Wine Tastings

This past weekend I went wine tasting in Loudoun County Virginia. I'm not exactly the most knowledgeable about wine but I have come to several conclusions:
1. I like wines aged in wooden barrels rather than steel barrels (are they still called barrels?). The flavors are more harmonious and less sharp. My dad said they taste the same, I think he's wrong.
2. Virginia does white wines better than reds. I tend to prefer reds but of the wine tastings I've done in Virginia, the whites are just better.
3. No wine tasting is complete without bread, cheese, and cured meat. OK so not exactly deep wisdom but still solid advice. Its a quick picnic and if you buy quality food, its a perfect compliment to good wine

 
We didn't really have specific vineyards we wanted to visit so the first one we stopped at was a random choice. Hunters Run wasn't my favorite, the wines taste "new," almost like they haven't quite figured it out yet. However my top choice was the Riesling which was actually quite good, not too sweet and I really don't like a too sweet wine.

The next stop, which was my favorite was 8 chains north. The wines all had good harmonious flavors (which I usually describe as round but most people don;t understand what I mean) especially the whites. The best was their LoCo Vino which was bright, fresh, and fruity.

 

Third on the trip was Sunset Hills which was decent but not spectacular. We tried a white that won best wine in Virginia last year but honestly I don't remember what it was, just showing you how unspectacular it was. My favorite was actually a Proseco that was flown in from Italy. It tasted almost like crisp green apples but not as sweet as apple juice.

 

Finally was a beer tasting at Corcoran because after all that wine we needed a beer tasting to cleanse the pallet. Their beers are actually really new and not sold off the vineyard yet and I was most impressed by one of the Stouts. It was matured in a bourbon barrel so all the bitter notes were replaced with the sweet notes of bourbon.


Well that was it and I feel I need to clarify they were spread out all afternoon with feedings and breaks in between. It was quite lot of tastings but seriously go buy a bottle of LoCo Vino, it would be a perfectly refreshing summer wine.

Tasting Tray

If you told my parents when I was 8 that I would be eating this plate of food, they would never believe you. I was that kid who ate spaghetti only with butter and maybe cheese. Now I'm eating a plate full of mystery bowls of Indian food.

Nothing too new here just a perfect Indian meal: tasty food plus tasting a bunch of different dishes. This was a mini tray with lentils, chicken curry, lamb curry, spinach paneer, vegetable dumpling, mango pudding, and some kind of bread. I apologize for the vague descriptions but usually I can never remember names or even know what I'm eating but that's what makes it so fun! 

Grilled Cheese

When my mom comes to visit she brings me groceries. Not the usual college food of cheerios and pop tarts, no this is the good stuff. For this lunch I enjoyed a grilled cheese of gouda, pears, prosciutto, and mustard all on tasty focaccia (actually I'm sure kroger lied to me, this has to be ciabatta that they just put spices on but still tasty) . For all of you out there, gouda, apples or pears, and mustard make a wonderful grilled cheese family, try it!

Random Soup

 Unfortunately I think I may be getting sick. My graduation is in less than a week so I'm really hoping its a fluke. So besides finishing a jug of orange juice in 24 hrs, I thought making some soup would be a good idea too. Now soup is one of those things I have never looked up a recipe for, I just toss vegetables into a pot with some rice and chicken stock. Today the lucky combination was red bell pepper, carrots, onions, garlic, fire roasted tomatoes, white beans, chicken stock, rice, and then cumin, salt and pepper. It was spicy, warm, and hopefully contained the magic miracle cure so I won't be sick anymore.