Another Way to Enjoy Wine?!

I got a great DIY book just recently and it had a curious recipe in it for something called wine jelly!  I couldn't believe I found yet another way to enjoy wine!

I whipped up my first batch last night using a French blend of Viognier and Muscat.  It was super easy and turned out great.  What a fantastic idea, this wine jelly!!  I had it this morning on my toasted and buttered English muffin and then again this afternoon with some crackers and goat cheese-  yum!  I can't wait to make it hundred more times with a hundred differerent wines- yay!

 This amazing recipe can be found here.

Ryanhood at Plush

Last Friday night we got to see Ryanhood in concert finally!  I have been waiting for them to play since we moved back.  They played a few months back while we were in Minnesota so I was really happy when they announced this recent show.  We saw them at a little club on Fourth Avenue called Plush.  I have never been there before but it turned out to be a great venue.   We got there just early enough to steal some chairs from the back patio and plop them right down in front of the stage.  It was awesome!  Ryanhood is an acoustic folk duo with sweet guitar skills and beautiful harmonies.  God definitly made them to sing and play music together!  The band that opened for them was also very good.  They are called Run Boy Run and hail from Tempe.  They have five pieces: a standing base, cello, 2 fiddles and a mandolin.  The three girls in the band did all the singing and had beautiful harmonies.  Their music sounded like they were from Ireland.  I enjoyed them quite a bit and will buy their album when it comes out next month.  I also had a fantastic glass of wine while enjoying the show.  It was a blend of Chardonnay, Torrontes and Sauvingnon Blanc from Argentina by La Posta- yum!!

Choose the Wine!

Earlier this month we were invited to attend a dinner at one of Tucson's top steak houses.  This dinner happens once a year as a couple of medical reps take out the perfusion team and their spouses to a nice dinner to say thank you for buying all their medical equipment.  At the dinner it was brought to the host's attention that I am in wine so he asked me to choose the wine for the table.  I was afraid this might happen.  I have no problem choosing my own wine and relish the thought of food and wine pairing but to do this for a table of people.... yikes!  On top of this the host gave me pretty strict parameters in price and varietal.  Since most people were having steak I knew we needed Cabernet Sauvingon (the wine's tannins and the steak's fat are a match made in heaven) but the host insisted we have a Chardonnay and a Pinot Noir.  It was quite sad to have the best steak I ever had paired with the wrong wine but what can you do?  I picked a full bodied Chardonnay from California and a red Burgundy.  I suggested a Cabernet too but he wouldn't go for it.  Somehow I talked him into some bubbles and we started the dinner with a Champagne toast with my favorite Champagne, Nicolas Feuillatte!

For dessert we had creme brullee.  It was the best creme brullee I have ever had and one of the best desserts I have ever eaten in my life.  I hope to return to Flemmings to have this dessert again someday!