Piper Heidsieck Champagne Tobacco

Looks like Hookah just got a little more exciting for me...

Champagne Skin Care

you can always count on YouTube...this is hilarious, informative and interesting...I think I'm going to fill up the bath tub with KRUG..haha

Another FINE experiment...

Sparkling Mulled Wine?

Left to Right: Cava, Mix of Cava and cooled Mulled Wine, and lastly plain cooled Mulled Wine

After a day of work aka holiday retail insanity places like Wine Merchant  http://www.fpwm.com/index.html & Il Cane Rosso http://canerossosf.com/ are life savers for us Ferry Building survivors. The most recent evening we snagged a bottle of Cava (Spanish bubbly) as Wine Merchant was having 'last call' and we brought it over to Il Cane Rosso. I usually am happy to stick like glue to my bubbles but Il Cane lured me in with their Mulled Wine, next thing I know I have a glass of bubbles and a mug of Mulled Wine staring at me. For those of you who know me you know naturally what comes next - I LOVE to mix everything and recreate new things. So yes, Sparking Mulled Wine! The outcome wasn't what I hoped for (but that's not the point, the point is try everything, you never know what will turn out amazing.) & I did however figure out how it would work out for next time, the Mulled Wine needs to be reduced to a Mulled Wine syrup and then cooled and added to your bubbly. Just the cooled Mulled Wine itself is not flavorful enough to make the correlation optimum. So there you have it, my excitement for one evening...or at least the part I'll write about. : ) 

Kali Orexi, SFine

Local meets Local: Piecemaker Jewelry meets Schramsberg Sparkling Wine

The Atomic Fireball

Just look at it...so innocent at only 2 cm in diameter...don't judge a book by it's cover.

So i must note: My recent rediscovered of The Atomic Fireball was actually due to a joke of getting a chili pinata for my birthday (for a drunken game of "spin the friend." If i would have known what was to come of it...This little spicy candy is going to be the death of me be it by ulcer or pure addiction.

You may be wondering why on earth would anyone write about an Atomic Fireball? Well nice to meet you - My name is Sarah and yes i have a serious addiction to both Effervescence (Sparkling Wines) and Capsaicin (SPICY everything.) As for the reasoning of these obsessions. We'll deal with the Sparkling Wine in another post...For the spicy - It must have been somewhere between my moms cooking with chilies and dad feeding me Hot Tamales when stuck at his office where my my tastes developed a love for capsaicin.

Curiosity about dissecting the little thing now has become interesting enough (to me) to write about it; and my findings have been interesting actually. I found a "virtual tour" of how they are made which confirms my need to *but wont* accept the fact that i personally cannot recreate them to their exact perfection myself. *I want to make them myself with Jolokia pepper...it will happen* Link to "Virtual Tour" of The Atomic Fireball:

http://www.ferrarapan.com/html/fb_tour_1.html

And for you history nuts: http://www.ferrarapan.com/html/fb_history.html

Zivio! Cheers! Yamas! Salute! Chok dee!

....i have a bit of a fascination with sparkling wine advertisements old and new...here are just a few i have found recently.
Zivio!

Chamagne on the rocks? Moët Ice Imperial Champagne Revealed...

I just heard about this new Champagne made for drinking over ice...so i had to give a quick post to showcase it...Only Moët& Chandon would ; ) Check out the link below...I am currently looking where to find it in San Francisco...

http://blog.purentonline.com/index.php/2010/06/27/the-moet-ice-imperial-champagne-bottle/

A look into Whiskey and Cheese class...

Cheese & Wine of Spain - instructed by Janet Fletcher

I can't complain when my evening of work consists of tasting Spanish cheeses and wines...Let's keep this straight forward and give you an outline of the cheeses and wines themselves... Then a bit on our personal thoughts for pairings(although i wasn't able to try pairings with everything)...Zivio, SF

The 8 Cheeses (clockwise in from the photo):


Leonora
Provenance: Castilla Leon, Spain
Type: Pasteurized goat's milk

Cana de Oveja
Provenance: Murcia, Spain
Type: Pasteurized sheep's milk

Vare
Provenance: Austrias, Spain
Type: Pasteurized goat's milk


Montcabrer
Provenance: Catalunya, Spain
Type: Pasteurized goat's milk


Mahon Reserve
Provenance: Menorca, Spain
Type: Raw cow's milk

Ombra
Provenance: Catalunya, Spain
Type: Pasteurized sheep's milk

Torta La Serena
Provenance: Extremadura, Spain
Type: Raw sheep's milk

Valdeon
Provenance: Castilla Leon, Spain
Type: Pasteurized cow and goat's milk



The 4 Wines:

Bubbly: 2007 Raventos I Blanc, "L'Hereu Reserva," Brut Cava
Professional notes:
The search for clarity and purity has produced this sparkling wine with a gentle citric aroma highlighted by hints of white fruits, with all the olfactory elements in perfect balance.The palate is built on both freshness and concentration: a wine that combines firmness and smoothness with creamy bubbles. A long and very clean finish.

My notes:
Aroma of hay, straw or clay
Tatse: ok, nice acidity, paired well with Leonora.


White: 2009 Bodegas Angel Rodriguez, Martinsancho, Rueda Verdejo (Rueda, Spain)
Professional notes:
Wine is fermented in enamel tanks and aged in very large, neutral oak 'cubas.' The resulting wine is generous, with delicious peach, melon and guava notes, textural, as well as mineral, focused and age-worthy. In other words, drink it now but stash some away for a few years down the road.

My notes:
Aroma: Peach. Lychee, Apricot
Taste: hint of lime, slightly sweet/slightly sour, balanced, loved it! Paired well with Cana de Oveja , Mahon Reserva , and Valdeon.

Red: 2008 Borsao, "Tres Picos," Garnacha (Campo de Borja, Spain)

Professional notes:
It gives up a compelling nose of black cherry fruit that jumps from the glass along with earth and mineral notes. Plush on the palate bordering on voluptuous, this pleasure-bent, full flavored effort will drink well for another 3-4 years although few will be able to resist its charms for that long.


Sweet: Bodegas Dios Baco, S.L. Amontillado Sherry
Professional notes:
Amber-colored, with sharp but subtle (hazelnut-like) aroma. Smooth and light to the palate. It's alcohol content is around 16-18%.

My notes:
Aroma: toasted nuts
Taste: Vanilla, citrus, not to sweet/not to dry, perfect. Paired well with Mahon Reserva & Valdeon

Zivio & good night everyone!!! xoxox