I spent a wonderful day with my sisters, my brother-in-law, and my eldest sister's friend at a wine tasting in Allaire State Park this afternoon. There were many different wineries that were peddling their wares in a multitude of tents scattered within the historical Allaire Village. It was an absolutely perfect day for this, because it was not too hot and not too chilly with beautiful blue skies. As we wandered from booth to booth, I sampled different wines from deep, rich Cabernet Sauvignons from Renault Winery to light fruity Rieslings from Hopewell Valley. I really loved this wine called the Jersey Devil Red, because it was just the right depth for me. I'm not really keen on white wine so much. They had a semi-sweet Asian Pear wine that wasn't so bad. For sweet dessert wines, that sounded perfect. I love a good port as a dessert wine, and Renault has the best for that. New Jersey has a really rich wine country with a variety of different wineries to choose from. Cream Ridge winery seems to specialize in a great deal of dessert wines, and Tomasello winery also specializes in those varieties. I loved Hopewell Valley's Barbera, because it reminded me of a full bodied yet smooth Syrah. After meandering from booth to booth, we all began to feel hungry. Against my better judgment, I decided to indulge on a bowl of Jambalaya with chicken and andouille sausage. It was completely scrumptious of course. If you are interested to find out more about these festivals click
here. The Garden State Wine Growers Association runs these events and they have more than one every year.
While I was there, I took some quick nature and historical photos here and there. There were so many people, so it was really hard to find an angle that wasn't crowded with bodies. I wanted to enjoy more of the park, but it wasn't meant to be. I want to go back with Donald, take pictures, and walk down the nature trail. All of this will be done covered in deet laden bug spray. This way I can get more enjoyment out of the scenery without the hustle and bustle. I hadn't been to the park since going with my Mother three years ago. I went on that trip to do research for an English paper on Howell Works. I don't even know if I have a hard copy of the text anymore. I may have it on my computer somewhere along the way. I remember having to go to the General Store to pick up some informational text for the thesis. My Mother, who wasn't walking very well at the time, was not able to make it to the General Store. She sat on a bench in the parking lot. Thinking about it now, that may have been the last time she went to Allaire State Park. I want to take some pictures of the Grist Mill and the old church. I would also like to go there when the Blacksmith shop is open, so that I may video tape it and share it with you all. I wish I could see all of that again with my Mother, but that ship has sailed. I wish my Mother could have gone with us today, because she would have had so much fun. My Mother loved going to wineries, and she loved going to places like Renault and Cream Ridge winery. I wish she was still able to enjoy the park with me.
The other half of my day was spent with my Dad. I went to dinner with him and my two cousins Dianne and Bill. We rarely get to see each other and it was nice to be able to catch up with family. We went to Friday's for the meal, and I tried to eat as a healthful as possible. Unfortunately, I don't think that there is anyway that you can keep from eating completely healthy in that restaurant. It was tasty though, I must admit. It was nice to see my cousins and I'm glad that we can still have those connections in our lives. Family is very important, even when we don't realize it. Right now, I am trying to learn that concept. My body alone is trying to learn this concept, because it's rebelling against it. It's not from not loving or caring about them, and it's definitely not about wanting to be seperated from them. It's really just the stress between everything emassing into this huge knot. It was nice to have two family get-togethers that made me smile and relax. I haven't had that luxury in a very long time. This was a very healthy day for me. Enjoying the outdoors and getting some vitamin D from the sunshine helped too. I don't really get that much vitamin D because, as I have said in the past, I am a vampire. Ha! I didn't get a sunburn, because I put sunscreen on. I did well as a daywalker rather than a nightowl for one day. My Sunday definitely made up for a very quiet Saturday. It was a nice weekend.
I spent a wonderful day with my sisters, my brother-in-law, and my eldest sister's friend at a wine tasting in Allaire State Park this afternoon. There were many different wineries that were peddling their wares in a multitude of tents scattered within the historical Allaire Village. It was an absolutely perfect day for this, because it was not too hot and not too chilly with beautiful blue skies. As we wandered from booth to booth, I sampled different wines from deep, rich Cabernet Sauvignons from Renault Winery to light fruity Rieslings from Hopewell Valley. I really loved this wine called the Jersey Devil Red, because it was just the right depth for me. I'm not really keen on white wine so much. They had a semi-sweet Asian Pear wine that wasn't so bad. For sweet dessert wines, that sounded perfect. I love a good port as a dessert wine, and Renault has the best for that. New Jersey has a really rich wine country with a variety of different wineries to choose from. Cream Ridge winery seems to specialize in a great deal of dessert wines, and Tomasello winery also specializes in those varieties. I loved Hopewell Valley's Barbera, because it reminded me of a full bodied yet smooth Syrah. After meandering from booth to booth, we all began to feel hungry. Against my better judgment, I decided to indulge on a bowl of Jambalaya with chicken and andouille sausage. It was completely scrumptious of course. If you are interested to find out more about these festivals click here. The Garden State Wine Growers Association runs these events and they have more than one every year.
While I was there, I took some quick nature and historical photos here and there. There were so many people, so it was really hard to find an angle that wasn't crowded with bodies. I wanted to enjoy more of the park, but it wasn't meant to be. I want to go back with Donald, take pictures, and walk down the nature trail. All of this will be done covered in deet laden bug spray. This way I can get more enjoyment out of the scenery without the hustle and bustle. I hadn't been to the park since going with my Mother three years ago. I went on that trip to do research for an English paper on Howell Works. I don't even know if I have a hard copy of the text anymore. I may have it on my computer somewhere along the way. I remember having to go to the General Store to pick up some informational text for the thesis. My Mother, who wasn't walking very well at the time, was not able to make it to the General Store. She sat on a bench in the parking lot. Thinking about it now, that may have been the last time she went to Allaire State Park. I want to take some pictures of the Grist Mill and the old church. I would also like to go there when the Blacksmith shop is open, so that I may video tape it and share it with you all. I wish I could see all of that again with my Mother, but that ship has sailed. I wish my Mother could have gone with us today, because she would have had so much fun. My Mother loved going to wineries, and she loved going to places like Renault and Cream Ridge winery. I wish she was still able to enjoy the park with me. 
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