We write today with a lot of positive vibes.  We recently finished painting our living room/dining room and together with the our entry way, the house we’ve been renting for the past almost 18 months is starting to look like, well, a house!  On top of this, was an awesome overtime victory by the St. Louis Rams against division foes and an all around “too much exposure” team from San Francisco.  Our love for the Rams goes back a long time – we pause to remember the Championship Season of 1999 and the incredible Super Bowl 34 against the Jeff Fisher coached, Tennessee Titans.  It’s pure poetry to see Coach Fisher roaming the sidelines at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis now as the Rams head coach! Being fans of pro football, today’s overtime win was SWEET not only because the Rams won, but because they beat the dreaded 49ers . . . at home . . . on the heels of a tie in San Francisco – and because their QB “controversy” got WAY, WAY too much publicity.   As the guys at Sports Center say on Monday nights – “C’mon, Man!!!”  We have two words for those who doubt – – – GO RAMS!

So late this afternoon, Kris and Veronique stopped by the house on their way home to Kerrville from all over Texas with a bottle of wine from Italy.  No, they hadn’t visited Italy, but had been given this wine as a gift and wanted to share it with us – WOW, such nice friends.  Who are WE to turn down such generosity.  We’ve visited with Kris on numerous occasions and no doubt most have heard of her commitment to the American Red Cross for the Hill Country Chapter.  Few, if any, folks we know have the drive and passion that Kris does in her position and on top of that, she’s a great friend, football fan and  – – University of Michigan fan!!

We opened this 2006 Costasera Amarone with one thought in mind – it needs time to open!  However, being kindred spirits, we not only opened the wine but also made sure we used our Vinturi to help aerate the wine.  We were rewarded with a beautiful and complex sample of wine.  The earthiness was evident from the beginning along with an amazing scent of anise.  If you like licorice . . . you’d love the nose of this wine.  It continued to open with scents of black cherry, leather and earthy soil.  The color on this classic was a dark purple – very inky and thick.  It was beautiful to look at in the glass as each swirl released more and more fragrance!  The taste was magnificent–although it was better later than at the beginning.  The fruit was prevalent on the front, mid and finish – the cherry taste lasted a long, long time.  Wines like this Amarone are meant to be enjoyed with food or with friends, and since Kris and Veronique needed to head back to Kerrville, we enjoyed it with friends!!  A delicious wine – on a terrific day.

After a weekend of painting and football, it’s nice to finish the weekend on a positive note.  We’ve enjoyed some great weather, some terrific wine and gotten a few things done around the house that we’ve been meaning to do for a long time.  We suspect that there are plenty of you out there who feel the same way – nothing better than getting things done that have been on your “honey-do” list for a long time.  We hope that you’ve been able to get things done this weekend as well.

So as the new week is in sights, we hope that you’ll continue to enjoy your favorite wine responsibly and please remember to recycle whenever possible.