Wine at Chili's, is that so bad?

I'm sitting at a Chili's restaurant with a small group for my best friend's twenty-first bday. We're carousing the drink menu, chatting a bit. I make a comment about a wine I'd like, and one friend turns to me and says, "You aren't seriously going to order wine at Chili's!"

And I thought, Where the heck are you drinking wine, the Ritz?

OK, I'll admit that I've ordered wine at the Ale House before, and that turned out to be a disaster.

But should the dining venue really dictate the quality of wine? I am witness that it is perfectly possible to get an excellent bottle of wine at the supermarket for $10 or less. Those same $10 bottles are being sold by the glass at fine dining establishments like Chili's.

When you're a student, or just on a tight budget (which is the case for most of us today), chances are you don't have big bills to throw down on a fancy steak dinner. There's no reason you shouldn't enjoy a glass of pinot with your fajita quesadillas.

Home Sweet Home

Just got back from Thai-to-the-Land.

What a trip.

This was a dry trip since it was school-sponsored, so there was no drinking of any Thai wine. Although it would have been a mission to find any in the first place. We took a few trips to the local Carrefour (which is like a Wal-Mart throughout Asia and Europe) and the wine aisle carried only foreign labels, to my disappointment. It would have been neat at least to see some Thai wine.

Still, the flavors of Thailand did not disappoint. From fresh coconut ice cream (above) to fermented guava, my palate still enjoyed the non-alcoholic fruits of life. Most dishes were complex, mixing spices and sweets. Favs included the curry rice, iced cocoa, and especially Thai donuts (mmm).

Now I'm back on U.S. soil, and I am ready to get back into the swig of things (pun fully intended). I definitely see a trip to Total Wine somewhere in my near future.

Halfway 'round the world

In just hours I depart from Miami to beautiful, tropical Bangkok (with two stops - Chicago and Seoul, S. Korea).

This is my second year participating in the Alternative Breaks program at FIU, where students travel to volunteer during their breaks from school.

Since the trip is school-sponsored and service-based, there's a strict no alcohol policy. Still, that doesn't mean I can't do my research.

First question: Does Thailand even make their own wine?
Answer: Yes! The Thai wine association was formed in 2004.

Five years? Whoa that's young, considering that most countries started their wine associations before the 1800s.

Second question: What are the most popular grape varietals/growing regions?
Answer: Varietals are a mystery. Vineyards seem to be generally in the southern area of the country.

Google is doing me no good. It seems to be a more popular choice within the vino community to pair wine with Thai food than to drink Thai wine. I'll see what info I can get from the locals.

Be back on the 24th!

Once in a Blue Moon

I'm not a beer fanatic by any stretch of the imagination. To be honest, most carbonated beverages just don't do it for me. Beers have a tendency to leave me more thirsty (and bloated) than I started.

There is one beer, though (wine bottles, cover your ears) that almost makes me swoon.

Blue Moooooon.

It's classified as a "White Belgian-style" beer (which I read an entire page about on wikipedia, and still don't quite understand). The beer is a creation of the Coors company, which is interesting because I really don't like Coors or Coors light; but the two labels maintain their distance for a reason.

Blue Moon isn't the type of beer you wanna be pumping at a kegger. It's a sipping beer. Think more... summer BBQ, day at the pool, casual dinner party. It's light, airy, refreshing. Typically served with an orange slice, helping to pronounce spicy citrus notes. It tastes like sunshine, really.

It's good stuff, but don't fret. This blog is not about to turn into the Beer Nut anytime soon.

Wine & Cookies

Ever since SOBE I've been super interested in this Robert Mondavi guy. He's apparently a pretty big hot shot in Napa Valley.

Solaire is really the wine that I want to try, but the other night I'm with friends who prefer white. (Actually, they prefer jug white zin. They have yet to see the light.)

So we made a compromise and settled on a 2003 Mondavi Sauvignon Blanc.

Tasting Notes listed on the bottle: Sweet, opulent apricot, guava, citrus and crème brûlée character. Toasty vanilla and spice from barrel fermentation and aging.

Drumroll pleeease... and the tasting notes check out! I didn't get the guava so much, but the citrus/crème brûlée combo was right on.

And it was such a perfect addition to our No Bake Cookies.

If you've never had these cookies, go snatch some oats, cocoa, and peanut butter (plus a tasty bottle of sauv blanc) and get to work!

What are you waiting for? GO!

SOBE (Part II)

For most of the day, I was lounging at the Evian sponsor tent. I know, it looks like a scene out of a Philadelphia Cream Cheese commercial. But working for the water of the French Alps turned out to be... le boring. Mostly because Evian had models prancing around in very little clothing spraying people with water (which occupied the only job there was to do).

The lack of activity may have had some relevance to the failing economy (and what doesn't now-a-days?). Vendors told me that festival tickets, which usually sell out six months early, were still up for grabs all day Friday. The $200 price tag definitely made my eyeballs pop.

Yes, it was a boring and tedious day. But, I did get to take a bathroom break in one of the trendy South Beach hotels. The ceiling was wicked cool (picture left).

Anddd I snagged about an hour of time at the Robert Mondavi tent. I got to pop open tasting bottles while listening to Mondavi staff rave about the new seasonal selection, Solaire (which is now on my list of wines to try).

Moral? Volunteering is never a total loss. No matter how boring and useless you may feel.

SOBE (Part I)

South Beach is renown for it's tourist-luring white, sandy beaches. If you've never been to the beach, I highly recommend you go to see it. Beautiful people, thriving nightlife, and home to the annual South Beach Wine & Food Festival.

This festival calls famous chefs and winemakers from all corners of the world to Florida, and FIU students get the unique opportunity of volunteering because our university founded the festival, originally a fundraiser for the School of Hospitality.

My morning as a volunteer, or officially a "Student Associate," was off to a great start. I woke up on time (though painfully at 5:30am), drove to the beach without getting lost (a feat in itself for me), and hopped along my merry way to Ocean Drive and 10th Street, where the festival takes place.

Once I got there, I stared at the white tents lining the beach coast with wide, excited eyes (my pre-boredom, over-excited face exhibited, right). At the end of the day there was no doubt I was exhausted from the experience, although that was not because I was working too hard. FIU had more student associates than they knew what to do with. Essentially, I was exhausted from boredom.

The worst part of the day was standing around in the cold air (yes, 60 degrees is cold for me) wating around for something to do. I didn't even get a glimpse of Paula Dean mooning the audience of her demonstration show.

I haven't mention all the hullabaloo created with the presence of the Spanish King and Queen. More to come on that soon.