Valentine’s Day Food and Drink Stock Up
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, here are some
of my latest finds for you to stock up on.
Lynfred Winery…
My friends at Lynfred Winery, which happens to have a very
romantic B&B near Chicago, sent over two of their prized wines for me to
try and they were both a hit with me. The Lynfred
Reserve Chardonnay has the butter and vanilla of oak, but goes down
extremely smooth.
An entirely different wine is the Lynfred Nero d’Avola. This Italian grape is a bit fruity, with a
strong white pepper and just a bit of dryness on the finish.
More Locations…
Last time I received Locations Wine, the brainchild of winemaker David Phinney, it was Argentina, France, and Spain. This time, the red were from the United States, California, Oregon, and Washington – the three most recognized red wine regions in the country.
Last time I received Locations Wine, the brainchild of winemaker David Phinney, it was Argentina, France, and Spain. This time, the red were from the United States, California, Oregon, and Washington – the three most recognized red wine regions in the country.
Tasting these Locations Wines was a lot of fun for me as a way to introduce my friends
to the subtle differences in wines based on climate or, as Phinney puts it,
location. He picked what he felt would be
the best reds from each spot and all spent 10 months in oak (the Washington is
a combination of American and French and the rest were all in French).
The Oregon is 100% Pinot Noir. It is the lightest in taste
and color. On its own, it’s a good wine, but it didn’t stand up against the two
tough competitors.
The California is a blend that sounds unique (Barbera,
Grenache, Petite Syrah, Syrah, and Tempranillo), but it works very well. It’s
filled with deep dark fruit and gives testament to some wonderful grapes from
Mendocino, Napa, Sonoma, and the Sierra Foothills.
The Washington wins the prize of impressing the most from
those who don’t taste a lot from this region. The blend of Syrah, Merlot, and
Petit Syrah is lighter than it would have been from California, with a hint of
white pepper and subtle blackberry.
It’s Partea Time…
This is definitely one of the most unusual things I’ve been
able to try in a while. Partea is a
booze infuser with less than a gram of sugar and a lot of flavor. You fill the
mason jar with a “tea bag” with the liquor of your choice and let it infuse for
a day or two, before putting your cocktail together, or simply serving it over
ice.
I did the Wild Berry with vodka and the Jalapeno with
tequila. I can’t say the Wild Berry was very flavorful, but I really liked the
Jalapeno. It made an excellent margarita.
More Tequila…
It was 25 years ago (1972) that the Rolling Stones had their
legendary Tequila Sunrise Tour. Jose Cuervo is commemorating this event
with a special limited edition Rolling Stones bottle.
Additional limited edition bottles have also been released
by Cuervo as the tequila celebrates its 222nd birthday. Other
bottles pay homage to: The King of Spain, who in 1795 granted Jose Antonio de
Cuervo.
Rolling Stone
Tequila Sunrise
1 part Jose Cuervo Especial® Silver
2 parts orange juice
1 tsp grenadine
Put Jose Cuervo Especial® Silver and orange juice in a
shaker filled with ice.
Pour into a Collins glass.
Slowly add grenadine in glass.
Garnish with an orange wedge and cherry.
BFree Gluten Free Breads…
Even though I do not follow a gluten free diet, I occasionally
receive gluten free products to try out. This month I’d like to give a huge shout
out to BFree. They make an assortment of breads, rolls, and bagels that are
all gluten free. I was amazed how soft and tasty these were. I never would have
guessed the white roll, at only 120 calories.
I had a friend with Celiac try out the products and she said
they were wonderful, “I haven’t eaten that much bread in a long time and it was
all delicious! The bread was probably the best I’ve had gluten free.”
Since I had some to spare, I even crumbled some up and put
it under the broiler and made BFree bread cubes for my Italian Meatballs. No
one noticed the difference.
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