Wine and Tapas

If you have been following our blog for any time you would have seen us mention a group that is also running a blog by the name "Culinary Sundays" and the idea is that this threesome chooses a theme that acts as the base for the weeks menu. Each saturday they come by the store for a wine pairing for that weeks menu and we have had great fun both recommending the wines for the meal and following the blog week to week.

The themes are good, the recipes are well chosen and if I do say, The wine pairings seem to work out well also. Each week we are eager to see how things went with their last adventure and eagerly check in on Tuesday or Wednesday to find out how it went. Perhaps the most connecting thing is that they are very self-efacing. Some things work better than others and yes, there has been a time or two when the wine pairing was less than perfect but that just adds to the approachable nature of their blog.

A few weeks ago while they were shooping for the next days menu I half-jokingly told them that if we got an invite to the dinner that we would supply the wine. Their response was great and very welcoming and over the next couple of weeks we found a date that worked and we marked it on the calender, April 29th. This past Sunday we showed up, wine in hand, in anticipation of a fun evening.

I think I speak for all of us at Harry's when I say it was much more than expected. We were greated warmly by our hosts Jennifer and John, along with Christie and handed a refreshing cocktail to start things off. There was a sense of comfort and welcoming, the conversations started and stayed fun and easy through the evening. If I had one negative thing to say it would simply be that they worked too hard.

Take a look at this menu...

That is 15 items on that menu and each was hand prepared by the ladies and that is a lot of work! After we had all had a couple of glasses of wine they let us in on just how much work they had done. Shopping a preparations were not a couple of hours or even a day. They spent a number of days planning, shopping and prepping the menu so that we could show up and watch them put together and serve these wonderful Tapas. Can I do anything to help? No, no we're fine...

The food, wine, and company were all memorable all in all a great evening even if we had a stumble or two along the way. These type of things help to build the memories. We are grateful for their hospitality and hope they enjoyed our company too. Perhaps some of our readers will find inspiration in Gourmet Sunday idea and use it for your friends and family.
Cheers!

Patrick