Looking for something exciting to do this fall but don’t have time to plan your getaway? Walla Walla, Washington, is ready for you! They’ve planned your entire trip for you! No, I’m totally serious, they’ve created the ultimate insider’s guide to the valley’s best kept secrets and celebrated favorites. All you have to do is…
Travel
Back to Bourgogne: An introduction to Burgundy wines
A beginner lesson on the wines of the Burgundy (Bourgogne) region of France. Good Burgundies can be life changing. They are the kinds of wines that, in the 60’s and 70’s, motivated crazy folks to pack up and plant vineyards in Oregon, because they saw the potential for the kinds of life changing wines they…
How to make a Spanish Carajillo…
How to make a Spanish Carajillo …or rather how I learned the proper way to order coffee in Spain, and a recipe for a Spanish Carajillo and other Spanish coffee drinks. On our second day in Spain several years ago, our group enjoyed a fantastic two hour long lunch at Loreto Restaurant in Jumilla with the…
Wine Travel: Discover Conegliano Valdobbiadene, The home of Prosecco Superiore
Discover Conegliano Valdobbiadene, in the heart of the Veneto, in Northeast Italy, where Prosecco is made and thrives. Prosecco often gets lumped into one category — fresh, fruity, and innexpensive sparkling wine. But if you’re willing to look a little deeper, there’s so much more to Prosecco than it gets credit for. In this post,…
Smoked Tri Tip Mac and Cheese cooked on the grill
Smoked Tri Tip Mac and Cheese is cooked on the grill with perfectly smoked and tender tri tip, mixed with an ultra creamy cheese sauce. It is sure to up your mac and cheese game… by about a million percent. Mac & Cheese Recipe Inspiration If a winery could be my spirit animal it might…
48 Hours in Austin
What to do with just 48 hours in Austin, Texas. Last month I had a whirlwind of a trip to Austin, TX, to be a part of the 300th opening of TownePlace Suites hotels on behalf of The Daily Meal. I wrote a story for them on the hotel and their partnership with Weber Grills,…
Win a Trip to Rodney Strong Vineyards in Sonoma County
(This contest has ended. But Rodney Strong is still a fantastic place to visit). Would you like to win an all expense paid trip to the gorgeous town of Healdsburg, CA, in Sonoma County, to be a part of the weekend-long Rodney Strong Vineyards Master Blender Experience? Of course you would, silly! That was a…
A Taste of Idaho Wines. Yes, Idaho!
Last fall I had the opportunity to discover a new-to-me region of wine, located just outside of my own backyard. It might be surprising to many, but this region has a lot more in common with its well known neighbors than you might suspect. And it’s definitely a region I’ll be keeping a close eye…
¡Salud! — 25 years of Making a Difference in the Willamette Valley
Vineyard work can be dangerous. In fact it can be deadly. Every year around harvest time we hear about accidents either in the vineyard or winery. Some of them are freak accidents. Many of them are preventable. Some of them are health related. But what happens when the vineyard or winery employee has no healthcare?…
What’s new at Ken’s Artisan Pizza?
Ken — a name that has become synonymous with some of the best pizza (and bread!) in Portland – has some exciting new additions to his well-known restaurant, which is now in its tenth year. Shortly after I moved to Portland Ken’s Artisan Pizza quickly became our favorite pizza joint. Fast forward ten years, owner Ken…
Feast Portland 2016 in Pictures
Feast Portland has come and gone, and wow! What a ride. This was my first time experiencing Feast Portland — the 4-day celebration of all things food and drink, including events, classes, panels, dinners, hands-on learning experiences, tasting, eating, and so much more — and it certainly lived up to my expectations. The Friday Grand Tasting was…
Feast Portland is Coming Soon!!!
One of the annual culinary highlights of many a Portland foodie is coming next week. Feast Portland: September 15-18, 2016 What is Feast? Now, in case you’re not a Portland foodie, or have just been hiding under a rock (like I was the last few years), it is, from what I hear and read, one…
Summer 2016 in Photos…
… And some words. And also some emotional mom confessions. First, the fun stuff! Smoked Steak Skewers, served at an Ember and Vine event earlier this summer. The steak was smoked, then we cut it into chunks, skewered them, and finished them off on the grill for char! So good. Small bites paired with Bells Up…
Announcement (Wine Blog Awards) and Deep Gratitude
Happy Friday! Yesterday, as I was just finishing up touring an incredible organization based in the Willamette Valley, ¡Salud!, (an organization I’ve been wanting to write about for a very very long time) I found out some exciting news. My blog was nominated for the Wine Blog Awards, in two categories – Best Original Photography…
Escape the cold with Santorini wines
I’m craving somewhere warm. Somewhere sunny. Somewhere where the blues are as blue as can be and the whites are as white as can be. I know I know, I’m in Portland, it’s not like it’s “that” cold here. It could be worse. I could be braving the blizzard headed towards the east coast right…
Friday Favorites — Arizona Edition
A weekly roundup of the “best of” the week in wine, food, and travel. The boys and I traveled to AZ this week to visit family. Sean and I took a couple of nights to ourselves (wohoo!) while the boys tortured spent some QT with the fam. FAVORITE FASHION – The Man-Robe If you’ve ever tried…
Food Blog University (Cancun, Mexico) — work + family time = win win
Last week I returned from a weeklong trip to Cancun. When friends asked me if the trip was for work or vacation, my answer was yes, and yes. I was there for the inaugural Food Blog University held in Cancun, Mexico. A conference that is in its first year can go a couple of ways. It…
Recent Articles — Prosecco Risotto on Palate Press
… Or how I learned how to make a unique and unforgettable risotto recipe from a Prosecco producer in Italy. “I’m not a trinket person. I don’t spend much time in gift shops looking for souvenirs to bring home. While bottles of wine purchased in a region can bring back great memories, once they’re gone…
How to Make Homemade Orecchiette (pasta)
How I learned how to make Homemade Orecchiette at Masseria Il Frantoio in Puglia, Italy… and how YOU can too! Plus a full authentic recipe for Orecchiette with Tomato Sauce and Meatballs. It was already getting dark by the time our group arrived at Masseria Il Frantoio for a cooking lesson and dinner, otherwise I could have easily…
Veneto and Puglia (Italy) — Photo Preview
Just two weeks ago I had the honor of traveling to Italy to explore two incredible regions — Veneto, in Northern Italy, and Puglia, in Southern Italy. I’m still in total awe of the beauty of these vastly different regions and the warmth of the people I had the pleasure of meeting. I can’t wait to begin…
Five Oregon Wineries with Restaurants
Winemakers will often tell you that their wines are meant to be enjoyed with food. But how often does a winery have a chance to prove it to their guests? In my latest article for Palate Press I continue an exploration of epicurean experiences at wineries, this time focusing on five Oregon wineries that have gone beyond…
2015 Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon — the scoop!
I knew I wasn’t entirely ready for the Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon, even though it’s been on my calendar for nearly a year. Summer, work, travel, kids, they all got in the way of a perfect training schedule, or really any consistent training schedule for that matter. I hadn’t had a long run (and…
Friday Favorites — BBQ, breakfast, and stellar sunsets
A weekly roundup of my favorite things from the week in the categories of wine, food, travel, and occasionally lifestyle. Since we took last Friday off, this covers the last two weeks of July. LIFESTYLE Favorite Moment — Cooking for Counter Culture! I’m still pinching myself that we even got invited to cook at such…
IPNC 2015 — Photo Preview
IPNC, the International Pinot Noir Celebration, has been on my bucket list since I moved to Oregon in 2006. I finally got to attend this year! This three-day event, held every year in July on the campus of Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon, lived up to its hype. The event is described as a “mecca…
