wineraqsomme

09/24/2023

Great night pouring wine at Tampa Uncorked, even better with my husband joining in the fun.
This is oir payment for our hard work!

03/24/2023

Happy national puppy day!

01/13/2023

Trying something new. Not as pretty as I usually make the filling, I will pipe them next time. They are absolutely delicious!

01/05/2023

Bartended a very fun NYE wedding this past weekend. Everyone had a great time, I got to make some lovely craft cocktails. Need a bartender or sommelier for your next event, or maybe some help planning, don't hesitate to call or message me! I am also an officiant!

09/16/2022

Brandon needed a break from walking and we found this great little dive bar. Hear the tacos are amazing, we will have to revisit it!

08/14/2022

Bought this wine today at a vineyard in Brooksville. The label caught my eye and I had to have it. I have always enjoyed spätburgunders (pinot noir), but rarely see them in stores, or at least any decent ones. I will be enjoying this on Halloween, since I now know the story behind it, as any good witch would do!
I will let you know how it is!

07/30/2022

Doppleganger!

04/18/2022

I make beautiful wreaths out of used corks, I also make keychains. I am always looking for new ways to recycle corks. I am doing a total transformation of our front yard and made this planter for some passion flowers I want to grow, but I was concerned about drainage. Instead of buying some gravel I thought why not fill the bottom with corks. I used all the synthetic corks I would normally discard.

03/05/2022

March drink of the month...mint chocolate martini!! $8, only $5 during happy hour!

02/15/2022

My lovely Christmas gift opened tonight for Valentine's day. A huge shout out to my best friend, my husband, my knight in shining armour, the love of my life!!! He was not feeling great tonight, yet he managed to have a hot dinner waiting for me when I got off work tending bar on this night of love.
Opened the wine in hopes he would join me on the journey. He had the first sip after it was decanted; and was the first to notice how beautifully it had opened 15 minutes into dinner.
He knows my love of 2014 Napa Cabs, and he is eager to share in the joy I feel when I finally open one.
This is not the typical big Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. It started out a bit tight, but with plenty of dark fruit presence. After 15 minutes or so it began to show it's personality. Bursting with dark cherry and chocolate, yet soft on the finish.
30 minutes later, those flavors of bursting fruit became almost caramelized, toffee like. The soft finish gave way to a subtle leather finish that lingered with sundried cherry and plum peels, and the deep feel of pure chocolate melting on your tongue.
This is by far the most delicate, graceful, and sexy 2014 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon I have ever had.
If this is the last 2014 Napa Cab my lips will ever touch, I will be satisfied.
Thank you again, my forever Valentine, for always searching high and low for my favorite 2014 varietal from Napa.
❤

02/08/2022

Tasted some great wines for our Michael David wine dinner in April. I don't know about you, with the exception of the Inkblot line, I fell out of love with Michael David sometime around 2017 when it seemed all their wines being released were big, giant fruit bombs.
Well, their latest releases changed my mind. From their Freakshow Cabernet Sauvignon that surprised me with it's long, leathery finish, to the Michael David Sauvignon Blanc with it's beautiful bouquet of guava, grapefruit, and apple blossoms yet surprising old world simplicity on the pallet.
Loving the new label and complexity of Sixth Sense Syrah.
Some of these may be appearing on our new wine list in the future!

01/04/2022

12/31/2021

Crema de Vie in the making! 🇨🇺

12/25/2021

Best gifts ever!!

12/12/2021

Tea sandwich platter for a birthday brunch.

12/06/2021

Brings back memories!

08/21/2021

Croquetas de pollo (chicken croquettes) made lovingly for the fam.

08/20/2021

Update: Chicken croquettes for the win!

Feeling inspired, what will it become?

06/25/2021

I have had a merlot and a cabernet sauvignon vine for over a decade. It has always given me grapes that never ripen. Figured Central Florida was just too hot, but it appears our longer than usual coldish season did them good! They are tiny and full of seeds, but very tastey.

06/24/2021

Peanut Butter Cup Manhattan.
Bourbon, peanut butter whiskey, port, Mexican chocolate bitters
Yum!!

05/29/2021

05/29/2021

Will work for wine!

03/30/2021

Here's what you need to know if you have a tub of Sabra hummus in your fridge right now.

02/19/2021

🙄😔🍷

How advances in bottling, fermenting and taste-testing are democratizing a once-opaque liquid

02/18/2021

The bill would limit alcohol to go to restaurants whose sales are at least 51 percent food. Containers would have to be sealed and placed in a locked compartment or the backseat of a vehicle out of…

02/16/2021

Nickel & Nickel wines have always had a name as the top Napa Cabernet makers in the last decade. I have enjoyed them, but always felt they fell a but short of the big, juicy, and high tannin reputation of the Napa Cabs I love so much.
Jeremy Nickel, the son of the late proprietor of Far Niente, Nickel & Nickel, and Dolce Wineries, is the proprietor of Nickel Cellars.
The 2015 Reserve Cab Sauv from Napa Valley is everything I expect from a Napa Cab, and everything I crave in the 2015 vintages.
It has a beautiful bouquet with notes of Vanilla and plum. At the first sip I felt the instant sensation of leather, with lots of dark chocolate and dried raspberries. Beautifully chewy, the finish is long and leathery. As you can see from the glass it had quite a bit of sediment that added to the beautiful, sexy tannins I crave so much.
I found this gem at Ed's Fine Wines in Safety Harbor. I had to dig through the shelves of the wine cellar searching for 2015 Napa Cabs.
It will be a sad day when I can no longer enjoy the 2015 vintage of any Napa Cab, but until then I will eagerly dig thopugh shelves to find a lovely dinosaur bone.
🍷

02/15/2021

https://www.wsj.com/articles/tariffs-on-wine-food-from-europe-to-stay-for-now-u-s-says-11613154058

The decision to maintain the status quo came despite intense lobbying by the U.S. restaurant and beverage industries that are already reeling from the pandemic.

02/15/2021

The first time I drank this wine was in 2016 and it was big, juicy, leathery, and the finish lingered on and on. I fell in love with 2015 Napa Cabs because of this wine. I kept this vintage on the shelves of Brix 33 as long as I could. Always a favorite. I found this bottle at Ed's Fine Wines tonight and was so excited to try it again after almost two years since our last encounter.
It did not dissapoint. It has matured beautifully. A bit softer on the palate, more like suede. The beautiful plum and chocolate notes remain with the addition of dried tabacco. It has a subtle sexiness that lingers long after that first swallow.
I hope to encounter it at least once more if fate will allow it. The memories this wine holds wil always be strong.

02/12/2021

breaking top story Wine Industry Preliminary grape crush report reveals Napa Valley production down almost 40% Schramsberg Pinot Noir grapes go into the crusher at the onset of harvest 2017. This year's preliminary grape crush report from Ciatti Company, a bulk wine and grape broker, shows Napa Vall...

01/22/2021

Watermelon Mint Caiparinha absolutely divine!

12/27/2020

The perfect cup of hot chocolate!

10/27/2020

For my wine friends!
-I walked by a wino today...he was eating a grape...I said, "Dude! You Gotta Wait!"

Took me a minute! Lol

10/04/2020

10/03/2020

More wineries are under threat as fire crews brace for another round of extreme heat and high winds.

10/02/2020

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) issued a private ruling last Friday permitting the EU to impose tariffs on the US as a result of subsidies given to aviation company Boeing, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.