Sunday, February 23, 2014

Pearls and Wine

Pearls
I wanted to check out these new textured glass pearls as possible beads for my eyeglass chains and lanyards. So I bought the large ones for myself.
My concern was would they be rough and catch on soft materials. That is a no. However they annoy my skin a little since the necklace is heavy but I am like the Princess and the Pea! If they were a smaller size they would be ok.

I will still wear them though since I love them!
I don't like taking selfies. It feels too unnatural!

source
I love Wilma Flintstone style necklaces!

Wine
Valentine's Day weekend was a treat for Jim and I. The Wine Connextion had a Michael David Winery tasting. 

One of the co-owners of the winery was actually there all the way from Lodi, CA! I would have liked to have bowed down before him but there were a lot of people present. The company is run by 2 brothers, Michael and David. 
Well they were running special sale prices off the store's already low prices. So a stock up happened! 

I've mentioned the ultra delicious Freakshow in the past but we had not yet tried Petite Petit until the tasting. 
It was amazing as expected! This has an adorable label. See the mice carrying playing cards and juggling the grapes at the bottom? This is the green room at the circus. Yes those are glasses of wine the elephants are holding! Let me just follow this with stating that I do not agree with the use of animals in the circus. It makes me sad to see. Anyway this is 85% petite sirah and 15% petit verdot, hence the name! Very full bodied.

The quotes crack me up. Robert Parker (the man behind The Wine Advocate) wrote that this one has "lots of blueberry fruit intermixed with graphite, licorice and a hint of tar." Graphite and tar? Well that's appetizing!
The Ink Blot wines are a little higher in price and were a first for us too. This is the petit verdot. It's just delicious. I'm not sure what I see in this inkblot except a turkey in the center ready to be cooked with it's wings out to its sides.
I see a butterfly in this one. Jim sees 2 seahorses. This is the tannat. This grape is from the southwest region of France that is now growing in Lodi, CA. More deliciousness! 
They also had sexy wine available, but not part of the tasting including lust, gluttony, sloth and rage. They are red zinfandels like 7 Deadly Zins. We can't justify spending $40+ on a bottle of wine (although I'm sure they are worth every penny) so we stuck with the others! 

The Earthquakes are our special occasion wines so we picked up both the cabernet and zinfandel. 

Besides being so tasty, I love that this winery has fun with its labels and names! Not pretentious in any way.

Thank you for stopping by! Enjoy your week ahead! ~Val

21 comments:

  1. i'm not one to spend a lot on a bottle of wine, but i'm sure all their wines are good. i saw a lion's head in the first and a crab in the second ink blot. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. oh, and meant to say your comparison to wilma flintstone was hilarious!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wines have such crazy names nowadays. Seems like the crazier, the better!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I like those big chunky style chokers too! Love the Flintstones :)
    I like the inkblot labels! Sounds like you had a fantastic wine weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I do like the size of the beads 'simply Wilma' you could call them :-). Very interesting wine labels, we noticed yesterday men in almost every vineyard bent over cleaning up their vines for this years crop, such back breakingly hard work.

    ReplyDelete
  6. The necklace is great...I like the designs on the bottles too, though I don't drink. I hope you have a gorgeous new week :) xx

    ReplyDelete
  7. Love the textured beads!
    And the wine labels are so fun...love the ink blots :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Those are so neat, Val. They look like they have water drops on them :) Have a lovely week!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I just love those wine labels, Val! Definitely not your "average" wine label. :-)

    These beads have the texture of sand, and I really like that. The color of the ones you're wearing is really pretty.

    Have a fantastic week!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I have never seen textured glass pearls, they are really cool! I love that you made a necklace out of them what a statement it makes. Thanks for sharing the wines you purchased. I am getting into wine more and more and it is always fun to find a new brand.
    Valerie
    Everyday Inspired

    ReplyDelete
  11. I like the texture on the pearls. So smart of you to try them out to see how it feels and behaves before making something with them.

    I love the wine names and labels! There is an annual wine tasting festival here every October that feature wineries from our state. It's always fun to attend.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hey Val ;o) I love your selfie and Wilma Flinstone necklace! LOL! Too funny ;o)
    Those wines and their names and pictures are excellent! I would be buying them just for that ;o)
    Big Hugs ;o)

    ReplyDelete
  13. I see 2 women head to head with seahorse tails...I guess I see seahorses with boobs! lol

    Darn it I should add wine tasting to my 45 list! I love the color of your necklace :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. The necklace looks great on you, Wilma! :-) Seriously, those beads have tremendous texture. I bet they are a conversation starter.

    ReplyDelete
  15. really liked the necklace!
    very nice blog by the way :)

    kisses from Russia,
    Juliet
    RUSSIAN DOLL

    ReplyDelete
  16. Wow. I love the textures on the pearls. It give them a whole new look and feel.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Out of all your lanyards, I believe this is my favorite! I love big necklaces that lay just below the neck. So pretty!

    Now about those wines! I'm a wine lover and I love to go wine tasting when I go on vacations. We even have some local wineries here. Cute names and love the labels. My daughter collects fun wine labels.

    ReplyDelete
  18. The textured pearls are stunning very Wilma indeed haha x

    ReplyDelete
  19. I love your necklace! I really like large beads like that, though I do agree that they feel heavy. I see two seahorses, like Jim, by the way :)

    ReplyDelete
  20. Wow, those are so unusual and beautiful! They look perfect with your outfit; definitely a statement piece.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for stopping by! I love reading visitor comments! ~Val