Author: SAHMmelier

Being a stay- at-home mom can leave one thirsting for a taste of the outside world, a world in which sentences are composed of more than three words. Being an educator means one is always seeking an opportunity to explore and learn. Being a woman with a need to connect can be a challenge when adult conversations are rare. In wine, I find the marriage of art and science, agriculture and storytelling provides limitless areas to explore. But it is the people that keep me engaged. The tenacity needed to keep the family dream alive, the risk to start anew, the trials and principles. I love the history of the vine, the impact of a season, the sentiment in the bottle. That is why I write. I write to tell their stories, to share a piece of mine. I write to learn as I teach others. I write to connect with new friends, to disconnect from the world. I write to celebrate what makes each of us unique, and that which ties us together.

Affordable Elegance-Côtes de Bordeaux

December 16, 2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

{Wines provided as media samples. I received no other compensation. Thoughts, opinions are my own.} You’re having a party for 30 of your closest friends. They know you’re a wine lover. You know you’re a wine lover. You want to provide wines that will impress but not break the bank. You need elegant wine at […]

As Easy as Pie, or Charcuterie-Envy Apples Sweepstakes and Recipe

December 16, 2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

{This is a sponsored post for which I will be compensated. Thoughts and opinions are my own} My mom’s apple pie was legendary. It is a recipe I mastered early on and one for which I have received many compliments and a few marriage proposals. One of my earliest memories is of going to the […]

Travel Plans for the Holidays?-Dave Phinney Location Wines

December 13, 2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

{These wines were provided as media samples. No other compensation, thoughts are my own.} What are your travel plans for the holidays? Someplace exotic? Or do you lean toward the traditional? There is something to be said for both approaches. The same can be said when choosing wines. Perhaps you like to walk on the […]

A Patch in the Hills-Ferzo Wines

December 5, 2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

{These wines were provided as media samples, no other compensation. Thoughts are my own.} Yesterday, I highlighted an Italian grape and a less well-known white from the Hill Country of Texas. Today, we look at an obscure white and the same Italian grape, grown in the hilly region of origin. On the east coast of […]

Wedding Oak Stand Outs-Texas Tuesday

December 4, 2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

{These wines were provided as media samples with no other compensation. Thoughts are my own.} We all have our favorites. We may not tell our children that. They may shift from day-to-day or year-to-year, but we have them. I have some favorite wineries and wines from that producer. Here are two favorites from Wedding Oak […]

Waiting for the Right Time-Spanish Reds

November 14, 2018.Reading time 5 minutes.

{These wines were provided as media samples. I received no compensation. Thoughts, opinions are my own.} There is a lot of waiting in wine. Waiting for the vines to produce fruit, waiting to see what the season brings, waiting while it rests in barrel, opens in the glass. We hold on to certain wines, waiting […]

Falling for the Wines of Alto Adige – Südtirol

October 25, 2018.Reading time 5 minutes.

{These wines were provided as media samples by Teuwen Communications. I received no other compensation. Thoughts and opinions are my own.} Sometimes transitions are gradual. A slow cooling, mild warming. A gradual shift in elevation yields a barely discernible change in fauna. In other parts of the world, the shift is dramatic, palpable. Alto Adige-Südtirol, […]

Art, Wine, and a Wonderful Time-William Chris Vineyards-#TXwine

October 17, 2018.Reading time 8 minutes.

I got pulled into something else yesterday, so instead of Texas Tuesday, it is Texas Wednesday. Which works since it is #TexasWineMonth! We’ve had a lot of rain here in Central Texas this fall. I mean A LOT. Like crazy, dangerous flooding amounts. So when schedules aligned with the forecast, two friends and I decided […]

Travel Beyond Texas at Tillie’s Restaurant

September 21, 2018.Reading time 5 minutes.

I was invited to this dinner as press but no other compensation was provided. Thoughts and opinions are my own. Photos are mine unless otherwise noted. A short distance off 290, past the town of Dripping Springs, you’ll find one of the state’s premier wedding venues. But the inspiration for the venue came from much […]