Not all wine on this trip was awesome. All pie consumed was.

For those not in the know, Wisconsin is primarily a beer production state. The breweries in in Milwaukee create not so much an industry as they do a lifestyle. That lifestyle leaves bars open into the wee hours, lets you get hard liquor at a gas station or a grocery store and creates loopholes that allow bars to have “after hours” openings so that those who work third shift can still have a happy hour.

So you can imagine my surprise when, upon this visit to Spring Green, I found a push not just for wines, but for local wines. The Wine Spectator sort of sniffs and wrinkles its nose at the collective Midwestern wine industry, but after my experience at the Frank Lloyd Wright center restaurant, I’m advocating a massive rethink of that policy. …for Wisconsin. I’ve tasted at some Minnesota wineries, and there’s a ways to go yet.

Among the wines I drank this trip:

• a Romanian Riesling – OK, not fabulous, but not like I was going to spit it out. Are Romanian Rieslings actually possible?
• Goats do Roam Rose’ – obtained at the local bookstore (really nice hangout.)  Awful. Fortunately, I had already had some jack and diet by the time I got to it. We came in at closing time, and because of the wacky cork laws in Wisconsin, we actually had to have the bottle opened before we could leave – we couldn’t just buy it and walk out.
• Pinot Gris – at Arthur’s steakhouse. Pretty good, better than the food, for the most part. They make up for food quality in buffet herding and a large fountain installed since my last visit in 2002. The greens on my side salad were so old they were actually bitter AND brown.
• local Chardonnay, produced in Wisconsin – had a vanilla finish that was startling and quite good. At the Frank Lloyd Wright center restaurant. Best wine I drank the entire trip.

I have another bottle we brought home from a local shop that we have yet to pop. According to the owner of Convivia, it’s nice, especially for white Bordeaux fans like myself.

I am going to start blogging the occasional wine notes. Be warned.

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For other pagan-writer types who read this at my main site or on my LJ:

Facing North needs reviewers!

No, really, Lisa’s got a stack of books that’s threatening to force a neighborhood rezoning. The full details are here.

I’ve known Lisa for well over a decade and worked with her just a little less than that; this is as stable and well-organized as a pagan-oriented project can get. Also, you get to work for books. The catch is that you have to actually read them.

Also, and related to my work with Facing North:

I need hungry people this week.

I’m reviewing a book called Lucid Food: Cooking for an Eco-Conscious Life for Facing North, and just for fun, I’m also doing photography, etc. The idea is that healthy/local food need not taste like it’s good for you. While much of the recipes are well within my culinary wheelhouse, it’s interesting to try things from this author’s perspective – and equally interesting to feed them to other people. It will also help if you like/tolerate avocados and kale. I tried making kale chips yesterday and while not bad, it does resemble vegan cheese in that you know what it’s imitating and it’s just… like watching a drag queen who hasn’t learned about tape.

There were no kale chips recommended in the book, it was just an adventure warmup.

Over the course of the week I’m going to be making salads with nori and kale, avocado-carob smoothies and walnut cakes. Tonight I’m making chickpea cakes since it will be the least difficult to get Mike to eat. I hope.

So, except for Monday night, if you’re in Minneapolis – and I know you – let me know if you’d like to stop by for a culinary experiment for lunch or dinner. Joel and Mike can’t eat everything, after all.

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