Wanted: Female Winery Owners!

Once a month, a group of women and I try to get together for dinner and wine.  We select restaurants that are new to most of us so where we can celebrate together the experience of trying something new.  Our group consists of very discriminating diners who range from the most carnivorous to vegetarians.  Our ages range from late twenties to mid-sixties.  The cross-generational gathering provides a depth to the conversations that can only be present among groups with various experiences.  But what stands out to me the most of the reasons that we may not ever have our full core group.  We (women) have so many things that keep us busy and many times away from what we want to do.  We are caregivers, we work, we lend shoulders to the bereaved, we are taxi drivers, we don't have sitters...the things that keep us from taking care of our own needs run the gamut.  So I want to raise my glass to women...we truly are "every woman"!

Sidenote:  I'm not a food critic so I won't mention the restaurant unless the food was slammin'!  Yesterday's choice was alright...just alright...so I won't give the name.  But the Riesling was awesome with the Spicy Fried Chicken Sandwich and the Crab and Shrimp Nachos.

With March being Women's History Month, The Vine Wine Club wants to highlight wineries that are owned by women.  To do this, we need your help!!!  Of course, we have Shoe Crazy Wine in our cellar but we invite you to send us other wine brands that are woman-owned.  We want to feature them on our site and do something to honor these phenomenal women over the next few weeks.  Please send those names to our email at thevinewineclub@gmail.com.  Don't hesitate!  March will blow by quickly.

Join us this Friday with our California friends "The Grape Girls".  Off The Vine with Benita and Terricinia at 3:00 pm on the May We Help You Radio Network (woman owned).

Make Mine with Wine

You already know what happens when Mel and I go into the lab....mayhem!  And sometimes, something good comes out of it.  Last summer, we did just that!  Our mission:  to make our favorite cocktails with wine.  And today, we want to share another one of our creations with you.

Who doesn't love a Margarita?  And in this weather, few cocktails are more refreshing.  Lots of citrus with a touch of sweetness, nothing says "welcome to summer" quite like a Margarita.  So when we started our quest to create our own Margarita without using Tequila, I automatically thought of Sauvignon Blanc.  The citrusy notes in Sauvignon Blanc always remind me of warm temperatures (and I don't know why).  In my typical recipe, I use a lime, half a lemon, and half an orange with one and a half ounce of Tequila, and an ounce of Grand Marnier.  Depending on my company, I may squeeze in a half ounce Agave Nectar or simple syrup.  So with the intense grapefruit notes in the Sauvignon Blanc, I immediately knew that I would have to retrieve the Agave from the cupboard.  I must admit that this was one of the toughest and most challenging cocktails that we've attempted to duplicate.  The balance of the wine and the limes had to be just right to keep the flavors that we love.  So after a few versions and the okay from our mystery taster, here is our recipe!  We invite you to try it, and tell us how you like it.

1 1/2 oz. Sauvignon Blanc
1/2 lime
1/2 lemon
1/2 orange
1 oz Grand Marnier or Triple Sec
1 oz Agave Nectar (if you need more sweetness)

Shake over ice and served in your favorite chilled glass.  Cheers!

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Wine Pairs Well with Everything!

When I was a child, I would cringe when I saw my grandfather put ketchup on his eggs.  I am not sure if it was due to my bias that ketchup only belonged on cheeseburgers and french fries or my dislike of eggs.  Although I will never try my grandfather's combination, I've learned to appreciate that maybe it is similar to an omelette that features tomatoes.  In my house, ketchup is a staple.  My son likes it on almost everything.  When I commented that to him, he replied that ketchup is to him as wine is to me...I like it with everything.  As much as I hate to admit it, he is right.

Champagne with brunch, something crisp and white in the evening with my fruit salad, and a little Tawny Port as my dessert; wine is so versatile.  We enjoy it with many of our activities such as paint parties, wine and cheese receptions, and book club meetings.  Wine has become a staple at Ladies' Nights and just the simple excuse needed to have a party.  Wine is a great connector.  I have met so many people over wine and many have become my friends.  We've laughed, cried, traveled, and solved problems.  It is a great conversation starter as well as a favorite night cap. In wine bars, I've never seen a bar fight.  It is the beverage of the peacemakers and the elixir of the "cool". Some of us in the industry get caught up in wine pairings but the smartest among us know that wine is best paired with friends.

In honor of summer, enjoy a glass with me today.  Cheers!!!

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Mixing it Up with Wine: My Lemon Drop

I don't drink wine all of the time.  I love a good cocktail.  One of my absolute favorites is the Lemon Drop Martini.  Normally made with vodka, my favorite variation includes a bit of Limoncello. Recently, I've tried to create a spin on the lemon drop using wine.  My friend Mel and I (and a secret taster) went into the lab to see what we could come up with that would resemble the lemon drop martini.  Immediately, we knew that we wanted our base to be Pinot Grigio.  On hand, we had one from Italy.  Pinot Grigio's from Italy are my personal favorite because they taste "clean" and not overly done.  The fruit is subtle but bright with hints of citrus rind.  Perfect for the lemon drop, I thought.  To about 2 ounces of Pinot Grigio, we added a half lemon squeezed and an ounce of simple syrup.  Of course, we didn't neglect the sugar rim!  Refreshing!

The beauty of using wines to make cocktails for me is that if you drink 4 or 5 of them, it is equivalent to about 2 glasses of wine.  Wine cocktails are perfect conversation sippers and are often times less expensive than using liquors and spirits.  I won't lie to you and tell you that it is a perfect substitution but it is a very close "cousin" of the original.

Recipe:

2 oz Ilauri Pinot Grigio (Can be found at The Vine Wine Club)
1 Half Freshly Squeezed Lemon
1 oz Simple Syrup (or sweeten to your personal taste)

Shake over ice and pour in a sugar-rimmed martini glass.

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You Ready?  February 2016.

When Pairing Goes Wrong

I know!  It's been quite a while since I have blogged anything.  I have been quite busy with other aspects of the company.  Have I still been drinking wine?  Yes.  Have I still had thoughts to share?  Yes. But all of the IT folks that I know have warned against having liquids near the computer so the choice was wine glass or computer.

This weekend, I took myself on a dinner date.  I wanted three things:  a patio, sun, and seafood. I crave patio dining in the spring!  Clear skies and warm temps make me one happy girl.  I found what I wanted at Riptides.  Walking in, I read on the specials board that they had a swordfish topped with a Thai Sweet Chile Sauce.  It sounded delicious but before even being seated, I knew that I may have a conflict on my hands.  You see, I wanted to taste the season.  I wanted the brightness of the sky in my glass.  I wanted Sauvignon Blanc. What I love about the wine is the barely ripe grapefruit characteristic of those from New Zealand.  I ordered a glass...from New Zealand, and it was everything that I wanted.  It was chilled a little colder than a wine snob may recommend but just the way I desired on this warm evening.  As I waited for my dinner to arrive (I went with the special), I savored my liquid companion.  The crispness of the wine was a great backdrop to the hint of green tropical fruit on the nose and the bright citrus that pleased the palate.  I have to admit though that as I enjoyed the wine and the atmosphere, I was a little distracted by what I knew was going to be a bad relationship.  This Sauvignon Blanc was not going to be a good pairing with the sauce on my fish.  I was contemplating ordering a glass of iced tea to have with my meal.  Maybe I would finish the wine before the food came and then order something else, I thought.  But the pour was pretty generous, and, although the restaurant was busy, the food came fairly quickly.  I had to make a decision.  Order more wine with my meal or try to force this marriage of Sauvignon Blanc and Thai Sweet Chile.  Well I didn't force it or order something else from the cellar.  I did what all sensible wine drinkers would do.  I enjoyed my dinner and finished my wine when done.

I get asked a lot to pair wines with meals.  I do it when asked but I first try to find out what the person enjoys.  You should drink what you like and not worry about what foods it pairs with.  I am no expert.  I just have more practice than a lot of people.  Like you, I drink what I like most of the time despite what I am having to eat.  I just drink it before or after the meal. Oh, who am I kidding?  The wine just may be my meal.  So this is for you:  when wine pairing goes wrong, give the wine your undivided attention.  Make it the finale.

Featured Sauvignon Blanc:  Glazebook Sauvignon Blanc, New Zealand.  I like to call it "Spring in a glass".  Bright citrus and barely ripe tropical fruit.  Visit our site at The Vine Wine Club and get a bottle today.

Tell me how you feel.

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All This Time, I've Been Saying that I Don't Like Chardonnay

How can one grape taste so doggone different?  Well let me just tell you about my evolution.  I remember years ago when I started this life long lesson into wine, I couldn't stand Chardonnay.  My first experience was one that was over done in American Oak, giving me the mouthful of butter, making me long for a piece of toasted bread.  I remember it coating my tongue and making it very difficult to taste the next wine in the tasting order.  I remember the brand (but I won't say the name...but you wine folks will know it because it was the hottest brand selling back in the early 2000's). After that, I swore off Chardonnay.  As I continued to countless tastings, I would always skip the popular white wine.  I frequented the same wine shop every Friday so the owner got to know me quite well.  She noticed one day at a wine dinner that I always avoided Chards when she offered them.  Finally, she asked why.  At the dinner, she had a Chardonnay that she explained had been fermented in stainless steel.  My first thought was why would it matter.  Pleasantly surprised, this time I recognized more green apple and that it was quite a bit more acidic than the Chardonnays that I had come to know.  Okay, so I like steel fermented Chardonnays.  A few weeks later, I asked my server at a restaurant if the Chardonnay that I was about to select was oak or steel fermented.  He told me that it was French Oak. I guess that befuddled look on my face told a story that I had no clue what that meant.  Fortunately, he read me and offered me a taste before I made the commitment of buying a glass.  He explained that the French Oak wouldn't impart the buttery notes that the American Oak would.  What I found for myself was that I still got the green apple but it was softer.  The wine felt almost round in my mouth.  Hmmm, I liked this French Oak fermented Chardonnay.  Up until this point, almost all of the Chardonnay that I had tasted had come from California.  So imagine my surprise when I realized that this white wine that I was drinking from France was called Burgundy, and it was Chardonnay.  Wait a minute!  Everything that I knew (which wasn't much apparently) about burgundy was that it was a color in the red family so of course a Burgundy has to be red.  I had no clue that Burgundy was a region that produced some of the best grown Chardonnay in the world.  These white grapes from Burgundy, fermented in French oak changed my mind.  I love Chardonnay!  I had to share my experience through a wine class where I only featured Chardonnay just to show my friends who were still novices at the time that the process makes the difference.  And all this time that I've been saying that I don't like Chardonnay....clueless!

Hit us up on Facebook at The Vine Wine Club if you're interested in a Chardonnay Tasting Tour Class. Follow my evolution with friends!

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Benita

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All That Sparkles isn't Champagne

Picky, picky, picky are those folks in a little town in France that make some of the finest sparkling wines in the world.  But hey, they have a right to be.  They have a process that has been proven to delight our taste buds and heighten our senses for centuries.  Champagne!  Even the name sounds rich.  In the season of celebrations, lots of bottles will be popped and the bubbles will fly.  But not all can afford to let the Champagne flow.  Thankfully, there are some great alternatives.  Each year for Mother's Day, we enjoy brunch with mimosas.  Now when I have Champagne, I won't add orange juice.  So I typically opt for a Cava, Spain's offering to sparkling wines.  Made mostly of xarel-lo, it is traditionally made in the champenoise method.  Because of its citrus notes, I think it is perfect with mimosas.  Another option is Prosecco, grown from grapes primarily from the Veneto region of Italy.  Like Champagne, it is a great aperitif.  Can I be frank?  Most of us who do not study wine or make this a part of our daily lives cannot blind taste the difference between Champagne, Cava, or Prosecco, and that's being real.  But where we all can see the difference is the price tag.  Cava and Prosecco are far more budget friendly.  So when you are celebrating with friends, family, at a wedding, or just because it's Monday, you don't have to bust the bank account.  Try a Cava or Prosecco.  Ain't nothing wrong with ballin' on a budget!

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Mark your calendars!  June 6 kicks off "Off The Vine with Benita and Terricinia" on May We Help You Radio.  Our show will air weekly at 3:00 pm.  More details to come.

Benita

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