Posted by Julie at Oct 14, 2009 6:00 am
Greetings from my annual pilgrimage to Walt Disney World for the Food & Wine Festival. My daughter and I are having a wonderful time. It’s about 300 degrees, but the crowds are light and the food delicious (if expensive). We spent three hours there Monday, all day yesterday (except for a side trek to Magic Kingdom to ride Space Mountain, which was CLOSED for renovations, ugh…so we went to the Hall of Presidents, then headed back to Epcot) and after hitting Animal Kingdom for a few shows and–Xanax willing–one trip on Expedition Everest, we’ll be home this afternoon.
One reason I love homeschooling. Weekday field trips!
As we toured the World Showcase (the part of Epcot that features several permanent exhibits of countries like Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Japan, Italy, Morocco, France, England, Canada and United States) I sampled wine from several of the kiosks that are added for the festival. My favorites were the honey meade from Ireland (which also had a delicious chocolate lava cake with Bailey’s chocolate sauce), the Reisling from Germany and the Rosa Regale from Italy (a blush sparkling wine).
Germany, in fact, had four wines–all Reislings, as they come from that area. I watched a guy stop at the placard that describes what wines are available for tasting and when his friend read, “Reisling” he dismissed it because he didn’t like sweet wines.
First of all, all Reislings aren’t sweet. In fact, of the four, only two were “sweet” and one of those was really on the dry side, but with a sweet finish. I didn’t try all four. I just picked the sweetest one!
I like my wine sweet. I understand that this makes me a heathen to wine connoisseurs, but I don’t care. I know what I like and that’s what I get.
When I’m at home, I often drink Reisling or Lambrusco (a red sparkling wine from Italy). I guess because I consider them sipping wines. When I go out to restaurants, the first thing you do is order a drink. If I’m having wine, it often arrives long before the food, so I want a sipping wine and I’ll even have White Zinfandel if that’s all that’s available. If I’m having my wine with food, I might pick something less sweet, but since Reislings often pair well with food like fish or chicken, which I’m eating more of now, I sometimes don’t.
So, do you drink wine? And when you do, do you like sweet or dry? Full-bodied or medium? Have any good suggestions for me?
****
CARLY HERE:
I have a chat tonight!
Here are the details. Hope you can make it!
“NYT Bestselling author Carly Phillips joins us to discuss her latest HQN release, and the final book in her Lucky series, Lucky Break. Door prize: Winners will receive signed copies of Book 1 and 2 of this series, Lucky Charm and Lucky Streak! Moderated by CrazyMo.
When? Tonight at 9:00PM Eastern Time
Where? Chat Room or go to Rom Rev Today, click on RRT Chat, and when the login screen loads, type your name and choose Mo’s room from the chat room menu ;)
Hope to see you there!
you are braver then me I decided to only do Disney in the cooler months this week has been so HOT I’m even waiting to use my Seaworld passes. Anyway I’m so with you on sweet wine I like them sweet and my husband is the same way I’ll drink Reisling or White Zinfandale. I ordered this one wine for my husband from an Oregon winery Honeywood Winery it is a grape concord wine and it said when I researched it that big wine drinkers (wine snobs) it called them would look down on this wine but I liked it and they have many others I would like to try. When I had ordered the wine I ordered 3 bottles wasn’t sure if we would like it or not but it is one of their best selling wines so I took a chance. In fact now you have me thinking that I’m going to place and order and get some of the others I want to try plus they have Dog Gone Wine and some of the proceedes go to an animal charity and all the labels have dogs on them. There is a Holiday one that I want it looks like a Boxer on the label and I love boxers. Great post it has me buying wine now lol
http://www.honeywoodwinery.com
Actually, I am with you on the sweeter wines. I love White Zin and Reislings.
There are a couple of local wineries that have sparkling apple wines which are very good. I have a bottle in the fridge now and it’s going with me on vacation this weekend.
The other one I enjoy is Cranberry Bog wine. We took a couple of bottles on the train to WDW last Christmas and had a grand time with it!
I am not much of a wine drinker and find most of them blech.
Sweet – like zin and there is a peach wine by my that has a hint of citris (orange) – it is a fizzy wine and tastes just like you are eating a fresh peach – cannot remember the brand – when I remember or get another bottle will let you know. It is NOT the peach flavored chardonney they sell in supermarkets.
I do enjoy a glass of wine, but I haven’t had a drink in since last Oct. I was working with the fertility specialist at that time and was not allowed to drink. And then I got pregnant. And now I’m nursing the girls. Who knows when I’ll finally have a glass of wine (or an apple martini…or better yet, my very own mix my husband named the Debitini).
I used to be a big White Zinfandel fan, but now I find it too sweet. In the white wine family, I like Pinot Grigio. And in the reds, I enjoy a good Marlot. I also like Bourdou (did I spell that right?).
There’s a winerey here in Plant City, FL, that specializes in blueberry wine. My husband and I have gone there in the past for their wine tasting. I love their peach wine and their strawberry wine. Both are excellent with a piece of cheesecake. Of course, that’s just my opinion, but my husband agrees with me. They also have an apple wine and a citrus wine that’s very good. And they’re rapsberry Marlot is very nice. Actually, I like almost all of their wines. It’s really a cute place with cute gift items for sale and an outdoor patio where you can sit and drink (if you buy a bottle). Or you can stay inside at the bar and do the wine tasting.
They started out as a blueberry farm and ended up with excess blueberries and didn’t know what to do with them so they started making blueberry wine.
Though how you can have excess blueberries I don’t know. In my house there never seems to be enough, no matter how much we buy. I love blueberries!
Have a great day everyone.
Debbie G.
I typically only drink very dry wine, but for summer days and picnics I do really enjoy Gewurztraminer. It’s a German wine, Julie, similar to a reisling, a little sweet but it has a more spicy taste. Really love it.
We also visited the Blackstone winery in Sonoma last year and tried a white they only sell there on the premises. I can’t even remember the name of it, it was a light, sweet white and was absolutely delicious. We bought a few bottles (since gone, of course…lol!) If the stupid state in which I live allowed shipments of alcohol, I’d subscribe to their wine club just so I could get it delivered here!
Other than that, it’s very dry, very oaky Chardonnay or even dryer, oakier Cab-Sav for me. :D
I like sweet too! actually my new found favorite is Buttershots… :cheers:
Julie,Julie, Julie,
I saw no mention in the homeschooling manual about:
Daughter get to see Hall of Presidents if Mom can do a little wine tasting!
I too could get into home schooling. Can I come along next Wednesday?
Just teasing ya! :happy: Sounds like you had a good time.
I don’t drink so can’t help out with wine.
Have a great day all,
Cher
I just got back from Disneyland. Thank goodness that weather was in the 70′s.
I am a big fan of big, bold red wines. Cabernets and Merlots. The darker the better. There is nothing more decadent then a glass of red wine and a piece of chocolate.
But I did find a great white wine over the summer that my girls and I really enjoy. It is called “New Age.” You pour it over ice with a slice of lime. What is really cool is that the wine has bubbles in it, like champage, that appear when you pour it over ice. Very refreshing. It is definitely a must try.
Sauvignon Blanc is my favorite white wine its very crisp. As for red wines, I don’t really drink them often, but when i do I like Super Tuscan’s. Its basically a hybrid using several different kinds of grapes. I was introduced to it in Tuscany a few years ago and have never looked back!!
Hi Julie! :D I wish I were with you! I love honey meade- love, love, love!
Where I live it’s so very hard to find unless you can find someone who brews their own. That kind will truly put you under the table and fast! :fainting:
I also love sweet wines too. Rose blush is my favorite. From what I hear it takes a while to develop a taste for a dry wine. If so, I keep my sweet ones. :batteeyes:
I wish we could’ve had those kind of fieldtrips when I was in school. I know it would have made school more interesting not to mention *Fun.* :dancebanana:
Oh, can you send some of that Florida heat up my way? Please! :praying:
I prefer a good German Piesporter, which is a sweeter white or blush wine. My favorite, especially when I want to splurge, is what’s called “ice” wine or Eiswein. The grapes are allowed to freeze on the vine, making for a very sweet wine. Uhm…yeah. I like ‘em sweet and light, too. :cheers:
Well, at least it is a good time of the year to be a heathen! I also like sweet wines. I avoid white wines when I can. Someone told me “ABC. Anything But Chardonnay”. You might like a picnic red. They tend to be a bit sweeter and lighter.
The last time I went to Disney, Space Mountain was closed. Conspiracy???
I would love to go to the Food and Wine Festival (I have a funny story about that, but unless you know my Oldest, it probably wouldn’t make sense). I like lambrusko and merlot and hubby got me into pino griggio (okay, I hope my spelling is okay). I hardly ever drink (as in maybe, maybe twice a year)… I am the ‘designated Mom”. LOL.
A trip to Disney to taste wine sounds like a good time!
First of all, I will remind you all that I live in Wine Country in northern California. When I could drink wine I liked a sweeter white and even on occasion a desert wine, yum! One of our wineries that is close by sells a Chocolate Port that is absolutely the yummiest. I do not care for the dry wines like Chardonnay tastes worse than some medicine!! My own humble opinion. My theory is you should drink what you like and enjoy. :thumbsup: I never did learn to be a wine snob. There were some reds I enjoyed but can’t think of anything specific at the moment.
Great subject Julie.
I don’t drink but your trip sounds fabulous.
Hey Jules, sounds like you are having one heckuva field trip. Have lots of fun. I drink a sip or two of wine every now and then, and I have tasted the Reisling…it is very good…a full glass would knock me out though.
Carly, I will hop over and say hello to you.
Peace and love,
Paula R.