by Christine | Wine Friday
In these days of high unemployment and global financial crisis, it’s nice to relax with a bottle of wine that doesn’t break your pocketbook. I’m here to sort out the memorable from the truly awful, and each bottle is under $10.
So, last weekend, while the hubby was away auditioning for the Utah Shakespeare Festival and one Young Man was off to spend the night prior to a day of LARPing and the other furiously writing for his critique group, I decided to try some wines I hadn’t tried yet. Three days, three bottles. What could possibly go wrong?
Friday, I started with Jargon Pinot Noir 2009, St. Helena, California Alcohol 13.5% by volume $8.99 at Vons
On the Label: “We can go on and on and tell you about our Terroir (it’s incredible) and about the quality of our PINOT NOIR fruit (it’s awesome), but we won’t. We let our Pinot Noir speak for itself. So cut through all the complicated wine speak and enjoy…JUST GOOD WINE.”
My Take: It has a fun label. It has a screw top. It’s a Pinot Noir. What’s not to like? There’s a lovely feel to this wine in my mouth – it’s got some cherry in it, some of the pepper I like, it’s not meek but it’s not a big, huge, bold wine either (because, you know, Pinot just isn’t that way). It’s a great kick-off-your-shoes, hi-honey-I’m-home, and TGIF wine. I had to really pace myself and only drink two glasses of it on Friday night. Not sure what I made to go with it … I do remember that I ate alone, which gave me visions of an empty nest. Interesting…
My Rating: ~ Very Drinkable ~
Now, on to Saturday.
Cline Zinfandel 2010 California Alcohol 14% by volume $9.99 at Vons on Sale
On the Label: “CLINE Family owned and operated since 1982. From meticulous farming to master winemaking, we still do it all the old fashioned way and it shows. Bright, jammy cherry, dark berry fruit and spice with a touch of warm vanilla define this complex yet approachable Cline Zin. Supple tannins and a smooth finish lend structure and ageability. Try with grilled steak, chili con carne or spaghetti and red sauce.”
My Take: I was perfectly prepared to love this wine, so imagine my surprise when, serving it with garlic chicken, it left me…wanting. I didn’t taste the bright cherry or the spice…I tasted minerals. Heavy minerals that left a heavy taste in my mouth. Maybe it was the high alcohol content?
I duly drank my first glass, and then switched back to the Jargon from the night before. Ahhhh….much better. Also better was the company at dinner – I wasn’t completely alone. However, when the boys and I eat sans their papa, we tend to read at dinner…all three of us reading a different, yet very thick novel of some sort or another. I always shed a tiny tear of pride at those meals…
My Take ~ Drinkable, if you like the minerally taste. ~ I don’t know. Maybe it needs more time – it WAS a 2010. But if it needs more time, why is it on the shelves now? I can only roll my eyes…
Which brings me to Sunday…
Concannon Central Coast Pinot Noir Established 1883 in the Livermore Valley Alcohol 13.5% by volume $9.99 at Vons.
On the Label: “Roots. Rocks. Intrigue. Since 1883, Concannon Vineyard has been handcrafting fine varietal wines from grapes grown along the Central Coast of California, a diverse region that stretches north from Santa Barbara to the San Francisco Bay. We carefully select the most ideal vineyards for growing each varietal and craft this expressive fruit into superb wines.
Our medium-bodied Pinot Noir is bursting with aromas of violet, cherry, earth and spice with an elegant and supple finish. Enjoy our Selected Vineyards Pinot Noir with dishes like herb-crusted lamb chops or plank-grilled salmon.”
My Take: Prior to starting dinner, I didn’t really want to open this bottle so I had a small glass of the Cline Zinfandel. And as soon as I was done with that, I opened the Concannon with a sigh of relief.
It smells lovely in the glass. It bursts on the tongue with bright flavors and a mellowness that allows you to relax – this is not a demanding wine, but rather a pleasure wine, asking only that you enjoy it. I’m thinking now that maybe all Pinot Noirs are of this variety – undemanding of the consumer. But I digress…
Again, a reading dinner, this time with a fall veggie mix and whole-wheat pasta with fresh parmesan on top and – of course – garlic bread, made the Sicilian way. Which is…toast a baguette sliced in half until well toasted, then rub a large clove of garlic into the toasted side. The garlic kind of melts into the bread. Top it off with a sprinkling of olive oil (and pepper if you desire, which I do!), and you’ve got a feast fit for a king, even if you’re just serving the garlic bread and the wine. And the wine? Mmmmm.
My Rating: ~ Very Drinkable ~ But of these three, the Jargon is my hands-down favorite.
So, I survived my weekend alone. And on Monday, the hubby very kindly finished up all my open bottles – even the Cline. After all, he’d been in Mormon Country for the past three days.
Now…Tomorrow, the lovely New Day Job is letting me off half a day early to drive up to Paso Robles for Wine Release Weekend. Three girls on the open road, ready to taste wine. I promise I’ll bring my notepad…
~ ~ ~
As usual, this is just my honest opinion and depend upon my mood, the weather, and whether there’s a full moon or not. Your taste buds will differ.
~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~
Demon Soul is available for the Kindle and the Nook, not to mention in paperback!! Get your copy today!
by Christine | Life, Uncategorized
No, it’s not a new reality TV show about illegal aliens trying to keep their job at a greasy spoon…(‘scuse me, now taking a call from the Kardashians…) where was I? Oh yeah.
So, my dishwasher finally died. After sixteen years and one appliance-repair call for $100 9 years ago, it just stopped cleaning the dishes. We therefore stopped using it, I raided my 401K plan, and prior to going to the stores to find my new dishwasher, I shopped online.
Found it almost immediately. A gorgeous, totally stainless-steel inside and out, whisper-quiet model with racks that adjust up and down, more silverware holders than you can shake a stick at, and the bottom has NO open heating elements. Which means, I won’t be burning plastic utensils at the bottom of the dishwasher any time soon (yay, me!).
I found this paragon of dishwashing online on a Tuesday; we couldn’t go shopping until Saturday. So I rolled up my metaphorical sleeves and washed dishes by hand as I hadn’t done in too many years. There’s a meditative quality to the hot soapy water, the rhythmic scrubbing, the rinsing. I have what my mother didn’t, a window over my sink, so I could look out at the neighborhood as I scrubbed and meditated.
Over the next few days, my Young Men washed the dishes in turn. But somehow, the dishes rarely came out clean. “No. Start with hot, SOAPY water. Do all the glassware first, while the water is still clean. Then move to utensils, then plates and bowls, and then at the very end, the pots and pans.”
Day after day, I found myself rewashing dishes. Saturday finally came though, and in high spirits, we went out to hunt for the wild and yet quite perfect dishwasher. Not only did we find it, but it was on sale – and for less than it had been online! I was such a happy girl. Until they told me it wasn’t in stock, and we’d have to wait. Mid-week, most likely. Oh, and we’d have to pay for the stuff the plumber would need. And of course, after the plumber installs the dishwasher, we have to have the city come out and make sure they did it right so our house doesn’t blow up.
Um. Okay…So I signed all the paperwork, and handed over my debit card, and walked out the proud possessor of – paperwork. And a promise of a phone call for when the dishwasher came into the warehouse – mid-week. Definitely.
The dishwasher did come in to the warehouse mid week, but the plumber couldn’t install it until ten days later at the earliest. Ooookay. So the incompetent dish washing – well, it does get better, but only because I’m carping at the boys – excuse me, Young Men – to use hot soapy water. All. The. Time.
By the time the dishwasher and the plumber finally arrive, there’s another problem. Apparently there’s a bubbler – some sort of air thingie – that has to be installed that the Big Box Store didn’t tell us about. So not only did the plumber take our dishwasher away, he wanted another $70 for the part – and couldn’t come back for another 5 days!
By this time, I’m beginning to believe that washing dishes by hand, something I grew up doing, is a guaranteed thing for the rest of my life. I cannot conceive of actually using a dishwasher again because it has been so long…I feel in the dark ages of my childhood…a side benefit, however, is everyone’s attention to really cleaning up the kitchen each night before we go to bed. (I know. This is a DUH. But somehow with the dishwasher we got lazy.)
Finally, however, the plumber came back, with the right part, and installed everything. Except – the bubbler took the place of our sprayer (we have a four-hole kitchen faucet). And the plumber couldn’t cap off the hot water line to the sprayer because he didn’t have the right widget to do it. He said if we bought a new faucet, he’d install it for $70 and take care of the extra line that way.
Now, no dissing the plumber – he was, according to my husband, a hard-working man and his sons were also in the business with him. We never got charged the extra $70 for the bubbler, either. But…that night, our first with the new dishwasher, hubby and I went faucet shopping.
Which caused another issue. We have short sinks – it took us TEN YEARS to find a simple, tall faucet. And when we went to Big Box Store and looked at all the faucets, the one our eyes kept going back to was the very one already installed in our kitchen – the one with the rogue sprayer. We needed a 3 hole faucet and we couldn’t find one that suited.
We decided, in our exhaustion, to let everything be. At some point we need to have the city come out; at some point we need to figure out the faucet situation. But for right now, everything that usually goes under the sink is in a laundry tub in front of the breakfast bar.
As for the new dishwasher; it’s complicated. I mean that, too. Not only is running it complicated (I had to read the directions three times – glasses helped), but loading it is complicated. My Younger Young Man complained about being the first person to load it. “I don’t know where anything goes,” he said.
The new dishwasher and the family are taking it slow. It seems to prefer a rinsing agent; I prefer not to spend the money, but hate spotty glasses. I see purchasing a rinsing agent in my future.
Welcome to my life. It’s…complicated.
by Christine | Wine Friday
In these days of high unemployment and global financial crisis, it’s nice to relax with a bottle of wine that doesn’t break your pocketbook. I’m here to sort out the memorable from the truly awful, and each bottle is under $10. Please note, however, that the prices I quote are what I paid at my local store; your pricing will probably differ.
Stonehedge Reserve Petite Syrah, 2007 Special Vineyard Select – Alcohol 14.5% by volume. Cellars located in Arroyo Grande, California. $9.99 at Vons.
The label was uninformative, but a couple of wine sites – the Vino File particularly – had the scoop I needed. Surprisingly, the website for Stonehedge didn’t show the Reserve Petite Syrah 2007 at all.
This Wine Judging site gave it a gold medal. Another site I didn’t bookmark said the $10 price was about right for the quality. So there you go…
My Take: It had a nice juiciness, plus a zing of pepper that I love. If you’re a SWEET red wine drinker, this is not the wine for you. If you like medium-sized reds with a bit of a bite, you would probably like this. Plus, if you give it as a gift, the whole “Reserve” on the label makes it look more expensive than it is – and the taste doesn’t detract from the label. A win-win!
My Rating: ~ Drinkable ~ I guess I’m getting picky as I taste. I’ve got a few favorites, and this, sad to say, didn’t make my “I’d buy it again” list. But that doesn’t detract from it’s tastiness!
Bear Flag California Smooth Wine Blend Modesto, California Alcohol 12% by
volume Blend of Tempranillo, Touriga, Zinfandel and Alicante Bouschet (I know – don’t know a couple of these, either!!!) $6.99 at Vons.
On the Label: It’s wild. Check out the website. The label, plus it’s low price, is why I picked it up.
Characterized as closer to the “sweet” scale, this is a “sweet” red that I enjoyed. In fact, I was surprised to see they characterized it as such. It was an easy-sipper and went very well with the clean-out-the-veggie-bin soup I made yesterday.
Easy. Not a big wine; if I had to put only one varietal to it, I’d put it close to a Merlot. The label is cool, and they have other blends I’m hoping Vons will carry so I can try them out.
My Rating: ~ Drinkable ~ Again, it wasn’t a breathless wine – but it’s a solid choice for that rushed evening when you’re really looking to sip something as you make those burgers. Or chicken patties. I will say you won’t regret it!
As usual, this is just my honest opinion and will depend upon my mood, the meal I just ate, and what cycle the moon is in. Your taste buds will differ.
~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~
Demon Soul is available for the Kindle and the Nook! Have you read it yet?
by Christine | Cooking
The lovely author Ashley Cockerill has asked me about my Yummalicious Hollandaise Sauce. I really have to add – it should be called Easy Peasy Yummalicious Hollandaise Sauce. That, as you might imagine, got me to thinking and salivating about weekend breakfast.
Yesterday I stumbled upon another fantastic recipe (thanks to Angela James), and now I have two totally different breakfasts for you to make some super-special weekend. (Also good for relaxing holiday breakfasts, if you’re not the one in charge of the family dinner.)
BREAKFAST #1: Eggs Benedict I love eggs Benedict, mainly for the Hollandaise sauce. Over the years I have strayed from the narrow cook-book definition of eggs benedict – I don’t always use English muffins, I rarely use Canadian bacon, I don’t poach the eggs (don’t get me started about poached eggs!); so how can it be remotely considered eggs Benedict? It’s all about the Hollandaise Sauce, baby. Let me define it before going further:
As eHow.com puts it: Hollandaise sauce is “A hot, emulsified sauce made from egg, butter and lemon juice. It’s one of the five “mother” sauces of French cooking.” (And, apparently, has been around for four hundred years or so. Woof.)
My mom, not being a gourmet cook (but feeding us well and tastily for many years), never made Hollandaise sauce. It wasn’t until I married a man with a microwave that I learned to love it. Since I married that man, we’ve replaced the microwave three times (kept the man!) and the book I learned this recipe from is long gone, but here it is:
Ingredients:
¼ cup butter (or margarine), ¼ cup light cream, 2 egg yolks, beaten, 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice, ¼ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon dry mustard
Put your butter in a two-cup container and microwave for 20-30 seconds, until melted. Add remaining ingredients; mix well. Cook in the microwave, uncovered, for one minute until thick – stir with a fork every 15 to 20 seconds. And…voila! Makes 2/3 cup sauce, more or less. Perfect!
Note: I have never used margarine in this recipe. I’ve varied the light cream from everything to heavy whipping cream, to half and half, depending on what I had in the fridge or what I could afford. For the lemon, MEYER lemons (preferrably home grown) work beautifully in this recipe – but if you absolutely have to use bottled lemon juice, go ahead. Oh, and always save your extra egg whites in the fridge for breakfast the next morning. And do NOT leave out the dry mustard! Wet mustard will not work, sorry.
I have never made this any other way than in the microwave – but when I hear people tell stories about it, there’s usually tears involved. I’ve never cried about the way this recipe turned out.
Poaching eggs: I refuse. (What are restaurants for, anyway?) After many failures and partial eggs, as I was making my breakfast one morning the lightbulb went off in my head – I was making them the way I had been taught by my father when I was a very young ballet dancer – technically “poaching” the eggs without the headache. Let me tell you how.
Hot pan, butter sizzling, crack two eggs in. Let them sizzle for a bit, then add about 3 tablespoons of water, and put the lid on the eggs. DO NOT LEAVE THE KITCHEN OR YOU’LL HAVE RUBBER EGGS. Cook on medium, but check the eggs after a minute. Once the egg whites are set, the egg is done! If you want the yolk hard and not runny, take off the heat, leave the cover on and make the toast you forgot to make earlier, and you’ll have a hard yolk.
So how do I make my eggs Benedict? Either English muffin or a croissant, split in half and toasted. Hollandaise sauce, made in microwave. Bacon, likewise made in microwave (lots less grease to clean up!). If using sandwich ham, I heat it in the same pan as the eggs. If I’m really spiffy and using Canadian bacon, then I gently warm it in the microwave. Or sometimes I’ll use cooked asparagus, but that’s another post. Once your bread and meat are done, plop the egg on top, drizzle the Hollandaise sauce, sprinkle lightly if you wish with Paprika, and serve with a cup of fruit, a cut up apple or a quartered tomato fresh from the garden, plus the perfect cup of coffee or tea to round out your meal. Prepare to go into a food coma after eating.
By the way, I highly recommend ONE egg per person, and loading up on the fruit and fresh veggies. You can always put the asparagus on the side and drizzle Hollandaise on top…
Best Weekend Breakfast #2: This is perfect for that rush rush, gotta get breakfast out
of the way before the holiday begins. It’s also great for a slow weekend, a lazy morning, a cup of coffee and the Sunday Times. It’s called the Maple-Bacon Biscuit Bake. I made it early this morning – my home still smells of bacon 12 hours later.
It’s heaven in a biscuit. Kind of strange, in that you only bake it for ten minutes (okay, at 475 F, but still…) and then leave it in the oven for another ten to 15 minutes with the heat off…but let me tell you, it was love at first bite. Bacon, maple syrup, brown sugar, butter, and a fabulous biscuit recipe (that alone is a HUGE keeper!). What’s not to love? Go to the link above and get the recipe – Angela James put it on Facebook yesterday, which is how I found it (and got all fangirl and STUPID because it was ANGELA JAMES putting it up – sigh!). My Hubby, my two Young Men, and a teen who had stayed the night all declared these biscuits to be the Best. Breakfast. Biscuits. Ever. And they’re easy. You can either use real milk or buttermilk. My guess is, if all you have is half and half that would work just as well.
Oh, and don’t freak when you see Bakewell Cream in the ingredients list. There are directions to use baking powder and omit the baking soda if you don’t have Bakewell Cream…though I’m thinking I need to try it out, and might just place an order for it soon.
So Ashley, there you have it – not only the Hollandaise Sauce to DIE for (terrific on Steak Diane…), but a wonderful breakfast biscuit, too. Enjoy!
P.S. – I know, it’s Monday. But hey, the weekend will be here before we know it – and now you’ve got time to plan! Cheers!
~ ~ ~
Demon Soul is available for the Kindle and the Nook! Get your copy today!
