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 The snow has arrived along with howling winds. I have food, wine, books and movies to entertain me. Let’s hope all the power lines stay intact! Aside from work, writing and meeting friends for quick drinks these past few days, I’ve also been reorganizing my wines. It seems that I’m low on bottles under $20 again. I would love your thoughts and suggestions as to what you drink in the under $20 range. There are so many delicious wines in this price category.  Realizing that I was probably going to be stranded inside for the better part of the weekend, my friend came over last night to shake things up a bit. We opened a bottle of 2010 Lunadoro Vino Nobile di Montepulciano D.O.C.G to have with my homemade spinach quiche. The wine carried us through to salad and pasta with shrimp in vodka sauce. And speaking of lower price points, (average bottle around $16) this Tuscan wine was impressive. Made with 100% Sangiovese grapes, it was the color of dark rubies. The nose had lovely notes of floral, berries, plum and fennel. The palate offered cherry, plum, licorice and a hint of spice. It was medium-bodied with soft tannins, giving rise to a long finish. http://www.lunadoro.com  NFL playoff games tomorrow! What will you be drinking and eating? Happy Saturday!
Cheers! Penina  It was an extremely cold day yesterday and I was supposed to attend the Benvenuto Brunello wine event, showcasing Brunello di Montalcino 2011 4-star vintage. However, I never made it into the city. Oh, for the days when I still owned my pied-à-terre there. How simple it was to just roll out of bed and easily walk to most places.  Instead, I met up with a friend for a quick lunch and then headed back home to work for a bit while sitting by the fire.  The evening brought more cold weather along with my friend at the door with dinner and wine. The wine was perfectly chilled from his ride over, but the food needed reheating. As we caught up on the past few days, we sipped 2013 J Vineyards Russian River Valley Chardonnay while munching on Thai cuisine. Although one might think of serving this wine with more “mellow” dishes, strangely enough, it complemented the spicy flavors of the food. It was a lovely golden color with inviting aromas of citrus, floral and peach. The flavors were resonating a tropical paradise of citrus, pear, peach and apple. It was smooth and silky with a long finish. https://www.jwine.com  It’s another cold day with a snowstorm looming over the weekend. My skis and snowshoes are standing by. Happy Wednesday.
Cheers! Penina  It’s an overcast day, but I’m heading out for a power walk soon. I need to burn off a few calories from my dinner last night.  After watching the Patriots win the playoff game, (yippee!) I met up with a friend at a local Italian restaurant for some wine, mussels and pasta. It was a delicious meal, topped off by good conversation and many laughs.  We drank 2011 Castellare Chianti Classico from Tuscany. Made with only native vines, 95% Sangioveto, and 5% Canaiolo, this medium bodied wine was ruby red in color with dark cherries, spices and herbs on the nose. The aromas carried through to the palate with red cherry, tobacco, pepper and a hint of floral for a very satisfying finish. http://www.castellare.it/eng/home.asp Have a peaceful Sunday!
Cheers! Penina I’m typing on the fly. It’s a crazy day so far. As promised, here are some photos of the delicious whole wheat honey banana bread that I made yesterday. I threw in some poppy seeds for a little extra flavor. It makes a great P & J sandwich or toasted with your favorite spread. I’m sure this will be gone tomorrow! Click on the images for a closer look!  I have much to do before the Chiefs vs. Patriots game airs in a short while. Go Patriots!  After the game is over, it will be dinner and wine.
Happy Saturday! Cheers! Penina It is the beginning of the Martin Luther King weekend. Friends are flying south to bask in the sun while others are heading off to ski country. I used to head down to Miami Beach with my BFF every year for this long weekend. But alas, it has been a few years since we’ve done that.  Prior to one of my friend’s leaving yesterday, we met mid afternoon for a bite to eat. We have a word to describe most meals, such as the meal eaten between breakfast and lunch, called “brunch”. I was curious to know what one might call a meal eaten between lunch and dinner. After perusing the internet, I came up with several names. My favorites were linner, dunch and lunner. I don’t think these names will ever catch on or be as popular as the term “brunch”, but I did find it interesting. And let’s not forget “Brinner”, eating traditional breakfast foods at dinnertime. It’s time to make whole wheat honey banana bread. I’ll show you a photo tomorrow.
Have a great start to the weekend! Happy Friday! Cheers! Penina  I’m taking a quick moment to exhale from a rather hectic day. Taking a few days off in December has come back to haunt me. The calendar is filling up once again.  In honor of The State of the Union address last night, I decided to “shake” things up a bit and started off the evening with patriotic Grey Goose martinis. My guest was amused but quite satisfied with his drink. I’ll have to think of an interesting “pour” to celebrate Martin Luther King Day. Any thoughts? Okay…break time is over and I must run!
Happy Wednesday! Cheers! Penina  I’m happy to report that I stayed awake for the entire Golden Globes Awards on Sunday. Considering that I was sipping on wine during the evening, I fully expected to nod off. However, I was thoroughly entertained by Ricky Gervais and many of the presenters.  After watching lots of football during the day and prior to my friend arriving, I sautéed brussel sprouts, mushrooms and asparagus in garlic and olive oil. We baked a pizza and added the veggies on top. Quite yummy!  We drank 2012 Da Vinci Chianti from Tuscany while we ate pizza and watched the awards. This was smoother than most Chiantis I am used to drinking. It is made with 90% Sangiovese and 10% Merlot grapes. The color was vibrant red with aromas of cherry, plum and spice. The palate offered dark fruits (mainly cherry & blackberry) with pepper, herbs and earth. This medium-bodied wine had rounded tannins with a nice pepper and spice finish. The price is reasonable, ranging from $12 to $15. http://www.davinciwine.com I have a busy day ahead, but hope to get home before the snow begins!
Happy Tuesday! Cheers! Penina  The rain is beating down on the roof and I’m snuggled inside for the day. I have a few projects lined up, but I think that my attention will be more focused on the NFL playoff games and finally perusing the stack of NY Times Sunday Book Reviews that have been piling up since October. And speaking of football…  I was invited over to a friend’s home last evening to watch the NFL Wild Card Round of Steelers vs. Bengals. Since I knew it was going to be a late evening, I opted for a glass of vodka, knowing that wine would put me to sleep by the third quarter. I had fallen asleep during a hockey game with the same group of friends a few weeks ago. Well, I was asleep by the end of the second quarter with Steelers leading. I was definitely not the life of the party! It’s a good thing that I was among close friends!  It looks like it will be a soup and Chianti night. Let’s see if I stay awake for The Golden Globe Awards this evening! And by the way…Steelers won!
Happy Sunday! Cheers! Penina  The holiday decorations have been put away and I’m already starting to think about all the flowers and herbs that I want to plant for the spring. Of course, we still need to get through a few brutal months of winter first.  The other evening it was extremely cold out and a perfect time to serve up a heaping bowl of Tomato Lentil soup to one of my favorite “wining & dining” companions. This hearty vegetarian soup is packed with protein and is quite filling. Sometimes I add a few grilled shrimp or sautéed scallops on top, but it isn’t necessary.  In addition to the soup, we shared a 2010 Abeja Cabernet Sauvignon from Columbia Valley, WA. This elegant and beautifully balanced wine is 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot. Lots of dark fruit, floral and a hint of leather on the nose segued into plum, blackberry, licorice and spice on the palate. Soft tannins and an earthy finish made this a most enjoyable wine! http://www.abeja.net  I can’t believe that the weekend is already here and my calendar is filling up with activities. Happy Friday!
Cheers! Penina  I spent this morning chopping up lots of onions, carrots, celery and herbs for the Tomato Lentil Soup that I was making. The lentils take a few hours to cook, so I have to replenish the liquid every now and then. In addition to using water, I also refresh with dry white wine for added flavor. However, I discovered that I was out of inexpensive dry white wine, so I went for the next best thing…dry vermouth! It’s not just for martinis!  When in a pinch, you can almost always substitute dry Vermouth for any recipe calling for white wine. Vermouth is a liquor made from wine, with different herbs and spices added for flavor. It is also known as an aromatized liquor, and some people refer to it as a fortified wine. Vermouth tends to have more flavor than most wines, so you may need to use less of it than you would if you were cooking with wine. And the bonus is that it has a long shelf life. I would encourage you to store the Vermouth in your refrigerator once opened though. It will last longer (up to 3 months) and stay fresher. I used Martini & Rossi Extra Dry Vermouth for my soup. Their Vermouth is made with a “secret” blend of rare woods, herbs and spices that was first introduced in 1900. If cooking with white wine, you’ll want to look for a wine with high acidity and moderate alcohol content such as Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Gris and Sémillon. These are known as dry “crisp” wines, which tend to add a “punch” and work well with most recipes. You might also want to keep in mind that as wine cooks, it loses some of the subtle flavors and characteristics. So, save the more expensive wines for drinking!  The soup turned out great and I can’t wait to serve it this evening to my dinner guest! And now, I must start baking the bread!
Happy Wednesday! Cheers! Penina |
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