My friends Travis and Jordan got married on Saturday in Belfast...which was lovely (even with the rain!). Great to see old friends and great to meet new ones.
Their reception was at the Mount n' Sea Inn in Northport, and they did a great job. In addition to a ton of food, they had just oodles of Charles Shaw (aka two buck chuck) chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon. I mentioned to someone that, all joking aside, Charles Shaw chardonnay was actually an award winning wine; this was laughed off.
So to the naysayers, I present the *double gold winning* two buck chuck: Charles Shaw Chardonnay reigns supreme!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Old Money, Steak, and Malbec
Restaurant Week in Boston, a great time to try a place you're curious about!
My snazzy friend Meg, who loves a good steak, had suggested we go for a nice slab of meat; she, I, and her awesome friend Eleanor wandered out to Morton's in the Back Bay.
The space feels very traditional-steakhouse-power suits-and-bankers, with booths, velvet seats at the bar, cabinets with wine, and a big ol' tray of raw meat so you can see the cuts that you're ordering. It's in a basement, but you don't really notice the lack of natural light.
We started with a wine-based cocktail, the Morton's Spritz, with Lunetta Prosecco (I used to pour this--just light and easy sparkling wine) Aperol (an apertif that is similar in flavor to Campari, but with less alcohol), a little orange juice, and sparkling water. Very light and a perfect pre-dinner cocktail. (Also a steal @ $6 at the bar...I have to say, the Morton's bar menu is very well-priced.)
From there, we all ordered our salads and filet mignon. I got a glass of Trapiche Broquel Malbec, a deep, inky glass of balanced fruit which went very well with my steak (which was excellent, by the way). The wine struck me as a perfectly cut navy blue suit--nothing flashy, just pure class, through the length of it.
I have no complaints about the wine selection at Morton's, but the prices were outrageous. Morton's seems to have about a 5 to 1 markup from the RETAIL price (going rate for a bottle of the Trapiche Broquel Malbec is as low as $11; my glass was about $14). I verified their markup with another wine I know, the Segura Viudas (regularly listed as one of Boston.com's choices for sparkling plonk at less that $10 a bottle--and $9.00 a glass at Morton's). According to Food and Wine, a reasonable markup to expect is 3 times WHOLESALE (with sparkling wines tending to be a bit higher). I shake my frugal fist at you, Morton's!
After enjoying our steaks and getting into dessert (a disappointing, chalky cheesecake and a decandent chocolate mousse), I thought it'd be fun for us girls to continue to look for the best steaks in Boston...thus we have THE STEAK PROJECT, a monthly quest for meat! September's assignment: great steak frites. Stay tuned :)
My snazzy friend Meg, who loves a good steak, had suggested we go for a nice slab of meat; she, I, and her awesome friend Eleanor wandered out to Morton's in the Back Bay.
The space feels very traditional-steakhouse-power suits-and-bankers, with booths, velvet seats at the bar, cabinets with wine, and a big ol' tray of raw meat so you can see the cuts that you're ordering. It's in a basement, but you don't really notice the lack of natural light.
We started with a wine-based cocktail, the Morton's Spritz, with Lunetta Prosecco (I used to pour this--just light and easy sparkling wine) Aperol (an apertif that is similar in flavor to Campari, but with less alcohol), a little orange juice, and sparkling water. Very light and a perfect pre-dinner cocktail. (Also a steal @ $6 at the bar...I have to say, the Morton's bar menu is very well-priced.)
From there, we all ordered our salads and filet mignon. I got a glass of Trapiche Broquel Malbec, a deep, inky glass of balanced fruit which went very well with my steak (which was excellent, by the way). The wine struck me as a perfectly cut navy blue suit--nothing flashy, just pure class, through the length of it.
I have no complaints about the wine selection at Morton's, but the prices were outrageous. Morton's seems to have about a 5 to 1 markup from the RETAIL price (going rate for a bottle of the Trapiche Broquel Malbec is as low as $11; my glass was about $14). I verified their markup with another wine I know, the Segura Viudas (regularly listed as one of Boston.com's choices for sparkling plonk at less that $10 a bottle--and $9.00 a glass at Morton's). According to Food and Wine, a reasonable markup to expect is 3 times WHOLESALE (with sparkling wines tending to be a bit higher). I shake my frugal fist at you, Morton's!
After enjoying our steaks and getting into dessert (a disappointing, chalky cheesecake and a decandent chocolate mousse), I thought it'd be fun for us girls to continue to look for the best steaks in Boston...thus we have THE STEAK PROJECT, a monthly quest for meat! September's assignment: great steak frites. Stay tuned :)
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Summer Wind
The summer wind, came blowin' in...in freaking August, after one of the coolest, wettest Junes on record.
So at the beginning of July, Bin Ends (a great wine store in Braintree with an amazing online presence; they do once daily emails for good deals) sent out an email about a Pinot Grigio that drinks well (similarly to Santa Margarita, which is about $20+ a bottle) that would be less than $5 a bottle when bought by the case. Both loving a good deal AND feeling like an excess of good white wine around for the rest of summer would be a happy, happy thing, I bought a case.
The wine is Cavatina Pinot Grigio--and it's one of the best low-cost wines I've had in a while. Pinot Grigio, in my opinion, is light and easy wine. It's backyard lawn chairs with your girlfriends kind of wine, halibut with fruit salsa wine, a cool refreshing gulp in the middle of the summer. The Cavatina is typical of Italian Pinot--crisp flavor, good acidity, thin...but it's exactly what I want to drink on the back porch when the sun is finally going down, the air feels good, and I've had a long day.
So at the beginning of July, Bin Ends (a great wine store in Braintree with an amazing online presence; they do once daily emails for good deals) sent out an email about a Pinot Grigio that drinks well (similarly to Santa Margarita, which is about $20+ a bottle) that would be less than $5 a bottle when bought by the case. Both loving a good deal AND feeling like an excess of good white wine around for the rest of summer would be a happy, happy thing, I bought a case.
The wine is Cavatina Pinot Grigio--and it's one of the best low-cost wines I've had in a while. Pinot Grigio, in my opinion, is light and easy wine. It's backyard lawn chairs with your girlfriends kind of wine, halibut with fruit salsa wine, a cool refreshing gulp in the middle of the summer. The Cavatina is typical of Italian Pinot--crisp flavor, good acidity, thin...but it's exactly what I want to drink on the back porch when the sun is finally going down, the air feels good, and I've had a long day.
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