One day Jen and I were headed to lunch at the Bistro at Hollywood Schoolhouse. We like to meet up at least once a week to catch up on work and, let’s face it, tons of gossip. We were hungry, but were enticed inside J. Bookwalter Tasting Studio briefly first. The tasting room manager, Jorge, is super friendly, and let ...

Let’s face it, I drag my poor beer-loving boyfriend to a lot of wine places here in Woodinville. He is a really good sport about it, and will drink the occasional glass of wine. But really, beer is his passion and his favorite thing to drink. So on Labor Day Weekend after I dragged him out in the heat to ...

We throw a lot of parties in the summer and fall here in Woodinville, and are excited to incorporate these wine-themed candles into our home decor this autumn. They’re made from recycled wine bottles – how perfect! If you’re a wine fanatic like us, you might like to check these out too. The Pinot Noir features notes of cherry and ...

New for autumn from Williams-Sonoma: Braising sauces made with wine! We throw a lot of parties here in Woodinville, and cook for a lot of people. We’re mourning the impending loss of summer, but also we’re eager to get back into our kitchens and cook up some comfort foods for our friends and families. Carrie is a vegetarian and so ...

    Yesterday Bob and I stopped by the 50th anniversary celebration over at Chateau Ste. Michelle.   The 50th Anniversary Celebration Weekend was absolutely packed full of delighted celebrants, who braved 90+ degree weather to attend. Yes, it was crowded and unpleasantly hot, but that didn’t seem to stop anyone from enjoying the party! Several food trucks were on ...

We happened to stop by William Church Winery’s tasting room here in Woodinville on a day the winemaker was in town! Noah was visiting from the vineyards in Eastern Washington. (You can read more about him in his profile at Washington Tasting Room). William Church wines had just taken home several awards from the Bellingham NW Wine Festival. This tasting room ...

After a friend dragged me into Village Wines recently, I felt really dumb for not knowing this was a restaurant! Judging just by the name, I thought it was a wine store. Every time I came to this strip mall (usually to eat at Mazatlan) I avoided going in, worried I would spend too much of my money on wine. ...

Take a sneak peek at some of the intriguing wine-related books coming out this fall! We’re adding several to our reading lists and home libraries for sure. The Booklovers’ Guide to Wine intrigues me with its history of the connections between wine and literary figures such as Jane Austen and Charles Dickens. I love the idea of literary-themed wine and ...

I am very happy to say that I finally visited Vivi Pizzeria! We decided to gather up three summer-bored kids and take them to Vivi Pizzeria for a celebratory birthday lunch. (My eldest daughter turned 15!) Here is part of the dining area inside Vivi. There are a couple of unobtrusive televisions. It was such a nice day though, we decided ...

Carrie, Joanna and myself capped our afternoon wine tasting off at Gaurdian Cellars tasting room and the French Oak aged wine was delicious! Located in Apple Farm Village, Guardian is owned by husband-and-wife-team, Jerry Riener and Jennifer Sullivan. Their professional backgrounds are melded creatively into Guardian wines and found throughout the tasting room. Names such as, Newsprint, The Alibi, The ...