Trouble In Mind

Today I have the urge to make trouble. I want to make messes instead of cleaning them. I want to try something new. I want a day that is spontaneous, creative and preferably childlike.

Today is IHOP's National Pancake Day. A free short stack might help ease the urge. Sitting at the restaurant doing a crossword would be a nice addition. I'm not sure it's quite the right activity, though. The messy quotient is way too low.

The soft-play room at the rec center would certainly be child-like. Puddin' would have a blast climbing, bouncing, and throwing herself on the floor. Somewhere around here I think we have some coupons for paint-your-own pottery. Certainly creative and messy, especially with a toddler. There are far more museums, galleries, and exhibits than I can count. So many options and yet nothing seems quite right. I think the trouble is with me.

Being wife and mother is sometimes in conflict with my wanderlust. There are chores to do, meals to plan, schedules to keep. There are also roads I haven't driven, hills I haven't hiked, places I haven't visited. In the face of a world waiting for discovery, how much does the laundry really matter? In the face of cold, naked children, how relevant is the bigger world?

Today I'll probably choose to be the responsible adult. I've got people counting on me, afterall. But if you see my cold, naked children walking themselves to school please give me a call.

Espiral Vinho Verde

I'm not too familiar with Portuguese wines so this bottle, a hostess gift, has been sitting in our basement "cellar" for a few months. We just didn't know what to do with it. Last week I planned a menu of Mojito Salmon and Quinoa and remembered to put a wine in the fridge early enough for it to chill properly. Looking over my choices I figured that my menu and Portugal had enough commonalities that it was worth a shot. (Not very sophisticated wine pairing, I admit, but sometimes you just have to take a stab in the dark.)

I opened the bottle and heard a little pop. Hmm. That was not what I was expecting. Was that supposed to happen or did the wine go bad? This is one of those moments when I'm faced with just how little I know about the wine world. It sure is a lot of fun but sometimes it makes me feel like a simpleton.

Turns out the pop was supposed to be there. Vinho Verde is native to the Minho region in Northern Portugal. The wines are fresh and vibrant and are meant to be drunk within the year. The name means "green wine" which refers to character rather than color. They are lightly sparkling, but not quite enough to qualify for the official semi-sparkling label. They also have a naturally low alcohol content.

Stan and I found Espiral to be bright and brassy. It had tropical fruit tones, focusing on passion fruit. The fruits matched nicely with the mint and lime in the salmon and the effervescence added another layer of enjoyment to the occasion. It was a small moment of summer in the midst of our snow-covered landscape. We'll likely be enjoying this wine again when the heat hits us. Espiral can be found at your local Trader Joe's for an obnoxiously low price. For the record, the Quinoa and Mojito Salmon came from there too so you can replicate the whole experience if you like. The mojito part of the meal was not quite as advertised - tasty but not very mojito - so next time we'll probably have Mojito ingredients on hand for after dinner. When the wine is so light on the alcohol, it leaves room for that extra minty splurge.

Seebrich Pinot Noir Rosé 2006

At my last wine job we were routinely given cases of overstock wines to take home free. More often than not it was high quality German Riesling (and other whites) that were a vintage or two past. I know plenty of folks who drink Riesling - especially the good stuff - but we tend to sip rather than gulp so I still haven't exhausted my stock. This weekend I decided to dip into the stash for a Valentine appropriate wine and came up with a rosé of Pinot Noir by Seebrich. In Germany the grape is called Spätburgunder and rosé is translated Weißherbst.

As I'm exposed to more non-zinfandel versions, I'm starting to overcome my reticence regarding rosés. I still don't have high expectations, though, and this bottle was relatively old. Rosés are generally meant to be drunk while they are fresh and new. Despite the years in the bottle and years in my basement, the wine held up well and took me by surprise.

It's aroma carries a light linen scent and it's color is that of roses and honey. The wine sits elegantly on my tongue, slowly doling out sweet cherry and green apple flavors, with just enough tannin to bring balance. It is decadent enough to be dessert without overwhelming sweetness or cloying finish.

On this particular bottle there's a sticker on the back saying "No Retail Value." That usually means the wine wasn't generally imported and this was probably a sample. I wanted to know if I could expect to find more of this somewhere and what kind of price range to expect. The Seebrich website mentions Spätburgunder Weißherbst as a small portion of their offerings but doesn't give any indication whether or not they are exported. My brief search led to mostly German language websites so I have a feeling it'll be quite some time before I get to taste it again.

One final note, according to Wikipedia, German Pinot noir ("Rhenish") is mentioned several times in Shakesperean plays as a highly prized wine. Who can argue with the bard? I hope you get the chance to try some soon.

Happy Valentines

I've done so much talking and bonding while snowed in this week that I've run out of things to say.

Instead, I'll turn the post over to my valentines - each of whom I love very much, despite too many days in close quarters.

Snowy Bliss

I'm not a big fan of snow since wet and cold don't do good things for my disposition. This winter, however, I'm finding new appreciation for the fluff.

We live below the snow belt so we don't deal with it super often. That means that none of us do too well driving 'round in the stuff and our local governments aren't too practiced at snow cleanup. If it snows more than 6 inches we're stuck in the house. If it gets to a foot we're stuck for at least two days. The more snow, the longer we sit in our house. Here comes the epiphany: if there's too much snow, then the meetings get canceled. If the roads are dangerous then I can't be expected to run errands. If school is out then I don't need to monitor homework time. Suddenly, my day is blissfully empty and I can play with my family, who are also snowed in with me.

This storm 'round Monkey & Peanut are riding it out at their mom's house. We sent them off with backpacks full of fun and enlightenment. They've also got winter-wear and cardboard for sledding so they shouldn't run out of stuff to do anytime soon. As much as I would love to have with them here at our house, I'm loving the lack of fighting, bickering, whining, tattling and other sisterly love that they carry with them. I miss them but when I'm not playing referee, there's even more time for bliss.

Stan, Puddin' and I are each toodling around the house accomplishing things. (Toddler toodling is very cute.) I'm 95% done with a project that has hung over my head for nearly 3 years, and that was with the last throws of errands and chauffeuring this morning, before the snow started in earnest. Just think what else I'll be able to knock through this weekend! Of course, I'll be out there doing my share of shoveling too, but I'm ignoring that for the sake of my grand vision.

The snow/rain boots that I ordered way too late in the season won't be here in time so I'll be out there shoveling while wearing my grungiest struttin' boots. "These boots were made for walkin' but that's not all they'll do ..." The to-do list that taunts me is in for a swift kick in the butt, from my much-too-fancy boots.