BITS & BOBS…

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving, whether a large gathering or just yourself. I believe that Susie, my son and myself may have cooked the perfect turkey this year.

Not only did it look fantastic, it was moist and delicious. I don’t know about you, but I find cooking the turkey to be one of the more difficult assignments for Thanksgiving. We had a small gathering of family as my daughter’s family fell to the crud and couldn’t make the trek to the islands. We missed them, but my daughter called to wish us a happy Thanksgiving which made things a little better. Next year!

The wine choice for the meal turned out to be a ’07 Dehlinger Pinot Noir and the ’13 Kevin White La Fraternite.

As you can guess, they were both fantastic and went nicely with the meal. The Dehlinger had ample acidity and rocked the Asian spices, earth and dark cherry notes. The Kevin White is one of my favorites and because it is Grenache dominate I felt it would go well. Because of the healthy amount of Mourvedre, it packed a little more punch than I expected. Some of the delicate side dishes didn’t cooperate, but all in all it worked. Next year, more Grenache, less Mourvedre. The side story to this is the left over wine. My son and I were the only ones drinking reds, so there was some left to drink the next day or longer. The Dehlinger went on Friday, but I didn’t revisit the Kevin White until Sunday. It was absolutely stellar, three days later. Deep and resonant, it hadn’t lost any of its power and flavor. I’m sure glad I have a couple more bottles in my cellar.

One of my favorite meals is coming soon. I love cooking prime rib for Christmas and I especially like picking big reds to pair with the roast. Stay tuned to my You Tube channel as I focus on possible choices for the holidays. I’m thinking big blends, big Cabs, Chateauneuf-Du-Pape… You get the picture. I’m going big this year and I hope I can find some excellent values or not, for you to try. You Tube has changed some of their rules and for some reason decided to hold back some privileges until I reach 10,000 views. I’m getting close, so I would love your support for my channel as I feel I try hard to give you the best content I can. The technical aspects of putting up a video still need work, but the actual reviews and discussion are what I am really all about. I really appreciate all of you who are watching my episodes. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I will also include at least one episode with bubbles in it. What’s Christmas without a little fizz.

Speaking of bubbles, I think Pete Carroll may have a few too many between his ears. Yes, they beat San Francisco soundly and that was due in part to Pete’s silence on the sidelines. The Atlanta game was hard to watch on Monday night. The Hawks had them, and would have won the game if it wasn’t for a couple of bonehead calls by Pete. A fake field goal that cost them points, and challenging an obviously correct call by the refs that cost the Hawks a time-out. Despite all the injuries, our Seahawks are really good and the offense just keeps getting better. Hopefully, Pete extracts the copious amounts of bubbles in the cranium and doesn’t interfere with the team to their detriment. It would be sad if they didn’t make the playoffs. I think they are going to spank the Eagles Sunday night, letting the football world know that they are the real deal.

I have chosen my “Winery Of The Year” for 2017 and I think you are going to be surprised. It was love at first sip when I tried their wines and it is a Washington winery I had never heard of. The wines have incredible structure and depth. I will be revealing my choice in December, stay tuned. I will also be releasing my “Top Forty Wines Under Twenty Bucks.” I am going through my tasting notes now and putting together the list. I love doing this, and it always surprises me when I get down to the top ten. I will also have this list out for your reading pleasure in December.

Cheers!
Stan The Wine Man