We hit some traffic leaving Las Vegas but the rest of the way was 75 MPH and about an hour north of Vegas, started to look like this:

Stunning!

The lady checking us into our hotel directed us to a wonderful Mexican place in Ancestor Square, Panama Grill. We are full and ready for bed because we have an early day ahead of us!

We made it through Las Vegas (though Hertz sure made things slow) and we’re on our way to St. George, UT, for the night.

Last night we were invited to The Grape in Raleigh for their Wednesday night Grape Crush wine flight tasting. Instead of the traditional experience, however, we were treated to a hand-picked wine flight by the owner, Thomas Sergio. We spoke on topics as diverse as tankers full of Yellowtail (bad), haunted cellars (spooky), and gritty, earthy, old world reds (divine).

An interesting aspect is the way they divide up the wines. Every wine is given a number from 1-10, with most wines falling in the 1-6 range. Wines are categorized by their fullness and body, so the whites are typically 1-3 and the reds 4-6. Sweet wines are 7, sparking wines are 8, and all varieties for special occasions are 9s and 10s.

Not only does this place have 120(!) wines by the glass, the small-portioned plates (don’t call it tapas!), cheeses, and desserts are excellent. The complimentary appetizers out on the bar for the wine flight tastings were a spicy hummus that even Eric liked, a tomato balsamic salad, and a cheese and fruit tray. We also sampled the chocolate fondue that took the typical fruit offering a bit further with toasted s’mores, macaroons, and blondies.

The Grape also has a retail shop within the restaurant, so the glass of wine you just enjoyed can come home with you in bottle form for it’s regular retail price. Their unique “3Sum” or 3 bottle discount is great—for those of us who are running out of space to put our ever growing collection of wine. (ahem.)

Thomas did an amazing job of picking out three delicious wines (whites for Eric, reds for me) based on what we told him our tastes were. I’m just happy I could explain myself beyond a “spicy medium-bodied red.” :)

We’ll be back.

Leandra’s flight: Nell Pinot Noir, Tempus Alba Preludio Tempranillo, Javier Asensio Reserva 2000 (Merlot)

Eric’s flight: Austin Hope Roussanne (bought a bottle of this), Treana White, Oriel Palatina (Riesling), Latour Chimay Pouilly-Fuisse (a nicely complex chardonnay)

Meet a few of our backyard critters that keep Riesling on full alert!

We love the number and variety of birds that use both the feeder and the dancing man bird bath. We don’t particularly love the squirrels dangling off the feeder (but it slides closed with their weight-ha!) or digging up the backyard.

Leandra bought a ‘beauregard’ sweet potato at the farmer’s market this weekend, and she’s making fresh potato chips out of it now. Yum! This was our favorite appetizer at East/West Bistro in Athens, GA, and we’re happy to have it again.

What can I say- it’s almost impossible to ignore the flowers in the Farmer’s market this time of year…

Here’s what the new raised garden looked like three weeks ago.

Everything in our new deck box is doing fantastically well. The cherry tomato plant had fallen over while we were in Virginia, but thankfully it didn’t break and now it’s staked. I’ve noticed several flowers on the tomato plant and as you can see, it is growing like mad.

New additions include a ’sungold’ tomato plant and a curry plant—a spice plant that smells just like curry powder, very interesting!

Postscript: as Leandra was writing this a major thunderstorm was coming through the area, complete with high winds, hail, and a very scared Riesling.  Unfortunately, the ’sweetie’ cherry tomato was bent in half and had to be removed.  Hopefully it will grow back quickly! - eric  

After tasting wine from four different places on our way up to Harrisonburg, VA from Norfolk, VA, I am happy to report that we have changed my dad’s opinion of Virginia wine! :)

(in visiting order)

Grayhaven Winery—We stopped at this place in part because it was fairly close to the highway and we were not disappointed with the scenery. (Although there were a few surprise turns involved.) During our visit we also learned this place hosts the only South African wine festival in the country. And you know that intrigued us. The reds were better than the whites, and we left with a bottle of the Sojourn. Unfortunately, the pinotage wasn’t ready for tasting yet.

King Family Vineyards—This vineyard has an amazing setting including a giant lawn and tables throughout to enjoy a bottle of wine and the sunshine. In fact, when we asked to buy a bottle, the pourer asked if we wanted it ‘for here’ or ‘to go.’ It was fairly crowded but we were taken care of within a few minutes. The first wine we tried was our favorite—Roseland—a blend of viognier and chardonnay. Dad and I liked the whites, in whole, better than the reds here.

Veritas Winery—Eric and I were here three years ago and boy, have things changed in that time. The simple tasting room has been transformed into a cozy living room-type setting with leather couches and an acoustic band. (One song, Ripple, I haven’t heard in years.) Fortunately, the wine is still as good as ever… We left with a case of the Claret (a special of $100/case made this a no-brainer), and a few bottles of the Petit Verdot, Sauvignon Blanc, their Vintner’s Reserve red, and the most delicious dessert wine.

Afton Mountain Vineyards—I just finished the last bottle I bought from this place during our previous visit and was looking forward to trying out the newer vintages. We had the entire place to ourselves and pup was even allowed to join us in the tasting room. The young man (what am I, 40?) behind the counter made some good conversation and was able to tell us quite a bit about the wines. It turns out that the bottle I drank recently (an Old Vines Cab 2001) was the last vintage of that varietal since the current 2005 one. Still delicious! We left with a mixed case of the champagne (semi-dry, fruity, and not overly yeasty), Riesling, Pinot Noir (a gift for our hosts in Harrisonburg), and the Old Vines Cabernet Sauvignon.

Click on the map above to see the large version of the route from our trip this past weekend (and some highlights).

On our way home today we made a slight detour in order to visit The Homestead in Hot Springs, VA. Riesling had to wait in the car (in the shade of course) while we had lunch and enjoyed the views.