I have had the good luck to interview many dairy farmers in Vermont over the past several years. They are a breed of their own- working dawn to dusk seven days a week, 365 days a year. Their commute is a pathway to the barn, their transportation is a 30 year-old John Deere tractor and their office is the milking parlor. Paperwork is not their thing, and computers are typically an unwelcome intrusion in the tried and true ways they grew up with.

Most dairy farm families trace their roots back generation after generation and many old-timers were born in the same farmhouse where they still live today. They are good neighbors, steadfast stewards of the land and fiercely self-reliant individuals. I love the results of their hard work every bit as much – cheese. And that got me thinking. Why not sever my relationship with the computer for a few days and get some first-hand experience? You know, do the old fashioned thing and take a trip along the Vermont Cheese Trail. I have heard about this for years, but it never dawned on me to actually do it. I was inspired by the prospect and luxuriated in thoughts of a slow-paced trip visiting dairy farms, imbibing my favorite wines and savoring some of the best cheeses in the world. More research was in order.

My first stop was the Cabot’s Creamery Cooperative Visitors Center in Waterbury. One of Vermont’s brightest stars, Cabot has added joy to my life for decades with their “best in class” cheddars. I have used their cheese for my wine classes for the past 10 years. A trip to the creamery where milk is delivered directly from local farms and tenderly turned into edible gold was at the top of my list. It was a treat to spend a few hours with the alchemists who churn their milk into the “Extra Sharp” cheddar or delectably smooth Monterey Jack I enjoy so much. Hmm…maybe I can even score some freebies.

Read the full article here http://www.localwineevents.com/resources/articles/view/818/cheese-farms-wine-it-all-sounds-divine

The questions to ask yourself before carousing the isles are: how much do you want to spend and what type of wine do you want to buy? The answers to these questions will probably depend on how well you know the person that you are giving the wine to.

The amount of money that you have to spend should not be a problem. A respectable wine can be found anywhere from ten to twenty dollars. If you are willing to spend more, that is fine. There are wonderful selections available at the higher end. Do not forget that wine is meant to be enjoyed during festive times or simply during times of relaxation. Either way, the wine will be savored no matter what the price.

You may think swapping out wine for beer is a surprising take on the internationally classic wine and cheese pairing, but experts say beer and cheese come together to make an undeniably perfect pair. If you think switching the wine out for beer is a new trend, think again. Cheese has been enjoyed with beer for centuries ever since it was eaten as peasants’ lunch on farms.

Garrett Oliver’s Top 10 Favorite Pairings:

1. Sharp Cheddar with Pale Ale
2. Feta with Wheat Beer
3. Mascarpone with Fruity Beer
4. American Cheese with Pilsner
5. Colby with Brown Ale
6. Gorgonzola with Barleywine
7. Gruyere with Bock Beer
8. Swiss Cheese with Octoberfest Beer
10. Parmesan with Amber Lager

Read the full article here http://www.behindtheburner.com/article/beer-and-cheese-the-ultimate-pair.html

Everyone knows we have five senses (taste, smell, touch, vision and hearing) that we share with all animals and those help us understand the world around us.   Your sense of taste is, contrary to popular wisdom, partially inherited but obviously factors like culture and exposure make a difference, which is why the phrase “it’s an acquired taste” came into being.

Taste is a physiological aspect while flavor is something else entirely and can be influenced by tactile, thermal, painful and kinaesthesic effects.  You know what it means, but you also know it is pretty subjective.   Flavor to you may encompass a much difference range of perceptions than it does to a highly-rated chef, just like Eskimoes have all those words for snow and it encompasses multiple senses so let’s stick with taste for now.

For in depth scientific dissection of taste regarding wine and cheese and a downloadable pdf file titled ’Cheese And Wine Combinations For Dummies List‘follow this link. http://www.science20.com/science_20/science_wine_and_cheese

Last week, NewYorker.com engaged its readers by asking which words should be eliminated from the English language. The surprising winner was “moist.”

Now that they’ve jettisoned moist, it’s time for us to have our fun. Wine tasting notes are all-to-often laden with obscure, sometimes overly precious, redundant or otherwise silly words or phrases. We started circulating a few on Twitter yesterday with the hashtag #sillywinetastingterms. A few that came up were: “dusty minerals,” “a hint of clean earth,” “vinous,” “melted asphalt,” “hedonistic” and…”liquid Viagra.”

So, have your say: which wine tasting term is officially the most useless and worthy of expulsion from our vernacular?

Read the full article here http://www.drvino.com/2012/04/26/wine-tasting-note-terms-ban/

The Tasting Room – Wine Bar Arizona – The Tasting Room of Peoria Serving Wine and Microbrews.

The Tasting room serves wines from around Arizona as well as around the world as well as hard to find microbrews and food. All of the produce used at The Tasting Room includes locally grown produce. The Tasting Room has been called the “Cheers” of the neighborhood, so come on by and introduce yourself, they would love to meet you. This is your place, a place where you and your friends can come relax and enjoy themselves, eat good food, drink great wine and micro brew’s.

See more of The Tasting Room

A little house cleaning first, I have changed my holiday hours a bit, I will be closed for December 24th, I feel me and my staff need to be with their families and friends that day.  And I regret to say, if I do not get more reservations for New Years Eve, I will probably cancel it.  Next year I will have more time to plan ahead so you all can too.

If you did not make it in to see Mystical Mysfits, you really missed a great show. Check out my facebook page for a small video.  They will be back here every other Friday with Scott the flute player on the off weeks.  He will be playing next Friday the 23rd, and on the 30th both of them will be here.  Start time is always 6:30 pm to 9pm for them.  Check out my website in the new year for a calendar of events.

On December 15th, I celebrated my 4 month anniversary of owning this great business.  In reflecting on the last 4 months, it has been a fantastic experience and I have met so many great people and made some really good friends.  I have made a lot of changes in my life in the last year and with out friends like you all, it would not have gone so smooth, your support is so appreciated!

The road to here has had some challenges, but I feel we are on track now.  I truly  have appreciated the feed back from you all that shared and of course the complements on the changes I have made.  There will be more to come, just not as many as the last 4 months (I need a little rest and time to take a breath). I am glad you all love the new spacious back room and new placement of the wine displays.  I am working on the new computer system and it should be ready early to mid January.  My planned kitchen re-organization should happen mid Spring which will stream line the work flow and will allow for a few more menu changes.

I am also looking at all the prices of wines to bring them in line with my pricing structure, and working to bring in great “value” wines from $10 – $15.  I have found several already and have a few more coming in next week.  We all love to have a great bottle of wine, but there is a need for our “everyday” wines not to break our budget.  I am also bring in some great premium wines from small vineyards and some well know ones also.  I will be starting a blog, where I will share information about our wines and hopefully entice you to come in and try them.

Once again I appreciate your patience and understanding with my learning experience here, we are making progress and moving forward with the goal to make your experience here a great one!

Cheers and Holiday Wishes to You All,

Nancy & the Tasting Room Staff