In case you missed it, there was a Showdown ThrowDown last nite in the Twin Cities between two of Music’s Hottest Blonde Bombshells – Lady Gaga & Carrie Underwood.  Gaga at St Paul’s Xcel Enery Center and Underwood at the State Fair…hmmm.  Love ya Carrie, but the state fair, really?  Gaga was so hot, she added another date to her Twin Cities schedule and squeezed in another show at the Xcel last nite – pretty cool.

While it truly wasn’t a showdown at all – unless you consider Underwood’s gun slingin’ leather belt she was wearing part of the ThrowDown Attire - my vote for Best Performance goes to Queen Gaga.  No, I didn’t see Carrie’s performance AND Gaga’s…I was only game for the raunchiest show in town, The Gaga.  Incidentally, which is a perfect follow-up to my previous ‘How to Make Love to Wine’ blog. 

Taken from Lady Gaga herself:  “I hate the truth.  I’d prefer a giant dose of Bullsh-  any day before I’d rather hear the truth.”  So, this is my review of the show with wine pairings to boot. 
Hey Gaga:  Are you ready to ‘Show me Your Teeth’?

A friend of mine said before hitting the show last nite, “The best way to describe Lady Gaga’s Show last nite (she played the nite before also) is by saying, it was a Fiasco!”  And now, after seeing it…I get that.  But, I loved that aspect of it at the same time!  Crazy, out of control, just out-right sick and twisted, but isn’t that why we all went?  It’s like never being able to pass by a car wreck, we all have to SEE what’s inside – something grueling, disturbing and a bit sick.  That is the Queen Gaga.  And the fans, just as sick, demented and unleashed as their performer.  From little girls 5 yrs of age and up to someone’s grandma sitting next to me – the show brought out the best, worst and most scantily clad audience of the state.  Yet somehow, Gaga’s message of:  Equality, Bi-Lovin’, Acceptance and Inner Monster Release – applied to almost everyone in the audience.  At least that’s what the roar from the crowd implied.  So I thought…what the h- am I going to pair to this, a Monster Ball of sorts, when it comes to Wine & the music of Ms. Gaga?

So I asked and here’s what I got…

After checking out these hot mamas and their drinks, I thought – I must get deeper on this subject.  So I tore it apart song by song. 

Starting here with ‘Disco Stick’ :

 

Hmmm, let’s see.  We don’t necessarily need to talk about the meaning of ‘Disco Stick’, I think we covered that in “How to Make Love to Your Wine” last week.  So, we pair to the wines that may apply to the action involving a ‘Disco Stick’ of sorts.  I know, not exactly Al Green y’all, but it could refer to that baby making moment that has you all hot and bothered. 

What wine puts YOU in the mood?  That’s for you to answer, but I have one region in mind that may apply to the situation at hand.  Let’s take a wine from the Girl’s Video above… Veuve Clicquot.  While I’m not necessarily a fan of the juice from Clicquot that comes to the U.S. (remember, what we get here in the U.S. has more sugar) – I AM a fan of a creamy, luxurious, slippery Champagne.  Completely applicable to Ms. Gaga’s ‘Disco Stick’, don’t chya think?

Next.  A Wine to Drink when all you want to do is:  ‘Just Dance’

Dancing, moving, gyrating – whatever you want to call it.  It’s a feel good kind of move, right?  Whether it’s Disco, Hip-Hop or Country – it makes the world go ’round and if we didn’t have our own Lady Gagas to jam out to, what would we have?  And wine…helping the world to become better dancers, right? 

What Wine Makes YOU want to ‘Just Dance’?  Again, bubbly fits into this category, but for me – something fresh, fun and exciting plays a pretty even part for opening my chakras.  I pick a delightfully, cheery, green and grassy New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.  Much different from my heart throb region of Savis, the Loire Valley reeking of mineral and chalk, I like New Zealand for their fresh, brite, sunshine-y, grassy attitude.  When it’s cold and dreary here in the great Midwest come January, I reach for a nice pick me up.  I do, in fact, enjoy Whitehaven’s Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough.  A smile for under $15, where could one possibly go wrong?

And last, but certainly not least… One of my favorite Gaga songs and really, quite the act, Sir Alejandro:

You heard it here ~ What Grows Together Goes Together!  Looking for a cool new way to practice your Spanish?  Check into Rioja Rehab and call me when you’re out!  My pick for something dirty, twisted, meaty and maybe even a little bloody – check out one of my favorite regions in Spain: Rioja.  The grape here peeps remember is:  Tempranillo.  Full of soot, sometimes poopy but always delicious.  One of my favorites ~ Bodegas Muga Rioja Reserve.  Oooohhh so gooood and still a rock ‘em, sock ‘em wine for under $30 – a real winner! 

Moral of the Story:  Dirty with personality. 

And, shouldn’t that sum it all up for us here, Ms. Gaga?  I’ve decided, I like you.  I’ll keep you plugged into my IPod for a while.  ‘Cuz you make me want to dance, sip, disco and more.  Thanks for a fab show and thanks to all who I enjoyed it with!  Overall, a killer performance by one hot lady (or man, whatever?).  Hope you like the pairings…of course, they’re for you to choose, these are just some starters.  Drink what you like, and drink it with style! 

Now turn up that music and GET TO DRINKING!!!

Two days ago, I ran across a Tweet from my pals at @Winescom alerting me of a Guest Blogger they had on tap for the following day. 

The blog title entry:  “How to Make Love to Your Wine.”  

With much anticipation, I waited for the next day’s entry to appear.  And, with much disappointment, was through with my new pal from @BrokeWino’s entry in less than a minute.  I thought, “With a title like that, how could you really mess something up that had given its readers that much set up?”  I’m a sucker for titles, words and/or slogans that evoke anything fun that can be read about wine.  As a Sommelier, I spend my days and nites often reading things that are NOT as exciting, more factual, historical or educational – so when the opportunity arises to read something juicy from my field– I’m on it.  I am, at the same time, a true Mid-Westerner, which flaws me into the role of never being able to keep my mouth shut.  Therefore, I commented on the guts of the story and, long story short, was challenged into to this #Blog-Off after telling @Winescom that their ‘guest blogger’ (in so many Twitter words) = stunk. 

Could I write a better “How to Make Love…” – well, I’ll give it a shot.  Did I mention I was an English major?

The question is:  How to Make Love?  Hmmm.  Birds do it.  Bees do it.  But, when it comes to humans, we do it best.  It becomes an act of emotion, intimacy and sometimes some raw inhibition.  When making love to one’s wine, we must analyze our subject from head to toe just as we would as animals, in order to truly appreciate the experience.

 1.  Survey Your Lover

Is she lite in color, dark in her loins or is she showing some sense of maturity? 

Roll the glass around the inside of its rim in a slow round motion.   Gentle.  You don’t want to hurt the baby…

You know what you are? You’re like a big bear with claws and with fangs… 
…big f* teeth, man.
Yeah… big f* teeth on ya’. And she’s just like this little bunny, who’s just kinda cowering in the corner.
Shivering.

Does she spread her legs long and slow across the inside of the glass?  Maybe that means she’s hot…  Hot-blooded, check it and see!   Does she spend her days sipping piña coladas poolside?  Does the perspiration that drips slowly down the insides of her perfectly tanned legs tell you so? 

Or is she a bit uptight?  A librarian in disguise?  Quick to run the inside of your glass, lite in color from spending her days pent up inside a cool, earthy library.  Maybe she needs some decanting?

Or does her color vary from the guts of her being to her outside edges?  She could be telling you she has some experience – look out, could be good, or could be real bad.

 2.   Smell Her Up

Grab hold of your glass and give her a full examination on the nose.  Get deep. The only way you’ll truly be able to tell more is if you really get into this part.  Close your eyes, open your mind and think deeply about what you smell?

Is she hot and dripping with Malibu sun tan lotion?  Could mean she loves wood (That’s what she said!)  Did her time at the pool give her a dark tanned voluptuous smell, dripping with ripe, juicy aromas?  This may give way to her hot climated background. 

Or does she still have those librarian glasses on?  Buttoned up tight, but screaming to show you more of her dirty inside.  Does she smell like the inside of a dirty old library?  Has she spent too much time in a cool climate expanding her ‘rooted’ mind?  This one could use a fun ‘splash’ decant to open up her cool climated insides.  Maybe a slow, easy talking to while you slide her softly into her new decanter will help.

3.  Here’s your chance to let it all hang out – Taste your Lover

Just when no one is watching, open wide, take your wine to your lips, slightly pursed, suck in a bit of air to loosen the palate and imagine all the smells you just experienced. 

Is your poolside beauty ready to party?

Hot and sultry?  Or, maybe a little promiscuous and fat through the center of your tongue?  When she slides down your throat, do feel the flames of her loins lighting you up when she reaches your insides?  Is her hedonism is all you think about?

Could be this lover comes from a hot climate and is just what the doctor ordered…

Or, after a quick splash in the tub (decanter), is your librarian ready to give you her all?  Does her dirty, bookworm side come forth and unleash her passionate side?  Buttoned tight on the outside, but dirty on the inside.  Maybe a little bit filthy, but full of pleasure, long in her length, begging your palate to ‘drink me’ and ‘feed me’?  Our little librarian may have just needed some space to free her mind.  Could be that you have a cool climated beauty that is not as quick to reveal her dark side until you give her a bit of your time.

Either way – your experience is your own.  And, your playmate for drinking is your own, too. 

Revealing facts – but all come pretty close to truly being able to tell who’s dirty and who’s just downright promiscuous when analyzing your subject.  Which one is your favorite?  That’s for you to decide – and if you decide you like ‘em both, that’s the beauty about wine –  You can have your wine and drink it too!

See?  Making Love to your Wine can be fun and arousing too! 

And, if you’re having a hard time getting it down, just have a couple more glasses and follow Step 1-3 again.  Salut!

With a mantra that’s based on ‘value driven’ wines, I’m going the distance to leave this “BUCK-4-BUCK” decision up to you by…

Reviewing a Napa Monster, The 2001 Opus One.

With a collection of Opus One in my cellar, bought at one point for collection purposes, I’m wondering…Where is my 01 Opus in its progression?  Peaked yet?

See where this wine is, how much time does it have + what was the 01 vintage like?  Along with a Perfect Pairing to go with it!

I think at one point I even reveal why I consider myself:  ‘A DIRTY Girl’! (When it comes to wine!)  In HD

**Funny thing about this wine- I reviewed it on video only on its first nite – the second nite, the profile softened and I enjoyed it with a Dulano’s Pizza.

Oh yeah, slummin’ it on a Wednesday nite with Opus One and Pizza.

You decide after watching this…Lucky?  And, is this 2001 Opus One worth the $$$ Bling Bling $$$?

Check out this new video post with your favorite go-to-wine-gal Sommelier Leslee Miller of Amusée. 

A side by side comparison tasting between these Two Fiesty, Delicious, Efforvescent, Brite Portuguese Vinho Verdes for the Season!

Broadbent’s Vinho Verde – found on the shelf for $10.99  &  the Tr3s Castas Vinho Verde for $11.99 – both a killer deal for a fun easy drinker.  I found them both on the shelf at one of my favorite local retailers – Solo Vino Wine Shop in St Paul.

Which one fits your palate?

Enjoy – In HD!

Another Twin Cities Wine Education Class taken to the limit! 

Looking for a great Twin Cities Wine Education Class to partake in, but don’t know where to start?  Looks like you found the right page – with Amusée.  Giving you some of THE BEST wine classes in the Twin Cities along with some of THE BEST food and wine pairings out there.  Drop what you think you know about wine, lose the attitude and stop thinking you HAVE to spend a bucket o’ money for a terrific bottle of wine.  I’m here to tell you that you DON’T have to spend a lot to enjoy fabulous food and wine pairings! 

Our Twin Cities Wine Classes are FUN, ENGAGING and never stuffy!  They’re packed with great information, along with helping you to comfortably explore your palate amongst friends.  It’s not a competition as to who can come up with the ‘right’ things to say – it’s more of an exploration with us.  Learn how to swirl, sniff, sip and just RELAX with a glass of wine.  After all it’s your palate – we’re just here to help you along.  Along with giving you some fabulous food and wine pairings for you to take home and show off to your friends.  Come and see why Amusée and Cooks of Crocus Hill was named:  The Best Food and Wine Pairing Classes in the Twin Cities.  Classes sell out quick, look into Cooks of Crocus Hill’s fall calendar  for more of Sommelier Leslee’s Wine Classes.  Classes are already 50% sold out.  You don’t want to be the one hoping your name comes up on that waiting list!

Check out this – a recap from last nite’s Vines + Reefs Class:  Part III ~ Lovin La Playa and our favorite pairing of the evening with Sommelier Leslee Miller, Chef Mike Shannon and Cook’s Assistant Ms. Susan!  In HD

And the hits just keep on comin’!  This summer has been filled with class after class, all of them knocking the hits right out of the park.  Thursday nite with our BAD ASS BBQ & BEST BUCK 4 BUCK WINES class at Cooks of Crocus Hill was no exception.  With a class over 30 peeps deep and a group ready to take on anything Q’d, we were all in the mood for a little fun.

The wines were all focused around good valued juice that packed a little more punch than the price price point you paid.  You know, something you could say you paid $20 for and no one would ever know that you paid $10 because it was that good!  With everything from an easy drinkin’ $7 Bordeaux Rosé to WINE IN A BOX (yep, you heard it right!) – the hit of the nite – all blind and the wine, which was served from decanters, was unveiled only after everyone started guessing $18-$25 for the bottle.  The box, which I wrapped in brown paper bag and labeled:  BAD ASS VINO, turned the room into a roar with my Aus Banrock Station Shiraz in a box.  Something you’d find on the shelf for about $8 a 750mL, was now in a 3L box staring us down for a total of $20 (that’s 4 bottles!)  The room applauded!

But, here was the real gem of the nite…the last pairing of our dinner.  Grilled strawberries and…you’ll have to watch to find out! 

Check out Chef Mike Shannon from Cooks of Crocus Hill and myself as we give you a little 411 on this spectacular summer pairing and unveil the wine we used for delicious Grilled Summer Strawberries and house made Lemon Sorbet!  (In HD)

Folks are always asking and I’m always trying them…from one end of the Mississippi to the other, I’m reviewing them left and right.  What are they?  Minnesotan wines.  From grapes like Frontenac, Marquette to St Croix – they’re a foxy group of characters.

Take a look as my pal, Chef Mike Shannon from Cooks of Crocus Hill, and I review a wine made in our own backyard.  Literally, kind of a ‘city made’ wine.  From Warehouse Winery - this, a blend of Frontenac with California purchased grapes: Zinfandel, Petite Sirah and Cabernet Franc. 

Watch as we review and then PAIR to this funky wine concoction!  In HD.

Looking for a cool wine to pull off the shelf…because of its looks?
Check this out – A Review of the 2004 Super Hero InZinerator – with, what looks like a strange Perfect Pairing!

Shake n Bake, I’m back from the Hot State of Georgia!  Hope you all had a chance to catch up on my stops and eats along the way while in Atlanta.  With so much good food to enjoy, a fabulous five days of relaxin’ + great friends to enjoy it all with – our trip to Atlanta was a success.  And the best part, we finished our trip off with a little more Sting.  So yes, we’re back on the Sting trail, but this time with some great LIVE CLIPS from the concert, very close up!  Check out these very up close and personal videos of Sting and the Philharmonic Orchestra (aka:  ’The Queen’s Orchestra’ – For more on the Twin Cities Show…See Sting Blog Below).

I’m still searching for the perfect wine, in fact…I’ve had a lot of great recommendations, all from HUGE Sting fans, but I’m still on the hunt to satisfy completely, MY Sting/Wine Connection.

Monday, June 28th – we had the distinct pleasure of being ‘wow’d’ for the second time this summer – all in one week – by the Great Mr. Gordon Sumner, (aka: Sting) this time from Chastain Park, just inside the city limits of Atlanta, Georgia.  With a whoppin’ 95+ degrees and well, the humidity so thick you could cut right through it, and the amphitheatre bursting at its seams with 6,000+ peeps, the surroundings were some of the best I’ve seen a large act perform. (Well, outside of Red Rocks- that’s a hard one to top.) The crowd equipped with hand fans, many with personal misters, the sticky humidity and heat had you wantin’ anything but red wine, sorry guys.  In fact, the big hit of this hot summer night in Atlanta called for the south’s Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka.  While I’d most likely like a crisp cool glass of white wine, the Firefly was surely the ticket for cooling this Sting Crazed Crowd down.  Not that you couldn’t order a full bottle of wine in a plastic ‘yard’ (hello, Vegas!) at the amphitheater, our clan was all on board for something just a little more “south” if you know what I mean.  The show was great, all within the first ten rows of seating, Sting was front and center shakin’ his 58 yr old pa-too-ti with no shame.  While I was looking for a little something different than our Minneapolis show, just one week before, the exact same concert was played down to song order and stories.  All fine and still fab, but I could have used a set list change.  Yet then again, how many peeps travel from MSP to ATL in one week to see Sting?

Tonite as I write, I am sitting with a fat glass of Rioja.  One of my favorite Spanish producers:  Montecillo.  An old school favorite with depth, dirt and personality.  It’s a kind of ‘ra-cha-cha!’ booty shaker.  In fact, I’m enjoying a little sheep’s milk, Garrotxa cheese with my Rioja, while hummin’ “Desert Rose” – how appropriate!  Maybe that’s what Sting needs for pairing… a booty shakin’ wine?  Let’s stop pretending we’re all so serious after all – we’re here to just enjoy ourselves, right?  So maybe Sting needs something that makes you ‘Shake n’ Bake’.  Not just a little, but one that really gets the blood flowing.  And, I’m sticking with that as my final answer…does he need red or white?  I’m not here to say.  It’s up to you after all – so pick up that wine that makes the booty shake and get it going, because Sting can entice anyone to shake it once you’ve watched his hips sway to and from….am I right, or am I right?

Drink What You Like and Like What You Drink!

Check out these LIVE performances from Chastain Park, Atlanta, Georgia – June 28, 2010 – ALL in HD!!

Never a dull moment at Cooks of Crocus Hill with Chef Mike Shannon and Sommelier Leslee Miller!  They are taking the summer by storm already with two back to back classes that went down as some of Cooks ‘Best of the Best’ classes.

On May 27th, my dear friend, Ms. Susan Ridley, co owner of one of my favorite Napa Wineries, Hendry Ranch Vineyards, came to town to put on one of most talked about wine dinner dinners of the summer with me at Cooks of Crocus Hill.  With 40pp in attendance and another 40 on the waiting list, the dinner was a huge hit. 

Featuring wines from every side of Hendry’s portfolio, the dinner included:

 Gruyere Puffs with the winery’s Rosé

Prairie Farms Smoked Trout & Duck Vinaigrette Salad with the Hendry ‘Barrel Fermented’ Chardonnay

 Duck Confit paired to the Hendry Pinot Noir

Down to a gorgeous NY Strip topped with local Foie Gras paired to the Hendry Red Wine

And last – Hendry’s Block 28 Zinfandel paired to a delightful Chocolate Flan topped with a lite Carmel Sauce and Raspberries. 

Absolutely outstanding!

For more on Susan’s presentation on Hendry Ranch Vineyard’s and Mr. George Hendry’s story, watch here:

Hard dinner to top, but not impossible to match, The Rhone Rangers Class offered on June 9th came as another home run with participants!  A play on all things ‘Rhone Varietal’, Sommelier Leslee and Chef Mike brought out the goods for this class.  With a combination of white Rhone grapes and red, the two took their love for grapes:  Viognier, Marsanne, Rousanne, Picpoul, Grenache, Syrah, Petite Sirah and  Mourvedre to the limit.  Featuring these Rhone Grapes from around the world, Leslee paired to Mike’s perfect ‘Rhone Graped’ menu.

With a combination of:  Ojai Rosé, a succulent Grenache based Santa Barbara sipper, paired to a fresh lemon basil cherry tomato salad

Chapoutier’s Crozes Hermitage paired to a collection of unbelievable Duck Meatballs

Smoked Trout Risotto and a fun Marsanne, Rousanne, Grenache Blanc Rhone white by Chateau de Campuget

Ernie Els’s South African Guardian Peak SMG (Syrah, Mourvedre, Grenache) and Braised Short Ribs

Through a fat plate of Warm Brownies and Syrah Syrup paired with Chapoutier’s Banyuls and New World Petite Sirah by Marietta Cellars. 

Seriously!  Mouth-watering and delicious!

Don’t miss out on these, Voted ~ Twin Cities Favorite Wine Classes!   For more information on how you can be a part of these fabulous classes, visit Amusée Events page ~ here.

Bon Apetit and hope to see you soon!