Green Beans and Good Times

There's something terribly intimidating about writing the first blog post -- it's as if it will set the tone forever and ever. Of course this isn't the case; I'm pretty sure it's just procrastination masquerading around as intimidation. So I'll just write about what is near and dear to my heart: Food.
Last night we went to our neighbor's house for an early thanksgiving. They're doing the traditional thing with family next week, but they got a free turkey from the supermarket a few days ago and decided to have a pre-game Thanksgiving warm-up. Mark and I made a green bean casserole that was TO DIE FOR! This is going to be my go-to recipe from now on, until eternity: World's Best Green Bean Casserole.
So even though Mark and I aren't really sure about what we're going to do for the actual holiday, I would be just as happy not do anything at all. Last night was so great that it is as if we celebrated on the right day. ...and that's the point, right? But then again, any excuse to get a second serving of stuffing and gravy and cranberries and.... yeah, we'd better plan on doing something.
My neighbors are Laurel, a grad student, and Sarah and Blake, a Phd student and her boyfriend. I don't see much of Laurel, but Sarah and Blake are awesome. Blake plays guitar, so he and Mark automatically have something to talk about all the time. Thanksgiving dinner consisted of 10 other students from Sarah's Phd program. The conversation was interesting, and they were all so very nice. And appreciative of a good meal. Even when politics came up at the table (prop 8, anyone?) it was calm, intelligent discussion. And of course, I had a few aahhhhhh I'm in Daaaavis!!! moments throughout the night. We drank way too much wine, had great laughs, and staggered home.
And speaking of wine... the Winemaking class that I'm taking this quarter is making me obnoxious. I'm a nightmare to go wine shopping with; I read every label, recite the history and the characteristics of the region and the grapes, etc etc. It's all very interesting, yes, but I'm becoming a wine snob. For example, at dinner last night, Blake opened up a bottle of wine that was homemade by a family friend. Everyone drank it... but I couldn't get past the smell of it. It was as if it was bottled next to a dairy farm. And then it tasted like a sweaty horse smells. I immediately knew that Brettanomyces yeast had formed during the fermentation. Thank you, winemaking class.

But... if you want to check out a yummy wine, I suggest Yellowtail's Shiraz-Cabernet blend. It's delish. And I won't even make you listen to the history of it.

disclaimer: I'm a bit odd when it comes to wine flavors; I'm into fruitier, lighter wines. Girlie wines. So if you're into strong bodied, old school flavor, this might not be right for you.