Wine, Beer and Restaurant Reviews

Thanksgiving Wines 2011, What We're Thinking About - Dinners and Wines from around the World

Mano a Vino started back in November of 2005 with a humble post on our Thanksgiving wines that year. They were all by women in wine, noted female wine makers who have continued to be iconic in the field. Thanksgiving 2005 Wines By Women. The wines we chose for that day are just as good today.

When it comes to T'day our first thought is Champagne or other dry sparkler to start and Pinot Noir. In 2007 we suggested these two. But there are so many other wines to consider.

Riesling, Gruner Veltliner & Cotes du Rhone are some of the wines that come to mind. The style and influence of your Thanksgiving menu should have a lot of influence on your wine selection.

Perhaps you would like to share your favorites in a comment below.

Spring Wines

Now that I can finally sit out on our deck and enjoy the sights of spring I like to keep my wine "cellar" filled with delicious spring wines.

These include Reisling, Gruner Veltliner, Pinot Grigio, Albarino and Sauvignon Blanc, among others of course.

Please read on, and send me the name of your favorite spring wine.

Chengdu 1 Chinese Restaurant Cedar Grove NJ Review

We are loyal TS Ma, Montclair, fans and rarely go anywhere else other than to places in NY. Well last night there was a 20 minute wait for a table at TS Ma. We were hungry so decided to go over Bradford Hill to a place I have wanted to try for years, Chengu 1 in Cedar Grove.

Many foodie friends have told me how good the food is there. It is true what most reviewers say it does not look like much from the outside but inside it is pleasant enough. Rather casual with some kids wandering about. There were many chinese diners which is always a good sign.

We loved our meal and will be back.  But next time with a group so we can taste a lot more dishes.

I always wondered what Chengdu meant since there are so many restaurants named that. Chengdu 46, Cheng Du 23...

Thanksgiving 2005 Wines By Women

For Thanksgiving we served a selection of wines from around the world, all by very talented women.

Heidi Schrock , Austria; Sybille Kuntz , Germany; Elisabetta Geppeti, Italy; Barbara Spelletich, Merry Edwards, United States.

2010 update, these are still all good 5 years later.

Riesling in America - Mercer Yakima Valley 2007 a very good one from Washington State

Most people I know still don't really appreciate the wonderful qualities of good Riesling. Like  Italian white wines of a couple of decades ago that were cursed by ghost of Bolla Soave, Riesling has also suffered from the bad reputation of mediocre German wines that came to the states and awful yet popular stuff like Blue Nun.

That all changed in 2001 which was an extrordinary year for German wines, the best in many decades. All of a sudden the world started to pay attention to the marvelous wines coming from Germany.

There is no better wine to pair with Asian food than Riesling and we are serving Riesling with the first courses of our Thanksgiving dinner although that will be Austrian Riesling.

What is confusing to many people is that Riesling comes in six categories from dry to very very sweet.  My favorites are what are called Kabinett or Spatlese which are considered semi sweet. They contrast and compliment the spice garlicky flavors of asian food so.

Today Riesling is produced all over the world and some very good ones are coming from Oregon and Washington State like this delicious wine from Mercer Estates in the Yakima Valley.

These US made Rieslings are gaining real popularity and in September 2009 Eric Asimov asked "is riesling the new sauvignon blanc?"