A Horse of a Different Color When the Ehlers Estate 2018 Sylviane Rosé was released last Spring, I was super stoked. The 2017 vintage was my #1 favorite wine last year. Everyone I knew that tried this vintage swooned over it. It was a 100% Cabernet Franc rosé that really knocked it out of the park. So with the 2018 vintage released, I was ordering my first case, no problem, with more to follow I was sure. Now I knew that there was a new winemaker at Ehlers. After all, I did run a Q&A with her last fall. (You…
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This past weekend, Gary and I had a house guest. Katia, who was my classmate in D.C. when I was taking the Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) Level 2 Certification. We hit it off and became study partners and subsequently friends. She reached out looking for hotel and restaurant recommendations for a weekend trip to Charleston. I recommended the “Hotel de Dean-Link,” which is the same location as our Church of the Screened in Porch. She loved that idea and chose to stay with us. She toured Charleston on her own Friday and Sunday but on Saturday we all…
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I made this gluten-free cake on my second day of baking with my sister. I also made a classic Victoria’s Sandwich, but I was less happy with that, and this was so delicious. Now before I get to this fab gluten-free recipe, I want to explain that the cookbook I reference is my British cookbook from the GBBO show. For that reason, the recipe is in grams instead of cups, and I like it that way. We all know that my efforts in baking have been “iffy” at best. So translating the measurements seemed silly when grams is a much…
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I had gone back and forth on whether or not I should post the incredibly delicious short ribs that are based on a Marcus Samuelsson recipe that he prepared for President Obama about eight years ago. They were the main course at a dinner party we had. The reason for this debate is because there was a 5-hour power outage during the day that delayed EVERYTHING. (Yes, I have an electric stove.) The power came back on two hours before dinner was to be served, and an hour before the guests arrived. And did I mention that the short ribs…
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This is a post that I should call This, That and The Other because it is different topics that are unrelated to each other but are all themes of my blog, eating out – this week at Barsa; creating food- a simple Unrecipe appetizer; and drinking and sharing wine – New Summer Sips. Hopefully, that means that there is something in this post for everyone. But before I go there, I have to tell you that last week was insane as I pulled off a hugely successful invitation-only tasting with Gratus Vineyards. Typically, I would not host a tasting when…
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If you missed Part One of our baking day, you would want to go back. In part one, I posted about making Kouign Amann. A Breton flaky, buttery sweet pastry that I first saw on The Great British Bake Off. Since then, I found a local bakery that makes them, but I rarely can get there before they are gone for the day. So if you missed it, take a look back. But today I will share the savory German roll that Craig made and the sweet, gluten-free breakfast roll that my sister made. Lastly, I will share the shortbreads…
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As I have said before, I am a huge, huge fan of the TV show The Great British Bake Off (Netflix changed the name to The Great British Baking Show for the US market). I am not sure why I love this show so much because I am a crappy baker. But the thrill is there, and I can’t wait for more seasons to show up on Netflix starting in August. My youngest sister is also a huge fan and last Christmas, unaware of the other, we each got the other a cookbook from the show. So when she suggested…
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Edison James Island Klinker Brick Wine Dinner You all know by now that I am a huge fan of wine dinners. The ones I attend tend to cost in the $90 to $125 range including tax and gratuity, although I have seen some advertised for as much as $200 to $300 per person. This occasion was my first wine dinner at Edison James Island. In my experience, wine dinners always sell out, and that makes me very happy. What made this wine dinner so interesting to me is the quality to price ratio (QPR) of the Klinker Brick wines and…
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