Vin Femme Chanson

49 days & Counting... Another weekend Obsession!

So, it's Friday and I'm getting ready to DIY myself to a gorgeous under $5,000 wedding in the forest in just 49 days. I love that weddings today are so out of the box, it makes me feel a lil' less rebellious for wanting to be so unique and personal with our day! The countless number of blogs devoted to weddings have served as brilliant inspiration, or as Mr. H would say, Distraction. Whatever it is, it's been so much fun, I can't imagine not looking at all these gorgeous weddings...So, enjoy my obsessions!

  
Most blogs feature Real Weddings and this week I love: This adorable wedding

How great is this Anniversary gift from Green Wedding Shoes!

This adorable Tahoe wedding is from one of my fav fave's on the weblog scene Snippet & Ink

If I didn't have the best Graphic designer / sister in the world, I would have used these guys for my wedding map! Custom maps on Etsy by Trial by Cupcakes

 
I thought this was a pretty phenomenal DIY Stage for an Eco friendly wedding on Ruffled!

and....I love, love, love these photos. I can't pick one pic from this Real wedding on  Grey Likes Weddings so just see for yourself!

  

A Full Calendar....

I apologize for being such a slacker... but, there are always reasons, excuses, etc. This one happens to be a good one! I now present, a full Calendar of tastings, wine dinners, events on the horizon in Midtown Atlanta, hosted by me and sponsored by Mac's Beer and Wine and a few partners. Take a look, and please RSVP for one or all! Seats are going fast for the Kings of Tuscany Tasting on the 22nd, but we can squeeze a few more people in.

September: 

22nd : The Kings of Tuscany @ STEEL Rest.

Taste Nine phenomenal Tuscan Wines = $50 per person

6:00pm Reception | 6:30pm Seated Tasting

Tickets: $50 per person

STEEL Restaurant's Private Wine Room

We're launching our Cellar Tastings with the "Kings of Tuscany," featuring the best producers from Chianti Classico, Bolgheri and Brunello di Montalcino presented by Gary Long of Vinifera Imports.

6pm - Reception: NV Soligo, Prosecco Brut

6:30pm - Seated Cellar Tasting
Featured Wines:
2004 Fontodi, Syrah - 95pts
2006 Fontodi, "Vigna del Sorbo" Chianti Classico Riserva - 95pts
2006 Fontodi, "Flaccianello delle Pieve" - 99pts
2005 Podere Sapaio, "Volpolo," Bolgheri - 90pts

2005 Podere Sapaio, "Sapaio," Bolgheri - 93pts

2006 Canalicchio di Sopra, Rosso di Montalcino

1999 Gianni Brunelli, Brunello di Montalcino

2004 Valdicava, Brunello di Montalcino - 95pts
2004 Valdicava, "Madonna del Piano," Brunello di Montalcino Riserva - 96+pts
& Surprises to be revealed

Details & RSVP here

28th : ECCO Very Exclusive Tasting of Duende Wines

A side-project, but not a side project. These phenomenal wines from Jeremy Spring and Jake Hawkes are, to use Vajra's words: "Poetic, ethereal and metaphysical!" How can you not love that?

"Duende Wine is a collaboration of two old friends, Jeremy Spring and Jake Hawkes. Our goal is to draw attention to excellent, lesser-known grape varietals growing in California. We produce wine in tiny hand-made lots, with an attention to detail usually reserved for the most exclusive and prohibitively expensive bottlings." www.duendewine.com

At present, there is a waiting list for their wine. You could APPLY for a spot on their mailing list in hopes of getting these delicious wines, or you could ATTEND this event and buy them directly from us! This is an exclusive privilege and we are excited to be a part of this. Email me at leigha@macsbeerandwine.com and I'll get details to you soon!

October:

19th: Beer vs Wine Dinner @ Cypress Pint & Plate

Five courses, each masterfully paired with a beer by Cypress' Beer Man, Wes Anderson and a Wine selection chosen by Me!

Tickets: $45 ++ per person

Details: To follow

A Midtown Event that is NOT TO BE MISSED!!

25th or 26th (Date not set yet) : Laurent Perrier Champagne Tasting

*Hopefully, I'm crossing my fingers that we can do this at Miller Union!!

Details: All TBD

November:

The wedding of the century, of course, is happening in November! But, we still have some wine tastings and events in the works. All else will be revealed...

Mac's Beer & Wine Holiday Preview: Date TBD

Wines for the season, Party specials & Insider offers at Mac's Midtown. All details are TBD but make a mental note not to miss this. Join us for this event and put a big X on beverages for your Party checklist, We want to help you with your holiday dinners and parties! Special Discounts & Deals for those in attendance!

Enjoy! & Watch this weekend for more on Vin Femme Chanson!

love these morning birds

 

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via www.sharesomecandy.com

"Earth's crammed with heaven, and every common bush afire with God; But only he who sees takes off his shoes; The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries." - Elizabeth Barret Browning

Valdicava & The Kings of Tuscany

It's been a while since I've planned a Wine tasting like this. Where the wines on the table represent the best a who's who of winemaking in a region that has already achieved Monumental Status. This is an incredible once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to taste a dream line-up of wines with a few lucky people around one table... If I were to buy these wines to drink at home it would be over $600 in value! Not convinced yet, picture this, and read on...

"The Kings of Tuscany" features the best producers from Chianti Classico, Bolgheri and Brunello di Montalcino presented by Gary Long of Vinifera Imports, with some surprises thrown in! Taste these 6 wines with a retail value of $600+ for only $30 per person. Small bites will be provided, but it's really all about the wine!

6pm - Reception: NV Soligo, Prosecco Brut
6:30pm - The Kings of Tuscany led by Gary Long, Vinifera Imports
2006 Fontodi, “Vigna del Sorbo,” Chianti Classico Riserva
2006 Fontodi, “Flaccianello delle Pieve”
2005 Podere Sapaio, “Volpolo,” Bolgheri
2005 Podere Sapaio, “Sapaio,” Bolgheri
2004 Valdicava, Brunello di Montalcino
2004 Valdicava, “Madonna del Piano,” Brunello di Montalcino Riserva

7:30pm - send off

LOCATION: Midtown, Atlanta | Address will be provided

+ A SPECIAL discount offer will apply to your case purchase as well as a refund of your entrance fee.

84 days...Until I Become Mrs. H!

 

I'm reminding myself to breathe today! My weekend obsession of looking at online wedding blogs, design blogs, food blogs and every DIY blog under the sun is all well and good until you log into your "theknot" wedding checklist and it says "84 days, and 146 items on your checklist!"

So, this picture is to remind me of how fun those first few weeks were after Mr. H asked me to be his forever partner. We get caught up in details and this is a moment to breathe! 

Ahhhh.... a little preview of my sister's invitation suite above as well... her design pseudonym is "ampersand ink" and below...

This weekend's Obsessions:

Featured on design*sponge. I'm loving the Fig and Mustard and adding in some Peridot/chartreuse green.

From a wedding featured on Once Wed, I love their whole wedding. It was in a Barn in the Fall and it rained and was misty and romantic! The bottle vase was our inspiration to start glass cutting all of our wine bottles for the decor for the wedding... which I regret right about now, but when it is all finished I will love it!

This was the very first picture I saved when we started planning. The feel of this tablescape is what I want for our dinner. So foresty, with glow and romance! Also featured on Once Wed.

Cremona, Italy! We're going to Italy! Mr. H will get to see where his trade was made famous by Stradivarius and others. And I will visit my favorite wine region and see the vineyards of Barbaresco and Barolo in Piemonte...my favorite wines, the quaint villages of Cremona and Brescia and Como, etc. The food!!

Please share any advice, recommendations, tips, etc...pass them on! 

Barbaresco, Piemonte, Italia! Salud!

Big H & Mr H go to EATS & Fernbank Museum

At long last, we made the journey 1/4 mile down Ponce de Leon to visit the much-loved Atlanta staple of Meat and Three, EATS! With personality and flair, they prepare chicken in a multitude of ways: Jerk, BBQ, Lemon Pepper, etc along with other meats and a variety of vegetable options, and YES! Mac n' cheese is a vegetable!

 

Big H. (Mr. H's son) was visiting us from Memphis and had to have his two favorites: Ginger Beer (a Jamaican one loaded with spice and sugar) and Jerk Chicken! The perfect pre-museum meal for a Saturday in Atlanta...

And, I have to admit, I was surprised that this Southern Eatery wasn't as much of a "Greasy Spoon" style as I thought it would be. They have options for the vegetarians, and a nice selection of Pasta dishes as well! And all on the Cheap...

I've lived in the general area for about 2 years and never visited these much-loved Ponce de Leon treasures, so it was an entertaining tourist experience for all! Especially the dinosaurs and the Geckos! As a side note, we thought we were going to Fernbank Science Center (which is FREE) and it turned out we were at Fernbank Museum of Natural History (which is not). For those in the area that like an escape, Fernbank has a forested area of mature hardwoods that you can enjoy for free as well! Just call ahead to check hours they allow visits.

My weekend obsessions...

My weekend obsessions... Each week I'll post the things that catch my fancy for the week. Mainly due to my current obsession of planning my wedding, here is my list of images, products and ideas that I LOVE! and that INSPIRE my event planning.

Mr. H and I are building our own chandelier for the wedding dinner, this is not anything like ours, but a great inspiration nonetheless. I love the wooden stump stools on Everything Fab... Also, below, a beautiful summer dinner party featuring a favorite: Heirloom Tomatoes!

Mr. H and Big H. (Mr. H's son) moved all of his Tonewood collection from my dear friends' basement to our future home to avoid mold damage... I'm always thinking of ways to bring our love for pretty pieces of wood into our new home... like this: a salvaged glow...  

Everyone says that your wedding will be the weirdest party you've ever had! But, I disagree. I'm planning my dream dinner party! And, while my plans are for something with an Italian theme (since we're on our way to Italy in November & I've spent the last 9 months of my life eating and breathing Italian wine) I've been ispired by this blog by Brooke in Seattle... La Femme Cooks - I can't help but love that her icon is Audrey Tatou of Amelie's face!

These Parasol Umbrellas for cocktails are deliciously cute!! Can't wait to make them, with their DIY instructions, ENJOY! These will definitely make an appearance on the Big Day! DIY PARASOLS from PAPERMASH

Thinking of registires & bridal showers & wedding nights, etc... here's a lil' wit + delight for me and for you!

....Don't peek, Mr. H!

Love and have a great weekend!!

Postcards from a Land Down Under...

Postcards from a Land Down Under....

In my freshman year of college I was given the opportunity to spend a summer in that distant exotic land called Australia, and having never made a trip overseas, I jumped at the chance. Now, this being about 4 years before my discovery of wine, I have no wine-related stories to share and pass on. Instead, my time there was spent in awe of Roo bars, lunch box sized Nutella, wombats, Vegemite, THE Sydney Opera House and actual koala's in trees outside my "billets" home.

 

Then there's the Aussie MUSIC Scene, of which I was introduced by mixed tapes entitled "Aussie Music for a Sheila called Leigha" and "Fair dinkum tunes for a Valley girl from Cali!" made by a cute Australian bloke (teenage boy)! My favorites from those tapes: Frente!, Leondardo's Bride, Ben Lee, Crowded House, You Am I, Silverchair and the list goes on. It was 1997 and I was in love...with a country!

A few years later and a few countries later (Kenya, Morocco...) I visited Spain and fell down the rabbit hole toward this beautiful hand-crafted nectar we call wine. I cut my teeth on Spanish wine and then discovered that other countries I had visited made great wine too! At the time, I called "Yellow Tail" wine, and yes, while I know people still drink yellow tail, (I love you, APRIL!) I graduated from an amateur enjoyer of wine to an industry professional seeking out the Master Sommelier program and any knowledge about this nectar that I could get my hands on. I tasted Whistler GSM and loved it! Turner's Crossing Shiraz/Viognier - Thanks to Sergio Carlei! Kilakoon, Elderton Command Shiraz and many others...

While Australia held a special place in my heart, I left it behind in the wine world for the sake of more subtle wines with the exception of a few rare Aussie wines I've tasted over the past few years, I haven't bought much from the country in a while. So, that said, I came across two wines that I felt were expressive of their region while still being enjoyable especially for summer sipping. Which makes me wonder, have I given Australia a bad rap? Maybe I'm being nostalgic, maybe it's just my sentimental yearning for travels past.... but whatever it is, I'm reconsidering my purchasing and bringin' the oz back! 

So, anyways, if you're interested in some killer Aussie wine deals - check it out HERE!

and...as my Australian counterparts would say during an Aussie Rules game!

"AUSSIE! AUSSIE! AUSSIE! Oy! Oy! Oy!"

Breakfast for dinner...

English Muffins, fresh goat cheese, Poached eggs with Fresh Roquette...MMmmmm!