During my mandatory shutdown the first week of July, Chris and I joined Erica her husband Brian and we visited a couple of wineries in the Waconia Minnesota area. Originally we were going to visit Chankaska however, the winery did not open until 1pm so we chose a couple of wineries near us. The first…
We are becoming very fond to Gary’s wine. Every time we make a trip to Napa, a wine tasting with Gary and Suzanne are a must. I have to admit I was not a huge white fan. As time moves on sampling Gary’s Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc I am starting to appreciate them. We are…
I had been thinking of our upcoming trip to Napa in May, so this week I sent Timothy an email to find out when the Verite release party date is. The release parties in the past were the Saturday during Fathers Day weekend. As I wandered down to my cellar, I knew it was going…
During our trip to Napa last Thanksgiving weekend, we scheduled a tasting at Gary and Suzanne Wooten’s. During the tasting, Gary pulled the cork on his 2006 Smith Wooten Syrah. At that time, Gary informed us this will be his last Syrah. He told us the Syrah grape is just…
The first time I ever tasted Silver Oak was with my work colleague and friend Kevin while out on a business dinner meeting with our customer. Since then, Kevin has shared many vintages of both Napa Valley and Alexander Valley Cabernets at his home in Aptos CA. I have to say each one has been…
Ah, finally it’s Friday! The weather in Minnesota was unusually amazing this week for March! We had day after day record high temperatures. I have to say we were thrilled with this very mild and short winter! We are so glad spring is a few days away. A few years ago in February we attended…
We regularly have our wine club and other wine orders shipped to Chris’ office WEBCO Security. Its the best solution for us because she or another employee is always there during regular mail delivery times. If you have never had wine shipped, an adult over 21 must to be present to sign for the wine…
Last week was an extremely busy week. I had work associates in town for a few days working in my customers lab with me. We entertained them one night and had a very nice dinner. I was happy to have the week end on a bright note (having gotten everything accomplished). Chris has been fighting…
Chris and I took the kids to California for Spring Break in 2009. We flew into San Jose and spent the weekend in Aptos and Monterrey with Kevin and his parents. We planned on driving down to Los Angeles to take the kids to Hollywood and Universal Studios. We also got to spend a few…
Last night Chris and I attended the Alexandra House Hope Gala with our friends John and Jen. Alexandra House provides domestic violence and sexual violence services in Anoka County. Their free service includes 24-hour emergency shelter, support services and advocacy to victims of domestic ans sexual violence. They are located in the cities of Blaine…
When Chris and I host parties, we truly enjoy sharing wine with our friends and associates. If there are four couples who all like to drink wine we can easily go through 6-8 bottles. As an example, check out my blog National Drink Wine Day 2012. There are numerous benefits of having large format bottles…
Some time ago… when just getting familiar with the Valley… we had the privilege of meeting Mark Biale who was working as a hospitality representative at Cosentino winery. Over time, we had the privilege of getting to really know Mark and understand his knowledge of wine. Over time, he humbly shared information about his family’s…
