Stand by for the Launch of a New Blog

For those of you who have been keeping up with my latest posts, you know that I recently returned from a trip to California.  My wife and I spent a good part of our visit in Sonoma and Napa Valleys enjoying the spectacular wine, exquisite food, and stunning scenery.  One of the highlights of the trip was a visit to the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone.  We participated in a cooking class that featured nine Greek dishes…and of course we were rewarded with the fruits of our labor.

After the class, we visited the campus store where I found a brilliant spark of inspiration: A book titled “Decanting Napa Valley; The Cookbook.”  As I began to thumb through the book, I became more and more excited.  It features 100 Napa Valley wines each paired with a recipe created expressly for that wine by the best chefs in Napa Valley.

My first thought was “Wow!  I have 100 phenomenal meals to look forward to!”  Later, I had another thought (actually prompted by my daughter) “why not write about it and blend the experience with photography?”  I am very excited about combining two of my passions.  If I could only find a way to add in golf and top it all off with a good cigar and glass of Port – food, wine, golf, photography and a cigar.  It may be possible!

So the bottom line is that I will soon be launching another blog focusing on pairing wine and food.  The new cookbook I bought at CIA Greystone will certainly take center stage (at least for the time it takes me to cook 100 meals and try 100 wines – these wines are generally not inexpensive, so I will not be racing through 100 recipes in 100 days), but I do not intend this to be a rip-off of Julie and Julia.  The cookbook is simply a convenient vehicle for getting started.  I will be writing about the “why’s” of pairing wine with food, discussing recipes and pairings we have encountered or devised, and sharing recipes/pairings you may want to try.

So now I have a favor to ask.  I need some help with devising a name for the blog.  I would be grateful if you would send any suggestions (craig.a.corl@gmail.com), or leave a comment with your suggestion.  I hope you are as excited as I am.  When the new blog goes live, I will let you know.

Have fun, and go make some great photography!

Craig