Wine of '09

Dough, my favorite Italian bistro in SA, has been very good to me this year. This place is not much to look at in its strip mall residence, but they make their own cheese, have out-of-this-world food, and a wine list that makes me very happy. Dough introduced me to my 'wine of '09' (i.e. this year's favorite wine varietal) Ripasso. This type of wine uses partially dried grapes (Amarone style) mixed with young, fresh grapes which means lower tannins. (That's what he said.) All that I know is that it is simply delicious and so easy to just keep sip, sip, sippin' away.

Tonight I went for happy hour and was flabbergasted to find zero, zilch, nada, no Ripassos on the wine list. How can Dough do this to me? Will the week be ruined?!? Never fear, the waitstaff had two recommendations and, more importantly, two samples. One was blah, but the other, divine. If you are in need of a lovely, smooth red this holiday season -- Allegrini Palazzo della Torre (2005 I think), Veneto. Yum. Yum. Lip smackin' good.

In my professional research mode, read Google, I just discovered that the Allegrini uses partially dried grapes as well! Evidently I like raisin wine! Who knew? Thanks Dough. Thanks 2009.

One of These Things is not Like the Others

In case you were wondering, I'm the spoon in this scenario.

Have you ever started a story, thinking everyone will nod and smile along with your preamble and let you get to the meat of the story. . . only to be met with blank looks, then hysterical laughter, and then, "At what age did you start doing THAT?!"

At happy hour tonight (that's right, it may be Tuesday, but happiness still abounds) with a group of work gals ironing somehow became the topic of choice. I casually begin my story with, "Well, I never put clothes away in my closet until they are ironed..."

I thought this was fairly normal.

How wrong I was.

Does anyone who is not in my direct family do this?! It just makes so much sense to me (and my mom). In answer to the age question I had to bashfully admit I'd always done this which was met with yet more cackling and tearing up by the girls. I would like to clarify that I was only referring to the few items that truly HAVE to be ironed - it's not like I'm ironing t-shirts over here!

It is once again clear. I am not like the others, unless by 'others' you mean my mom.