Results tagged “wine”

Head to Red and White (1861 N. Milwaukee Ave) tonight from 6-8 for a free tasting of Vin de Constance, a rare dessert wine from South African winery Klein Constantia.

One of our more versatile wine rack staples is Sofia Mini Blanc de Blancs 187ml cans. The beauty of these little beauties is it allows you to dole out the right amount of bubbly without worrying that you will be left with a half empty bottle that may go flat.

                     

There's more to Lynfred Winery than being the state's largest and oldest continuous operating winery. Its expansion eight years ago involved expanding their tasting room and retail operations to include a bed and breakfast that makes for a beautiful daytrip. Marketing Director Christina Anderson-Heller took me for a tour of the operation while we waited for Winemaker/GM Andres Basso to show me the winemaking plant.

Wine dinners abound throughout the city. 312 Chicago is hosting a dinner tomorrow night at 7 p.m. featuring the latest release from Hewiston Wines' "Mad Hatter" shiraz. It's part of a national tour promoting the 2006 vintage just hitting restaurants and wine shops right now. Winemaker Dean Hewiston will be in attendance.

               

"We had a booth at the Windy City Wine Festival last month and I told plenty of people who don't own a car how easy it is to reach the winery by train," said Lynfred Winery marketing director Christina Anderson-Heller as we met at the Roselle Metra stop. "Almost all of them asked, 'What train?'" And it is a fairly painless trek, although navigating Union Station during morning rush is something out of the Divine Comedy. When my train stopped at Roselle, Anderson-Heller was there waiting to drive the final mile to the winery. I've long had an open invitation to tour Lynfred's facilities, and last week they received a 30-ton shipment of petite syrah grapes. "Would you be interested in seeing the grapes being processed? Maybe help out in the winery and taste out some barrels?" Anderson-Heller asked.

Pop-open the bubbly - It’s Wednesday! The holiday season is upon us and in typical true-blooded American fashion we begin the season of over-indulgence - more food, more booze, larger waistlines. We also take the opportunity to pick up an extra bottle of something special - maybe a nice bottle of bubbly.

If there was a world without beer (perish the thought) and we had to drink wine all the time, we'd go with a good rioja all the time. Well, most of the time.

The last time Sam's Wine and Spirits had a warehouse sale we made out like bandits, buying nearly $600 worth of wine for just over $100 after discounts. They're doing it again from October 14-25, slashing up to 75% off of their inventory. Some lucky shopper will also win a six liter bottle of Reignac Rouge Bordeaux 2003, which will be given away in a raffle

Continuing its year-long celebration of ten years in business, BIN 36 is serving $3 cheese flights throughout the month of October. The promotion also coincides with the rollout of BIN 36's new cheese menu.

Taxim, the Wicker Park restaurant that has received overwhelmingly positive reviews (in our opinion it's probably the best new restaurant to open this year) for its innovative take on Greek cuisine, is teaming up with one of Greece's best wineries to put together a dinner that, on paper, is going to blow diners away.

Ever stumbled in to your neighborhood Walgreens to grab a six-pack before realizing, "Dammit, they don't sell booze at Walgreens!" Your troubles will soon be over, friends. The Deerfield-based company has announced that within the next 12-to-18 months, beer and wine will be available at its stores once it completes the complicated licensing process. [Fox 32]

A couple weeks back a friend purchased Chicago Gourmet tickets via the half-price special Groupon offered. She asked for advice to prepare for the festival. We told her to pack a lunch.

Like most, our personal budgets have tightened significantly over the past year or so. Not that cash burned a hole in our pocket before. It's just that we're being even more cognizant of closeouts and deep discounts at the wine shop than ever before. Rare is the wine that we'll buy at retail.

I am a chef who likes to cook more than proliferate and manage restaurants. That’s why Frontera Grill, Topolobampo and, now, Xoco are all together. I can slide from one kitchen to another, tasting and training and coaching and cooking. Cooking is why I became a chef, and I never want to get too far from it.

This weekend is jam-packed with events. Social butterflies plan accordingly.

The expansion of the Alinea brand continues unabated. Now Achatz, Kokonas and company are opening their daunting wine cellar and selling wine subscriptions. In addition to rare selections hand-picked by Alinea sommelier Joe Catterson, Alinea:Oenophilia subscribers will also receive tasting notes, recipes for pairings (all the more reason to break out the Anti-griddle), and a "welcome kit" containing a bottle of Laurent-Perrier brut champagne, a pair of Rona Artist champagne flutes and a cork and card presenter from designer Martin Kastner.

Had to double-check the name of that wine to make sure there were some vowels.

There have been so many Bastille Day events happening around town in the past few days you'd think the original thirteen colonies rebelled from France. Since there's a seeming load of Francophiles in town we've compiled a list of Bastille Day events and prix fixe menus for you to consider.

Via tribune Wine writer Bill Daley: the Treasury Department's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau has just designated a new wine viticultural area encompassing 29,914 square miles in four states, including Carroll, Jo Davies, Lee, Ogle, Rock Island, Stephenson, Whiteside and Winnebago counties in northwest Illinois. Beginning July 22, any wineries within the Upper Mississippi River Valley Appellation — the nation's largest designated winemaking region — can use the designation on their labels, which gives consumers a sense of where the wine is from. More detailed information can be found here.

According to an article in today's Trib it looks like beer, wine and other alcoholic packaged goods could be coming soon to a Walgreen's near you. After Prohibition the drugstore began selling alcohol at many of their locations, but that was phased out in early 90's because it was deemed too costly. Now, according to company spokeswoman Tiffani Washington, new computer systems will make it easier to manage. Profits at the chain have been slipping recently. Perhaps booze can pump them back up. We're completely in favor of the change, as it would mean another way we'd be able to avoid CVS, not to mention it's easier to find a Walgreens.

The online wine community and retailer Bottlenotes is holding its first wine and food tasting at the Museum of Contemporary Art Friday from 7-10 p.m. The event, called "Around the World in 80 Sips," will feature wines from, well, all over: Old World, New World, North and South America, Israel and Lebanon. Those wines will be paired with cheeses provided from Artisanal Premium Cheese.

Now go get your free doughnuts at Dunkin' Donuts. It's National Doughnut Day.

It’s 80 degrees outside and we’re in the midst of Reisling Week 2009- a week-long celebration of America’s favorite white wine (but only if it’s sweet) which extends through this Sunday. We kid. We know some of you prefer the drier and flintier French varietals and now here’s your opportunity to sip and compare the styles of different German, Austrian, and Alsatian rieslings.

          

This past weekend, Chicagoist visited the trade show of the National Restaurant Association and its sister convention, the International Wine, Beer and Spirits Event. Despite the downturn in the economy, the convention was still hopping, filled with new products, new packaging, extravagant pavilions and thousands of companies hoping to sell the “next big thing” in food service. You’ll be seeing products and companies that we met up with at NRA featured over the next several months but for now, here are a few notes from a first-time attendee.

For wine lovers, blind tastings are a fun way to gauge their knowledge. For wine poseurs, a blind tasting is a great way to take the wind out of their sails.

Since their opening last year, the South Loop Wine Cellar has become a fixture of the neighborhood. Owner Amy Garman holds regular tastings that draw large crowds, and the store is gaining a reputation for stocking really excellent wines at prices that won’t break the bank.

When it comes to liquor stores we tend to be equal opportunity. We'll search high and low, near and far, for the best deals at stores large and small. While the boxy superstores like Sam's, Binny's and Armanetti's have their merits, the smaller stores are noted for their more personal touch. The LUSH Wine & Spirits locations in University and Roscoe Villages are wonderful for customers because they can sample practically everything LUSH has to offer and will work with customers to acquire hard-to-find wine, beer and spirits.

Celebrate April Fool's at Just Grapes for their monthly "First Wednesday Wine Tasting." Up for April are the under-appreciated, overlooked wines that Just Grapes so generously has rounded up for your tasting pleasure. They promise all the wines will be affordable, which we either believe or won't care about after two hours of drinking. Just Grapes is located at 560 W. Washington Blvd. (312-627-9463) Reservations reccommended.

Blues Brother Dan Aykroyd is pulling a Coppola and entering the wine business.

Bin 36 is running a series of monthly deals to celebrate their 10th anniversary - this is the best one yet. For the rest of March, they're selling 25 different wines for $10 a bottle. You can either drink this wine with your dinner or buy it in their retail shop and carry it home. A $10 bottle in a restaurant with a selection as varied as Bin 36 is an amazing bargain. We took a great wine class from their Wine Director, Brian Duncan, just last month. Gourmet magazine named him their 2008 Wine Director of the Year, so you know the wines are going to be great! We'll be there this weekend for sure.