Blu, a Wine and Cheese Stop was first on our agenda. Holly did a wonderful job pouring wines and sampling cheese from the shop. Blu outdid themselves. They provided a customized menu and a lovely table on their patio for a wonderful wine and cheese sampler at 11 AM. After sampling and sipping, we caught the Sunlink Streetcar to Main Gate Square for a little shopping. It's amazing what you can find in 30 minutes! At 1:30 PM, we returned to Blu for lunch at 2 PM. Oh yum! Before heading home, our group wandered the shops at the Mercado, stopping at La Estrella Bakery to pick up some Cochitos (Little Pigs) cookies!
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| How cool is this?! Our very own WWW menu! |
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| Connie has a wine story to tell to Carole and Carolyn! |
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| The whole gang! Well almost - L to R Susie, Pam, Debbie, Carolyn, Christy, Kelly, Ruth, Carole, Connie. Missing is photographer Daryl |
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| Christy, Kelly and Ruth approve! |
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| Debbie, Christy and Kelly love our very own Women Who Wine menu! |
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| Ruth, Daryl and Connie |
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| Carole and Carolyn |
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| Debbie, Christy and Kelly |
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| Our sampling guide, Holly. Oh my goodness, what was that Susie just said about the Chevre cheese?! L to R - Carolyn, Christy, Holly and naughty Susie! |
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| Christy found a wine she likes! |
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| Ruth, Carole and Christy |
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| Carolyn has a secret up her sleeve we think! |
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| Daryl is ultra happy! She can't even open her eyes! |
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| Yes, my dear, there is a Streetcar Named Desire but we didn't find it! |
Cheese Notes
1. Fresh Chevre, Fiore di Capra, AZFiore di Capra, Italian for "Flower of the Goat".This is the name of our small family owned and operated goat dairy and creamery located in the beautiful San Pedro river valley 40 miles east of Tucson in southern Arizona. Fresh Chevre is fresh goat's milk cheese. Rich and creamy.
2. Mahón, Minorca Spain Raw Cow
Mahón cheese is a soft to hard white cheese named after the natural port of Mahón. The cheese is buttery sharp, slightly salty and lightly aromatic (sweet and nutty aromas) in taste. Mahón's sweet and fruity but at times slighty salty taste is due in part to the sea salt content in the grasses the cows eat. The rind is generally an orange color due to the rind being rubbed with butter, oil or paprika.
3. Basserri, Barinaga Ranch Marshall, CA Raw Sheep
Inspired by her Basque sheepherding and cheesemaking heritage, Maricia Barinaga and her husband, Corey Goodman, purchased a farm in the rolling hills overlooking Tomales Bay in West style cheese with sheep milk from their own dairy. Barinaga Ranch's Baserri is an exquisite raw milk cheese with a rich, nutty flavor.
4. Vintage Gouda, Netherlands, Cow
Flavors are of butterscotch and grass with notes of whiskey and almonds. This Vintage Gouda is aged 5 years. The color of this gourmet cheese is deep amber and burnt orange with a texture similar to Parmigiano-Reggiano, very firm and flaky. Its rich flavor and subtle sweetness is intense and complex. It is an excellent substitute for grating cheeses as it caramelizes beautifully, it is even a better cheese with a rich, red wine or a cool glass of beer.
5. Caveman Blue, Rogue Creamery, OR, Raw Cow
Caveman Blue is a fruity, dense blue with hints of vanilla and a texture full of butter and crystals. It is aged "in the domain of the caveman" about a year and has a natural rind. Caveman paris well with big red wines like Zinfandels, Cabernets and Ports, and strong beers like stouts or barley wines.
Wine Notes
1. Aveleda Vinho Verde - Available at Total WinePortugal's best kept secret. Typically makes a lower alcohol, slightly fizzy wine. They trap some of the CO2 (from fermentation) to make this wine super drinkable and fun. It's a perfect brunch wine or anytime wine! Great with seafood, tapas or lightly fried anything. Made from the Loureiro, Trajadura and Arinto grapes from the best vineyards in the region.
2. Tangent Albarino - Available from Niven Family Wine Estates
Albarino is a Spanish origin grape, principally planted in the Rias Baixas region (NW part of Spain). Creates a medium bodied, crisp white wine. Can show some lovely minerality, stone fruit and citrus fruit. Tangent wines are all made with estate fruit grown on the Niven family's legendary Paragon Vineyard in the Edna Valley, the coolest AVA in the golden state of California. Bright and racy, yet silky and light, with flavors of green apple, lime, grapefruit, lemon zest and a bit of minerality to boot. Its crisp acidity makes it a natural with seafood and, most definitely, with oysters.
3. Bodegas Riojanas Canchales - Available from Tipsy
Rioja wines are made principally of Tempranillo and Canchales is 100% Tempranillo. This is classified as a "joven" wine. In Rioja, wines are classified by age (time spent in oak and in bottle). Reserva and Gran Reserva wines are not necessarily produced each year. This wine is lighter, fruitier and intended to be consumed while young. Great for pork, chicken, red meat or veggies. This wine is versatile.
4. Altocedro Malbec - Available from Wine.com
Full, rich and spicy, this red wine is great with fuller flavored food - red meats and hard cheeses. The Atocedro estate - the winery and vineyards - is located in Mendoza's prime grape-growing area: La Consulta in the Valle de Uco, where some of the vines are as muchas 100 years old. Owner and winemaker is Karim Mussi Saffie. Malbec is originally found in SW France as a blending grape in Bordeaux and a stand-alone grape in Cahors. It became very popular in Argentina.
5. Castellblanch Extra Brut Cava - Available from Haskells
Made in the same way Champagne is made - secondary fermentation happens in the bottle - leading to a bubbly that is toasty and smells like brioche. Castellblanch was founded as a small family business in 1908 by the Parera family. Castellblanch is one of the oldest cava-producing wineries in the Penedès. Cava is typically made of Macabeo, Parelleda and Xarel-lo. The Extra Brut by the Castellblanch is equal parts of all three grapes. Brut mean dry, extra brut means even drier.
