I've moved!

You can now find me at Winetome.net. I'm still doing a little unpacking but all new posts are there and this will not be updated. Please change your bookmarks, feeds and follow me over there.

Yes, this means I will be posting more than once a quarter.

Trader Joe's and Charles Shaw Wine

This summer our neighborhood got a Trader Joe's. I'd never been to one before the opening of this store but I had heard about them. The building of the new Trader Joe's caused all sorts of grumbling from the local grocery stores and liquor stores.

In Minnesota you can not buy alcohol in the grocery store, nor can you buy it on Sunday. We have neighborhood liquor stores which are nice but it would be convenient to be able to buy our booze when picking up dinner at the last minute.

Trader Joe's has a wine shop in their stores. In Minnesota stores they are separate from the grocery part of the store and you have to make two separate purchases but you don't have to move your car which makes it a little more convenient.

I'd hear about Trader Joe's Three Buck Chuck from friends and family who had a store near them. But I had never tried it. I'm not a wine snob, though I do like a nice wine, I'll drink anything if it doesn't make my mouth bleed. So I was looking forward to the Trader Joe's wine.

The Three Buck Chuck is the Charles Shaw label which produces many varieties of wine but the store, at least the one here, carries Cabernet, Merlot and Chardonnay. I spent $9 plus some tax and tried one of each. I now have three bottles of cooking wine.

Actually the Chardonnay was not too bad but the cab and Merlot were gut churningly bad. Even for $3 they were overpriced. I can't think of when I might be tempted to drink this wine.

Have you tried the Three Buck Chuck? What did you think about it?

House Cleaning Blog Style

Less than 48 hours to go! Is anyone else as excited as I am to have the new school year start?

I will soon be able to blog on a much more regular basis. In anticipation of that I wanted to post a few reminders.

If you aren't already following me on Twitter please do. I follow back everyone who follows me. You can also follow me on Facebook too. I think it's the right link. I was just going to type that I don't understand how people can spend so much time on Facebook but when I went to get the URL I lost 20 minutes. Hmmm....

This here blog is now available on Kindle. Of course if you found me here I don't know why you would want me on the Kindle too but then I don't have one so I have no idea how the whole thing works. If you have a Kindle and you subscribe to blogs please leave a note in the comment section and let me know how you like it. I'd love to get one but I don't commute on a bus or train, I don't actually commute at all, I can open a book easier than a Kindle as well. The price tag alone keeps me from purchasing one but they do look cool. I'd love to be able to download a book in the middle of the night.

That's about it for now. Starting Tuesday you can look for more regular posts on this blog as well as the others.

Summit Beer

I'm not a beer drinker. Occasionally, at the lake on a warm afternoon I like a cold beer but usually it just makes me pee too much so I stay away from it.

When I do have a beer I drink Summit Beer. Summit Beer is a micro brew from here in St. Paul. I know you can get it in Wisconsin but I'm not sure about anywhere else. Aside from the great taste of the beer which is hoppy and crisp and certainly not watery like Miller or a Bud, this beer has a higher alcohol content so one of them gets me buzzed and in a happy place in less than half a beer.

I have been drinking Summit Beer since the early 90's when I sold my house to the owner of the Summit Brewery. No, I am not getting paid for this endorsement. In fact even when I sold him the house, which was located on Summit Ave (the reason he wanted the house) I didn't get free beer. I should have since he got the house for a steal due to the fact that my first ex and I were getting a divorce and needed to sell the house quickly.

If you can get Summit in your area give it a try. There are several different varieties as well as seasonal beers. You'll love it.

What are your favorites?

I'd love to know what your favorite wines are. I often get stuck in a bit of a rut with the wines I like. I tend to stay with the same ones time after time so I'd love to hear what you think are wonderful wines so I can try them. I will try them all and post about each one. Leave your URL with your suggestion in the comment section so I can link back to you.

It's Time for White Wine Again!

We have had a string of warm days and it looks as if it is going to continue for a few more days. Of course this means that white wine is palatable again.

I have a hard time drinking white wine when it is really cold out. Just as I have no desire to drink a red wine when it is warm out.

While we have been having this lovely stretch of days above 50 degrees I have been enjoying Big House White. Like Big House Red it is a varietal which is a blend of Viognier, Chenin Blanc, French Columbard, and Sauvignon Blanc. The French Columbard is clean and fresh, the Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc contribute crisp acicity and the Viognier adds to the mouthfeel and lists up the floral aroma.. It goes with anything especially, potato-crusted sea bass, grilled veggies, pasta with cream sauce, crustaceans, garlic-roasted poultry, anything that swims.

Wine Enthusiast gives the 2007 Big House White an 89 and Wine Spectator gives it an 83.

For a good time stop by the Big House.

Creative Use for those Empties

Instead of recycling your wine bottles and letting your neighbors all see how much you drink try this nifty trick.

My daughter made this out of modeling clay. She did it all on her own and it looks pretty good. In case you wonder it's a fox.