Fàilte! Welcome to the next installment of Exploring the Wine Glass. Mike and I are big proponents of you should drink what you like and you are the only one who can taste like you. We advocate the fact that everyone experiences the wine differently, so in these posts we do not discuss our tasting notes. Instead we include basic information about each of the wineries, and/or a bit about what was happening in our lives while we were enjoying them. With that said, if you are interested in reading our tasting notes and our ratings head on over to Delectable and check us out @Dracaenawines. We tell it as we taste it over there. As always, since as oenophiles we love to celebrate #WineWednesday, our week runs from one Wednesday to the next.
Week 1
Mike and I went to a wine and beer tasting that was a fundraiser for a neighboring town. It was a nice evening out and it is only $25 per ticket and includes food. What a deal! It is in an Elk’s Lodge so it isn’t anything fancy but they do have a lot of beer and wine to sample. They have a patio out back that looks out onto a lake where they did a pig roast. I didn’t want anything to do with that, but there was plenty of cheese and crackers along with fresh pasta which was enough for me.
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Our winner for the night was the Carnivor Cabernet Sauvignon. I had not heard of this winery prior to the evening, but I am thinking they are a fun bunch. After checking out their website, I got the distinct feeling of a “50 Shades” esque theme. Their website is very sleek and you only have the option to “click to find out more” or “find a store.” When you enter their “find out more” section you are welcomed by “
BOLD, REFINED, SMOOTHNESS.
Just as Cabernet Sauvignon, the “King of Reds,” resides in the upper echelons of the wine world, the carnivore sits atop the food chain. Inspired by these two kings, we created Carnivor, a sophisticated wine whose bold, intense flavor is matched by a refined smoothness. #DEVOURLIFE
AVAILABLE IN SELECT HIGH BROW AND LOW LIGHT ESTABLISHMENTS.
Come on, that is just humorous! Check out the slideshow to see some of the postings that are on @carnivorwine instagram account. They definitely are shooting for a specific genre.
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This weekend was a wine free weekend. I know, how strange! But Mike and I went down to Atlantic City with my parents and met my brother who lives in Gurnee (just outside Chicago.) The family that gambles together stays together! We also met family friends. These people are like my second family. My parents have 
known Dotty and Danny pretty much their entire lives, and my brothers and I have known James, Karen and Kerry all of of our lives. We use to spend every Memorial Day together. And the memories are some of the best ever. The wiffle ball games, the manicotti, the laughter. I love them like I love my own family, so it was great to be all together again! It was a fun weekend, but one filled with beer vs. wine. I guess you have to change it up every so often. In addition to being with long time friends, the machines were friendly also. One of the big hits was on a new machine, Wonder Woman. I have no idea why they would choose that show to make a new slot machine, but both Diana Prince and Steve Trevor were very very good to me!
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Week 2
Happy #WineWednesday! It is humpday and I have exactly three more weeks of school left! Hip Hip Hooray! With that knowledge, and the fact that in exactly four weeks we will be in Paso Robles, I am the happiest camper in the world.
We paired the 2011 Trivento Amado Sur Malbec (78% Malbec, 12% Bonarda 10% Syrah) with homemade mac & cheese. Upon visiting their website they have a page labeled pairing. They have recommendations plus a nice video that demonstrates the recipe for the rib of lamb. They recommended enjoying their wine with cheeses, meat dishes or pastas, served at room temperature along with:
- Breaded provolone accompanied with green leaf and plum chutney.
- Rib of lamb with corn casserole and herb pesto.
- Mozzarella and prosciutto sorrentinos in a smoked pine mushroom sauce.
FRIDAY! FRIDAY! FRIDAY! Can you tell I’m happy it’s Friday! Tonight I had the wonderful experience of helping a very adorable lady raise some money for a surgery. Foxy has been diagnosed with Luxating Patella (dislocating kneecaps) in both knees. She is such a sweetheart and I couldn’t get enough of her loving all night long. That is until she decided it was naptime. LOL It was another painting adventure for me. This time it was a beach scene. I think this may have been my best attempt so far however that isn’t saying much. What do you think? As for the wine, as you can see, several bottles were opened. Needless to say, fun was had by all and a lot of money was raised to get this beautiful girl’s knees fixed. She is only 2 or 3 years old and hopefully has a long and happy life ahead of her with her forever home.
It was a beautiful day today and we spent it outside. These are the types of days that I absolutely love. No definite plans, just enjoying the day. Tonight’s dinner was very unusual for us. We made a full out meal. I mean there was meat, potatoes and vegetables. The trifecta! We don’t normally eat meals like that but tonight we were making a meal to pair specifically with a 2013 Vietti Roero Arneis. The wine was chosen as part of this month’s #winePW theme. This is a monthly twitter chat that happens on the second Saturday of each month. It was started by David at @cookingchat. You can read my post Esplorando Arneis con #WinePW to find out more about this Italian varietal and the pairing of chicken piccata, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, and Italian green beans with almonds.
Hope you have had some great wines and times these past two weeks. Remember, always Pursue Your Passion. We would love for you to leave a comment telling us what your favorite recent wine was.
~Sláinte
Great wines. Love the Carnivore motto and your family gambling trip! Also, funny that both you and Martin have the same Arneis for #WinePW. I don’t think that has happened before but we don’t usually have an assigned grape. See you Saturday morning!
That was the only Arneis we could find. We went to a few stores and that was it. Maybe he had the same situation. :o) Yeah,our family gambling trips can be quite a bit of fun- and it never hurts when you come home with their money!