Let's Be Foxy

Last night Michael and I enjoyed a bottle of Foxes Island Pinot Noir 2005 and cupcakes made by our fabulous friend Lisa. It sure makes me happy to discover a good red wine. But this one is particularly lovely. It's velvety smooth with a firm finish. It's decadently rich with dark fruits, earthy mushrooms, game meat, spice and balsamic flavors.. The ruby-colored wine (13.8% alcohol) is a good medium red wine that opens slowly, making the taste better with each welcoming sip.

Red wine and cupcakes, a few of my favorite things.

Foxes Island Pinot Noir 2005

Michael and I first discovered Foxes Island while having dinner in Auckland's marina on the last night of our honeymoon. We were browsing the menu when a busboy stopped by and suggested a bottle of Foxes Island. Sure, why not? We're an easy sell when it comes to wine. We're sure glad we did. The bottle was about $95 New Zealand dollars, which was about $45.

Foxes Island is in New Zealand's Marlborough region, located on the South Island. The area has quickly risen to worldwide fame for its amazing and distinctive wines. We have tried many other wines from the area and have enjoyed each of them.

Auckland, New Zealand

I highly recommend Foxes Island. Enjoy a bottle tonight, this weekend, whenever. You'll love it's charm and sip it slowly allowing the wine to reveal itself.

Fabulous Fridays: Score A Touchdown By Pairing Chili and Wine

Michael traditionally makes a mean chili. It's become a Super Bowl tradition.

And the odds are high we'll be snacking the night away with everyone else on chicken wings, chips and dip and pizza rolls as the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts battle it out during Super Bowl 44 in Miami Sunday night.

While I realize beer generally come to mind for these sort of occasion, we'll be sipping some vino.

What is it about chicken wings and beer?

I asked my fabulous friend, author of The Ski House Cookbook and food blogger Tina what are some great pairings.

"You might be surprised to find out that slightly sweet wines pair well with spicy foods, so a 12-pack may not be the best choice," Tina said.

So if you're like me and like your grapes over your hops, here are a few ideas from Tina to that can help you uncork a bottle of wine while enjoying traditional game day snacks:

Potato Chips - Pinot Gris or Prosecco
Buttered Popcorn - Chardonnay or Prosecco
Chips & Salsa - for mild salsa a Chardonnay or Sangiovese (Chianti); for spicy salsa an off-dry Riesling
Chips and Guacamole - Chardonnay
Veggie Tray - Sauvignon Blanc
Pizza - depends on the toppings but Chardonnay for cheese, Pinto Noir for mushrooms or Sangiovese (Chianti) or Barbera for meat
Ribs (with BBQ sauce) - off dry Riesling or Zinfandel
BBQ dishes - fruity Rosé

Wings - Prosecco, off dry Riesling, Albariño
Chili - if it's really spicy: an off-dry Riesling, mild chili: Zinfandel

And in honor of The Saints and Jazzfest, you might want to try a food icon from the Crescent City, Crawfish Monica. It's mind-blowing delicious. Trust me. If you go for this decadent meal, I would pair it with a dry white wine.

Always remember, trying to match wine with signature Superbowl feasts there are always exceptions as not all recipes are the same and not all wines are the same.

And to celebrate along with the winner (com' on Saints - WHO 'DAT!) Tina said to pop open Champagne or a sparkling wine like a Cava or Prosecco). But if you're lucky enough to be in Miami for the game, why not go for a Cuba Libre or Mojito.

Whether you are rooting for The Saints or The Colts, you'll score a touchdown with these great pairing.

Kickoff is 6:25 on CBS.

Have a fabulous weekend.

Fabulous Fridays: The New World of Douro Wines

I recently bought a lovely bottle of Douro wine. I selected this because Michael and I really enjoy these red wines. Also, I recently read a review of Douro wines in The New York Times. We discovered Douro wines when we were in Portugal in 2007. Ever since our trip, these wines are pretty much a staple in our home. It's a nice, easy wine. We discovered our friend Douro by way of default. Naturally, or naively as it turned out, we thought we would be drinking Port wine all week. But when we stopped for a glass of Port, we really hated it. As an alternative, someone suggested Douro. Lucky for us, it was amazing.

For our most recent tasting, we tried a mighty red bottle of Evel Grande Reserve 2005. It was really well-balanced and elegant. It had plenty of plum and spicy flavors and did go down rather smoothly.

Douro wines from Portugal are a staple at our house.

A warning when going out to eat or drink in Portugal. It is customary for your waiter to immediately (and by this I mean as you're sitting down) put on your table small plates of bread, cheese, meats, olives and butter. FABULOUS!!! But when the bill came, each small plate was listed. The price for this little pre-appetizer came out to about 30 euros, so could be upwards to $45. Michael and I called this a “covert operation”. Enough said.

Douro wines come from the rugged Douro valley, in northern Portugal, known for its very hot and desert-dry conditions in the summer and cold and wet in the winter. The Douro River originates in Spain and flows west until it reached the ocean in Porto. You can purchase Douro wine from Spain as well, which is also very nice.

We bought four bottles on our trip to smuggle home with us (forgetting the aviation laws that no liquids be allowed) but this didn’t matter. Our local wine shop has lots to choice from and they are pretty much inexpensive.

According to Food and Wine magazine, the rise in popularity of this wine is due to changes in the 1980s to Portuguese wine laws, which forbade bottling wine in the Douro region and an partly due to an influx of young, ambitious, talented winemakers. As a result, wine stores in my area are clearing their shelves for more Douro wine.

Drinking this wine really has me in the mood for an return trip to Europe.