Wine tasting is an endeavor of sheer endurance. That is a lesson I have learned through sheer, hard work.
Crab Salad in Endive Leaves
- 1/2 lb. crab meat, all cartilage removed
- Dressing:
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 1/3 finely diced celery
- Grated zest of 1 lemon plus 1 or 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
- 1 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
- Salt, ground black pepper and cayenne pepper to taste
- 12 to 18 Belgian endive leaves
- To Make:
- In a large bowl, combine the mustard, mayonnaise, celery, lemon juice, chives and parsley. Add the crab meat and mix in gently. Season to taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. When ready, scoop some crab salad into individual endive leaves and arrange on a platter.
- White wines tend to show more oak because the wine itself tends to have more delicate flavors and fewer tannins. The oak itself has tannins that bind with the proteins in the wine, so whites do not become more tannic with oak fermentation or aging.
- Red wines on the other hand, already have tannins that have bound with the proteins in the wine. That means that non-neutral oak generally imparts more tannins to red wines than they have naturally. So, in addition to the vanilla / caramel / butterscotch types of flavors in American oak and the more coconut / hazelnut / smoky flavors in French oak, red wines tend to become more structured in oak barrels.
New to Mystic Wine Shoppe is the fancy and oh so drinkable, Pommery POP Rose Champagne 4-Pack. These fun champagne bottles make a lovely Mother’s Day gift as well as the perfect addition to any spring celebration. We love these little Pommery Pop bottles not just because they’re adorable, but they’re also delicious, bright and lively.
Host a Mother’s Day Brunch with POP!
We think Pommery Pop Rose Champagne would make a killer addition to your Mother’s Day brunch… So, this month’s cocktail is more of a ‘make-your-own’ cocktail bar. Check it out and get some inspiration for your Mother’s Day gifts and celebrations.
What you need:
- Setting up a Pommery Pop Champagne Bar is really one of the easiest options you can offer your guests. Not only do you not have to make the drink, but guests can customize their drink the way they want it.
- We purchased fresh juices (OJ and apple juice) and fresh fruit (strawberries and blackberries) to create a nice display for our guests to choose from. You can use whatever juice or fruit you would like at your bar!
- Thinking about feeding your guests? We recommend some delicious baked french toast and/or quiche to go with the champagne bar.
Feeling inspired for Mother’s Day?! Enjoy your day and don’t forget to stop into Mystic Wine Shoppe to grab all your champagne, rose, beer and liquor needs.
Thanks for reading –
Located on the beautiful island of Nantucket, Cisco Brewery is a must-see when visiting the famous New England Island. Guests are invited to sip their delicious Cisco beer, enjoy wine from their sister company Nantucket Vineyard, sample liquors from their second sister company, Triple Eight Distillery, and take a tour! It’s truly a great experience.
Can’t make it to the island? Stop into Mystic Wine Shoppe and shop Cisco Brewery products!
How Cisco Brewers was born: Cisco Brewers was founded by Randy and Wendy Hudson. Wendy started home brewing with some friends while living in California, but in 1992 she returned to the island and met Randy. Instantly, she not only knew that Randy was her soul mate, but that he would make a great brewer. And so she bought him a beer kit.
When Randy and Wendy started selling beer, the entire operation-except the cold room, which was cooled by an air conditioner-was outdoors in the backyard. Wendy always called the original setup a “nano-brewery” because although they dreamed about it, they certainly were not yet a “micro.” Many people thought it looked like they were making moonshine and they were right! Cisco Brewers had the distinction of being America’s Only Outdoor Brewery.
While Cisco has a wide range of beers to try, we’re going to highlight their Classics collection:
- Whale’s Tale: An amber English-style ale that has a nice balance between hops and malt. It’s the most popular of their beers and the most versatile in terms of pairing with food or people.
- Sankaty Light Lager: A light American Golden Lager. This delicious creation is light-bodied with tremendous balance and distinct hop character. At 3.8% alcohol and 126 calories, this light beer has true flavor and body while being easy to drink and easier on the waistline.
- Indie I.P.A: This beautiful red-orange ale has a full malty body balanced by a fruity apricot/grapefruit nose. Mounds of dank Summit hops in the whirlpool and dry-hop additions provide a delicious finish to this East meets West-coast ale.
- Grey Lady Ale: Named for the often-foggy island where it is brewed. This wheat beer is fermented with Belgian yeast and brewed with fresh fruit and spices. A unique ale that emits a complex, earthy nose and a soft, mid-palate maltiness with hints of tropical fruit. Dry and spicy.
Interested in learning more about Cisco Brewers? They offer tours and tastings for all three of their business’. The tour price includes a tasting glass and you will be able to sample two wines from Nantucket Vineyard, two beers from Cisco Brewery and two spirits from Triple Eight Distillery. Come out and enjoy their Nantucket haven- just prepare yourself in case your mind blows up from all the awesomeness.
When I began studying wine several years ago, I really just wanted to know the difference between a Rhone and a Burgundy, a Napa Cabernet and a Bordeaux. I did not have any grand ambitions. However, as I progressed through the classes, I realized that wine brings so many subjects together – you have to pore over detailed maps to memorize appellations, you have to know the different character imparted by schist or slate or loam or limestone, you have to study how many hours of sun each zone averages to know which grapes are likely to ripen well or over cook in which areas. You have to smell your way through the world – what is the difference between black berry and black currant? What does acacia or hawthorn smell like? is there a difference between lemon, lime and grapefruit smells? Or apples, pears and quince? You also have to study the various ways that wines are made – when are they harvested and by machine or hand? How are they crushed? How is the juice handled before fermentation? What temperature do you ferment at and which strains of yeast do you use? Then there are complicated processes for filtering, fining, additional malolactic fermentation, blending, aging, bottling…
It is astounding how complicated the process is and how much of a bargain wine is at almost any price that we pay these days.
Wine is a second career for me – in the my previous life, I worked in international development and traveled the world. I have been to Mali and Malawi, Albania and Macedonia, India and Indonesia, Nepal and Mongolia. After having children, this sort of travel became impossible and it took me years to find something that was as absorbing and challenging, not to mention something that would give me enough of a reason to take time off from spending all my time with my children.
Who knew wine could be that thing? The more I learn about the wine world, the more I realize there are depths and nuances that I would never have guessed. Something relatively new to me has been the world of Wine-as-fundraising. The wonderful thing for me is that it brings my previous life – working with the poor and vulnerable – together with my new life – learning and teaching about wine. Therefore, the wine I am discussing and we will taste in the shop this week is a wine for a cause.
Thanks for reading, Seema