Matches

I have been very bad this holiday season about blogging.  Between getting over yet another cold and holiday parties and such, I've neglected to reflect on the wine I've been drinking.  Now that Christmas has come and gone, I've got a little downtime before NYE and I wanted to give another recommendation for a moderately priced delicious wine.

Matchbook Syrah, Dunnigan Hills 2004 costs about $15 and it has blueberry and black cherry flavors.  This Syrah is 83% Syrah, 10% Malbec, 6% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Tempranillo.  On the back of the label, Matchbook highlights the Syrah and Tempranillo.  Personally, I taste the Malbec more than anything else.  It goes down smooth and has a nice after taste.

Barefoot in the park

I was on a Pilsner kick for a bit, so I didn't have anything to report really on the wine front.  This evening though, after a boring Monday at the office, I made a pit stop at a liquor store on 1st ave. between 57th and 58th street (on the west side of the street).  I tend to find hidden treasures there, like Barefoot Cabernet Sauvignon.  It goes for $5.99/bottle, so with tax it's $6.49 (such a steal).

The wine has wild berries and currants flavors, with hints of toasted oak and clove.  It has a smooth finish too!  I complemented this cheap wine with two pizza slices for dinner.  Talk about starting off Monday right.  Oh and I drank almost the entire bottle - how I can type right now is beyond me!

Monster Mash

Yesterday for the first time in about 4 months I had time to have a sit down lunch with my two coworkers.  We collectively call ourselves G Unit, but I'll spare details on the reasoning.

Anyways, we decided to go to Vero Panini & Wine Bar on 53rd and 2nd Avenue.  I'd been to the one on the Upper East Side and I felt like dropping some bucks, and we did.  I opted to go with the $19 prix-fixe lunch, which got me a Prosciutto, Fresh Mozzarella and Basil Ailoi panini and a side salad portion of the Vero Chopped Salad, romaine lettuce with feta cheese, sweet onions, red peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, chick peas, currants, topped with a lemon vinaigrette.  Oh, and I got a refreshing, crisp glass of Indaba chardonnay from South Africa.  I've actually had this wine before, and it costs about $9 a bottle.  I'm a huge fan of reasonably (cheaply) priced wines that could pass as expensive wine.  Doesn't my meal sound so filling?

Well, not quite.  For some odd reason that day I was extremely ravenous.  I opted for dessert after lunch, which I normally don't do, unless it's the 2 chocolate chip cookies I get with my Subway combo meal or the peanut M&Ms from the office vending machine.  There were 3 options and I went for the "Cookie Monster."  My two coworkers can vouch for the monstrosity of the dish - 3 people should have shared it.  What did we do, we ordered 2.  My two colleagues practically polished one dessert, and I actually made quite a dent in mine.  Moving forward, I plan to have a camera with me at all times, so I can document food porn.  

This dessert was to die for.  At first all you see is whipped cream with blueberries and raspberries scattered on top.  As soon as you stick a spoon in it, you discover crumbled chocolate chip cookies and vanilla ice cream.  The chef who concocted it was genius.  It's an adult spin on a sundae because it looks sophisticated and will cost you about $12.  It's not the $3 sundae you could get at Friendly's that's for sure!