Thursday, October 30, 2014

HALLOWEEN FUN…..GHOSTS,GHOULS,VAMPIRES….AND WITCHES BREW!!

ONE OF THE BEST VINTAGES!


DON'T YOU THINK WE NEED SOME WITCHES BREW…...


Halloween History of Witches
One of the more enduring symbols of Halloween, horror and folklore is that of the Witch. Ugly and evil, they are shown flying on their broomsticks, or stirring their cauldrons.
Witches were not always thought of as evil or ugly. In ancient times, witches could be healers or wise women of the community. But as Christianity spread, they were often condemned because their power supposedly came from somewhere other than God.
Later, accusations of witchcraft often were used as a way to keep talented, intelligent women from threatening the male supremacy of the day. They also could be used to make people toe the line with regard to community standards. Anyone who was thought of as different or rebellious could be accused. Thus men were often accused as much as women.
The focus of witchcraft on medieval women can be seen in what have becomes the symbols of witchcraft: the broom, the cauldron (pot) and the cat. All of these are associated with the household and women’s work. Not surprisingly, these have also become strong symbols in modern Halloween and horror literature.



ACTUALLY SOME OF THESE SPELLS COULD WORK IN TODAYS WORLD!!


The Salem Witch Trials of 1692

In January of 1692, the daughter and niece of Reverend Samuel Parris of Salem Village became ill. William Griggs, the village doctor, was called in when they failed to improve. His diagnosis of bewitchment put into motion the forces that would ultimately result in the hanging deaths of nineteen men and women. In addition, one man was crushed to death; several others died in prison, and the lives of many were irrevocably changed.To understand the events of the Salem witch trials, it is necessary to examine the times in which accusations of witchcraft occurred. There were the ordinary stresses of 17th-century life in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. A strong belief in the devil, factions among Salem Village families and rivalry with nearby Salem Town combined with a recent small pox epidemic and the threat of attack by warring tribes created a fertile ground for fear and suspicion. Soon, prisons were filled with more than 150 men and women from towns surrounding Salem; their names had been "cried out" by tormented young girls as the cause of their pain. All would await trial for a crime punishable by death in 17th-century New England - the practice of witchcraft.


HOLY CANDLES……...SPA DAY WITCHES STYLE!

Halloween’s origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31 they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter. 
BOY, SHE STAYED TOO LONG AT THE PARTY
 It was the biggest and most significant holiday of the Celtic year. The Celts believed that at the time of Samhain, more so than any other time of the year, the ghosts of the dead were able to mingle with the living, because at Samhain the souls of those who had died during the year traveled into the otherworld. People gathered to sacrifice animals, fruits, and vegetables. They also lit bonfires in honor of the dead, to aid them on their journey, and to keep them away from the living. On that day all manner of beings were abroad: ghosts, fairies, and demons--all part of the dark and dread.
In terms of spreading Christianity, this was a brilliant concept and it became a basic approach used in Catholic missionary work. Church holy days were purposely set to coincide with native holy days. Christmas, for instance, was assigned the arbitrary date of December 25th because it corresponded with the mid-winter celebration of many peoples. Likewise, St. John's Day was set on the summer solstice.

Samhain, with its emphasis on the supernatural, was decidedly pagan. While missionaries identified their holy days with those observed by the Celts, they branded the earlier religion's supernatural deities as evil, and associated them with the devil. As representatives of the rival religion, Druids were considered evil worshippers of devilish or demonic gods and spirits. The Celtic underworld inevitably became identified with the Christian Hell.

Do you know why we carve jack-o’-lanterns on Halloween? The origins of this curious tradition actually date back hundreds of years, to the early Puritan settlers in the American colonies. The Puritans believed that every Halloween, the Devil would enchant the pumpkins’ faces so that they would come to life and say complimentary things about the legs of all the Puritan men, such as, “Nice legs. Very muscular,” and “Your legs are tremendous!” The man who got the most leg-based compliments from the jack-o’-lanterns would then be forced to spend Halloween in jail.
To this day, we still carve faces into pumpkins on Halloween to keep the Puritans’ tradition alive! The custom of trick-or-treating can be traced back to the early religious beliefs of the Puritan settlers living in colonial America. According to Puritan lore, every Halloween, the Devil would knock on your door. When you answered, he would speak the foul words of a hellish enchantment and place an eternal curse on your household. To prevent this, Puritan families would wait by the door with armfuls of garbage so that when the Devil came and knocked on their door, they could stuff all the garbage into his mouth before he had time to utter the curse.
Centuries later, we still observe this tradition, though the garbage has been replaced with candy and the Devil has been replaced with children.     
  
Have you ever wondered why we wear costumes every Halloween? The answer may surprise you! This longstanding tradition first began with the early Puritan settlers during colonial times. The Puritans believed that every Halloween night, the Devil would roam the streets with a spray bottle full of water and spray everyone he saw right in the face. The only people that the Devil wouldn’t spray in the face were witches, because witches are servants of the Devil and he thinks they’re awesome. In order to avoid getting spritzed in the face with water from the Devil’s spray bottle, the Puritans would all dress up as witches on Halloween night so that the Devil wouldn’t know which faces to spray and which faces to leave dry.
Even after all these years, we still keep this tradition alive by roaming the streets on Halloween night dressed as witches, ghosts, and other servants of the Devil in order to confuse Lucifer, should he ever try to spritz us in the face with water.
INDIAN PRINCESS AND FRIEND

WHAT IS HALLOWEEN WITHOUT A POTION OR TWO!
DO YOU THNK THESE COSTUMES COULD BE OUR ALTER EGO'S!


I JUST CAN'T GET AWAY FROM THIS PSYCHO….
   
                      WHEN MEN WERE MEN AND WORE SKIRTS!  

BRING ON THE WINE, WINE AND MORE WINE….

WHY WOULD ANYONE NOT LIKE HALLOWEEN…..??
HALLOWEEEN IS YOUR CHANCE TO DRESS UP, PARTY, AND PRETEND THAT IT WAS THE COSTUME THAT MADE YOU DO IT!!!!    HAVE A WONDERFUL TRICK OR TREAT AND REMEMBER IT'S GHOULS NIGHT OUT SO SCREAM YOUR HEAD OFF AND CELEBRATE OF COURSE WITH SOME GREAT WINE!!!!
I

WHAT'S YOUR POISON, FOLKS…..
CHEERS…...
                                                                           THE WINE CONTESSA!

Friday, October 17, 2014

PASO ROBLES…THE GEM OF THE CENTRAL COAST!

IT'S HARVEST TIME….SALUTE!!

A PERFECT DAY, A PERFECT VIEW…THE CITY BY THE BAY
Well, it has finally cooled down in Southern California, thank God….It might finally be sweater weather! Our fall starts now, and contrary to popular belief we do get some foliage here, it just comes later, typically end of October, November…I for one have been under construction and under the weather….Finally feeling myself...I guess that's a good thing, I'd hate to feel like someone else…and my kitchen is almost finished…yeah!!!..at least I had access to my wine refrigerator, that was one of the most important factors! Coming down from Napa valley last month, of course through San Francisco, I'm reminded of the beauty and diversity of this great city..we were headed to the central coast of California to the city of Paso Robles, a lovely and charming town that boasts amazing wines, gourmet food and fun loving people…what else could you want? Paso Robles means a pass or walk through the oaks and very befitting because it's tree population is abundant and beautiful! Winding up and down the east and west sides of this small town is part of it's charm..it sits on the site of the King's highway or better known as the Camino Real, which was used by the Franciscan friars during the Mission era!
                                     PASO ROBLES AT THE TOWN PLAZA
A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS!!
We starting our tasting tour on the west side of PASO, which is home to some of the best wines in the area…Adelaida road  which winds up and down is home to TABLAS CREEK, lovely property that features Rhone style wines, next was one of my favorites, ADELAIDA CELLARS, they create wonderful Pinot's, Cab's and Syrahs..and they have a very welcoming staff….LONE MADRONE had some very interesting blends, and there Albarino was fantastic!! Next stop was a new find for us, HALTER RANCH…these quickly became our new favorite, amazing Bordeaux and Rhone blends featuring the ever popular GMS Blend…Grenache, Mouverdre, Syrah! Don't miss out on two very must see stops on this side of the mountain…DAOU and JUSTIN, they both are spectacular properties with views, think picnic!!! And don't forget to swing by PASOLIVO, for an amazing olive oil tasting!


ONE OF THE LOVELY PATIO'S AT HALTER RANCH!
ENJOY!!
FANTASTIC PROPERTY AND WINES!!
THE CHARMING HOTEL CHEVAL
We stayed a the National Historic Paso Robles Inn, built in 1891, it sits on the square or plaza in town and is in walking distance to everything…another very upscale property I've stayed at is Hotel Cheval, which is lovely and charming boutique style hotel, and they have a great bar and intimate patio..tres chic! There's an abundance of great dining options right on the plaza..Il Cortile, which is Italian and it's new sister restaurant La Cosecha which has a Latin American flavor! There's the innovative Artisan in it's new digs, always good…Villa Creek, local, organic early California cuisine…along with the Second Press Wine bar and Eatery, featuring farm fresh local cuisine and weekend entertainment!! One of the great things about being in these wine regions is there is always an abundance of wonderful food….!!! There are over 200 wineries in the region but unfortunately, even I can't drink that much…we then worked our way to the East side of PASO which is also home to more fantastic wines, especially the ever impressive L'AVENTURE WINERY, open by appt only but well worth the phone call. These are bordeaux style wines at their 


THE HISTORIC PASO ROBLES INN
ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL DAY IN WINE COUNTRY!

LOVELY SPOT TO DINE!
NEW HOME OF ARTISAN RESTAURANT

finest, the winemaker is from France and his vision is outstanding! But don't have sticker shock, it's a very sophisticated wine with a price tag to match! Also in this area are the Rhone blends at DENNER, which is also home to the upscale B&B Comus House overlooking the winery…. & TREANA & HOPE FAMILY VINEYARDS, making some of their outstanding wines…So much wine so little time…..Well getting ready to celebrate my birthday for the next two weeks, wine, wine & more wine but I'll be back with a special Halloween post for all of you ghosts and ghouls!! Until then it's five o'clock somewhere…
                                 Salute,  THE WINE CONTESSA


THE BEAUTY OF THE HARVEST MOON!!

                                                 








Friday, October 3, 2014

NAPA VALLEY…PART 2….THE CHARM AND BEAUTY OF YOUNTVILLE AND BEYOND!!

THE EARLY  MORNING FOG IN YOUNTVILLE JUST BEFORE THE HARVEST
MICHAEL CHIARELLO'S PLACE

Welcome back to the second half of my Napa story..been out of commission with a kitchen makeover, so please pardon my dust!! As I said in my last post we moved on up the road from the town of Napa to the town of Yountville! Now this is a Disneyesque little hamlet that is perfectly situated in the valley.. I have watched over the last 30 years as this area has blossomed into an absolutely beautiful place, complete with celebrity-chef restaurants, elegant hotels, wine tasting rooms and lovely shops! We stayed at the very cool North Block Hotel, and I must say they couldn't have been more accommodating.. since we had to change hotels at the last minute, they were able to find a nice room for us and even threw in a wonderful breakfast each day on the house! The North Block houses the ever popular 'Italian" restaurant Redd Wood which has amazing food, wood burning oven Pizza and a fantastic staff plus it's reasonably priced! Now I was up there celebrating my anniversary with my husband as we've done so many times over the years, the first time being our honeymoon in 1985….we would take an early morning walk, with just a little fog caressing the grapes, getting them ready to harvest!  Walking by Thomas Keller's French Laundry and his amazing fresh herb and vegetable gardens across the street from his world renown  restaurant was a pleasure…On one night we headed to Michael Chiurello's Bottega restaurant, just wonderful and we had so much fun with the staff and some of the guests…nothing like great wine to loosen people up!
THOMAS KELLER'S AMAZING ORGANIC GARDENS….

THE ONE AND ONLY "FRENCH LAUNDRY"
Well now after all this great dining we must talk about what else, great WINE…One of my new favorites is HALL Winery, their Cab's are absolutely, positively some of the best I've ever had! They have an amazing new tasting room that's part art gallery, with beautiful outdoor sculptures as well as landscaping...
I want to give a shout out to Paul Dugoni@ HALL for his expertise! 
THE WINE CONTESSA HARD AT WORK
I quickly joined their wine club for fear of losing out…Talk about a hundred bottles of wine in the wall!
Now actually there's so much great wine in Napa that we chose to go to some of the tried and true with a few new ones thrown in for measure… Some of my personal favorites are Caymus, Miner, Silver Oak among others…the wines coming from the AVA'S of Oakville, Rutherford & Stags Leap districts are pretty amazing, especially the Cabs...  And don't forget to enjoy a picnic with wonderful provisions from Oakville Grocery or Dean & DeLuca both located on Highway 29…There are a number of great hotels and restaurants too,  for all tastes and price ranges. The Villagio is a lovely, Tuscan style hotel,  and the edgy modern Bardessono hotel, both are in the heart of Yountville! Now as we head up to St. Helena on Highway 29, we are passing beautiful vineyards and a canopy of oak trees that shade our way into the charming town…

IF I DRINK THIS WINE WILL IT MAKE ME A GIANT RABBIT...
A FEAST FOR THE EYES AT HALL WINERY, ME & MY CAMEL!


THE LOVELY TOWN OF ST. HELENA
St. Helena features great places to stay as well as wonderful eateries, there's my old personal favorite for years , Tra Vigne for Italian and Terra for California-Pacific rim…Now if you really want to indulge yourself stay at the fabulous and $$$$ Auberge du Soleil or the 5 star Meadowood Inn! I must say that no matter where you go in this lovely part of the Napa valley you are sure to have a fabulous and exciting time…wineries up in this part of town include, Provenance, Frank Family, Duckhorn & V.Sattui …Enjoy!
THE AMAZING WINES OF CAYMUS….
AN OLDIE BUT GOODY, MUSTARD'S HAS BEEN IN NAPA FOR AT LEAST 35 YEARS

I'M TAKING THIS HOME BECAUSE I'M FOREVER LOSING MY CORKSCREW!

WOW, FROM GRAPE TO GLASS
Well, I want to say at the end of my journey, there's still no place like Napa Valley, after all it was the original wine country in the U.S.! Often imitated but never duplicated……Until next time, do you know where your wine glass is??

                                                                                           SALUTE,  THE WINE CONTESSA