Parallel - A White Wine Worth Waxing-On About!

Oh how I don't typically find myself falling for white wines (especially Chards) once the summer psuedo-swelter stops sizzling, unless I happen to uncork a very good cause. In this cause Parallel Wine's fantabulous 2008 Chardonnay. I'll be brief since I am knee-deep (finally) tending grapes this harvest. In a word-divine. In a longer roll of my taste-filled tongue word: delightful-toasty-pinepple-y sensation. A sweet sip' of a deal. I can't be certain, but I believe I may have detected a bit of what can only be referenced as "toasted-marshmallow bliss" in there somewhere. So when you are ready for something white to wet your whistle this fetching fall season, look no further than this sweet little diddy of a wine. You'll be glad you did. That's all for now folks, I'm hitting the grape trail. Harvest "field" reporting to follow, as the plucky suckers start hitting the bins. Wacky WineSense Rating: 4.5 Grapes!

A Hunter that Bounds to be Better - Bounty Hunter

NOTHING COULD BE BETTER THAN A PIT STOP AT THIS SPOT. BOUNTY HUNTER IS BOUND FOR GREATNESS WHETHER YOU'RE PARKING FOR DINNER OR JUST SIPPING VINO AFTER A TOUGH DAY ON THE TASTING TRAIL. THIS IS ONE HECK OF A WINE BAR AND RESTAURANT WITH OVER 400 BOTTLES OF WINE, 40 AVAILABLE BY THE GLASS. THE BOUNTY OF WINE ASIDE, THE BISTRO FARE AND ARTISAN BEERS WILL KEEP YOU GOING LONG AFTER YOUR BODY POOPS OUT. DESPERATE FOR FUEL? HERE'S A BIRD THAT DEFIES THE NORMS – THE BEER CAN CHICKEN. A FULL CLUCKER PLOPS TO YOUR TABLE ON A NEST OF TECATE BEER, PRIMED FOR A CHOW DOWN. OH HOW SWEET THE WORLD OF WINE AND FOOD CAN BE IN THIS NAPA WINE COUNTRY WONDERLAND.

9/11 - We Will Never Forget

This is the one time of year, where Wacky WineSense head scribe, hailing from NYC, goes serious, to commemorate 9/11. With the passing of each year as our distance to the events grow deeper, it becomes even more important than ever to reflect.....

We Will Never Forget
By: Christina Julian

I don't just remember that tragic day on September 11th, nor when trite references to the horror blip by on the news. I remember it every single day of my life, as do countless others—those of us who were in New York, people all over our world. We saw, we experienced, we lived though something unimaginable, something that couldn't have possibly happened in our lifetime, yet it did.

The smell of its aftermath still lingers large in my memories as does everything about that day: The view of the tip of Manhattan on fire as my brother and I hauled over the Queensboro Bridge to escape. Images of missing persons wallpapered our city. Flyers tacked on subways, walls of restaurants, lampposts, and churches. Flyers of the hundreds and thousands of people that went missing. People that would never find their way home, people who were lost forever.

I remember waking up from the most horrific nightmare, one that repeated for days and years to come. I remember the street side vigils, the gatherings in the park, the countless memorial services. The bomb scares, the evacuations, being stuck on the subway thinking this was it, only to learn of the next threat—Anthrax.

People changed forever.

Children lost parents that they had yet to get the chance to know and love. They lost their innocence in an instant. They grew up overnight without ever knowing it.

Many people just like me were unable to get out of bed, to move out of our apartments, to go to work—to picture our lives moving forward. Yet with every one of those visions, I witnessed something softer. Taxis stopped honking and people started caring. We helped others as we struggled to help ourselves. In an instant a city that was known for its crusty nature cracked to the core, we the people broken. But through all of those experiences, the indelible memories that will never erase, we triumphed in the midst of our tragedies. We were granted the chance to witness and move beyond the unimaginable—buildings melted, people jumped, mushroom clouds danced, heroes fought to rescue. We survived, our world moved on, and we prevailed. My memories will never slip away, yet I am able to move forward.

Grace’s Table - Hands down! The Best Hand Formed Hamburger Around

Let me get this rant-party started. You can feed your food fix morning, noon, and night at the open air eatery, Grace's Table. If you enjoy the great outdoors, snag an outside café table or sneak a seat next to the floor to ceiling window. This family-owned gem has “global comfort food” written all over it. From the gooey-delicious cornbread with lavender butter and grandma’s style pasta and meatballs, to the, wait I am supposed to waxing on about the burger. Sorry, it's hard not to get sidetracked with all the glutonous food that abounds at this glam yet casual joint. The hand-formed burger (made with oh-so-much-care) is a heart breaker. I fell in love all over again with classy, classic, premium red meat. The bun and homemade mustard will wake your palate up as will the not-too pickled fresh-made pickles. And if all the quality cow and cooked to perfection patty aren't good enough for your insatiable tastes, pile on some primo toppings like the Portobello mushrooms and blue cheese. Yum, yum and yum. Top this tower off right with some gigantic O-rings as the icing on top of this divinely delicious meat-cake. The variety and fresh ease of air at this little sweetheart-of-a-spot won’t ever disappoint. Wacky WineSense Rating: 4.9 Grapes!