tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85671776837388365022012-01-26T10:33:05.230-06:00A blog for all, wine lovers and all...well, hopefully you at least like a glass of wine sometime or else you'll be pretty bored reading some of these posts. Please feel free to post, comment, or just read. The tales of a wine lush and friends in the Lou continue below.....WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.comBlogger3281100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-1034113673911244852012-01-26T10:33:00.000-06:002012-01-26T10:33:05.240-06:00

I was skimming my blog and realized I haven’t posted much on my Artist Series Quest in quite some time. One might think I haven’t been actively collecting – but one would be wrong. I have about 20 labels already taken off, with another…at least 30 ready to be taken off. But my inability to finish projects is not the point of this post- it’s to talk about the reason for my affection towards “

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-65889726912971893642011-12-26T12:01:00.002-06:002011-12-26T12:01:00.280-06:00

Those of you who know me probably think my blog was hijacked – I mean, really, a post about not only Sauvignon Blanc but also a vegetable? What have I done with Wine Lush???!!  It really is me. I still like my steak extra super very purple rare. I still have a love affair with Chardonnay. I still generally dislike veggies. And I still rarely eat dessert and don’t care that much for chocolate.  

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-37846685615593004002011-12-21T14:30:00.001-06:002011-12-21T14:30:00.460-06:00

And as promised, here's the other 3 from winemag.com/hotdrinks: Vin Chaud Courtesy of Noir Bar at Charles Hotel, Cambridge, MA 1 750ml bottle Pinot Noir 4 tablespoons sugar 2 cardamom pods 5 whole cloves 1/3 cup Cognac 4 cinnamon sticks 1 orange peel Combine wine, sugar, cardamom pods and cloves in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer, about 15 minutes. Strain out the spices by pouring the

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-68419494187207552792011-12-20T13:30:00.000-06:002011-12-20T13:30:19.837-06:00

About 2 years ago, I posted a recipie for my Hot Toddy- a standy for the winter. Today I was reading Wine Enthusiast and ran across a few more - I'll publish my hot toddy today along with 3 of WE's recipies (giving credit for the bar they originally came from as well) and tomorrow I'll post 3 more: WineLush’s Hot Toddy  ½ shot bourbon  ½ shot triplesec/cointreau/grand marnier (whichever you have

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-28549392181680684322011-12-19T08:05:00.000-06:002011-12-19T08:05:53.364-06:00

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-11369010554050523592011-12-12T08:54:00.000-06:002011-12-12T08:54:07.981-06:00

So Mr. Lush and I are finally making it to Napa Valley in January. I've been before only for a couple days, but it was many years ago - when tasting fees were $5-10 instead of $20! We're going for a long weekend and will likely spend 2 days in Napa and one in Sonoma. We're joining a couple wine clubs of places we know we will like prior to going, so we can get tasting fees for free. But we're

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-52064432144229419092011-11-08T09:37:00.000-06:002011-11-08T09:37:11.306-06:00

I'm planning out my wine club's 2012 themes. What are some good ideas?

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-80490955450186212852011-10-28T21:29:00.001-05:002011-11-08T09:59:56.893-06:00

Mr. Lush and I (along with Mrs. G) went to the Caymus Dinner at a local grocery store, Schnucks. (actually, the dinner featured the Wagner Family of wines, including Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon & Conundrum, the Belle Glos Pinot Noir, Meomi Pinot Noir, and the Mer Soliel Chardonnays) The menu:  The winemaker/owner, Chuck Wagner:   The food: The smoked trout paired well with the unoaked Chard (

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-55772589875288603292011-10-26T11:40:00.004-05:002011-10-26T11:40:00.648-05:00

As promised, here’s the info on the Cheese Seminar at the NYC Food and Wine Festival. The Cheese Seminar was led by Laura Werlin and Andrea Robinson. Now, I’m not sure if they were trying to top Mark’s sabering, but this seminar started with Andrea rapping. Yes, RAPPING. Luckily, I had a much better view of her and got a good shot.   Awesome, right??? Here’s the pairing menu – now, they

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-87251967940281442512011-10-24T08:14:00.001-05:002011-10-24T09:31:07.287-05:00

Earlier month I had the pleasure of joining (the future) Mr. and Mrs. V at the New York City Food & Wine Festival. We attended two seminars, sushi and cheese. I’ll tell you about the sushi seminar first; stay tuned later this week for the cheese seminar. The sushi seminar starts off with a bang-literally! Mark Oldman attempts to saber a bottle of bubbly and before he gets a chance, the cork

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-14652221094205348372011-08-18T09:46:00.000-05:002011-08-18T09:46:52.101-05:00

Just got an email from Wine Enthusiast - Spend $50, get a $50 merchandise coupon....use code 50for50Cheers!

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-39866963443687568782011-07-06T08:36:00.000-05:002011-07-06T08:36:03.023-05:00

My wine club’s theme this month is “Wino Road Trip”. Its basically to encourage us to drink wines from the US that would not be in normal repertoire; so no wines from California, Oregon, Washington and no wines from Missouri or Illinois, since those are local to us. Since wine is made in all 50 states, this should be somewhat easy; of course not all states distribute and so it likely won’t be

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-72350704371297906812011-06-16T09:25:00.002-05:002011-06-16T09:25:02.082-05:00

Ok, ok, in truth it’s a global toast to celebrate the anniversary of Robert Mondavi’s birthday, which (would have been) June 18th. However, the toast is on my actual birthday, June 17, so its just another reason to celebrate! At 2pm Pacific time (or 4pm for us in the Lou) please raise a glass and toast Robert Mondavi for his groundbreaking movements in wine, me for my birthday, and all who love

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-43102034682879704782011-06-13T10:45:00.003-05:002011-06-13T10:45:00.187-05:00

My wine club’s theme this month is Celebrate! Bubbly and Chards! While I was looking up information for my selected wine (to be discussed tomorrow) and that it was produced using the traditional method of making Champagne, I realized that I really didn’t know what the other methods were. I knew the traditional method (called either Méthode Champenoise / Méthode Traditionnelle) was the “best way”

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-2698086474155238612011-06-10T15:48:00.000-05:002011-06-10T15:48:30.440-05:00

Yep, I said drink, not eat. Good news, my fellow watermelon-loving lushes. I have a new use for watermelon and liquor – one that doesn’t include keeping it the freezer overnight. Mr. Lush and I modified a recipe in the Food and Wine Annual Cookbook (love that cookbook by the way) and made a lovely summertime cocktail. (since we changed the recipie, we get to rename it of course!) This will make

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-41592863748934418532011-05-22T20:41:00.011-05:002011-05-22T20:41:00.164-05:00

Yesterday I posted a recipe for Grilled Spiced Duck with Blackberry sauce and as promised, here’s the wines we had both the first night and with leftovers: The first night we had it with the 2007 Simi Valley Petit Sirah, which we bought at a Black Friday cyber sale for half off - thanks to Scotchguy: 100% Petite Sirah; Inky, almost black in color with powerful flavors of intense, jammy fruits

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-25636259945911642252011-05-21T13:31:00.000-05:002011-05-21T13:31:00.242-05:00

A couple weeks ago Mr. Lush and I tried our hand at grilling a duck again. We’ve done it before, but duck is very fatty and it comes frozen solid, so it takes some planning. It actually came out fantastic, here’s the recipe. Stay tuned for the wine pairings tomorrow! Grilled Spiced Duck with Blackberry Sauce Blackberry Sauce: 1 cup balsamic vinegar 1 quart blackberries 1 teaspoon sugar ½ tsp

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-30378704198484651632011-05-20T10:59:00.000-05:002011-05-20T10:59:20.778-05:00

Just got this email from wine.com, looks like they bought some of Silver Oak’s cellared wines…. While you likely could’ve always bought them from Silver Oak, its nice to see them on a general wine merchant site, so you can get one or two bottles and fill up a half case or case with something less costly. (for those of us who can’t afford a case of Silver Oak!) From their email: Today marks

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-55917468017861585512011-05-05T13:44:00.000-05:002011-05-05T13:44:34.482-05:00

Many think Cinqo De Mayo is just for margarita lovers, but I had a couple of wine specials hit my inbox today that I thought I’d share with you….  Cameron Hughes Wine – they have 5 wines for 25% off using the code: CINCO25 Wine Enthusiast 5% off your entire order, using promo code CINCO5. If you do want a wine today, I'd recommend a white spanish wine (for obvious reasons); a Verdejo or Albarino

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-82246657545514634772011-04-01T09:45:00.002-05:002011-04-01T09:45:01.463-05:00

You know, it felt good to be thrown a “wine curve ball” and to take it in stride, like in my last post. Sure, I have a wine blog and so obviously I enjoy wine and enjoy learning about it. However, as you might have figured out, I don’t desire to know all about wine or even to have a career in wine – unless I can be an importer, travelling all over the world in search of great wine of course (feel

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-79952834120523665342011-03-30T10:49:00.000-05:002011-03-30T10:49:46.828-05:00

For our anniversary, we went to Chez Leon, a French place in Clayton. (well, we really went to Curacao, an island in the south Caribbean as our anniversary trip, but for the celebratory state-side dinner, we went to Chez Leon) I had ordered a Vouvray before deciding what I was going to have for dinner - we all know I love my Chardonnays, but I thought I'd try something else that night. Now, I

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-31446175582422656562011-03-02T19:55:00.000-06:002011-03-02T19:55:45.995-06:00

As I've mentioned in previous posts, occasionally the grocery stores around here have good deals- exceptionally good deals. Its worthy to note, however, that their "orginal" prices are either inflated just for that sale, or always inflated, so don't take the "Savings of" literally - buy with caution or look it up first. Today, I was lucky enough to stumble across one. The Schucks off 141 and

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-57244569758984470502011-02-18T09:36:00.003-06:002011-02-18T09:36:00.422-06:00

Recently we had some gorgonzola stuffed bacon wrapped dates. These appetizers are amazing, by the way- sweet, salty, wonderful! (take dates, remove pit, stuff with crumbled gorgonzola, wrap in bacon, bake in 375-400 degree oven for 15 minutes.) However, because of the many flavors involved, its a little hard to pair with wine. We went for a Sauvignon Blanc- specifically the Provenance Vineyards

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-63552050736504198502011-02-16T12:40:00.001-06:002011-02-16T12:40:00.234-06:00

Last weekend while helping Mr. Lush research "web 2.0" technologies for the classroom, I discovered a fun site called Wordle. You can type/paste a collection of words, a link to a del.ic.ious account, or in my case, a link to my blog, and it will pull together a word collage: You can modify the size, to some degree, the color, and the direction of the words. Also, it lets you remove a word you

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-72576389259532211292011-02-13T14:36:00.002-06:002011-02-13T14:59:23.213-06:00

Mr. Lush and I avoid restaurants on Valentine's Day weekend, and enjoy making a nice meal at home instead. We celebrated last night since our meal required a little bit of prep. It was really good, and a couple tweaks here and there, it could've been fabulous, so I thought I'd share our menu (including recommended modifications), which was Filet mignon with brandy peppercorn cream sauce, grilled

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-75925912812616541672011-01-29T09:00:00.001-06:002011-01-29T09:00:12.465-06:00

Last weekend the wine club had the pleasure of having a vertical tasting of the L’Ecole Apogee. We had the 1999, 2003, 2005, 2006, and 2007-not a full vertical, but enough to see what holding on to a bottle can really do.  The 2007 was decanted for a couple hours, the 2006 was decanted for an hour or so, and the rest were not. Dinner was paired with a horseradish and herb encrusted strip loin,

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-20341732826038046492011-01-27T08:12:00.000-06:002011-01-27T08:12:13.343-06:00

Last night we participated in Clayton Restaurant Week and tried Jimmy’s on the Park. I had the tuna tartar and the smoked duck, and for dinner we brought a bottle of the 2005 Chesterfield Cellars Pinot Noir. Its no secret I love pinots from Monterey County  , and Santa Barbara county is a little south of Monterey (see map), but very similar flavor profile. (more dark fruit than strawberry) It was

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-65587723889148634632011-01-19T09:45:00.000-06:002011-01-19T09:45:00.251-06:00

We have a tendency to hoard and age our expensive bottles, scouring over reviews to see when the peak time to drink them will be, yet we drink cheap wines too young and whine about how we can’t get any good cheap wines. Well, last weekend I had a wine that reminded me we CAN age cheaper wines too!!! In Dec 2007 I wrote about how the new (then) blend releases from Mondavi and Kendall Jackson

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-54422844622696040542011-01-13T08:36:00.000-06:002011-01-13T08:36:32.839-06:00

Just got an email deal from Gold Medal Wine Club....its a stellar deal to add a new series or sign up for the first time...email me for the promo code..... (and so you can let them know I referred you, of course!)

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-11446094234459158482010-12-03T08:15:00.013-06:002010-12-25T23:00:38.867-06:00

About 2 years ago I posted a recipie for mulling spices, but in that post I linked to a recipie for mulled wine in a blog that is no longer functional. (Miss you Lucy!) So, in light of the fact its getting downright chilly in the Lou, I thought it might be time to post it all together. 1 bottle of red wine (I like American Zinfandel) 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup brandy 2 TSP pre-mixed mulling spice, or

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-45587880025682822422010-09-28T08:29:00.001-05:002010-09-28T08:29:00.385-05:00

This month’s Wine Enthusiast Magazine had a good article I thought was worth posting, since it hits on something dear to my heart-stocking your wine cellar with $30 or less bottles. I decided to post the whole article, instead of just the link, in case the link quits working. However, I do encourage you to subscribe to a wine magazine, and I personally like WE, so here’s the link to subscribe.

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-91940744899316036152010-09-27T09:34:00.001-05:002012-01-26T10:08:53.677-06:00

At this weekend’s wine club event we had a “Chianti and More: Sangiovese from anywhere” theme. We had two that were notable- the 2007 Ledson Sangiovese and the 2007 Lone Canary Sangiovese, which was from Washington state. I think the Lone Canary might’ve been the first Washington Sangiovese I’ve ever had and it was really good-nice and fruity with some dried cherry notes, complex with a little

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-83854960486149885212010-09-10T16:01:00.000-05:002010-09-10T16:01:42.478-05:00

(me scrambling to top of my Wine Soapbox) When did corkage fees become a literal fee for uncorking the wine? Aren’t I also supposed to get wine service as well? You know, where they open the bottle for you, offer to decant it, keep the glass at just the right amount full, where you have some room for the wine to breathe in the glass……where you can swish, take a sip, then a few minutes later

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-64583839351872709752010-06-25T08:12:00.000-05:002010-06-25T08:12:26.708-05:00

Sorry for the absence, things have been busy…but I have a gift- a recipe for you!  I had one of those fun cooking moments where I used what was available in the house-along with some herbs from the Lush Herb Garden-to mesh a couple recipes together and it was really good. It’s a combination of a Florentine, pesto sauce (no nuts), and alfredo sauce, so I’m calling it The Lush "Floresto" Cream

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-17337301229609616182010-05-17T11:21:00.025-05:002010-05-17T11:21:00.138-05:00

Wine “aerators” have become pretty popular recently. We don’t own one yet, and here’s why. A) We already have 3 decanters, among a host of other wine related accessories-do we really need any more wine stuff? B) I’m not entirely sold on them, not only on the price point, but I also wonder if something in the wine’s complexity is lost through a rapid process. Sometimes technology is cool but

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-66770317501616279322010-05-06T08:49:00.000-05:002010-05-06T08:49:00.889-05:00

As you might know, I prefer my Pinot Noirs to be fuller bodied, (for a pinot) with darker fruit flavors, more on the dark cherry side than the bright strawberry side, with a bit of warm flavors, like cinnamon or clove. As noted in my other posts, typically Monterey County Pinot Noirs (central coast of California) are my go-to, however, the 2006 Handley Cellars Pinot Noir from Anderson Valley was

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-8386377856459482842010-04-28T13:56:00.000-05:002010-04-28T13:56:35.864-05:00

As you know, I'm certainly not a chef, but I do like to cook. One of the things I like the flavor of, particularly with lamb or a savory potato dish, is rosemary. But I really hate, as does Mr. Lush, how its like dried hard grass seed. Well recently, I saw a recipe where someone used fresh rosemary to drizzle olive oil on something and I thought perfect! A way to get the rosemary flavor without

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-71945215087639318322010-04-22T15:57:00.000-05:002010-04-22T15:57:24.130-05:00

As some of you might know, I have a wine club –it's “byo” style and we try to balance some learning with some wine tasting and food pairing with a good solid dose of fun. This month, in celebration of Earth Day, our theme was “Wines for Mother Earth”. And since today is Earth Day, I thought I’d post some our favorite wines from that meeting. (I know, me and like every other wine blogger…. ;)

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-84291423895346478882010-04-10T12:26:00.023-05:002010-04-10T12:26:00.061-05:00

There was this guy I knew back in the day who could drink an entire bottle of Jack and would still be standing, but give him 4 or 5 beers and he all the sudden had the tolerance of a 90 lb girl. I didn't get it and he explained it as he drinks Jack all the time and has a higher tolerance for it, but doesn't drink beer that often. I never really bought into the whole “selective tolerance”

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-58662295903017313882010-04-07T10:10:00.000-05:002010-04-07T10:10:12.899-05:00

Let me introduce you to my favorite Sauvignon Blanc, the 2008 Chateau Ste. Michelle Horse Heaven. I bought it on a whim for a party, it was just under $12 at Sam’s Club, noted a “one time buy”. Typically the “one time buy” at Sam’s Club means they negotiated a good deal, bought a lot of it, and that’s all they’ll carry. Once its sold out, its sold out. (this particular one is sold on the winery

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-87412570185853142622010-04-05T18:20:00.000-05:002010-04-05T18:20:09.098-05:00

Last week, Mr. Lush grilled some “beer up the butt” chicken and we had Mrs. Luce over to keep her company in Mr. Luce’s absence. If you’ve never had beer up the butt chicken, the “set up” is exactly as it sounds. They say you can just use the beer’s steam to season and what not, but we prefer to season and inject a bit, in addition to putting some spices in the beer itself. For these particular

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-64010565888027035692010-04-01T11:10:00.000-05:002010-04-01T11:10:33.592-05:00

As you might have read in previous posts, we like both sake and sparkling with sushi, but typically when we get sushi at home we have bubbly with it. One of our go-to's is Roederer Estate NV Brut. Its a cuvee, with the current notes citing a 60% Chardonnay / 40% Pinot blend. Typically it can be found at Sams Club for around $16, although you can also find it at most wine shops for around $21-23.

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-52982761163501260072010-03-30T09:31:00.006-05:002010-03-30T09:31:00.473-05:00

I do love a good margarita. Of course, a good tequila is a must but so is a good, not too sugary, easy mix. So, here’s my favorite quick margarita recipe, which comes in at less calories than and also isn’t quite as sugary as the premade margartia mixes.   1 can frozen Limemade (I use Minutemaid) ½ can frozen “Five Alive” 3-4 fresh limes Take both concentrate mixes, put in 48 oz pitcher. Fill

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-86497356129955397042010-03-23T08:25:00.001-05:002010-03-23T08:26:22.533-05:00

Here’s the problem with a break from blogging….I think of things all the time to blog about, but then I ask myself: “Do I really want my big post back to be about that?” And the answer is often no…it might not be a wine topic, or its too relevant to a certain person (ie I don’t want that person to read it and think I’m talking about them) so I don’t blog. Its silly really, but nonetheless has

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-22943248878366699442010-01-22T09:30:00.001-06:002010-01-22T09:31:11.600-06:00

Last night we had our super easy Spicy Shrimp Pasta with of course, a Riesling. Rieslings pair so well with the spicy. Often we’ve been having the Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling, which is fine, but a few weeks ago the Chateau Ste. Michelle Indian Wells Riesling was on sale for about a buck more than the regular Riesling. For those of you that don’t know, Chateau Ste. Michelle makes a wide

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-90904153011694460312010-01-11T10:14:00.001-06:002010-01-22T09:30:47.402-06:00

Don’t you hate it when you have a nice decanter but no matter what it seems to have some sort of film, from the dried wine and/or hard water? Or maybe you’re not all that good about rinsing them out immediately and wine has dried and the “film” is somewhat mildew-esque; not officially mildew, just looks like more than water spots.... What do you do? Well, I’m not a huge fan of those decanter

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-84330243744888654702010-01-04T08:17:00.001-06:002010-01-04T08:18:15.808-06:00

Over Christmas break Mr. Lush and I read Level 26, a “digi-novel”. What's a digi-novel? Well, in a digi novel you log online every 20-30 pages or so to see a clip/scene that corresponds to the book. (you're given a code at the end of every few chapters to enter) The online scenes aren’t mandatory to understand the book, it just sort of adds something to it. The book itself is about the worst of

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-70964925671362300002009-12-31T12:25:00.001-06:002010-01-04T08:18:33.552-06:00

Every year in the fall/winter, Schnucks (local grocery store) discounts certain wines by a hefty amount to make room for the next vintage. For example, I was there on Christmas Eve and saw a 2006 Gundlach Bunhschu Pinot Noir for just under $17- their regular price was in the high $30’s, so I picked up a bottle. I’d never had the Pinot, but have always liked Gundlach Bundshu wines, so I thought

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-10278823652587021182009-12-01T15:50:00.003-06:002009-12-01T15:57:38.114-06:00

OK Wine Enthusiast, I'm all for pretty decanters but I think this might be going too far.A) It, uh, well, uh, is a rather phallic symbol, don't you think?B) Really? I need an instruction video to use it? andC) Wow, between the shape of the decanter and the description, I might need a cigarette. This elegant Riedel Eve decanter is an artful masterpiece, as well as an extremely functional wine

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-48551107216684679822009-11-17T13:25:00.004-06:002009-11-17T13:29:06.713-06:00

As you might remember, I’m a member of Gold Medal Wine Club. Now, we belong to two “tiers”….the Gold tier, which we get on a monthly basis and is mostly wines in the $15-30 range, that are smaller scale wineries and the Platinum tier, which we get on a quarterly basis and is mostly wines in the $35-55 range from often even smaller scale wineries. (of course, the actual price paid is a little less

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-22522804361229831822009-11-09T15:10:00.004-06:002009-11-09T15:13:58.136-06:00

Over the weekend we played a dice game, BAM!. Not many people have heard of it so I thought I’d share it with you for with the upcoming holidays and forced family time. Its easy to learn and, should you want to play with kids, its also a good addition exercise. (you can also modify the rules to include drinking with each “BAM” if you’re not playing with any kids.)RULES OF BAM!Each person puts in

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-30429774664283694612009-11-06T09:01:00.002-06:002009-11-06T09:01:00.505-06:00

I know that I should eat more salad. I really should. Even the most fattening salad is still less fattening than the average meal and usually a salad has some nutritional value. But its so much trouble to cut up stuff for a salad. (I mean, to have a good salad you need a decent amount of ingredients, right?) So I might make one salad but then blah….I end up not making another one and the ¾

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-45677431270549515222009-11-05T12:11:00.001-06:002009-11-05T12:12:18.855-06:00

As you might have noticed, its now November and that measn the Blind Ambition Tour 2 is over. Mr. Lush and I are somewhat excited that we’re no longer in October and can now know what we’re drinking without having to guess first. It was fun, its just tiring after an entire month. But, for fun, I visited my first and last post during October last year to see how far I’d come. Last year I was just

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-31717459641065401732009-10-28T20:51:00.004-05:002009-10-28T21:11:03.440-05:00

Last week I shopped at the Straubs by my work (home of the beloved Kobe burger). I'm sad to report that the store is closing.....which makes me sad on many levels. However, to soften my sadness, everything was 20% off- including wine. Well, of course I had to pick some up and one was the Leeuwin Estate "Art Series" Riesling from AU. ($17 reg price) Yes, before you ask, the primary reason I picked

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-90790069265743501492009-10-25T21:09:00.004-05:002009-10-25T21:39:24.223-05:00

We recently remodeled our (only!!) bathroom. After many many (MANY!)snafus, its pretty much done and I finally downloaded pics. (pro of having an 8gb memory card for your camera - can hold lots of pics, con is that you are in no hurry to download pics- our Europe trip is still on there! )Anyway, here's some before pics:Here's some in progress pics:We decided to keep our tub and get it reglazed.

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-50360114282535700452009-10-15T11:07:00.000-05:002009-10-15T11:09:44.789-05:00

Last night I tried a new recipe for a roasted rack of lamb. It came out well so I thought I’d share it with you.Mix ½ cup of breadcrumbs, a tsp of garlic powder, and 1 tbs rosemary (dried or fresh is fine – I used dried and crushed it with my magic bullet to blend it with the breadcrumbs). Set aside.Mix 3 tbs of my new favorite marinade, Kraft Honey Dijon Vinaigrette Dressing and Marinade, 1 tsp

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-85045866551229350522009-10-13T08:59:00.002-05:002009-10-13T09:03:03.720-05:00

Last night I grilled some bourbon glazed pork chops while Mr. Lush worked late. The glaze, which is based on the old TGIFridays Jack Daniels sauce, has soy sauce, pineapple juice, teriyaki sauce, brown sugar, a little bit of cayenne pepper, onion and garlic and some bourbon. (ok, a lot of bourbon – I quadruple the recipe amount but it reduces for 45 minutes so all the alcohol is cooked out)Anyway

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-61495161301337065552009-10-09T10:24:00.003-05:002009-10-09T10:30:53.067-05:00

Ok, I’ve officially decided: I love Central California Pinot Noirs, specifically Monterey County Pinots. As you know, we belong to the Taste of Monterey Wine Private Reserve Wine Club and love it. We get quarterly shipments of 3 bottles of wine and often, if not every time, the shipments include a Pinot Noir. We have loved every single one we’ve gotten from them. They are so big and full, both

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-90515242287818800002009-10-05T21:00:00.001-05:002009-10-05T21:14:43.043-05:00

Last week I was invited to an event hosted by Mirassou winery, which has been around for 150+ years. The event was at Mia Rosa, a restaurant north of The Hill. They traveled around the country, visiting 5 different restaurants to come up with a wine pairing cookbook (some recipes posted online here) and invited various media/bloggers to the events. Evidently my blog and “association” with the St.

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-56010313577356650482009-10-01T09:33:00.001-05:002009-10-01T09:56:33.287-05:00

I’ve gotta rant about a few things…1) Multiple magazine subscription renewal notices. Really? My subscription expires in February and I need an “urgent” renewal notice in September? I don’t think so. Send me one in December then another in January. I don’t need one before I even get finished reading my first magazine. Speaking of wasting paper….2) Paperless bills. Yes, I know, bills use

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-28529248412043173532009-09-29T08:43:00.003-05:002009-09-29T08:49:27.024-05:00

As you might remember from last October, I try to taste wine blindly all month and call it my Blind Ambition Tour. (its driven from the fact my wine club has a annual blind tasting in October) Last year, I did not fare too well. I stunk up the place on reds, hardly getting any right, but did better with the whites. Even with that dismal outcome I decided I’m going to do it again this

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-66465551681361473712009-09-23T13:27:00.003-05:002009-09-23T13:34:08.120-05:00

Last night we had completed laying the tile for the bathroom. To celebrate the fact we now can get rid of a set of tools (and thus work on clearing out our toolshed of a living room) I got some sushi to go and we had a bottle of Mumm Napa Brut while we watched Monday's season premiere of House. (love that show....but he better resume jerk-ness soon!)I digress....it was good, a little less yeasty

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-48339262168977423442009-09-21T12:00:00.003-05:002009-09-21T12:05:18.706-05:00

Well, this weekend I had the Artiste Vanessa (white blend) mentioned in my last post with my Chicken Marsala. I thought it was pretty good with it….it had enough body to stand up to the creamy marsala sauce and to the alfredo sauce for the fettucine. I think I might mark the other bottle exclusively for Marsala use…..Lucy, what’d you think?And, how sad I was that the 1999 Marsannay we had was bad

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-58469908826611140392009-09-17T09:26:00.005-05:002009-09-17T09:35:10.304-05:00

We’ve had some note-worthy wines lately….. At a recent wine club event I had my first red Pinot Meunier, by Domaine Chandon. (it’s the grape typically blended in sparkling wines with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay) It was oh so good, in fact, Domaine Chandon describes it perfectly: its Pinot Noir’s soulful sister. It’s everything that’s great about Pinot Noir- delicate, a bit fruity, but with some

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-86924920339181620872009-09-15T08:52:00.001-05:002009-09-15T08:54:04.502-05:00

How’s the bathroom progress going you ask? Well, we’re WAY behind schedule….first a little recap (those of you who know the story feel free to skip ahead) My parents came into town to help us over Labor Day Weekend…..as said in my earlier post, we’re doing tile instead of the tub surround. Well, after mudding and taping and more of it, we were hoping to make some progress tiling Friday night….but

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-63373966852332145532009-09-11T08:11:00.003-05:002009-09-11T08:16:27.141-05:00

Last weekend I picked up a 12 pack Brewmaster’s sampler of Sam Adams, which included Sam Adams Light, Pale Ale, Hefeweizen, and Blackberry Witbier. Mr. Lush’s beers of choice are Guinness and Shalafly Pale Ale (local brewing company) but he also likes Sam Adams, so I thought he might like to try the Pale Ale and I was moderately curious about the Blackberry Witbier, although I’ve never liked

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-1052286864256699602009-09-10T09:51:00.003-05:002012-01-26T10:09:29.003-06:00

Just kidding, its not really a joke…..last night the Luce’s came over to take pity on us and help mudd the bathroom. (by “help” I mean pretty much do it) I was in charge of dinner while the Mr’s mudded away. For dinner, we had an all-grill meal of thyme/terragon seasoned lamb chops, rosemary potatoes, and zucchini. The Luce’s brought the Bogle Phantom (a Petite Sirah/Zinfandel based blend) and we

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-23041687727941111352009-09-09T07:58:00.003-05:002009-09-15T08:54:15.430-05:00

Where have I been? Ah, busy...but mostly not at a computer with free time when a blogging topic hits me, or without the time to really write about the topic in my head. Which, I still don't have the time, but thought I'd let my cyberfan community (all, what, 1 or 3 of you?) know I'm alive.As you might've guessed by my encoded post title ;) , we're remodeling our bathroom. Now, here's the kicker..

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-26630018768070696172009-07-28T10:04:00.003-05:002009-07-28T10:19:25.429-05:00

Well, as you might remember we potty trained her with bells on teh door, which worked great. It was up to her to let us know when she needed out and she did. We've now weaned her off those and she just looks at us, or if we ignore her, she will whine at us.Which left the crate training. We crated her at night and when we were gone. Its a lot on the weekends - particularly if we go out Friday

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-15769042108191377602009-07-21T07:38:00.001-05:002009-07-21T07:48:36.571-05:00

Ok, this is my first “about 30” post. I turned 30 in June and its been pretty much the same as 29. I get carded sometimes, sometimes I don’t. Even though I’m not “in my 20’s” anymore, life hasn’t stopped. I’m pretty ok with where I am in life but not overly thrilled with my weight and fitness level – so changing that by 31 is a goal, in addition to finishing my thesis. Other than that,

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-58570938493204478162009-07-17T09:24:00.003-05:002009-07-17T09:27:24.041-05:00

Is Napa calling to me? Perhaps to say, hey, you don’t need no stinkin French wine….good stuff is here in your country and a lot easier to get?Why do I think Napa is calling to me, you ask?In the past few days I’ve been lightly researching Yosemite Park – next year is Mr. Lush’s vacation pick and he does like “outdoorsy” vacations, so I thought perhaps we might look at a week in California – a few

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-24666855918968913932009-07-10T07:45:00.000-05:002009-07-10T07:45:01.001-05:00

Ok, here's some vineyard pics. I purposely didn't post them in previous pics, so if you don't care about vineyard pics, feel free to skip this entire post, as its only vineyard pics!This one is probably my favorite....although its hard to say!

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-63341407117958393492009-07-09T08:24:00.002-05:002009-07-09T08:31:11.995-05:00

Not sure if you have noticed, but many of my beloved Cardinals fans have had a growing shadow on their upper lip. Yep, they’ve been growing mustaches. Mr. Lush and I laughed about it last night, as the mustache growing-in phase isn’t always the most attractive. (and in truth, not sure if I'm crazy about Rick Ankiel in a 'stache either - too 1970's for me!)Of course, being the curious dork I am, I

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-74379493471251788782009-07-08T08:42:00.001-05:002009-07-08T08:43:39.752-05:00

Yesterday, I was warming up some lunch in the work microwave. I set it for 1 minute 45 and walked around the corner to tell the receptionist something. I was maybe 30-60 seconds “past the beep” and I walked back around the corner to see that someone had taken my food out and already tarted warming theirs up. (This person was not waiting in line or anything when I put mine in, BTW)Now, I have a

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-15896740629456667662009-07-06T07:50:00.000-05:002009-07-06T07:50:02.468-05:00

Mr. Lush has always said that boxers can not swim- “their chests are too heavy….they will sink like a rock”.Hogwash I’ve said.A tidbit from Americanboxerclub.org, which I just read for the tongue-in-cheek benefit of the post….“Precautions must be taken to ensure your dog's safety. Being deep-chested and tailless, our Boxers need plenty of instruction learning to turn and maneuver in the water.”

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-87755233205896975092009-07-04T10:10:00.000-05:002009-07-04T10:10:00.714-05:00

I like finding news that supports my lifestyle decisions. Lucy often finds reasons how drinking wine is good for you, and in honor of the 4th of July, the meat mecca of holidays, (I for one would never have a 4th of July weekend without grilling SOME meat of SOME kind) I just found an article saying meat eaters have better bone density. Woo hoo! Go meat! Should you BBQ your meat, Lucy posted

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-26905040615366075272009-07-02T08:37:00.003-05:002009-07-02T08:58:54.439-05:00

(I do not speak French)So one of the top questions we get asked about our trip was "did you have problems with the language barrier"? Yes and no. While I took some French in high school, I could read it better than speak or verbally comprehend it. We listened to some CDs in the car in French, but that's hardly real preparation, and it left Mr. Lush with zero ability to read. I was the best French

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-56161405103896698742009-06-26T07:35:00.003-05:002009-06-26T07:50:01.861-05:00

I, along with many of my generation, mourn (if even lightly) Michael Jackson's sudden death. As I drove to work today I started thinking about the impact he had on pop culture and music, across genres. True, much of influential work was pre-1995, but music changed a lot the 80's and 90's. Just like it did in the 50's and 60's....So, I wonder, is Michael Jackson my generation's Elvis? I gave Mr.

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-16209222434873105032009-06-25T09:02:00.006-05:002009-09-11T08:17:42.720-05:00

One of our stops in Ireland was a pub/brewery called The Porterhouse Brewing Company. They brew beers and serve other beers, but theirs is the only Irish beer they serve (aka NO GUINNESS). They have a very elaborate (and humorous) beer menu. I've included some snapshots. (funny part is at the end, but bear with me)Cover page:A few of their beers:Here's some shots of their descriptions of other

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-2752700874025853192009-06-23T07:59:00.001-05:002009-06-23T07:59:00.526-05:00

Yes, we did see more than just the Eiffel Tower in Paris. We saw Notre Dame, which was huge and amazing, and made me miss my Grandma a bit, as she loved cathedrals and would've loved to see it. We were there during mass and as Mr. Lush noted, the choir was so beautiful it sounded like angels. (of course the choir should be amazing, but for some reason we were surprised...possibly because we don't

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-9589216428367052002009-06-19T11:23:00.002-05:002009-07-06T07:52:50.837-05:00

***WARNING: This entire post is about the Eiffel Tower. I know, I just had to do it. I couldn't help myself!****Prior to our trip, I poured over travel books, travel websites, etc to find the "best kept secrets". Evidently the Montparnasse Tower is one of them. (details later) We went by the Eiffel Tower, hung out on the park area for a little bit and took some pictures.By the way, should you go

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-55847573299100148562009-06-19T02:19:00.007-05:002009-06-19T03:13:13.287-05:00

A little recap of Burgundy:We arrive via train and take the bus (of course!) to Gevrey Chambertin. Its Sunday night, so we decide to grab a pizza from a mobile pizza station (I guess?) that we happened to pass. So yes, our first official Burgundonian meal was a jambon (ham) pizza. (good thing we did as NOTHING is open on Sunday)FYI-evidently with sparkling (whether it be champagne or Cremant de

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-11185670205564676732009-06-19T00:59:00.001-05:002009-07-06T07:52:38.758-05:00

Ironically, the first real public transportation snaffu happened in a part of the trip where public transportation is readily available - Burgundy. There’s a bus system that takes you from town to town, within town, etc, and its ,90 Euro per person per segment. (a new “segment” occurs every 2 or 3 villages) Well, the snaffu happened Monday on our trip to Beaune. The bus ride should’ve been 3,60

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-20735105460546378822009-06-18T06:24:00.000-05:002009-06-18T07:56:51.344-05:00

Ok, where did I last leave off? I know, its been a long time!!! I think it was last Thursday night, when we arrived in Saint Emilion. I’ll fill you in and Mr. Lush and I will do a “She said/He said” version of this post. Of course, Mr. Lush will get the easy part, I’m sure throwing humorous commentary to my otherwise painstakingly detailed blog entry, but I will allow him this luxury - he has

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-52440391519988589812009-06-18T04:20:00.001-05:002009-07-06T07:53:10.886-05:00

Here's a few photos from Bordeaux (the city).

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-69304573335787830262009-06-15T05:27:00.000-05:002009-06-15T05:28:10.795-05:00

B&B has no internet - boo! At internet cafe now w/only 3 minutes. We're ok....promise to update soon!

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-49654990990488393262009-06-13T16:02:00.002-05:002009-06-13T16:03:42.696-05:00

Sorry for the lack of updates....having a great time....hopefully time to fully update with pics tomorrow!!!!(travel day Sunday- from Bordeaux to Burgundy)

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-62993915429688387182009-06-11T17:44:00.003-05:002009-06-11T18:08:13.893-05:00

**note I had to post 2 posts at once so go the one before and catch up***So today Mr. Lush and I were discussing if we know of anyone else who would take this particular type of trip....the kicker is what was going on at the time of said conversation....We were at the Saint Emilion train station, waiting for a taxi that might arrive/might not, depending on if he checked his email that day, while

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-84174023244498362872009-06-11T17:41:00.001-05:002009-06-11T17:43:29.145-05:00

After a late night at the Dublin pubs, we drug ourselves out of bed to start our day of traveling to France. We started off early and took the airport shuttle to the Dublin airport, only to find that our flight was delayed 45 minutes, so not only was getting there early was not really necessary, we were also tight on transfer time. Our flight was to arrive in Toulouse at 3:55 and our train was

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-48786850389654385842009-06-08T19:05:00.009-05:002009-06-08T20:07:40.297-05:00

Upon arriving at Drury Court Hotel (no relation to the Drury we know in the US) we were allowed to checkin early (which we ended up switching rooms - bit of a modly smell in the hallway of our original room- 2nd room was very nice). We took a baby powernap and then went a walkin to Guinness Storehouse, where our free tour pases awaited(Courtesy of Bill, the BEST Scotchguy ever).On our way, we saw

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-54657776357349302362009-06-08T04:28:00.002-05:002009-06-08T04:33:39.538-05:00

Mr. Lush and I are in our Dublin hotel. No major issues with getting here - although we did have a small snaffu with the EL in Chicago - part of the service was disconnected so we switched to a bus....which added 40 mins to our drive. The Megabus was fine - a bit late taking off but we got to Chicago early so it all worked out.Of course, its 9:30 am here and we're tired, but going to forge ahead

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-50735087276317087782009-05-29T08:20:00.004-05:002009-05-29T08:36:57.326-05:00

Early last month I posed a question about Netbooks. Well, after some additional research, we bit the bullet and got one – an Acer w/ 160GB hard drive (which is a ton for a netbook- most have 8-16GB space thus can’t do much except run Windows) for a steal at Sam’s Club for $256.(I wanted pink but got the blue one for Mr. Lush’s sake)I didn’t know much about Acer but I asked around to some computer

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-75134425432569054272009-05-26T12:58:00.002-05:002009-05-26T13:19:52.968-05:00

In honor of the recent holiday weekend we, along with 50,000 other St. Louisians went down I-44 to a lake (we happened to go to Table Rock Lake). During the road trip I encountered some frustrations.1) Cops. Yep, sorry Mr. D, just didn’t like your kind this weekend. They were everywhere – bridges, overpasses, on ramps, off ramps, and at bottoms of steep hills (I think that might be called a

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-80441760465684936942009-05-22T11:41:00.003-05:002009-05-22T12:02:21.234-05:00

Last night I was lucky enough to attend my second Cardinals / Cubs game in a row (thanks to a couple of good friends sharing good and free tickets). Mr. Lush and I always ride the Metrolink to the games - we live about 2 miles from a park and ride stop and its just nice to get dropped off at the stadium. Well, last night Mr. Lush was busy and he was going to be late, so I rode the Metrolink

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-21039836348548706602009-05-20T10:03:00.004-05:002009-05-20T10:15:31.305-05:00

I bought our train tickets for travel within France yesterday on Rail Europe's website. They offer a few "cost saving" options such as the Anywhere Anytime France Pass and the France SaverPass....however, after looking at the options of buying our tickets indivually or booking through the pass options, I realized I had to pay a reservation fee for certain rides (almost all) and that those passes

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-79007196465905913322009-05-19T08:45:00.004-05:002009-05-19T08:48:07.135-05:00

Layla has two boyfriends, Brix and Bodhi, that she plays with. She’s fickle and can’t decide which is her favorite – such a player, my doggie! Brix is big and strong and wears her out and Bodhi lets her dominate. Choices, choices. ;)Well anyway, today I took her on a walk and noticed some boy-like behaviors: she went pee like 6 times, as if she was “marking her territory” (the walk was only a

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-8568873854902948122009-05-18T11:54:00.004-05:002009-05-18T12:12:39.311-05:00

It seems that popular opinion is that Zins go well with BBQ....but I think I've decided that most Zinfandels don't go that well with the Lush BBQ. (Now, our BBQ is slightly spicy - so this isn't a blanket statement that NO Zins go well with ANY BBQ.)Last weekend we smoked up a brisket and topped it with some BBQ sauce, had a few friends over and had a Graff Family Grenache, Imagery Tempranillo,

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-86173509268509986832009-05-15T10:56:00.002-05:002009-05-15T10:57:41.001-05:00

I’m sure you’re wondering what’s been going on – have I been having ANY good wines lately? Has every moment been dedicated to my trip? Really, the answer is yes to both – I HAVE had some good wines and nearly every moment HAS been decided to the trip planning. So its time for a much needed break on trip discussions and lets get back to good food and good wine, shall we?The other night I made a

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-80055255933956415092009-05-14T08:09:00.001-05:002009-05-14T08:12:36.441-05:00

As I said in a post long ago, Mr. Lush is in charge of planning the 2 days in Dublin. Well, with a little extra research help from me, he booked the Drury Court Hotel on Lower Stephens Street. (no affiliation to the Drury Inns in the US) It’s a couple blocks south of Temple Bar area (“stumbling distance”, Lucy) and a couple blocks north of St. Stephens Green, also close to Dublin Castle and about

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8567177683738836502.post-46988968925822581362009-05-11T08:06:00.002-05:002009-05-11T08:08:29.147-05:00

Ok, Burgundy is booked. We really had a hard time deciding where to stay in Burgundy – we really want to experience a lot of the region’s wines, but as with the rest of our trip, proximity to a main road is important along with relatively easy access to bus or train station (ie not a 25km taxi ride). We also wanted to stay somewhere that we could conceivably walk to at least one or two other

WineLushhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12973851429584849178noreply@blogger.com0