I've Made it to May

Since May is the gateway to summer, there was fun to be had!  I spent two weekends at wine festivals.   First up, Wine in the Woods in Maryland.  Since visiting four vineyards in Maryland last summer, I was excited to see what the great crab state had to offer.  All in all, a fun time, despite the rain.  My favorite of the day was http://www.fareasternshorewinery.com/ because of their sweeter wines that just scream summer! I was also happy to see The Winery at Olney and Elk Run Vineyard there.  I do have to admit that there a few wineries where I didn't like one single glass.  Not one.  A travesty, really.

Memorial Day Weekend was spent celebrating my dear friend Kristy's 35th birthday at ValleyFest Beer and Wine Festival located right in Massanutten Resort.  The festival had way more beer than wine, but we made sure to drink and taste our fair share of both.  I was initially a bit wary about the beer fest part, but it was nice to try so many different beers and ciders that I would never really seek out.

And then I discovered THIS. Can we say highlight of the trip!? Everyone should make giant chocolate chip cookies in skillets.

Potomac Gourmet Market

A few weeks ago my friend Nadine asked if she should buy a wine tasting deal she saw via Living Social.  We already know my answer to this question.  So, yesterday the event finally arrived.  Is there a better way to recover from a 12 mile training run?  I think not.

Potomac Gourmet Market is located at National Harbor and this was my first time participating in a full-on wine tasting offered at a grocery store.  It was much more elaborate than the wine sampling you can do on any given weekend day at your local grocery store.  When we arrived, a central part of the store was roped off and set up with several tables.  The tables were set up with two glasses for each guest and we each received a snack-pack of grapes, strawberries, cheese, crackers, salami, pepperoni and chocolate.  There were a variety of white and red wines chosen by the store staff for us to taste.  As the wines changed, we also were able to pair them with a variety of other snacks such as chocolate chip cookies and veggie chips.

This might be the most fun I've ever had at a wine tasting.  Lenny and Arden really encouraged interaction and had lots of fun with all the guests.  They avoided the stuffy, hurry-up-and-taste vibe that you sometimes get at wineries.  Aside from one of the wines, all the varietals were new to me.  There were a total of 10 wines, with something for wine lovers of all types.  My favorites of the day were Boom Boom Syrah (Charles Smith) and Santa Julia Dulce Tinto.  Two things I learned:  Syrah and Shiraz are the same thing!  The wine screw top was made by Stelvin.

Thanks to this wine tasting, we are now members of the wine club for free!  The wine staff will even bring their tastings to your event.  I am definitely looking forward to returning soon!

If wine isn't your thing, Potomac Gourmet Market has a great beer selection along with some unique food options.

Life Lately

So, it's been a month since my last blog update.  I don't really even have much to report, but I figured a post was necessary since I might look back and wonder how March treated me.

I've been in quite the routine, but I'd say it's a routine that I'm content with.  Running on the weekend, including a new running group with some fabulous ladies, time with friends and of course, wine.

I finally saw The Legwarmers show!  I've heard about this group for years, but just never made it to a show. It was a fun excuse to dress in  a classic 80s outfit and listen to music reminding me of my childhood.

The next day was spent wine touring in Loudoun County.  We were quite ambitious and made it to to four wineries.  Our first stop was Breaux Vineyards, then Doukenie, followed by North Gate and Sunset Hills Vineyard.  My favorite places of the day were Doukenie and North Gate.  I loved the setting of Doukenie and know it's a must-return-to-spot once the weather actually turns nice.  We were lucky enough to see some snow flurries while out and about.  I also really loved North Gate thanks to the wine and chocolate pairing we did.  Who can say no to that?

The next day I ran in the Reston 10 Miler.  Drinking lots of wine may or may not be the best way to prepare for a race.  You can find my race review featured here! (I guess this officially makes me a guest blogger, right??)

This past weekend, I ran a new 5K PR at the Lucky Leprechaun 5K!  I originally was just running to accompany a friend, but I noticed my pace (quick for me) during the first mile and began chasing the clock! I was happy with a final time of 29:20 minutes with an average 9:28 minute mile pace.  Maybe one day I'll finally be able to hit a sub-9:00 minute/mile.

St. Patrick's Day weekend was capped off by a fabulous brunch with some great friends.  Brunch might be my favorite thing ever, so this was the perfect day.

National Drink Wine Day

Who knew this grand holiday existed??  I didn't, but of course I was game to celebrate.  A day early, even.  I love Groupon and LivingSocial deals in that I always seem to find something that truly is a great deal (or at least I convince myself of that) and it's an easy way to force yourself to try something new.  So, when a deal popped up for The Winery at Olney, I jumped on it.  I knew it was in Maryland, but that's about it.  I also knew I'd be able to convince one of my best friends, Liz, to join me.  We hadn't seen each other since my birthday, so a catch-up was well overdue.

Once I looked up the winery to see what I would be tasting, I discovered the location was a shopping center!  I'll admit I was a bit surprised, but after my visit I'm wishing more shopping centers embraced this concept.  Granted there was no picturesque setting that you get at most wineries, but it was nice to not have to drive super far from the city to get a full winery experience.

The Winery at Olney has a very large selection of wines (27 different choices, all made on-site) and the best part is that you get to pick the five you want to taste.  No preset list, no restrictions!  The only problem we ran into is that they were out of some of the wines.  Sad face.  Our deal included a tasting, a gourmet cheese and Artisan cracker plate, and a souvenir glass. The cheese platter featured smoked Gouda, Parmesan, goat cheese, Gorgonzola and sharp cheddar.  When we finished the tasting we still had cheese to eat and chatting to do, so we decided to do another round of tasting.  Thank goodness, because this is when I found my two favorite wines of the day.  I have definitely branched out and now appreciate a good red wine, but two of the fruit wines won me over.  108 Blackberry (a blackberry Merlot named after a local highway) and Georgia Avenue (a peach Chardonnay also named after a local highway) were my faves.  I am normally not a Chardonnay fan, but the peach goes so nicely with it.  I could have drank glass after glass of the Merlot, so I opted for a bottle of the 108.  Other top choices of the day were the Incan Roja Malbec and a not-too-sweet Riesling called Nectar of the Gods.

The inside of the winery is very modern, yet cozy with a warm color scheme and even a pseudo fireplace via flatscreen tv.  The tasting bar is the central focus, with some couches towards the front and tables for larger groups in the back.  The only thing missing come spring/summer is a patio area.  The staff was attentive, friendly and welcoming.  So much so that we ended up at the tasting bar for three hours.  We were glad to have arrived shortly after they opened at noon because by 3pm, the place was packed! We would soon leave to eat lunch and return for ONE more glass of wine.

Sometimes I redeem a deal and never think twice about the business, but I'll definitely be back to Olney.  The array of events offered certainly helps.  Everything from wine and food pairings to a snow tubing trip in addition to weekly happy hour specials, means there's something for everyone.

How did you celebrate National Drink Wine Day??

My Favorite Part of the Week

Normally, I'd say Friday is the best part of the week.  But recently, it's Saturday.  And Saturday morning (yes, I said it) at that.  Since December, I have been kicking starting my weekend with a long run on Saturday mornings with my running club.  It helps that I'm an old lady now and my raucous Friday nights usually consist of watching Shark Tank and going to bed before 11pm, making it pretty easy to get up at 6:30am to run.  I am also glad that my dear friend Nadine has caught the running bug, so we've kept each other company the past few weekends.  We hit 9 miles on Saturday and we've been feeling pretty great each time save my fingertips that always seem like they're going to fall off despite gloves.  Knowing that Starbucks is awaiting us is always motivation to make it back to homebase.  It feels pretty great to get some mileage in and know I have the rest of the day ahead of me.

This Saturday I decided I wanted to spend some time on another hobby of mine.  I took photography class in high school and for as long as I can remember, I've loved taking pictures.  For Christmas, the hubs surprised me with the Canon EOS Rebel T3i!!  No more point-and-shoot for me! It happens that I had also seen a DSLR Photography Class deal on LivingSocial, so I signed up immediately.  Class was about three weeks ago and it was great!  It was a great refresher on aperture, ISO, shutter speed and I left feeling comfortable taking my camera off auto.  I also knew I would need to practice.

Ben wanted to continue his birthday weekend, so we made lunch plans at one of our favorite wine & cheese bars, Cheesetique.  We headed to the Del Ray location, which is a cute little area, so I left with my camera in tow.  We did some wine tasting, ate some lunch, did some more wine tasting thanks to a newly discovered wine shop, Planet Wine.  And I took some pictures.  I'm okay with them, considering I'm still in practice mode and it's nice to know I have the RAW files for a day when I feel brave enough to tackle editing.

8 miles of running. 1K of wine walking.

That, my friends, makes for a great Saturday.  I joined my running club early on Saturday morning and set out to knock out 8 miles.  This week's run was pretty flat and I was very thankful for that considering last week's turn around spot was at the top of a giant hill.  It was a foggy morning and before the halfway point, I just wasn't feeling it.  I was lucky to be running with my great friend Nadine, so at the turn around spot we decided to blast some music from my iPhone to carry us home.  Dare I say it worked, since we booked it back to Gateway Park.  It was probably the Starbucks awaiting us, that was also a motivator.  Now that I've been consistently running, it hurts less and I enjoy it more.  I am way ahead on my training schedule, since the first 10-miler I'm doing isn't until the first weekend of March.

Now, for the weekend highlight.  Yesterday was the first time I participated in a 1K Wine Walk.  I had never even heard of this, so I have the Young Winos group to thank!  Our team name was Baby Got Malbec!  The idea is this: walk a 1k course with several wine stations located throughout an indoor mall that happens to have more vacant space than actual stores. Each walker got a race bib (that makes it official), t-shirt, wine glass and 20 tasting tickets.  If you were lucky, several people gave you their tickets along the course, which meant more wine!  There were a total of 11 stations, some with food, some with water, most with a good variety of wine.  I decided to be choosy with my tastings to make sure I had plenty of tickets left for the last station that had the largest selection.  I ended up being able to have a few glasses of wine at the last station thanks to all my hoarded tickets.  All the wines offered can be purchased at Crystal City Wine Shop, and I will certainly be paying them a visit.  Some of my favorites from the day include:


Dr. H Thanisch Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Kab 2011
Fitz Ritter Gewurztraminer Spatlese 201
Dr. Pauly Bergweiler Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Kabinett 2011
Kim Crawford Pinot Grigio 2011
Jam Jar Moscato 2011
Jam Jar Sweet Shiraz 2011
Atomasphere Rose 2011
Besserat de Bellefon Champagne Brut NV