One bottle down...

What happened to this blog?????

nyehall — Wed, 27 May 2009 06:07:28 +0000

St. Donut

nyehall — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:06:16 +0000

As much as I thought I would enjoy change, I guess I am a creature of habit too. I was underwhelmed with my first organic veggie box. I looked at the red cabbage and leek with disappointment. I would have preferred three times the amount of broccoli. However, my veggie box that at first seemed to be a box of boring, has turned into a box of delight. I loved my red cabbage. I slawed it, roasted it, and rolled it. The asparagus was so tender, the broccoli fresh and alive. Oh my. I just received a new order of heirloom beans to try this week as well.

For the drinking…..I had a Shamrock donut. It was not a wise choice or similar to my lush, creamy, oatmeal Guinness of the past. And unlike the savory Guinness, I threw that donut down and burned through my sugar high in about 10 minutes.

25 days and counting……..

The Eve of a great Race!

nyehall — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 02:50:54 +0000

So all this sobriety business is not just for Lent. I have a big event tomorrow, a walk/race of sorts. I feel great! I couldn’t be more hydrated and well-rested. Wow! I haven’t felt this great since before I moved a few floors away from Ryan in college.

Anyways, I just wanted to let my supporters know that I’m sticking to my plan. And even started a new organic food obsession. One addiction, must replace another.

28 days to go………

Hiring a Sober friend for a wine tasting event

nyehall — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 17:49:43 +0000

I love wine tasting events…I love the opportunity to try a variety of wines, eat cheese and laugh with my friends. And did I mention that I love the wine? So this would be my first true test for Lent, attending my monthly wine tasting event and not try the wine! Unrealistic, you say….No way…I just hired a sober friend like a celebutante, like Rod did for Sean, like Sharon did for Ozzy, like….well you get the picture.

Fortunately, my pregnant girlfriend volunteered and we went. I felt great! I ordered tea! And defended my non-tasting position. I felt supportive of lil’ Audrey, the baby to come, and my new healhy lifestyle (if only one week in). And then…Charlene said, “You know, you won’t be able to drink at the next wine tasting either.” Oh my god, I thought. That’s true….40 days is over a month and at the time I still had 33 days to go. I looked around, made eye contact with my sober friend and her belly. And decided well 33 days is still much shorter than the 3 1/2 months until lil’ Audrey arrives. ~I can do it!

So if you have to give up something…alcohol, smoking, sugar…I recommend a sober friend. Not Ryan though…he is not supportive of this journey at all!! Every phone conversations starts with…”I’m drinking___and it’s fantastic! “

Twelve Days, oops when was Ash Wednesday?

nyehall — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 17:26:39 +0000

I think, I’ve arrived to day twelve of my journey, but now I can’t remember the date of Ash Wednesday. I’ve been guzzling tea and coffee like an addict sucking down cigs at the treatment center. My first twelve days flew by with an occasional moment of awareness in regards to the length of 40 days. Here’s a few things to note from my adventure so far…

People are not supportive of non-alcoholic beverages unless the hour is between 4 am and 4 pm.
Anger can be easily induced from hearing the words, I’m only going to drink tea at a wine tasting event.
40 days is longer than a month.
St. Patrick’s Day is between Ash Wednesday and Easter on the western calendar. (I’m going to miss my Guinness on St. Patrick’s Day! Did Jesus miss his too?)

So I didn’t make a big announcement in my personal life of my lenten choice, rather it spread by word of mouth from my blog and boy, oh boy….more people told me how stupid (or rather IDIOTIC) my choice was…”who would do that?” “why not just give up some chocolate?” Okay, okay…I knew this would not be popular with my peer group, but I’ve journeyed on.

If you decide to make this journey next year, don’t be surprised when a grandmother yells at you…”THAT’S JUST PLAIN STUPID! THE STUPIDEST THING I’VE EVER HEARD!” (Thanks, Ann)

Journey on drinkers! ~M

Out of the gates…

nyehall — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 01:01:05 +0000

Ok wine fans, we are off! Club member Tristan(of Austin, Texas) sent in this review of Gunderloch dry Riesling from the Rhein region in Germany. he describes it as “dry but still has that sweet beginning and tease, leading to a hint of smoothness before ultimately wallowing in acidity.”

I myself opened a half-bottle of Girbaldi Moscato from Italy. I have to say that it was way too sweet for my palate. To be fair, i stuck the bottle in the freezer for a quick chill and apparently left it in too long. When i removed it, the middle cylinder of the wine was frozen through. I thawed it for 20 minutes and then poured the slush into my class. Possibly this temperature snafu concentrated the sugars and left me with an overly sweet mess. The wine had a little carbonation in it and this may have interfered with the freezing process? So the point of all this was that i didn’t enjoy the wine, but it may be due to “user error”.

Anyhow, its still a great start to what promises to be a good month for wine. the race is on.

new wine selection

nyehall — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 18:05:35 +0000

please see this months new selection page “european vacation”(ryan)

Day One

nyehall — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 20:07:40 +0000

Off to Ash Wedneday services…want Sauvignon Blanc…..drinking tea.

Without Wine

nyehall — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 20:06:56 +0000

I’ve decided to go 40 days without wine. I’ve never really celebrated or sacrificed during Lent before…but I really need to focus on training and fitness….So here it goes. To relieve some of the feeling of loss and sacrifice, I’m going to blog about my wine-free journey here…cross my fingers…Here I go…

Wine Tasting Results

nyehall — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 04:15:02 +0000

So my wine tasting results from my Superbowl event….why did it take so long to post the results…well I’ve been working and walking…see previous post…but I’m back..Ryan is still on holiday

The results are in…
Vilosell 2005 (Wine 1): Bright Ruby colored wine with hints of pomegranate, berry and spice. A clear herbaceous, smokey flavor rolls over the tough with a citric after feel. Mostly Tempranillo.

Pardina 2005 (Wine 2): Smooth garnet wine with tones of spice, tobacco, and berry. In the voting process…this was the clear winner with votes from 3/4 of those in attendance. Tempranillo as well.

Note: Wine club member Judy does not care for Spanish Reds which is very disappointing for this wine club member. I’ve enjoyed every bottle.