Hey Bartender

I started my crawl by meeting a few co-workers at Secco Wine Bar. While I waited for them to arrive, I enjoyed a bottle of Bell's Expedition Stout as I mentally prepared myself for what was to come. I also had the opportunity to meet some of the staff at Secco as well as the owner. Once my friends arrived, we took a stroll down Cary Street with Matt, from Secco Wine Bar, toward the first stop on the official crawl -- Amici Ristorante. If you're a fan of authentic northern Italian cuisine, Amici is the place for you. We arrived a few minutes early, so we waited outside while the staff at Amici prepared for their dinner service.

Amici is small, but beautiful. The artwork, muted colors and lighting set the atmosphere for our first rosé -- Negroamaro Salento Mottura. This non-vintage wine is made with Negromaro and Malvasia Nera grapes grown in southern Italy. It's rich and slightly rustic with a mild earthy quality that highlights deep, roasted plum and mocha toned fruit. It's slightly dry, but very refreshing. It was the perfect way to begin the crawl. As we prepared to move on to the next stop, I noticed that we had been joined by quite a few rosé drinkers. At this point, I began to see it more as a pilgrimage rather than a crawl.

Our next stop was Amour Wine Bistro. Amour is known for its French and western European influenced cuisine. Their menu changes quite often and the staff is very adept at pairing their great meals with wine. I was not disappointed by what Amour offered those participating in the rosé pilgrimage. We were presented with a menu titled A Carytown Crawl Through Rosé Colored Glasses. The menu included a featured wine, 2010 Chateau de Valcombe Rosé, and seven other rosés by the glass with two flight options as well. In addition to the wines, there were five very reasonably priced hors d'oeuvres to pair with your wine choices.

Amour's rosé selection was impressive and I had a hard time deciding what to try. After a few milliseconds, I decided to sample a few of my favorites: Cotes de Provences Manon, Chateau la Calisse, La Bastide Saint Dominique, Guigal Tavel Rosé, and Lucien Albrecht Rosé Brut. The brut rosé is probably my favorite of this group. It's made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes hand-picked in the Alsace region of France. It's very refreshing with hints of cherry, strawberry and plum. It's the perfect wine for those hot summer nights in Richmond and paired really well with all of the food on the special crawl menu. Amour is a great place to enjoy food and wine pairings and I can't wait to return to see what's new on the menu.

It's not a crawl unless you actually continue the journey, so we reluctantly moved on to Can Can. As I expected, Can Can was bustling with its normal high energy crowd when we arrived. Most of the crawlers decided to move on to Secco, but I was not deterred by the crowd. As a member of the bartender fraternity, I had no trouble placing an order for the rosé offering from Can Can: Domaine De Mirail. Made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes, this salmon colored wine has a hint of strawberry on the nose and palate. It's a perfect apertif that pairs well with smoked fish and cheeses seasoned with herbs. While enjoying this delicious French wine, two things happened. First, a downpour of epic proportions washed away any evidence of the beautiful sunny day we'd enjoyed at the beginning of our pilgrimage down Cary Street. Second, the epic downpour was, no doubt, the catalyst that propelled us back to a time when candles were the only source of light on a dark rainy day. This did not deter us from making our way to Secco, but it did make the sprint more fun, if not extremely wet.

When we arrived at the last stop on the pilgrimage, we joined what could only be described as a party. Despite the fact that there was no electricity (and no air-conditioning) or food, everyone was having a great time. Secco had a vast array of rosés to choose from, including two flights. I chose the Grenache-based flight and joined the party. My G-Men flight consisted of Chateau de Roquefort Rosé, Domaine Rouge-Bleu Rosé, and Gine Priorat Rosa. Of these, the most interesting was the Gene Priorat Rosa from Spain. It's a blend of Grenache and Merlot from the Catalunya region of Spain that is very complex with hints of dried cranberry, cherry, flowers and minerals. It was a great way to end the rosé pilgrimage.

So, there you have it, the first ever Carytown Rosé Crawl -- uncorked!!! If you weren't there, then you missed a great time. I'd like to thank Amici Ristorante, Amour Wine Bistro, Can Can, and Secco Wine Bar for their hospitality. I had a great time and so did everyone else who attended. Not only were the wines and food great, but it was proven, without mathematics, that good food and good wine can turn even the hottest miserable afternoon or the stormiest dark evening into a gloriously enjoyable experience. With that in mind, I hope that the next crawl is sooner rather than later. As always, whether enjoying rosés at home alone or with dozens of new friends in Carytown, please do so responsibly. Until next time...prosit!!!

We arrived at Secco late on a Sunday night not really expecting much. We were looking for a place to unwind and maybe enjoy an appetizer after a long evening with friends. It was the only place still serving food at 10:30 on Sunday night, so we weren't sure what would be available.

The first thing that we noticed was the decor. The natural wood color of the bar and tables are cleverly offset by brown leather sofas, black chairs, and a shiny black floor. There is also a really neat mural on the wall behind the bar which was created by a local artist. The large glass windows on both the Cary Street and Sheppard Street sides of the building make the tiny space seem much larger. There are four tables with four chairs each, a few couches that seat four to six people, and ten or so chairs at the bar. The space felt very open and very comfortable.

Since it was so late, I didn't expect very much in the way of food, but I was pleasantly surprised. Secco offers lunch from 12 PM - 4 PM, dinner from 5PM - 10 PM, and an additional menu with lighter fare that's available all day. The lunch and dinner menus offer a wide array of delicious sounding dishes. I look forward to visiting again soon to try some of these culinary treasures.

The menu that we selected our late night snack from contained antipasti, cheeses, soups & salads, terrines & pates, cured meats and salami, and desserts. Since it was so late, we were limited to cured meats, cheeses, and desserts. We decided on meats and cheeses and we weren't disappointed by our options. The selections were some of the best that the world and Virginia had to offer. We chose two cheeses: Idiazabal from Spain and Blu di Bufala from Italy. Blu di Bufala is made from buffalo's milk and there was no way I was passing up the opportunity to give it a try. Our cured meat choice was locally produced. It was a really nice prosciutto that was aged for 14 months.

Secco has a wide range of beverages from French press coffee to hot tea. They also have an amazing selection of bottled and draft beer. Like many of the cool places in Carytown, they feature Bell's Brewery. Their draft beer rotates often, so you never know what might be available.

Since we were in a wine bar, I figured that wine should be the order of the night. I was thoroughly impressed with the wine list. Being affiliated with the wine shop next door probably helps enhance the list tremendously. There were selections from some of the best wine regions around the world. Places like the Rhône Valley, Loire Valley, Burgundy, Bordeaux, all located in France, plus Italy, Spain, Germany, and Portugal. In addition to the list, there is a chalk board behind the bar that lists special wine offers. Our server was very helpful in guiding me through the list.

The wine that she recommended, Jean Royer Le Petit Roy (2008), was outstanding. She described it as a declassified Châteauneuf-du-Pape. For those unfamiliar with Châteauneuf-du-Pape, it is a French wine appellation located in the southern part of the Rhône Valley. French laws dictate which grapes and what percentage of those grapes can be used in the production of wines in an appellation. Despite being made with the same grapes as wines made within the Châteauneuf-du-Pape appellation, the Le Petit Roy cannot be called Châteauneuf-du-Pape because the grapes are grown just outside the designated wine growing area for that particular wine. So, the term declassified refers to wines that can't be classified by a specific wine growing region despite being, in essence, the same wine. This is great news for you and I because these wines are just as good as the classified wines, but they come at a price that is generally lower.

As I said, the wine was outstanding. The color was a dark ruby red. I could tell that it was a Rhone wine immediately. The nose hinted of cherries with a bit of mint. The palate was light and silky with the cherries coming through giving way to a slight tartness at the finish. I savored every single drop just as we savored every single moment at Secco.

So, there you have it, Secco Wine Bar -- uncorked! I enjoy new experiences and Secco was definitely a new experience for me. Not because I'd never been to a wine bar, because I've been to seemingly billions of them, but because Secco is so casual and unassuming that you immediately relax as though you're at home. The staff is not only friendly, but knowledgeable. I can't tell you how comforting it is to know that you can trust your server's opinions and recommendations. I never doubted that our server would have the answer to any question about anything that pertained to Secco Wine Bar. I'll definitely return so that I can experience the rest of the culinary offerings that aren't available during the late night hours. Maybe I'll see you there. Until next time...prosit!!!

Girl Beer

Recently, I discussed how scientists at the University of Copenhagen had studied a group of school children to determine if there were differences in the sense of taste between men and women. Among the many findings of their study was that girls are far better at recognizing tastes than boys. Girls have the ability to sense ALL concentrations of both sour and sweet tastes and, in general, have a finer sense of taste than boys.

The study also showed that girls don't like flavors that are too strong. By contrast, boys seem to like the more extreme flavors. Boys also seem to love things that are very sweet, girls do not. Most importantly, the study showed that the ability to recognize tastes increases gradually with age, and the greatest changes manifest themselves during the teenage years. However, since girls are ahead of the curve from the beginning, they remain so throughout their lifetime.

Last week, a friend suggested that I take a look at Girl Beer (aka Beermosa) from Boneyard Beer, located in Bend, OR. Their philosophy is pretty simple: Make great beer! Rumor has it that they do just that. The name Boneyard comes from the fact that the brewery uses lots of second-hand brewing equipment to create its first-rate beers.

For those who aren't familiar with Bend, OR, it is widely known as the premier outdoor playground of the United States. It is also home to an extraordinary number of craft beers. This town of about 82,000 people is the home of at least 9 world-class craft breweries, all within walking distance of one another. Those in the know are familiar with the Bend Ale Trail, which gives locals as well as visitors the opportunity to get a glimpse into the uniqueness of the craft brewing culture in this part of the world.

All indications are that Boneyard, one of the newer stops on the Bend Ale Trail, makes great beer. In addition to Girl Beer, their list includes Bone-A-Fide Pale Ale, Black 13, and RPM IPA. There is also a seasonal list which includes Diablo Rojo, Armored Fist, Wit Shack Wit, and Hop Venom IPA. Sadly, none of these beers are available in my local area, which is not cool because the reviews on the beers from this up and coming brewery are very positive.

Girl Beer gets its name from a song by the Hazards. It's a wheat ale re-fermented with a blend of dark sweet and tart Oregon cherries. Boneyard's brewers use special German malt to give the beer some tartness that balances remarkably well with the cherries. In a glass it's a rich golden amber liquid with a foamy head that has good retention and lacing. The nose is dominated by wheat while the palate gives way to cherries and wheat. It's mildly sweet, light and well-carbonated. Overall, it's very drinkable and perfect for those hot summer days that are yet to come.

Boneyard brewed Girl Beer with the ladies in mind. As the Denmark study showed, women don't like extreme flavors and they do not like things that are super sweet. Women do have the ability to sense all concentrations of both sour and sweet tastes, so beer that is cleverly balanced malt and both sweet and tart cherries would definitely be more appealing to women than an over-the-top-super-hoppy IPA. It's great to see that a brewery is finally taking steps to tailor some of their products for my female friends who enjoy beer. Maybe this a first step toward beer domination for Boneyard Beer.

So, there you have it, Girl Beer and Boneyard Beer -- unkegged!! I get so jealous whenever I hear about all the cool stuff going on in places like Bend, OR. As a beer drinker, I envy the culture for beer making and beer drinking that has developed there. In my dreams, I see beer makers everywhere taking a page out of the Oregon playbook and applying it to their thinking. Beer drinkers everywhere would benefit greatly from this and chances are that the beer makers would too. As always, whether drinking Girl Beer or boy beer at home or with friends, please do so responsibly. Until next time...prosit!!!