Wine Flight Wednesdays

Wine Flight Wednesdays at Swirl begin September 14th.

What are Wine Flight Wednesdays you ask?

Why, they are informal weekly wine tastings geared for fun and enjoyment. For a nominal ticket price (which will vary depending on the wines featured for the night), you can Swirl, sip, and relax. A discounted ticket price will be offered for those who purchase in advance.

Honestly, our Friday tasting format was getting a bit stale and boring. Coming up with fresh, interesting tasting ideas for every single Friday was getting a bit difficult. We always envisioned our Friday tastings to have more of a "cocktail hour" feel, in the sense that one would be comfortable chatting and mingling while tasting some new treasure that we discovered. But, the reality of Fridays is that most are dashing from work in a hurry to get home after a long work week. Alas, Wine Flight Wednesdays was born.

Each Wednesday we will feature something compelling, expect to sip on little known values, esoteric oddities, and decadent treats. We will announce the flight line-up in advance on our website, Facebook page, and in our weekly newsletter. Not on our email list? Sign up for our email list via our website and find us on Facebook to stay in the know of all things Swirl!

Feel free to contact us with any questions if your curiosity is piqued. We are totally excited to get this thing started. Finally, wine fun in the 'burbs.

Salud,

Austin & James

The 3 P's of Parenthood

My life for the past nine months has been driven by the three P's of parenthood. Pee, Puke, and Poop.

Oh yes, the glamorous life of being a parent. These days I feel like I won the lottery if I scrounge up enough time to blow dry my hair. I have not blow dried my hair in two months. Whenever I come across a perfectly coiffed mommy, I have to resist the overwhelming urge to poke her eyes out. I mean really? Come on! Let me tell you about my morning.

After the morning chaos of breakfast for hubby, breakfast for baby, a nibble of toast for mommy, doing the dishes, throwing a load of laundry in, and figuring out the logistics of the day. It's bath time for baby. Baby does not care that mommy has five other things to do before attempting to get ready for work. After undressing the little rug rat she promptly pees all over the changing table and my slippers. When I let out a surprised yelp, she simply grins her bugs bunny grin adoringly at me. For those who are not yet blessed with your own bundle of joy, this is nothing new. Expect to be peed on at least once a week. Then comes the puke.

Freshly scrubbed and outfitted in her new ladybug themed outfit, she grins and spits up all over said ladybug outfit. At least this is better then yesterday when her spit up landed in my mouth. Had I known that grandma recently fed baby a bottle, I would have known not to play airplane with baby. Coulda, shoulda, woulda.

On to outfit number two!

Finally, baby is dressed and ready for a new day! Time for mommy to jump in the shower and, oh man, really?! Grinning baby girl has an atomic poop and destroys outfit number two. Oh yes, the glamorous life of parenthood.

Austin

There's magic in that glass

There's a wide, longing look in your eye. You've wandered through those doors searching to fill a numbing emptiness.

What is it that you need?

Do you have a desire, or a lust for something blissful?

Do you need a spark, a hint of inspiration?

Or maybe you just need a glass to help you escape.

We can help.

There is magic here at Swirl, lying dormant on these shelves. We just need to dwell around the aisles for a moment, sniff a little to the left and then back to the right, and carefully listen to which bottle might be softly calling out to you.

Shhhh. Do you hear it?

There's magic in here, waiting patiently to be poured in a glass, but you have to believe.

With each person it's different. The magic that exists in one bottle might not come alive for one person, while for another, it creates a lasting impression. It all depends on what you need and what you're longing for.

A bargain bin wine might be the perfect remedy for game night with tacos, yet another night might call for a $25 single vineyard Malbec that will create another world for you.

A little dramatic, you say?

Hey, give us a try. Trust us.

We want to find the magic for you. That's what makes us happy.

James

Speaking of Zombies

Yes, these are wedding photos.

I don't know this couple, but...

I love them!

These are utterly fantastic.

And, how bad-ass, the guy is still holding his glass of wine while he fights off the zombie.

What a man.

And speaking of hard core, the wife finishes the zombie off with a shovel blow to the head.
All that pilates paid off, huh?

I would've loved to have gone to this wedding. Wow, speaking of a bonding experience, any couple that can battle a zombie together, is on good grounds for a solid relationship.

This burger is like smoking crack

Hey, man, I need my fix. I need it badddddd.

I'm smacking my lips. I'm rubbing my belly.

It's time.

Give me my burger!

The hell with 5 guys. I'm heading to Burger Brothers in Towson.

It really is like your brother inviting you over for a homemade burger fresh off the grill. Hand made patties, made with love, sweat, and tears. The taste is soul satisfying.

And it means something when the actual owner of the joint is back there flipping your burger and not some high school punk. These guys want you to come back again and again, and I for one, have been converted.

This is what keeps us going here at Swirl Wine. This is our fuel, our sustenance.

God, I love a good burger.

James

"Bring out your dead"

It's 4 am.

Our baby is slowly transforming us into zombies.

Must get up and answer the wailing call of the little torturer. It's so dark and I'm so groggy. I proceed to track down the source of the sobs, stepping on squeaky, rubber animals, and bumping into sharp corners of ambushing furniture.

I have become the walking dead.

"Why, baby, why can't you sleep?"

3 1/2 hours into sleep, just getting settled into a nice, cozy dream, and now here I am, abruptly changing a diaper and trying to soothe her frantic cries. Oh, I curse the fact that I had to stay up and watch that god-awful movie, and finish that bottle of wine. At least the wine was good.

I'm sluggish today. Exhausted and fried. Sleep deprivation is an enemy I never want to do battle with. Please, Vivian, please have mercy on us. Ha-ha-ha. Sounds funny begging, but desperation creates uneasy alliances. If you come in and see us, bleary eyed and non-responsive, don't panic, we're not zombies. Well, not the zombies that moan and seek out human brains, that is. Maybe zombies that crave a hearty Zin or a silky Albarino.

Yeah, wine zombies, I like that.

By the way, I do love zombie stories. You know, anything dealing with end of the world scenarios is fun, as long as it's purely fiction. Not ready for the real thing. At least, not yet.

If a zombie plague hit the area right now, would you be ready? It's good to have a zombie contingency plan ready to enact, just in case.

You never know. Big Pharm just might be working on some new virus killer that mutates horribly wrong, waking the dead from their restful grave and hungry for human flesh.

If that happens, don't rely on guns, oh no, too much can go wrong:

(1) run out of, or don't have enough ammo.

(2) it's not as easy as it looks to hit a moving, growling target in the head. Only head shots can bring them down, so they say.

(3) gun fire attracts more zombies. That can't be good.

(4) always have to reload at the worst times, like when they're right on top of you. Then you have to either fumble with a new clip, or load another bullet into the chamber. Stressful.

Better to have a bladed weapon, like a Katana sword. Don't have to worry about it jamming, backfiring, or reloading it. Just swing and take out your aggression, and hopefully you're in shape and have lots of adrenalin flowing to keep up with the horde of masses trying to eat you. And, hell, they just look cool. Who doesn't look like a bad ass with a Katana sword strapped to your back?

Oh, and make sure you have enough wine at home, in case of an emergency like this, because you'll need all that you can drink to get through it.

James

aka wine zombie

Wings, wing-dings, wings!

As my hubby, James, expounded in a previous post, we adore buffalo wings. Mild, spicy, atomic spicy, seasoned with Asian inspired spices, sprinkled with old bay, or simply naked. My father-in-law affectionately calls naked wings, "wing-dings." I just like saying wing-ding. Admit it, you do as well.

Honestly, I just love anything that involves frying and chicken. But alas, I'm not getting any younger and eating healthier has been on my mind. So have I banished buffalo wings from my diet? Hell no! Here is just one of my health conscience wing recipes. It happens to be my husband's favorite! A word on my recipes, usually I just wing it (sorry folks, couldn't resist), so apologies in advance for the lack of exact measurements. Just have fun with it.

Austin's Wings

chicken wings (duh)

lemon

honey

butter (the real stuff, none of that low fat spread BS)

Texas Pete (substitute at your own risk)

Salt & pepper

Red pepper flakes

Preheat oven at 400 degrees. Spread baking sheet with foil if you like, and spray baking sheet/foil with some kind of non-stick spray, I use Trader Joe's canola oil spray. Arrange wings on sheet, season with salt, pepper, lemon juice, red pepper flakes. You can season the other side of your wings when you flip them mid-bake. Whack them in the oven for, oh, about 20 mins. Then flip them over and finish cooking until you achieve the golden brown you desire, say another 20 mins. This may seem excessive, but mama likes her wings thoroughly cooked and crispy. While the wings are baking. Mix Texas Pete, honey, butter, a bit of lemon juice in a medium sauce pan. So this is where it's all about preference. I like more of a glaze so I reduce the hot sauce until I achieve a thick, rich consistency. If that's not for you, add more hot sauce and simmer instead of reducing. I LOVE butter so I tend to be liberal with it, if you bulk at the thought, then don't add as much. Although, in my humble opinion butter tempers the heat and adds a creamy dimension, so don't nix it altogether. Same goes for the honey. My hunny likes his honey so I add a generous portion. Whew! This is getting LONG. After the wings are done, toss them in your delicious glaze/sauce. Serve and devour!

And, what to drink with your tasty wings? I like a refreshing white with a bit of fruitiness to dual with the heat. Since it is summer, my adult beverage of choice is Rose. If you are more into reds, try a plump, fruit-forward, red Zin, or a blend with your next buffalo wing feast.

Yummy in your tummy,

Austin