"From the Bay to the Blue Ridge"
By The Gastronomes Thanksgiving Dinner – To Stay or To Go This holiday season is going to be one for the books for sure with the pandemic still in what seems to be full force. Who would have thought it would be this serious for this long? A huge part of the holidays is food […]
By Charles Oppman Chocolate, The Aztec Elixir This may be the best―if not the most delicious―medical news since the Aztecs gave the world chocolate in the mid-16th century. (Well, actually the Spanish Conquistadors slaughtered the Aztecs and took their chocolate back to Europe.) Several studies have shown that dark chocolate and cocoa has beneficial effects […]
Grapevine By Matthew Fitzsimmons Virginia Food and Wine Pairings You Should Try Food and wine – two of our favorite subjects. The concept is the two react with one another, so finding the right pairings makes the overall experience more enjoyable. While you can enjoy either on its own, like any great team a good […]
Exploring VA Wines By Doug Fabbioli Once the Grapes are in… Sometimes winemaking is one giant game of Tetris. There are so many moving parts, and each one is vital to the process, but it can be challenging to get them all happening in the order that’s necessary for a good outcome. Harvest is an […]
By Matthew Fitzsimmons Getting the Most from Virginia Wine Month October is “Virginia Wine Month” for good reason. A warm, dry fall can turn a so-so vintage into a stellar one…while an early hurricane can wreak a year’s work. 2020 has been especially challenging, be it COVID-19, vineyard-wrecking May frosts, summer humidity, or late-season overcast […]
By the Gastronomes Al Fresco Dining Through the Holidays Yes…you read the headline correctly. In order to continue to provide those of you who still aren’t ready to dine indoors – due to the virus – an opportunity to keep going out to dine, many of Alexandria’s eating establishments will continue offering al fresco dining […]
By Doug Fabbioli Cowboy Up The iconic image of a cowboy and his horse silhouetted against a setting sun, his head heavy from a long day on the range, has been used to represent so many products and thoughts over the decades that it might be worn out. I think the image still says a […]
Let’s Eat by Charles Oppman Country Apple Tart What says autumn better than a homemade apple dessert? When the apple harvest is in it’s the perfect time to whip up everyone’s favorite dessert, an apple tart. Apple pies are fine, but here’s a treat with a twist, a one-crust tart. This dessert is not only […]
Let’s Eat By Charles Oppman Pasta – Sicilian Style Sicily, like many other cities and areas of Italy is a wondrous place. It is geographically in the Mediterranean Sea – part of Europe and Africa, but arguably belonging to neither. There is much evidence of rich cultures left behind by a plethora of conquerors. As […]
By Matthew Fitzsimmons Wineries That Will Survive The Zombie Apocalypse Planning for the Zombie Apocalypse has never been timelier. Not long ago, the idea that a mysterious contagion could sweep the United States and cause mass chaos seemed confined to works of fiction. But now…planning “What If” scenarios like “Where should I go when the […]
