Join GCE on an adventure to Southwest France for a journey along the culinary roads of Bordeaux and the Dordogne Valley. This 7 full-day / 8 night culinary and cultural tour will enlighten your senses with an in-depth experience of the French culinary landscape. Discover the riches of French gastronomy in a small group setting (20 people).
Price: $2,600.00 per person, based on two people sharing a room, and twenty participants. Single Supplement: $450.00. All reservations require a deposit: $350 per person Deposit Deadline: Friday, April 26, 2013
Hedges Family Estates Winery recently hosted a dinner at Tannin Wine Bar and Kitchen. The pairings of the amazing wines and dishes created by chef Brian made for a memorable evening and I will be enjoying both again soon.
Tannin is located in the Crossroads Art District and boast an eclectic wine list. Whether you are a wine novice or expert, Tannin offers wines by the taste, glass or bottle, to satisfy everyone’s palate. Their knowledgeable staff can assist you in selecting the perfect wine to pair with your meal.
Tannin serves both lunch and dinner and the menu boasts a seasonal, contemporary American menu that includes a unique selection of small bites, gourmet sandwiches and eclectic entrees.With the diverse menu offerings, Tannin is the perfect place to go if you are in the mood to share a selection of small plates and a bottle of wine with friends, want a romantic dinner for two or just need a great place for lunch.
Hedges Family Estate, owned by Tom and Ann-Marie Hedges located on Red Mountain, is the largest family-owned winery in Washington State. Tom was born in Richland, Washington, while Anne-Marie was born in Champagne, France. Both of their upbringings have influenced what Hedges Family Estate is today. Read more about the family and winery here.
The dinner featured their signature Red Mountain as well as blends from their Columbia Valley Line.
I have recapped the menu below. Warning it will leave you wanting good wine and good food and Tannin Wine Bar and Kitchen where you can enjoy Hedges Family Estates wine and great food will curb that craving!
Warm Brioche with Cherry and Brie with Independent Producers Chardonnay Dionysus Vineyard, Columbia Valley
Parmesan Encrusted Trout, Frisée Salad, Warm Bacon Vinaigrette with CMS Sauvignon Blanc Columbia Valley
Black Pepper Seared Beef Carpaccio, Local Micro Greens, Truffle Aioli with Independent Producers “The Bourgeoisie” Merlot Sagemoor Farm, ColumbiaValley
Herb Roasted Squab, Buttered Basmati Rice, Red Beets, Orange Reduction Hedges Family Estate “CMS” Columbia Valley
Slow Braised Spring Lamb, Wild Mushroom and Baby Vegetable Ragout Hedges Family Estate Red Mountain
Chocolate Covered Blackberries
All of the wines and food were phenomenal. I wish to thank Tannin and Hedges for inviting me to this event. I already knew Tannin is a great place to go to and I am now thrilled to have found some new great wines! Hedges Wines are available throughout the metro. Visit the Hedges Family Estates website for additional information on wine including tasting notes and ordering online and more.
Address Info:
Tannin Wine Bar & Kitchen
1526 Walnut Street
Kansas City, MO
A visit to Nappa Valley has been on my bucket list for quite some time and much to my surprise a friend of mine had been invited to a girlfriend’s weekend getaway and needed a roommate. She asked if I wanted to go. I always imagined it would be with my husband, as I cannot think of anything more romantic than sipping wine in the beautiful mustard covered grapevines. However, with hubbies blessing and him saying…..Merry Christmas, Happy Anniversary, Happy Mother’s Day and Happy Birthday, I packed my bags and kissed him goodbye!
The weather was a wee bit chilly but nothing compared to the February winter we were having in Missouri. I even left a day early to beat the Snowmageddon that was due to hit the day my flight was scheduled.
Solage Calistoga Resort and Spa will literally astound you. The beautiful grounds host about 80 studios and suites all of which are within walking distance to the main facilities and quite contemporary. Room layouts vary but all are equipped with the latest technology, full sized locally made bath amenity products, luxurious bedding and linens, complementary coffee and tea at the mini bar and each room is complete with bathrobes and slippers. This clip gives you a nice tour of the room we had.
Outdoors you will find a comfortable patio with a grapevine-thatched roof and two cruiser bicycles that can be ridden in to town and wineries close by. The grounds are pristinely manicured and landscaped with fragrant rosemary and lavender.
Nightly turn-down service includes a glass water bottle adorned with mint leaves left at the bedside. The water is delightfully tasty and a perfect way to re-hydrate after indulging in wine tours all day.
The Spa is phenomenal and our package included Solage’s signature Mudslide treatment experience. This treatment begins with a visit to the Mud-Bar where you have Mudtenders mix a customized scent using Solage Mud, essential oils and geothermal water. You are then whisked off to the treatment room that can be booked as a group or individual and coat yourself in the mud concoction. After a serene 20 minutes of laying on the warm tiles with cucumbers over your eyes and then a quick rinse, you then make your way to the to the mineral baths in footed tubs. There are curtains separating the tubs if you prefer a little privacy. Following a rinse off from the baths, you will then cocoon yourself in the NASA-inspired Sound Chair that vibrates to music and reclines you to “zero-gravity”.
All though you may feel like melted butter afterwards and I mean that in a good way, if you so desire you can then relax in the separate private soaking areas for men and women. These areas include a mineral cool plunge, a warm mineral Jacuzzi, eucalyptus steam room and outdoor shower. These areas are a clothing optional zone, so just beware you may see your share of unique trim jobs and other things you may or may not want to see!
With all the amenities, the spa has to offer it is easy to spend all day there.You can work out, get a plethora of spa treatments, take a dip in the pool and if hunger strikes, enjoy lunch in one of the poolside cabanas.
The restaurant on sight is Solbar and has excellent service and food. Our package included breakfast every morning and the Lemon-Ricotta pancakes are amazing.
The dinner menu at Solbar is upscale but accessible and will please the pickiest palate. The Steak Frites dish has even been featured on The Food Network Show, The Best Thing I Ever Ate.
The dining room during the day is bright and cheery while in the evening you will feel like you are in a very different restaurant with the soft lighting and fireplace.The restaurant is open to the public so it is a good idea to make dinner reservations, as Solbar is popular with the locals.
Solage is partnered with Mercedes-Benz to offer complimentary use of their newest vehicle models to resort guests upon availability. We reserved the convertible one evening to use as transportation to nearby St. Helena where we dined at the Farmstead restaurant. The service and staff are delightful and accommodating and were amazing at helping us with transportation back to San Francisco to catch our flight after our previous arrangements fell through.
This trip was truly a serene getaway. Everything was phenomenal and I will be returning. I would have no hesitation to recommend Solage and will stay there again.
Our Travel agent Sue Griffin at Century Travel put our girlfriend’s getaway package together but you could use whomever you like or make your own. She did set us up with Jack Swanson of Swanson Wine Tours who was amazing. He drove us all through Napa Valley, took us to three wineries, and planned a stop for lunch. If you are looking for a wine tour contact Jack. I would do this same trip over and over again!!!
The interior lining chips off. Especially after running the self cleaning cycle. I now I have sharp porcelain shards circulating in my oven that is getting into food. I have contacted Electrolux and they are telling me it is cosmetic. So basically without doing anything they are saying it is okay for their customers to ingest porcelain.
With building a new home comes the task of picking out appliances. I am loving and hating this all at the same time. One thing I know for sure is that I love the Electrolux oven I have now. When we picked this oven out, we were at the mercy of our cabinet size which was already cut to fit our previous oven so our choices were limited. Looking back I am so glad that was the case because it made it so easy. I had no idea how much I was going to love the “Perfect Turkey” setting! You simply fix up your bird however you like, put in the probe and hit the “Perfect Turkey” button. It seriously cooked a 32 pound bird in three hours!
You can also use the probe setting for roasts, chicken, pork or whatever you are cooking and plug in a desired temperature. When the meat hits the right internal temperature the oven will signal it is done!
Electrolux is an innovative company and is currently holding a design lab contest. Entries from all over have submitted designs to Electrolux for the next cool appliance and now you can vote on what you think is best. I wonder if the Perfect Turkey was the brainchild of one of these contests.
Picking out the appliances this time around is a much harder task. Since we are building from scratch, I can get any size appliance I want and the choices out there are mind blowing. I know I am in need of a double wall oven, quiet dishwasher, gas cook top (although I am very intrigued with this induction thing too) and French door refrigerator with ice and water in the door. Those steam ovens look pretty cool too!
The Moose Truck (Food Truck), in affiliation with the Blue Moose Bar & Grill will cater to your private events and can also be seen hitting the streets of greater Kansas City including Topeka!
The Moose Truck will be at the K all season long and is also available to book for any event. Visit moosetruck.com for more info.
