Central VA Wine

There is nothing I like better than a trip to Charlottesville, VA and the surrounding area of central VA. This summer I took a wonderful trip and visited some of my favorite wineries and some new ones as well.  With nearly 200 wineries, VA is a wonderful place to explore wine.

Here was the wine tour:

• Veritas (a favorite)
• Stinson (brand new!)
• White Hall
• Mountfair
• Glass House

Grapes growing at Veritas on the porch

Veritas wines, yum!

Stinson wines, new but delicious

Outside White Hall

Inside Glass House, very unique with tons of tropical plants

Rain storm at Glass House

After the rain, saying goodbye

Lewes and the Lovely Farmers Market

Since moving to the DC area, I did not spend any time at the nearby beaches in Delaware or Maryland-- until this summer!  I was lucky to spend some time in Lewes, Delaware and visit one of the most lovely farmers' markets I've ever seen. The Historic Lewes Farmers Market is a producer-only farmers' market with 38 vendors. This year the market was voted one of America's Favorite Farmers Market.

Here are some pictures from my visit.  I definitely recommend taking a trip to Lewes next time you are looking for a beach in the DC area.

My sister and I outside the market

We certainly voted for the Lewes Farmers Market!

Logan went swimming in the ocean!

Happy dog and happy owner

Reflecting on the summer

Although I didn't post much this summer, it is only because it was hard to find the time with all the fun I was having.  Now, as the fall is creeping in, I am reflecting on the wonderful time I had and all the beautiful places I visited. So, here are a number of posts on my summer fun from Delaware to Virginia and back.

Lovely sunflower from the Public Health Garden at UMD College Park

 

Alewife: Local Food and Good Times in Baltimore

Sister blog Just Saying tells the story of our visit to Alewife in Baltimore, MD quite well.  We, excited gardeners and avid local food eaters, were thrilled to visit this wonderful place and enjoyed the company of owner Bryan Palombo and Executive Chef Chad Wells as we talked sustainable eating and local food. Here you can see Chef Chad discussing his menu and ideas with us.

I can't help but to gush a bit more over the fantastic meal and the use of produce from the Public Health Garden in the dishes served to our table.

Here are the details of our meal:

First we started with a spicy green bean dish that Chef Chad prepared with the purple beans (reminder/surprise: they turn green when cooked) from the Public Health Garden. They were steamed to perfection and then tossed in a Thai paste and peanut sauce, served with shredded carrots. 

As you can tell, we loved this starter and were temped to lick the plate clean (we refrained, since we were out in public with new friends).

Next, we had shrimp with baby tomatoes (also from the PHG) in a delicious vinaigrette and salsa with onion, jalapeno, tomatoes, and capers.

Followed was a smoked tomato and goat cheese flan, with smoked heirloom tomatoes, goat cheese (you know how we feel about goats), crostini, and topped with a pea greens salad. 

We then ordered wild mushroom risotto cakes, the smoke burger, and blue catfish tacos (see menu here). 

Wow!  They were all delicious.  And, for those who know about my obsession with all things risotto, Alewife definitely beat my risotto cakes so I will have to go back to the drawing board to improve my recipe. Congrats!   

The meal couldn't have been better, until out came dessert:

Yes, that is a chocolate-chipotle-goat-cheese-cupcake. Again, we have a profound love of goats, so this was a even bigger delight.

Thank you Alewife for a fabulous meal.  We also enjoyed the warm atmosphere, decor, and beer list. We are looking forward to coming back to taste and learn even more about the infamous invasive snakehead fish, and perhaps sample all 150 beers so we too can have our own mug and time to shine singing a cappella on the bar.