Beef Daube {FFwD}

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Just before I started writing this post I randomly read what Betty Davies said about champagne

"There comes a time in every woman's life that the only thing that helps is a glass of champagne"

I'm going to paraphrase it and say that there comes a time in everyone's life when the only thing that helps is a beef daube and a glass of barrel aged Cabernet Sauvignon.

I don't want to sound disrespectful to the elegant and delicate fizzyness of champagne (or any other sparkling wine) but there are some days when if there is a chance for them to get better it is only going to happen with a comforting plate of tender beef braised for hours in rich red wine and bacon sauce and glass of full bodied, smoky  chocolatey and spicy Cabernet Sauvignon. Even describing it makes me feel ready to get out of bed, this wintry, rainy day and go get myself another plateful and another glass of wine! 

This recipe was a revelation for me! I've been cooking with the French Fridays with Dorie crew for a few months now  and we have made some truly delectable and delicious recipes from Dorie Greenspan's book "Around my French Table", but this one was screaming France, and especially Provence, from the oven! Beef daube (daube de beauf - en français)  is a rustic and comforting plate of food you expect to find in any small or big auberge. The smell of succulent meat, cooking slowly in a rich red wine sauce was enough to make me want to book a ticket to get there as soon as possible!! 

There are so many variations, I could use up most of my post to describe them. Instead I will just describe Dorie's version. It is simple and easy to prepare with a unexpected twist in the end that elevated the dish from a simple wine braised cut of meat to a gourmet creation which guaranties satisfaction around your dinner table.   

I used beef chuck, cut in 4 pieces and quickly browned it in a bit of olive oil. Then sautéed some thinly sliced carrots and onions with quite a bit of bacon (can't help it I love the stuff). And here is were it becomes interesting, instead of removing the sautéed vegetables and bacon and de-glazing the pot with the wine and beef stock, Dorie keeps everything in the pot, adds a couple of tablespoons of flour and let it "toast" for a short while. Then she pours in the wine and beef broth, scrapping the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to get all the nicely browned flour mixed with the rest of the ingredients. Transfer everything in a crock-pot, put it in the oven and forget about it for a couple of hours. This is the hardest thing to do actually!! The smell, oh! the smell will not let you forget it one moment...I warn you.. you would want to open the oven and check to see if its done yet but you have to resist the temptation and let it cook slowly for at least 2 hours...You will thank me later.

And then, when the wait is over and the sauce is bobbling,  and the meat is melting at the touch of your fork and you just want to dig in and forget the world around you, just wait, hold on for a couple of seconds, inhale the aromas and stir in a small piece of chopped dark chocolate. Yes! you read it right, dark chocolate. It is a heavenly inspiration that binds all the flavours and aromas together, without overpowering them with its bitterness. I was truly smitten by this recipe. I am going to make it again and again and again. 

To see how other members of our group enjoyed this recipe visit the French Fridays with Dorie website. 

Experimenting with Beaujolais Nouveau, Fruit and Spices

Photo from Wikipedia

Lets talk about grapes and wine, shall we?

And lets start with the easiest of grapes which paradoxically has been causing the biggest funfair in the wine world for the last 30 or so years...

This humble grape is called Gamay.  Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc, to be precise. It is mostly planted in France in the area of Beaujolais, north-west of Lyon and along the river Saune. Geographically Beaujolais belongs to Burgundy. Compared to other varieties growing in the wider area of mighty Burgundy, Gamay, in the words of Oz Clarke, was never "blockbusting". It is a grape low in tannins, with high acidity, yet, it can be appealing to those who prefer a fresh, fruity, aromatic and light red.

2012 Advertising campaign sought to associate Beaujolais Nouveau with French fashion 

Gamay has become synonymous with Beaujolais which in turn has become synonymous with Beaujolais Nouveau. Beaujolais Nouveau is released on the third Thursday of November, a huge PR event, that started in the mid-80's and is still going strong especially in the American and Japanese markets. 

Most Beaujolais is meant to be drunk young because its lack of tannins make it vulnerable to oxidation and because of its special maceration process, which releases all the aromas of the fruit. This process is called Macération Carbonique (Carbonic Maceration) where carbon dioxide is added to the vats where the whole un-pressed grapes are stored. In this oxygen deprived environment the grapes are "forced" to release their own oxygen and ferment inside their skins, releasing particularly strong aromas. Typically a Beaujolais will give out notes of pears, bananas, raspberries and cherries. 

2012 was not a good year for Beaujolais. The production fell almost 50% because of early spring frost and hail storms which wiped out entire plots, especially in the southern part of the region where Nouveau is only allowed to be produced. Some believe that this was good for the remaining fruit were able to draw more of the vine's potential which resulted in a better final product. Others disagree. In my humble opinion, I thought that it was as good as you can expect it to be. Fresh and tangy with strawberry and red fruits aromas.

Being the only oenophile in this house I was presented with a huge heart breaking question...what was I to do with the remaining wine in my bottles? I surely could not picture myself pouring it down the sink. Cooking something with it would partially solve the problem but still some would remain. And then the idea came to me ... I am going to use it to experiment ... Nothing fancy involving test tubes and petri dishes. Just a few fresh fruits, spices and honey to enhance the wine's aromatic character and make it more appealing to the rest of the household...

A few months ago I saw a recipe for a Cranberry Orange Wassail and thought that I could make something like this using wine instead of apple cider. I raided the cupboards and the pantry and found some of the required ingredients. I improvised a bit with the cooking time and ended up with a concoction so flavourful and aromatic that with difficulty I managed to save half a cup for the photographs! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Warm Red Wine with Fruits and Spices

Adapted from And Love it Too

For 8 people 

Ingredients

2 bottles of Beaujolais Nouveau or other fresh, fruity red wine (a young Merlot would also be good)

1 cup raw honey

2 cups pineapple juice
1 cup dried cranberries

4 cinnamon sticks

2 large oranges, un-waxed and washed, cut into quarters

1 vanilla pod

Procedure

Pour the wine, pineapple juice and honey in a large heavy-bottomed pot. Bring to a slow simmer add the cinnamon, vanilla pod, cranberries and oranges. 

Cover half way and simmer on low heat for 2 - 3 hours depending on how concentrated you want the end result to be. Mine turned out to like a spicy wine liqueur. 

If you want a quicker alternative simmer it for 30 - 45 minutes. 

When it is ready, strain the oranges, vanilla, cinnamon and cranberries and drink warm of cold. 

I kept the vanilla pod to use it again in making wine-soaked-vanilla sugar (will let you know how this turns out) and put the cranberries on top of some fresh yoghurt for a quick dessert for M-i-L.

I'm entering this post in

Gluten Free Chocolate and Red Currant Brownies & Beautiful Blogger Award

I wanted to make something easy. You know... To get things started with my "new kitchen"... Something that everybody in this house could eat... even Georgie's 93 year-old grandmother (her brain must look like soup from Alzheimer's, but amazingly her blood sugar is lower than mine!!!). 

I chose Brownies for Have the Cake. It's been a while since I stopped by Rena's blog. I made them gluten free because I still need to keep to my diet as much as possible. Walking everyday into a fully operational chef and pastry-chef school, you cannot imagine and I cannot describe what a temptation that is for me. 

Unfortunately, I did not have time for experimentation with a sugar and egg free version of this brownie, so I just kept out the main culprits, gluten and lactose. I replaced the pecans, with dried red currants, partly because I wanted to participate in this months Chocolate Party and partly because my biggest customer (the said 93-year-old grandmother), has no teeth!!! I soaked the dried currants in a couple of shot glasses worth of cherry liqueur to puff them up a bit. The recipe came together easily and the results were satisfying to all! So if you want a "kitchen warming" brownie recipe this is it!

Before I give you the recipe, I want to share a few words about an unexpected and very welcomed award I received. The Beautiful Blogger award was given to me by Jenbeansblog, a really beautiful blogger with delicious recipes and really tasty photography!!! Thank you Jenbean... you made my year by giving me this award!!!

When you receive this award there are a few things you have to do in order to thank the good karma that gave it to you....

1. Copy the Beautiful Blogger Award logo and place it in your post. 
2. Thank the person who nominated you, and link back to their blog.
3. Tell six things about yourself.
4. Nominate six other bloggers for their own Beautiful Blogger Award (and let them know you have done so)

The first two I've done...now for the rest:

1. I am studying to become a sommelier because I like to drink wine but most of all I love spending time with the people who make it and think of it as a work of art and not only the means to get you quickly on your way to a "fun" Friday night.
2. I had two lower back operations three years ago.
3. I know quite a lot about lower back pain and healing so if you want to ask me anything go ahead!
4. I quit smoking three years ago and I think it is the best thing I've done so far in my life.
5. I am trying to quit sugar but failing miserably...
6. I will continue to try to quit sugar....

Now hop over to these even more Beautiful Blogs and to read what they have to say about themselves...

Sissi from With a Glass 

Flannery & Katherine from Fashionably Bombed

Sarvani from Baker in Disguise 

Patty from Patty's Food

Angela from The Charmed Cupcake

Alice from A Mama, Baby and Shar-Pei in the Kitchen

And don't forget the brownie!!!! It is soooo delicious

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gluten Free Chocolate and Red Currant Brownies

Adapted from Every Day Food, June 2012
Prep time: 20 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes
Yield: 16 servings
Ingredients
85 gr unsalted butter, plus a bit more for buttering the pan
1/3 cup cornstarch, levelled
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
340 gr dark chocolate
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs at room temperature
1 cup dried red currants, soaked for 30 minutes in 60 ml of cherry liqueur
Procedure
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees C.
Butter a 20 cm square baking pan and like it with cooking paper, leaving about 5 cm of paper to hang on all sides - this will make lifting the baked brownie cake so much easier!!
In a medium bowl, whisk together cornstarch, cocoa powder, cinnamon and salt and leave aside. Melt the butter and chocolate in the microwave oven, using a large microwave-safe bowl or over a bain-marie (be careful if you go for the bain-marie that the boiling water in the pan does not come into contact with the bowl containing the chocolate and butter and that steam and water do not find their way into the melting chocolate!!)
When the chocolate and butter have melted, add the sugar and vanilla extract. Stir in the eggs, one at a time until absorbed.
Add the cornstarch mixture to the chocolate and eggs and stir vigorously until it becomes smooth. Drain the soaking cranberries - don't throw away the liquid, you can use it in another recipe or drink it and be happy :) and stir them into the mixture.
Pour the chocolate batter into the pan and smooth over the top.
Bake for about 30 - 35 minutes, depending on the oven - until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.
Let it cool completely in the pan on a wire rack, then lift the cake and cut into 16 squares.

I am submitting this post to The Tuesday Talent Show from The Chef in Training, Funky Polka Dot Giraffe's Too Cute Tuesday, Mandy's Recipe Box Totally Tasty Tuesdays, Salt Tree's Open Call Tuesday , Crazy for Crust Crazy Sweet Tuesday, 33 Shades of Green Tasty Tuesdays
and

French Fridays with Dorie: Goat Cheese Mini Puffs

I know it's not Friday, still, I am determined to brake the rules this once and post my French Fridays with Dorie recipe on a Saturday. Please, cut me some slack. It's been my first week as an official student of wine and oenology and Thursday was also the third Thursday of November when the wine world goes bonkers for Beaujolais Nouveau. So in between of sipping, spiting, meeting - my fellow classmates whose mean-age is way smaller than mine - I did manage to bake my first ever pâte à choux puffs! I just did not have time to write about them...

To tell you the truth I was dreading this recipe... Making choux pastry is not the easiest thing in the world and I have never made it before. After a disastrous and very disappointing attempt to bake a Chocolate Danish for the Home Bakers last week I had serious doubts that I will ever be able to make anything than salad in my "new" kitchen. {To clarify, for the duration of my sommelier training I am staying at Georgie's parents house in  Athens.} My small Zagreb kitchen is so far away and I miss it tremendously, yet I have to get used to this quite big and - thank God - well equipped kitchen if I am to continue doing what I love - cooking, baking and writing about it. After a long, exhausting debate with myself, the adventurous part in me prevailed and I decided to go ahead and make Dorie's Goat Cheese Mini Puffs. 

I started with the "easy" stuff. Milk, water, salt, butter boiling in a pan, tossed in the flour and started whisking. Dorie says it has to become a silky looking dough!!! Mine was more of the soie sauvage variety but well my arm was getting tired so I turned on the 24 year old Kenwood Kitchen   Machine to do the rest of the work with the eggs. In the end I have to admit, the dough did look like silk but it was somewhat runny, hence the very artistic, non-spherical shape of my puffs! 

Next, I had to make peace with the "new" oven (I was told that it can be quite temperamental when it comes to baking delicate pastry doughs) so I camped out in-front of its door while the puffs where puffing inside and cajoled it with various nonsensical words {M-i-L surely thinks I'm crazy by now}. Whatever I said it seems to have worked! The puffs, puffed up, even though I had some serious doubts at the beginning, they rose and rose and rose and then when the time came to rotate them they deflated like old balloons!!! Panic, desperation, denial all together hit me like a hot, painful punch in the stomach. Now what? How do I put the lost air into the puff-less puffs? I put them back into the oven, mumbled a couple of prayers and as  by miracle they started to inflate again and this time I could see it was for good. They just wanted to breath a bit and then keep all the steamy, hot air inside them! I took them out of the roaring oven and let them cool down a bit admiring the miracle created by eggs and hot air!

I filled them with fresh goat cheese, cucumber and fresh herbs cream cheese (I am in Greece after all - it would be a sin not to try out the local variations of the well know cream cheese brand!!) and took them out on the balcony to photograph them. Half of them were swept away by the gale force winds whipping this part of Athens for the last couple of days. I did not fret. Actually I was satisfied...choux puffs are supposed to be light as air and mine actually got the chance to fly {away to the neighbour's  yard}. Light as air and yummy... so mission accomplished!

I cannot put the recipe for these puffs on this post, but you can find Dorie's recipe, as it was printed in "Better Homes and Gardens", here. To see how other bloggers liked Goat Cheese Mini Puffs check out the French Fridays with Dorie website where every Friday we make recipes from Dorie Greenspan's book "Around My French Table"

French Fridays with Dorie: Top Secret Chocolate Mousse

Have you ever had an Aero chocolate bar from Nestle? Yes, the one that's full of tiny air bubbles? That's the image that came to me the moment I tasted this Chocolate Mousse. I don't want to sound rude, comparing Dorie's "Top Secret Chocolate Mousse" recipe with a mere mass produced chocolate bar, but this is the fluffiest mousse I've ever made! 

Off course, the meringue did the trick and even though mine slightly separated (I blame the tiny drop of water that went into the mixer while I was washing my hands and my huge stage fright cooking in front of my mother in law, in her kitchen non the less) the mousse came out quite presentable and exquisitely ... yummy! 

I mean, you cannot go wrong with the taste of this mousse! As long as you use good quality dark chocolate and fresh eggs you are going to end up with a luscious yet light mousse. I went with Dorie's "original" recipe and made no extra additions... chocolate and egg yolks, egg whites with a pinch of salt and a little bit of sugar...simple and delicious!!

To see how other bloggers liked Top Secret Chocolate Mousse check out the French Fridays with Dorie website where every Friday we make recipes from Dorie Greenspan's book "Around My French Table"

Pumpkin, Mint & Feta Cheese Pie ~ Κολοκυθόπιτα με Φέτα και Δυόσμο

(Συνταγή στα Ελληνικά στο τέλος της σελίδας)

Hello from the unseasonably warm Athens, the city where for the next 6 months I will be sniffing, slurping and spitting fermented grape juice and other noble spirits.

It's been a pretty busy couple of weeks, travelling from Zagreb to Madrid, back to Zagreb, then to Belgrade and finally reaching Athens on the worst week possible, for someone who's been away from this behemoth of a city for years! The media call it "Black Week", "the Mother of all Strikes" since everybody is on strike, protesting against the government's "newest collection" of austerity measures. This blog has many sides and interests; talking about politics is not one of them. So I will spare you the political analysis of the government's decisions and their effect on the social structure of the Greek society mambo jumbo and instead I will talk about MY thoughts and experiences of the past two weeks. 

I did get a small taste of the "Athens-jungle, pre-demonstration traffic-jam" yesterday which was more than enough to make me decide to abandon any attempt to go to the centre of Athens and stay put at the leafy suburb of Psychiko, where my new humble adobe is located.  

For a few weeks now I have posted about books, travel memories and  photographs, even about a non-existent ashtray... Everything was on my blogging menu except for food. To be more accurate, food that I cooked by myself, because there has been plenty of food around that eventually found it's way to my stomach and ultimately my thighs. Yet I refused to go to the gym and I refused to cook. The gym was because "I was separating " from my life in Zagreb so that the transition to Athens would be as smooth as possible (fat chance with all the strikes - but I did manage to visit two gyms today and I have to decide which one I'm going to join). I was somewhat accepting towards the gym-truancy but what about my cooking abstinence?  I used to think that cooking relaxes me. I have now come to believe that I was way wrong about this. Yes, cooking is a joyful, exciting and creative, but I came to think that I can only perform when I'm not in such a stressful situation as I have been in the weeks leading to my "relocation" to Athens. I lived on nuts and cheese and rice cakes during those weeks...so yes cooking is not my forte when I'm experiencing periods of upheaval in my life....

Having said all these, I am now ready to move on to today's recipe of a very Greek version of savoury pumpkin pie, which I did not make but I surely ate and enjoyed, especially after being on the road for a total of 7 1/2 hours .

We arrive home and up there on the stove stood the most scrumptious pumpkin pie I have ever seen in my life! Orange with specks of white feta cheese covered with crispy pastry. I was transfixed!!! I had to fight the urge to ignore everything and everyone and shove a fork into that baby ASAP. But I am girl with manners and I waited patiently, stealing glances at the beckoning pie, until the whole family gathered around the table for a pretty late dinner celebrating our arrival. 

The pumpkin, sacrificed to make this masterpiece had travelled almost the same distance as  we. It came from the vegetable garden of Vasilka's father in the Bulgarian village of Shtit (Vasilka has been the housekeeper for years and she is practically part of the family). The pie was inspired and prepared by my mother in law, who is an amazing woman with a natural talent for cooking (among other things) and a huge repertoire of delicious sweet and savoury recipes, many of which I will be sharing with you in due time!!! Even though this pie contains gluten from the fillo pastry, it is completely egg-free and is very low on lactose (cheese made from sheep and goat milk has a lot less lactose than cow's cheese). It combines the sweetness of the pumpkin with the saltiness and spiciness of both types of cheese and the spearmint, it might sound strange but this is the special ingredient that makes this simple pumpkin pie into an extraordinary, culinary masterpiece!

~~~~~~~~

Pumpkin, Mint & Feta Cheese Pie

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 kg pumpkin flesh, boiled and let to drain for 6 hours
• 500 gr feta cheese, crumbled
• 300 gr graviera cheese or any other hard, spicy cheese made from sheep's milk, crumbled
• 2 - 3 tablespoons fresh mint or spearermint, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 5 spring onions, finely chopped
• 6 sheets of fillo pastry
• Olive oil for brushing the pastry

Procedure

1. Clean and de-seed a pumpkin large enough to yield about 1.5 kg of flesh. Boil the flesh in as much water as it takes to just cover it, for as long as it takes so that a fork can easily separate the flesh and then strain it in a colander or cheesecloth for at least 6 hours. It is it better to do the straining overnight to save time during the day.
2. Preheat oven to 180 C.
3. In a large pot, heat the olive oil and sauté the spring onions for 3 - 4 minutes. Add the strained pumpkin flesh and stir well. Add the cheeses and mint, remove from heat and stir. 
4. Brush a non-stick baking pan with olive oil, lay the first fillo and brush it with olive oil, then lay the second, brush this one as well and finally lay the third. Pour the pumpkin - cheese mixture onto the fillo and smooth it evenly. Place a fillo sheet on top, brush it with olive oil, and repeat with the remaining two sheets. Sprinkle the last one with a little bit of water and drizzle with olive oil. I suggest that you cut the pie in pieces before you put it in the oven - this will make it easier to serve once baked.
5. Bake this marvellous pumpkin pie for 45 minutes until the pastry becomes crispy and golden. 

I suggest that you share it with other people but, really, I will understand if you want to eat it all by yourself. 

Vasilka told me that, back when she was a small girl, living in her village, her father had too many pumpkins and those they couldn't use, gave to their donkey as a treat - lucky, lucky donkey 'cause this was the sweetest pumpkin I had in years!

~~~~~~~~~~

Πίτα με Κολοκύθα, Δυόσμο και Φέτα 

Για 8 άτομα

Υλικά

• 1 1/2 κιλό κολοκύθα, βρασμένη και στραγγισμένη για τουλάχιστον 6 ώρες
• 500 γρ φέτα, τριμμένη
• 300 γρ γραβιέρα τριμμένη
• 2 - 3 κουταλιές της σούπας φρέσκο δυόσμο ψιλοκομμένο
• 2 κουταλιές της σούπας ελαιόλαδο
• 5 φρέσκα κρεμμυδάκια, ψιλοκομμένα
• 6 φύλλα κρούστας
• Ελαιόλαδο για το άλειμμα της πίτας

Procedure

1. Καθαρίζουμε μια κολοκύθα που θα μας δώσει περίπου 1.5 κιλό σάρκας. Τη βάζουμε σε κατσαρόλα και την καλύπτουμε με νερό. Βράζουμε μέχρι να μαλακώσει η σάλκα και να χωρίζεται εύκολα με ένα πιρούνι. Την βάζουμε σε ένα τουλπάνι και τη στραγγίζουμε καλά για τουλάχιστον 6 ώρες. 
2. Προθερμαίνουμε το φούρνο στους 180 βαθμούς. 
3. Ζεσταίνουμε το ελαιόλαδο σε μια φαρδιά κατσαρόλα και σοτάρουμε τα κρεμμύδια για 3 - 4 λεπτά. Προσθέτουμε την στραγγισμένη κολοκύθα και ανακατεύουμε καλά. Αποσύρουμε από τη φωτιά, προσθέτουμε τα τυριά και τη μέντα και αφήνουμε τη γέμιση να κρυώσει.  
4. Αλείφουμε ένα ταψί με ελαιόλαδο. Απλώνουμε ένα φύλλο κρούστας και το αλείφουμε μς ελαιόλαδο. Επαναλαμβάνουμε με άλλα δύο φύλλα. Απλώνουμε την γέμιση πάνω στα φύλλα, γυρνάμε προς τα μέσα τυχών φύλλα που περισσεύουν αλείφοντας τα και αυτά με ελαιόλαδο. Απλώνουμε ένα φύλλο πάνω από τη γέμιση το αλείφουμε με ελαιόλαδο και επαναλαμβάνουμε με τα υπόλοιπα δύο. Ραντίζουμε με νερό. Κόβουμε την πίτα σε κομμάτια. 
5. Ψήνουμε την πίτα για 45 λεπτά μέχρι να γίνει χρυσή και τραγανή. 

Ashtray Wednesday - The One I Never Got

There is am empty picture accompanying this post because I never got an ashtray from this person. I am sure there was a lot of travelling involved, both inland and abroad, but I was never made aware of it. There are strict rules about these things, you see, and some people are really meticulous about observing them. I, on the other hand, am not. I have a very distorted interpretation of boundaries and I always make it my mission to overstep them. If it was up to me this would have been a completely different post. But it is not. I was not able to brake this rule, trespass these boundaries.  

I've said it before, I collect ashtrays for the people who gave them to me. This is a person whom I would really love to have as part of my "collection" {maybe I'm coming across as a scary psychotic serial killer - collecting people and all - I assure you I am not...my mother had me tested :) }. For the past three years, this person has been there for me week after week, after week, come rain or snow, fog or extreme heat - we always used to joke about the insane instability of the weather here in Zagreb, one day 30 degrees and sunny and the next 15 and foggier than London in the 1800s. 

Moving on, I am not good with goodbyes and it's been  a very difficult and emotional couple of weeks having to say goodbye to many good friends I've made here in Zagreb. Hence the lack of any serious activity in my kitchen - I'm not counting tea making and cheese slicing as serious culinary activities. This ashtray-less goodbye was particularly difficult because it is somehow final. I have words, memories and lots of laughs to look back to - way better that a lifeless ashtray but still... I would prefer to have one!

This is going to be my last post from Zagreb. On November 2nd I am moving to Athens to study wine and learn how to spit it gracefully. It is a huge career change for me, considering that I've spend a considerable amount of time and money studying Political Science, International Relations, Media, Communications and Law. The only thing wine and those subjects have in common is the need to get drunk silly after a 3 hour lecture on promissory estopel, Northern Ireland and Middle East politics. 

Wine came into my life by accident and it remained there against all odds. Then, when everything seemed to spiral out of control, I tasted just a tiny sip of Xerolithia and could not stop talking about it, it's citrousy aromas, it's balanced mineral palette ..In that infinitesimal moment time stopped and I made up my mind to make the leap and run astray from my comfort zone. 

Wish me luck and bottoms up!!!