Hey everyone! I am ridiculously swamped with life right now and have no time for an up-to-date post, which sucks because I have SO much on my mind and also many a fun experience to share, but for now I hope you’re satisfied with a better-late-than-never review of a restaurant I visited several months ago.
Also, I’m psyched to announce that CT’s largest newspaper (and the nation’s oldest), the Hartford Courant, is hosting blog awards this year called the Websters! The nomination form is here, and you don’t have to fill in every field, so even if you’re not from CT but enjoy my blog, you may want to check it out đ
The answer to this post title’s question is ridiculous. This restaurant review from my Florida vacation in December 2011 is SO overdue, the restaurant is ABOUT TO CLOSE. #fail
EDIT: THE RESTAURANT IS NOT ABOUT TO CLOSE! My grandma is apparently a source of false information! But I’m keeping the title of this post because it doesn’t work otherwise…
Yeah, this will soon cease to exist.
I had always wanted to visit McCormick  & Schmick’s for a full meal. They have a fantastic happy hour menu that I had the pleasure of sampling during my foodie road trip to DC with Jeff last May.
Cheesin’ it with fried alligator.
Double cheesin’ it.
I was pretty excited to be able to order a beverage and an item off the full menu. After checking it out online, I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to choose!
The menu at every McCormick & Schmick’s varies according to what food is the freshest available locally. I like how the menu listed out specifically what items were from the Florida area and where they came from.
I was impressed by the variety of cocktails offered and selected a drink called the Skinny Bootlegger. In case you can’t read the print above, it consisted of Prairie organic vodka, lemon/lime juices, agave, and mint. Definitely sounded promising, but unfortunately this drink spelled a bit of trouble in terms of service.
It certainly looked lovely, but the drink was way too juice-y. I felt as if (my parents both agreed) I was drinking straight lime and lemon juice with a little mint thrown in! I like my drinks strong and usually the “Skinny” options on restaurant menus use less juice/added sweeteners and are therefore enjoyable to me. This drink wasn’t though, so we asked our waiter for another shot of vodka that I could add to the drink. No, I am not an alcoholic, I just know how I like my drinks to taste!
At this point it became apparent to use that we did not have the speediest waiter in the world. He didn’t return for over 10 minutes, and other people in the table had yet to receive their drinks in the first place. Finally I sent the drink back altogether and just asked for a glass so that I could have some of the red wine my parents had ordered for themselves.
They had chosen 14 Hands Cabernet from Washington. I prefer other reds to Cabernets, but did enjoy this wine. Looks nice in the glass, right? đ
It paired especially well with the sourdough bread, which tasted just like J. Gilbert’s bread to me.
For my meal, I ordered the Jamaican Grilled Mahi-Mahi, with some modifications. I asked for the vanilla rum sauce on the side, and for veggies instead of the sweet potato mash (I love sweet potato fries and sweet potatoes as co-ingredients, but do not like them enough to eat them mashed/baked/roasted by themselves). Obviously IÂ stuck with the black beans – I’m obsessed, after all.
My food was delicious! The fish was cooked perfectly and the char-grilled beefsteak tomato was a welcome and pleasant surprise to find on my plate. Ittook a very long time for our food to come out (and for bread to be replenished in the mean time – our waiter really was quite sluggish, though polite) but this was worth the wait.
My dad started with the Maine Lobster Bisque with Sherry Butter, and was so excited and impressed by the presentation that he called me over to snap the above photo. The lump lobster meat in the center of the soup was certainly impressive!
Is anyone else having slightly dirty thoughts about this meal’s presentation?
My brother’s (awkward) meal of choice was the Petite Filet Mignon with veggies (for my mom and I) and two fried mashed potato balls. Yes, fried mashed potatoes – I had a bite of one, and it was AMAZING!!!
Despite the bad drink and waiter, I really liked my food! And they did take my drink off our bill – after my mom sternly prompted them to do so, of course.
Have you ever sent a drink back because you didn’t like it?
Have you ever been torn between liking and disliking a restaurant because some parts of the experience were good and some were bad?
Don’t forget to read last night’s post about Daily Feats, a new social networking rewards site that helps you meet your goals AND earn bonus points to use towards rewards and/or charitable donations. The post contains a code good for 50 free bonus points at (also free) registration!
Not only do I get a Birchbox every month, but I also get an even better kind of box – from my Foodie Pen Pal! Lindsay of The Lean Green Bean has taken on QUITE the project – she now has over 200 participants! Bloggers and blog readers alike can participate (just last month, a reader without a blog did a guest post for me so that she had somewhere to share what I sent her).
This month, my pen pal was Julia of A Girl with a Stethoscope. She is a new graduate nurse with a love for running and eating. One of my favorite things about this program is the way it connects me with other bloggers and their blogs that I may never have found! I really like her blog AND her taste in food…check out all the goodies she sent me!
First glance inside…ooh…
Celestial Seasonings Honey Vanilla Chamomile Herbal Tea: YES I am so excited to try this! I adore honey vanilla teas and the fact that this is decaf will make it perfect to enjoy in the evenings. I have loose leaf herbal tea but to be honest, have not made a single cup because I have been to lazy to prepare loose leaf! Maybe I’ll start drinking tea more often now that I have a bagged variety.
Rhythm Superfoods Sweet Potato Chips: I was super psyched to try these out, but they weren’t exactly my cup of tea (wrote that and then realized that phrase would fit better in the above bullet) because despite the fact that these are the Sea Salt variety, they weren’t salty enough! However I’m sure someone in my house who isn’t as hopelessly salt-addicted as me will end up polishing these off. The whole bag has just 100 calories!
Kaia Foods Sprouted Sunflower Seeds:I know many bloggers out there are addicted to sunflower seed butter, and sunflower seeds themselves. I honestly haven’t tried the butter and have not had plain sunflower seeds since I was a picky elementary school kid who only ate Wonder Bread and buttered pasta. SO, what I’m trying to say here is, I’m very excited to try these because a) I’m way more open-minded now and b) these are a Cocoa Mole flavor! I think that these sunflower seeds would go GREAT in a plain Greek yogurt or cottage cheese snack.
Barbara’s Snackimals:Â Funny story, I remember seeing these in Whole Foods when I was shopping for my foodie pen pal this month, and being curious about them. How convenient that Julia got me a snack bag! Another great mix-in for Greek yogurt/cottage cheese messes, or something nifty to keep in my cubicle for those emergency hunger situations. The vanilla flavor is definitely what I would have chosen myself.
Nature’s Path Love Crunch Granola: And the snack ingredients keep on coming! Love the Dark Chocolate & Red Berry flavor…it reminds me of chocolate covered strawberries! I bet adding some chocolate syrup on top of this granola would be amaaaazing, maybe on top of a berry crisp…ooh, my recipe mind is churning!
Justin’s Nut Butters: I saved the BEST for last! I have always wanted to try Justin’s nut butters and finally can. Julia was kind enough to send me several varieties! Even though I’m more of a PB fan, I am pleased to announce that I have started with the Classic almond butter variety and have been enjoying it on bananas. I don’t think I’d ever have it on something like bread, but paired with a sweeter component like fruit, the roasty salted almond flavor is definitely better to me than the last time I tried almond butter. Â I’m sooooo excited to try the chocolate hazelnut butter too. I think I’m going to save it for last!
This month’s foodie pen pal package was great, and I already can’t wait for March. I also can’t wait to find out how my pen pal, Halley of Blunder Construction, likes her package – I think it’s the best one I’ve ever put together. Thanks again to Julia for going above and beyond, and sending me some fab goodies!
A little blurb from Lindsay herself to get you motivated to sign up: If youâre interested in participating for March, please send an email to Lindsay at theleangreenbean@gmail.com and include the following information:
-Your full name
-Your email address
-Your blog name/address
-Your twitter handle (if applicable)
–WHETHER YOU ARE A US RESIDENT OR CANADIAN RESIDENT.
Have you ever tried any of the products I received?
I’ve been tagged in the 11 Things chain going around by three bloggers: Meg, Kelsey, and Amanda. I’m finally getting around to answering those tags, but am gonna do things my own way. I’m not going to say my own 11 things because I now have 33 things to answer since I was tagged by 3 people – it’d just be too much! In that same regard, I am not going to make up 11 new questions and tag people at the end of this, because I feel like so many people have already been tagged. If you want to participate, just answer any of the same questions I answer here! I am trying to a) accommodate my own laziness and b) not make something too long for you guys by changing up my 11 things post in these ways.
3. When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Oh lordy. I wanted to be a teacher M-F, a dentist on Saturday, and an artist on Sunday, because I couldn’t choose a career. And apparently was a young workaholic? I am still a workaholic but did not end up with ANY of those three, though I do consider myself a bit of an ar-teest as a marketer and blogger đ
4. Is your CURRENT hair colour your REAL colour? If no, what is your real hair colour?
Kinda? I get partial blonde highlights because my blonde hair got progressively darker until it became dirty blonde when I was 18 or 19. Couldn’t deal!
Now I feel silly because looking back I'm not THAT dirty blonde!
5. What is your favourite season?
Though I am a summer girl who is always cold, I have to say that my favorite season is fall because of how cozy it is.
6. If you could be an animal, what would you be?
A cat…they are the queens of their houses and can just chill all day!
7. What is your favourite flavour combo?
Anything salty + sweet! I love contrast.
8. How much time do you devote to blogging/blog reading per day?
Probably 2-3 hours total, but spread throughout the day, and more on weekends.
9. When you feel lazy, what is your go-to meal?
I just tend to much on snacks in that case! So a meal made out of snacks.
10. Itâs your last day on Earth, what would you eat?
I had to think about this when I signed up for Serious Eats –  Flatbread w/goat cheese and  roasted veggies (app);  J. Gilbert’s filet, baked potato w/butter, grilled asparagus (din); Red Robin’s garlic steak fries + Catsup & Mustard’s half-sour pickles; J. Gilbert’s chocolate ganache cake w/banana liquer. Yeah, I’d be full.
11. Does your exercise routine and eating habits change on the weekend?
Not exercise – I actually never miss a weekend workout because I have more time to work out then than on weekdays. But my eating habits may change in that I tend to go out to eat more and also have a couple of drinks each weekend night.
1) If you could only eat 1 meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Probably a giant salad beast because I could put anything I wanted into it and switch it up each time đ sneaky!
2) What is your favorite book?
My all-time favorite is “Ella Enchanted” by Gail Carson Levine. Ooh, now I wanna read it!
Source
3) What was your favorite childhood memory?
Probably all the “shows” that I used to put on as a kid. Whether at home solo/with siblings, or with neighborhood friends. Once we even put on a circus for the whole neighborhood!
4) What’s your favorite joke?
I just love puns. I make them frequently.
5) Who is your favorite actor?
The man…the myth…the Leo.
6) What is your biggest dream in life?
To be a full-time blogger đ
7) What’s YOUR favorite number? (did you notice I picked #7 to ask this question? haha)
Kelsey is in love with the #7! I actually don’t have one, never thought of it before.
8) Who was your favorite teacher growing up and why?
My elementary school teachers for 4th/5th grade, Mr. Belowch and Mrs. Pratt, were both amazing, fantastic people. I wonder what they’re up to now!
9) What is your favorite candy?
I don’t eat a ton of candy but my fave candy bar ever is…
10) What is your biggest accomplishment?
I am most proud of starting this blog! But I also achieved the highest grade of 600 students in my Financial Accounting class in my soph year of college and was invited to be a TA as a result – that was pretty cool.
My twino (twin wino) Megtagged me forever ago in her “I Am” post in which she shared with everyone all the things she is to remind herself of all the reasons why she’s awesome. This sounds like a fantastic idea to me – I have been so busy recapping things I haven’t been able to responded to her tag with my own “I Am” post, but now I’m happy to say I finally am! I struggle sometimes with focusing only on my flaws, or on not feeling “good enough”. This has been something I’ve been trying to overcome for the past couple of years now, and I am excited to write this post because I feel like it will be a good exercise in focusing on the positive!
So without further ado: I am….
Independent (a recent development, but one I am extremely proud of)
Dedicated – a hard worker who does not quit easily
A foodie who values high-quality, wholesome eats – wholesome for the body (SALAD BEASTS) and the soul (dessert anyone?)
Happy post-Super Bowl Monday! I definitely have a lost of Super Bowl party photos to share, but don’t want to get too ahead of myself because I’ve got great stuff that happened earlier in the weekend to share too. Good problems to have, yes?
But I just want to say quickly, I am already getting a bit sick of hearing people beat themselves up for indulging last night. I was doing some of that and still kinda am, but it’s the last thing I want to see and hear all over the place this morning. So let’s together try to make this a #mirrorlessmonday and just reflect on the good times. I’m working on it, and I hope you can too!
Saturday was quite an excellent day that started with a trip to the gym for Group Step. I had attended the exact same class the night before (Friday night “happy hour”!), but since the current release is still quite new, I wasn’t bored with the choreography at all. Some of the songs are so awesome! I’m always talking about this exercise program (by Body Training Systems) but have never actually SHOWED you guys what it’s about. Here is a trailer that shows you exactly what moves I’ve been doing in class, and you can hear the music too! I got the video from the BTS website.
I headed home, took a refreshing shower, and hit the road for Boston. It was great sunny driving weather, and I enjoyed some music and, once I lost radio reception to my favorite stations, listened to “The Tiger’s Wife” on audio book. I had big plans for the day. So big in fact, that they warranted a ridiculously-long-titled post like this one! đ I first met up with Greg and Kramer, two good friends that I’ve known for awhile. Greg even spent Thanksgiving with my family (his parents are my godparents and vice versa). We walked to Newbury Street to have lunch at Stephanie’s on Newbury, a place that Kramer (a fellow restaurant fanatic) and I had been wanting to try for awhile. From the way my Twitter followers responded to my check-in there on Foursquare, I can see that many of my readers are already fans!
Each table at Stephanie’s was set with the cute little clipboard above that enables guests to customize their very own Stephanie’s Famous Bloody Mary for $11.50. The ingredients sounded really cool, but I have never been the biggest Bloody Mary fan (but more on that later…soon to be shown that this may have changed) and was going to be having some cocktails later, so we all just ordered food. Boston.com has called these bloody marys some of Boston’s best though, for those who are fans.
The cocktail menu was pretty darn impressive. It was hard for me to resist indulging in one of these! But really, I was hungry and food was at the top of my brain.
A girl at the table next to use ordered the Seared Yellow Fin Tuna Salad, and as soon as I saw the waiter set it down in front of her, all I could think was…I WANT. It wasn’t too hard for me to decide on that, though the menu did have plenty of appetizing options. Kramer and Greg had a way harder time choosing than I did.
Kramer ordered the Oversized Stephi Burger: ground sirloin, cheddar cheese, caramelized onions, bacon, sauteed mushrooms, and french fries. It was definitely oversized! And also over-cheesed and over-fatted – Kramer commented that the cheese was way too much, and the sirloin itself was too fatty. There was definitely a sizable pool of grease that crowded and ruined the last few fries on his plate. He liked the burger, but said next time he’d go light on the cheese or nix it completely.
Greg’s choice was definitely more unique and delicious, though not enough food for him! He has been loving shepherd’s pie that Kramer cooks in their apartment, and ordered Stephanie’s version, which came inside an acorn squash and with a side of deliciously salty sauteed collard greens. Fortunately for Kramer and I, Greg didn’t want the greens. After I snapped this photo, Greg poured gravy over the whipped potatoes on top, and it looked even better. He said it was so delicious, but again, not enough food for him.
My salad was fantastic, with perfectly seared tuna and plenty of yummy ingredients like marinated green beans and olives, just the way I like it. The lemon caper dressing was the star – one of the best salad dressings I’ve ever tasted. I dipped my fork in it lightly before each tuna bite and the combo was out of this world.
After lunch, we walked around Newbury a bit and did some shopping. I finally got some Toms at Urban Outfitters thanks to Christmas gift cards, and also had some luck at Forever 21!
Next on my agenda was a meet-up with my pal Ken of Pete & Gerry’s Heirloom Eggs. Don’t forget, you can still access coupons for their eggs here, and FYI, their eggs are available to buy (and use the coupons on) at Northeast grocery store chains like Shaw’s, Stop and Shop, and Whole Foods!
This small sign was literally the only indication that we had arrived at Drink, Boston’s premier destination for specialty cocktails. The bartenders here are more like mixologists or artists. There is no drink menu – just tell them what you like or what you’re in the mood for, and a special, unique beverage will be made just for you. Each drink takes awhile to make but it’s well worth the wait.
The place runs like a well-oiled machine. That girl in the photo above was preparing citrus fruits for drinks the whole time we were there. Another girl was completely in charge of washing off any tools/shakers/cups used to make the beverages. That way, the mixologists could concentrate on what they did best. Each drink was quite a production! It looked like our bartender, Will, was performing an operation while he made our first beverage.
Luckily the booze was not only flowin’ at Drink, but water was too – served in shot glasses! Very cool, and despite how busy it got not long at all after the place opened at 4pm, the employees were very attentive about keeping the glasses full.
Our first drink was a Mai Tai, but not one you’ve ever seen before.
Yes, the drink is on FIRE! This was amazing. Ken and I informed Will that we wanted something with rum, citrus-y, more tart than sweet…and this is what he came up with. The thing on fire in the lime skin is a brandied cherry, and the cherries in this drink were actually the best I’ve ever tasted. The Mai Tai contained two rums:El Dorado 12 Year and one other that I cannot for the life of me find the name of – bad blogger. Other ingredients included house-made grenadine, freshly squeezed lime juice, orange curacao, and the obvious fresh fruit and crushed ice.
Drink may not have a drink menu, but the food menu was incredible. Ken chose a couple of bar bites for us – warm olives and candied bacon cashews. OH. MY. GOSH. The olives were good, don’t get me wrong. But those cashews? Fantastic, amazing, wonderful, not enough positive words exist to describe these cashews.
It was time for another drink, and Ken had brought along a very special ingredient – his Pete and Gerry’s eggs! Will gladly accepted them and offered to whip us up some cocktails. He and some other Drink employees were definitely admiring the brilliant yellow of those cage-free yolks as he worked.
Yes, that’s a light Will is working with. I’m telling you, each drink was like an operation! An operation that involves lots of heavy drink shaking.
Will made Ken and I two drinks to share, one with egg whites and one that used the egg yolk. First up, was a Good Humor, made with egg yolk, aperol cream, and topped with nutmeg.
Interesting story behind the Good Humor – it was invented by a couple who owned a farm and used to make drinks with egg whites. They had so many leftover yolks that they knew they had to come up with a drink to put those into, and that’s when experimenting was done and the Good Humor was invented.
The next drink, which was the favorite of both Ken and I because it tasted stronger, was the Pink Lady made with egg whites, apple brandy, gin, pomegranate, and lemon. YUM!
Ken and I toasting to Pete and Gerry's egg cocktails!
Ken and I had to cut ourselves off, because we had another destination to hit! Chef Jason Santos of Hell’s Kitchen’s seventh season is the executive chef at Blue Inc. and he has an affinity for Pete and Gerry’s eggs! He uses them in his kitchen and had nothing but good feedback for Ken. That’s right, I got to meet Chef Jason Santos!
The interior of Blue Inc. is gorgeous, with a really cool blue and orange color scheme and a very retro appearance. The restaurant was designed with help from Taniya Nayak, an interior designer and HGTV/Food Network personality!
Jason was kind enough to send out shooters of his celery root and Fuji apple soup. This was creamy and not too rich. The apple taste was extremely subtle – good for someone like me who doesn’t really like apples! What an amazing soup.
The unique foodie fare didn’t stop there. The bartenders were also very generous and gave Ken and I a sample of one of the crazy cocktails from Blue Inc’s Crazy Cocktails menu. Tricia LaCount, the Bar Manager and “Mad Scientist”, has done an amazing job coming up with some really unique concoctions, like a dirty martini made with black sea salt. Oh, and she’s also a sweetheart! The above shot glass is filled with a rum and Coke made with butter-popcorn-infused rum. Yes, that’s right, they literally take rum and let it soak in buttered popcorn! Not exactly my cup of tea (I don’t like soda…) but what an idea. I can always appreciate creativity like that. I had to try a couple sips!
For my next cocktail of the evening, I was daring and selected the Angry Tomato: gazpacho vodka, pickled green beans, and a double-secret bloody recipe.
The rim was garnished with some kind of red-pepper and the green beans were EXCELLENT dunked in the drink. This was a daring choice for me because like I said before, I’m not really a Bloody Mary fan. I could actually only finish about half of this. However it was the best one I’ve ever tried and I’m glad I stepped out of my box!
Not pictured are the Spicy Red Curry Mussels (with Thai crab cakes, scallion salad, and fresh coconut) and Pretzel Rolls that Ken and I shared as well. The broth of the mussels was FANTASTIC when soaked up with the pretzel roll. Mmmm. Unfortunately at this point, it was time to part ways with Ken. I had another meet-up on my agenda, a very special one indeed.
Yes, that’s Heather from For the Love of Kale! She already blogged about our meet-up and had so many nice things to say, and I’m happy to say the feeling is mutual. I feel like I’ve known her for forever and she’s one of my twinnies! We had a great time in the city and I loved meeting her friends too.
We were going to hit up The Other Side Cafe, and I was so psyched for a unique meal, but they were at capacity and showing no signs of emptying out anytime soon. Bummer! A lot of the restaurants in the area were also “full-up” for those with no reservations, so by process of elimination we ended up at Mass Ave Tavern.
Good thing I wasn’t even really hungry at all after all the munching and imbibing I’d been doing the last several hours, but the Bee Keeper cocktail sounded simple and delicious, so I did order one of those. When in Rome?
The drink was definitely excellent, and the four of us shared a Hummus Plate. It was yummy and the perfect light snack for my hunger level, but Heather the hummus-expert confirmed for us that this hummus was not homemade, but Tribe. Still good, but something easily recreated at home!
Our waitress also had an attitude and there weren’t many options at all for a vegan like Heather (what do you expect from a Tavern we ended up at because we didn’t have many other choices…), but we went with the flow and had a blast with each other anyway, of course! How could we not?
It was such an amazing Saturday. I headed home after dinner and was in bed and passed out by 11:15PM. Not too shabby! Still was able to get up the next morning and have a super productive Sunday.
Have you ever met someone you met through blogging in “real life”?
Which of the cocktails I sampled would you most want to try?
So glad you guys enjoyed my recap of the food I munched on at the Mohegan Sun WineFest this past Sunday! Some of my favorite bloggers also attended, but on Saturday, so I didn’t have a chance to meet up with them and say hi. Bummer, but I wanted to share their recaps too:
You can also see my recap of the Oyster Open event here!
I also wanted to take a moment to first direct you back to my food recap so that you can read about my experience at the Pete & Gerry’s Organic Eggs booth. Their Events and Promotion Manager, Ken, was kind enough to drop me an email thanking me for sharing my opinions on their booth and custard – he is trying to get the recipe from Mohegan’s pastry and dessert chef, so keep your fingers crossed! Ken also provided me with the same flyers I picked up at the booth, in PDF format, to share with you all!
Even better? He shared COUPONS as well! Click here to access the PDF file (it’s intended to be printed on one sheet of paper, double-sided). Let me know if you try their eggs!
Onto what the Sun WineFest is all about in the end…the beverages! All drinks were included in my Grand Tasting ticket. Like I said Monday, Elliott of Sonoma Wine & Spirits helped me out by starring drinks I should make a priority, and highlighting those I absolutely had to try. It was SO helpful to go in with a plan because no one could EVER try every single offering!
I spy a must-see!
The first product I sampled was located right by the entrance, so I was attracted to the booth immediately since when I first walked in, I was quite hungry and the Connecticut-based company Peel had some amazing-sounding (and tasting, it turns out)Â liqueur flavors: cremoncello, bananacello, and limoncello.
The bananacello tasted just like dessert, but I actually enjoyed the limoncello way more because it had a lemon flavor that wasn’t so strong that it overpowered the taste of the alcohol. Call me weird but I like a drink that tastes strong, and lets the quality of the alcohol stand out. I hate getting a drink that’s so sweet and muddled with so many other flavors that I can’t even determine what it’s made with or how good the liquor is. The limoncello was really perfect and though it was smooth, it had a bite to it.
My parents are big fans of J. Lohr, it’s served by the restaurant my sister works at, and Elliott had marked several on my list, so I made that my first wine stop. I also picked up a recipe booklet (complete with suggested wine pairings, of course) that has yummy recipes in it like seafood penne with jalapeno pesto – wow! I sampled Falcon’s Perch Pinot Noir (2010) and October Night Chardonnay (2010), both of which were highlighted in pink! (Random comment: it is so cool how detailed winery websites are – I can find out anything I want to know about what I tasted! End comment.)
Thank you, James of J. Lohr, for taking my photo!
Falcon’s Perch Pinot Noir: Described online a “food friendly” wine, I really enjoyed this red. I love Pinot Noir and this one was nice and a bit oak-y. I can definitely see myself pairing this with a nice steak!
October Nigh Chardonnay:Â I could definitely taste the orange and lime notes noted on the website, though did not get the vanilla. It’s hard for me to really enjoy a white and this one was just pretty good to me.
I have a thing for pear cocktails, so I immediately selected Grey Goose‘s new flavor, La Poire AKA pear! Another side comment, their website is gorgeous. The vodka was excellent (of course, it’s Grey Goose). So smooth! I would LOVE to just have a simple martini made with their pear vodka. Maybe I’ll indulge sometime, but I’m usually too cheap for that đ
Jim Beam had their booth set up just like a bar, with Jim Beam and Maker’s Mark cocktails all ready to go! I selected the strongest one, the Makers Mark Manhattan, because like I said, I like to taste the good stuff. So glad that I did! The drink was amazing and would certainly be easy to mix up at home. My dad is a big fan of Maker’s Mark and I bet he would like it! Father and daughter, sharin’ a Manhattan, how cute.
I definitely had the most fun at the above table, courtesy of Sassy Bitch Wines! I’m the one who marked this one on the list of wines – with a name like that, how could I not?! These Chilean wines are super affordable and were actually pretty darn good. I completely adore the packaging as well – I have a little obsession with creative wine labels. I sampled all three of their reds: Cabernet, Pinot Noir, and Merlot. Despite the lower price tag, these wines were all delicious and I can definitely see myself buying a bottle for a fun girl’s night – I’m thinking maybe when Rachel and I have our Grammy’s-watching party!
The reason I had so much fun with Sassy Bitch Wines is featured in the photo above – my fun temporary tattoo that I received from Master Mixologist Dave A. Brogan. We had a great time chatting and bonded over the fact that he has a blog too – take a second to check out his site because the Twitter icon at the bottom of his page is ADORABLE. And appropriate – you’ll see!
Around this time I ran into a co-worker and his friend, and the three of us decided to hang out for the rest of the WineFest and explore the wine and beer Elliott had marked on my list. I was glad to have some WineFest companions!
And some more yummy wines for your viewing…
Beringer Knights Vally Meritage Red not only had a really mysterious, dark, appealing package design that impressed me, but also an impressive flavor. At $35/bottle this was definitely a nice wine that I’m glad I got to try, because I am not usually buying bottles of wine at that price, or glasses of wine like that at restaurants.
Block Nine Pinot Noir was another bottle with an impressive label design and also impressive taste. I love Pinot Noir and Elliott was correct in recommending it to me. Block Nine only makes this variety but I’d be curious to see what other wines they will make in the future.
Longboard Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc was only OK – I’m not a white lover, but this wine was not good enough to make me enjoy whites either. I’d be curious as to how their reds taste, but Elliott did not mark them, and my tolerance can only handle so much – I couldn’t be trying wines that weren’t worth it!
The man working the Rombauer Vineyards table was so nice – we started chatting about balancing working out and eating right, and he said he wanted to give some of my workouts a try! If you are reading…go for it and tell me how it goes! đ He also had some yummy wines for us to sip on. the Napa Cabernet Sauvignon and Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Select were really fun to try back-to-back because I could taste the higher quality in the Diamond Select vs. the regular. Lately I have been finding most Cabs to be too sweet compared to other reds, but the Diamond Select was nice and oak-y and I would love to sip on it some other time. I’m not sure how likely that is to happen seeing as it is $60/bottle (guess that’s why they call it Diamond) but it was exciting to be able to try a wine like that. The Zinfandel (a red zin!) was interesting, but I didn’t like it much. I’ve never had much luck with red Zinfandels – and I don’t even touch whites. I noticed on Rombauer’s website that they have a port – I LOVE port (I’m an old man) and would be dying to try that sometime.
I honestly saw Ferrari-Carano Vineyards on the list and assumed it was the car-maker trying to market wines. Jeff Gordon and Ed Hardy were giving out samples at this event – why wouldn’t Ferrari maybe be there too?! I thought twice about it after I saw that Elliott had starred a couple of their offerings for me. Suspicion confirmed – the vineyard is NOT associated with the car maker! Another confirmed fact – Ferrari-Carano wines are tasty! The Tresor (2007, a library wine!) and Siena (2009) were both delicious, and again, I could taste the price difference between the $58 Tresor bottle and the $25 Siena bottle.
Duckhorn Wines, my absolute favorite wine table of the day, had four of the best wines I tried – and one was even a white! I can’t believe I don’t have photos of the bottles – I’m kicking myself – but they honestly weren’t that pretty/unique so I guess that’s why. Doesn’t matter though, these tasted excellent. The Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir was highlighted in pink on my list, so I knew it was going to be good. Even with my high expectations, I loved it. Its $55 price point doesn’t even bias that opinion, because I literally just looked it up. Decoy, described on Twitter as “the everyday wine for the well-informed, accomplished an amazing feat – they created a Chardonnay that I liked more than their Pinot Noir. I’m telling you folks, pigs are flying. My co-worker and I were blown away by this white, and its price point is pretty good at $54 for a three-bottle pack! Finally, the Paraduxx Napa Valley Red Blend was really good, but it was also the last wine I tried at Duckhorn and by that point I was going less impressed because I just expected every one of their wines to be amazing. OK, have I said enough about Duckhorn yet?
Though not as good as Ed’s mojitos at Zafra, 10 Cane Rum can make a pretty good mojito. Needed more rum though, less lime! I really enjoyed their display though. I want a glass container filled with mint leaves in my house!
Though it certainly didn’t taste like wine at all, Cocoa di Vine’s Chocolate and Espresso Wines were FANTASTIC. I don’t think I could drink a whole glass without feeling very full, but damn, the Espresso flavor was so good.
We did eventually head up to the beer rooms, but even after sampling some of the kinds Elliott recommended, I still could not find a single beer I enjoyed. I’ll keep trying though! Carbonation hatred is just a very strong thing.
The Heavy Seas Beer Loose Cannon pictured above left was pretty good, but my nose was a-burning after a sip or two.
After giving up on the beer rooms, we went back downstairs. I parted ways with my co-worker to cover the 8th Annual Oyster Open…that post is coming soon! To be continued…
Which of the beverages I sampled would you most like to try? Which do you know you’d HATE?
What do you think of Pete & Gerry’s? Any plan to use their coupons?
Please enjoy a guest post from blog reader Rachel, describing what I sent her for January’s foodie pen pal exchange!Â
Hi Cait Plus Ate Readers!
I am not a blogger, but I AM a blog stalker. In the last year, I have begun reading a number of healthy living blogs in an effort to strengthen my own healthy living habits. SoâŚI jumped at the chance to interact with some of my favorite bloggers and other foodie fanatics by participating as a Foodie Pen Pal.
Iâm a vegetarian who lives in the Midwest, where veg-friendly fare is sparse. Iâm always looking for ways to spruce up my menus so that I avoid my own fruit and vegetable overkill, which happens more than I care to admit. The problem is, I never get tired of fruits and vegetables. Finding a balance by incorporating sources of healthy protein and whole grains is my weakness.
I let Caitlin know ahead of time that I was a vegetarian but that I had virtually no other food aversions. She didnât miss a beat and completely hit the nail on the head with my pen pal package. Hereâs a look at the wonderful foodie bliss as it arrived.
But donât let the picture fool you â none of those items stayed in the box for moment longer than it took to say, âCheese!â
The Chocolove Peppermint in Dark Chocolate bar was immediately deposited in my lunch box, and I have devoured a small piece (only with great restraint and in an effort to make it last longer) each day after my lunch at work.
Ahhh..peppermint and chocolate!
The Pumpkin Seed-Snack also went with me to work. Iâm keeping them in my snack drawer for when hunger pains strike mid-afternoon. Theyâre full of protein, iron, and other essentials that vegetarians often lack.
The lentil chips accompanied me to a Trivia Night fundraiser the following evening, and I have to agree with Caitlin. These may be a new âobsessionâ of mine as well. My fellow trivia team members agreed.
The coffee â oh, the coffee. First, let me tell you that I am not a regular coffee drinker. I grab a cup at work only if Iâm cold and need some warming up. I might occasionally sneak in a pumpkin latte when out with my girlfriends. Itâs not that I donât like the taste, obviously, itâs more that Iâm afraid of establishing what so many people seem to refer to as âan addiction.â I donât want to start something I canât stop. Well, thanks to Caitlin, IT HAS BEGUN.
I borrowed a coffee-maker from my mom. She doesnât drink coffee either but keeps it on hand for guests. Even though itâs 30 degrees in the St. Louisarea at the moment, iced coffee sounded good. I used Tinaâs tutorial, and this morning, I downed two glasses of iced almond milk-stevia-coconut coffee goodness. Whoa. This could be bad. For someone who features virtually no caffeine in her diet, two glasses had my heart aflutter for the entire day. But it was totally worth it. Iâve just got to remember that whole moderation thing. đ
As for the chocolate-covered pretzels and coconut water – well, I have big plans for both of them. The pretzels will either find their way into my belly as an after-dinner snack or possibly in some variation of Jessica’s Peanut Butter Fudge Pretzel Brownies. Since summer can’t get here fast enough, the coconut water will make an appearance in a smoothie I’ve been lusting for over at Mama Pea‘s.
See…told you I was a blog stalker.
Thanks again to Caitlin for the delicious goodies and the opportunity to blab incessantly about food to people who might actually give a darn and appreciate my food-appreciative tangents (unlike the hubs â who tends to stare at me blankly, albeit lovingly during an episode).
And thank you to Rachel for being kind enough to put this guest post together for me! How cute is she?
Hey folks. I’m feeling quite blah this morning. Woke up at 4AM and couldn’t go back to sleep, and a round of P90X Yogadid nothing to improve my physical or mental state today. I’ve been feeling some effects from the many evenings out I’ve been partaking in over the last couple of weeks, some in my body, but mostly in my mind. I’ve just been wrestling with feeling guilty about any indulgences I’ve partaken in – and when I focus on that, it sometimes makes it seem like all I’ve been doing is indulging at every meal, though I know in reality that’s not true. I also am getting stressed about a lack of down time. Now that my semester has started back up I’ve got less time for the workouts and relaxing “me time” at home that tend to keep me “sane”. That is, I’ve got less time for it if I want to keep up my social schedule, which has done nothing but speed up since the holidays – I thought it’d be the opposite! I think something has to give here and I need to make myself stop making so many plans, but honestly, there is just so much fun stuff to do! Good problem to have, but I’m getting exhausted.
OK. Rant done. The real reason I’m posting today…
Lindsay has done it again! January’s Foodie Pen Pals has gone on without a hitch – with the exception of me mailing my package two days late (dammit, no mail on Sundays or MLK Day). I received my package from Francesca early, and was overwhelmed by how generous she was. Just like November’s pen pal, Tara, my January pen pal seemed to know me very well, even though the only guidance I gave her was “I like everything!” She sent me so much stuff, I had to take several photos.
The chocolate chip cookie looked amazing and felt so soft. The Saran wrap protected it well! My little brother has already stolen it. Continuing the chocolate trend, the Emerald Cocoa Roast Almonds will be so good after I’m allowed to eat nuts again – a couple months post-wisdom-teeth! I’ll have to hold off til then! The pink bubble bath was food-related, though it may not seem so at first – doesn’t it look like a bottle of champagne? I think yes! It served me well when I accomplished one of my happiness goals of taking a bubble bath recently!. Finally, the Crystal Light Pure drink powders are going to come in handy for my mom. She really likes them for the afternoon. I myself don’t like flavored water, but this food will NOT go to waste!
Candy time! Raspberry Chocolate Covered Peeps are good any time of year, and my brother appreciated the Rainbow Berry Sour Candy. I plan to share the Pomegranate Fruit Strips with my friend Kim, but I won’t be sharing the Ritter Sport Dark Chocolate with Mousse. No, not at all. The chocolate all goes to me! The Skinny Cow Clusters look like the perfect post-lunch dessert to pack for work.
I saved the best for last – my two favorite items. I’m so psyched to mix the Archer Farms Banana Slices into my usual Chobani, cottage cheese, and pudding snacks. Those Iced Animal Cookies totally bring me back. I used to love them as a kid and they still serve as one of my very favorite fro-yo toppings.
Thank you to Francesca for taking the time to put together such a great package with a variety of goodies! If you’re interested in Foodie Pen Pals, here’s some info from Lindsay:
On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining whatâs in the box, to a fun recipeâŚuse your imagination!
You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Donât forget about flat rate boxes!)
Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If youâre a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. *US Residents only please at this time- hopefully we can expand soon!*
If youâre interested in participating for February, please send an email to Lindsay at theleangreenbean@gmail.com and include the following information:
Your full name
Your email address
Your blog name/address
Your twitter handle (if applicable)
I highly encourage you all to sign up! Maybe we’ll get paired together!
Stay tuned for a guest post later today from the reader who was the recipient of my pen pal package!
Which item that I received do you wish you could join me in sampling?
No post from me HERE today, but I am over at the amazing Heather‘s blog, For the Love of Kale, guest posting about some cool new fitness moves! Check it out and check ya tomorrow! I have SO much to share with you all about my weekend.
There’s a fun little chain going around in which, if tagged, bloggers create posts listing seven random facts about themselves. Liz of Southern Charm tagged me last week, and I’m happy to oblige!
Seven Random Facts about Caitlin
1. The only actual person who calls me “Cait” is my dad. Now, almost anyone in the online world who sees my blog’s name or my Twitter account calls me Cait, which is an easy assumption to make and something I definitely don’t mind. But in real life, my wonderful daddio is the only one who actually calls me Cait. It’s funny, because whenever I email him I always sign it “Love, Cait”, just because I know he calls me that.
2. I have a black belt in shaolin kempo karate. Growing up, I was not (am still not) very coordinated or athletic in terms of sports. Anything that involved a ball was not happening for me. So in 7th grade, I enrolled in karate because I enjoyed memorizing the forms/combinations and performing them. It reminded me somewhat of memorizing dances, which is probably why to this day my favorite group fitness classes involve step or dance of some kind. I tested and passed for my black belt in 11th grade, and stopped doing karate after that because by that time I had become much older than most people in the class, and the black belt had been my ultimate end-goal. Martial arts are a great active option for kids (or anyone) who aren’t skilled at your “typical” sports!
3. I have never owned any type of car other than a Honda CR-V. Funny enough, my fellow blonde-CT-blend-named-Caitlin also drives a CR-V! After getting my license in 11th grade, I got my cousin and her family’s 2002 navy CR-V (we traded them our old mini-van since they had just had a second child). That car took me everywhere throughout college, and my best friend Lidia even called it her “second home” because of how often we’d drive around town in it with nothing to do (those were the days…)
Image courtesy of quality-used-cars.co.uk.
When my sister got her license, the summer after my sophomore year of college, I was completely psyched to learn that I would be getting a bit of a CR-V upgrade – to a 2007! My sister got the 2002 (my little brother will be receiving it shortly, as his license test is soon). I LOVE my car and plan to keep it for a long, long time (as in, until it dies, because I’ll be buying the next one on my own).
My car now (minus the American flag…this photo isn’t actually of my car).
4. My first real job was at a bagel shop. Not sure if you could call it a real job since the owner was ever there and I spent any shift that wasn’t on a weekday morning eating. Still, it was a great place to go back to on college breaks (until the owner sold it to a less-than-desirable new owner) and provided the experience that got me my main job at UConn.
Inappropriate fun with a bagel stick and bagel at work.
5. My first salad was a Greek salad. I remember ordering it after a rare visit to the gym, back in high school, at Panera! I was shocked that I liked it, but I’m pretty sure the main component I loved was the feta. I used to order Greek salads in college and get no olives, and ask for extra feta instead. Ah, the Greek food lover in me was always there!
Image courtesy of RIT.edu.
6. I used to hate our family vacations to Florida – and all family vacations in general. Yes, it’s true! In fact, I was known for this in middle/high school! I was the weirdo who complained about going to Mexico. Now I know I was being an annoying pain in the ass, a high schooler who can only see her friends as important and nothing else. Plus, since I was still a super boring eater, I didn’t find myself getting excited at all about vacation eats – unlike now! I just wanted to be at home with my friends, so my parents even started letting me bring friends on trips or rack up huge international phone bills with long calls home while we were in Mexico. I think my views change once I got to college and began to appreciate relaxation. And how hard it is to come by as time goes on. And, you know, fun restaurants.
With the siblings in Myrtle Beach during my senior year of high school.
7. I’m getting two of my wisdom teeth out next Friday for the stupidest reason in the world. One of them started growing in before the other tooth on that side started growing in. Did you know that if there is no tooth exactly above or below another tooth, the first tooth will keep growing in and never stop? It’s true! Since once of my wisdom teeth grew in before the one above it did, it grew in too far. Its twin eventually came in, but if they only remove the one that grew in too far, then the twin will start growing in too far! So they both have to come out even though they’re in my mouth comfortably right now. Do you follow? No? Long story short, my foodie-days will not exist next weekend.
Dangit.
That was fun and way harder than I thought! Now it’s time for me to choose seven other bloggers who I’d like to see participate:
I’m a 28 year old full-time working girl living in Boston (previously lived in Connecticut). I’m passionate about food/drink, restaurants, self-love, fitness, and the ever-present search for balance. I write about that journey on this blog – I hope you enjoy!
My header was originally designed by Mai Le and later tweaked by Chris Roggi to match this theme, which he helped me customize. He also moved me over to self-hosting! Both can be contacted through their sites for design & development work!
Disclaimer
I am not an RD and do not have any official training, certifications, or degrees in nutrition or fitness. This blog is a way to write about my life. Any views I express are mine alone, based on what works for me, and should never be taken as medical advice. Always talk to your doctor or a trained professional before starting a new diet or fitness plan. In addition, this blog and its content are in no way affiliated with Kate Gosselin, “Kate Plus 8”, TLC, or any related affiliates.
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