With summer here, we always talk about what wines to pair with this hot season of the year. And while light, fun, crisp whites and easy-drinking fruity reds are normally the go-to during these next few months, at some point you have to sit down and switch it up a little. A long day out in the sun makes for a hungry, thirsty individual that just needs some gastronomic pleasure. Enter Italian comfort food – more specifically pasta!
Now we can go many different directions with this versatile grain. We can mix it with red sauce, meat sauce, and white sauce; with chicken, sausage, or various vegetables and oils. Pasta is filling, and when you want to lay back, relax, and replenish your system with carbs, it presents some awesome wine pairing options.
Below are some familiar Italian dishes along with the perfectly paired wine pick. Let the summer breeze blow and the good wine flow.
Scene One (not pasta but a great way to get ready for some):
The dish: An appetizer of prosciutto and melon
Ingredients: unadulterated! Cured ham and ripe summer melon
The wine: Here is a really fun and light appetizer that brings together sweet and salty, all wrapped into a delicious way to wet your palate. Like any good meal should start, some sort of bubbly will be in order. The Italian Brachetto d’acqui is one of my favorite ways to kick off a meal; awesomely delicious and a touch of sweetness. Good acidity and low alcohol here will go perfectly with the melon and most certainly will hold up to the procuitto. If you have any leftover after your first course (which is doubtful) it makes for a great after dinner drink too… [Read the rest at Cork'd]

We just wanted to pass along the latest food and wine pairing article from Cork’d. Please feel free to share this with your readers – some really solid advice to follow for planning your next meal!

I was recently out to eat at a restaurant in downtown New York City that inspired this piece. While the name of the establishment will remain nameless, I’ve noticed this particular restaurant’s downfall becoming a trend, sweeping across both Manhattan and the nation as a whole. The issue that I’ve experienced is with the pricing and quality of wine lists that are completely out of line with the pricing and offerings from a kitchen. The following description of incongruity between food and wine is not unique to restaurants. This same principal should be applied when preparing a meal at home…
My friend and I showed up for dinner decked out in our finest jeans, t-shirts and sneakers. A casual spot, we were led to our table by an unkempt, disheveled looking teenager and presented menus and a wine list. For food, we had an assortment of gourmet dishes to choose from, including a “chicken cutlet sandwich” and a “cheeseburger with sweet fries”. Nope, these were not kids menus.
After a quick dinner menu perusal, I flipped open the wine list. With over 150 wines by the bottle and 20 wines by the glass, there was a major French influence to the list. The least expensive by the glass pour was a Loire Valley Saumur – priced at $11 per glass. By the bottle there were verticals of Dom Perignon and Opus One. Suddenly I asked myself, “should I be wearing a collared shirt?”
You wouldn’t serve Beluga Caviar with Lay’s potato chips for scooping, would you?
For that very same reason, you shouldn’t serve a bottle of 1990 Dom Perignon alongside Popcorn. The two may complement each other. In fact, the two might even enhance one another. Like your Uncle Charlie who always seems to have a gas-attack when company is around; it’s funny, it might even work in the right situation, but it’s just plain inappropriate… read the rest on Cork’d

Nice list. . .but where’s Chumbawamba? :-X

Here it is folks. . .from our friends at Lyke 2 Drink, the Top 200 drinking songs of all time!!

Music and drinking must go back in time to the very early days of civilization. The two things just appear to go together. Bar bands and juke boxes are proof that when people drink they like to hear music — or is it when they hear music they like to drink?

Get the rest of the article and the complete list here . . .

Apparently, Manila has a growing craft and microbrew fanbase. Nice. Choice is always cool! As read on Suds Magazine

I’m an avid supporter and lover of American (style) craft beers, and I love to spend my winter vacation in The Philippines. This presents a problem, and an opportunity!

When one thinks of great cities to visit and enjoy some fine ales, places like Portland, Seattle, San Diego and Denver come to mind. I know for sure that Chicago, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Boston all offer a beer-minded traveler a fine selection of local brews, beer bars and brewpubs. But what about Manila?

Read the rest of the article here . . .

We’re also a GBX American Craft Beer Outlet . . . see you soonest.

Must admit. . . Gary V of Wine Library TV and author of Crush It is a marketing genius. . .I just bought his book. Will share some insights if I get around to actually reading it. . .In the meantime, educate yourselves in the art of beer appreciation.

For all you single malt fanboys and fangirls (we like the peat so partial to Laphroaig), the Wine Library TV guy and blogging godhead share tips on how to enjoy and appreciate this nectar of the gods. Watch and learn.

this show is soooo funny. . .

cheers!

Here at the ‘ole Avenue S, we like to celebrate the smallest of achievements as we do large scale ones.

This week, join us as we celebrate. . . . . .

tadaaaa!!!

What say you??? Join us as we bid farewell to old, ratty seat-covers and say hi to shiny new ones installed by our very own in-house upholstery team. . .total savings of 85%!!!!

For a limited time, do-it-yourself consultation is “free” with drink and meal purchase. See you soonest

other than to get hammered:

1. To remove a bandage painlessly, saturate the bandage with vodka. The solvent dissolves the adhesive.

2. To clean the caulking around bathtubs and showers, fill a trigger-spray bottle with vodka, spray the caulking, let set five minutes and wash clean.
The alcohol in the vodka kills mold and mildew.

3. To clean your eyeglasses, simply wipe the lenses with a soft, clean cloth dampened with vodka. The alcohol in the vodka cleans the glass and kills germs.

4. Prolong the life of razors by filling a cup with vodka and letting your safety razor blade soak in the alcohol after shaving. The vodka disinfects the blade and prevents rusting.

5. Spray vodka on vomit stains, scrub with a brush, then blot dry.

6. Using a cotton ball, apply vodka to your face as an astringent to cleanse the skin and tighten pores.

7. Add a jigger of vodka to a 12-ounce bottle of shampoo. The alcohol cleanses the scalp, removes toxins from hair, and stimulates the growth of healthy hair.

8. Fill a sixteen-ounce trigger-spray bottle and spray bees or wasps to kill them.

9. Pour one-half cup vodka and one-half cup water in a Ziploc freezer bag, and freeze for a slushy, re-freezable ice pack for aches, pain, or black eyes..

10. Fill a clean, used mayonnaise jar with freshly packed lavender flowers, fill the jar with vodka, seal the lid tightly and set in the sun for three days. Strain liquid through a coffee filter, then apply the tincture to aches and pains.

11. Make your own mouthwash by mixing nine tablespoons powered cinnamon with one cup vodka. Seal in an airtight container for two weeks. Strain through a coffee filter. Mix with warm water and rinse your mouth. Don’t swallow.

12. Using a q-tip, apply vodka to a cold sore to help it dry out.

13. If a blister opens, pour vodka over the raw skin as a local anesthetic that also disinfects the exposed dermis.

14. To treat dandruff, mix one cup vodka with two teaspoons crushed rosemary, let sit for two days, strain through a coffee filter and massage into your scalp and let dry.

15. To treat an earache put a few drops of vodka in your ear. Let set for a few minutes. Then drain. The vodka will kill the bacteria that is causing pain in your ear.

16. To relieve a fever, use a washcloth to rub vodka on your chest and back as a liniment.

17. To cure foot odor, wash your feet with vodka.

18. Vodka will disinfect and alleviate a jellyfish sting.

19. To remove cigarette smoke in your home or office mix one part vodka and three parts water and spray the clothing, then launder and let dry.

20. Pour vodka over an area affected with poison ivy to remove the urushiol oil from your skin.

21. Swish a shot of vodka over an aching tooth. Allow your gums to absorb some of the alcohol to numb the pain.