My company is a dog-friendly company, so everyday we have 3-4 dogs in the office. This is Sasha, she is my favorite (shh, don’t tell the other dogs). Sasha reminds me of Clint and Nick, the Siberian Huskies we had when I was growing up. But she is much smaller, and quite talkative. Sometimes her human calls her “Moo” because of the funny bark/howl she makes.

Note: I am neither very good at writing or describing wine. But I do want to keep track of wines I try (Haskells just had a big wine sale, so there will be a few), so I am going to post my “reviews” of them. You have been warned. Also, you will note that my review formating is a blatant rip-off of weier.net’s wine reviews.

2005 Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir

Name: Willamette Valley Vineyards

Type: Pinot Noir

Country: USA (Oregon)

Year: 2005

Price: Gift (Although I believe it is around $20)

Worth? $30 ($50 at a restaurant)

Winemaker’s notes

An elegant, supple and stylish wine. Vibrant aromas of black cherries, brown sugar, spices, rose petals, vanilla and typical ‘Pinot noir dust’. Initial spicy flavors of nutmeg and barrel toast with ripe flavors of strawberries and cherries and mineral overtones. The mouth feel is soft, round and warm in sensation with and almost sweet and juicy impression of ripe fruit. The finish is long with lingering flavors of spices, well integrated oak, ripe sweet tannins and good acidity.

A few weeks ago I received this bottle as a gift. I was excited to try it because it comes from the part of Oregon known for its Pinot Niors. I was not disappointed. This is a very smooth wine, easy drinking. Had it with bacon-wrapped filet mignon, it was a little light for steak, but still good. Was perfect with cheese.

2006 Five Rivers Pinot Noir

Name: Five Rivers

Type: Pinot Noir

Country: USA (Santa Barbara)

Year: 2006

Price: $8.99 (Haskell’s wine sale)

Worth? $12 ($20 at a restaurant)

Winemaker’s notes

The nose will find this classic Pinot Noir brimming with rhubarb, violets and cardamom with hibiscus flowers and a note of vanilla from the easy oak treatment. The palate will rejoice with the taste of wild strawberries followed by tangy bright cherries, hibiscus nectar and a strong acid backbone. It’s spicy, structured and complex.

Opened a bottle of this the other night. Very light weight, it really benefited from airing a bit. For the price it is a really good Pinot.

This video made me laugh. And laugh some more.

Then later, when I showed it to hubby, I laughed more.

Anyone who knows me knows I really dislike when emails are forwarded that contain inaccurate or wrong information. Recently I have received from several different people the email about a girl who was pulled over by a convicted rapist posing as a cop. She averts danger by calling *77 from her cell phone (you can read the entire email here). While this story may or may not be true, the email goes on to tell its readers that they can call *77 from their cell phone in any state to be directly connect to the state trooper. This is simply not true. I found a site that lists what numbers can be called in various states for emergencies. I also contacted the Minnesota Department of Transportation, asking them if a number such as *77 existed. This is the response I received,

There is no such number in Minnesota. For all emergencies, use 911 with both a cell phone and a hard line phone. This will put you in immediate contact with the appropriate 911 Public Safety Answering Point.

Al Smith
Major; Metro Operations
Minnesota State Patrol

So, please stop forwarding emails that you don’t know to be true. Good rule of thumb – if an email does not have links to reputable sources (for example: cnn.com, cancer.org, dot.gov), then its probably better not to pass along misleading information.

A few weeks ago the hubby and I went to dinner at Crave in galleria in Edina.
A quick overview from the Rake

“Crave is the stylish new restaurant in the Galleria space formerly occupied by Sidney’s. Warm metallics and pleasing shades of brown and gray lend this dramatic dining room a sense of coziness, despite its polished design. The glass-walled wine chamber is especially lovely and sets an elegant tone for diners and bar patrons alike. The menu is heavily Mediterranean influenced, featuring hearty pastas and pleasing flatbreads from the brick oven, but there are a few culinary surprises, such as an Asian-inspired tuna tartare dressed in a tangy sauce. Crave also sports a full sushi bar, though, to our tastes, it seemed a little disjunctive from the rest of the menu.”

Night visited: Friday

Atmosphere: Something I would call casual elegance. We were seated at a table near the kitchen, probably the worst table in the restaurant. But the people watching was good. They had live music that night, it was a bit too loud for easy conversation - we had to shout to be heard. Very typical Edina patrons - we were among the youngest there. Highlight of the night was when a large group of women seated near us accidentally started a fire on their table.

Drank: White cosmopolitan (one of their featured drinks). Not bad, a bit too sweet for my liking, but that is typical of cosmos.

Ate: Chef’s platter of sushi - amazing. Every piece was fresh and wonderful. A little spendy for sushi, but I would rather have good sushi than cheap sushi. We also ordered a pasta dish - Sea Scallop & Shrimp Fettuccini - very tasty. Not a huge portion (if you are used to TGIFridays-style huge meal you will be disappointed), but very well seasoned, not overly salty. I love the idea that you can get great sushi and hot dishes like pasta all at one place. I think it make a nice, balanced meal.

Dessert: Pumpkin cheesecake. To die for. Not too pumkiny, not too cheese-caky, just perfect.

Overall: I would go back, hopefully be seated somewhere more comfortable and inviting. it is also on my list for sushi take-out.

Our best bud Derek just got engaged last night to his girlfriend Lyz! The happy couple stopped by our house to tell me the good news and show me the ring, I snapped a pic-

I had to try it out (although its not nearly as clever as I hoped) - the “Which ‘Hero’ are you?” quiz.

I am Claire, although I am not sure why.