Life is Crazy!

Or it least it has been for the last week. Between work, cooking, dentist appointments, and staff meetings it has been going non-stop.

First off, a big thank you to all those who stopped and chatted with me at Denison Pequotsepos Wild Mushroom Festival! It was a pleasure to talk with all of you and hope you'll shoot me a comment whenever you have a question about the world of wine. I really enjoyed my time there and enjoyed meeting all of you.

Second, big culinary news out of Mashantucket last week. The MGM at Foxwoods (I think that's what they're calling the latest casino tower) has lured in one hlluva a big fish. Tom Colicchio is bringing his new hit Craftsteak to Southeastern CT. Tom is wise in the world of Beef and treats like wine on his menu. It is divided by corn fed versus grass fed and includes the specific ranch the actual beef came from. For those of you who aren't sure who Tom is, he's the guy who host Top Chef on Bravo. His Craft, Craftbar, 'Wichcraft, and Craftsteak restaurants are major players in the modern dining scene. No more driving to Providence for Capital Grille or Ruth's Chris. Now we'll be able to find a top tier steakhouse right in our proverbial backyard. I commented on theday.com that perhaps the best part of living near these casinos is the outstanding dining opportunities.

Finally, we enjoyed a terrific dinner at Barcelona in New Haven last week with Katie's sister and her boyfriend. Barcelona serves traditional Spanish cuisine with a modern flair and the chic crowd seem to be eating it up. I felt "cooler" just for dining there. Every tapas, think small servings for the table to share, we tried was phenomenal. I believe we had duck, figs with sausage, calamari, eggplant, empanadas, steak, and tuna tartare. The entrees were delicious as well. My salmon was covered in a lobster sauce that was divine, and Katie's swordfish was cooked perfectly. If you're down that way be sure to make reservations and check it out. I also enjoyed the Spanish wines our waiter recommended, seeing as Spain is by far my weakest area of wine knowledge and taste. Well, till next time..."Good wine ruins the purse; bad wine ruins the stomach"--Spanish saying