The fun is at Ibiza!

Ok, so last weekend I had to travel for work.  I work for a marketing department and am required to work the booth at some of the trade shows we attend.  This last show was in Pittsburgh...yay (sarcasm).  Don't get me wrong, a lot of good things come from Pittsburgh.  They have a good (that's all I'll give as a die-hard Skins fan) football team and a good (again, gotta support the Caps) hockey team.  (side note - sorry to all the Pens fans that were disappointed with that loss...)

Cut to the chase...I had one night free with my co-worker.  She and I planned on hitting up a local Thai place recommended to us and calling it a night.  That plan failed as soon as we got in the hotel shuttle bus...the poor guy obviously was new and had zero idea where this restaurant was.  He crossed one of the many bridges and stopped in front of this little wine and tapas bar and said "What do you say ladies? This place looks good, no?" So we got out.

Turned out to be one of the best places I've ever been to!  Not only did they have the most amazing tapas menu but they had some really well thought out wine flights.  I tried the France wine flight (I thought maybe I'd get something similar to what I had in Paris...).  I got to try four different French wines, which resulted in me purchasing the Louis Bernard in my previous post.

Here is my flight...

Out front of Ibiza (not my pic!)

If you ever find yourself in Pittsburgh, PA, please look this place up!  It was awesome food, awesome wine, and awesome atmosphere! www.ibizarestaurant.com 

Review of Louis Bernard Cotes du Rhone

Tonight's wine is brought to us by Louis Bernard.  This vineyard produces many varieties of wine from the Rhone Valley of France.

Ok, let's get to it!

First taste of this wine tells me that it's extremely well balanced.  It's composed of primarily Syrah and Grenache grape varietals and gives the wine a fruity taste.  This wine is significantly lighter than I prefer but I like it because of it's slightly woody afternotes.  Overall, for it's $8.99 price tag, I think this is a wine I will buy over and over because it is so easy to drink and is very table friendly!

Now on Facebook!

Casu Consulto is now on Facebook! Click the link below to take you directly to the page!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Casu-Consulto-Blog/113188298767321

New Reviews!!

Hi Readers!

Just wanted to let you know that I'd be making a special trip to Total Wine (in McLean, VA) tomorrow to 1) stock up and 2) grab some new bottles.  I've got tons of reviews for you on a couple of new wines as well as a wine and tapas bar I went to last weekend in Pittsburgh!

Stay tuned! :)

My Favorite Inexpensive Wines...

Hi readers!

Thought I'd let you in on what I drink when I don't have much to spend.  For an inexpensive bottle, I typically go for the following brands and varietals:

Yellowtail - this winery is based out of Australia and is relatively good wine for a small price tag.  I prefer their Merlot and their Chardonnay.  Bottles typically run anywhere from $6.00 to $12.00 depending on the size. www.discoveryellowtail.com

Gumdale - another Australian winery (actually the owner of Yellowtail) is another good and inexpensive wine.  I buy their Merlot on a regular basis and find it to be rather table-friendly and easy to drink.  They are slightly more expensive than Yellowtail, ranging from $8.00 - $14.00 a bottle, depending on size.

Barefoot - I've found that just about any wine this company produces is good.  I really like their Moscato (perfect for summer evenings) and their Red Zinfandel.  Again, these are very table-friendly wines and are in the same price range as the Yellowtail. www.barefootwine.com

Upcoming Wine Festivals/Events

Hi readers,

Here are a couple of upcoming wine festivals that are close...

• Mount Vernon Spring Wine Festival and Sunset Tour
• This cool little festival is taking place 5/13-5/15 and features wines from all the local vineyards from our area. Tickets are $35/person, $24 for a fruit and cheese box, and if you're feeling expensive, you can purchase a table for a whopping $1,000. http://www.mountvernon.org/calendar/index.cfm/fuseaction/event/calID/63/
• 25th Annual Virginia Wine & Craft Festival
• Happening 5/21-5/22 in Front Royal, VA. Tickets are $15/person in advance and $20/person at the door (IDs required). http://www.wineandcraftfestival.com/index/index.php
• UnCork the Fun! in Cockeysvilla, MD
• Takes place 6/11 and 6/12. Tickets are $35/person. Casual tasting atmosphere with hundreds of wines to taste.  Perfect for beginners and family friendly. http://www.uncorkthefun.com/cockeysville-maryland/site-info 

Hope some of you can go check these out!!

The Wine Social Network

Hi readers!

Thanks to the wonderful presentation of Sahar during our Social Media Class this evening, I learned of  a wonderful social network made especially for wine lovers!  How perfect is that??

It's a place where wine lovers like me can create a profile, list all of the wines we have tasted, give our opinions/reviews of the wines, and connect with other wine lovers around the world!

So, immediately after leaving class, I registered.  Look me up, kdemilt.

www.bottletalk.com

Chatham Vineyards' Church Creek Vintner's Blend (2008)

This week's wine is by Chatham Vineyards out of Machipongo, VA.  Chatham Vineyards is located on the Eastern Shore and makes a variety of wines.

Today, we're trying their Church Creek Vintner's Blend, which is a mixture of Merlot (65% and my favorite), Cabernet Sauvignon (25%) and Pinot Noir (10%).  I don't usually like blended wines but I thought I'd give this a try since it's from a local Vineyard.

    

To me, a lover of red wines, this wine is a little on the light side. It is definitely not as full bodied as some Merlots.  The nose of the wine has very strong black cherry smells. To the taste, you will immediately taste a mouthful of fruit and then completely tannin. (Tannin is the woody taste). In my opinion, it’s very acidic and a tad bit on the bitter side. This wine would pair well with beef or venison. 

According to the website, the wine is  "a classic Bordeaux-style wine made from Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes barrel-aged in French oak. The blend was created from the vintner's choice of select barrels. The result is an elegant and well-integrated wine with good tannic structure and ripe fruit."

www.chathamvineyards.net 

Details

Appelation: Chatham Vineyards

Vintange: 2008

Grape: 65% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Pinot Noir

Cost: $30.00 a bottle

Bones of a wine review

Before you can read and get anything out of a wine review, it's important to know what they're actually talking about.

The basic terms you'll see in a review are:

1. Bouquet - this is the way it wine smells to you.  For example, does it smell fruity or nutty?  Do you smell more citrus than fruit?  Bouquet can be interchanged with nose or aroma.
2. Taste - this may seem simple but it is SO not!  This is where the slurping and gurgling part of wine tastings comes in.  The flavors of the wine can change from the time you take the first sip so it is important to sip and gurgle.  The pros do this trick of aerating the wine into the nasal cavity to make the flavors come out.  I don't recommend doing this as a beginner...the results may not be pretty!
3. Finish - this refers to any flavors that you may taste after you have swallowed the wine and how long the flavors last.

Most reviews are a lot more complicated but for the sake of your attention spans and my beginner's skill sets, I'll keep mine brief.  


Hope you enjoy!

Why do they spit???

Ok, I've always wondered why wine tasters spit out all that great wine they get to try!!  Holy cow, I'd love the chance to taste (and drink) the wines that they do.

It seems so unseemly to spit out all this expensive wine but after my class and doing some reading, I learned a thing or two.  If you are there to test wines, chances are you are going to taste at least ten different wines.  You don't want to get sloppy by the tenth wine you taste, right? You actually want to be able to taste it and give an honest opinion.

Which is why those snooty (or so we thought) wine tasters spit it out!

Stay tuned...I bought a couple of local wines from a vineyard in Virginia yesterday!  I'll be posting a review on one this weekend!

New directions...

Ok people...I've had a change in heart and direction for this little blog 'o mine.

I had the pleasure of taking a wine tasting mini-class (for dummies!) at the Total Wine store near my office last week.  (It's a passion my co-workers and I share, especially after we've had one of "those" days).

So, you ask, what does this mean for the blog?  Well, it's not going to be about nothing anymore!! Woohoo!!

My plan is to get a different bottle every week to taste and review for you and to give you little tips about how to be an educated wine aficionado and be able to drink it like a pro!

Let me know what your favorites are and I'll do a little taste test for 'ya (oh, my life is so hard!)

So, what I want to know is...To Drink or Not To Drink?  That is the ultimate wine question!

Grady pictures! :)

Here are some new photos of my little man.  Love him!!

PS. For anyone that's interested, I think I'm going to start a sale blog and eBay store.  Been going through my closet lately and noticed that I have a lot of things I've never even tried on (all still NWTs)...time to get rid of them and maybe re-coup some money!  If you like J.Crew or Ann Taylor Loft, that'll be the majority of what's posted.

NEW PUPPY!

Got to bring home my little man on Saturday.  He is a Brittany Spaniel and his name is Grady.

We picked him up from Troy, NY and unless you have been anywhere near Albany, you've probably never been there or even heard of it (yea, it was that exciting).  The trip took almost 14 hours and by the time I got on the Jersey Turnpike for the second time, I was ready to scream.  Having to spend that much time in the car with the family is so not what I had in mind for my Saturday but all turned out good.  

I have been super busy with all things puppy and have had zero time for me.  So ready for him to start sleeping through the night and to figure out that the first floor of the house is not his personal bathroom...

I'll put up more pics this week!

Playable Angry Birds birthday cake

The King's Speech

Hi readers,

Happy Monday to you!

This weekend I went to see the movie The King's Speech. For those who haven't seen it yet, it's about King George VI, his sudden ascension to the throne and his relationship with his speech therapist, Lionel Logue.

The movie focuses on King George's, or Bertie's (his real name is Albert), inability to speak publicly due to a severe stammer.  He was plagued with this speech impediment as a child and was never able to overcome it until he met Lionel Logue, an Australian actor with no formal eduction in speech therapy.  Logue taught Bertie tricks (cursing between sentences and singing his speeches) so that he would be able to speak without stuttering.

Soon after the death of King George V, Bertie's brother takes the thrown but is forced to abdicate.  This throws Bertie into the position of King, something he never thought would happen.  He becomes King at one of the worst moments in history, the start of World War II, and had to go up against powerful speakers like Hitler.  Because of this, he relies heavily on Logue to get him through thus creating a life-long friendship between two very different people.

This is a very moving and touching story that allows you to see the not so nice side of the privileged life of royalty.  I would highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes to side with the underdog and who is looking for a good laugh. I liked it so much I would give it 10 stars.  For someone who fears speaking in public, I could relate to the personal struggle that Bertie felt while being forced to do something he dreaded.

Love this.

There’s nothing you can know that isn’t known.

Nothing you can see that isn’t shown.

Nowhere you can be that isn’t where you’re meant to be.

It’s easy.

- Lennon & McCartney

Grammys anyone?

Happy Valentine's Day Readers!


After thinking long and hard about what direction to take this blog in (and coming up with nada), I have decided that I will use this as an outlet for my everyday observations of life.


Last night, of course, I watch the Grammy awards.  As a country music fan, most of the artists I listen to were not represented. Although, I am a huge Gaga fan, which is why I tuned in (her new single is awesome!).  


Of last night's performances, I have to say that I loved Lady Gaga and Cee Lo Green with Gwyneth the most. I love that everyone waits on baited breath for what Lady Gaga is going to do. I find her originality refreshing and admire the fact that she seems to not care at all what the rest of the world thinks. And, Cee Lo Green was not far behind her. Anyone catch that he forgot the words to his own song? Or know why he chose to go as the red big bird? 


Mick Jagger was also amazing. For being nearly 70 years old, he still commands such an amazing stage presence. 


That's all for now. Until next time!


PS. Not a big Bieber fan and am definitely not a fan of his fans.  Totally inappropriate for them to attack Esperanza Spalding after he didn't win Best New Artist. Not cool guys. 

New to this blog thing...

Hi there everyone.  I started this blog as an assignment for a class in Social Media.  Hopefully this will be something that I can keep up with and that I have something interesting to share with all of you.  


I hope you enjoy!