Polls

I created my first poll which you can find on the side of the blog. This poll asks about Your Favorite Summertime Drink. The poll will last for about a week and then there will be a new poll. Check out the poll and cast your vote. Let us see how the readers think.

Cinnamon Rolls

As I have mentioned before, I love cinnamon. One of my favorite cinnamon items though are cinnamon rolls. And most specifically, my mother's cinnamon rolls. no one makes them better than mom. She has been making them for me since I was a child and I still savor them. So, for my birthday yesterday, my mom brought me a batch of fresh, hot cinnamon rolls!!!! They were absolutely delicious with the perfect amount of cinnamon. Thank you so much Mom!

Maybe in the near future I will post the recipe. But we warned, they won't be as good as my mom's cinnamon rolls.

2004 Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Noir Reserve

This was my second birthday wine and it was absolutely superb! Just a major WOW wine.

Ponzi Vineyards is located in the Willamette Valley in Oregon and is famed for its Pinot Noirs. I have had some of their other Pinots before and enjoyed them very much. This was my first tasting of their reserve though.

The 2004 Ponzi Vineyards Pinot Noir Reserve ($55) was a low production wine, only 2,312 six-bottle cases having been made. It received 91 points from Wine Spectator. To me, it deserved a higher rating as I thought it was one of the best Pinot Noirs I have had in a long time. This is a perfect example of how well Oregon can make Pinot Noir.

The wine presents an intial mix of fine fruit flavors, including some dark cherry and raspberry. These are more subdued fruit flavors, more mature fruit. The wine has a long finish with hints of various spices. The overall impression is an incredibly smooth wine that tantalizes the palate. It is a very well balanced wine and the tannins do not overpower you. This wine could be drank alone, or with food. It has such a silky mouthfeel and its melange of flavors will only please you. It is definitely a top notch wine that you want to linger over. There was a touch of sadness when the bottle was finally empty.

I certainly recommend this as a Drink & Buy. It is not an everyday wine but it is well worth its price. I will seek out this Reserve again.

1991 Cuvee Maximilian

It was my birthday yesterday so I opened a couple of special bottles of wine, including the oldest bottle of wine I own.

The 1991 Cuvee Maximilian was made by the Westport Rivers Winery in Massachusetts. Westport Rivers is a family owned vineyard and winery. They planted their first vines in 1986. They make both sparkling and still wines. Their Brut Cuvée RJR is an inexpensive ($20) sparkling wine which is very good.

The 1991 Cuvee Maximilian ($90) is the top of their line. It is comprised of 72% Pinot Noir and 28% Chardonnay. It spent twelve years "en tirage". It is made in the methode champenoise, the same way French champagnes are made. Only 40 cases of this wine were supposed to be produced. But, my bottle was numbered 1117 so I am unsure. The bottle came in a wooden box. The 1991 may not be available any longer at the winery as their website only has a listing for their 1992.

This sparkling wine was certainly very different than their basic Brut Cuvée RJR. The Brut has a touch of sweetness but the Maximilian is far more like traditional French champagne. It has more of that typical yeasty flavor. It is certainly a big wine, with layers of flavors, and lots of tiny bubbles. Everyone enjoyed the Maximilian very much. I think this would compare quite well against French champagne and most people would not believe it came from Massachusetts.

So, why not try a local winery? The 1992 Cuvee Maximilian is only selling for $60. It is also very limited so you might want to buy a bottle for a special occasion.

Boston Restaurant Week: August

The Summer edition of Boston Restaurant Week nears and now is the time to make your reservations. Over 150 restaurants will be participating.

Restaurant Week is actually two weeks, August 5-10 and August 12-17 (Just no Saturdays). Restaurants may have a special three-course Prix-fixe Lunch and/or Dinner menu. Lunch only costs $20.07 and dinner costs $33.07.

You can check out the Unofficial Guide to Boston Restaurant Week for details on which restaurants are participating, menus and reservation information.

Make your reservations early as this is a very popular event and the most popular restaurants can fill up very quickly. I have gone to a number of these events before and some of the restaurants really give you an excellent value.