From Baton Rouge to Antigua

Our last night in Antigua is upon us and, following our epic afternoon at Jacquie O's Love Beach, we've opted for a light dinner at Jeaux and Matinder's. Jeaux offered to make "conch water" - which is apparently Caribbean for conch soup. Jeaux advises that if the dish were called "conch soup," it would really be more of a stew. Regardless of the name, it was tasty enough that she could have served it up as part of the Dinner Club Road Trip menu. After all what's 5700 miles when there's conch water involved.

Our pre-dinner task was to finish off the last of the duty free gin and engage the hummingbirds on the deck. There was a steady barrage of the little guys. They sure loved that sugar water (and that's real "sugar water," not sugar soup). Some of them were even brave enough to come up to the feeder while I was holding it out at arm's length. Luckily for me, they preferred the sugar water to my gin.

Jeaux's mom was our additional guest for dinner. Having visited J&M during one of their winter migrations to Antigua, Maman decided to forego the standard Quebec snowbird destination of Florida and rent a villa of her own at Jolly Beach. Many years have past since the last time I'd seen Maman and we were certainly much tamer than we were the first time I'd met her over two decades ago. At the time, she was teaching French in Baton Rouge and she'd graciously (read "foolishly") offered up her couch to a gang of four that had descended on Louisiana for Mardi Gras. Jeaux and Matinder can weave some riveting travel stories, but Maman is no slouch of a storyteller herself and it was lovely to reconnect after all those years.

Admittedly, our shots of the wine bottles being added to The List with this post weren't quite as lovely as the event. I will point out, however, that despite our day touring the island, it wasn't an inability of the photographer to focus. Somehow, we managed to hit a wrong button on the camera and we hadn't noticed that it wasn't focusing until we went to review a couple of shots later on.

Luckily there was a picture or two of the bottles on my phone so that I'd have close ups of the label.

1565.  N.V. Torresella Prosecco (Prosecco DOC - Italy)

A final visit to Epicure - our resort wine source - led to yet another Prosecco that didn't seem familiar from our own Vancouver market. A little crisp, bubbly action was a fitting way to toast the end of our brief stay in the Caribbean. It was a definite feat - and fête - to shepherd four couples to the far corner of the continent for a dinner party but J&M pulled it off.

I figure that if you can't raise a glass to that, I don't know what is toast-worthy.

1566.  2009 Cederberg - Bukettraube (W.O. Cederberg - South Africa)

I definitely didn't know what I'd grabbed when I picked this one - our final bottle in Antigua. Cederberg is apparently South Africa's highest vineyard (at 3200 feet above sea level) and it is currently celebrating the fifth generation of the Nieuwoudt family on the land's rocky, high-altitude terrain. But, more than that, it turns out that Bukettraube isn't just a proprietary name for the wine, it is a rather rare variety. A cultivar of German and Alsatian history, there are apparently less than 77 hectares of the grape remaining in the world.

Score another addition to my Wine Century club tally!

Given its German/Alsatian heritage, it might not be too surprising to find that the grape is part of muscat family. It had a definite residual sweetness - such that Boo didn't want anything to do with it - but I found that the more hot sauce you added to the conch water, the better the wine went with it. The sweetness of the wine also matched up with the Antiguan Black pineapple (that we finally managed to find at a reasonable price after a number of roadside stops during the day) and coconut ice cream.

Some bubbles with Maman, a new Wine Century Club grape and a final night dining harbour-side with  wonderful friends. It doesn't get much better than that. But on that happy note, it was time to head back to our place and pack. We had one last island adventure planned for the morning but that meant we had to be ready bright and early to allow enough time to tackle our quest and make it to the airport.

Love Beach

As our last full day in Antigua was now upon us, the plan was to take a bit of an island tour with Jeaux and Matinder. Boo and I were the last of our Dinner Club members still here with J&M; so, we could finally all fit in their car and hit the road - not that the island's all that big. It is surprising how hilly it is and how varied the vegetation is however.

We kicked off the day with - surprise, surprise - another of the beautiful beaches as it was an easy drive from Jeaux and Matinder's villa and it allowed us to see a local community not far from the Jolly Beach resort. I never tired of watching Antigua life pass by as I kept an eye out for brightly coloured homes and buildings. Our next stop would leave present day life and and look to the years gone by as we visited Betty's Hope - an historical sugar estate that is in the process of being restored as a national park. Not only did we see close up one of the many cane-processing windmills that dot the island, it provided some insight into the island's colonial past.

As we drove to our next beach, we happened upon a picturesque church. I noticed a small cemetery across the street and asked to stop knowing that Boo would be far more interested in a cemetery than in yet another beach. I have to admit it was one of the more intriguing cemeteries I've visited - and that says a lot seeing as how travels with Boo do tend to take in a higher number of resting grounds than most folks' vacations would normally.

Cemetery detour or not, we made our way to yet another spectacular beach (picture on top of post) - this time fronting the Atlantic Ocean rather than the Caribbean - where we were among a small handful of people. All that splendour almost to yourself is simply what vacations are meant to be. Unfortunately, we didn't have a bottle of wine with us. We were able, however, to buy some Carib and Wadadli beers to go with the snack we picked up at the beach food stand.

Our real destination was the Love Beach but we still had one stop to take in - one of J&M's favourite galleries on the island - the added bonus being that it was set in a truly stunning tropical garden. Most of the island isn't incredibly lush as there are definite water supply problems, but this space was riotously verdant - awash in flowers that Vancouverites would never see anywhere except in insanely expensive bouquets. Again, I had to regret not having a bottle of wine that we could have opened and lounged around sipping while taking in all the charm of the location.

Luckily, Jacquie O's Love Beach was hardly lacking in allure - or wine. Half restaurant, half secluded beach, this would be my idea of a day at the beach. Private cabana lounges provided comfort, shade and luxurious access to the Caribbean. We only had time for the restaurant but at least we now had access to some libations. Jeaux and Matinder have gotten to know the manager/sommelier at Jacquie O's and I could tell that she'd definitely be a person to know if you were staying in Antigua. A transplanted Aussie gal, Sheila was chock full of stories of the impromptu parties that erupted at the Love Beach and, I ask you, how can a place be wrong when its greeting board message is "Resolution #14 - Champagne is always the answer."

1563.  2012 Chateau Sainte Roseline - Lampe de Méduse Cru Classé Rosé (Côtes de Provence I.G.P. - France)

We did not pop the cork on a bottle of bubbly ourselves but we did opt for a wicked rum punch and for what was likely the freshest of all the Rosés we'd tried on the trip. Typical of Rosés from the South of France, two-thirds of the wine is made with Cinsault and Grenache, turned out I got a bit of an unexpected tropical treat in that the balance is made up of Mourvèdre, Syrah and Tibouren - and I had yet to add Tibouren to my Wine Century Club tally.(Too bad we didn't have the the 2013 vintage because it also contained Rolle.)

The person who came up with the concept of Provençal Rosé clearly had occasions such as this in mind when he or she first started squeezing grapes because we could have kept on sipping away on this for hours. Unfortunately, the bottle quickly disappeared. We weren't about to let the moment slip away though. We took another look at the "compact" wine list (which likely doesn't change much because it was carved in wood) and were about to settle on a Sauv Blanc. We were debating the brash acidity and flavours of a Kiwi version versus the more subdued nature of a Sancerre (at twice the price) when Sheila came by and recommended a bottle she had that wasn't on the main list. She'd just happened upon a couple cases of a new wine that she figured could meet all our needs.

1564.  2012 Comte LaFond - Menetou-Salon (Menetou-Salon AOC - France)

She was right. Like wines from neighbouring Sancerre, this Menetou-Salon is made from 100% Sauvignon Blanc and it is subtle in its expression of acidity and "green." I mentioned earlier that Sheila would be a good person to know to get the best out of Antigua. Perfect example.

Our late lunch was quickly morphing into the dinner hour - well, at least, into happy hour - and we had to reluctantly call an end to our honeymoon at the Love Beach. Jeaux had invited her Mom to join us for dinner and she needed to get a start on those preparations.

So, with our beach view and our now empty glasses in hand, we couldn't help but bemoan the fact that we couldn't come back and do it all over again tomorrow. And the day after that. We bid "adieu" to Sheila and hit the winding roads back to Jolly Beach.

The whole day had made it abundantly clear that we were just going to have to journey Antigua way again - hopefully sooner than later.

A Little Caribbean Sugar

Following our post-snorkel nap, there was just enough time for a cocktail prior to joining Jeaux and Matinder for dinner.

At the suggestion of our local hosts, we revelled in two-for-one steak night at at near-by luxury resort Sugar Ridge. Built on the hillside next to a sugar cane field, everything about this resort screamed out to me, "You want to stay here if you come back to Antigua!" Okay, it's not on the beach - but I think I might be able to suffer. It's not all that much farther of a walk to the beach than from where we're currently staying - and the distance to the "wine shop" is about the same. With that in mind, who cares if the view of the water is from on high? Despite the view during cocktails seen above, it's not like our current accommodation was the be all and end all of vacation hide-aways.

For now, however, we're content to sip and visit.

1561.  N.V. La Marca Prosecco (Prosecco D.O.C. - Italy)

Upon Googling La Marca after our return home, I was surprised to see that this wine is available in Vancouver. I thought I'd be pretty safe, choosing a bottle 5700 miles from home, that I'd be able to add it to The List. Seeing as how Prosecco is invariably non-vintage and how I set my own rule that I can't add the same bottle (vintage-wise) to The List, I had to check that La Marca hadn't been already added. There are plenty of Proseccos on The List - and a number of duplicate corks have been popped - but, luckily, this was the first time La Marca has made its mark.

Bubbles and coconut shrimp. If that's not a prime objective of any Caribbean vacation, I don't know what is.

1562.  2012 Mont-Redon Réserve (Côtes du Rhône A.O.C. - France)

I've mentioned a couple times on the blog that the prevailing Caribbean heat hasn't lent itself to big reds so much. This was our one notable exception - steak night and al fresco dining. As hard as it might be to believe, we had no trouble finishing off the bottle. Indeed, I think the Côtes du Rhône was polished off before we poured the last of the Prosecco. Grenache - and its fruity ways - can have a way with folks that way, I suppose.

I don't know if it was the wine or the brilliant company that brought the big smiles to Jeaux and Matinder's faces - likely both - but it could just as easily been the fact that the restaurant actually delivered their steaks exactly as ordered - blue. Jeaux is rarely served her steak that rare; so, she was one happy girl for the entire evening. Not that a little premium sipping rum and a moonlit walk home didn't help flesh out the evening as well.

With an island cruise and a visit to the Love Beach on the morrow's schedule, we shuffled off to bed and to dreams of perfectly blue steaks and luxurious accommodations. And, naturally, adding a few more bottles to The List.

A Little Wine With That Snorkel?

Having bundled Lady Di and She Who Must Be obeyed off to the airport only last night, it was now time to say "goodbye" to Axel and English Doc.

They didn't need to leave for the airport until about noon. So, there was just enough time for Axel to take a final stroll with us up to the beach just past Jeaux and Matinder's villa. Antigua apparently has 364 beaches and we're discovering that there's a rather wide assortment of environments to be found. Called the North Beach at Jolly Harbour, this is a small beach where the sand is largely broken shells as opposed to fine, soft sand. The fact that we were the only souls on the beach for most of our visit just made our beachcombing that much more special.

The far end of North Beach finishes with a series of beachfront villas - villas that are a tad more luxurious than the townhouses we're all staying in. Boo and I noticed one that seemed to particularly fit our style; so, we took the liberty of posing for a picture poolside since it didn't look like anyone was staying at the villa at this time. Something tells me this little bit of luxury goes for a somewhat higher nightly rental than our unit does.

A boy can dream though, can't he? I can only imagine the tea dances or wine tastings and cocktails parties that I could put together with these digs at my disposal.

Maybe next time we're down here.

Once the boys were on their way to the airport, Jeaux, Matinder, Boo and I took to the road. The afternoon's plan was to lounge over a picnic lunch at one of Jeaux and Mat's favourite beaches. Although this new beach was located right next to one of the island resorts, it was amazing how - once you were past the resort layout - we could count the number of people we encountered on the fingers of one hand.

Talk about your idyllic picnic location. It definitely calls for a little wine.

1559.  2012 Douglas Green - the beach house Rosé (W.O. Western Cape: Wellington - South Africa)

Something tells me that, perhaps, the Douglas Green winery had occasions just like our picnic when they were coming up with a name and style of wine. The name, "the beach house," might have played just a tiny role in our picking the wine before we hit the beach. That and the fact that the wine had been sitting in the grocery cooler and was all ready for our sun splashed adventure. It didn't hurt that it was from South Africa and that was a bit of a different route than all the Mediterranean Rosés we'd been drinking so far.  We see very little Pinotage grown at home in the Okanagan; so a 100% Pinotage Rosé was alluring.

Despite the Pinotage base, the wine featured all sorts of red berry notes and had a touch of sweetness to it. Once again, in the heat of the day, that sugar note didn't hurt when following the spices that were fully evident in our picnic foods.

In addition to the variety of beaches, Boo and I were quickly finding out that there are remnants of abandoned colonial forts and towers all over the island as well. Following our picnic, we took a hike to and wander through the small fort found on the headland of our little cove. That was followed by a swim and a snorkel - and another bottle of wine as a reward for having burned off so many calories on the Caribbean sands and waters.

1560.  2011 Château de Varennes - Beaujolais-Villages (Beaujolais-Villages AOC - France)

As previously mentioned during these Antiguan posts, the Caribbean heat doesn't particularly lend itself to big reds. But that doesn't mean that we can't venture into red territory with some lighter red wines - like Beaujolais. Château de Varennes is new to me - particularly since we don't drink an awful lot of Beaujolais - but the lightness of the Gamay Noir grape was well suited to our beachside repose. It was a heartier sip than all the whites and rosés that we'd been quaffing so far; yet, it was anything but overbearing in the heat of the afternoon.

Once that bottle quickly disappeared, however, we realized that our beach time was done and that there might be just enough time left for a quick nap at "home" before dinner. And that's always a welcoming thought - whether on vacation or not.

On the way home, we passed a small pineapple plantation. The Antiguan Black pineapple is the national fruit and is branded as being the world's sweetest pineapple. We sure didn't see much evidence of them though. Indeed, thus far on the trip, I'd been surprised at how little agriculture overall I'd noticed on the island. Jeaux tells me that the bulk of the island's food is imported and that - to a great extent - there is a perception by the locals that working in the fields is still negatively associated with slavery during the colonial years. It appears that farming is still a long way from being seen as an enviable means of making a living.

With that understanding, it doesn't sound like anyone is about to take on the task of growing grapes and trying to make an Antiguan wine any time soon. I'll ask Jeaux to keep her ears and eyes open for an Antiguan Black pineapple wine though. After all, I tried a pineapple wine from Hawaii previously and actually thought it was quite tasty. Here's hoping an Antiguan Black wine might be added to The List down the road.

Departure Lounging

Despite a luxurious day on the water, the return to our villas was hastened by the fact that Lady Di and She Who Must Be Obeyed were flying off to Spain that night. They pretty much did fly down to Antigua, join in for the Dinner Club and then take off for another adventure. In my eyes, that's true dedication to the Dinner Club.

As the girls finished packing, English Doc miraculously pulled off some Hurry Up Jerk Chicken. He faced a time constraint worthy of a Top Chef or Master Chef trial but, luckily, the timing was such that the girls could join up with us and have a quick dinner - and some last minute cocktails - before they had to leave for the airport.

Guess I was too busy mixing and prepping to take any pictures during dinner, but things mellowed out completely once the girls were safely en route to their plane. So, at I least there shots of the wine that we opened as the evening progressed.

1556.  N.V. Bodega Dante Robino - Novecento Rosado (Mendoza - Argentina)

If there was a wine meant to epitomize the old Molly Ringwald movie, "Pretty in Pink," this might be the bottle to do it. As the lovely and talented Jeaux modelled the wine, we realized that the wine itself is on the lighter side of serious - much like a teen romance flick. A definite sweetness on the palate - but that's not necessarily a bad thing when eating spicy chicken. I think I'd likely stick with a preference for my bubbles to be served a bit drier. The wine was interesting, however, in that I don't run across Argentine bubblies very often and I doubt you'd regularly find a sparkling blend of Ugni Blanc, Chenin and Bonarda from anywhere other than Argentina.

1557.  2012 Saint Roch Les Vignes Côtes de Provence (Côtes de Provence AOC - France)

You might not find a lot of jerk chicken for dinner on the Mediterranean coast but there's no doubt that we're finding that a lot of Mediterranean wines are well-matched to our meals in the Caribbean. The parade of fresh whites and rosés continued this evening as well and I'm definitely finding some producers that I hadn't been aware of previously. Saint Roch Les Vignes isn't a single domain but is a cooperative production consortium of family growers around the Provençal village of Cuers. The cooperative started out in 1911 and the modern facilities now handle the winemaking for over 200 local vignerons.

The production of this Côtes de Provence Rosé is interesting in that it is a combination of two methods for making Rosé wines. Part of the wine is directly pressed from grapes dedicated to the Rosé and that juice is combined with further saignée juice that is "bled" off the cooperative's red wine production. I usually think of Rosé as being made by one method or the other, but not both. Typical of Provençal wines, this is a blend of Cinsault and Grenache.

1558.  2013 Vesevo - Beneventano Falanghina (Beneventano IGT - Italy)

Our final wine was another from the Mediterranean - close to Naples and Mount Vesuvius to be more precise. This was an example of me grabbing another bottle with a hope of potentially adding another grape to my Wine Century Club tally. Having tried over 160 grapes now, I more-or-less have to find grapes that I've never heard of before. I knew I'd already added Falanghina but there was always a chance that Beneventano - so prominently displayed on the label - was yet another grape that was new to me. Unfortunately, it's a region and not a grape but I can live with that - especially since I can't say as I've tried Falanghina more than a handful of times.

I doubt that Falanghina will ever replace my penchant for Riesling but, you know, sometimes, when you're in "Rome" you have to live like the Romans do. There wasn't much in the way of Riesling wines in the local market. So, we adapt - and we had a refreshing sip as the evening progressed. No harm. No foul.

After our day on the water, this was a simple relaxing evening and, on that note, we put our glasses aside and called it a day.

Sail Away

The underlying reason for our adventure in Antigua may have been to join Jeaux and Matinder for a Dinner Club Road Trip extravaganza but there was a definite added bonus in that the underlying reason for their being here is that they sail as often as they can. And to our joy and delight, they arranged a day out on the water for us. The whole gang tried out their sea legs as we got to experience Matinder and Jeaux's passion for the water.

Although there was talk of making me try to catch a ride on the Old Bob - one of the first boats we sailed past - we continued with our plan to set out down the coast and lay anchor at one of the resort beaches, all the while taking in the endless blue and beauty of the moment. And, boy, did we accomplish that. I think it's safe to say that the six of us (besides Jeaux and Matinder) were the epitome of landlubbers - not knowing whether to scream in fear or pure joy as the boat took numerous leans abeam to port or starboard. Admittedly, there were a couple times where one or two us would have been overboard had it not been for ropes and wires to hang onto. Fun? You bet.

Once we'd reached our destination bay, we made our way to shore and the beach. We'd been keeping our eyes open for some celebrity house action - after all, Oprah, Giorgio Armani and Eric Clapton have homes on the island - but we neither saw any shenanigans nor garnered any invites. Luckily, there was a beachside restaurant and bar where we were able to grab some rum punch.

Boo, Matinder and I then took a short hike up the side of the bay to take a peak at the old fort that use to guard the bay - and take in the incredible panorama (the pic at the bottom of the post is just one side) from on high. The rest of the gang was more interested in making their way back to the boat and starting to snack.

Our return to the boat and eventual snacking called for some wine. Knowing that I'd need to include a post about our sailing trip, I was sure to bring a bottle along. It obviously had nothing to do with the fact that having a drink while cruising the Caribbean seems like a normal thing to do. No. For me, it's always "think about the blog first." Ahem.

1555.  Montagnac - M (Picpoul de Pinet AOC - Languedoc - France)

I'd seen this bottle in the local market and figured it'd be a great pour while at sea. After all, the wine hails from the coast of the Mediterranean and it's recommended that Picpoul de Pinet be served with seafood or grilled fish. We might not have be eating it with dinner but I suppose you couldn't have been much closer to the sea. I hadn't been aware that the "grape" has its own appellation or AOC designation in the Languedoc region. The appellation isn't the only region where the grape is grown but it is a primary one - along with the near-by Rhône.

I also love that the name "piquepoul" apparently means "lip-stinger" and it stems from the high acidity of the grapes.

There was nothing stinging about this sip as we leisurely sailed our way back to Jolly Harbour though. The wine hit the mark and helped make this definitely day to remember.

A Dinner Club Like No Other

Of course, the primary reason for our visit to Antigua was the Dinner Club Road Trip and dinner was set for tonight. Despite the anticipation - after all the road trip was over a year in the planning - we needed to give our hosts some time to prep their Antiguan morcels. As Jeaux and Matt diced and sliced, the rest of us took in some of what the island had to offer. Axel and English Doc went for a scuba dive while Lady Di, She Who Must Be Obeyed, Boo and I decided to wander around the thriving metropolis of St. John's.

Antigua's capital and biggest city, St. John's still only has a population of around 24,000 to 25,000 and it's abundantly evident that the city and country is dependent on tourism - with cruise ships and their day visitors being a primary focus of the city centre. Most of the shops and market stalls are geared to cruising tourists who meander in the shadow of the huge ships that tower over local buildings.

We started our visit off with what was to be a quick bite at a local lunch spot. Unfortunately, that proved to be our undoing as SWMBO's purse and camera were stolen right out from under our noses as we were sitting in the street-side, public dining area. We still have no idea as to who might have pulled off the dastardly deed but it certainly put a damper on our plans as the girls had to return to the resort to cancel credit cards and deal with the issues that arose. The one good thing was that their passports weren't in the purse.

At the girls' insistence, Boo and I continued to amble around St. John's - not that there was an awful lot to take in. We hiked up to St. John's Cathedral but the old Anglican cathedral was undergoing extensive renovations and wasn't even open for viewing. We continued our walkabout and made our way to the local food market but, it was Monday and that's not one of the big market days. As such, there was no real buzz around the place.

Once we'd had our fill of town, we made our way back to our villa and started prepping for Dinner Club. As circumstance saw fit, it was St. Patrick's Day and, unbeknownst to us, St. Paddy's is quite the going concern throughout the Caribbean. It must be all the drinking associated with the day! Forever the consummate hostess, Jeaux was well prepared for the day with a parade of Irish accoutrements - as well as an array of libations. She even started off the evening with green cocktails - a Midori Pineapple concoction that set the tone for a dockside evening.

If Jeaux hadn't written down the menu, I'd have had a hard time recounting it because the names of and many ingredients of the dishes were certainly foreign to this Canuck. Jeaux and Matinder strived to feature local ingredients and whip up some of the most popular national dishes. Appies on the deck started with Keshi Yena - cheese stuffed with spiced meat - that is believed to have originated with the slaves from the Dutch Empire who stuffed the rinds of Gouda or Edam cheese with meat table scraps. These were followed by Fiery Shrimp and Potato Cakes (made with "hairy potatoes") and Conch Fritters.

Prior to our arrival, I likely mentioned to Jeaux (but no more than a dozen times) that, if she only served dish at Dinner Club, I hoped it would involve conch. Girl came through - even though she pointed out that conch is not the most delectable of seafoods and isn't even all that easy to find on local shelves. No matter. Conch is what I think of when I think Caribbean cuisine and I got to go home and say that I'd had some.

I've also always thought of Caribbean foods as having an underlying heat. So, when Boo and I saw a bottle of off-dry bubbly in the Toronto Airport Duty Free, I grabbed it - figuring it'd be a nice way to start off the evening's wines.

1551.  N.V. Peller Estates - Signature Series Ice Cuvée Rosé (VQA Niagara Peninsula - Ontario)

Made in the traditional method (read Champenoise), the Ice Cuvée Rosé is a sparkling wine made from primarily Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes; however, in a bit of a detour from traditional Champagne grapes, 10% of the wine is Cabernet Franc. I was also intrigued to see that, for this sparkler, Peller Estate added a dosage that is a combination of Cab Franc Icewine and Vidal Icewine. The intended result is off-dry notes on the palate but with a dry finish resulting from the tannins in the Cab Franc that forms part of the base wine.

Of course, bubbles just naturally hint that a celebration is at hand as well and I think travelling over 5700 miles, one way, for "a dinner" is a bit of an occasion. Bubbles also lead to toasts and we heartily toasted our missing comrades-in-arms. Tyrant and Panda Guy were all arranged to make Dinner Club with us but they had to back out shortly before we left when a family health issue arose.

Truly disappointed that they couldn't join us, that just meant that we had to eat and drink enough for them as well.

1552.  2012 Pedroncelli - Signature Selection Chardonnay (Dry Creek Valley - Sonoma County - California)

1553.  2012 Chemin des Sables - Savion (Rosé d'Anjou AOC - Loire - France)

If you check out my posts on previous Dinner Clubs, there's often a preponderance of big reds through the evening. Jeaux knew better and her request for wines this time around were for whites or rosés. We also had to rely on the selection of wines available down at the Epicure grocery and, while I have seen worse, the array of wines was rather limited and included a lot of globally commercial brands. Bright, light and cheerful was obviously the route to take.

Turns out that there was a bit of bonus for the blog when I saw that the Rosé d'Anjou was made from Cabernet Franc, Gamay Noir, Pineau d'Aunis and Grolleau. I was a little surprised to see that I hadn't added Grolleau to my Wine Century Club tally yet but, sure enough, it wasn't there. So, this little road trip had an unexpected addition to that list - in addition to the (much expected) fine dinner.

And, speaking of that fine dinner, Jeaux and Matinder started the sit down portion of the meal with callaloo soup. Another well-known staple of the islands, Jeaux made her's with fresh callaloo greens which were, again like the conch, not the easiest of ingredients to find. In keeping with the secondary St. Paddy's Day notes, the soup arrived with a green Irish soda bread. Is there no end to this gal's creativity?

1554.  N.V. Sartori - Pinot Grigio Blush (Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie I.G.T. - Italy)

The Blush was paired with yet another trio of traditional Caribbean dishes:
Salt Fish and Ackee, Green Papaya and Breadfruit Salad (with its potato-like flavour). The first dish is considered to be Jamaica's national dish but it has migrated throughout the Caribbean. The salt cod is sautéed with boiled ackee (a treefruit brought to the islands from West Africa centuries ago), onions, hot peppers, tomatoes and spices. I don't know if Jeaux cooked fresh ackee or not but I have since learned that it can be poisonous if the fruit is unripe and TIME magazine named it one of the world's "10 Most Dangerous Foods." Somehow I missed this fact during dinner - if it was even mentioned.

We all lived to tell though. And, thankfully, all lived for dessert.

Capturing the tropical nature of the dinner - and with a tip o' the cap to St. Patrick - we finished off the evening with a Pineapple Carpaccio doused in a Ginger/Lime dressing and a dollop Coconut Ice Cream.

Of no assistance to my speedy conclusion of reaching 2001 Bottles, we did not pop the cork on another bottle of wine. Rather, Matinder twisted our arms and served up a nightcap of Bushwhackers - coconut cream, Kahlua, Dark Rum, milk and Crème de Cacao. Another popular drink that he's picked up on the sailing circuit, those Bushwhackers had us all ready to call it a night.

As if the five hours of dining and drinking wouldn't have been enough to leave us knackered as is.

I can't say as I've ever travelled this far for a dinner party before. Conch. Ackee. Breadfruit. Callaloo. There's little doubt that Jeaux and Matinder came through with a Dinner Club menu and location for the ages. They might have a hard time equalling this one when it's their next turn to serve it up in Vancouver. I can't wait to see how they try though.

Antiguan Arrival

A First Beer - Vacation's Officially Under Way

Suffice it to say that there are no direct flights from Vancouver to Antigua. I'm not blessed with the ability to sleep on planes; so, by the time we'd finished off our red eye to Toronto and arrived at our Caribbean destination, we were more inclined to take a nap than hit the beach. That wasn't really an option though.

We'd arrived to an empty villa. The other travelling Dinner Club members had landed the day before us and our roomies, Axel and English Doc, were out touring with Lady Di and She Who Must Be Obeyed. Our resident hosts, Jeaux and Matinder were playing tour guide to some other friends of their's who'd sailed into port on one of the ubiquitous cruise ships. So, Boo and I threw our duty free Gin into the freezer and decided to take in a bit of a tour of Jolly Beach and the resort environs.

Antigua isn't a particularly large island. One of the Leeward Islands and found on the Eastern end of the Caribbean, its circumference is roughly 87 km and the population is only around 80,000. It does, however, boast the fact that it has 364 beaches - basically a different beach for every day of the year. We took a stroll on one of the beaches embracing Jolly Harbour and knew that the vacation had officially commenced when we quickly wandered across a little beach stand and bought our first Wadadli - the local Antiguan beer.

You know a country can't be all bad when you're allowed to cruise the beach beer in hand.

After getting a little sand on our feet, we hit the local Epicure market on the way back to the villa in order to stock up on a few essentials - like wine. As we wandered the aisles, we kept thinking Antigua is one very pricey country when it comes to groceries - everything was way more expensive than it was at home - even tropical fruit. I definitely thought we'd be taking it easy on the booze when I saw that Guado al Tasso was $193 and Tignanello was $253. I thought wine was expensive back home - with Tig going for $100 - but this was hefty with a capital "H." Luckily, I quickly found out that the prices shown were in EC$ and that the exchange for the Caribbean dollar is basically 3 to 1. Phew!

Not That Bad A View, I'd Say.

We returned just in time to find that our roomies were back at the villa and that they were prepping cocktails for the arrival of our other travel mates. Jeaux and Matinder were still entertaining their cruise pals but Lady Di and She Who Must Be Obeyed were joining us for the evening. Unfortunately, we had to start our evening with a toast to Tyrant and Panda Guy - our missing Dinner Club mates - because they had to cancel their reservation for the Dinner Club when a family medical emergency happened.

We promised to do our best to drink what would have been their share though. It was the least we could do.

After some Caribbean-styled B&T's, we all hiked down to the resort village for a late dinner.

1550. 2012 Montagnac Cinsault (Pays d'Oc IGP - France)

By now, I'd realized that we likely wouldn't be drinking a lot of big reds while in Antigua. The heat and humidity - not to mention the local cuisine - just cry out for chilled whites and rosés. So be it.

Our curried lobster and goat roti might have been more representative of a resort than the local roadside food stops and our Cinsault Rosé might have been more acclimatized to the Mediterranean than the Caribbean - but, for a first night in town, they suited me just fine.

By the time that first bottle was finished, all the travel was hitting me with a vengeance. Some island touring and our long-awaited Dinner Club were now only hours away; so, we succumbed to the pillows calling our names and we didn't wait around to see if the restaurant bar started jumping to the island beats and deejay. There was still plenty of time for that.

Antigua Bound

The scheme of taking our Dinner Club on the road materialized after many bottles of wine and a more modest road trip to Tyrant's new digs on Salt Spring Island a couple of years back. Since we'd managed a weekend jaunt across the water to Tyrant's, I threw out the idea of everyone traipsing down to Jeaux and Matinder's winter home in Antigua since they now spend four to five months of the year there now - thus causing a major hiatus in our dinner plans.

Well, it was finally time to catch our flight to the Caribbean and Elzee agreed to take us out to the airport. In return for her graciousness, we figured we could take her out for dinner first since we didn't have to be at the airport until about 9 pm. With a couple of options on the table, we ultimately chose Campagnolo Roma as Elzee hadn't been before.

With this essentially being the start of our vacation, I reckoned we might as well start it off with a bit of a bang. Angelo Gaja may be acknowledged as one of Italy's (if not the world's) greatest winemakers  and Boo and I may have strolled by the Gaja winery years ago (we didn't have an appointment to actually visit) but I've never had one of his wines.

Tonight seemed as good a time as any to start.

1549.  2005 Dagromis Barolo (Barolo DOCG - Piedmont - Italy)

Angelo Gaja is a fourth generation Piedmontese winemaker and he's grabbed huge scores for his wines. Indeed, in October 2011, Wine Spectator published a feature article about him and stated that "he has helped change the global image of Italian wine." As a result, Gaja has garnered prices upwards of $400 a bottle for his premium wines. (BTW, this isn't one of those "premium" wines. It was only $70 in the liquor store. We went BYO tonight.)

Since he started taking a larger role in the family business, Gaja has been an innovator in Piedmont. Examples of his handiwork involve the pioneering of single vineyard wines in the region and the introduction of French barriques (225-litre oak barrels) for aging his wines. He also raised eyebrows of contemporaries - and even his father - when he planted the region's first Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauv Blanc. Despite the introduction of international grape varieties, Gaja has continued to emphasize traditional grapes - particularly Nebbiolo.

Gaja's Barbaresco's may garner higher prices, but the winery still produces this Barolo, made, as required by appellation laws, from 100% Nebbiolo. This is a modern man's Barolo however. The wine is marketed as being approachable as a young wine and, it's true, the wine is aromatic and the fruit isn't overshadowed by tannins. In an attempt to make the wine more accessible without years of aging, it is initially vinified in stainless steel, then matured in barriques for 12 months and finished off for another 18 months in the bigger and more traditional oak botti.

We were quite surprised - and very pleasantly at that - by how easy drinking the wine was with our salumi, antipasti and pizza. I'm used to regularly scraping the tannins off my teeth after every sip of a Barolo but not tonight - and this bottle was still relatively young. Well, at least until we'd finished off the pizza and had a bit of wine left to finish off on its own, without food. It was as if we'd opened an entirely different bottle and the tannins jumped to the front and centre.

If there was ever evidence of how different a wine can be with and without food, this was it. We might not have been nearly as effusive had we finished off the bottle without food. Luckily, that wasn't the case and we had a superb start to the vacation.

And a plane to catch.

Here's to the good times to come.

Let's Do The Time Warp Again

♬  ♪♫  It's just a jump to left and then a step to the right.... ♬  ♪♫

I don't know whether this revisiting of past "mea culpa" posts should channel Frank-n-Furter or Dr. Who but I'm definitely going to have to do the Time Warp or do a little time travel and jump over a whole lot of bottles as I try to catch up. Currently, my last published post is talking New Year's Day and we're decidedly past that now. So, once again, I am - quite fairly - catching grief for the lack of currency in my writing.

Not that it was a new year's resolution or anything but I think I have to be realistic and embrace the fact that I'm not going to be catching up on my posts any time soon.

As such, I shall tuck away all those bottles that we've enjoyed over the last so many months and jump ahead to more current sips. That's going to leave approximately 45 bottles unchronicled for the time being. You may rest assured, however, that they've been carefully stored for posterity on the Tardis (or my equivalent thereof) and that future posting is still the goal. After all, there's not to be any cheating on this 2001 Bottles Odyssey. Hopefully, I'll just fill in more and more of the "gaps" as time progresses - because there truly were some interesting wines that are to be added to The List.

I suppose that - even at this late date - filling those gaps and catching up on the blog should be my real resolution for the "new year." I realize the time for new year's resolution is long past and that most resolutions have been long discarded by now but at least it sounds good that I want to make the effort. The proof will be in the writing.

In the meantime?

♬  ♪♫ ... with your hands on your hips, you bring your knees in tight... ♬  ♪♫