Dark & Stormy

I've been bad about posting, I know. I'm sorry. I just haven't felt as though I've made much to say lately.

Last Saturday at The Cove (a great bar on Broad Ave right off of Hollywood) I was turned onto a cocktail that I've never had before; a Dark & Stormy. It is approximately 1 1/2 oz of dark rum (preferably Goslings Black Seal) to 6 oz Ginger Beer with a twist of lime. It has just the right amount of sweetness with a hint of dark molasses & spice from the ginger. I think I had 2 or three that night.

Last night I re-created this recipe at home with Goslings & Reed's Ginger Beer that I bought by the 4-pack at Whole Foods.

Delicious again. I have a feeling this is going to be my cocktail of choice for the hot Memphis summers.

First Big Trip of the Year

I'm going to Seattle for business. Seattle is a city that I've always wanted to visit but just haven't gotten around to. Any recommendations for restaurants, wine bars, wine shops or anything at all?

Colome Torrontes 2007

Sometimes I can just taste the stress & hard life at the edge of the world in a wine. Wine is just more interesting & has more personality when it has to struggle, much like people. I had the pleasure of tasting just such a wine on Friday, Bodega Colome Torrontes 2007 Salta, Argentina $15.99. The vines are biodynamically (no small feat at this altitude) grown between 5000 - 8000 feet above sea level in high desert. At that altitude they are stressed to their limit & have to struggle to produce fruit. That struggle produces grapes that have extra thick skins & juice that is super concentrated producing a wine that is rich but not cloying or heavy. Its aroma gives away its relation to the muscat grape with floral, candied notes of ginger & jasmine. With a silver cloak & gleaming translucency I thought that the palate would be light, brisk & clean but I was wrong. On the palate I found a rich, concentrated & broad wine that lingered with flavors of papaya, guava & a glycerol almost lanolin-like texture. A life of struggle can yield beauty.

Grilled Cheese "Top Chef" style

So, my friend Justin & I are having a grilled cheese contest. I was trying to decide what wine to pour alongside. What do you pair with grilled cheese?