Wine & Dine in the Midst of Time
By Dawn Straccia
Here it is just the beginning of February, and as the saying goes "in like a lion, out like a lamb". There is no such thing as far as winter is concerned and the NYC Winter Wine Festivals. Starting back in October the festival has made it's way around two states with samplings of wine from many different regions.
Mother nature did not hold back with a winter storm accomapnied by bitter tempatures and neither did the Winter Wine festival. With over 2000 attendees, between two sessions it was held in the beautifu, spacious Best Buy Theater in Times Square. The layout was extrodinary with the many different areas to explore.
There were over 250 wines to sample accompanied by a spread of fruits, many different cheeses, specialty crackers, and salads, one being cousous tossed with fresh lime and cilantro, along with serveral hot appeitizers, no holding back here and was a tasting of the finest.
Chablis, & Chardonnay's, Bordeaux & Sauvignon's, Merlots to Malbec, many Riesling's to chose from Gin's, Cognac and then the Prosecco's. Oh my, a fine orchestra of the grape and spirits where you were the conductor, your wine glass in hand as a baton, making your way through the many different flavors and levels that was being offered, a symphony to the palette.
Brotherhood America's Oldest Winery http://www.brotherhood-winery.com/ made my top 5, followed by Empire, Wine Symphony https://winesymphony.wordpress.com/ , River Horse http://www.riverhorsewineimports.com/ , and
Jan d'Amore http://www.jandamorewines.com/
In between all the tastings were stratigically placed sweet bites along the way. ARV Sweets
http://arvsweets.tumblr.com/ take the Rice Krispie Treat to another level, let alone there line of Brownies. The Luscious Little Dessert Company http://www.lusciouslittledesserts.com/, specializes in southern desserts. Their signature Sweet Potato Pound cake with a brown sugar glaze, was a taste of the south, but it was the Pecan pie bite that took me right to Georgia. Kudos to you and those delectable little desserts!! Li-Lac Chocolates http://www.li-lacchocolates.com/ a tradition in New York since 1923, knows what there doing when it comes to chocolate. That day we were honored to taste test their Butter Crunch Toffee, huge hit along with other samplings they were offering.
For us ladies a little extra that not only included jewelry from Traci Lynn Fashion Jewelry http://www.tracilynnjewelry.com/, but for our wine glasses aswell by Take Things Personally http://www.takethingspersonally.com/. Owner, creator, and Mom Kristen was looking to do something while raising her children. What a better way then to accessorize a wine glass in a beautiful creative way by personalizing it and taking it to another level. Starting off with wine charms she has evolved into designing key chains, bag tags, novelty jewelry, and so much more. What makes her company unique is Kristen, when speaking with her, nothing could have made her more happy then being able to raise her kids while creating a business in the meantime.
If I have said it once, I've said it a million times since attending the festivals. Worth it's price in Gold, well in this case wine.
Look for the next event coming up February 20th at The Short Hills Hilton. If you have not purchased tickets yet, get them now time is running out...