Just the Bottle

One woman's adventure in beer, wine, spirits and food.

[justthebottle]

Oddly enough after family members told me that I was not allowed to travel by myself internationally, they now praise me for my recent trips  No, really.  There was a full conversation where my parents were told they should ban me.  Not sure how that would work since I am a woman in my 30s, but still  I appreciate that they love me, are worried about my safety, but also respect my desire to see the world.  The video I am sharing is beautiful and I think those that live there sort of take it for granted.  It's the call to prayer being played on loud speakers throughout the city.  It's a gorgeous thing to hear, not when one is hung over per say, but still.

[justthebottle]

Peter Franus Sauvignon Blanc

Sometimes you just need a bottle of wine and a good pizza  Peter Franus Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc offers a great value  The wine is very creamy with great acidic notes  The wine has a lovely citrus and stone fruit on the nose.  This wine will make you appreciate when you find a sauv blanc done well.

[justthebottle]

[justthebottle]

Bodacious Bohigas

When I visited Spain in October last year with one of the goals being to drink all the cava I was lucky enough to visit Bohigas.  Maria Casanovas-Giró was gracious enough to give us a personal tour with a history of the estate and family.  The estate has been around since the 13th century with the family managing the vineyards for eight centruies and has been a witness to history in Spain.

Can Macià is composed of 35 hectares in a Mediterranean-continental-type of climate.  The family has generally planted the traditional cava varietals - Macabeu, Xarel-lo and Parellada, but is open to experimenting with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.  There is a second property area that is newer composed of 45 hecatares.

We visited the underground cellar.  It's sort of breath taking to view these underground cellars.

Look at that creepy doll.  The house was filled with unusual items sort of like a Spanish version of Ripley's.  I like anyone born in the early '80s is terrified by dolls.  It all stems from Chucky.

At the end of our tour, we sat down and enjoyed a multicourse meal paired with different cavas from Bohigas.

Besides bringing home a bottle of Noa (one of my favorites), I have found Bohigas carried at shops in DC area like DCanter and at Mocking Bird Hill. 

If you see a bottle of Bohigas in a shop or on a menu, order it as it won't disappoint.

[justthebottle]

It's Wine Time

ეს ღვინო დრო! (It's wine time!)

I am excited to write that I will be attending the International Wine and Tourism Conference in Tbilisi, Georgia!

Besides the conference, I will be joining some other cool wine people touring various wineries in Georgia.  My goal of the trip is again to consume all the wine in Georgia.  Secondary goal, learn more about orange wines.

Before Georgia, I'll be in Instanbul!  I have already gotten some great recommendations from Twitter friends and other people.  Of course one of the recommendations included a wine bar.  Don't judge.

Stay tuned here for moar about my adventures and follow my Twitter @justthebottle.

[justthebottle]

Orange you glad I didn't say banana

My birthday was January 13th and I decided to celebrate all month long.  On New Year's Eve Man Friend and I went to Professionals in the City New Year's Party.  I didn't want to go, but one can't really say, "Oh, you want to see someone that you were stationed in Texas with and served in Iraq with?  No. I don't want to even though s/he lives in a different state." Before the party we went to Red Hen and it was spectacular.  The service was amazing and the dishes were well executed. They also featured orange wine by the glass.

I arranged for Man Friend to take me to Komi for dinner another night and then a play at Studio Theatre.  Komi paced the meal perfectly.  It didn't feel like two hours and we made the play in plenty of time.  Every dish offered a new set of flavor and texture.  I went with the pairing, which might not have been appreciated by others. However, I do what I want.  Anyways, one pairing was this really interesting Italian beer that had a nice funk.  I mentioned my interest in orange wine and they offered it along with a red so that I could compare.

Two other birthday celebrations included renting the private room at Black Squirrel and a Sunday Funday that involved bottomless brunch at Masa 14.  There was no fee to rent the room at Black Squirrel even though it was a Saturday night in Adams Morgan.  Masa 14 was a solid brunch that should be on one's DC bucket list.

Back to the orange wine!  I have talked to some who believe that orange wine is a trend that has come and gone.  Others think it's a current trend.  I am not sure what the average wine drinker will think, but I have found the few I have tried thus far to be very interesting and food friendly.

Orange wine is made up of white wine varietals that have extended skin contact during fermentation.  The color can be incredibly light to a more tawny like color.

Here's the interesting part that I wonder if it will appear to beer followers...orange wines can be VERY sour and funky.  I tried another that came off as oxidized I expected sherry like flavors that did not appear.

Orange wine more commonly appears in Italy and Eastern Europe like Georgia and Slovenia.

I look forward to experimenting with them more.  Perhaps doing a tasting with some other wine friends?

[justthebottle]

Festivus Fun and Florida Beers

I was lucky enough to get time off to go home to the South Florida area for Christmas.  Well, lucky to be able to witness the crazy that is my family in person.  With that in mind, let's list some of the great beers I had and perhaps throw in a great quote or two from my family.

Cigar City Maduro Brown Ale

Cigar City beers are finally appearing in the DC area.  The brewery is located in Tampa, Florida area.  This beer was full of flavor with notes of nutty coffee profile.  However, it was very light which gives you the darker flavors you want for the holidays, but easy to drink.  It was perfect for a Floridian who wants to enjoy the holidays even when it's 80 degrees on Christmas.

Parental Unit

The male parental unit liked this beer.  The male parental unit also told me when I brought home cookies made from scratch based on my grandma's recipe that the cookies were dry.  He then ate almost all of the cookies while I was at the beach.

Key West Southernmost Wheat

It's an interesting take on the witbier style.  I didn't get the cleaning product flavor that always seems to occur when I drink a wheat style beer.  For real, around mid-palate usually I get this Pinesol character.  Anyways, great citrus notes with a hint of lime and some spice.

Parental Unit

The male parental unit liked it, but this is also not his favorite style.  At some point during the visit a heated discussion emerged of whether my dad should date if my mom were to die.  She ends the debate by stating, "No skanks."

The Eleven Brown Ale

Here's another perfect beer for a Floridian who wants malty, toffee flavors in a lighter format.  I loved the flavor and slight hoppy notes on the finish.

Parental Unit

He dug this one.  We both like more malty flavors.

We visited my grandparents on Christmas day.  They always have something to say about my life, my weight or just about anything.  One of my favorite past anecdotes from my grandfather involves me suggesting he participate in a class in which he would write his autobiography.  He responded very negatively.  I asked why he wouldn't be interested and he responded, "because I can't remember all the ladies' names." 

Unfortunately, it was a very brief trip home over the holidays.  This made it difficult to see friends and visit breweries like Funky Buddha or Wynwood Brewing Company.  Well that and not having a car unless I borrow my parent's car.

[justthebottle]

Champagne Tasting

Bell Wine & Spirits' annual Grand Champagne tasting is Wednesday, December 11th 5:00pm - 8:00pm. They will be pouring 30+ Champagnes and sparkling wines, with highly rated Krug, Ruinart, Dom Perignon and more!

Tickets are available here for $25.  Is that too much?  Want a discount?  Well, maybe I can help you out.  Use the promo code justthebottle and get your ticket for $10.

If you end up buying any of the wines tasted - not only will they be on sale, but you'll get your money back from your ticket.

[justthebottle]

Manel Avinyo, winemaker at Clos Lentiscus, is a very passionate man with strong opinions on wine and life.  But, you must be passionate if you are going to follow biodynamic winemaking practices. The Hedonista wrote up an excellent review of our time with Manel. I on the other hand will simply share a hilarious video recorded by Bucket List Journey of me finding the energy.

[justthebottle]

Christina loves Cava

I was lucky enough to visit Spain recently. After spending a couple days in Barcelona (pictures and stories to come later), I joined a group outside the city. Our mission was simple - drink all the cava.

One of my favorite wineries on the visit was Mascaró. Like most of the wineries we visited, it is family owned. They are led by the matriarch Ms. Monserrat Mascaró, Co-owner & Oenologist.

We were led on an amazing tour by one of the staff, Maria, who explained that 30% of the business was cava related. About 40% of their cava is consumed in Catalonia. They produce about 100,000 bottles of cava and 300,000-400,000 bottles of brandy a year.

The wines and cavas are grown in Mascaró's Mas Miquel vineyards.

The facility we toured was considered an urban winery located in the downtown area of Penedès. The location was along a path that linked the city center to the train station.

One of my favorite cavas was Cuvee Antonio Mascaró. It is a Cava Gran Reserva Brut Nature which means no dosage added with an aging time of 30 months or longer. This cava could be enjoyed as an appertif, but paired spectacularly with our lunch. The nose was aromatic with nutty and some minor floral notes. The cava danced in the mouth with fine bubbles and creamy notes. Would you believe it is super affordable as well?

I ended up buying a bottle of the Brandy X.O. Ego. I knew I would be hard pressed to find he something of that quality back home at the same price point. It was incredibly smooth and refined with slight vanilla and toasty notes.

[justthebottle]

[justthebottle]

Spain Baby

I am super excited to be traveling with Wine Pleasures as part of the Cava Blogger trip! Wine Pleasures produce an electronic book with the 50 great Cavas each year. Last year's version is available for download here.

Look for pictures, video and posts about all my fun in Spain during October. I am also going a little early to enjoy Barcelona. Feel free to leave comments on suggestions on what to do, where to eat and drink while in Barcelona.

¡Salud!

[justthebottle]

Fall means Pumpkin Beer Time

If it's fall it means it's time for all the pumpkin beer. Some people hate on pumpkin especially pumpkin beer and fall in general. Many like to make jokes about white girls in yoga pants. My feelings about the hatred of pumpkin and fall can be summed up as -

To further elaborate - I like pumpkin and I like fall. I was born and raised in Miami, Florida. We would wear sweaters and pretend we actually needed them when it was 60 degrees out.

I ended up having some friends over to enjoy pumpkin beer. French Twist DC posted her own tasting notes as well as history of pumpkin beer and Girl Meets Glass shared her pumpkin beer thoughts too.Beerbecue participated virtually with the Haybag as he was busy with 2.0. Bill Jusino also tweeted some of the fun. There may even be a DC Beer post on pumpkin beer. Another friend who is in Annapolis did her own pumpkin beer tasting and posted her thoughts. I also found the Great Pumpkin Beer Review with detailed reviews of several pumpkin beers.

There are still pumpkin beers available for purchase at many retail establishments, but I would start buying anything you like now as well as Oktoberfest and marzen. I have waited until October or November and places are sold out of many of the best.

On to my tasting notes-

Epic & DC Brau’s Fermentation Without Representation Collaboration Beer - I loved this one. I found it more balanced with the right about of spice, but still pumpkin flavor. By that I mean, it wasn't like drinking pumpkin pie. Southern Tier Brewing Company’s Pumking Imperial Pumpkin Ale - I am not sure if it was me or what, but I got strong buttery flavors. It was overpowering. It came off as sort of caramel popcorn. I have a second bottle to try later. Frog’s Hollow Double Pumpkin Ale Gruntled Pumpkin - This was not a crowd favorite. It came off as more gourd and squash like. When I drank it on it's own, the first taste was clover and gourd smacking me around. Rogue Farms Pumpkin Patch Ale - Here was another example of pumpkin beer being more balanced and not simply pumpkin pie in a bottle. It was slightly hoppy and slightly spicy as maybe corriander on the finish. Long Trail Imperial Pumpkin - It looked light in the pour, but definitely packed a punch. It was more malty like I normally enjoyed. It had more caramel notes with the pumpkin spice flavors popping through. Shipyard Pumpkinhead - Our group did not enjoy this one. The spices were overwhelming in a harsh way. Brasserie McAuslan’s St-Ambroise Citrouille - It was light and had minimal nutmeg notes. It was very smooth, but not that impressive. Heavy Seas The Great Pumpkin - I really enjoyed this beer, but didn't really consider it a pumpkin beer. It was toasty with great caramel and nutty flavors. I just didn't get any pumpkin or pumpkin spice flavors. Flying Dog Brewery, The Fear Imperial Pumpkin Ale - This was a crowd pleaser. It was a dark color poured, but not very heavy. Plenty of clove notes. Dogfish Head Punkin Ale - This is always another popular pumpkin beer. It's lighter and more on the pumpkin pie scale with a lot of cinnamon, clove and nutmeg notes. Matt Brewing Company’s Saranac Pumpkin Ale - This is a middle ground pumpkin beer. It is also lighter with more sweetness in the form of  clove and nutmeg. Starr Hill Boxcarr Pumpkin Porter - The pumpkin is slightly overpowered by the porter in this beer. It came off as more muted.

In the end, taste is subjective even your own. I find that depending on what I am eating, the weather and even the type of day I had that my taste in beer will change. I may go for a second round of some of these beers especially when it gets a little cooler.

[justthebottle]

I survived DC Beer Week

I survived DC Beer Week, but just barely. DC Beer Week is a great time celebrating what the DC area has to offer. DC Beer among other outlets provided information on some of the best events of the week. DC Beer is a great site to follow year round for events, discussion of beer and all beer related things.

Sunday, August 11th began with an early wake up to get ready for the day. I dragged my tired ass to Chocolate City to begin my Brewery Tour that included six DC and VA breweries. We began at about 10:00am with First Coast Bohemian Pils. As one of my new friends on the tour said, "This is a great morning beer." It was light, crisp and great introduction to the day.

We hopped on the bus and moved onto DC Brau. DC Brau continues to have a soft spot in my heart. I went with Exquisite Corpse and Heurich's Lager. The Exquisite Corpse was proposed by the Beer Director at Pizzeria Paradiso and is a collaboration among Greg Jasgur, Sam Fitz of Meridian Pint, Brian Strumke of Stillwater Artisanal Ales and Jeff Hancock of DC Brau. It has great aromatics with citrus notes, effervescent and very clean taste and dry finish. It was very refreshing. I fell in love with the Heurich Lager. I have never tasted a lager like that. The nose isn't as big with just a hint of sweetness. It really shines through the palate changing flavors from slightly spicy to somewhat sweet with a great texture.While there, I also secured my shirt for my AMAZING air guitar performance of "Livin' on a Prayer" at Solly's.

Next stop was the new Blue Jacket. We were greeted with water. Yes, I was very happy to have some water. Being this is Blue Jacket they presented our beer tasting in some serious stemware. They had a microphone set up and serious staff mingling about. They poured only one beer their kolsch. Greg Engert spoke about the history of the space and their goals upon opening. He also offered some tasting notes on the beer. He's a genius who when speaking is comfortable discussing medieval history to architecture to tasting notes in a beer and more. He's just a fascinating guy who never comes off condescending. 

We proceed onto Port City in Alexandria. I tried the Derecho Common and Downright Pils. Both are pretty solid beers. The Derecho Common had some mild fruitiness and mild maltiness. At Port City we had a shortened version of a tour.

After Port City, we headed to Mad Fox. As we entered I ran to the bar and ordered a bacon and cheese burger with fries. Food was necessary.  I grabbed some of our sample beers including the Broad Street IPA. It was a pretty solid IPA with some piney notes and light citrus. At the bar I ordered the Mason's Dark Mild. It offered what I love from a beer and gave me something to enjoy with my food at an ABV that allowed me to chill out. It was not too heavy, chocolate, malty and somewhat roasty flavor.

We jumped back in the bus and headed off to Three Stars Brewery. Dave warmly greeted us right away. I asked for the Lime Basil Session Saison and then sampled the Peppercorn Saison. I am loving the Lime Basil. Guess what it tastes like? That's right unicorn tears. No, but it's really perfect for the insanely hot weather and has all these spice notes that are well balanced. Dave led us on a brief two part tour of the history of Three Stars and their process. I love hearing about the early days with him and Mike and seeing how far they have come. I can't wait to see where they are in the next year or two.

It was a great tour and I really hope more maybe smaller versions can be organized.

The rest of week was kind of a blur. I hit up Big Hunt on Tuesday with stops at Pizzeria Paradiso and Scion where the Flying Dog event was held. I enjoyed several delicious beers with new and old friends. At Big Hunt I was able to try the Allagash James Bean. It's amazing when you look at the color and then the taste is so different. It felt silky, chocolate, some roast elements.

Another night I skipped DC Beer Week activities to enjoy some amazing cocktails with FEW and friends. More on that and my gin class with Caledonia Spirits another post.

On Thursday, I headed with friends to celebrate at Smoke and Barrel for a Neil Young themed DC Beer Week event. I started off with Allagash Golden Brett, which I described as funky deliciousness. Their food is spectacular. I ordered this yummy sausage sandwich and my friends ordered their BBQ platter with sweet potato fries and grits. At some point, I ordered a round of Bulleit bourbon because Thursday.

After leaving Smoke and Barrel, I convinced most of the crew to hit Millie & Al's. Of course the skeleton danced and I made everyone do two $1 Jell-O shots. Afterwards, the karaoke began. We signed up for numerous songs including "You Can Go Your Own Way". That's where I decided to drop to my knees and slide to my friend. I still stand by that decision even though I left a part of my knee on the floor.

Yesterday my body finally informed me that we were sick and I decided to take an easy the rest of the weekend.

[justthebottle]

Mama said knock you out

Don't call it a comeback...

I was lucky enough to win a dinner at Oyamel from a Facebook contest. Friends and co-workers have made fun of me saying I have good luck. I don't think that's the case considering I was unemployed/underemployed for about 3 years. It's more at some point things have to stop coming up Milhouse and come up Christina.

I started off the evening with an AMAZING cocktail in the bar. I ordered the sagrado corazon and it did not disappoint. It had hibiscus ice (say what) with toasted coriander and cilantro. I met Bonard Molina of Mayalen. They import and distribute the amazing tequila (Tequila Real) and mezcal (Banhez Mezcal) that we had paired with our dinner.

Bonard is an amazing person who like so many others is pursuing his passion. He works a regular gig to pay the bills and support his family while his import business blossoms. I was lucky enough to meet his mom (ADORABLE), sisters (they are also part of his business) and brand ambassador. The brand ambassador is a great guy who was wearing an ironic shirt to dinner. The ironic shirt was one that I actually own too.

The dinner had an appetizer, four courses and a dessert. Each course contained two to three small plates accompanying the course. We started with the Banhez Limited Edition: Oaxacan Fruit. It was a great starting point with slightly smoky notes, but a great fruity element and smoothness.

Throughout the dinner, we were presented with a history of the spirits, stories of the farmers in Mexico as well as a discussion of the tasting notes. Bonard and his company focus on not just obtaining a great product, but working with farm cooperatives to ensure fairness. They brought the head of one of the farming cooperatives in to talk about his passion, harvest and more. I asked about the inheritance law as I was curious about farm lands. He informed me that many young people have left the area to seek employment either in America or a larger urban area like Mexico City. If they are around, land goes to the male in the family. I was kind of taken aback as I knew that was common practice in many other cultures, but didn't think that was the case in Mexico.

We started with the Tequila Real Silver, which was very clean and smooth. It paired well with the shrimp and tacos with mushrooms.

We moved onto a delicious raw beef dish, oysters and salad. It was paired with Banhez Espadin/Madrecuixe Blend. This was my favorite. It combined a great smoky element especially on the finish with fruit flavors and a salty element. It made perfect sense with the oysters.

We moved onto the baby squid (BABIES) and pork loin paired with Tequila Real Anejo. As they explained,there are various aging periods for tequila. Anejo is aged a minimum of one year, but less than three years in small oak barrels. Barrel aging when done right, really adds value and maturity to your product. It had this great smoothness with caramel and spiced notes from the aging.

We moved onto lamb chops and a rice dish with corn truffles, queso fresco and epazote herb oil paired with the Banhez Tobala. The Banhez Tobala had an amazing nose with great spice notes like baker's spice flavors.

As the dinner took longer than expected it was at this time Man Friend was done. It was about 10:30pm so I can see wanting to go home. Anyways, I thanked our generous hosts and we sprinted to the metro.

[justthebottle]

Righteous Cheese Rocks My Face Off

I have been having a good amount of fun lately and haven't blogged enough. What? Shocked? Yeah, well sorry I am so busy kicking ass and taking names.

I won a free cheese and beer tasting at Righteous Cheese located at Union Market. How? See the statement above. I also won a tequila and mezcal dinner that you should expect to read about soon among other things.

The cheese tasting theme was "Backyard Cheese and Craft Beer". We tasted -

Beer

Stillwater Cellar Door (Westminster, Maryland)

Jolly Pumpkin Calabaza Blanca (Dexter, Michigan)

Great Lakes Wright Pilsner (Cleveland, Ohio)

Bell's Two-Hearted Ale (Kalmazoo, Michigan)

Cheese

Coach Farm Triple Creme (Goat - Pine Plains, New York)

Cave-Aged Marisa (Sheep - La Valle, Wisconsin)

Beecher's Flagship Reserve (Cow - Seattle, WA)

Billy Blue (Goat - La Valle, Wisconsin)

Carolyn Stromberg led the tasting. She's amazing as an instructor. She was really dynamic as a speaker and provided this great overview along with tasting notes. I am always amazed at people who speak with such comfort and passion. It makes it really interesting to sit and learn.

She had us do a more professional tasting. We rated the cheese and beer matrix style - each beer versus each cheese. We rated each combination between -2 to +2 depending on how much we enjoyed it.

I enjoyed the triple creme with Stillwater Cellar Door. My favorites were Beecher's Flagship and Bell's Two-Hearted IPA and Billy Blue and Jolly Pumpkin Calabaza Blanca.

As we tasted each cheese along with combining them with mustard seeds, bread and candied pecans we also talked about our thoughts. When we were finishing the tasting Carolyn asked us to share our favorites.

Before leaving I made sure to buy some burrata as it's made from unicorn tears and love.

[justthebottle]