Best Holiday Party Wines!

A memorable holiday party deserves a great party wine. Good party wine is easy to find. Great party wine is a little trickier. In my opinion, great party wine shares the following characteristics:

1. It is interesting. Everyone serves Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, etc. Why? Honestly, I am not sure, other than maybe habit. I always try to show my guests something new or at least unexpected.  Wine can start a conversation, inspire someone to get out of their well-worn habits, or challenge a preconceived notion. Why NOT?

Marcato Soave

2. It is low-maintenance. Great party wine is drinkable, with or without food. It doesn't require perfect food pairing, exact temperature, decanting, or fine crystal to enjoy. Some of it even comes with a screw cap (I know!).

3. It is the very best quality you can get for an affordable price. Enough said.

Here is my current line-up of great party wine. Again, my philosophy in wine (and life) is to look away from the large producers to encounter often spectacular best kept secrets.

1. Marcato Soave 2010 (Veneto, Italy) $10

This is my favorite new find. @DalaiWino suggested this as a dry wine alternative, and it was great advice. It is bright and crisp like a sauvignon blanc, but it is soft and floral and not as acidic or fruit forward. It will please both the Pinot Grigio crowd, the grass-and-citrus Sauvignon Blanc crowd, and the white Bordeaux crowd.

2. Foris Pinot Noir 2008 (Rogue Valley, Oregon) $17

This is a perfectly balanced Pinot Noir. It will please fans of European-style leaner Burgundy and the fruitier, spicier California-style enthusiasts. It is delicate with it has great structure, and is delightful to sip throughout a night of various hors d'oeuvre.

 

3. Arido Malbec 2010 (Mendoza, Argentina) $10

This is my medium-bodied go-to wine for company. I liked this description so much I didn't even bother with my own: (www.delavin.com) "Delicate red fruit and violet aromas interact with classic Malbec spiciness. Soft and round in the mouth with balanced acidity and sweet tannins."

4. Mistinguett Cava Brut Rose (Spain) $15

Ahh, the bubbly... an absolute holiday party essential. It does not have to be champagne. This cava is a methode champenoise beauty, meaning it is made to the exacting standards of sanctioned French Champagne. It has a gorgeous color and an elegant bouquet. It is floral, bright, and off-dry. Perfectly delicious on its own, it has no need for the aid of fruit juice, lavender syrup or St Germaine (not that any of those are a bad idea!).

5. Il Cuore Rosso Classico 2007 (Mendocino County) $13

This wine is my Cabernet alternative. It is a blend of Zinfindel, Syrah, Merlot, Petite Syrah and Petite Verdot from Mendocino County. It is a huge wine that is drinkable and subtle. It has notes of tobacco and chocolate following an initial punch of dark cherry and cassis. 

Cheers to great party wine. If you have favorites, please share them!

Halloween Bash

Every year, Jeff and I throw a Halloween Bash.  We were supposed to be married on Halloween, but plans got pushed up quite a bit (to Memorial Day weekend) because of family matters.  Instead, we mark the day that would've been our wedding by a big party.  While this has always seemed appropriate and fitting, this will be our first year to fore go the tradition. We will have attended 8 weddinsg this year (the last being Friday), and frankly we need a break. 

The Bash will be on again next year, but in the meantime I wanted to share a few Bash secret recipes for your own Halloween festivities:

Wassail

1 gallon apple cider

1 cup orange juice

1/2 c. good brandy

1/2 c. Grand Marnier (Triple Sec also works, but use slightly less)

1/2 c. bourbon

2 cinnamon sticks

pinch salt

**For a wintery version, halve the orange juice and use an equal amount of cranberry juice. Garnish with cranberries.

This is the easiest thing in the world to make.  Simply put everything besides the liquor in a large pot and bring to simmer.  Add the liquor and simmer it until ready to serve.  Serve into paper, styrafoam, or ceramic. Use caution serving, the sugar from the juices gets extremely hot and leaves a nasty burn if you aren't careful.

Adult Cocoa

1 gallon whole milk (you could sub @% but it really isn't as good)

1/2 c. Godiva Dark Liquer

1/2 c. Kahlua

1/2 c. Vanilla Vodka (Stoli or Van Gogh are my favorites)

2 t. vanilla extract

pinch salt

marshmallows for garnish

**For a Mexican Chocolate twist, toss in a few cinnamon sticks and omit the marshmallow garnish.
 ***This is also tasty with a slight cayenne kick. Start with 1/2 teaspoon and go from there to get the desired level of heat.

Same instructions as above.  I have industrial coffee servers that are very convenient to keep these warm, but keeping them in big pots on the stove also works well.  The cocoa cools faster than the cider. Of course virgin versions of these are great for the kids, just omit the alcohol.

Cheers to Halloween!

Camping: A Foodie's Pleasant Surprise

our campsite near Shades state park

Camping is not something I grew up doing. Until I met my husband, my camping experience could basically be summed up with a handful of overnight church youth group trips (most of them sleeping in cabins) and a crazy quarter life crisis desert expedition (for another blog post).

Camping is now a periodic part of my life thanks to my outdoor extraordinaire of a spouse. Just to clarify--I love the great outdoors. Canoeing is among my favorite pseudo-exercises, any kind of water makes me happy, and the smell of both campfires and fresh vegetation is invigorating. Camping, however, is a LOT of effort. Frankly I've never understood why people just don't take day trips (or sleep in a hotel).

Camping with Jeff, however, rivals the luxury of of the nicest [budget] vacations (mosquitos begrudgingly excepted). There are air mattresses, fans (battery-powered, of course), high thread-count linens and multiple-course meals cooked on an open flame. Out tent (dubbed Taj-MaTent by our friends- "The Taj" for short) is a sight to behold with several wings and a screened-in porch.

The fridge after Prepping for the trip

This summer, we were invited to Courtney and Josh's annual Canoe Trip (2 nights near Shades State Park). Since Courtney is a fellow foodie, I knew this would be a great weekend. She asked me to be the weekend sous-chef, and I happily accepted the challenge of helping her prep, plan, and cook for 23 people in BFE.

We had 2 dinners, 2 breakfasts, and a lunch (in canoes) to plan for, as well as snacks. Thank goodness Courtney had done this before (by herself for the last 4 years!). I had much to learn! On Wednesday we shopped (CostCo got hit by hurricane of three carts), on Thursday we prepped (chopping, bagging, par-boiling, packing), and Friday-Sunday we cooked. Here was the menu:

Friday dinner: chicken sausages, beer-boiled-brats, kosher hot dogs on the grill; hummus, cheeses, chips, various dips, crudite platters, etc.

Saturday breakfast: scrambled eggs (36!), breakfast sausages, bagels, spreads, breakfast bars, mimosas, greyhounds, and Bloody Marys.

Saturday lunch: deli sandwiches and everything snack-able (and portable in canoe coolers)

Saturday dinner: Individual foil packs (amazing! Details in another blog)

Sunday breakfast: leftover everything as people tear-down and rush to get home, shower and detox

This was a weekend of great food, lots of sun, hilarious stories (many of them about Mike Defabis). The food was everywhere and delicious. Everyone raved. In fact, it was so good that we are contemplating a camping catering company.... Stay tuned for details on our fabulous Saturday night dinner-- the piece de resistance of the weekend. Cheers to camping in great taste!

Independence Day (drinking)

The Fourth of July is a time to celebrate how insanely lucky we are to be Americans. Whatever your particular political persuasion, I hope we can all agree that the United States of America affords us opportunities and freedoms no other nation can boast.  This, my friends, is reason to celebrate.


We celebrate by going out to my brother- and sister-in-law's house out in Crawfordsville, Indiana. It is the most fun we have all year as a family. There is swimming, corn hole, a bonfire, a firework-powered car race (for the kids, only extremely sightly dangerous), and food.  Lots of food.  Usually burnt hotdogs (my brother-in-law is notorious for losing track of the grilling duties between beers), as well as everyone's best pitch-in offering. I usually bring a hummus, cheese and veggie plate to be original (haha). This year, however, I am going to wow them.


How, you ask? With sangria! Mind-blowing, nectar of the Gods sangria that every woman (and man if they are honest) at the party will appreciate  and thank me for (shortly before they beg me for the recipe). Inspired by my recent SoCal sojourn, here is the recipe for said worship-worthy concoction: 

RED SANGRIA
1 bottle of good red zinfandel
2 oz Pama
2 oz Triple Sec
16 oz cranberry-pomegranate (or similar) juice
2 oranges, sliced and squeezed
1 small package of frozen blueberries (they serve as the ice)


WHITE SANGRIA
1 bottle of Pinot Grigio (or other dry white wine)
2 oz Absolut Peach-double up on the Malibu if you don't have it
2 oz Malibu Mango
2 oz Triple Sec
16 oz white cranberry-peach (sub apple if necessary)
2 oranges, sliced and squeezed and squeezed
1 lemon, sliced and squeezed
1 small package of sliced frozen peaches or pineapple

All you have to do is stir!  It is better if it has few hours for the flavors to marry, but if you have to assemble it on the spot, no big deal.  If you mix it up before-hand just serve it over ice.  (As confident as I am in this recipe, I am bringing a Caprese Salad as a back-up in case my relatives don't get on the Sangria bandwagon.  Stay tuned!)


God bless our friends, family, and those who serve and protect our freedom.  Happy Independence Day.  Cheers!