Hungry Are The Damned! 10/15/07-10/25/07 - COMPLETED W/LOTS OF PICS!!!

[TigerKat]

Great installment Brenda!

 

[oybolshoi]

EXCELLENT REVIEW!!!

Glad I stayed up until 4 am to read it....

Now I'm going to go and let the Nyquil kick in....

If I drank Scotch...I'd sign up for it...

Thanks for reading, Aunt Shell! Hope you feel better soon.

This looked fabby....it's a pitty I can't stand whisky . I found it a bit weird that they served Welsh bottled water, I would have thought it would have been Highland Spring or another Scottish water oh well never mind they still had the celtic connection

Hello there - thanks for reading! We didn't even know that spring water was the addition of choice to whisky - we've always just added ice because we like it cold. Having said that I thought the Welsh water tasted great - I only know about that one because I've seen it sold in some stores over here. Now that I think about it, it makes sense that there would be all kinds of spring waters available from Scotland ... maybe Ty Nant is just the one that Rose & Crown carries?

Ah Benz. You had me at Scotch. But then this:



made me think of Susan Powter.

Glad to see you Briarmom, as always! But I don't know who she is. I know I've seen her face before, but I don't know where or why.

Does she not like puns? Or does she just shout a lot? Because I love puns and I rarely shout.

Anyway, I got back on track with your report and it was goooooood. I felt a little tingle of Scotch in my throat just reading your report. That's good alcohol writing.

Now, I do believe that the two of you need to take a trip to Paris. I'll show you around. And assist you in getting your drink on.

Thanks for reading - happy to know you enjoyed it! We have really grown fond of single malt scotches since we did the pairing. We now have some Glenkinchie 10-year and a Macallan 12-year. My step-dad also gave us a bottle of the Famous Grouse for Christmas (it's blended but we like it very much).

And I like the fact that grouse is a multi-use word.

As for Paris ... we want to visit France next May (2009) for our 10th anniversary, but right now we're frightened by the imploding dollar and we're not sure if we can afford it. BUT ... if we do cross the ocean you will be one of the first people to hear about it!

Thanks I was wondering too. Not as bad as I thought.

I thought because the word included 'lard' that it might be something fairly simple, but I never like to assume with cooking terms.

I was looking at that glass and thinking the same thing. It was cool.

Loved that dessert, yummy. Everything looked really good. Thanks for installment.

Laura

Those are the coolest glasses, aren't they? We have looked all over the internet but haven't found anything like them. And since we don't know what they are officially called, it's been hard to narrow the search.

That dessert should be outlawed ... I don't think anyone there was actually able to finish it, it was that rich.

Thanks for reading Laura!

 

[oybolshoi]

Great installment Brenda!

Thanks Kathy - glad you liked it!

 

[MadamMim]

Holy Smoke where have I been!?! I totally missed the last review until just now. Usually I'm all over that stuff. Craziness.

Anyway... wonderful as always. My favorite is the windblown and drunk photo. And I also agree that Scottish salmon is the best ever, but that could be the cultural indoctrination they give all us foreign kids talking.

Can't wait for more.

 

[Leslieann1024]

We walked out of Rose and Crown bleary-eyed, slightly off-balance, and full of food to find a terrific storm brewing.

Something Whisky This Way Comes ...

De-lurking to say that I love your reviews, love your style ! And I just had to pop out to say that I love this pic !

 

[oybolshoi]

Holy Smoke where have I been!?! I totally missed the last review until just now. Usually I'm all over that stuff. Craziness.

Anyway... wonderful as always. My favorite is the windblown and drunk photo. And I also agree that Scottish salmon is the best ever, but that could be the cultural indoctrination they give all us foreign kids talking.

Can't wait for more.

Hiya Mim! Thanks for reading ... I like the windblown boozy picture, too!

I may have to take a week off or so ... there's figure skating coming up this week, plus Easter, plus a wedding, plus all kinds of other things in the next few weeks. The good news, I suppose is that a lot of what I have left is more F&W booths than anything else. So if I put my mind to it I might get it finished within the next month. But I make no promises.

De-lurking to say that I love your reviews, love your style ! And I just had to pop out to say that I love this pic !

Hi there! Thanks for delurking and for reading - always happy to hear from fellow food lovers here on the DIS!

I'm really proud of that picture - it's actually pretty good (for us) which tells me that Jay and I apparently need to drink whisky before going out on any more photographic adventures.

Thanks again for posting and reading!

 

[honeybee30]

Hey there Honeybee30! I was just wondering where you'd disappeared to the other day when I was looking for some more yummy and highly entertaining food reviews to read. I'm glad to see you back on the DIS! You two must go to PFTS ... I think it may be a moral imperative for you both. You'd love it!

I'm such a fickle Libra! I'm all about the DIS when I'm planning a trip...

The R&C whiskey pairing looked amazing. I'm a single-malt Scotch girl myself, but Heather always likes to keep a bottle of Irish around. She really enjoys Jameson's.

 

[cntkg1]

Great review Bendy! And thanks for ending it with my favorite food group.

 

[BriarRosie]

Sunday, October 21st - Scotch and Food ... Paired Together ... At The Rose and Crown? We Are Sooooooo There!

Once we were finished with the monsters at Sci-Fi, Jay and I decided that we needed a nap by the pool before our next scheduled Food & Wine event.

If you guys thought getting a Le Cellier pairing was kind fortune smiling on a four-eyed fool, then I don't know how to classify my nabbing this reservation. Epcot only offered one Scotch and Food Pairing during the 2007 Festival and it was a brand new event. Do you know how many crazy foodie-boozies were trying to snag this pairing???

A whole lotta foodie-boozies... a whole lotta indeed.

I would have been one of the crazies trying to get that event had I not gone home the previous day.

I would have included rye, but then I would feel compelled to include wry, and then this whole post would spiral out of control faster than you could shout "STOP THE PUNS!!!"

So says "Attila the Pun" herself.

The event was scheduled to begin at 3:30 that afternoon and if there is one thing Jay and I love about staying at the Beach Club Villas during the F&W Festival it is the convenience of walking in and out of the International Gateway. No bus, no muss ... we walked to the Rose and Crown in about 10 minutes and still had time to spare.

Bingo. Had I note stayed at the Beach Club Villas, I believe I would have had a heckuva time trying to get to my food and wine events. This factored into the dates I chose for next October, too. I managed to snag BCV again because let's face it, I'm spoiled now. Although my adventures to get to the Exquisite Evening in Epcot from Pop Century a couple years ago still crack me up.

I almost forgot the obligatory self portrait...

Time to get likkered up!

You're sporting two legs again.

Here are a couple of shots of the table to give you all an idea of how things were laid out for us when we arrived.

Mmmmmm, you can smell the malty goodness

A handy guidemap for your tasting today and your future distillery visits to Scotland

It's an event program! Are you reading this yet Restaurant Marrakesh??

Both place settings ...

I like the placemat and program setup for those events, too. LeCellier and Coral Reef seem to have it down to a science.

One thing that our pictures don't show is that we were at a table for four, seated with that lovely, nameless couple from ... the east coast ... Pennsylvania maybe, or New Jersey. Anyway, in the middle of the table was an ice bucket and a bottle of Ty Nant Spring Water (it's from Wales). The idea was to experiment with the whisky ... much like wine, they have different aromas and flavors, and drinking them chilled or with a splash of water can really impact the taste.

They seemed to put a lot of thought into this event where the water was concerned, too.

This is a picture of the first whisky that we tasted that afternoon, and it was primarily chosen to be paired with our first course, but we actually tried it with the the first two courses of the three that were offered that day.

Glenkinchie 10-year

The Glenkinchie is a single-malt scotch with a rich gold color. It has a fresh, almost citric aroma with some slight floral hints and just a whiff of smoke. The taste is clean and somewhat dry, but overall very tasty and not a bit harsh. I added water to mine and found that it smoothed out the taste even more. This was one of our favorite scotches of the afternoon.

How about some food to soak up a little of that booze? It's time for the first course: Pan-Seared Scallop with Sage and Prosciutto Risotto served with Sage Oil and Port Wine Reduction

Thank you sir, may I have another?

First of all, we were stunned by the portion size - that's a huge scallop for an afternoon tasting. And it was cooked really well, not at all grainy or chewy. I really liked the risotto as well, which was almost too creamy but those bits of prosciutto provided nice contrasting texture and saltiness. Secondly, we were blown away by just how good the whisky paired with this dish. It would never have occurred to us to fix a dinner and pair the different courses with whisky, but it really does work, especially with seafood.

Oh my freakin' lord! That is one big honkin' scallop. And they paired it with some Italian piggy goodness, too. Wow. That is a good portion for a food and wine pairing.

I'm not really a drinker ...

The guy in the background over Jay's left shoulder (no, the OTHER left) is giving me the heebiejeebies. "You lookin' at ME?"

Our second course, which paired with the above whisky, was Scottish Salmon on a Sweet Corn Cake with Lardons and a Heather-Honey Glaze.

More huge portions ... and do we really want to know what a lardon is?

As I have stated in previous reviews here on the DIS, I am not a huge fan of salmon. But this was exceptional - very light and flavorful without being overpoweringly fishy. I don't know enough about cooking or different types of salmon to be able to explain why Scottish Salmon is so sought after, but my understanding is that it is the salmon of choice for many high-level chefs around the world.

And being who I am, I had to look up lardon ... so, for your edification (and mine) the definition is as follows: Lardons are small strips or cubes of fatty bacon or pork that are cut from a pig's belly; they are frequently used in French cuisine to flavor salads, stews (Beef Bourguignon), quiches, potatoes, omelettes and other dishes.

Egad, it's Honey I Blew Up the Pairing Portions! Again, that's a great looking piece of fish! And when I read "lardon", my first reaction was "lard", as in, "C'mon everyone! Get your lard ON!"

Time for the last two whiskies of the afternoon, and this next one is a doozie!

Lagavulin 16-year A/K/A Campfire in a Bottle

This is another single-malt whisky, and this one is well known for its strong peat-smoke aroma. That's the reason our host called it Campfire in a Bottle. The very first thing I noticed before I even tasted this was the smoky aroma - it reminded me a little bit of the way our great room smells the morning after we've had a fire. Lagavulin had a very strong flavor - full-bodied with a lingering aftertaste.

I'm picturing it tasting like the Ashes of Rome scene in Spaceship Earth. Sorta like the lapsang souchon tea smells like in the tea shop.

Pretentious pinky-extension not required for actual enjoyment

That ain't your mama's tea service!

The final whisky of the afternoon was another Johnnie Walker blend, but a very special one:

Johnnie Walker Gold Label, 18-year

The Johnnie Walker Gold is a rare blend of more than 15 single malts, including the very rare Clynelish malt. The recipe was derived from Alexander Walker II's blending notes for a whisky to commemorate Johnnie Walker's centenary. It is commonly bottled at 15 or 18 years. This also has a smoky aroma, although much less pronounced than the Lagavulin; there are also hints of vanila and honey. The taste was very smooth and light, although there did seem to be a hint of spice afterwards. Our host told us that she actually likes to keep this blend in her freezer and drink it as cold as possible. It was actually served to us in frosted glasses and we both found this whisky very enjoyable. BTW - if anyone can point me to acquisition of a couple of these glasses I'd sure appreciate it. They are too cool!

Those serving glasses rock!

So, you guys wanna see the final course that was served that afternoon? Something that is so good with whisky we actually have started indulging in it here in the sticks, of all places!

Dessert! That's right, I said dessert. The Rose and Crown served us Valrohna Chocolate and Stilton Cheese Pave with Stilton Shortbread Garnish and Scotch-hinted Glaze.

Indescribable doesn't even describe it

Holy mother of God ... this has to be the single most rich hockey puck, I mean dessert, I've ever tried to eat. It was so thick that it was nearly impossible to push the fork all the way through from the top of the dessert to the bottom. I assume this was due to the stilton, but I don't know that for sure. But ... the combination of chocolate (valrohna, no less ... I think I've died and gone to chocolate heaven) and stilton cheese was incredibly smooth and decadent. One interesting tasting note - the chocolate completely obliterated the smoky taste of the Lagavulin whisky and turned it into something akin to a fine cognac. We were amazed at how well chocolate and whisky pair together - very tasty and very complimentary. Somehow, despite such strong and differing flavors, the two balance against each other perfectly.

I've had dessert at a food and wine pairing before, but nothing like THAT. Who'd have thunk it? Chocolate and blue cheese??? My mind is saying, "Ewww". But Valrohna chocolate probably would make anything taste like heaven.

A few last comments about this event - we really felt like Rose and Crown was going all out to impress us with great service, incredible food, generous portions, and very fine whisky. I can tell you that Jay and I started drinking the bottled spring water because we were so thirsty for something besides alcohol - we went through about three bottles and they just kept bringing us more, no questions asked. That stuff isn't cheap. And neither was the whisky that we tried - I've priced all four of these at a store here in town that's known for reasonable price tags. A bottle of Glenkinchie 10-year retails in Stinktown for $45; Johnnie Walker Green and Gold both retail for between $70-$80 per bottle; and the Lagavulin retails for about $80 per bottle.

I mention this because for the price per person to attend this event ($45 plus tax) we received exceptional value. Of all the food and wine pairings we've attended, this one stands head and shoulders above the rest, and we've been fortunate enough to attend some very good F&W pairings. All I can say is that if this event is offered again next year we're going to be all over it, and I hope that it's as good the second time around as it was the first.

I'd say you received quite the bargain on that event! Color me green with envy!

At least Jay was not the green one that day.

 

[oybolshoi]

I'm such a fickle Libra! I'm all about the DIS when I'm planning a trip...

The R&C whiskey pairing looked amazing. I'm a single-malt Scotch girl myself, but Heather always likes to keep a bottle of Irish around. She really enjoys Jameson's.

I'm a fickle Libra too, so I know exactly of what you speak.

The pairing at R&C was terrific - so far beyond our expectations that we were just blown away.

And I have to say ... we've both become quite fond of several different single malts since then. They just seem to have a smoother taste and yet they're more complex. Go figure.

We've tried Jameson's and actually have a bottle of Tullemore Dew that's just about ready to be replaced. I like some of the Irish Whiskies, but I'm actually conflicted because my heritage is literally Scotch-Irish ... we island hopped before finding the wilderness that is the USofA back in pre-revolutionary days. I bet if I checked the geneaology chart I'd find someone related to me who was involved in the Whiskey Rebellion.

Er... I digress, again. Thanks for reading - it's always good to hear from you whether you're feeling fickle or not!

Great review Bendy! And thanks for ending it with my favorite food group.

Hiya Mother Goose! Thanks for coming by to read. And as for the ending ... you are talking about the chocolate dessert, right?

I would have been one of the crazies trying to get that event had I not gone home the previous day.

I thought about you while we were in the middle of this event - you would have enjoyed it tremendously.

So says "Attila the Pun" herself.

I can't help it ... it's like I'm programmed for puns. At the grocery store today as Jay was gathering some apples from the top of the produce grouping, some of the others started to roll down the side. Before I could stop myself I heard my voice saying quite loudly, "Watch out! It's an apple-lanch!""

Poor Jay ... he has to put up with it every day. You guys only deal with it now and then.

Bingo. Had I not stayed at the Beach Club Villas, I believe I would have had a heckuva time trying to get to my food and wine events. This factored into the dates I chose for next October, too. I managed to snag BCV again because let's face it, I'm spoiled now. Although my adventures to get to the Exquisite Evening in Epcot from Pop Century a couple years ago still crack me up.

Yeah, I know ... that's the only thing that's going to suck about this October, but we'll manage. We're already laying out a stragety, as Bugs Bunny would say.

You're sporting two legs again.

That thing just pops in and out whenever it wants ... likes to keep us all guessing.

I like the placemat and program setup for those events, too. LeCellier and Coral Reef seem to have it down to a science. They seemed to put a lot of thought into this event where the water was concerned, too.

I have to give tremendous kudos to the management team at Rose & Crown and I assume the facilitator from Johnny Walker - it was very obvious that they spent a lot of time making this event "just so." They wanted to make a good impression, and as far as we're concerned they did.

Oh my freakin' lord! That is one big honkin' scallop. And they paired it with some Italian piggy goodness, too. Wow. That is a good portion for a food and wine pairing.

You should have heard the collective "wow!" at our table when those scallops were placed in front of us. I can't say that the portions were ever skimpy at any of the previous pairings we've been to, but this whole event was really more like a full meal. We had to cancel our dinner reservations at Flying Fish for later that evening because there was no way we could do justice to the menu there after this pairing.

BTW - the scallop was my favorite of the three dishes we tried. Yum!

The guy in the background over Jay's left shoulder (no, the OTHER left) is giving me the heebiejeebies. "You lookin' at ME?"

I knew I could count on you! When I posted that last night I was thinking the same thing ... that guy is looking right out of the picture at me.

Egad, it's Honey I Blew Up the Pairing Portions! Again, that's a great looking piece of fish! And when I read "lardon", my first reaction was "lard", as in, "C'mon everyone! Get your lard ON!"

Yep - the kitchen staff was really trying to impress everyone. They were uber-generous with the portions, weren't they?

When I first saw "lardon" on the menu I actually thought of that novella by Stephen King, The Body, and the section of the story with the county fair and the character known as Lard-A**.

I'm picturing it tasting like the Ashes of Rome scene in Spaceship Earth. Sorta like the lapsang souchon tea smells like in the tea shop.

It tasted like it smelled - smoky, smoky, smoky.

Those serving glasses rock!

I think we're going to have to show this picture to the bartender at the R&C come October and see if we can't get a little help locating some.

I've had dessert at a food and wine pairing before, but nothing like THAT. Who'd have thunk it? Chocolate and blue cheese??? My mind is saying, "Ewww". But Valrohna chocolate probably would make anything taste like heaven.

I'm not a fan of stilton, but this looked like solid chocolate the whole way through. I think what they must have done was add stilton to the making of the dessert - I've heard that some chefs have started doing that to add extra richness and texture to their chocolate creations. If anything, it added a bit of tangieness to the chocolate ... almost a chocolate cheesecake effect but with a blue cheese zing instead of that lemon zest zing you get with the cheesecake.

Regardless ... the amount of thought and preparation that went into this menu was very much appreciated by all of us who were there. We really felt like they put everything they had into this event.

I'd say you received quite the bargain on that event! Color me green with envy!

At least Jay was not the green one that day.

I agree - this was definitely a bargain for the price. I hope they offer it again this year so you have a chance to try it - I just hope then that the "suits" won't make them cheapen it up.

Jay was actually good until about 5PM, and then everything kind of caught up with him again. He didn't want any more food until the next day. I, on the other hand, went to the F&W festival and did a little snacking and then came back to the room and ordered more food.

The parasitic twin within must be fed!!

 

[50 years Too!]

Not sure if the cool glasses are Kosta Boda, but they look like they could be.
Check it out. (Used to be an assistant buyer in China & Glass in another life).

Deb

 

[oybolshoi]

Thanks for the tip, Deb! I've already found something that looks similar to these but I'm not sure if it's the right one or not. I'll have to wait until Jay has time to look ... his eyes are better than mine.

Not sure if the cool glasses are Kosta Boda, but they look like they could be.
Check it out. (Used to be an assistant buyer in China & Glass in another life).

Deb

 

[CampbellScot]

I absolutely LOVE the self portraits you and Jay do on every trip!!! Y'all are just too cute for words!!!

YAY that you get to go back for 2008!!! I am SO jealous...there is no way in heck that My Jay and I will EVER get to a F&W festival as it is during one of the busiest school months EVER. We are both swamped with new kids to evaluate and wrangle...and teach to behave.

Oh well...at least we have the Bendy trip report to live vicariously through!!



I don't know how y'all remained standing after ANY Scotch...let alone LOTS!!

Can I tell you what happend to MOI when I tried some Scotch...I know you want to know...so I'm going to tell you...and YES, it involved bar top dancing!

I was in Ireland...visiting family...we were at a lovely cozy pub...and a friend of mine says "Oh just try a sip..."

next thing I know, I'm dancing on the bar singing a song in which the chorus demands that we "rise up our skirts!" (thank goodness I was wearing jeans!)

I believe it was:

No, nay, never!

*rise up your skirts*

No nay never no more

Will I play the WILD rover

No never No more!!!



never again have I allowed Scotch to turn me into the wildest of rovers.

except that other time...

but we won't go into that one!!!



so glad y'all are going back!!!

 

[whogirl'smom]

Loved the Rose and Crown review! Those looked like some mighty generous offerings of alcohol there--I'm impressed you all weren't listing to the side in your photopass shot! The only time I reach for whiskey, it is Jack Daniels if I have a bad cold, bronchitis, etc. We actually have half a bottle of Rock N Rye in the fridge from DH's bout with something last year.

Anyway, about the wine....we did find the best riesling I ever tasted from Willamette winery, a 2006. It was so clear and just sweet enough not to have that "whang" that some of the other reislings we tried did. We got to drink two bottles over the week, but when it came time to packing, I had already bought three other bottles of wine and too many things at the outlets to fit in another bottle! We tried a local Gewertz (can't spell the rest) like the one at Epcot, but it was not sweet at all! Kind of disappointing.

We did get the marionberry mead I mentioned and an Oak Knoll 2006 riesling and also a cranberry hard cider thing I had never tried before. I'll get you the name of that when I finish unpacking, but it was very good. When you bring back about 25 pounds of cheese (no I'm not kidding, but it was for 4 other people, too) you can only fit in so much wine to go with it, you know?

 

[Briarmom]

Glad to see you Briarmom, as always! But I don't know who she is. I know I've seen her face before, but I don't know where or why.

Does she not like puns? Or does she just shout a lot? Because I love puns and I rarely shout.




Thanks for reading - happy to know you enjoyed it! We have really grown fond of single malt scotches since we did the pairing. We now have some Glenkinchie 10-year and a Macallan 12-year. My step-dad also gave us a bottle of the Famous Grouse for Christmas (it's blended but we like it very much).

And I like the fact that grouse is a multi-use word.

As for Paris ... we want to visit France next May (2009) for our 10th anniversary, but right now we're frightened by the imploding dollar and we're not sure if we can afford it. BUT ... if we do cross the ocean you will be one of the first people to hear about it!

Ah, Susan Powter. I think in the 90's she was on TV a lot touting diet stuff. She had a shaved head with just about half an inch of white blonde hair. I also think she used to yell 'STOP THE MADNESS' but I could be wrong.

The dollar makes me cry. On a daily basis. We pay all of our bills/rent in Euro.

 

[Cinders Mum]

A handy guidemap for your tasting today and your future distillery visits to Scotland

OMG I can see our town on here !!! LOL

Sounds like a great pairing. I have to admit to loving Glenfiddich or glenmorangie over johnny walker, this coming from the girl who lives a very short drive from the House of Bruar, and the home of Bells and Dewars whiskys.

Loved your report.

val
xx

 

[oybolshoi]

I absolutely LOVE the self portraits you and Jay do on every trip!!! Y'all are just too cute for words!!!

YAY that you get to go back for 2008!!! I am SO jealous...there is no way in heck that My Jay and I will EVER get to a F&W festival as it is during one of the busiest school months EVER. We are both swamped with new kids to evaluate and wrangle...and teach to behave.

Oh well...at least we have the Bendy trip report to live vicariously through!!

Awww, thanks Campbell. I'm sorry you and your Jay won't have a F&W experience just yet ... but some day I'm sure the two of you will find a way to get there! I think you'd both really enjoy it ... Sally might like it, too! The jury is out on Teddy, though ...

I don't know how y'all remained standing after ANY Scotch...let alone LOTS!!

Can I tell you what happend to MOI when I tried some Scotch...I know you want to know...so I'm going to tell you...and YES, it involved bar top dancing!

I was in Ireland...visiting family...we were at a lovely cozy pub...and a friend of mine says "Oh just try a sip..."

next thing I know, I'm dancing on the bar singing a song in which the chorus demands that we "rise up our skirts!" (thank goodness I was wearing jeans!)

I believe it was:

No, nay, never!

*rise up your skirts*

No nay never no more

Will I play the WILD rover

No never No more!!!



never again have I allowed Scotch to turn me into the wildest of rovers.

except that other time...

but we won't go into that one!!!



so glad y'all are going back!!!

What a great story ... I'm wiping away the "mirthy" tears as I type.

In our case, I think it helped that the portions were generous, so the food did offset the alcohol to an extent. But ... we were definitely ... ummmm ... feelin' fine.

And we are very excited to be going back and I already have a tentative dining schedule laid out so that we can try some new places again on this trip.

I live to eat, drink, and review ... all for my food friends on the DIS (and because it's just plain fun and waaaaay better than being at work).

Loved the Rose and Crown review! Those looked like some mighty generous offerings of alcohol there--I'm impressed you all weren't listing to the side in your photopass shot! The only time I reach for whiskey, it is Jack Daniels if I have a bad cold, bronchitis, etc. We actually have half a bottle of Rock N Rye in the fridge from DH's bout with something last year.

Thanks for reading Whomom ... am I allowed to abbreviate you? Yes, those were extremely genreous portions and tasty, to boot!

I think since you live in Tennessee it may be a law that you must have a bottle of JD in the house at all times. I'm not sure if I've ever tried it, but when I was 16 my parents dragged me through the distillery tour in Lynchburg on our way home from WDW. I remember that it was very stinky and the only redeeming thing about the entire experience was that a college baseball team was taking the tour at the same time.

Anyway, about the wine....we did find the best riesling I ever tasted from Willamette winery, a 2006. It was so clear and just sweet enough not to have that "whang" that some of the other reislings we tried did. We got to drink two bottles over the week, but when it came time to packing, I had already bought three other bottles of wine and too many things at the outlets to fit in another bottle! We tried a local Gewertz (can't spell the rest) like the one at Epcot, but it was not sweet at all! Kind of disappointing.

We did get the marionberry mead I mentioned and an Oak Knoll 2006 riesling and also a cranberry hard cider thing I had never tried before. I'll get you the name of that when I finish unpacking, but it was very good. When you bring back about 25 pounds of cheese (no I'm not kidding, but it was for 4 other people, too) you can only fit in so much wine to go with it, you know?

Oooooh, sounds like some good stuff. I'm especially interested in that reisling you mentioned. I like those quite a bit as long as they're not overly sweet. We tried one from France last year that we really liked but of course forgot to write down the name. D'OH!

Marionberry mead sounds interesting ... I may have to do some internet poking. Is that really sweet? Again, I tend to avoid wines / alcohols that are overly sweet (unless they can be mixed with other alcohol in a pleasing non-cough mediciney manner).

Whoa on the cheese!!! Did you have an extra suitcase just for cheese and wine? We're actually talking about doing that next fall on our cruise so that we'll have extra space to pack in the booze we're hoping to find some good prices on (scotch anyone?).

Thanks for taking the time to tell us about your wine & cheese finds!

Ah, Susan Powter. I think in the 90's she was on TV a lot touting diet stuff. She had a shaved head with just about half an inch of white blonde hair. I also think she used to yell 'STOP THE MADNESS' but I could be wrong.

Oh yeah .... now I remember. She was one of those wacked out fitness gurus that popped up in the 90s ... you're right. And I think she was insane.

The dollar makes me cry. On a daily basis. We pay all of our bills/rent in Euro.

It makes us cry, too. It's painful for a lot of people right now, unfortunately.

A handy guidemap for your tasting today and your future distillery visits to Scotland

OMG I can see our town on here !!! LOL

Now that's too funny! At least now I know they gave us an accurate map of Scotland.

Sounds like a great pairing. I have to admit to loving Glenfiddich or glenmorangie over johnny walker, this coming from the girl who lives a very short drive from the House of Bruar, and the home of Bells and Dewars whiskys.

Loved your report.

val xx

Thanks for reading and posting, Val! Scotch novice that I am, I have to admit that I actually like the single malts more than the blends. We have a Johnny Walker sampler that we bought ourselves around the holidays and we also have a Glenfiddich sampler that we bought at the same time. Johnny Walker is good, but the Glenfiddich is GOOD!!!!!

Seems like all the single malts we've tried we prefer over the blends - maybe it's all in my head but they seem to taste a little better and they also strike me as having a more clean finish (they don't burn so much ... ).

Thanks again for reading - glad you've enjoyed your time here!

 

[Tink rules]

Thanks for reading, Aunt Shell! Hope you feel better soon.

Thanks Bendy!!!

 

[D&R love Disney]

Hey I knew what a lardon was all those years of watching Julia!

Brenda, I think I would have had to have Rick carry me out of there drinking those 4 drinks I haven't yet acquired a taste for whiskey/scotch yet but what an event.

For years, Mom and I went to Disney during the F&W but never went to any of the events. Now it seems October just doesn't work for us and I really want to get to there to go to some of the events you've written about.

 

[BabyPiglet]

Great review, once again!