Keep Your Eyes open for these upcoming Events


Check out what is happening October 27th! It's a field trip!
More Info to Come, just starting to gather info now. Plan is to rent a van and have it tote us around, stopping at Tequesta Brewing Company, Bx Beer Depot, World of Beers, Due South and do tastings at each location. Like I say, I am just starting to do the legwork now, so just save the date now.wine-making state.
Let me know as soon as you know you are interested so I can plan accordingly
the cost of this event will be in the range of $30-$35. Purchasing beer at the stops will not be included so that you can budget your flights or single pints for yourself. Your price will include a delicious "lining your bellies" lunch at the Serenity Garden Tea House and your transportation for the day. Timeline and More to come

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Happy Gulping Holidays!!!

Click here for picture gallery



The Chairman determined the Challenge:  Form a team of 4-5 people, create a recipe for 30-35 people or so to TASTE, pair it with a wine or other beverage (enough for each person to taste). Prizes will be given to the best pairings. We will all be voting.  The battle location was set for Gulp Stadium, (Coreen's House).  Eight teams met on the field of Gulping Excellence and the contest began:


Team 1-Wine and Cheese Platter (Mame, Dorothy, Andy, Charles)
Team 2-Steak and Wine/Mozzarella Making Station (Kelly, Jim, Wally, KP, Adriel)
Team 3-Italian Meatballs and Homemade Tomato Sauce paired with with Wine
(Joy, Thalia, Nadine, Amanda, Coreen)
Team 4-Rum Cake and Irish Triffle with Sparkling Wine (Barry, Pam, Ash.W, mom)
Team 5-Chicken Dish paired with wine (Deb, Ryan, Getty, Rach, LeBeau)
Team 6-Fajitas paired with Porter (Sally, Danny, Corey)
Team 7-Minestrone paired with Chianti (Tracy, Steve, Bryan, Mariana)
All of the competitors tasted and judged the teams.  The Chairman declared teams couldn't vote for themselves.  For 2 hours we tasted, sipped, tasted, sipped and tasted, sipped some more.  WoW!  It was so good.  Then the votes were cast and placed in the Price Waterhouse Elf Hat and tabulated in a secret secure location, (Coreen's Bedroom).  All the competitors waited with baited breath for the results and kept busy singing Christmas Carols, telling stories of the past year and more tasting and sipping.  Then, from on high, the Chairman descended, (Coreen came down the staircase), to announce the winner.  Drum roll please..................and the winner is:  Team 5!! LeBeau, Deb, Michelle (aka Getty), Ryan and Rachel. They received not only the bragging rights, but also personalized wine glasses for the GULP! events, 5 gift certificates to Dolce Vita wine bar, Bx Beer Depot, Sweet Ginger and Juno Fish House.  Congrats guys!!!  Your food was delicious!   The Chairman also had kudos for the rest of the teams.  The battle was played well and the real winners of the evening were all of us getting together and celebrating a year of Gulp!  It has been an whirlwind 12 months and we couldn't have done it without each all of you faithful Gulpers!
So raise your glasses in toast:  To Coreen and LeBeau for bringing us together.  To Us who have become Friends.  To the year past and the days to come, never forget.....We are the Gulpers!  The Mighty, Mighty Gulpers!!!! 
Happy Holidays Everybody!!!!












Thursday, November 17, 2011

Bordeaux inspired November's Gulp Tasting...yum!


Before I begin the recap of another fantastic Gulp Gathering, on behalf of all of us who enjoy the hospitality of Sally and BX Beer Depot, I want to extend our condolences to her.  We are so sorry Sally for your loss.  We know how much you loved your brother and we send you love and prayers during this time.

Thanksgiving:

click here for all the pictures from this event
I so look forward to our Gulp Gatherings.  It is my favorite Sunday of the month!  No matter whether we gather at Andy's, Coreen's or BX Beerdepot I know I am going to spend the afternoon sharing good wine, great food and interesting wine stuff with a fun and eclectic crew of people.  Since this is the November Recap then I get to give thanks for everyone in Gulp! Here are the Gulpers who joined us this month:



Thank you Jim Brogan, Kelly Schultz, Tracy Cottle Mariana, Eric Richman, Eddi Ramos-Zahina, John Zahina Ramos, Tammy Page, Kristina Parker, Adriel Wright, Joyce Grant, Jim Page, Barry Imhoff, Deb Knepp, Pam Schuster, Pat, Ashleigh, Mike, Roni and of course Coreen Gottschalk and LeBeau Kpadenou.

Onto the the pairings!

One would think that given this is the month of November Coreen would go with traditional and present us with  Thanksgiving or harvest type pairings but not our Coreen.  She is traditionally unconventional so this month she and Lebeau treated us to Bordeaux inspired wines from around the world.  Thank you Coreen!
(A note from our resident wine geek, LeBeau:  Bordeaux inspired wines are often blends.  To be Bordeaux inspired it must contain varietals from that region.  Varietals of the Bordeaux region include Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc).  At the end of this recap check out our resident geek as he explains what makes a wine more expensive than another.

The First Course:  Coreen put together the only homage to the harvest with this Ham and Pear crostini with goat cheese.  It was honey ham and the pears had been sauteed in a balsamic vinaigrette.  Oh yeah it was yummy!
They paired it with Berringer Knight's Valley  Blanc 2009 from California.  This pale yellow wine made up of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon smelled of unripe pineapple, and cedar.  The taste was citrusy and green and mineral.  It wasn't until I took a bite of the crostini that I tasted the buttery notes that Jim mentioned right up front. Barry said "It's kind of soury.  Quite a tang.  Sweet but not too sweet." The tangy goat cheese and marinated pears really brought out the best in this wine.  It mellowed the sour notes and bumped up the butter. This was a very nice pairing and at $16.00 or so a bottle, this is a very nice wine.

The Second Course:  This pairing combined New Zealond's Esk Valley Gimblet Gravels a blend of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot 2007 with beefy meatballs in a red wine gravy with lovely hints of sweet onion.  This $16.00 medium body wine was full of cherry and chocolate with a good long finish.  Pat said it reminded her of a cherry cordial candy.  Don't let the description fool you, this is not a "sweet" wine.  LeBeau said it was what most people in the know would call, "jammy."  I want it that jammy every time.  The meatballs were savory good and the wine sauce played beautifully with the Esky.  My favorite part was sopping up the sauce with leftover bread from the crostini.  As my mom would say this was larrupin' good.

The Third Course:  I loved Coreen's
mushroom and potato bake.  The potatoes were baked in a delicious light tomato sauce and layered with fontina cheese.  I really liked the potatoes in this dish.  They were well cooked and yet still had a bite to them and the fontina cheese brought it all together.   Add the Erasmo Vina La Reserva from Chile with its Cab, Cab Franc and Merlot blend and you have a match made in Gulp!  It was really delicious.  The Erasmo was a pretty garnet color.  The nose was floral with lovely scents of raspberry and  dark cherry with just a hint of smoke.  The taste was very fruit forward with pepper and acidity on the back of the mouth.  It met with the acid in the tomatoes and mellowed right out into jammy goodness.  The other cool thing about this 2007 wine was it came gift wrapped!  The white paper wrapping with the Erasmo logo in red wine print is really festive.  The price is for a special event too, a little more than the typical Gulper budget at around $22-25 a bottle.

The Fourth Course:  This one was voted the best of the day, pretty much...by EVERYONE.  These two things were meant to be together like coffee and cream, bread and butter, and Sundays and Gulps.
Coreen created a spicy Korean Beef over rice that was an absolute meaty, smoky, spicy taste treat.  I love that she used London Broil for the meat cut.  It stays tender and juicy when seared unlike a round or flank steak.  She and LeBeau paired it with an Italian Rosso Trentino Vicariati Quatro.  This Cab, Cab Franc and Merlot blend is dark purple in color.  The nose is surpisingly fruity for an Old World wine, right behind the fruit is smoke.  The first tastes that hit the tongue were plum, blackberry quickly followed by toast, and chocolate.  Barry called it "Smooothhhh."  The group gave it a solid two thumbs up!  Since I have mentioned the prices on the other bottles I will include it for this one as well, round about $20.00.

The Fifth Course:  This dessert course was a little different from the rest since it wasn't paired with a wine.  The reason for that is in the title of said dessert:  Port soaked Cherry Brownies.  OMG People!!!  Those were some very happy cherries and my mouth was filled with chocolaty, porty joy!  It was an over-the-top finish to a fantastic Gulp Day!  In case someone would want to add a pairing to this lovely brownie try the Esky Valley or the Rossi, they would be delicious.  Since we were at Beer Depot and I am always going overboard I got a Kasteel Rouge Cheery Ale that was awesome!

Now as I promised earlier my first video featuring Lebeau discussing wine making techniques.  (I think this is adorable).

There you have it my friends, the November GulpGathering.  I can't wait to see you in December.
p.s......the Sonoma trip is coming together in September.  Fri will be winery tours.  Sat. will be for a brewery tour.
Also,  keep April 22, Earth Day, open for an exciting event.  More info coming soon!

















Thursday, November 3, 2011

UPCOMING EVENT IN NOVEMBER


Bordeaux-Inspired Wines
Sunday, November 13 · 3:00pm - 6:00pm
at Bx Beer Depot
2964 2nd Avenue North
Palm Springs, FL 33461

Menu:

Honey Ham/GoatCheese/Pear Crostinis
Mini Meatballs in Red Wine Sauce
Mushroom Potato Bake
Spicy Korean Beef
Chocolate and Port-Soaked Cherry Brownies

Looking forward to another great day!
I hope you are all having as much fun as I am at these!
See You There!

Friday, October 21, 2011

Oktoberfest was Celebrated with Gusto at BX Beer Depot

It was a different kind of GULP experience last Sunday.  First, it was a blustery overcast day.  Okay, that wasn't so unusual.  Second, it was hosted at BX BeerDepot.  You're right, we have done that before too.
Click here for all the pictures from this Event!
Third, Coreen and LeBeau were guests!  Yes, that's right I said guests.  They got to be on the other side of the event and to see why we love being Gulpers!  Sally and Corey from BX took on the hosting, cooking and pairing duties and while I love my dynamic duo I have to give props to the Bx Gang for a great afternoon of food and wine.

There were five courses of deliciousness including dessert.  All the courses were paired with specially selected beers from the BX repertoire.  I think all of the beers can be purchase from BX directly.  Sally, chime in here if I am wrong or just chime in and say hi to the gang!

Onto Oktoberfest!

First Course was a delectable fresh cheese platter and included melon, strawberries, prosciutto, and sun dried tomatoes.  Corey paired this with a German Hefeweizen called Weihenstephaner.  It is the oldest brew in the world.  Wonderful notes of banana and clove filled my head and light effervescence tickled my tongue.  It played really well with the melon and prosciutto and I loved the how the tartness of the tomatoes and strawberries took any acid in the beer right out.  Corey said, "This beer goes great with quiche and other breakfast stuff.  If you need a beer for breakfast this is the one."


Second Course was a radish and watercress salad with a mustard seed vinaigrette paired with Hofbrau Oktoberfest.  I cannot tell a lie my friends this was not my favorite pairing.  It was just too bitter for me.  There were others who enjoyed it.  Kelly liked the spicy radishes with the beer.  





Third Course was crazy!  I hate sauerkraut.  I refused to eat it growing up.  It smelled bad and was just gross so when Corey announced he was making a beer braised bratwurst with apple, brown sugar kraut I knew this was the course I was skipping.  I got up to the line and before I could say only  a piece of brat please Corey plopped a big serving of everything on my plate.  The meat was blanketed by the kraut.  I pierced a piece of meat even with the kraut clinging to it and took a bite.  OMG!  It was like a flavor firework going off in my mouth...sweet, tart, meaty, fatty, and oh so freakin' yummy! I ate every bite and demanded the recipe, (which I still haven't gotten...hint, hint, Corey).  The beverage paired with this delectable dish was Hoss Rye Lager.  It tasted of coffee and caraway with an interesting tart hint.  It really rounded out the food to create, for me, the best pairing of the day.

Fourth Course was another main dish offering.  Guinness braised Brisket with homemade spaetzel and root vegetables and it was paired with Baltic Thunder Porter.  This big coffee and caramel lager paired insanely well with the deep meaty flavor of some of the most tender brisket I have had in ages.  Biting into the carrots, onions a spaetzel made mouth happy with sweet savory goodness.  I took a drink of the porter next and the caramel really popped on my tongue.  Dang that is good stuff!

Fifth and final course was a complicated dessert which was really worth the effort.  Corey made a molasses, ginger cake that was so dark it looked like tar.  I know it doesn't sound appetizing but then add a scoop of apple crisp and a dollop of a ginger whipped cream on top and this is one over the top finish to an over the top tasting!  The Salvation Belgian Style Golden Ale paired with it mellowed out the spiciness in the ginger and made the apple in the crisp come forward.  It was really a terrific end course for a fantastic day.

Thank you Sally and Corey and all the BX'ers that made this afternoon so taste filled and wonderful!
While you are here check out some of the great people who joined us:




Next month it is Bordeaux-Inspired Reds
The date is November 13th @ 3pm
The place is BX BeerDepot
Coreen and LeBeau will once again be at the helm
R.S.V.P. right away!!! Price is $30.00
Looking forward to another great day!
I hope you are all having as much fun as I am at these!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

GULP + BX BeerDepot = An Awesome Public Launch!

Hello My Fellow Gulpers!
I am so sorry I missed the first GulpClub event for the public.  I went to North Carolina to meet my New Grandson, Landon!  You can see by the picture he is a super model genius. So for this recap I turn the reporting reins over to our Gran Cru Hostess and Founder, Coreen!!!


Take it away Coreen - 
Click here for all the pictures from this event!
Coreen here.
September 26 brought us all out to the Bx Beer Depot for our first event through GulpClub that was open to the general public! It was such a great day, there were a bunch of New Faces and twice as many Familiar Faces! From start to finish, the event could not have gone smoother. We had the tables set and ready to go when guests arrived, the weather was perfect and our ‘old hat’ Gulpers made all of the first timers feel so very welcomed. You are all such a great group of people, I am so grateful for you being a part of these events.

I will take a stab at the attendees, please make a comment if your name is not listed, or if you know someone that was there that is not listed: Michelle Getty, Ryan Mowatt, Rach Sam, Dana Moritz, Mariana Nascimento, Pete Glocker, Deb Knepp, Maggie and Don Kuhn, Kristina Parker, Wally Lurz, Adriel Wright, another Dana Hatcher, Eddie Ramos-Zahina, Jim Brogan, Kelly Schultz, Brigham and Dan Wilson, Andrew Segaloff, Dorothy Segaloff, Pam Schuster, Ashley Walker, Thalia White, Tracy Cottle, Bryan No3, Eddie Ramos-Zahina, Johnny Zahina-Ramos, Yolanda  Gaona, Eric (didn’t catch a last name). 


The pairings were as follows:
1st pairing:
The Crossings Chardonnay from New Zealand matched flavors with a sweet and spicy pineapple and black bean corn salsa and spicy wonton chips.



2nd pairing:
Chablis Premier Cru Reserve and Tuna Niciose Canape.





3rd pairing:
With this pairing we move to the more familiar style of Chardonnay. The Bramito Del Cervo Chardonnay paired with decadent Napa Valley Mac and Cheese.




4th pairing:
Cuvaison Carnerro's Chardonnay with a chicken/apple sausage flatbread covered in chardonnay carmelized onions, and 6 Italian cheeses.




5th pairing:
Lai Lai Chardonnay from Chile paired with a little gem called Peachy Paradise Tarts with toasted coconut.



Thank you all for coming. I am looking forward to another update on our trip to California from Kristina next weekend. She will be bringing us up to speed on any new developments or details.
See you there!

Also, Save the Dates for our two upcoming Wine Events. November 13, we will be doing Bordeaux-inspired blends and on December 4, we will be celebrating the holidays. More info to come!

Monday, September 12, 2011

Check your Calendar for this Upcoming Gulp Event!!!


Upcoming Events


Around the World Tour of Chardonnay

Sunday, Sep 25 3:00p

2964 2nd Avenue North
Lake Worth, FL 33461
Price: $40 per person
Age Suitability: 21 and up

5 Chardonnays/5 Recipes:
New Zealand - Sweet and Spicy Cherry/Avocado Salsa
Chablis, France - Tuna Nicoise Canapes
Italy - Chicken/Apple Sausage Flatbreads with Chardonnay Caramelized Onion
California - Napa Valley Mac and Cheese
Chile - Peachy Tarts
40 RSVP's accepted-18 Remaining - RSVP And Pay at the Bx Beer Depot in Lake Worth/
on PayPal email: gottschalk.coreen@gmail.com
or at the following link:
http://www.localwineevents.com/events/detail/382133


OCTOBER WE WILL BE DOING CRAFT BEER AND CELEBRATING OKTOBERFEST, STAY TUNED FOR DATES AND INFO!!!
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Sunday, September 4, 2011

The Northwest isn't just coffee and Rainforests. There's wine in them thar hills!

Oh my fellow Gulpers another excellent tour through the world of wine and food has been concluded.  This time we took a trip to the American Northwest.  I know, I know this is the land of Microsoft and Starbucks but I am here to tell you Washington and Oregon are in the top 5 wine producing states in the U.S.  Thanks to Coreen and LeBeau we were treated to a tasty introduction to the wines of this wonderfully diverse region.




Of course, before I get to the wine and the food let me tell you who was there!  We were joined by Krystina Parker, Wally Lurtz, Deb Knepp, Daphine Shean-Tredinnick, Barry Imhoff, Bridgette Wies, Roni Gutierrez, Tracy Cottle, Amanda Slaight, Michelle Getty, Didi Martz, Jim Brogan, Kelly Schultz, Mariana Nascimento, Dorothy Segaloff, Pete Glocker, Dana Moritz, Joy Dietz, Pam Shuster, LeBeau Kpadenou, Coreen Gottschalk, Chris Bryan and me, your favorite blogger!   Even though Andy wasn't in attendance he generously made his home available to us again!  Woo Hoo!  Thank you Andy!
A special shout out to Dorothy for acting as the hostess with the mostess in Andy's absence!  You Rock Dorothy!





p.s. what do you think of the new GULP logo?
cool, eh?



Okay, now it is time to turn to the goodness that was Wines of the Northwestern US:



Click here for all the pics from this event

1st Course:
Let me start of by saying when I walked into Andy's house the tables were already set with this delicious first offering.  It was another 10 minutes before all were gathered and the gang was ready to begin Gulp so I was teased by the pretty plate of tapas consisting of Lemony Quinoa with feta and spinach on a fried tortilla.  It was delish! I liked the lemon, I have always enjoyed a little acidity with spinach.  It seems to cut the bitterness in the green.  Then add the salty creaminess of the feta and you have a truly outstanding bite.  It was paired with a Sokol Blosser Pinot Gris from the Willamette Valley of Oregon.  This refreshing and slightly effervescent wine had a green nose with aromas of lemon zest and green grass.  It was very pale yellow in color.  The flavor was like the aroma; bright, clean and herbacious. Some mentioned a minerally taste, "kind of like rocks."  It really made the lemon in the quinoa pop out while the feta and quinoa smoothed out the acidity in the wine.  These two played very well together and made a great pairing.
click here for the all the recipes from this event.


                                                      2nd Course:
This next course is what I like to refer to as gorging food.  Coreen made a Spicy Thai Green Curry with Chicken and rice cooked in coconut milk.  Crazy Creamy Goodness!  It was spicy, creamy, chickeny and oh so yummy.  Add the Daedalus Gruner Veltliner from Willamette Valley and you have a match made in Gulp!  The Gruner is light yellow in color.  The nose is floral with a little green apple.  The flavor is spicy with green apple.  It reminded me of a dry reisling.  
This wine is fermented in 50% stainless and 50% neutral oak which translates in to a clean spicy and acidic mouth feel. LeBeau mentioned this is one of his favorite varietals.  Take a bite of the curry and then taste the wine and the creaminess of the coconut mellows the acidity and brings out a richness to the wine that wasn't present before. I could have had 2nds, 3rds and 23rds of this pairing!  I was polite and left some for the rest of the group.

Next came the blind tasting led by our Taster in Residence, LeBeau:
Appearance =  very pale yellow, almost clear, slightly effervescent, not much legs
Aroma = honey, honeysuckle, green apple, slight mineral
Flavor = honey, green apple, lemon/lime, moderate acidity
Have you figured it out?
Hmmm...?
Give up? 
I picked it!  It was Chateau St. Michelle Reisling from Columbia Valley, WA.  Oh my that is sipping wine!







 3rd Course:
I must warn you in advance there were some adult comments made on this course and the next so....well you have been warned.  For this course Coreen paired a salmon BLT on toast with dill aoili with a Pali Wine Co. Alphabets Pinot Noir.  The salmon was rich, the bacon smoky, the tomato tangy and the toast light and crispy.  

The wine smelled like carmel, and black plums.  It tasted like cherries, earth, slightly spicy.  To explain how good this pairing was let me quote Barry, "This is orgasmic!  Perfectly balances salt and fruit.  It brings you full circle!"  I think this says it all.





4th Course:
Coreen put together a cheese and potato perogi in a marsala sauce with mushrooms, green peppers and onions.  The Sophie's Choice brand  perogies were creamy, soft and cheesey.  The sauce was eathy, savory and slightly sweet thanks to the onions and marsala wine.  My only critique was the green pepper didn't fit with the other flavors.  Then came the wine from Chateau St. Michelle.  This was an Ethos 2007 Syrah and it was, for me, the most delicious wine of the day.  It was deep purple in color with big slow legs. The aroma was full of black cherry, chocolate, campfire smoke and burned sugar.  When paired with the perogi it was a sensual experience. This course too, brought out the sexy in a few of our gulpers. According to Daphine, "It's woodsy and sensual.  It's like a good men's cologne.  I want to dip my husband Gary in it."   I thought it brought out the mushroom in the sauce and deepened earthiness of the overall dish.  Once again, the green peppers didn't work for me.  I pushed those aside and lapped up the rest with lovely sips of syrah in between.


The extra pour:  I love extra pours.  This one was wonderful.  Stella Maris Red Wine is a blend of 35% Cabernet, 29% Merlot and 28%Syrah with a tiny 8% of petit verdot.  It hails from the Columbia Valley WA.  The color was a lovely deep red almost ruby.  It is a medium body wine and very drinkable with berries and lightly perppery. I tried it with the perogies and it paired well.  It also did well with the chicken curry.  Yes, I used this as an excuse to have more curry.

5th and final Course:

I know, all good things must come to an end and this dessert course was good.  This was an unusual course because the sweet was served on belgian endive.  Coreen stuffed the savory leaves with a goat cheese and blueberry creme, sprinkled it with peanuts and a drizzle of honey.  They were creamy, crunchy and this may sound strange, refreshing.  I guess you could say palate cleansing.  It was paired with a much sweeter confection in the guise of a Chateau St. Michelle Late Harvest Chenin Blanc.  The color was pale gold with not much nose but what you could smell was bananas.  Someone said it smelled kind of like overripe fruit.  The taste was honey all the way.  It was like a honey comb was opened up and the grapes just soaked up the nectar.  I loved the endive treat but I have to say the wine was a little overpowering, just too sweet for me.  I know one Gulper, Deb, was loving it!



So there you have it my Gulper friends!  It was a great day with some of my favorite people.  There is something so wonderful about sharing an afternoon with fun like minded people drinking wine and eating good food.  With the world in the strange state it is I take great pleasure and comfort in afternoons like this one and I hope you did too!  Until next time take care and enjoy as much life as you can!
The next Gulp event will be a new adventure as we take this group to the next level.  Join us on Sept 25th at BX Beer Depot for "World Tour of Chardonnay" as we introduce Gulp to the world or at least Palm Beach County!  Check out the event at our Facebook page World Tour of Chardonnay for all the details
click here for all the recipes from this event.