July 2008 Blog Posts (13)

Rush, rush, rush... some mornings are like that

Today I got up late at 5:30 so I was in a bit of a rush – but I still made my call at 6am with a full mug of black coffee.

It’s a full day for me with a friend coming up around 10:30 for a brief meeting on the house. Then back to work until 5:30

I plan to do a BBQ tonight for the family then back to finish off the Thursday File. Which I might add is really late this week.

The fly I mentioned yesterday met his end but today another one took his place. He is playing hid… Continue

Added by Steve MacDowall on July 30, 2008 at 3:50pm — No Comments

Lexington Valley Vineyards

While passing through Lexington, we took the opportunity to visit another recently opened winery in Virginia, Lexington Valley Vineyard. The Hale family had been growing grapes on the property since 2000 and selling the produce to neighboring Rockbridge Winery. However, several years later, as time permitted – from commuting to the University of Missouri… Continue

Added by Todd Godbout on July 29, 2008 at 12:30pm — No Comments

Getting Creative Getting Generous Getting Clear

We are familiar with that old saying, "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going" but as we continue to see bad news on t.v., and the Internet and the nightly news, I've got another phrase I'd like you to consider - "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Creative, Generous and Clear."

One of things friends have reminded me lately is that people don't stop spending money in a down economy, they just become more careful and frugal because, well, they have to. They can no longer… Continue

Added by Melissa Balmer on July 26, 2008 at 7:56pm — 1 Comment

Baby Boomers Discovering Wine Country!

by Tom Hays

It’s not as if baby boomers aren’t acquainted with drinking, partying and having a good time. But as they are entering mid-life, many of them are discovering the joys of fine wine. Wine is an acquired taste, more valued for the nuances of its flavors than beer, which was the boomers’ choice to be chugged in great… Continue

Added by Tom Hays on July 26, 2008 at 3:06pm — No Comments

Another not so nice day

Another not so nice day but I hear Montreal had severe thunderstorms and they had a Tornado-like waterspout

Had two mugs of coffee this morning and I feel I’m flying high. But at the same time I’m totally existed – got to bed too late the last couple of nights.

I think this weekend I will just chill out if I can with Beverly – maybe get to the beach out in Shediac, depending on the… Continue

Added by Steve MacDowall on July 24, 2008 at 2:02pm — 1 Comment

California Wine Tour Day 5 - Napa Valley

Being regular sparkling wine drinkers, we had neglected this style since our excursion to J Vineyards. We decided to head directly to Mumm Napa, where we knew a wide array of sparkling wines would await us. We had tried several of these wines at this year’s South Beach Wine & Food Festival and thought that many of their wines were great values priced… Continue

Added by Todd Godbout on July 17, 2008 at 12:00pm — No Comments

California Wine Tour Day 5 - Stags Leap District

Today we started the last day of our trip and our only full day in Napa on the Silverado Trail. This road runs parallel to Highway 29, is less crowded, and most importantly is home to many excellent wineries. One of these is Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, where we intentionally started the day. If you have been keeping track of our tour, you… Continue

Added by Todd Godbout on July 16, 2008 at 12:00pm — No Comments

California Wine Tour Day 4 - Sonoma County

We had an early afternoon appointment at Ridge Vineyards - Lytton Springs so we headed north on State Road 128 crossing back into Sonoma County and traveling through some of the nicest countryside we had seen: the Knight and Alexander Valleys. Don’t miss this drive – its one of the best in the area. We arrived and were greeted by David Gates, the winery’s… Continue

Added by Todd Godbout on July 15, 2008 at 12:00pm — No Comments

California Wine Tour Day 4 - Northern Napa

We started our day by crossing over the mountains for our first wine venture into Napa. We had visited Calistoga the previous evening to see the Old Faithful Geyser and Petrified Forest and to explore the northern Napa area. We came upon Castello di Amorosa - an immense castle hidden from St. Helena Highway. The Open sign was still displayed on the… Continue

Added by Todd Godbout on July 14, 2008 at 12:00pm — No Comments

California Wine Tour Day 3 - Russian River Valley

We have been fans of Foppiano Vineyards since we tasted there wines and heard their unique history at the 2007 Washington D.C. Food & Wine Festival. For Foppiano Vineyards is Sonoma County's oldest continually owned family winery, having… Continue

Added by Todd Godbout on July 6, 2008 at 12:00pm — No Comments

California Wine Tour Day 2 - Russian River Valley

We started our first day in Sonoma overwhelmed, staring at the Russian River Valley winery brochure and its listing of over 100 wineries. We eliminated the wineries which were open by appointment only - but still had quite a few to choose from. We decided to start at the closest open winery to our hotel in Sebastopol: Martin Ray Winery. The winery is… Continue

Added by Todd Godbout on July 6, 2008 at 12:00pm — No Comments

California Wine Tour Day 1 - Marin County

Today, June 30th, we finally ventured out of San Francisco and headed north to wine country. We traveled over the Golden Gate bridge and headed west to the Point Bonita Lighthouse at the mouth of the San Francisco Bay. Overlooking the intersection between the bay and the ocean, this lighthouse offered excellent views of the rough seas, seals sunning on the rocks below, the Golden Gate bridge, and San Francisco. Our next destination was… Continue

Added by Todd Godbout on July 6, 2008 at 12:00pm — No Comments

First Attempt at Making Wine

Did you ever start something and had no idea what you were doing? Well today I decided to start making wine using a wine kit my wife gave to me. I’m going to attempt to make a Cabernet Sauvignon wine using juice and a bunch of packets containing various chemicals and oak by a company called Vintners Reserve. According to the directions, just follow directions and everything will turn out all right.

My first task was to sanitize everything. Of course, the supplied video used a… Continue

Added by Terry Sullivan on July 6, 2008 at 10:51am — No Comments