Advice

I often get the question of what constitutes a ‘sweet’ wine versus a ‘dry’ wine, and moreover, what do those labels or styles mean, from guests, family, friends, and random people. Therefore, I hope to shed light on the subject by sharing the official European Union and US system and MY interpretation and system I like to use when doing freelance wine education classes, wine tasting parties, and work at the winery .

I had the lovely experience of sipping a glorious Dry Rosé in January 2020 at the Libertè Lounge in the Sofitel Hotel in downtown Philadelphia. What was the occasion? Well, the reason for my visit on this cold, blustery night in the City of Brotherly Love was to conclude my WSET Level 3 studies upstairs on the 3rd floor with a three-hour tasting and theory exam, which was going to be beyond stressful and intense. I sat there at a high-top table with cushy pillows surrounding me on a plush leather half booth contemplating what to have for dinner.

Enjoy these fresh summer cocktails available along with many others at Lavish Lounge. These cocktails scream summer and are sooo good. We will have a collection of specialty martinis, margaritas, mojitos, daiquiris, and shooters. It looks very promising that we will re-open on June 20th with a new seasonal cocktail menu restrictions per NYS guidelines

Lake House

2 oz. aged Jamaican rum

The grapes that make a particular wine dictate the general structure of that wine and how it will respond to everything the winemaker and viticulturist does to it. If a wine is white, odds are that it came from white grapes; if it is red or pink, that’s because the wine came from red/black grapes. How did it smell? Herbal, Floral, Fruity, Earthy? Whichever, those aromas come mainly from the grapes.

As seen at Lavish Lounge Bar and Restaurant and events/parties by Raise Your Spirits, Inc., below is the cocktail menu used along with step-by-step instructions. Numbers next to ingredient are in ounces. Any questions, please let me know. Enjoy!

Irish Rum Swizzle

1.5 Irish Whiskey, ¾ Dry Vermouth, ¾ Lemon

½ Grenadine, mint sprig & cherry

Add ingredients, crushed ice, swizzle to froth, beer glass

The moment all of you have been anxiously waiting for - a practical guide to wine tasting with a little bit of humor, sarcasm, psychology, and cynicism. Yes, I've earned a psych degree and have practiced using it most of my life. More recently, struggling through wine education certification.

Since we are approaching the romantic season of Valentine's, why not celebrate with some classic cocktails for "her" and "him". Both cocktails featured in this post are appropriate all-year long, but hold a special significance for this day and weekend because they are celebratory in nature and yummy. But first, let's talk a little history of these cocktails, then we will get to the recipes. They are easy to make at home, relatively inexpensive, and just require some shopping and prep work in the kitchen.

Part 2 of this blog post on "Decoding Wine Labels" will be very technical. Many illustrations will be provided to help support the confusing and unique language given to European wine bottles. To begin, let's look at 'indications of origin' in the European Union (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and so on). The E.U. has a system to recognize and protect agricultural products, such as wine, cheese, meats,etc..., that come from specific places so that companies outside these locations can't make products with the same name and thereby confusing consumers. For example -

We browse the shelves of wine stores all the time, not only to find that perfect bottle for dinner or dinner party, but also to see what's new and on sale. More than ever, we are overwhelmed and stymied by the proliferation of wine labels, varietals, countries, blends, regions, etc...Having this much choice is awesome - or paralyzing - depending on your knowledge of varietals, regions, and foreign languages. This is where feeling comfortable interpreting or decoding the info on wine labels comes in.