In a year where most if not all of us are pinching pennies and being very careful where we spend each dollar, we found it worthwhile to mention an experience we had last night.  For a birthday dinner, we decided to go to Church & State downtown in the Biscuit Company Lofts building.  First, the bad - we called twice in the days leading up to our dinner and never got a response on our reservation request.  But that's where the 'bad' ended. 

     From the second we entered the front door to the moment we put on our jackets to leave, every employee in there was fantastic.  The host apologized for the wait, the waiter took tons of time to discuss the menu, the food was fantastic, but it was their sommelier, Josh Goldman, who really stole the show.  After ordering a Cru Beajolais to go with my pork belly (not my gut, the dish) he brought over a Belgian Blonde ale, plopped it down and said, "that wine will work great, but nothing goes with pork like a beer".  The crisp bubbles cut right through the intense fat of the pork belly and raised the whole dish to a new level.  On the way out, the waiter and the sommelier thanked us and asked us to come back soon. 

     And that's all you really want from a nice restaurant when you spend a little more than usual....a pleasant experience, a kind and knowledgeable staff, and tastes that you remember the next morning.  It's amazing how hard it is to find that combination.  So, hats off Church & State.  Thanks for a great night out.

     Recently, we flew back east to see the family on Virgin America (yes, Virgin, free advertising...in return we accept free tickets, upgrades, and pretty, shiny objects) and learned something we never knew before regarding flying with wine.  A flight attendant asked what was in our rather large shipper box and we told them "lots of wine" because the closest wine store to where we were headed was about fifty miles away.  Now we always thought that the danger of putting wine in a wool sock in your suitcase was that it could easily break and you lose the wine and ruin your belongings all at once.  Nope, that's the least of your worries.  Suitcases are often stacked so if yours is on top and the wine leaks through onto all the other bags, they will actually trace it all back to your suitcase and make you pay for everyone's belongings.  She mentioned it happens fairly often and the bill can be in the thousands. 

     So, to all those customers who asked about flying with wine - we were TOTALLY kidding when we said just wrap it up in some underwear.  Get it?  Great joke.  Totally, totally, kidding.