Fuzion

Despite it now looking all dark and gloomy out, this wine has always been one of my favourite summer sunshine staples, Fuzion - Chenin Torrontes from Argentina.

First I wanna talk about the varietal's. Chenin Blanc aka. Chenin is a white grape originally from France and is arguably one of the most versatile of all wine grape varieties. From plain old table white to sparkling to dessert, it's even used in brandy in some parts of the world. Most often you'll find aromas and flavours of apples, honey and melon with hints of grass or hay.

Torrontes also a white grape is originally from Argentina, and for the most part is ONLY grown in Argentina. There have been some - but very few plantings in Chile, and sometimes you'll find a Spanish Torrontes but there is no DNA evidence between the two that they are related. The best Torrontes are highly aromatic, really floral and loads of citrus. Peaches, oranges and lychee and just a few of a flavours you'll find, sometimes even a little spice!

Now for wine itself, it's a pale straw colour with glimmers of green. Aromas of jasmine, violets and citrus. The palate is light and fresh with medium acidity, loads of tropical fruit and peaches. I first tried it maybe about 2-3 years ago and it's always kept me coming back for more, annnnnnd drum roll please.... it's like $12! Uh-mazing, go get a bottle and hope that summer comes back soon.

May is for Megan

Life is full of people coming and going but somehow it never gets easier to say goodbye. Sadly my friend/co-worker Megan told me that she would be moving back to Saskatchewan. The only thing that makes me ok with it, is how happy is was making her. She grew up in there and it's where her family still is. She's gone to school and has a pretty solid idea of what she wants to do and what it's gunna take to do it. She's also been living the big city life here in Van for over 4 years.

One of the biggest downsides to living in this fantastic city is the cost of living. The majority of people I know here are all working 2 jobs and at the end of each month are still struggling to pull in rent. It leaves little to no possible way of saving anything without totally becoming a no-social-life-shut-in eating nothing but oatmeal, rice, and beans.

Before she made her final decision, she was brainstorming out a pro's and con's list. I'm pretty sure her and I both knew that even before she had put anything on the list the decision was already made. The seed of an idea was planted! She sent me a text a few days later that said she was leaving in a month :( 

One of the funny/major cons was how cold it gets there. We complain sometimes about how cold it gets here...3°C HA! But because of all the rain and how damp it gets, it feels a lot colder, realistically we know it's nothing compared to the -30 Saskatchewan winters.
I knew I couldn't let her leave without crocheting her something awesome, and I had a month to do it. She's mentioned to me before about her family's cabin, swimming at the lake and chill'n by the fire, I figured a blanket would be the perfect gift.

I've made baby blankets before, but nothing "adult" size. I've also never done much of anything with granny squares. So I decided on one giant granny square!

Michaels was having a sale on wool and I thankfully found the perfect vintage-hipster-esque colours that I thought she would like. I had no idea how much I would need of each colour to get the size that I wanted so I just grabbed one extra big skein of each - 5 total.

The overall size when I was done/ran out of wool was about 4 1/2 ft x 4 1/2, perfect! And took me just over 2 weeks to finish. I was worried about not having enough time between family and work but I managed to maximized my time by crocheting on the bus, 10 minutes on my break, and for a hour or so when I got home from work :D

We met yesterday afternoon (She leaves on Sunday) and I gave it to her. She was thrilled and we enjoyed a delicious lunch at the Red Wagon. There is seriously nothing more satisfying than making something for someone and seeing how happy it makes them. I hope she has many picnics and nights by the fire with this blanket. 

Although I'm sad to see her go I know she's going to do great things and I will see her again someday. I'm going to miss you Megan, Saturday "Beat" nights won't be the same without you <3
You can also check out her blog here for awesome food, fashion and good times!

Bloom

A few weeks ago I received a email invite to Bloom, also knows as the BC spring release wine tasting! I was sooooo excited for this event, I love BC wine and already knew of a few new ones that I was looking forward to trying along with some old favorites.

I also got to bring 2 guests, the man was my first choice but he had to work. So I brought my 2 friends Wilder and Dustin who both knew next to nothing about wine. Which in the long run turned out to be a good thing because it gave me the chance to refresh my BC wine memory.

As one would expect I had a awesome time! I had a mental list of all the new wines I wanted to try first which was good because the place filled up pretty quickly. 

But instead of blabbering on and on about ALL the wines that were there, I'm just gunna highlight a few that I particularly enjoyed. I also have to apologize for the lack of reds, I tried to stick mostly to whites and rose's as to not annihilate my pallet. I got a few reds in at the end but I'll have to admit I was a wee bit tipsy by then and it was hard to remember even after looking through my blurry pictures

Therapy 2011 Sauvignon Blanc - These guys never disappoint me. Strong aromas of lemon and grapefruit rind. Matching the nose I could taste grapefruit, along with some grassy notes, finishing with nice tart green apple flavours.

Perseus 2010 Sauvignon Blanc - Kinda opposite of the previous Sauv. This one had more green apple on the nose and loads of citrus and grapefruit on the pallet, just all round lip-smackingly good!

Dirty Laundry 2011 Woo Woo Gewürztraminer - For some reason I always forget about this wine and only remember it when I'm removing the tag because we've sold out. Lemme start by saying this wine was Deeeeelish with a capital D. A bouquet of roses and lychee fruit filled my nose, while peach, apple and honeysuckle flavours coated my mouth. Not too dry and not too sweet, with a nice lingering luscious finish.

Cedar Creek Ehrenfelser 2011 - Remember when I wrote about Summerhills Ehrenfelser and how awesome it was, well make way cause Cedar Creek is coming to town. I enjoyed this one a lot more mostly because I got way more fruit on the pallet and it didn't taste at all carbonated (not that Summerhill's is, it just kinda tastes like it is). It both tasted and smelled like the most delicious fruit salad ever! Loads of peaches, nectarines, and pears. I totally went back for a second taste before leaving and I'm sure I'll defiantly be going through many bottles this summer.

Hillside Rose 2011 - A blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Gamay and Pinot Noir. I was excited to try this because of my love for there Muscat. Aromas of wild flowers and red berries, the taste was very, very light but I managed to get some raspberry and cherries. Had a juicy long finish, and easily pushed it's way into one of my top 5 Rose's.

Quails Gate Reserve Pinot Noir 2008 - I love a good Pinot and this one was no disappointment. Cherries plum and vanilla, well balanced. I got a little something something in the middle - bit of a earthy taste, a little chewy. Super nice and smooth, only drawback is it's $45 a bottle, which to be honest is pretty decent considering how much I enjoyed it, I'm just a cheap ass. Maybe I'll splurge for my birthday.

Vista D'oro Fortified Walnut Wine 2007 - I never thought in a million years that I would ever be drinking Port/Fortified wine and liking it, but my experiences have been good. And this lovely little guy is made with green walnuts that have been soaked in Brandy! There's also some Foch, Merlot, Cab Franc in their. The taste is a mix of sweet raisins and earthy walnuts. Smooth and rich with a nice long lingering finish that leaves your mouth salivating for more!

And that's all for now folks. Go out and get yourself a bottle of BC's best. Thanks again Wilder and Dustin for accompanying me. I also forgot to mention how fantastic the food was -crab cakes, chicken skewers with satay sauce, salmon, and cheese galore! Yum Yum! Dusting was ALL about the goat cheese :D

Hello Mary Jane

I had a bit of a nap yesterday after the BC Bloom tasting (post about that soon to come!) and found myself wide awake at 1am, hook and wool in hand crocheting a pair of Mary Jane slippers. They were super easy and took maybe two hours to finish (2 episodes of Mad Men to be exact).

My old slippers were getting kinda ratty, and I hate walking around the house barefoot - you never know what random bit of something my child has dropped/thrown on the floor only to have me find it squished between my toes...gross! And I can't be bothered to find socks, it's been so sunny out lately that I've just been rocking the flip flops and flats.

I knew I had 2 perfect buttons hidden away in my button box, shiny stars!
I seriously think I have a button obsession, I just want to add them to everything!

Happy Mother's Day

I had a fantastic Mothers day! I traded shifts at work so I could have the entire day with my boy.

We went out for breakfast and then headed down to the beach for the day. It was so beautiful and hot out, Fox loved going down to the water and playing with the shells and getting his feet all sandy.

Then we came home and had a delicious dinner with Papa. Had a tubby, read some stories and called it a early night. Perfection! I also called my Mama to wish her a Happy Mothers day and let her know that I made a little something something for her that she'll get when she visits in a week and a half. Nothing to crazy, just made her a card with a little crochet kick. 

I measured and punched some holes around a coloured piece of card I had. Then just crocheted a little border around the edge, added a thoughtful message and voila! Happy Mother's Day Mama!

Tea with T-Rex!

As most of you know I consume an average of 5-10 cups of tea a day, double that if I have a day off. And anyone who is a avid tea or coffee drinker such as myself must have "their cup." It's the one that's just the right size and you know the exact sugar and milk ratio for the perfect taste.

I used to have this awesome cup with this cute shadow city scape on it, then my cat knocked it off the counter and smashed it into a million itty bitty pieces all over my kitchen floor. I was on the hunt forever for another and finally randomly came across it while browsing through Home Sense (I have no idea what I was originally in there for?). As soon as I saw it I knew that was the mug for me. Completely opposite from my previous one - short and fat with a wide mouth. Now it's tall and skinny, and lime green! It's perfect, but the lime green just isn't as exciting as the shadow city. 

I was originally just going to put funky stickers all over it but was hesitant because over time they'd start peeling off in the wash and then it'd just look all gross. Then I remembered seeing something on Pinterest awhile back, and my fantastically crafty friend Nicole over at Gypsy in Jasper recently made one and I thought to myself that's exactly what my sad little cup needs...a sweater!

Well not actually a sweater but a cozy to add a bit of pizzaz and keep my tea hot longer for those times when I forget about it on the windowsill.

This was also a perfect opportunity to use up any scrap wool I had laying around and dive into my button box! And yes, those are T-Rex buttons, I think they're ridiculously cute, yet also acts as a bit of a warning for anyone who tries to steal my cup. 

I love how it turned out, I had to resist the urge not to make cozies for all my cups - juice glass? probably doesn't need one ;)

The Pyramid

"Celebrating nature's perfection" 

A statement very fitting for Summerhill Pyramid Winery. They prize themselves for their organic growing practices (no herbicides or pesticides) and in 2007 officially became Canadian certified organic, which they can proudly display on their bottles. Soon to become BC's first bio-dynamic vineyard (sometime in 2012?), Summerhill practices a method of farming that embodies the ideal of ever-increasing ecological self-sufficiency just as with modern agro-ecology, but includes ethical-spiritual considerations. This type of viticulture perceives the farm as a cohesive, interconnected living system. 

The Summerhill Pyramid is second only to the Great Pyramid of Egypt for alignment and precision. It is built with no ferrous metals, has no electricity inside, and is aligned to true north. The aging period is the final step in the production process where the wine recovers from bottle shock and is infused with the music of the spheres. They age, barrel and finish wines in this geometrically precise Pyramid.

I've had few Summerhill wines at past tastings and don't remember them as being "bad". I've never purchased a bottle due mostly to the fact that it's kind of expensive for something that didn't "blow me out of the water". But my cheapness/patience paid off when they finally put their wine on sale.  Most bottles were at least $5 off. That plus my staff discount made the time ripe. They have quite a selection to choose from, over two dozen, everything from a Sparkling to a Zweigelt. 
I was feeling a white and decided to branch out and got the 2011 Ehrenfelser, a varietal that I knew nothing about. 

I assumed it must of been a German varietal (correct!), and knew it was going to be a little on the sweeter side (also correct!).  It is apparently a cross breed of Riesling and Silvaner that was created Dr. Heinrich Birk in 1929 at the Geisenheim Grape Breeding Institute...what, what?

The wine was fantastic! I couldn't even believe it was wine, it went down so light and sweet. It tasted like it had a slight spritz to it which I figure comes from it being somewhat acidic. Loads of apple and peach flavours, a bit of citrus and tropical fruit. Such a perfect hot sunny day wine. In the end I was actually a little "blown away". Now I have to not only try another Ehrenfelser; but also more Summerhill!