Category: Uncategorized

Welcome to 2009 wine lovers! Today, I’m taking the pledge! Not to go to the gym or to lose 10 pounds, or to (heaven forbid) limit my consumption of adult beverages. No siree, I’m resolving to go where no wino has gone before. To explore new galaxies of wine appreciation, to set a course for…

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. I can tell because many of the people I know are calling asking me to suggest a wine gift or two for the special people in their lives.  Even though I probably won’t be considered  “special” enough to benefit from my own advice, I do experience a…

As we get closer to the holidays, I’ve become hopelessly nostalgic and, yes, even maudlin. Why? Well, suffice it to say that I yearn for the company of a certain group of friends who’ve left my immediate circle.  And while I will be surrounded by family and other friends this Christmas, I truly miss these…

Odd n’ ends… As you know, each year around the 15th of November, the first wine of the 2008 vintage from the Beaujolais region in France is released to the public with great fanfare and celebration.That’s right, Beaujolais Nouveau time is upon us and this year’s wine is very good. In terms of drinkability, Beaujolais…

When I was growing up, one of our faithful family traditions involved enthusiastic discourse around the holiday dinner table. To the rare outsiders who were infrequently invited to our large family repasts, the decibel level of this “enthusiasm” must have been a bit disconcerting.  No subject was too grand, obscure or off limits. We would…

Since my days as a long distance runner are in the rear view mirror, I have had to find a suitable aerobic exercise regimen to forestall the dirigible-like expansion of my midsection.  I am fighting the inevitable losing battle. However,  I am persistent and so I work out feverishly on exercise equipment, sweating profusely so that…

Chef Odeh doing his thing at last year’s gourmet wine and food weekend Canaan Valley Resort is planning a “Gourmet Wine Weekend in the Mountains,” and I’ll be there to help spread the joy! Join me and other wine and food lovers on November 14-16 for an entertaining and educational gourmet extravaganza. I’ll select wines…

This past week we celebrated the life of a true American hero who braved the high seas to make sure we all have a place to call home. I refer, of course, to Christopher Columbus. As we toast Columbus this week with pasta and flagons of Chianti, you need to know the truth about our…

There’s something exhilarating about Fall. Mother Nature is dishing up the colors, colleges are playing football and wineries (in this hemisphere, at least) are harvesting grapes and making wine.  I love this time of year.  I am amped, and I have been taking action! In the last month alone, I have:  roasted two bushes of…

My good friend and fellow Gazz blogger Rich Ireland is always touting the compatibility of beer with food, and I have to agree there are some pretty interesting brew and grub combos. But for those of you out there who occasionally sip beverages other than the fruit of the vine, you might be interested in…