My Favorite Time of Year

It's starting to feel like fall!

Brandon and I took a drive out to Loudoun County for some outlet shopping and a little wine tasting. The trees are changing colors. So pretty!

Horses! Then we hit up the pumpkin patch and took home a friend:

What autumn activities have you participated in?

Spring Break Adventure: Boston

From Buffalo and Niagra Falls, we decided to take the long way to Boston. And by long, I mean looong. Brandon had to cross off Vermont and New Hampshire from the states he's driven through list. But before we left New York we made a stop in wine country - the Finger Lakes - and made a pit stop at Montezuma Winery. They are known for their Cranberry Bog and their BEE Vodka. They let us try six wines and had a large gift shop. Brandon has been to this part of New York once before when he visited the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. We were stoked to learn about the Cooperstown Beverage Trail, so now we definitely have to come back to the region and explore some more. In NH and VT we drove through some very pretty mountains but once it got dark, the roads had me a little nervous. 

It was so exciting to see the city lights as we pulled into Boston. Jeila is a Junior at The Boston Conservatory. It was also her Spring Break. She let us stay in her sweet apartment.

Brandon has a life goal to drive through all 50 states. So the next morning he suggested a quick drive north to Maine. Unlike Brandon, Jeila and I were not going there without making a stop. So breakfast in Maine it was. We stopped in the first town along the interstate, York, ME:

Our brunch spot was at The Stolen Menu Cafe. This place was busy with the after-church rush. The menu had so many choices. Jeila and I ended up sharing the juevos rancheros because it was something we've never had before and it was a little spicy. OMG freaking delicious. Drive there now. Brandon had the sticky bun french toast.

In desperate search of a Maine souvenir, we headed over to the Kittery Trading post. We ended up with a Christmas ornament and a picture with the giant moose.

Black bear photobomb!

Then we had to drive back to Boston to make it in time to meet my friend from elementary school, Elin.

Jeila lives near Fenway Park so we met up at Boston Beer Works. We did a flight of beer. My favorite was the Blueberry Ale which came with fresh Maine blueberries floating in the glass. Unfortunately, the bar snacks we ordered - pretzel bites and spinach artichoke dip - were disappointing.

After beer and munchies, the weather was so wonderful we decided to walk over to the Boston Park Plaza Hotel. Yes, the hotel where Brandon and I met in August of 2006. Loved the nostalgia of it. Someday we will come back as guests.

We said goodbye to Elin, and headed to Newbury St. for ice cream at JP Licks. The next day we saw on the news that JP Licks was closed for business, at least that location. We were their last customers!!

The next morning we started by taking the T to the Samuel Adams Brewery. Our tour guide was a total geek and talked our ears off. The highlight was the tasting room where we got to taste 3 samples.

From there we got back on the subway and hopped on The Freedom Trail. There we so many great sites along the way.

Another Capitol

Our evening ended at The Barking Crab where we wanted to indulge in some New England seafood.

Fish n' Chips

Lobster Roll

The restaurant was a bit pricey but it was right on the water. The city skyline was gorgeous. We also saw someone order the the 10lb lobster at market price - $215 - yowzah! Dessert was had in Cambridge with John Harvard in the dark - tea and cupcakes!

The next morning we were off to DC!

Mara Visits Murphysboro

Remember Mara from Florida? She is Joey's girlfriend and helped orchestrate the proposal. Well, she and Joey made the drive up here to visit. With just one day to explore, we took her out on the wine trail. Our first stop was Kite Hill Vineyards. Their wine slushy is the best. One of these days I'll buy the mix. Since I am now a wine cork collector, these birdhouses caught my eye:

Our next stop was Pomona Winery, still my favorite winery to visit, hands down. While, you do have to pay a $2 tasting fee, you really get your moneys worth. You get to taste all the wines and get to learn as you go. Plus, Becky is always there and she is still the best. I bought a bottle of Kir to take home. Our next stop was Von Jakob. We always order food here. Brandon and I shared the BBQ pizza. It was just ok, but hey it came with a side salad. I love their Red Oak Port Vinaigrette Dressing. Our friend, Christian, is the wedding coordinator there. She pulled out some of her wedding magazines and we looked through them. She has offered her wedding planning services, wherever we have the wedding :)

Next up was Kie's choice, Owl Creek. His birthday is coming up in the next week so we decided to celebrate early. The girls made him a tasty cake.

Kie turns 26

The final winery of the day was Blue Sky. We ordered a pitcher of sangria and it was delish. I like it better than Rustle Hill's. The winery was packed, including a Mardi Gras themed birthday party. As they were leaving they gave us their masks. We looked like Misteriosos!

Joey and Brandon

And finally we ended our journey at 17th Street. Because really, what trip to Murphysboro would it be without that. Order the 17th Street potato. WOW.

Well, we won't have to wait long for our next winery visit. This upcoming Friday is the second Teresa Herring benefit at The Bluff's, $5 cover. 

Happy Valentine's Day

On Saturday night, Brandon and I celebrated Valentine's Day. It was a good thing we celebrated early because tonight I have class until 8 pm (quiz included). We decided not to buy presents for each other and instead, we are taking a trip to Memphis at the end of the month. Cooking together was a good way to spend some quality time together without spending too much money.

After bowling, we hit up Kroger to decide what to make. We went to the grocery store with the idea of steak in mind but saw that ribs were on sale. Brandon was so excited when he saw them but I was intimidated. How in the world would we cook a piece of meat so large?  The decision was made a bit easier when we saw that there were thawed ribs for sale (because they are too large to defrost in the microwave!).  Then we called the King and Queen of the kitchen, Jim and Dana, for advice on cooking. Turns out these babies are super low maintenance. We just trimmed and seasoned the meat and set it in the oven at 275 for 1 hour. Then we lathered it up with Uncle Joe's bbq sauce (best. sauce. ever.) and cooked it for 1.5 more hours. Look at the final product:

So tender and juicy!

Brandon was very proud of his work.

We rounded out the meal with homemade mashed potatoes (a true accomplishment because we have been using instant potatoes a lot) and Heartland Blush. The evening started with a little bubbly, cheap tasty Champagne, my idea, because we needed to toast our engagement properly.

Absolutely delicious! For dessert, Brandon picked out this recipe for us to try. Brandon's favorite desserts are raspberry, but unfortunately, this time of year the berries in the grocery store are terrible! We found a semi-decent pint - but really it was rough. This dish also gave me a great excuse to finally use my microplane zester (thanks Brittany!).

Lemon zest + raspberries = winning! The end product was Raspberry Clafoutis (cla-foo-tee). So French!

We ate while watching the movie - In Time. The movie about a bunch of 25 year olds, which we got with our Family Video gift card.

What are you doing to celebrate?


Last year's celebration here

Dr. Hertich's House

Ok, back to my Ste. Gen trip ... It was finally time to check into our bed & breakfast, Dr. Hertich's House. It is an extension of the Inn St. Gemme Beauvais. That is the building across the street and also where we found the owner to check-in. She walked us over to our room, the Ste. Genevieve Suite. When I made my reservations on the phone I just asked for the best room we could get :) It definitely was!

King-sized bed

Gas fireplace

Sitting room

And in the bathroom was a sweet jacuzzi tub! Our only complaint about the room was the small TV and funny tasting tap water. We also had a coffee maker, microwave and mini-fridge in our room. Luckily, a couple of cokes were in the fridge as well as some crackers and microwave popcorn. Another cool feature was the guest book with messages all the way back to 2006 from guests who stayed in our room. We brought in our bags and then headed back across the street for tea time!

Tea time is included with your stay. I loved the cups! We were also served a piece of the most amazing carrot cake:

Couldn't get this pic to rotate, sorry!

While enjoying our tea, we placed our breakfast order for the next morning.

Choices included beverage, innkeepers bread choice, fruit dish, oatmeal and one entree per guest (stuffed French toast, Quiche Loraine, biscuits and gravy, beignets, etc). You could have it delivered to your room or you could eat in the restaurant. We opted for room service.

For the rest of the afternoon we headed back out on the wine trail. We visited Cave Winery first. It was $5 for a tasting. They also have a cave you can go down and see but only if you buy a bottle. Chaumette Winery was next. Absolutely gorgeous. It is an entire resort, they even have a chapel for weddings. I want to live in their bathroom, not joking!

Chaumette Winery Ladies Room

Our tasting guy let us share a tasting for $5. His pours were HUGE and his personality was charming old man, loved it :) Our last stop of the night was Charleville Vineyard. The building was a big cozy log cabin with a large bar. They also have microbrews. By this point I was feeling the wine so I only had a few sips. We did get our passports stamped. Brandon was happy. He already logged them in and we got our bar towel just the other day. Very fun.

On our way back to the B&B we picked up Subway to enjoy in the comfort of our room...classy right? But in our defense, the only recommendation we got for dinner was for The Anvil, a bar. So I don't think we missed out too much.

To be continued...

Feeling Frenchy: Wine & Chocolate Please!

Following our drive last Saturday morning, we arrived in St. Genevieve, MO. We had some time to kill before our 2 o'clock check-in at the B&B so we made our first stop at the visitor's center. They had a nice display of some of the history and attractions in the area. We picked up a map and realized that the Ste. Genevieve Museum would be a good place to start.

Ste. Genevieve Museum

The building itself was a historic landmark, built in 1935 for the town's bicentennial. Admission was $2/person. It reminded Brandon and me of the Corry Museum, due to items relating to local industry and arts & crafts like a "crazy quilt" from a church.

Our next stop was the Sainte Genevieve Winery. When we walked in we were stuck behind a tour bus of divas on the Route du Vin. When we finally got up to the tasting counter we tried a bunch of delicious fruit wines. I was a fan of almost all of them. Our tasting was free, score! We also got a stamp on our Missouri Wines passport. With just 4 visits to different wineries you earn a bar towel (and with 40 visits... food and wine pairing for 10). Illinois definitely needs a rewards program like this.

Ste. Genevieve Winery

From there we walked over to Sweet Things, a candy and gift shop. Brandon and I picked out some decadent truffles and tasted them outside.

Truffles from Sweet Things

And then it was time to check into our room! To be continued....

Wine & Dine

Caitlyn, our friend from Columbus, OH just became a lawyer. Before starting her first job she decided to come check out Southern Illinois! We had a great time showing her around, starting on Friday with a house party:

We had a delicious meal in Jarrod's garage featuring a watermelon basket:

Carved and balled by me!

On Saturday we hit the wine trail:

We made our first stop at Kite Hill Vineyards for their famous slushie.

We also stopped by Orlandini Vineyards - where we picked up the "Wino Xing" sign - and posed in front of the Blue Sky Vineyards gates. For my third time, we went to Pomona Winery which I have decided is my favorite. All their wines are sweet and go down easy - no grapes here! Plus the hosts are amazingly friendly. If you go ask for Becky. We actually had the owner serving us this time. He was so knowledgeable and gave us recipes to use all the wines in. The owner is going to publish a cookbook soon. Go here!

Pomona Winery

Pomona Natural Bridge

As we were driving through Pomona we I saw a sign for a Natural Bridge and demanded that we go there. It was a bit of a drive through the forest but totally worth it.

Our evening ended at Pinch Penny Pub where Rock U were playing in the beer garden. All in all it was a great day.

Art & Wine Fest

The Murphysboro Clarkes played as part of the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail Art and Wine Fest last weekend at Riverside Park in Murphysboro. They played 2 games on both Saturday and Sunday. Did you know that Brandon's Dad, Knute, started the team? They have been playing at this event for several years now.

Seth was in town visiting, so all the Shultz men were playing. This meant Nancy, Mary Jo and I were in the stands cheering through all 4 games (we're saints, I know).

Introduction of the Unions (left) and Clarkes (right) on Sunday

On Saturday the boys played the Springfield Long Nine. On Sunday they played the St. Louis Unions. Unfortunately our team lost all their games :(

However, the most fun was to be had at the Wine Fest. As a perk for playing at the festival, team members and family got to attend as VIPs. This got us a souvenir wine glass, a tasting card with 3 tastes per winery and a meal coupon. The coupon could only be used at Mase's Place. These were our choices:

After lunch (I had the pig burger), it was time to taste some wine. All 12 wineries on the Shawnee Wine Trail participated. They were arranged in a circle, so we just decided to start at the beginning and work our way around.

The weather was perfect, nice and sunny with a cool breeze. Live music was being performed on a stage in the middle. Brandon and I finally got to taste at all the wineries (There were 4 I hadn't tried yet). The revelation of the day was at Kite Hill where we were served the most delicious wine slushie. It was perfecty refreshing. Loved the event and can't wait to go back next year! 

Bucket List: Shawnee Wine Trail (Part 2)

I'm currently visiting my hometown - McLean, VA. But, I'm still behind on posting so back to Illinois we go... enjoy!

Another weekend, another winery outing! Brandon's friend, Lindsey, was in town from Mississippi and wanted to go out to explore the wineries. Since we had such a good time last week, we had to go another round! This time though, I was the designated driver. (PS: I drove through some seriously winding roads!)

Again, our first stop was Von Jakob. Lindsey ordered us a wine spritzer:

It tasted like their Johnny Apple Wine with pineapple juice, Sprite and some fresh fruit slices. Our next stop was Hickory Ridge Vineyard. Such a beautiful view from their deck. Unfortunately, it started misting and we had to go back inside the cozy lodge (complete with loft).

Just down the road was Pomona Winery which is a winery that doesn't use grapes! Most of their wines are apple based with some different fruits and spices. Their Orchard Spice wine tastes just like an apple pie with hints of cinnamon and nutmeg. Their tasting was very generous and the gang got to try all of the wines on their list. Our server was really friendly and a true wine lover. She gave us lots of cooking tips!

Next on the tour was the luxurious Blue Sky Vineyard. From the moment you drive through their massive gate you can tell that a lot of money went into the place. The main house and the landscaping (complete with waterfall) are really nice. I didn't participate in the tasting but I did order a cheesecake with "the works."

This baby came with a raspberry Framboise drizzle, chocolate, cherries and whipped cream for $3. The gang ordered a bottle of the Misterioso. Quite possibly the worst/scariest label I've ever seen:

Last stop of the day was Rustle Hill. It was busy as usual with live music being performed. We were hungry so we ordered pizza. We tried the Italian, Hawaiian and Chicken Alfredo. All came on thin crunchy crust - so good but a little pricey at $15/pie.

My original goal was to go to 6 of the 11 wineries on the trail. Turns out there are actually 12 wineries (oops) and I have been to 8 so far (wow!). I see more wineries in our future! We already have a trip for Memorial Day Weekend planned, in addition to the Shawnee Wine & Art Fest being held in Riverside Park in Murphysboro.