Given the way the day unfolded for Jean, the wake up song on the radio should have been “Momma Said” by The Shirelles.  (For the record, the words to this song were actually written by Van Morrison and go “My Momma said there’d be days like this, there’d be days like this my Momma said”).  Regardless of who wrote what, the words rang true today in many ways.

The traffic report had given forewarning that Jean’s daily commute to Austin would take a tad bit longer due to a gasoline truck turned over on 35 N, south of Austin but north of Buda – directly in Jean’s path.  So, into the car she jumped (taking a banana and a bottle of water just in case – it’s the Girl Scout training . . . be prepared!).  The first 3 miles heading out of San Marcos were business as usual – then BAMN . . . standstill – what is normally a 9 minute drive to Buda took well over an hour.  It was entertaining to see people passing the time in their cars – reading the newspaper, on their phones, and even enjoying a hard back book (should remember to stash one under the seat for times like this).  She was able to sneak over to the tollway and battle traffic there before arriving at the office more than 2 hours after leaving home.  Thankfully, a kind co-worker had brought her a breakfast taco to renew her strength (thank you Misty).  She had about 20 minutes in the office before heading out to an offsite meeting that was scheduled to last until 2 p.m.  Meeting went great and back to her car she went in anticipation of driving back to the office to get some work done (oh, by the way, meeting ran late and now it’s almost 3 p.m.).  No problem – back to the office in 15 and can finally attack the stack on her desk.  Passenger secured, seat belt fastened, key in ignition . . . what is that clicking noise?  That doesn’t sound like the car starting, hmmmm?  Yup, we are talking dead battery 101.  Fortunately, the meeting presenters where still around and one (Thank you Lisa!) took passenger back to the office while the other pulled out her trusty “Emergency Road Kit” (complete with very cool bright orange pop up warning sign – since we were just in a parking lot we didn’t execute that, but were certainly tempted).  Yes, Cheryl saved the day – the jump finally took hold after a couple of tries and Jean headed due south to purchase a new battery.  Andrew at Sur-Powr Battery Supply was a knight in shining armor, got all taken care of in short order and Jean got a hug to end the purchase – what a deal!

So, getting home about an hour earlier than usual was a treat for Jean, and given the 3-Ring Circus kind of day she had, made tonight’s wine choice every so easy.  As we like to call it – The Circus Wine, given the wonderful label – Michael David’s Petite Petit is no doubt one of the all time favorites in this house.  Now, this wine is young, but delicious – we have always liked Petite Petit . . . and this bottle is no different.  Big, bold smokey, and lots of vanilla on the nose . . . fruit forward and lots of berries.  Really, this wine is just plain perfect.  We could enjoy it on the deck with a fire in the pit or, like in tonight, with some spicy, stir-fried chicken (free range, of course) with vegetables. You just can’t go wrong serving this wine to friends, or guests at a dinner party.  The price is perfect, $13 – $15 a bottle, depending on where you purchase.  You can find it at Grape Juice, Gabriels, HEB, Twin and a quaint little place know as “The Big Red Wine Cabinet” (this is a hard place to gain access to, unless you know the right people – more on this special place later).

We’ve talked about this winemaker before; Michael David makes some of our favorite, big, delicious wines.  All of them can stand on their own or be enjoyed with friends, and equally, all of them can be enjoyed with food.  We’ve had this bottle of wine for a while and we were looking for the right time to break it out, and tonight was the night . . . we hope you’ll try this wine.  If you like vanilla and oak combined with fruit and finish, this is your wine.  The ONLY time we get upset is when we run out of this wine!

So, we wrap up a crazy day full of twists and turns that Momma warned us about with advice from Emerson, Lake and Palmer . . . “Welcome back, my friends to the show that never ends…”

Please remember to enjoy this wine responsibly and recycle whenever possible.