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Oct19

The California Wine Club Review

Posted at 8:31 PM • View Comments

Sean and I live near two wine shops that are always promoting upcoming wine tastings but we never have the time to go to one.

So when we dine out, I tend to order wines I’m already familiar with and stay clear of types I haven’t enjoyed in the past.

For the next three months California Wine Club will be sending me two bottles of limited production wines from California’s best artisan wineries. It’s part of their Premier Club membership.

The first shipment recently arrived at my door. I loved getting having wine delivered because I didn’t have to worry about stopping to pick up a bottle or two of wine on the way home.

I previously spoke with Jon Boring (Director of Social Media and son of The California Wine Club founders Bruce and Pam Boring) about not having much love for Chardonnay or Zinfandel but he suggested I try them. And so a Chardonnay and a Zinfandel from Perry Creek Winery arrived in this first shipment.

The two wines from Perry Creek Winery were a 2008 Zinman Zinfandel and a 2009 El Dorado Chardonnay. The Perry Creek Zinman was rated among the top 15 best-value Zinfandels by Wine Spectator in 2010.

I am still not a fan of red Zinfandel but I did think the Chardonnay had a light, crisp taste that went well with the Mexican food I made that night.

I look forward to seeing which wines are included in next month’s shipment from The California Wine Club.

TRY IT

If you are interested in trying the Premier Club, you can use promo code veepveep they’ll take 10% OFF your order.

WIN IT

Here’s a chance to win a one-month subscription to The California Wine Club:

All you have to do is:

1. Follow @cawineclub and @veepveep and send this tweet:

Hey @VeepVeep that @cawineclub membership is mine! http://tinyurl.com/699hw7v

2. Comment on this post with the type of wine you enjoy.

Winners must be 21 years old and live in the U.S. (except for Utah) I’ll choose a winner randomly this Sunday at Noon.

Oct12

Class Trip – The Jewish Museum

Posted at 9:16 PM • View Comments

I was chosen to be one of the chaperones for Luke’s class trip to the Ezra Jack Keats exhibition at The Jewish Museum.

So off I went with Luke’s class on a yellow school bus — Luke made sure I buckled up — to see The Snowy Day and the Art of Ezra Jack Keats.

The Snowy Day was the first Ezra Jack Keats book Natalie received from my uncle so I was already familiar with Keats’ work.

Once we arrived at The Jewish Museum, we walked up a short flight of stairs to the exhibition where a security guard told me photos were not allowed (after I snapped the photo below)

Our tour guide, Michelle, talked in the Keats Reading Room about what inspired Ezra Jack Keats for his stories and illustrations. He was a Brooklyn native and usually set the storyline in his neighborhood in East New York.

She read A Letter to Amy to the class and we walked around looking at his original illustrations and photos from his neighborhood.

We also saw the collage used to create Caldecott medal winning The Snowy Day.

The kids then worked in groups to create objects from different shapes of paper. It was nice to see Luke working with two of his classmates.

And then Luke and his classmates went into the artroom and made their own collages to take back to school.

The class trip was fun but exhausting.

Anyone else feel like that after they chaperone their child’s class?

If you are in the New York area, the exhibition is open until January 29, 2012. You should take your children. I think any child from 4-8 years old would enjoy the exhibition.

And if you aren’t in the area, you should still add Ezra Jack Keats books to your child’s library.

I recommend everyone have at least one. These are the four we have - Peter’s Chair, Whistle for Willie, A Letter to Amy and The Snowy Day.

Those of you who are already a fan of Ezra Jack Keats — which books do you have? Which should we add to our collection?

Sep16

Andrea Bocelli in Central Park

Posted at 7:54 AM • View Comments

As a belated birthday gift, I took my mother to the sold out Andrea Bocelli Central Park show last night. She’s quite the Andrea Bocelli fan and we’ve been going to concerts (Rolling Stones, Diana Ross) together since I was a teen.

When we got to the park entrance we were allowed in as soon as we got there because we had VIP tickets. We walked through a maze of barricades — passed the ready ambulances and police command stations into a cornered off area where were handed a bento box compiling of Italian snacks.

We found our seats and got ready for the show. Once the stage was lit, the lights were beautiful. And it set the stage for a memorable and magical night. Dare I say — a once in a lifetime experience?!

Rumors and whispers of Tony Bennet and Celine Dion performing traveled around us. But to be honest, it didn’t matter to me. My mother wanted to see Andrea Bocelli.

Once Andrea came on stage, she was happy. So happy she closed her eyes and probably traveled to a place where Andrea Bocelli fans go once they hear his voice. She was listening to him sing Ave Maria live — it’s one of her favorites.

But at intermission we left so she didn’t hear him close with Neesun Dorma. The rain and wind combined with the temperature made the concert a bit uncomfortable. And while we had it much better than the people sitting on the wet Central Park Great Lawn without umbrellas, it was time for us to go. (Although I believe she only left to be nice to me. She probably would have stayed until the end if her daughter wasn’t such a ~~princess~~ wimp.)

And although I now write this with a head cold, I am so happy to have had this experience with my mother. We are able to say we were there for an incredible night with Andrea Bocelli and friends in Central Park.

If you weren’t able to attend Andrea Bocelli’s sold out Central Park concert last night, you can watch it December 2nd on PBS.

Where you also one of the estimated 60,000 people at the concert last night?

Disclosure: Complimentary VIP tickets were provided courtesy of Barilla as part of my Summer of Italy partnership with them. This review was not required. I just wanted to share my night with you.