. Michel Dassault bought the Château in 1955, giving it his name. In 1969 the Château obtained Grand Cru Classé status.
Saint-Emilion Grand Cru wines are produced with tighter production restrictions than regular Saint-Emilion wines. The intention behind this is to improve quality, and to distinguish the area's finer wines from the more everyday wines. This applies to other Grand Cru appellations as well. I want to take a moment and thank my followers who seem to be growing by leaps and bounds. I enjoy your comments and feedback…keep them coming! Happy Friday! Cheers! Penina  I woke up this morning to snow…again! Hopefully, we will only get an inch or two. I’m ready for warm days and sand between my toes!  I’m going to transcend my “warm” thoughts into knitting something for spring/summer. As soon as I can find a window, I’ll sketch a design and begin the project. Let’s hope it isn’t spring by the time I finish it!  Last evening a friend and I opened one of these vintage wines to celebrate my upcoming 200th post. I’ll share what we chose with you tomorrow!  My evening ended with a little Camus VSOP cognac. I have reviewed Camus several times…most recently on January 14th, Day 182. If you haven’t already read it, please check it out.  Some interesting facts about Cognac: Cognac is a particular type of brandy that is named for the town and surrounding area of Cognac, France. All Cognac is brandy, but not all brandy can be considered Cognac. For a brandy to be called Cognac, it must be made from specified grape varieties grown in the AOC, double-distilled in copper pot stills and aged at least two years in Limousin or Tronçais oak barrels. Cognac must be at least 40 percent alcohol. Cognac is primarily made from Trebbiano grapes or Ugni Blanc in French. Folle Blanche and Colombard are white grape varieties that are also used in the production of cognac. Cognac is France’s 2nd largest export product! Happy Thursday!
Cheers! Penina  My intention on today’s post was to continue reviews from the wine tasting I attended a few days ago. It will have to wait until tomorrow.  Last evening, I shared dinner and a wonderful bottle of wine, courtesy of my friend. The wine was a 1999 Château Hortevie Bordeaux Blend from Saint-Julien. It was 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc. The wine was the color of rubies with berries and wood on the nose. The flavors were rich with dark cherry, plum and spice. It was silky, soft and elegant on the palate. And, it was good to the last drop. A big thank you to my friend for his excellent selection! I must run…business awaits...lunch with a friend…then more business!  Happy Thursday!
Cheers! Penina  It was another day of tending to business and lots of organization. So I was very happy to settle in last night and watch the Rangers vs. Islanders hockey game with a glass of cognac. The game...not so good. The cognac…very good.  I poured a snifter of Camus VSOP Elegance. I reviewed this cognac in September. Here is what I said… “It had a reddish gold color to it. On the nose it was nuts, vanilla and a hint of floral. On the palate it was vanilla, oak and spice. This is a smooth cognac, but it doesn’t come close to Hennessy VSOP, which I was told it compared to. However, I still enjoyed it! This is a Borderies cognac, which is a small, but renowned grape-growing sub region of Cognac.” For more info: www.camus.fr/en  With so many cold winter nights ahead, it is time to restock my cognac supply! What is your favorite cognac? Happy Wednesday!
Cheers! Penina Yesterday got away from me and I never had a chance to post anything.  Since I have another busy day ahead, let me get right to the good stuff and tell you about a noteworthy wine I had last evening. It was a 1996, Château Calon-Ségur, St- Estèphe, Bordeaux Blend. This Grand Cru Classe wine was the color of dark rubies. The aromas of dark berry, leather, fennel and spice were prominent. It was full-bodied with dark fruits, spice and a hint of tobacco on the palate. Delivering a nice finish, this wine was a very special treat! It went well with the Baked Salmon Fillets Dijon that I prepared.  An interesting note: Château Calon-Ségur is a third growth under the 1855 Classification in the Saint-Estèphe AOC. Marquis de Ségur also owned Château Latour and Château Lafite. Even though he had ownership of First Growths, the Marquis claimed that his “heart” was with Calon, hence, the drawing of a heart around the chateau’s name on the label. http://www.calon-segur.fr  Some of my readers have inquired as to when I plan to post a story about my knitting project. I know that you’ve heard this before…. but…. barring any unforeseen business emergencies, I will be knitting tomorrow. Cheers!
Penina  Some of you have called and/or written to me wondering where I am and why I haven’t posted anything. It’s nice to know that I’ve been missed!  Actually, I have been rather busy the last few days and am now finally settling down at my computer. I have wines to discuss, places I’ve traveled to, knitting projects, etc. I will be back tomorrow to share it all.  In the meantime, I’ll leave you with this festive photo of how I began my weekend! Happy Monday!
Cheers! Penina  I signed off yesterday with the intention of starting my knitting project. Well…I got sidetracked. No surprise. I spent the better part of the day taking phone calls…long phone calls. However, they were productive, so all was not lost.  Since I was having company for dinner, I thought it might be fun to open a vintage bottle of wine. I have a few bottles of 1979 Maison Ginestet Fort Medoc, from the Haut-Medoc region. In fact, I opened and reviewed a bottle back in July. I was curious to see if this bottle was drinkable as well. Of course, my dinner date was all too eager to help me with the experiment! The cork was a tad soft and proved a challenge to remove. The wine had a dark garnet color that I was happy to see. There was a slight hint of fruit on the nose but the first taste was truly non descriptive. So we let it sit for a while and tried it again. Like the first bottle, the flavor of cherry started to come through along with earth and musk. Unlike the first bottle, this one went flat very quickly.  Although I was disappointed with the wine, I still have a few more bottles to open over the course of the winter! http://www.maison-ginestet.com. Cheers!
Penina It was with the best of intentions to attend a few informal wine tastings yesterday. However, business intervened and I had to focus on a few clients instead.  The “pearl” at the end of the day was reuniting with my son after a long overdue visit. He filled the house with smiles and laughter.  We celebrated in style and popped some Veuve, ate a delicious dinner and shared many stories.  Lest you think that I have forgotten about knitting, here is a sampling of the yarns that I’m thinking of using on my next project. I haven’t settled on color or texture yet.  It will be a day and evening of football. Soup is cooking, beer is on ice and my door will be revolving with the comings and goings of friends.  Enjoy!
Cheers! Penina |
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