San Juan Puerto Rico Part 2

It's taken me a while to finish up our San Juan trip. Here is Part 1 if you missed it.

Our second full day in San Juan was designated as our sight-seeing day. However, we woke up later than planned and spent a while waiting for the bus to go into Old San Juan which meant that we didn't arrive in OSJ until nearly 11 am. Having read about Cafe La Mallorca, I wanted to eat breakfast there. I ordered the namesake food, a mallorca, which is kind of sandwich. Mine was made with ham and cheese and then sprinkled with powdered sugar. It's a little like eating a french toast sandwich. Somehow the sweetness and saltiness complement each other beautifully. After we saw the window full of pastries, we decided to get one to split for the road.

We definitely needed the fortification (pun!) for the rest of the day - traipsing around OSJ visiting the forts! Our first stop was Castillo de San Cristobal. The forts are run by the National Park System, and you can buy a pass to both forts for $5 a person. Although El Morro is the more famous of the forts, San Cristobal is much bigger. We were awed. We didn't take an official tour but just used the maps we were given to navigate around. There is also good signage in Spanish and English around the forts.

Even if you're not that into history, the forts are totally worth it for the views that they afford. You can see all of Old San Juan and down the coast and across land to the cruise ship terminals. We spent a lot of time just enjoying the view and taking pictures of the garitas (the sentry boxes that San Juan is known for). San Cristobal was built to prevent land attacks on San Juan, and the oldest parts of the fort date back to the 1600s.

One of the interesting things about San Cristobal is that it was used by the United States during World War II to look for German U-boats in the Caribbean. You can see how some of the architecture does not exactly match the rest of it. Having a vivid imagination, we spent some time playing in the sentry boxes imagining spotting everything from Dutch war ships to U-boats. Of course, most of the time, the guards didn't see anything except a vast expanse of ocean and the occasional trading vessel. I can imagine it would get pretty lonely in there.

This is a view of the other fort, El Morro, from San Cristobal. In between the two are the slums known as La Perla. In the bottom left corner you can see the Devil's Garita. The legend says that sentries were known to disappear from this sentry box as if they were snatched away by the devil. Because we're hardcore, we decided that we wouldn't take the tourist trolley to El Morro but would walk instead. It's a good hike, but we were walking along the coast.

El Morro gets all the glory, but we honestly liked San Cristobal best. The neat part about El Morro is that it guards the entrance to San Juan Bay, so you can see pretty much all of the bay and watch boats enter. It makes it clear how awesome of a natural bay San Juan bay is. The area on the other side of the entrance to the bay used to be a leper colony. Now it's a recreation area. The other very cool part of El Morro is that, in the oldest part of the fort, there is part of a shell stuck in the wall from when the US attacked San Juan during the Spanish-American war in 1898. Very cool.

Dorky side comment: You know how in the book of Joshua, Rahab, the prostitute who helps the Israelites enter Canaan, lives in the city walls? I never really understood how she could live in the wall until I saw the walls around San Juan. Look at how thick they are! You could totally live in there.

I was trying to figure out we could get down to the Paseo de la Princesa from El Morro, but I kind of messed up. We still had a nice walk and entered the Paseo once we got to the city gates. In my mind, I could see the ships landing after a long journey from Spain and the dignataries entering through the city gates, straight up to the Cathedral to give thanks to God for a safe journey. We take for granted how safe and easy travel is nowadays! From the city gates we walked back down to the docks, basically completely circling the perimeter of Old San Juan.

Before we boarded the ferry for the Bacardi distillery, we stopped by the tourist information center for a free rum drink sponsored by Rums of Puerto Rico. The bartender was very knowledgable and turned Joe on to some sipping rums. Then we headed next door to Casa de Don Q, an informational museum about Don Q rums, which also had a tasting bar. I had read that you could get one drink, and I assumed that meant that we would get a ticket. However, it is much more laidback than that. We did buy a few bottles of Don Q's coconut and mojito rums though, so it paid off for them!

Finally, we bought our tickets for the ferry to Catano, across the bay where the Bacardi Distillery is located. The fare was something like $.50-$1 per person. Then you can catch a publico (public taxi) that will take you to the Distillery for about $5 per person. The tour at Bacardi is free, and you get two drink tickets. Unfortunately, we were there during Spring Break, so while we were interested in the tour, most of the sunburned college students were only interested in the free drinks. As tours go, it wasn't that great, though you do get an in-depth look at the history of Bacardi, but they don't dwell on their method for making their rums. Bacardi is not originally a Puerto Rican company. They started in Cuba and then moved after Castro took over. We decided to stick to drinking Don Q, a real Puerto Rican rum.

One benefit is that you get a great view of Old San Juan from across the bay. After taking the ferry back across, we decided to head back to Condado for dinner where we ate at a comida criolla restaurant close-by. Having done all of the tourist things, we were ready to rest our feet and consume some mofongo and a nice cold beer.

The next morning, another planned beach day, we woke up and found it was raining. We stayed in bed hoping it would let up, but it didn't appear to be going anywhere. After doing some quick research, I determined that we were within walking distance of the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico. On the way, we ate a filling breakfast at Bebo's. The art museum was a really nice way to spend a few hours, particularly if it's raining and you don't have a car. They had everything from 17th-century religious art to modern protest art and a sculpture garden.

By the late afternoon, we were determined to spend some time on the beach, and the rain looked to be letting up. We took a walk down the shore and then enjoyed the little bit of sun that came out right before setting behind the buildings. Because it was out last night in Puerto Rico, we wanted to have a big night out so we went back to our condo and got ready to go out.

We first started with drinks at the Atlantic Beach Hotel. The Atlantic Beach Hotel was one of the few hotels we could see that had an oceanfront bar with a patio. It's also a well-known gay hangout. We enjoyed our beers and talked about where we might go for dinner. Only a short bit down Avenida Ashford was Ummo, where we ended up eating dinner. Joe was keen on a place that had live music, but I was tired of comida criolla. This ended up being absolutely perfect.

We started off with a tasting of 3 different red wines and some corn and goat cheese empanadas. Then, we decided to order the Parillada Gourmet for two people. It was brought out to us on the table that you see in the picture that had coals inside to keep it warm. It also came with two sides, and we ordered the mashed yucca and creamed spinach. All of the meat you see above includes blood sausage, chorizo, filet mignon, sweetbreads, pork loin, and short ribs along with two sauces for the meat. We were stuffed. Everything was absolutely delicious and flavorful. My only complaint was that the pork was slightly dry. It was one of the best dining experiences I have ever had: the service, the music, the food, and the atmosphere was just perfect.

The next morning, it was raining just a bit, so we grabbed breakfast in Ocean Park. By then, the rain had mostly stopped, so we headed to the beach one last time. We were very, very sad for our vacation to end. We loved San Juan and Puerto Rico so much that our next vacation will most likely be to another part of Puerto Rico, probably Vieques. Before this vacation, we had always talked about retiring to Mexico, but I think those plans have now changed to Puerto Rico. The beauty of the island, the friendliness of the people, and the combination of cultures is really something to behold. We can't wait to get back to Puerto Rico!

San Juan, Puerto Rico, Part 1

At the beginning of January when it was cold and icy, Joe and I were trying to figure out what to do and where to go for our spring vacation. We tossed around several ideas but none seemed to pan out. We were talking about cruises, but to go on a cruise that went to ports that neither of us had been to, we would have to leave out of San Juan. But then, why not just go to San Juan? I did a quick search and found some affordable VRBOs and reasonable airfare, and our decision was made. San Juan seemed to provide just about anything we want in a vacation: interesting history, sight-seeing, relaxation on a beach, a metropolitan city, great live music, and good food. Plus, because Puerto Rico is a U.S. Territory, there's no messing around with changing money or bringing a passport or having trouble using your cell phone. Both Joe and I love Latin American and Caribbean culture, and San Juan was a great blend of the two.

Our first day, we arrived in San Juan around 2 pm after a short connection in Charlotte. The travel was remarkably smooth, and we quickly got a taxi and headed for our apartment in Condado, about 10 minutes away. The owner was waiting for us in front of a white, 10-story building. This was no luxury hotel or condominium tower, but we were right in the middle of everything. The accommodations were clean, and we had just about the room we needed. The owner had left us maps, and the apartment had an outfitted kitchen, and beach gear. After getting settled, we decided to roam around Condado and get our bearings. Our first stop was the beach, a mere block and a half away. As many people will tell you, San Juan is not the most beautiful part of Puerto Rico, but the beach was wide and well-maintained, especially for a city beach. The water is technically the Atlantic, which can be a bit rougher than the Caribbean for swimming, but it was still warm.

We exited the beach and walked towards the main strip of Condado, an area full of the best shopping in Puerto Rico and a multitude of restaurants and hotels. For people who are less adventurous eaters or who just want a taste of home, American chain restaurants are plentiful. The streets were bustling, and Joe suggested that we hop a bus and go into Old San Juan. Once we determined how much bus fare was ($.75 a person) and obtained quarters, a bus came driving up. Taking the bus into OSJ is very easy as there is a large transportation center there. It is the last stop going west. We got off in view of the piers and the docked cruise ships and followed some other people up into the cobblestone streets of Old San Juan.

Of course, I did not have any maps with me, so finding the tourism office was a bust, but we walked down the main street of San Francisco and basically just wandered for a while, occasionally coming upon plazas where people were gathered. We passed a small alleyway and spotted a few tables with people drinking some beer, so we stopped and bought a couple Medallas, the local beer. It is a light lager, perfect for quenching our thirst. After conversing with a few friendly members of the, ahem, local color (aka the resident drunks), we meandered on. We stumbled upon another bar that had been recommended to us, Nono's (100 Calle San Sebastian). Nono's is a very relaxed atmosphere, almost an overgrown dive bar type of feeling. After finding a few places at the bar, I asked the woman next to us what she happened to be drinking. A couple pina coladas later, we moved on to figure out something to eat.

One of the things I noticed and appreciated about San Juan in general and Old San Juan in particular is that there seems to be a good amount of both public parks and public art. This is the Plaza de la Rogativa, and the sculpture commemorates a religious procession led by the women of the town that had the unintended consequence of frightening away the British who thought the torches belonged to additional Spanish forces.

A lot of the food in Old San Juan is on the pricey side and a little fancy for what we wanted. We were craving some good Puerto Rican comfort food, and with some luck, we managed to stumble upon the perfect place, El Jibarito (276 Calle Sol). The place was busy, filled with the sounds of large groups laughing and enjoying their food. We were seated and handed a hand-written menu. I ordered the pork and plantain tamales with a side of mofongo (essentially mashed plantains). Side note: it is nearly impossible to eat vegetarian in Puerto Rico, so I didn't even try. Like many Spanish cultures, pork products play a large role. Joe chose the small bits of pork in a plantain sauce also with mofongo. When it arrived, it was precisely what we had been craving. A little on the fatty and salty side, but what good comfort food isn't? We then caught the bus back to our place just as it began to rain.

The next day we ate breakfast at La Patisserie de France in Condado and received enormous breakfasts for only $4.99. Then we hit the beach for lounging, reading, sunbathing, and some swimming. For lunch, we walked to the local grocery store and bought some fresh baked bread, cheese, and chorizo. Our evening plans involved dinner and salsa dancing in Old San Juan at The Latin Roots, a place that appeared more tourist-y than it ended up being. We arrived early, and the salsa instructor wasn't there yet. Our waiter was perfectly accommodating when we informed him that we were planning to stay for the music that started later. Our courses came out slowly, just as we requested, and he even brought us complimentary plantain chips with some delicious dipping sauces. My bistec encebollado was perfectly cooked, and Joe's mofongo with fried pork was even better than El Jibarito. Then we took some brief salsa lessons until the band took the stage. We danced the night away as the place got more and more crowded with people. Joe was very impressed with the band, and I got mistaken for a famous writer (though I'm not sure which one). Exhausted, we took a cab home to rest up for the following day of sight-seeing.

Kentucky Bourbon Trail, Part 2

Okay, I'm back to tell you about the second half of our trip to the Bourbon Trail. Here's Part One.

We headed off on Tuesday morning to Buffalo Trace Distillery to make their 10 am tour. Our tour guide was absolutely fantastic, very energetic and knowledgeable. The tour started off with a cheesy video and then we learned a little bit about bourbon.

Although we didn't see much of the grounds on the tour, Buffalo Trace has beautiful, sprawling grounds that were just getting decorated for the holidays with lights and such. One of things that tickles me about the distilleries is that they're such an ingrained part of life in the area. Buffalo Trace has an Easter egg hunt, and we passed what looked like a elementary school that was sponsored by Wild Turkey.

Buffalo Trace is the oldest continuously operating distillery. Due to Prohibition, most distilleries closed down, but Buffalo Trace was allowed to continue operating in order to produce medicinal whiskey. On this tour, we did not see any of the distilling process, though they do have a "hard hat" tour by reservation.

They were bottling Blanton's when we were there. Blanton's is not only a very fine whiskey, but the stoppers also have different jockeys on top that spell out B-L-A-N-T-O-N-S if you collect them all. I enjoyed this tour because our tour guide gave us a lot of fun trivia about bourbon and Buffalo Trace in general. A short tasting followed the tour, and Buffalo Trace's gift shop was one of the nicer ones in terms of the sheer variety of things they offered.

Next we followed the turkey tracks to Wild Turkey Distillery.

We arrived shortly before their 12:30 pm tour and took the time to have some hot cider and peruse the gift shop. Our tour guide was, to be blunt, not very entertaining, and I had some difficulty hearing him. We saw quite a bit of the distilling process and machinery, but after the sixth fermentation tank, it isn't as exciting. Until...

we met Jimmy Russell, master distiller of Wild Turkey for 55 years. He's kind of a big deal in the bourbon world but didn't seem to mind taking a bit of time to talk to us. It completely redeemed the tour, especially considering that there is no tasting.

Next up was my absolute favorite tour. Joe and I had debated about going to Woodford Reserve, but we were so glad that we did. On the drive there, we passed several horse farms with large houses set on a gently rolling carpet of green. When we pulled into the distillery, we could hardly believe our eyes: gorgeous white limestone buildings nestled in a valley. This was the only tour that cost anything ($5) but we gladly paid it and warmed up with some bourbon coffee while we waited for our tour to start.

Another video kicked off the tour which was led by a retired science teacher, so he knew how to keep us entertained. He explained the bourbon-making process in a way that I understood things I had heard 6 times before and never quite caught. Woodford Reserve is simply stunningly beautiful, and they triple-distill their whiskey through these gorgeous copper stills.

Interestingly enough, they also heat and cool their warehouses whereas other distilleries rely on nature. They also claim that they are the only distillery that also raises horses, though the horses were off racing. We saw a bit of the bottling process and then headed back up the hill to try some Woodford Reserve (official bourbon of the Kentucky Derby!) which came in a small plastic glass that we could keep. If you could only go on one distillery tour, I would definitely recommend Woodford Reserve or Maker's Mark, depending on which end of the trail you're close to.

The sun was setting so we headed back to Lexington for a few drinks before dinner. We planned on eating at The Dish and parked our car close to the restaurant hoping to find a place close by. After wandering into a bar that didn't seem to welcoming to non-regulars, we walked around the corner to Buddy's Bar and Grill where they had a big sign posted with their Happy Hour specials. With 1/2 off appetizers and $2 premium drafts, we decided to pull up some seats at the bar and join the guys watching the UK basketball game. The bartender was friendly and helpful and let us try the Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale before we bought a pint. The Bourbon Barrel Ale is an ale that is aged for up to 6 weeks in used bourbon barrels giving it that sweet oaky taste of bourbon and kicking the ABV up to almost 8%. I wouldn't drink this beer all the time, but it's a neat novelty.

Our dinner at The Dish was quite lovely and was our one "nice" dinner out. I had the Grouper and Butternut Squash Ravioli, but Joe won the ordering contest with his Hazelnut Stuffed Chicken. His came with these caramelized brussel sprouts that were delicious. We drove back to Bardstown stuffed and happy.

We still had one more distillery to go: Heaven Hill Distillery. This one was easy, located right outside historic Bardstown. I am unsure what their tour hours are, but we arrived and were told one would be starting in a few minutes. The Bourbon Heritage Center has all kinds of neat exhibits ranging from trivia to historic stills that were used by pioneers. So if you have to wait for a tour, you can entertain yourself. Heaven Hill suffered a very bad fire in 1996. Like you probably can imagine, whiskey can BURN.

These are Heaven Hill's rickhouses. Their distilling process currently happens in Louisville, but they store the barrels and bottle in Bardstown. We mainly toured the rickhouses and watched a video. The best part of the tour was the tasting. Inside of the Bourbon Heritage Center is a GORGEOUS tasting room shaped like a bourbon barrel. We tried Evan Williams Special Reserve and Elijah Craig 12 yr. I found the Elijah Craig just slightly too oaky for my tastes. I wish we had poked around the exhibits a little bit more as they were very informative and presented well.

On our way out of town, we stopped at Toddy's Liquors in Bardstown, which was recommended by our Tom Moore guide. They had an amazing selection of bourbons, and their prices were at least a few dollars cheaper than at the distilleries. When we bought a bottle of Woodford Reserve, the cashier remarked that they had received some gift sets that day that were the same price as just the bottle and swapped it out.

Our last stop was Jim Beam since we didn't get to see the video or do a tasting the first day. It was on our way back to the interstate so it wasn't too much of a detour. We tasted Red Stag, their cherry-infused bourbon (which I like chilled though it tasted like cough syrup neat) and Basil Hayden's. Jim Beam is MASSIVE, and they don't have a tour set up, so they take you to Booker Noe's old house and show a short video explaining the history of the distillery.

This is me with Booker Noe in front of his house. They are planning on restoring some of the older buildings and developing more of a tour.

My completed Kentucky Bourbon Trail passport! I sent it in and will receive a t-shirt. A few distilleries had the t-shirt on display, and they are surprisingly nice-looking.

I would highly recommend the Kentucky Bourbon Trail for an affordable domestic vacation. There is so much to think about that the distilling process captures: modernization and the need for a consistent product, American history, the effects of Prohibition, etc. In a time where people are concerned about preservatives and eating locally, bourbon is made mostly from corn grown within 100 miles of the distillery, by law cannot have any additives, and uses water from local lakes that is naturally filtered by limestone. The distilling industry also employs American citizens in an area of the country that would be much more impoverished if not for the industry.

Joe and I planned our trip primarily using Bourbon Review magazine, which gave us information about distilleries as well as ideas on where to eat and drink in Lexington. As I've said, if you could do one distillery tour, either Maker's Mark or Woodford Reserve would be a great choice. Unless you're a big Jim Beam or Wild Turkey fan, I could have done without going on those tours if we had been stressed for time. If you have any further questions, please contact me!

Kentucky Bourbon Trail, Part 1

This year has been quite the eventful year for Joe and me, so when our week-long vacation was coming up Thanksgiving week, we wanted to go on vacation but couldn't break the bank doing it. After our trip to the Louisville area and the Maker's Mark distillery, we decided to take a trip to the Bourbon Trail, see more of the distilleries, and eat, drink, and relax. Only 2 and a half hours from Nashville and all but one of the tours are free, making it a very affordable get-away.

We left Nashville after church on Sunday and arrived at our bed and breakfast in Bardstown, Kentucky by 4 pm. After consulting and comparing several websites, the You're Invited Inn B&B was the most affordable and ranked #1 on Tripadvisor.com. We stayed in the red and gold room, which was exquisitely decorated and comfortable. Alvin and Easter, the owners, were so kind and welcoming that we felt like we were staying at some friend's parents' house. Every morning included a 3-course breakfast, which kept us full nearly until dinner. I cannot say enough good things about You're Invited Inn and would recommend it to anyone looking to stay in the area. It's just a few miles from historic Bardstown but very close to the Bluegrass Parkway, which provided easy access to the Lawrenceburg-area distilleries.

Once we got settled in and took a short nap, we decided to venture out to downtown Bardstown. Note: it is very difficult to find restaurants in small towns in the South that are open on Sunday. We weren't hungry yet, so we stopped at the Old Talbott Tavern Bourbon Bar to get our first taste of the Bourbon Trail.

They had a sampler of bourbons where you could pick 5 for $25, which we split. This was quite a good deal since some 1 oz pours of the same bourbons can run $8 or $9. From left to right, we had Bakers, Blantons, Four Roses Single Barrel, Elijah Craig 18 yr, and Wild Turkey Rare Breed. I particularly liked the Wild Turkey Rare Breed for its smokiness. Even after 4 other bourbons, it stood out in flavor. With our bourbon itch scratched, we roamed the dark streets of downtown looking for food to no avail. Our GPS did not provide many options either, but we ended up at an American casual restaurant called BJ's for some sandwiches and beer and then headed back to the B&B to rest up for our day of visiting distilleries.

Our plan for the day involved starting at the Jim Beam distillery (about 20 miles NW of Bardstown). However, when we arrived, we found out there was no tour, and the person who normally shows the video was out. The lady working informed us that the Tom Moore Distillery, our next stop, only had two tours a day, 9:30 am and 1:30 pm, by reservation, but if we hurried, we could make it. I called up the distillery, reserved our spots, and we zoomed back to Bardstown. The Tom Moore Distillery's most well-known bourbon is the 1792 Ridgemont Reserve, though they make 6 brands. They also have a very large bottling facility where they bottle 52 brands. They only recently reopened to the public in 2008 and have no visitor's center or tasting room, so we drove around the campus in a shuttle bus. The tour lasts approximately two hours (the longest tour of all the distilleries). There was only one other couple with us, so it was a small tour.

The bottling facility was incredible. Three lines were working that day bottling brandy, a lower-shelf bourbon, and tequila. The average length of career at Tom Moore is 26 years, so there is very little turnover. Everyone was friendly and let us gawk all we liked.

In addition to the distillation equipment, we also observed the barrels waiting to be filled and then shipped off to the rickhouses. Barrels that are used to age bourbon must, by law, be virgin, charred, white oak barrels. The charring caramelizes the natural sugar and gives the bourbon its flavor and color as the liquid moves in and out of the wood over several years. Bourbon must be aged at least two years in the barrels. When the barrels are emptied, they can be used to store brandy or other spirits and are often sold to Scotland to store Scotch. Empty, the barrels way about 130 pounds, but when full, they can weigh between 500-550 pounds.

Above is a barrel that has been aging for 10 years. The markings on the barrel show that it was barreled on November 22, 1999. When you walk into the rickhouses (the storage facilities for the barrels), you can smell the bourbon in the air. Over time, liquid in the barrel evaporates. The loss is approximately 5% the first year with 2-4% every following year.

Joe and I very much enjoyed the Tom Moore tour and thought it was the most thorough tour of the whole bourbon-making process, from when the corn and other grains arrive at the distillery to the bottling, labeling, and shipping process. It was lengthy and tiring, however. It also gives one a sense of the large distillery industry. The distillery itself was not very pretty, and we had to wear safety goggles, though it was fascinating to get such an inside glimpse of how bourbon is made today.

Our next stop was the Four Roses distillery near Lawrenceburg. The unique thing about Four Roses is the Spanish mission-style architecture, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Having seen so much on Tom Moore, I was not as impressed with the Four Roses tour, though they make some fine bourbon.


Above is a picture of the room that holds the fermentation tanks. After the corn (at least 51%) and other grains are mashed up and cooked, they are put into these tanks with special strains of yeast. Four Roses uses 10 recipes, which is also unique: 2 grain ratios and 5 strains of yeast. The blending of these recipes is what produces their bourbon. The other unique thing about the Four Roses process is that they store their barrels in single story warehouses. The other distilleries' warehouses are up to six stories tall. When you walk into one of these fermentation rooms, the smell of yeast is almost overpowering, and anyone who has worked with yeast in the kitchen will recognize it immediately. The tanks bubble away as the yeast goes to work turning sugars into ethanol for three to five days. At the end of the tour, we tasted the Four Roses Yellow Label, Four Roses Small Batch, and Four Roses Single Barrel. My favorite was the Small Batch.
The Four Roses gift shop is very nice, and the gift shop attendant was quite helpful as we wanted to go to Lover's Leap Winery as our next stop but didn't have an address. After Tom Moore and Four Roses, I was bourboned out and needed to rest my feet.

Lover's Leap Winery is located in Lawrenceburg and provided the perfect respite after several distillery tours. When we visited, it was chilly and misting, but the winery has a beautiful outside porch. We tried 6 wines for $5 (which included the wine glass) and bought a glass for $5 each along with some locally made cheese and crackers. We were the only patrons and enjoyed having the place to ourselves.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the wines, particularly the reds. I tried the Vidal Blanc (light, dry, crisp), the Bianca (more citrus and floral notes), the Sloppy Seconds (a surprisingly good blend of 7 different varietals), the Merlot, 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cynthiana. I had a full glass of the Cabernet Sauvignon, and as you can see, it was a generous pour!

Having been unimpressed by the dinner offerings in Bardstown, Joe suggested we drive the short distance to Lexington for some drinks and dinner. Our first stop was Soundbar where I had a Manhattan, and Joe had some Knob's Creek. On our way to find a place for dinner, we spotted the Bluegrass Tavern, which we had written down as a place to try in Lexington. Their bourbon selection was incredible, and Bobby, our bartender, was extraordinarily helpful, recommending bourbons we might like and just chatting with us for a while. We had half-ounce pours of Bulleit, Elijah Craig 12 yr, Pappy Van Winkle 15 yr (which was AMAZING), and Elijah Craig 18 yr single barrel. Then Bobby pointed us in the direction of Mia's, a locally-owned gay restaurant. The crabcake sandwich was perfect for soaking up some of the bourbon. Unfortunately, they had run out of potatoes for their hand-cut fries, but we enjoyed our (quite affordable) dinner and the hip atmosphere. Joe drove us safely back to Bardstown where we rested up for another day on the trail! To be continued...

Birthday Dinner at Delvin Farms

When Joe asked me what I wanted for my 25th birthday this year, I told him that I would love to do one of the special dinners that had been popping up around town. Usually a special prix-fixe type of menu with wine or beer (or even tequila or rum) pairings, they tended to cost a little bit more than we would spend for a normal night out. I said I would keep an eye out for any dinners like that around my birthday weekend. Shortly afterward, this dinner popped up, scheduled for my birthday evening. A special menu prepared by Chef Jeremy Barlow of tayst using local fruits and vegetables, including wine, benefiting Food Security Partners of Middle Tennessee, and taking place amidst the pines at Delvin Farms, a local farm just south of town that has a very popular CSA program and large presence on the local food scene.

We arrived, and our car was valet parked while we walked down a dirt path through the pine trees, stopping for a glass of wine at the tent. The weather was absolutely perfect with clear skies and a slight fall chill. When we passed into the pine trees, there was a magical clearing with tables set up. I kept expecting to have woodland creatures come out to serve us.

Fortunately, there were also space heaters, as when the sun went down, it got a little chilly. We stood around and chatted while we drank wine and waited for the passed hors d'oeuvres to come out.

The menu was quintessentially fall food. The roast pig was succulent and moist. The lettuce salad was much loved by everyone at our table for its textural contrasts and the surprisingly creamy sweet potato dressing. I particularly enjoyed the pasta salad with its touch of sweetness from the sorghum and figs. The fall squash napoleon was topped with fresh ricotta and was similar in texture to a savory pumpkin pie. The cornbread was not too sweet or too dry. Everything was just perfect. Unfortunately, it had become quite dark by the time we ate, so I have no pictures of the main dinner food or dessert. Since the dinner, I have dreamed of the caramel from the caramel apples for dessert. I don't usually like caramel as I find it cloyingly sweet, but this caramel was rich and smooth.

Admittedly, the passed bites were my favorite part. Above you see me with a caramel cone full of spicy apple relish. The cone was delicate and sweet without being sticky, and the peppers in the relish contrasted beautifully with the sweetness of the apples.

The smoked trout hush puppies covered in wildflower honey were to die for. I could have made a meal out of them alone. The rich smoky flavor of the trout was juxtaposed with the slightest sweetness of the honey. The white grit cakes were topped with sauteed kale and local goat cheese, and the goat cheese just melted in my mouth.

It was a wonderful birthday and a unique experience that I will treasure for a long time.

Our Kentuckiana Adventure

Last weekend, Joe and I made plans to travel up to the Louisville area to visit his good friend from med school, Angela, and her husband. When they matched at Louisville and we matched in Nashville, we were so excited that we were in the same region of the country and made plans to visit each other all the time. Well, reality set in, and a year passed without us visiting them, though they did make it down to Nashville once.

We arrived at their house (just across the bridge in Southern Indiana) by about 10:30 pm with a time change. We had to make a stop in Bowling Green, KY at Culver's for some Butterburgers and custard. Then we headed down to Bardstown to meet up with some of Angela's friends at a bar. The bar was loud and crowded, and I was a little tired and grumpy, but it was fun.

The next morning, we awoke to unseasonably cool weather around mid-morning. After breakfasting on blueberry muffins and sausage, we just sat around and sipped coffee on their lovely deck. We made plans to go to the Huber winery/orchard/petting farm/pick-your-own farm/restaurant in Starlight, Indiana. Before trying the wine, we thought picking peaches sounded like fun. I think we may have been the oldest people without children on the tractor that pulled us out to the orchard.

If you picked two boxes of peaches to the brim, they were $.79 a pound, so we decided it was a good idea for each couple to pick a box. We ate a few ripe ones in the orchard and marveled at the beauty and amount of peaches.

Joe may have gotten a little carried away. Our box weighed in at 27 pounds. We gave some to my parents, but mostly we've just been eating them! I have plans for some peach muffins this weekend. The peaches are really tasty. In their country store, we bought some wasabi soynuts, recommended by Angela, and some jalapeno cheese bread to have later and moved on to the wine tasting.

One of the things I enjoyed about the Huber property was that all of the vines were labeled so you could tell which grapes were the cabernet franc, etc. They also have a variety of tasting "packages". We decided to do the comparative package, where we would select either dry of sweet/semi-sweet and taste two wines side-by-side comparing for different qualities like minerality, skin contact, etc. It ended up being 12 pretty significant pours. The tasting occurred in the upstairs of a beautifully restored barn. It was busy but not crowded, and we met a few other transplanted Texans.

Without much food in my stomach, I was tipsy pretty quickly. We enjoyed several of the wines and came home with a bottle of their Chardonel and some Blueberry Port. Our server was a lot of fun and was very friendly and helpful. We needed a bit of food, and the jalapeno cheese bread coupled with some summer sausage and cheeses available for purchase did the trick as a complement to the bottle of Vignoles that we all shared.

There was live music out on the patio, and this was the absolute perfect day to enjoy it. The Huber property would make a great trip for a family as well since there are plenty of things for kids to enjoy. We saw many children enjoying picking blueberries and blackberries, as well as feeding llamas and other animals in the petting zoo.

That night we went back to Bardstown in Louisville and ate at Ramsi's Cafe On the World. The menu was so creative and different that I could hardly decide what to eat. I settled on the roasted vegetable masala. Joe got the East Meets South fajitas, fajita meat that you wrapped in Indiana paranatha bread. Cory ordered the Egyptian Kitchen, and then ate it so fast that none of us got to try it. Ramsi's offers many vegetarian and vegan friendly dishes. We returned to Cory and Angela's house and drank port and smoked cigars on their deck.

The next morning, we slept in again and ate some delicious strawberry breakfast bread from Huber's. After relaxing out on the deck, we took Cory and Angela's dog, Gracie, to a nearby monastery that had beautiful trails. Joe and I decided that we wanted to stop at the Maker's Mark distillery on our way home, so we said good-bye to Cory and Angela and hit the road. Joe has liked whisky for a while, but I have only recently began to enjoy it, thanks in large part to The Patterson House.

The Maker's Mark distillery is one of the more difficult distilleries on the Bourbon Trail to get to, as it is located quite a ways outside of Bardstown and about 2 hours from Louisville. But it is a beautiful setting and very quiet. Just outside of Loretto, KY, we began to see big black barrel houses where all of the whisky is aged. We made the last tour of the day at 3:30 pm, and the tour took longer than anticipated because it was a fairly large group that seemingly kept growing. The tours are free, and you get a ticket for the tasting if you are 21 and up.

My favorite part of the tour was the fermenting vats. There were about 9 9600 gallon vats where the yeast was eating up all of the sugars. The mash ferments for 3 days, and our tourguide encouraged us to try the difference in taste between Day 2 and Day 3 (there were no Day 1 vats at the time). So now, if you ever buy Maker's Mark, just imagine all the people dipping their hands into the fermenting vats!

The tour ended with a tasting. One of the glasses contains White Dog, the pre-aging mixture. It's essentially moonshine, and I could feel the burn all the way into my chest. The actual Maker's Mark is on the right and is aged in charred oak barrels for 5-7 years. They bottle by taste rather than aging time. The sweetness in Maker's Mark is due to their use of soft red winter wheat. There are 7 other distilleries on the Bourbon Trail, and Joe and I hope to continue to fill out our "passports"!

Atlanta, GA

In order to break up the drive between Savannah and Nashville, Joe and I decided to plan a few days in Atlanta. I had never been, and Joe wanted to show me the city. Although we love Nashville and plan to stay for several years, it probably isn't the best place for me career-wise in the long-term (though who knows?!), so we're always interested in visiting other cities and trying to discern if we could see ourselves living there.

We left Savannah around 11 and got to our hotel (Microtel-Buckhead) at about 3:30. The hotel seemed to be quite a step down from our accommodations in Savannah, but it was cheap, clean, and close to the things we wanted to do. We quickly planned a few things to do that evening and left the hotel.

Atlanta has better shopping than Nashville, and the two places I definitely wanted to hit were Crate and Barrel and Ikea. The Crate and Barrel in Atlanta (3393 Peachtree Rd. NE) has an awesome showroom with a lot of their furniture and settings. It was inspiring just to look at all of the gorgeous things. We did a little clothes shopping at Anthropologie for me and Macy's for Joe. The sales tax is also slightly lower in Atlanta, so we didn't feel too guilty.

For dinner, we headed to Emory Village for some dinner. I had chosen Doc Chey's Noodle House (1556 N Decatur Rd.), an Asian-themed menu that looked like it would hit the spot. This location was bustling with students, parents with children, and young professional couples looking to grab a quick bite. We were seated at long communal tables, though the hostess thoughtfully had left at least a seat between different parties so we weren't all jammed together. We split the fresh Vietnamese basil rolls and a pot of white peach tea. The basil flavor was a little faint, but the shrimp were firm and juicy. For dinner, I ordered the Spicy Thai Basil noodles with fried tofu, and Joe picked Chinese Black Bean noodles. They came out blazing hot, and we had to wait a few minutes to be able to eat it. The noodles were so delicious that we kept eating even after we were full and our noses were running from the spiciness. I noticed on the door that the restaurant was Zagat rated and wasn't surprised. Everything was fresh, colorful, and the flavors were balanced beautifully. When the bill came, it was accompanied by both fresh orange slices and fortune cookies.

We quickly headed over to Ikea to do some shopping before they closed, but we only had an hour and got stuck trying to pick out a duvet cover. We bought a few things but decided to go back Saturday morning before we left. After returning to the hotel, we made our plans for the next day and got a good night's sleep before our big tourist day in Atlanta.

Our first stop Friday morning was Dunkin' Donuts because the hotel's continental breakfast had been taken over by the Mizzou debate team. With our goals and GPS in hand, we ventured out to our first top: The World of Coca-Cola Museum.

At $15 for an adult ticket, this isn't necessarily a cheap attraction, but it sure was fun and entertaining. We got to meet the Coca-Cola Polar Bear, see the bottling process, and tour rooms of Coke memorabilia. The museum itself is very interactive and would be good for older kids. I was hoping for a little more of the history of Coke, and Joe mentioned that the old museum had a bit more of that. I felt that there was a little too much Coke propaganda (High-fructose corn syrup isn't bad for you!), but I enjoyed it nonetheless. One of my favorite parts was watching Coca-Cola product commercials from all over the world and noting some of the cultural differences. The final stop is the tasting room where you can taste Coca-Cola products from all over the world. Our favorite station was the Latin America station which included a apple-tasting soda. One of the sodas from Italy was incredibly bitter, and I found all the ones from Africa way too sweet. Again, it was neat to see things like black currant used in a common soda.

Centennial Olympic Park Plaza

We were full from all of the carbonation and sweet beverages, so we went on a little walk across the way to the Centennial Olympic Plaza. Having watched the 1996 games with some ferocity, it was thrilling to see it. The park offers a great open space, and because it was a nice day, there were many kids outside and people playing frisbee with dogs. Then we took a stroll up to CNN Center and visited the building that houses CNN. We're saving the tour for another time, but it was amazing to see all of the headlines scrolling around the perimeter of the lobby/food court.

By this time, we had burned off some of the carbonation and decided it was time for lunch at The Varsity (61 North Ave.). The Varsity is an Atlanta institution and is located right across the highway from the Georgia Tech stadium. It's also the world's largest drive-in and was originally established in 1928. It's a pretty standard fast-food menu, and I had to forego my Lenten pescatarianism for a hamburger and onion rings with a chocolate shake. The portions are relatively small, so I didn't feel overwhelmed by the amount of food, which is nice. Joe got two slaw dogs (hot dogs with coleslaw on top), onion rings, and a Frosted Orange, a kind of creamy slushee that tastes like a Dreamsicle.

After relaxing for a bit, it was off to the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, a park run by the National Park Service that contains MLK's birth home, Ebenezer Baptist Church where he pastored, and his grave, as well as a small museum. Not only is this a great and interesting place to visit, but it's free (donations accepted)! We watched a 30-minute video on the life of Dr. King and toured the museum, which included many photos of the Civil Rights movement. There was also a children's portion and a spot where you could write your response to the museum and to Dr. King's life. With a map in hand, we ventured outside a few blocks away to see Dr. King's birthplace.

Birthplace of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

To get to Dr. King's birthplace, we also passed Atlanta's oldest fire station, which as a museum that we didn't see. The street also features several row houses in the style of 1920s workers' housing. The house, as you can see from the picture, is quite nice. I would love to have a house like that for my rectory! We saw a park ranger leading a tour group in but didn't join them. We turned back towards the museum to visit Dr. King's grave, which is centered in the middle of a long reflecting pond with fountains at one end. There is also a chapel for all faiths located close by and an eternal flame in front of Dr. King's grave. It was very powerful to visit.

Likewise, standing in front of historic Ebenezer Baptist Church where Dr. King pastored was an incredible experience. Unfortunately for us, they're currently renovating the inside so that it looks like it did when Dr. King served there so we didn't get to see inside.

From there, you can walk the 1.5 mile trail to the Carter center and look at the monuments along the way, or you can get back in the car and drive there if you're a little short on time and physical energy. My friends who know me know that I am a history geek at heart and have a soft spot for Southern, American, and Caribbean history. Even though Jimmy Carter was not president during my lifetime, I was interested in seeing the museum, and I am very impressed by all the philanthropic work he has done since his presidency, particularly with Habitat for Humanity.

The reproduction of Carter's Oval Office

We only had an hour to tour the museum since they close at 4:45, so we didn't get to see anything. With our student IDs, admission was $6 per person. They are closing the museum in April in order to renovate and update it for Carter's birthday in October, and it sounds like they have a lot of neat things planned. I would like to go back and see it after the renovations. As it is, the museum pays homage to the multiple aspects of Carter's presidency: his election race, relationship with China, Iran hostage crisis, Camp David peace talks, and the energy crisis. There are fun videos of former-President Carter speaking retrospectively about his presidency, which was really neat. Even though Joe wasn't initially excited about this, he enjoyed himself. After the museum closed, we walked around the Japanese gardens behind the Carter center, which are quite lovely.

For dinner, I wanted to take advantage of the cheap ethnic food that I have missed since leaving Houston and selected an Ethiopian restaurant in the Druid Hills/Emory neighborhood using one of my favorite restaurant sites, UrbanSpoon: Desta (3086 Briarcliff Rd NE). All of the reviews were extremely favorable, and we were a little surprised to pass at least 5 other Ethiopian places that we saw in a few blocks! The dining room was cozy and lowly lit. We sampled a few Ethiopian beers, and ordered the Shiro Fit Fit for an appetizer (chickpeas mixed with sauce and injera). The injera arrived beautifully wrapped like napkins on a rectangular platter. I ordered the vegetarian combo because I never can select just one thing. Joe ordered the Fish Tibs (marinated and cubed tilapia which was sauteed with other vegetables). Joe was very stingy with the bite he gave me because he knew I would want more: it was absolutely delicious and so well-flavored. I loved mine as well and nearly licked the plate clean. Our check came with two orange slices.

Joe drove me through Buckhead, and we were looking for a place to grab a drink, when I spied Trader Joe's. One of our missions was to get wine at Trader Joe's since Tennessee grocery stores can't sell wine or liquor. Instead of going out for a drink, we ended up buying 21 bottles of wine at Trader Joe's, all but one for less than $5. Because the alcohol taxes in Tennessee are so high, we can rarely find a drinkable bottle for less than $7. After our tiring tourist day, we skipped the drink out and watched a movie in our hotel room instead.

The next morning we ate breakfast at Ikea (<$4 for the two of us!) and finished our shopping there and head back home. I really enjoyed Atlanta and could see myself living there some day. For now, I'm already planning our next visit. Joe and I both loved Robert Spano, the conductor/music director at the Atlanta Symphony, when we saw him conduct in Houston, and would like to see him conduct again. Atlanta has a lot of the amenities of a big city that I miss from Houston but seems to be prettier, have less pollution, and be better planned. I look forward to visiting Atlanta again, especially since it isn't very far away!