I'm sure all of my avid followers noticed that I didn't do a Foodie Friday post last week. Right!? Please tell me you noticed or else I'll get a complex that no one reads this thing. ;)
It turns out I was too busy enjoying food and wine to actually post about it. Let me tell you - if you never been to or hosted a Wine Tasting Party, then you are missing out my friend. It's a blast and a great way to sample wines you wouldn't normally buy yourself.
Here's how I suggest you do it. Invite 4 -5 of your friends over and have them all bring a bottle of wine. It can be their favorite wine or one that they want to try. I know that only including 4 or 5 people may seem a little unfair to others but I'm just thinking about everyone's safety here. You're going to be sampling from at least 6 bottles of wine. Any more than that and you'll need to be hosting a sleepover or sweet-talking someone into being a designated driver. I don't know about you, but I like to sleep in my own bed. ;) We ended up with 7 bottles as a few of us brought multiple bottles.
Now, add some food and a blindfold and you're all set. <--- Get your minds out of the gutter. To make it interesting, take turns trying each wine while blindfolded and rate what you are drinking. Switch up the order of wines each time so that no one knows what they are tasting. It will be fun for the taster because they need to use different senses to sample the wine and the rest of you will love to watch their faces. Especially when it's a wine that no one likes - like the Birthday Cake Cheesecake wine. That was the unanimous loser this time around.
I know that I love Moscato, but it turns out after the blind taste test I ranked 4th. In my defense, I really haven't tried that many wines and once I found Moscato I stuck with it. But now I have at least three more that I know I'll enjoy.
Here's the list of wines that were on the menu and how they ranked (according to me):
Here's a list of food that we munched on over the course of the evening:
It turns out I was too busy enjoying food and wine to actually post about it. Let me tell you - if you never been to or hosted a Wine Tasting Party, then you are missing out my friend. It's a blast and a great way to sample wines you wouldn't normally buy yourself.
Here's how I suggest you do it. Invite 4 -5 of your friends over and have them all bring a bottle of wine. It can be their favorite wine or one that they want to try. I know that only including 4 or 5 people may seem a little unfair to others but I'm just thinking about everyone's safety here. You're going to be sampling from at least 6 bottles of wine. Any more than that and you'll need to be hosting a sleepover or sweet-talking someone into being a designated driver. I don't know about you, but I like to sleep in my own bed. ;) We ended up with 7 bottles as a few of us brought multiple bottles.
Now, add some food and a blindfold and you're all set. <--- Get your minds out of the gutter. To make it interesting, take turns trying each wine while blindfolded and rate what you are drinking. Switch up the order of wines each time so that no one knows what they are tasting. It will be fun for the taster because they need to use different senses to sample the wine and the rest of you will love to watch their faces. Especially when it's a wine that no one likes - like the Birthday Cake Cheesecake wine. That was the unanimous loser this time around.
I know that I love Moscato, but it turns out after the blind taste test I ranked 4th. In my defense, I really haven't tried that many wines and once I found Moscato I stuck with it. But now I have at least three more that I know I'll enjoy.
Here's the list of wines that were on the menu and how they ranked (according to me):
- Knapp's Loganberry
- Hazlitt Brambleberry
- Ashley Lynn Strawberry Soother
- Barefoot Moscato
- Sweet Walter White
- Three Brothers 69 Ways to Have Fun
- Birthday Cake Cheesecake White
Here's a list of food that we munched on over the course of the evening:
- Brownie Batter Dip - well of course I'm going to have Brownie Batter Dip. It's my new thing and it goes well with a dessert/sweet wine (which most of this was). This time pretzels and strawberries were used for dipping.
- Bruschetta - gotta love the summer time and fresh veggies!
- Peach Mango Salsa - with tortilla chips. I found this at Wegmans (their brand) and I thought it was going to be sweet, but it had a kick to it. Surprising, but tasty!
- Cheese Plate - with cheese (duh!), crackers, pepperoni and grapes.
- Roasted Red Pepper Hummus - with pita chips
- Spinach Artichoke Dip
- Spicy Garden Vegetable Cheese Spread - (from Wegmans cheese dept) on baguette slices and heated in the oven
FYI - The baguette slices came in handy as palate cleansers in between tastings.
And what Foodie Friday post wouldn't be complete without a recipe? Here's the recipe that I use when I make Spinach Artichoke dip. I've used this recipe for a long time and honestly cannot remember where I found it. It's been in my recipe book for a few years now. It was BP (Before Pinterest). <---Shocking, I know. There was life before Pinterest. There really was. It was called Google. Or All Recipes.
Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip
Ingredients:
Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip
Ingredients:
- 1 - 10 oz. box Frozen Chopped Spinach, thawed
- 1 - 14 oz. can Artichoke Hearts, drained and roughly chopped
- 1 cup Shredded Parmesan-Romano Cheese Mix
- 1/2 cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
- 10 oz. Roasted Red Pepper Alfredo Sauce
- 1 tsp. Minced Garlic
- 4 oz. Cream Cheese, softened
- Pepper, to taste
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine ingredients thoroughly in a bowl and spread mixture into an 8"x8" dish.
- Bake 25 - 30 minutes or until cheeses are bubbling and melted.
* I've also combined everything and put it in the Crockpot on low for a few hours too.
Now get out there and plan your own tasting party. Feel free to invite me over. ;)
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