Setting Up for a Successful Valentine's Day at BOKX 109

The thing about Valentine's Day is that it's ONE day a year.

Not that that's a bad thing. Who couldn't use a whole day devoted to Love with a capital L?

It's just that there should be some way to keep those rose-colored classes on at least a little longer. (Beyond 12:01 a.m. on February 15, that is.)

That's why we're suggesting Valentine's Day be treated as an experience, not just a one-and-done affair. Stretch it out. Savor the details. Make the pleasure last. If love follows suit, all the better.

At BOKX 109 American Prime, inside Hotel Indigo in Newton, they're offering a special romantic getaway spa package for the entire month of February. Click here for details.

You could also scale it back to a week-end luxury package, which includes two seats for dinner (a $150 value) plus a one-night stay for two (so you can take the elevator home after dinner) plus a welcome gift of Champagne and strawberries plus breakfast for two the next day. All for $295. Details are here.

Or you can luxuriate in just the dinner which, at four courses with four different wines from Domaine Chandon Winery for $75, is a lovely and sparkling way to celebrate your Love with a capital L.

Just remember to make it last.


WHAT: Valentine's Day Prix Fixe Menu and Packages
WHERE: BOKX 109, inside Hotel Indigo, 399 Grove Street, Newton
WHEN: Dinner between Friday, February 12 and Sunday, February 14
COST: $75 per person for prix fixe menu (excluding tax & gratuity)
RSVP: Required. Call 617.454.3399.


DAILY TIDBIT:

Wine industry analysts announced yesterday that California wine shipments dropped in 2009 for the first time in 16 years. (California produces 90% of the wine made in the United States.) Overall wine consumption in the US, however, is up 2.1%.

Prodigal Chef Returns to Tomasso Trattoria. And He's Brought Wine.

Hats off to chefs who go the extra mile -- or, in this case, the extra 4,108 miles -- to find the source of the food that is their passion.

That's what Justin Melnick did eleven weeks ago.

Melnick, the chef at Tomasso Trattoria in Soutborough, took a hiatus from his day job to pursue the nature and the craft of Italian food.

He did this where it absolutely needed to be done.

In the Veneto.

In Piedmont.

In Tuscany.

And other places in between that, frankly, only he knows and understands.

Sunday night is his public debut back in the kitchen at Tomasso, and you get the sense that he is jonesing to show off just a little bit. (Check out the full menu here.)

And for the finishing touch?

Each of Melnick's Italy-infused courses will be paired with wines that GO, in the way that wine and food go together in a country that does eat without drinking and doesn't drink without eating.

The prodigal son has returned home.

And he's brought the goods.


WHAT: "Welcome Back Justin" Dinner
WHERE: Tomasso Trattoria, 154 Turnpike Road, Southborough
WHEN: Sunday, January 31 at 5 p.m.
COST: $75 per person plus tax + gratuity


DAILY TIDBIT:

"Vin Santo," which translates literally to "holy wine," is a traditional style of dessert wine. The freshly-harvested grapes (like Trebbiano, or sometimes Sangiovese) are dried on straw mats in a warm and well-ventilated part of the house or winery, often under rafters or staircases. Additional complexity comes from aging the wine in non-oak barrels made from chestnut, juniper, or cherry wood or a combination of those.

Four Wines + Four Courses of Rustic French Food (All for $38) = Best Deal Going

It's tough to find rustic French food that's more rustic (or more French) than roast chicken with haricot verts, truffled mac and cheese, and a cheese course instead of dessert.

It's also tough to find four different glasses of wine on a restaurant menu that will cost you $38 or less for the lot of them.

Toughest of all is to find that food and those wines in a casual, comfortable location that lets you savor it and linger.

Yet all of that -- four courses of rustic French food PLUS four glasses of wine (one for each course) -- is exactly what you get every single Wednesday at Sel de la Terre's Long Wharf location.

For $38 all in.

We don't really get the math on this one. But that's for Sel de la Terre's accountant to worry about, not us.

So is it tough to find the perfect way to celebrate your cruise right on out of mid-week Wednesday?

No. Not tough at all.


WHAT: Wine Wednesday
WHERE: Sel de la Terre (Long Wharf location), 255 State Street, Boston
WHEN: Every Wednesday at 7 p.m. Click here for weekly themes.
COST: $38. Seriously. Call 617.720.1300 to reserve your spot.


DAILY TIDBIT:

Pisco from Chile comes from the muscatel grape and it is "transparent, virtuous, and serene as the angelic force that emanates from the land," writes Isabel Allende writes in her memoir, My Invented Country. "Pisco is the prime ingredient of the pisco sour, our sweet and treacherous national drink, which must be drunk with confidence, though the second glass has a kick that can floor the most valiant among us."

Tour de Champagne This Saturday: 20 Different Kinds of Bubbles

Some Champagne bubbles race each other up and over the sides of the glass.

Some gurgle up like water just coming to a simmer.

Others, more subtle, sigh with the relief of smoldering lava.

Such is the mystery of Champagne.

So many variations, and textures, and reasons to keep experimenting.

Normally we drink Champagne to celebrate -- a birthday, a new year, an anniversary -- but Saturday night, at the Tour de Champagne Boston 2010 in the Charles Hotel, we're turning the tables.

Instead of using Champagne to celebrate, we'll be celebrating Champagne.

We'll be celebrating Champagne's variety by tasting samples from 20 different houses.

And we'll be celebrating its versatility, as chefs from all over Boston offer food samples to pair with Champagnes ranging in style from delicate to robust. (Click here to see the list of Featured Champagnes.)

All of which makes it unlikely that this event will resolve any of Champagne's mystery for you.

But that is a risk we think you're willing to take.


WHAT: Tour de Champagne Boston 2010
WHERE: Charles Hotel, One Bennett Street, Harvard Square, Cambridge
WHEN: Saturday, January 30 from 7 to 10 p.m. Fin de soirée afterward at Regatta Bar.
COST: $115 general admission, $150 VIP admission
PURCHASE TICKETS: Click here.


DAILY TIDBIT:

"Champagne! In victory one deserves it. In defeat one needs it." -- Napoleon Bonaparte

"Too much of anything is bad, but too much Champagne is just right." -- Mark Twain

"There comes a time in every woman's life when the only thing that helps is a glass of Champagne." -- Bette Davis

Remember Your Best Boston Summer Ever (with some Help from NZ and Oz Wines)

Last week -- in honor of BOKX 109's "It's Summer Somewhere Wine Dinner" coming up this Thursday night -- we asked you to tell us about the best summer you spent someplace other than Boston. (There's still time to submit your entry -- click here for details.)

Maybe it was at the beach. Maybe it was in the mountains. Maybe it was the four-foot swimming pool in your Uncle Dave's backyard in Cleveland.

Wherever it was, and whatever you were doing, just thinking about it eases the pain of the weather outside, even if it's just for a few minutes.

Why not take it a step further?

The Summer-Somewhere dinner at BOKX 109 highlights wines from places that are nice and warm right now -- western Australia, that is, and Marlborough, New Zealand -- whose white wines are sunny and bright and all but shimmer with nuances of flavor.

Which will be just the thing. For the beginning of the meal, anyway.

But sooner or later you will have to think about going back outside and braving the reality of our winter.

That's why the two main components of the Summer Somewhere meal feature heartier fare -- beef au poivre, to be exact, and Karma BBQ'd Poisson -- paired with wines that are meant to spread warmth through your veins.

Check out the full menu here, and then start thinking about the best summer you spent right here, right in Boston, right in the place we all call home.

Remember something good? Tell us about it. It could win you two tickets to BOKX 109's It's Summer Somewhere Wine Dinner on Thursday night.

100 words or less about your best summer experience in Boston. By 5 p.m. tomorrow. Winner only will be notified the morning of Wednesday, January 27.

Sometimes the best experiences happen elsewhere, like at Uncle Dave's in Cleveland. But sometimes they happen right in our own backyard, too.


WHAT: It's Summer Somewhere Wine Dinner
WHERE: BOKX 109 American Prime Restaurant, Inside Hotel Indigo, 399 Grove Street, Newton
WHEN: Thursday, January 28 at 6:30 p.m.
COST: Normally $75 per person excluding tax and gratuity
CONTEST: Submit your entry of 100 words or less before 5 p.m. on Tuesday, January 26 for a chance to win two tickets.


DAILY TIDBIT:

The wineries of Clare Valley in Australia, as a group, bottled their 2000 Rieslings under screwcap. In May 2001, wine companies of New Zealand formed the Screwcap Wine Seal Initiative, which lists the following advantages to using screwcaps: no cork taint, no more sporadic oxidation, recycling, and aging potential for both white and red wines.

Win Two Tickets to Tonight's Sold-Out Tasting: Red White Boston Contest Alert!

Red White Boston is co-sponsoring tonight's New Zealand wine tasting at the Boston Center for Adult Education.

There will be fifteen wines. All are very indicative of that lovely place. All will be presented in a casual, get-to-know-our-personality kind of way.

Tickets to the event have been sold out for days now.

Except for two last-minute ones that we held back, just to give away to a RWB reader today.

Here's how to get your hands on them: tell us, in 150 words or less, what you think would be the most fun and helpful format for a wine tasting.

Think outside the box. There's got to be a better way than shuffling around a big room, glass outstretched, fumbling with papers and lists, with little connection between what you taste and what you really remember.

That's why we're experimenting with the "speed dating" format tonight. The idea is to spend a few minutes with each major New Zealand grape varietal, hearing their stories, tasting one by one, deciding which ones strike your fancy, and which ones you should definitely steer clear of.

Because if wine information -- fleeting as it sometimes seems to your memory -- means something to you personally, it's way more likely to stick in your head.

That's our idea. What's yours?

Before noon today, email us your best idea for a fun, helpful wine tasting. (Winner only will be notified by 1:30 p.m.)

It may well get you a free pass to tonight's event, plus a front-row seat to your idea made real.


WHAT: Win two tickets to "Speed Dating" with New Zealand Wines
WHEN: Tonight from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Boston Center for Adult Education, 122 Arlington Street, Boston
HOW: Tell us in 150 words or less what what you think would be the most fun and helpful format for a wine tasting. Deadline is noon (today, obviously), and winner will be notified by 1:30 p.m.
COST: $0


DAILY TIDBIT:

Your response to yesterday's contest -- to tell us your top three choices for new partners for Red White Boston -- was overwhelming, and humbling really. We have our marching orders, that's for sure! We'll be reaching out personally to each of your suggestions, and hope to offer you very soon a selection of new wine experiences from all over town. We can't thank you enough for your help and advice. Stay tuned to see how it all works out!

Win Two Tickets to the Boston Wine Expo: Red White Boston Contest Alert!

This one is completely self-serving.

We have two tickets to the Boston Wine Expo this week-end, and we want to give them away.

The question is how.

And, while we're at it, how we can also improve the service that Red White Boston offers to wine lovers all over Massachusetts.

Our answer?

Send us your list of top three restaurants, bars, wine shops, etc. that you'd like to see on Red White Boston. And send it before 5 p.m. today.

What businesses around town can we reach out to as a partner? Who's doing something with wine that's creative and fun and appealing?

We really want to know what you think. (That's the self-serving part.)

Winner, who will be chosen randomly from the entries, will be notified by 7 a.m. tomorrow. They will pick up their tickets at the will-call window. (That's the give-away part.)

Help us help you.

To drink better, the way you want.


WHAT: Win two tickets to the Boston Wine Expo
WHEN: Either Saturday, January 23 or Sunday, January 24 from 1 to 5 p.m.
HOW: Send us your list of three restaurants, bars, or wine shops you'd like to see on Red White Boston. Winner will be chosen randomly. Deadline is 5 p.m. today.
COST: $0


DAILY TIDBIT:

Heard about all the restaurants around town who are holding events to benefit the earthquake victims in Haiti? Some of our favorites: UpStairs on the Square, in association with Partners in Health, is hosting a day-long fundraiser on Monday, January 25 (complimentary community breakfast, prix fixe lunch, family meal for dinner); Stella Restaurant is hosting guest chefs (from Radius, Prezza, Pigalle, Dante) for a night of passed hors d'oeuvres and jazz on Tuesday evening, January 26; and for the next month Rialto will donate 100% of the proceeds from their vegetable side dishes to Partners in Health.

Relive Your Best Summer (with Some Help from NZ and Oz Wines) at BOKX 109

Average daytime temperature in Boston this week: 38 degrees.

Average daytime temperature in Australia this week: 86 degrees.

That northern hemisphere-southern hemisphere thing will get ya every time.

Just don't let it get you down.

Because, though Boston is in the throes of winter in New England, it's summer Down Under.

Catch a ray of their sunshine -- and maybe a little bit of their warmth -- on Thursday, January 28 at BOKX 109 as you taste wines from Cape Mentelle (along the coast of western Australia) and Cloudy Bay Vineyards (in Marlborough, New Zealand).

BOKX 109 calls it their "It's Summer Somewhere Wine Dinner."

We call it just in time.

Check out the full menu here. But if you actually need further incentive, consider this: in partnership with Red White Boston, BOKX 109 is giving away two free tickets to the person with the best story about their summer somewhere (other than Boston, that is).

Do it in 100 words or less and send it in before 5 p.m. on Tuesday, January 26. Winner only will be notified the morning of January 27.

Close your eyes. Think about the summer sun. Imagine the sand between your toes. Say, "And then there was the time...."

Send us the rest. And get ready to relive your best summer somewhere.


WHAT: It's Summer Somewhere Wine Dinner
WHERE: BOKX 109 American Prime Restaurant, Inside Hotel Indigo, 399 Grove Street, Newton
WHEN: Thursday, January 28 at 6:30 p.m.
COST: $75 per person excluding tax and gratuity
CONTEST: Submit your entry of 100 words or less before 5 p.m. on Tuesday, January 26 for a chance to win two tickets.


DAILY TIDBIT:

Regions like Australia's Hunter Valley are witnessing direct effects of climate change. Not long ago, the main challenge in Hunter at vintage was what they call "humidity" or general wetness and rainfall during the growing season and harvest, but vintners haven't seen those conditions for at least four years. Which means grapes are harvested at different ripeness levels than they used to be, which will of course affect the flavor and quality of the wine.

Wine the Strategic Way at the BCAE

Maybe you know a little bit about wine.

As in, you know you like it, you know there's a lot to know, and you know you want to know more.

It's just that it's all so overwhelming, you have no real idea where to start, and you hate looking stupid.

What to do? What to DO??

Here's what:

Sign up for the class that starts this Thursday at the Boston Center for Adult Education.

And here's why:

It's designed for people with no previous knowledge and a limited understanding of wine. (Which means stupid questions are welcome.)

It's broken down into five sessions, three hours each. (That's not so overwhelming, is it?)

And the instructor tells you exactly where to start. (How to taste wine, how to read labels, how to select wine, and which grapes and regions to definitely know.)

Rumor is that you take this course and you start actually feeling confident about choosing and drinking wine. Just imagine.

Better decide quick though. First class is this Thursday, and those 40 samples of wine you'd be tasting only go so far.

WHAT: Wine and Spirits Education Trust Intermediate Certificate Course

WHERE: Boston Center for Adult Education, 122 Arlington Street, Boston

WHEN: Five Thursday nights beginning January 21, from 6 to 9 p.m.

MORE INFO AND RSVP: Click here.

DAILY TIDBIT:

Check out the 3-minute wine school organized by WSET, or Wine and Spirits Education Trust (the folks who sponsor the tasting course described in this email). You'll find 12 short films on different wines styles and regions. For free. Think of it like a pre-tasting for the course!

RWB Contest: Ravenswood Winemaker Dinner Plus a Lot of Something Extra

The Boston Wine Festival is well underway over at the Boston Harbor Hotel and, though we yearn for the wines and salivate over the menus, there's one tiny little catch.

The winemaker dinners there are awful pricey.

Yes, the Festival goes on for three months and yes, somewhere in there we should be able to find a dinner that's a little more doable.

Still, if you're going to go that far, wouldn't it be nice to get a little more than you bargained for?

"A little more" is exactly what Ravenswood is offering as part of their winemaker dinner on Wednesday, January 20.

Except "a little more" is a major understatement.

Consider the agenda for the night:

• Show up a little bit early.

• Meet Joel Peterson, who's been making wine in Sonoma since 1976.

• Say, "I'm one of those people."

• Joel, who's been expecting you, will personally sign a 3-liter bottle of his Cab.

• Sit down for dinner. Savor four courses of Chef Bruce's legendary food, including duck breast, osso bucco, shredded prosciutto, lemon custard.....
  

• Sip an elaborate lineup of Ravenswood wines, from Chard to Zin to Syrah to Gewurz.

• Walk away, bellies full, with your jeroboam of Cab.

(Bonus: Imagine the party you can throw with a bottle of wine like that.)

The fine print... This offer is open only to the first five people who respond to this email and reserve their seats.

To be clear on the process: Let us know you'd like to participate. We help you purchase your seat. Your name goes on Joel's list. You get a seat at the wine dinner. Plus that jeroboam of Cab.

Definitely a little more than you bargained for.


WHAT: Ravenswood Winemaker Dinner Plus "A Little More"
WHERE: Boston Harbor Hotel, 70 Rowes Wharf, Boston
WHEN: Wednesday, January 20 at 7 p.m.
COST: $145. 3-liter bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon available to first five people who sign up.
RSVP: Contact us.


DAILY TIDBIT:

Word of the Day: Jeroboam

Jeroboam = three liters = six regular bottles of wine

Win Tickets. Drink Zin. Rosenblum Wine Dinner at the Crowne-Plaza Boston Natick

Maybe you think Rosenblum Cellars is all about the Zinfandel.

You wouldn't be wrong, exactly. But we think Rosenblum's a lot more about the story.

As in, going from home winemaker to urban winery to award-winning, highly-rated wines.

As in, going from practicing veterinarian to leading producer of Zinfandel and Rhône-varietal wines.

As in, a winemaker -- and his wines -- with a whole lot of perspective.

Next Friday night, Rosenblum brings that perspective to the Crowne-Plaza Boston Natick for a very special wine dinner.

The wines?

2006 Rosenblum Cellars, Contra Costa County Zinfandel
2006 Rosenblum Cellars, Paso Robles Zinfandel Richard Sauret Vineyards
Rosenblum Cellars, Desiree Chocolate Flavored Dessert Wine

The food?

Appetizers include Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Seared U-8 Scallop and Baked Polenta Socal with Contra Costa Zinfandel Tri-Colored Pepper Sauce
Entrée: Juniper Berry, Apple Cider Soaked Pan-Seared Venison Saddle
Dessert: Fudge Cake Stack

Your opportunity to partake?

Tickets are only $45 a person (excluding tax and gratuity), which makes it a great idea for an after-work gathering or an early date.

You can win your way in as well! Send us 100 words or less about the life experience that makes your own perspective something special. It could win you two free seats at Rosenblum's table.

Contest starts now until 5 p.m. on Tuesday, January 19. Winner only will be notified by 7 a.m. on Wednesday.

Because, whether you're a Zinfandel winemaker or a Bostonian with a story, a little perspective goes a very long way.


WHAT: Rosenblum Cellars Wine Dinner
WHERE: Crowne-Plaza Boston Natick, 1360 Worcester Street, Natick
WHEN: Friday, January 22 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
COST: Normally $45/person. Send us your entry for a chance to win two free tickets.
RSVP (and take no chances): Call 508.653.8800


DAILY TIDBIT:

Running the numbers on Rosenblum:
120 small lots of grapes
30 strains of yeast from around the world
55 different coopers producing their barrels in the US, France, Hungary, and Russia
90+ scores

Getting Around: How to Navigate the Boston Wine Expo, at the BCAE

You know it's coming.

It's right around the corner.

The Boston Wine Expo is THE biggest wine event all year in all of Massachusetts -- will 1800 wines be enough for ya? -- and it's happening next week-end.

The thing is, it's a bit of a mob scene.

We mean that in a good way.

Because not only is there wine (and lots of it), there are also cooking demonstrations and wine seminars and and and.

If you're going to come anywhere near maximizing your experience, you need a plan.

Get it, tomorrow night at the Boston Center for Adult Education.

Here's what will happen:

A trained wine educator and an Expo expert team up to orient you, sketch out an itinerary dedicated to your particular interests, and overall help you navigate the two-day extravaganza.

You taste some of the wines featured during the Expo. (Not all 1800, mind you, just a few of the special ones.)

You get admission to either the Saturday or Sunday event. Normally that runs you $75 to $85 or more, but the BCAE is offering this class PLUS admission for $80 all in.

In other words, it's a no-lose deal.

We love it when a plan comes together.


WHAT: Navigating the Boston Wine Expo
WHERE: Boston Center for Adult Education, 122 Arlington Street, Boston
WHEN: Friday, January 15 from 6 to 8 p.m.
COST: $80 for members, $85 for non-members
SIGN UP: Click here.


DAILY TIDBIT:

It's reasonable to not immediately think of the Boston Wine Expo as a charity event. Yet since the first Expo 19 years ago, its organizers have donated more than $700,000 to non-profit organizations all over New England. Recipients? They include the Tufts-New England Medical Center's Summer Camp Program for Children with Disabilities and the New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans.

How to Have a Non-Slump Mid-January: Wine Specials Around Town

Ah, mid-January.

Right about now, the shine of New Year's resolutions may have started to dull.

Enthusiasm for all those life-changing projects -- conceived somewhere between 11:35 p.m. on December 31 and 12:15 a.m. January 1 -- may start to wane, just a little.

Your team (ahem) may even be out of the playoffs.

Sigh.

The good news?

Restaurants and wine shops all around town are trying hard to ride the Oct-Nov-Dec wave of (relative) prosperity well into the New Year.

They're on a roll. They're re-energized after a few good nights' sleep (finally!) earlier this month. And they're looking for you to keep walking through their front door.

Here are a few special specials we've noticed this week.

(We're sure there's more. Any especially good ones we've missed? Let us know.)

WHAT: 2005 Sori Paitin Barbaresco "Serra" Piemonte
WHERE: The Spirited Gourmet in Belmont and Winchester
WHY NOW: It's a serious Barbaresco. And it's affordable.

WHAT: Tasting of four beers from Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project
WHERE: bottles, 372 Commercial Street, Boston on Thursday, January 14
WHY NOW: When's the last time you tried a beer called Babayaga?

WHAT: Dewar's Private Tasting Events
WHERE: The Loft, 319 A Street, Boston
WHY NOW: Blended Scotch whisky. Ten chances to learn about it. Get yours.

WHAT: Cognacs & Armagnacs
WHERE: Gordon's, 894 Main Street, Waltham on Tuesday, January 19
WHY NOW: It's cold outside. Cognacs and Armagnacs make it warm on the inside.

WHAT: Wines of Iberia tasting
WHERE: BLM Wine + Spirits, 1354 Commonwealth Avenue, Allston on Saturday, January 16
WHY NOW: Spanish wines + Portuguese Wines = One Tasty Peninsula


DAILY TIDBIT:

"Punt" refers to the dimple at the bottom of a wine bottle. The punt increases a bottle's strength, allowing it to withstand the high pressure of, for example, Champagne and sparkling wines.

Four Courses, Three Wines, Small Tab at Regatta of Cotuit

Here's the technical definition of prix fixe:

A complete meal offered at a fixed price.

Here's the more thorough definition of prix fixe:

The set-menu, no-substitutions policy means the restaurant kitchen stays under control, particularly during very busy shifts like Mother's Day or Valentine's Day. Prix fixe also appeals to people who want to know ahead of time exactly what they're getting for exactly how much money.

And here's Regatta of Cotuit's version of prix fixe:

Four imaginative courses -- with choices -- including an amuse bouche.

Plus three wine pairings.

Every single Wednesday, year-round.

At what some people think is the best restaurant on the Cape.

For $45.

That's what we call prix fixe deluxe.

Who's up for a drive?


WHAT: Weekly Wine & Food Flight Menu
WHERE: Regatta of Cotuit, 4631 Falmouth Road, Cotuit
WHEN: Wednesday evenings
COST: $45


DAILY TIDBIT:

The next time you want to describe the texture of a wine, remember that historically the same language used to describe textiles was also used to describe wine. Think silk, velvet, cashmere, wool, even burlap!

"Speed Dating" with New Zealand Wines

Want a date for next Friday night?

It's your chance to get personal. With five major varietals from New Zealand, that is.

There will be five different tables.

Where you'll find five different grapes.

And five very well-informed people to talk with you about the personality of each grape.

All in all, you'll taste at least 15 New Zealand wines -- three wines made from each of the five grapes -- ranging from dry Riesling to fruity Pinot Noir to iconic Sauvignon Blanc.

The best part?

The pourers will help you see -- and taste -- what really differentiates a Riesling from a Sauvignon Blanc from a Pinot Gris from a Pinot Noir.

Because when it comes to dating, it's all about personality.

Come and try a few on.

You'll find your match.

DISCOUNT FOR RWB READERS: SIGN UP BEFORE JANUARY 18 AND RECEIVE $5 OFF THE PRICE OF ADMISSION!! USE THE CODE RWBNZWINES AT CHECK-OUT.


WHAT: "Speed Dating" with New Zealand Wines
WHERE: Boston Center for Adult Education, 122 Arlington Street, Boston
WHEN: Friday, January 22 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
COST: Normally $25. $20 for Red White Boston readers until January 18 with the code RWBNZWINES.


DAILY TIDBIT:

The government of New Zealand sponsors a project called Falcons for Grapes in Marlborough. The idea is to record data from GPS devices attached to the falcons to demonstrate whether falcons can survive and settle in the human-made vineyard environment. Researchers will also analyze the relationship between falcons and smaller birds in order to assess potential damage to vineyards.

On Tap: Dorchester-Milton Restaurant Week

Which of these was on your New Year's resolution list?

...Save money.

...Explore new places.

...Eat better.

...Get to know my neighbors.

Here's your chance to accomplish all of those at once -- Dorchester-Milton Restaurant Week, coming up from January 17 to 31 (excluding Friday-Saturday).

You'll save money -- three-course menus for $30.10.

You'll explore new places -- choose from eight participating restaurants.

You'll eat better -- with the food at places like 224 Boston Street, Abby Park, and Tavolo, how could you not?

And you'll get to know your neighbors -- whether you're walking over from Ashmont Street or taking the T to Savin Hill, getting there is easy.

Your efforts will be well-rewarded.

And those New Year's resolutions?

Done done and done.


WHAT: Dorchester-Milton Restaurant Week
WHEN: Dinner from January 17 to 31, excluding Friday-Saturday
WHERE: Eight participating restaurants
COST: Three courses for $30.10


DAILY TIDBIT:

When you're tasting a wine, think about the mouth as an organ of touch. Notice the texture of the wine. Notice how different parts of your mouth feel different parts of the wine, just like your fingers feel something differently than your palm does.