lummi island wine tasting nov 11 ’16 artists’ studio tour
(note: some photos will enlarge when clicked)
Friday Breads
Pain au Levain – A traditional french levain (sourdough) bread made with a culture and a mix of bread flour as well as fresh milled whole wheat and rye flours, plus a little wheat germ and some barley malt for just a bit of sweetness. The bread is mixed and fermented overnight. This bread has great flavor and is a great all around bread – $5/loaf.
Cranberry Walnut Braid – Not your typical quick bread but a yeast bread enriched with buttermilk, eggs, sugar, butter and lemon. Then stuffed full of dried cranberries and toasted walnuts. This bread has a soft, tender crumb and is bursting with flavor – $5/loaf.
And for pastry this week my personal favorites…!
Pain aux Raisin: Made with the same laminated dough as used in the croissants, then rolled out, spread with pastry cream and sprinkled with dried cranberries and golden raisins before being rolled up, sliced and baked. It doesn’t get better than this for a pastry. – 2/$5
Studio Tour Artist
Our artist for Fall Studio Tour this weekend is Meredith Moench. We have shown her work before, and have several of her paintings in our house. In recent years she has been working extensively in watercolors, featuring natural landscapes with soft colors and lots of calming white space.
Meredith will be in the shop on Saturday and Sunday from 10-1 to talk with you about her work, and we will be doing our usual wine tasting Friday from 4-7, and Sat-Sun from 1-6. Please drop by!
The Empire Strikes Back
We aging Progressives have had a difficult year, beginning with our excitement over the Sanders candidacy and platform, with its huge and enthusiastic turnouts for his speaking appearances (despite a deliberate Media Blackout) and his obvious influence on the eventual Democratic platform (not that it Matters Any More). We moved on to support Hillary in the post-convention campaign, confident, but with a Nervous Eye to Weather about the Media’s trance-like Overfocus on All Things Jabba. Now we have all arrived at the Horrifying Reality just Plopped onto our Doorsteps: Jabba will be taking over the Empire.
As our sober philosopher and old acquaintance Leonard Cohen lamented in Dress Rehearsal Rag, “That’s right, it’s come to this, it’s come to this…and wasn’t it a Long Way Down…?…Wasn’t it a Strange Way Down?” ( Judy Collins did the definitive recording, effectively capturing the Darkness of This Moment. ) Listen
Jabba has already begun surrounding himself with Ideologues (orcs, goblins, wraiths, etc,) from the Dark Side to Organize their Nefarious Plan to Pillage and Enslave the Planet. So.. in a Surprise Move, the Empire has demolished our Utopian Dreams with a Dystopian Nightmare we will have to Endure for the next Very Long Four Years. Yes, it’s a Long Way Down, and yes, it will be a Long, Long Way Back Up. So we all need to Bear Up, Buckle Down, and Get to Work.
Frappato
Frappato is a red wine grape varietal grown primarily in Sicily. It is strongly related genetically to sangiovese,. but also to many other varietals. Corrado Gurrieri studied agronomy and organic farming before taking over a family vineyard and winery in Sicily. So it’s not surprising that his cellar and house are run on solar power. He represents the third generation of his family to work this hillside vineyard on the southern most point of Sicily, an area long called ‘Buonivini’ or ‘good wines.” As a proud steward of his land, his objective is to convey a sense of his land and its terroir in each bottle.
Fravolato is uncommon to most American palates. When young it is full of verve, grace and energy, with fresh and bright red fruit notes, which mature into more mellow notes of dried fruits and flowers with age. It is relatively light-bodied and crisp, a great summer red that even shows well with a bit of chill. of these wines. The best can show a tension between bitter and sweet fruit flavors, and many have savory. spicy, or mineral components. A good wine for Our Times.
This week’s Wine Tasting
Gilbert Cellars Riesling ’13 Washington ’13
From a rocky, south-facing 1500′ slope with long, sunny summer days and cool breezy nights. Ripe honeycrisp apple, basil, and mineral on the nose and palate with lively acidity is balanced and just a hint of residual sugar.
Sanguineti Cannonau de Sardegna ’14 Italy $11
This cannonau– a Sardinian varietal known elsewhere as grenache– offers dry and dusty aromas and flavors of cherry, pomegranate and plum that leave lingering, crisp, earthy and briny flavors that beg for food.
Tenuta la Favola Fravolato
Fruity, with notes of strawberries and cherries; fresh, round, elegant and pleasant fruit extraction, with a strong aftertaste of cherries and plums. An elegant and charming wine!
Cecilia Covolo
A blend of cab and merlot aged in concrete; lush and mouth-filling, sunny expression of Cab with engaging aromas of spearmint and warm cocoa. Palate of extured black currant fruit, dark chocolate, and a lively acidic core.
Conundrum Red ’15 California $20
Essence of California, with lots of bright bold cherries, raspberries, and plum nicely integrated into a smooth, round, hedonistic palate. Easy to like!
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2072 Granger Way