Culinary Adventures with Camilla

This month, Jennifer of  Vino Travels  is hosting the Italian Food Wine Travel bloggers as we explore Lambrusco. If you are reading this early enough, feel free to jump in on the live Twitter chat - Saturday, June 1st, at 8am Pacific time. Just use the hashtag #ItalianFWT so we can see your comment. This is actually not my official post because I decided to give Lambrusco a more serious look after this. So...this just a precursor to my actual post. I located three bottles ahead of the event: Cleto Chiarli Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro Amabile, Cleto Chiarli Lambrusco di Sorbara Vecchia Modena 2018, and Cleto Chiarli Lambrusco di Castelvetro Vigneto Cialdini 2017. We tried them in that order. I paired the Cleto Chiarli Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro Amabile with a Torta Barozzi and you can read my post that it didn't change my opinion of Lambrusco. If I had stopped there, I would have missed out on the Cleto Chiarli Lambrusco di Sorbara Vecchia Modena 20...

This month, Jennifer of Vino Travels is hosting the Italian Food Wine Travel bloggers as we explore Lambrusco. If you are reading this early enough, feel free to jump in on the live Twitter chat - Saturday, June 1st, at 8am Pacific time. Just use the hashtag #ItalianFWT so we can see your comment. This is actually not my official post because I decided to give Lambrusco a more serious look after this. So...this just a precursor to my actual post. It's a great cake with a mediocre wine. Or, at least, it's a wine that didn't appeal to me. In My Glass I'll be frank: When I thought of Lambrusco, I pictured a frothy pour somewhere between deep magenta and red. And sweet. Always sweet. So, I was excited dig deeper and take a serious look at this wine. I learned... That 'Lambrusco' actually refers to an entire family of grapes from, mostly, the Emilia-Romagna region. And, under the Lambrusco umbrella, there are four main varieties that comprise the wines c...

This month, I invited my fellow Food'N'Flixers to watch  Spinning Plate s*. You can read my invitation  here . Unlike other times I've hosted, I suggested this movie without having watched it ahead of time. So, it was a fun diversion one afternoon to sit down with my family, notebook in hand, and watch this documentary that looks at what goes into running a restaurant. On the Screen Spinning Plates  looks at three very different restaurants: Michelin-rated Alinea in Chicago with Chef Grant Achatz at the help; Breitbach's Country Dining in Balltown, Iowa that's been operated by the Breitbachs for over a century and a half; and La Cocina de Gabby in Arizona that is newly opened and floundering. Alinea, helmed by Achatz, "exists to entertain...to guide you through an experience." And food there is a mixture of art, craft, and science with Achatz being at the forefront of molecular gastronomy. He offers a 25-course tasting menu with items that mi...

Since I knew that the Italian Food Wine Travel bloggers would be focusing on Sagrantino this year, I was excited to pick up this bottle at the grocery store when I was in Denmark. We served it on New Year's Eve with some rosehip glazed chicken. That recipe will be coming soon. For now, I just wanted to share my thoughts on this first Sagrantino I opened in preparation. Made by the Cecchi family in Umbria - who have been making wine since the late 19th century - this wine is made from 100% Sagrantino grapes. Aged for 16 months in barriques and a minimum of 8 months in the bottle, this is not a wine for the faint of heart...or palate! Vivid red with an intense nose, the level of tannins straddles a fine line between balanced and aggressive. But I enjoyed this and felt it matched the roasted chicken with piquant rosehip glaze really well.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Kobza Wines. Wine samples were provided for this post and this page may contain affiliate links. I spoke to Ryan Kobza several years ago. Back then, he wasn't making his own wines. So, I was thrilled to have stumbled across a few bottles at Whole Foods last summer. And, then, this summer, he emailed me and asked if I might be willing to taste and pair his current releases: his Rosé, Riesling, and Red Field Blend. Absolutely! Kobza says that what he's trying to do is make approachable food-friendly wines. "To that end, our wines tend to carry more acid, less alcohol and are not intended to overwhelm at the table," he shared. "Rather, they are a compliment to daily life." I have to admit that I love his approach to wine - as both compliment and complement to daily life. For us wine isn't necessarily a celebration drink. Certainly we celebrate with wine. But I enjoy wines that add layers of fl...

We've been waiting and waiting for Fieldwork Brewing to open their Monterey location. They finally got all their inspections done and beer was trucked in on Friday. Pouring began on Saturday. So, on Sunday, Jake and I ran over there for a quick flight before dinner. Fieldwork Brewing is a craft brewery that started in Berkeley and has taprooms in Napa, Sacramento, and San Mateo. And, now, they have an outpost here. It's a funky location - sandwiched in between Peet's Coffee and the historic Cooper-Molera Adobe - with an equally funky vibe. Think industrial steel mixed with twinkle lights. Jake claimed the wooden rocking chair right near the fire pit; my chair didn't rock. And our boys camped out at the metal table in the corner, noshing on their snacks from Trader Joe's. About that, Fieldwork doesn't have a food menu, so they welcome outside food. I do wonder if they'll eventually have food available to order...or maybe partner with a loca...

There are several things I consider musts on camping trips: my stovetop espresso maker, my little butane burner, a corkscrew, good wine, and a hammock. What I don't bring: wineglasses. Sorry. You'll just have to deal with my stainless vessels. Well, this was our first year with a hammock and I cannot imagine why I've never brought one before! I'll never leave home without one now. I brought along a bottle of Joseph's Blend Le Mistral. I uncorked it with a plate of polenta and fresh corn topped with an egg simmered in tomato sauce. Delicious camping dinner! The name, Le Mistral, comes from the name for the winds of the Rhône Valley in France. Similar winds here cool the vineyards, producing grapes similar to the Syrahs and Grenaches of the Rhône. This wine was beautifully complex. With a lively palate, I got bright evergreen notes softened with smoky, sensuous vanilla. It finishes with smooth cocoa notes. I can imagine this with a grilled stea...