A Travel Related Rant

My daily commute gets more interesting all the time, When I first joined this downtown Seattle hospital they offered a free shuttle for employees to the trains and ferries to encourage the use of mass transit and to provide employee safety.  Hard economic times forced them to discontinue this very popular benefit.  Now we get to add over an hour a day to our commute and have some very interesting stories to share.  From people who think the Public bus is their personal limousine and they don’t have to share space with anyone, to the family today who upon leaving the clinic lit up a joint at the bus stop and proceeded to smoke it in close proximity to their young child in a stroller.  I can only imagine it was medical marijuana and they felt entitled to smoke where they pleased.  But many of us did not appreciate the exposure. 

I have spoken with other employees who are now sporting walking casts because they broke their ankles trying to walk down the hills to the train or ferry, so much for employee safety.   Then there are the folks who ignore the no smoking within 25 feet of a bus stop or shelter law, also endangering those around them. 

The King County Metro seems bent on discouraging ridership by anyone who would choose them over say a root canal or a total Joint replacement surgery without anesthesia.  The buses are routinely over crowded, unclean and notoriously off schedule.  By contrast the Sound Transit Sounder train is always clean, crowded only on special event days and always encouraging ridership with perks like seats with tables and power for electronics, and even free Wi-Fi on some cars.  The North bound Sounder follows the Puget Sound shore north to Everett with gorgeous views of the Olympic mountain range and varied wild life. Sound Transit buses are always cleaner and more accommodating than the Metro not to mention happier drivers.  There is a Metro driver on the 152 route in the morning that routinely closes the door on folks entering the bus and drives off, then yells at riders for pulling the stop bell.  As more folks turn to mass transit in the face of rising gas prices we need to rethink our ideas of personal space and convenience.

A Bottling Experience

I was lucky enough to have Presidents day of when Edmonds Winery was bottling their ’09 Pinot Noir.  This is Doug’s first attempt at Pinot Noir, grapes he picked up from Yakima Valley in eastern Washington. I was surprised by the depth of the flavor as it appeared very light in color as we got to taste some directly from the tank.  The bottles were unboxed then filled with Argon gas to remove the Oxygen. Doug had already moved the wine from the barrels to a tank filtering it in the process but today it would pass through another filter before entering the bottle.  Doug has a four-bottle gravity filler that is fed via a food grade pump from the tank, which has a very precise speed setting so as to not disturb the wine too much. The bottles are placed on the nipples and wine enters by gravity till it reaches the desired level then a valve stops the flow.  The bottles are then handed to someone who wipes them down and they are corked with a manual device that does one bottle at a time and is hand operated. Then the metal capsule is placed on top and run through a spinner that tightens the capsule to the bottle.  They are now ready for labeling also a semi-manual process.  On this day we bottled 53 cases so this will be a very limited selection of wine.  I recommend watching for this release.

Wild Vine Bistro

I met up with a friend at The Wild Vine Bistro in Bothell, near Mill Creek, WA. We have eaten here before and have always enjoyed it.  On this Monday night they had a ½ price Bottle of wine special for all wines under $50.  So we tried one I was unfamiliar with IQ² which the server informed us was a sister winery to Page, both out of Woodinville, WA.  This ’08 Blend named Friends seemed appropriate for the occasion and was very approachable.  We quite enjoyed this wine with the Cheese plate and then the other special of the night; Pasta Carbonara.  The dish described as fresh pasta with in house Duck Breast Prosciutto light cream sauce and egg yolk.  The presentation was interesting in that the egg yolk sat on top of the generous portion of pasta with an amazingly tasty sauce.  Stirring the egg yolk in and then being left speechless with the experience. The freshness of this dish was obvious from the first taste and is one I hope makes it onto the regular menu as I will be back for more.  My friend and I shared another bottle of wine, this time an Argentinian ’09 Malbec by Alamos this is where I hope Washington Malbec will be in a few years as the vines get some age to them.  The Wild Vine also hosts live entertainment from local groups such as The Side Project, Woodrush, May Palmer, and Greg Murat.

Russell’s Dining and Bar

What’s the best way to cap off the night after a day of volunteering at one of the many Woodinville wineries? A stop at Russell’s Dining and Bar in Bothell, a converted barn visible from I-405 and now surrounded by a business park.  I was greeted by none other than Russell himself, as always made to feel very welcome. As I settled into the bar area and was offered a sample of wine, I was just going to have a desert but a new item on the menu caught my eye and the aromas of great food  made me hungry so I ordered the Duck Confit Nachos.  This item is on the Bar menu so there is a Happy hour price of $10 a savings of $3 from the regular price I paid on this Saturday night. My plate arrived with a warning that it was very hot, and it was, piled high with corn nachos, shredded Duck Confit and a Corn Salsa this was a meal in itself.  Then I tried the new desert item, recommended by Russell, the Chocolate Caramel Tart. I think I have found a new favorite desert in this triangle of dark chocolate coated custard with a caramel drizzle. 

Russell’s Dining and Bar has some great features in addition to awesome food, the upstairs is an event venue with vaulted ceilings and wood floors just begging for dancing or large crowds.  There is no corkage fee for locally made wines and is a favorite of many of the area’s winemakers.  On this evening I counted four in attendance, who, without their permission, I am not going to name at this time. This is the place for great food and meeting good friends.

Sojen Cellars

May Palmer performs at Sojen Cellars

An oasis in north Everett, Sojen Cellars is enjoying its second year at their Hewitt Ave location.  Max and Jen Jensen are very inviting folks and have made a very welcoming venue from a former motorcycle detail and custom guitar shop. The open brick walls add to the ambiance and make a perfect backdrop for the local talent showcased here each week.  Not only can you get to taste their hand crafted Washington wines but on Friday and Saturday nights they feature such local musicians as May Palmer, Woodrush, Electric DNA, and  Kelly Shirey.  Max and Jen like many of the local wine makers started in their home and soon outgrew their space. But with their move came a name change, their original incarnation was as Griffin’s Crossing but another winery felt it was too close to their name and threatened legal action. The story goes that Max was often heard saying “So, Jen…” and it stuck.

 Max and Jen both have “Day jobs” and open their tasting room Wednesday through Saturday evenings to give lots of folks opportunity to taste their offerings.  Often times folks will order takeout from one of the nearby restaurants like Terracotta Red or Buck’s American Cafe and bring it in to enjoy with a glass or bottle of wine from Sojen.

Sojen Cellars has a presence on Facebook and Tweet as @SojenCellars

This place is walking distance from the Everett Train Station so if the Twidow* is late picking me up from the Sounder because of a meeting or something you can find me here.

*Note – Twidow: a spouse or significant other that doesn’t Tweet or understand why you do.



Children grow up so fast

It seems like just yesterday I was in the OB's office with the Twidow and saw him moving on the ultrasound. Then holding her hand as she labored to no avail and we went into the OR to bring him screaming into the world.  Christmas after Christmas I watched the joy on his face as we surprised him again and again with something special.  First day of school, then high school, then he was out on his own. 

Over 25 years later and I'm sitting at his bedside in a hospital as he recovers from Gall Bladder surgery. He made it through just fine, but at over 6 foot tall and well filled out he is still my little buddy. His mother is out of state at a family wedding and feels left out, but then when they were little I always had to take the kids for their shots because she hated to see them hurting so I guess it is just as well. 

He is at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, the most award winning hospital in the state of Washington, on the same surgical floor I spent time on last year when I had Appendicitis so I know the nurses and know he is in good hands. This really makes it feel better for me since my better half is so far away. His nurses really doted on him since they all knew me and others came by to visit so he felt very special, which of course he is to me. We even got to see a new nurse that was a student when I was in here.

I think the hardest part for him was the not eating all day then only clear liquids for the night.  But like me the chicken broth was his friend.  I stayed rather late as no one made me leave his roommate was pleasant and didn’t seem to mind my sticking around as I want to help him the first time he walks to the bathroom, I just can’t see one of the girls helping this big guy.

What to do on a rainy Saturday afternoon

On Saturday, January 29th, 2011, I had a blast pouring wine for the Edmonds Winery Release party for their 2008 Bentley and Syrah.  Bentley is a scrumptious red blend of 82% Merlot and 18% Malbec named after the winery dog a very friendly black Cockapoo. Bentley was there and greeted all the folks who ventured out in the rain to experience these new wines.  The winemaker, Doug Petersen, made his world famous Chili that really warmed the soul. The 2008 Syrah is a 100% Syrah from Destiny Ridge in Horse Heaven Hills area of eastern Washington.  Both wines are ready to drink and full bodied.  To celebrate this release May Palmer “Queen of Ivory Soul” belted out a 2 hour set and kept the crowd happy with her music. The crowd ranged from regulars and wine club members to folks who had just read about it that day in the Everett Herald.  I was also honored to meet the video blogger Antoine Pin and founder of Underground Winos of Seattle.  Author Peter Ghavami and his wife also visited; his book "Lean, Agile and Six Sigma Information Technology Management" is an IT Manager’s bible. Over all it was a great way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon and this free event was enjoyed by many.

Vodka from Woodinville

A new craft distillery, Project V, has opened in the trendy Warehouse District of Woodinville in the midst of all the wineries and tasting rooms. They opened their doors last November to rave reviews, and I finally got the chance to visit.  Their premier offering is Single Silo Vodka made from Washington winter wheat from a family farm in central Washington.  The Vodka is one of the smoothest I have tasted in a long time and just a hint of the wheat is noticeable. The folks there are extremely friendly and proud to show you around their operations, which include stills they made themselves. I was able to taste a sample of the wheat that is used to produce this fine liquor and thought this would make some fine bread also. The work area is decorated by members of the staff with cartoon depictions of moonshiners and such with an old VW bus used as a storage area. This is definitely a destination everyone should add to their weekend plans.  You can also find them on Facebook. 

Don’t Bother,

                I had seen quite a bit of hype about one of the newest Asian restaurants in Marysville, Asian 1. Tonight the Twidow and I decided to give it a try, not our brightest idea it seems. The young man that greeted us was very pleasant, but sat us in the bar area when the place was almost empty. Menus were provided that were jam packed with lots of small Asian style print with very poor lighting. As we tried to grab the best light and squint at the menu, our server showed up and seemed in a bit of a rush. We were torn between two Thai style soups and were told the only difference between the two was coconut milk. We chose the one with the coconut milk. This bought us a little more time to try to read the menu. The Twidow chose the Yellow Curry Chicken and I went with the Spicy Basil Chicken. The soup was the highlight of the evening; the entrees were so sweet they could almost have been deserts. The Curry was the better of the two, but only slightly. The Spicy Basil Chicken was so sweet it overshadowed all other flavors and the chicken was like breaded and fried chicken nuggets not at all impressive. The brown rice had an off taste and the white rice was tasteless. Our server passed by once asking how things tasted as I had a mouth full and did not even pause so I could answer. When she picked up my almost full plate, she did not even ask if there was something wrong. This is one place I will not be back to.

2011 resolution

For 2011 I resolve to read more of my friends’ blogs, newsletters, and websites.  Previously I mostly waited till some link showed up in twitter and I just happen to see it before is passes by.  But I have some great friends who are very talented writers and deserve more than just my occasional notice.  I invite you to add these folks to your favorites and follow them on Twitter and/or Friend them on Facebook.

One such friend is @TheGonzoMama or Christina-Marie Wright She is a mother, a vegan, a wine lover, a writer, a blogger and a friend. I first met Christina-Marie at the tasting room of Edmonds Winery in Woodinville and knew her as an attractive mother of seven children.  I later got to know her better through Twitter, Facebook and her tremendously humorous book "Everything Everything I Need to Know About Motherhood I Learned from Animal House." As I have a vegetarian son I look forward to her veggie recipes and her humorous take on parenthood.

Margot Savell is another of my friends I have made through Twitter, @WriteForWine is her Twitter moniker.  Margot is a very talented writer originally from Canada and now thankfully a Puget Sound resident.  Margot is very active in the local wine community and great person to know.

One of my earliest Twitter friends is Shona Milne, @Shona425 a Woodinville local and great supporter of the local wine community. Her website Woodinville Wine Update is widely read and good reading.  Shona is always a welcome face to see at many local wine events and always has the scoop on what’s happening.

A relatively new friend is Sean Sullivan the author of the Washington Wine Report and @WaWineReport on Twitter.  His blog is a very extensive review of both eastern and western Washington wines. 

Then I have some not as local friends who have some very interesting blogs, Josh Wade, AKA @NectarWine has a blog and tasting room in Spokane Washington. And one of my favorite unconventional writers Randy Watson or as many know him; The Wine Whore from my home state of Florida he takes the snobbery out of wine tasting and keeps me laughing.

Well this incomplete list is just a beginning of  my list of frineds and I hope you check back so I can share more with you.  If you have a blog let me know so I can check it out.