"From the Bay to the Blue Ridge"
By Matt Fitzsimmons Exploring Shenandoah Valley Wine Shenandoah Valley wineries are one of Virginia’s best-kept secrets, which is surprising given the valley is famous for so many other activities. You’ve probably heard about the hiking, river tubing, and cave exploring. But most people don’t realize this is also prime real-estate for making wine. The Shenandoah […]
By the Gastronomes Dining Out….Or Not! Just like many of the other standard columns published in the OTC, this column has taken on a new personality since the pandemic hit the area. We no longer feel like we can single out any one particular restaurant to profile when they “all” need all of the extra […]
by Judy Eichner Baby It’s Hot Outside! While we can’t exactly do a lot of traveling these days, when traveling through North or South America, Southern Italy and/or Provence in France in the warm and hot weather you will find many restaurants with a variety of cold soups on the menu. This is especially true […]
By Doug Fabbioli The Vintage Continues… 2020 has certainly been a challenging year across the board. We always try to make the most we can of what Mother Nature gives us but this year, with the late spring frosts and heavy summer heat, nothing has been fruitful or easy. Years from now when we drink […]
Exploring VA Wines By Doug Fabbioli From Saturday On the Farm to Working the Vineyard If you have been following me for a while, you realize that I try to do a little more than making and selling a bottle of wine. I was lucky enough to recognize at an early age that the wine industry is […]
By the Gastronomes pic-nic /pik nik/ noun – an outing or occasion that involves taking a packed meal to be eaten outdoors While the restrictions on dining out in our favorite eateries are being lifted on a continual basis as the COVID numbers decrease, we believe there are still a fair number of people out […]
Let’s Eat! By Charles Oppman Deep-Fried Soft Shell Crabs & Ice Cold Beer Now that we’re in the middle of soft shell crab season we should be thinking about frying up a few of these fabulous crustaceans. The soft shell crab is one of the South’s greatest contributions to American cuisine. Soft shells are a […]
By Matt Fitzsimmons Pairing Wine and History Wine and history are two of my favorite past times. Luckily for me, Virginia is the perfect state to pair them. Virginia is the birthplace of American wine, going back to 1619 when settlers in Jamestown were required by law to plant grape vines. Thomas Jefferson also experimented […]
By the Gastronomes Al Fresco Dining Is Back…What do we do now? This whole pandemic has put a whole new twist on “Dining Out” but it looks like we are headed in the right direction as far as restaurants being able to open is concerned. There have been so many rumors about what has to […]
By Doug Fabbioli You Take What You Get Over the past few decades we have had some great times growing a culture and an economy around agriculture. Combining history, open spaces, celebrations, weekend getaways, retreats, culinary artistry, craft beverages, performing arts, and nature in a way that allows us to create a respite zone for […]
