Archive for wine club
Wednesday’s W(h)ine – Nits! Again!
Posted by: | CommentsI am really starting to get more than a wee bit angry about this.
Nit and lice treatments something like 406 times in the last 10 days. I’m fairly convinced that the issue is not coming from my house, given the number of treatments we’ve had to do. I’m actuallysurprised local council haven’t come around and put tape around our house, labelling it to toxic and nuclear to enter.
I have tennis elbow – which I wish I could say was from playing tennis. Alas, am sitting on arse, combing lice the size of small mountain goats our of kids hair. Funnily, no nits (“the eggs” according to the school newsletter), so again, I have my suspicions that the origin of the infestation does not reside with my family or house.
It’s a mystery! Well, not really, I do have my suspicions, have spoken to the school who have suggested they will “send a note home” to the parent after they first organise a “nit checker” to come into the school and check.
Yeah, that’ll do it, a note will force other parents to get off their bums and actually do something practical.
Luckily, the Real Mums Wine Club have a special deal on Mystery Creek Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2008 (NZ) – which is just perfect for when you’re sitting back in the bath, relaxing and reading a book, and nuking the crap out of your own hair, just in case there are crawlers there, too.
(I do wonder if the scratching my own head is lice, thoughts of lice or paranoia! Or deep thought about what I’d like to do to the parents who aren’t doing anything.)
Anyhoo, Mystery Creek Sav Blanc is going at $7.99 a bottle, instead of $19.00, and is perfect for long relaxing baths and lice killing escapades …
Sublime & stylish premium quality Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc is what we offer you here folks and what a little ripper! I have to shake my head as I cannot believe the premium quality fruit here which was selected for this lip smacking, delicious and simply irresistible wine that goes on and on all day long.
Bright fresh aromatic notes to begin, stimulate your senses and draw you into that tantalising first sip. There follows a big hit of wonderfully vibrant, powerful & pungent gooseberries & passionfruit. On the eye the drop is pale lemon with alluring green hints. This is a brilliant bouquet – fresh and vibrant aromatics with intense aromas of gooseberry, melon and capsicum.
The Palate provides for a mouth filling with a textural and full bodied palate. Finely balanced with appealing fresh fruits and racy acidity. Great concentration and complexity with good length and a clean crisp finish.
Stock up as much as you can quickly, not to miss this amazing deal for another fantastic summer now!
I’ve got my case … delivered free to my door. Overnight! Love a Wine Club that is sensitive to my needs.
(You, too, can get good wine at affordable prices and delivered to your door, quickly and without cost. Simply join the Real Mums Wine Club – it’s free and there’s no obligation – and you go in the draw to win a bottle of Penfold’s Grange – woo hooo! It helps with schoolyard horrors, too 
)
Wednesday’s W(h)ine – bloody birthdays
Posted by: | CommentsSeptember is birthday month. At least, it is in our house.
Two out of five birthday’s occur in September, and I LOVE a good party. We celebrated our one year of being parents of three boys yesterday (actually, we celebrated over most of the weekend ) with lots of different wines.
The problem is, whilst I personally LOVE a good party, I’m married to someone who’s idea of celebration is “oh, yeah, Happy birthday” and when I really push to do something that I like for my birthday, I get *sigh* “fiine, we’ll go out for dinner” and, if pushed more “with a few people”.
But I want a party!
Not bloody likely. So, I will indulge and spoil myself instead with a scrumptious sauv blanc from Marlborough, NZ (my favourites!) – the Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2008. Descibed by me as …
Yummmm! Another glass thanks. And would it kill you to get me some cheese and crackers to go with it? Sheesh.
… and by the Wine Club people as:
It’s a little more on the expensive side, but worth it. Especially for a special occasion. Usualy $39, but only $30.99 from the Real Mums Wine Club.
(Which is free to join and can be done just here. Best of all – the wine is delivered free to your door Hurrah!)
Wednesday’s W(h)ine – Winter w(h)ine
Posted by: | CommentsI really do hate the cold. I don’t cope well with it at all. The problem with Melbourne weather is you never know what you’re going to be getting out of bed to. Yesterday was mild, today it’s freezing.
Actually, I lie about hating the cold. I hate cold weather. I don’t mind it when its a glass of chilled wine, like, oh, I don’t know, a Bethany Quarry Reisling Semillon 2008. Works for me. Probably because the wine notes start with “The best thing about this blend is it doens’t need to be the middle of Summer to enjoy it.” I don’t know about you, but I’m sold!
The rest of the notes about it read:
Wednesday’s W(h)ine – Cab Merlot & Semillon anyone?
Posted by: | CommentsThe school holidays are here and we’re packing to head off interstate for a holiday with the extended family.
Not sure of the worst bit of the lot of that … it being holidays, packing for the family, or spending time with the extended family? Oh, and its the extended in-law family, to boot. Of course, there is always the four hour plane flight, late at night, with three kids to look forward to.
Rather than one wine to assist in getting through the next ten days, I came across this fabulous, multi wine offer I just couldn’t refuse. I may even share with everyone. As long as they stop behaving like in-laws and start behaving nicely …
A Xanadu Dragon Cab Merlot 2005 6 pack and bonus Semillon 6 pack, quoted as being:
Cab Merlot: This delicious wine won a gold medal at the 2008 Qantas Western Australia Wine Awards. This wine exhibits vibrant, aromas of cassis, dark plummy fruits and mocha, entwined with hints of sweet, toasty oak. The full bodied palate is packed with juicy blackcurrants, ripe briary fruits and chocolate characters. This is a generous wine with ripe, approachable tannins, and a warm, lingering finish. Whilst drinking well in its youth, the 2005 Dragon Cabernet Merlot will gain further complexity with bottle maturation, and will certainly reward with medium term cellaring.
Semillon: The really smart thing about this wine is that it starts out all vibrant and fresh, the bouquet offering lively fruit aromas of quince, citrus fruits and dried herbs. Following some rest and maturation the varietal starts to develop a second life and the barrel maturation has added further complexity with restrained, toasty oak characters and hints of roasted cashews. The palate is generous and refined offering ripe pear and fresh grapefruit flavours with underlying bready/nutty characteristics. Beautifully structured, the fruit is balanced by crisp, integrated acidity, layered with a subtle creamy texture. You don’t have to just love Semillon with age to enjoy this monster as it speaks to all drinkers on the level of quality hand picked fruit with loads of integrity and all the hard cellaring work has been done for you!
And it stays, “Drink now until: 2013″ – like it will last that long!
Only $69.99 and not $264 – that’s like a ridiculous $5.83 a bottle – and available from the Real Mums Wine Club.
Which, by the way, is free to join and you get loads of ridiculous offers like these and lots of really nice wine delivered to your door free of charge. Join now.
Real Mums Wine Club
Wednesday’s W(h)ine – Three Day Week
Posted by: | CommentsI just received the school newsletter and discovered that next week is only a three day week.
For the kids, that is.
Monday (in Victoria at least) is a Public Holiday for the Queen’s Birthday, and the following Friday the teachers need a day off for some reason or other. Report writing or something.
Argh! Bad enough my working hours have are reduced significantly by a non-sleeping baby, but having additional kids at home is not going to be conducive to anything terribly productive. Except maybe I will find that time to make some snacks for the lunch box. Or not.
The bonus, I guess, is not having to get out of bed and walk to school on these cooooold Winter mornings (and afternoons), and a McPherson Trailer Trash Chardonnay (2006).
According to the Wine Club, it is:
A delightful, fruit driven wine displaying aromas of citrus, grapefruit and tropical fruits with just a hint of lightly toasted French oak. The palate exhibits fresh, ripe Chardonnay flavours of melon and fig with a delicate, creamy texture and a crisp, clean finish. Subtle oak handling complements, rather than overpowers the wine. McPherson Chardonnay is a versatile wine that pairs well with a wide range of foods. Try with ravioli filled with pumpkin and sage and a burnt butter sauce. Already a serious medal winner this is great all week drinking charddy and a ripper for all who snap it up.
I do note the “pairs well with a wide range of foods” component. Maybe I will make those muesli bars after all …..
Only $10.99 from the Real Mums Wine Club - and not $13.99.
Oooh, and this month, it comes as a bonus with other McPherson Blends – the Verdelho 2007 dozen, the Shiraz Cab 2007 dozen and/or the Red Centre Cab Sauv 200 dozen (all $131.88 per dozen, plus your bonus chardy, inc GST, and you get free delivery, remember?)
Join the Real Mums Wine Club – it’s free, there’s no obligation to buy, but you do get access to a heap of really great wines at really great prices, all delivered to your door for no extra charge. And you can join in our discussions, review a wine or just talk about wine (and have a whine) on the Retell Therapy Wine Club Forum
Real Mums reminds you to enjoy your wine and drink responsibly. Otherwise you may spill some and then you’ll have to lick it off the floor or suck it out of the couch cushions. Or, worse, your kids will get to it before you!
Wednesday’s W(h)ine – a Handcrafted Merlot
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s too bloody cold. It’s not technically Winter for another month, but good old Melbourne has lived up to its crazy weather systems.
Freezing! I hate the cold. Walking the kids to school in the freezing is fun – NOT. Especially when one of them refuses to wear anything longer than a pair of shorts a size too big. At least they reach below his knees. Just a little bit over the battle over him wearing a jumper. Usually, it ends in a “Fine, be cold then!” and an “I like being cold” and then he doens’t get cold.
Grrrr.
Luckily for us there’s a Geoff Hardy Hand Crafted Merlot we can get our hands on. A nice, smooth, soul warming red. And I like that it was “hand crafted”; sitting here under my TV blanket with my laptop, watching the baby eat the contents of the recycle bin, I like that someone else has worked hard for this glass – bottle – of wine for me. I can only describe it as “Mmmmmmmmm. Perfect.”
What the Wine Club people explain it as:
Although this wine is drinking superbly at present, if carefully cellared for then next 4-8 years it will develop complex savoury characters that will reward those who wait. In Australia the popularity of varietal Merlot is a relatively recent phenomenon. Often blended with Cabernet Sauvignon to soften the Cabernet’s firmer tannins. Merlot in the Adelaide Hills is often low cropping which results in a smooth full bodied wine with great colour.
Rate 92/100 Drink whenever possible!
Ha! And look at that. Only $13.27 a bottle instead of $29.99. This could see me through till the end of Winter. How about that?
Join the Real Mums Wine Club and you too can get your hands on some great deals like this. It’s free to join and there’s no obligation to buy.
Real Mums also recommend that you drink responsibly and sensibly and not through your nose with a straw. Enjoy!
Wednesday’s W(h)ine – January ’09
Posted by: | CommentsWe do love a sauvignon blanc here (just in case you hadn’t noticed)
We don’t, however, love the school holidays.
Ok , we can deal with leaving the kids in bed till as late as they want, and leaving our pyjamas on until all hours of the afternoon.
It’s the kids being around and the fighting and whinging and “I’m hungrys” that really get up our nose. And the feathers from the doona, which as decided that the school holidays are a good time to pack it in – forcing us to venture into overcrowded shopping centres.
We could wait till school goes back, but then where would we do our foetal position lying if not under the doona, I ask you?
Anyhoo, back to that sauv blanc. We found one we find deliciously scrumptious, and that is more than adeuqate for those times when you can’t (or don’t) imbibe on a regular basis. When you do, you want to make it a good one – and this one is fantastic!
It’s a Mount Fishtail Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand.
(when I die, I want to be buried there. Preferably under the vines. Or perhaps Icould just be preserved in a vat of one of their sauvs?)
Described as:
Simply wonderful! engrossing light limey green to the eye, just beggs you to remove the twist top. A sensational fresh and dogmatically , upfront, in your face, cheerful Marlborough statement. Heady passionfruit, Guava, minerals and gooseberry, uncomplicated, aromatic, balanced aciditiy ….perfect aperitif easy to enjoy after work and with light foods. Good anytime wine from New Zealand.
… we prefer to describe it as “Oh. My. God! That is fantastic! Damn right I’ll have another!”
Retailing at $24.00 a bottle, you can get your shaky little hands on it for only $13.99 a bottle from the Real Mums Wine Club (join free, delivered free!)
October’s W(h)ine
Posted by: | CommentsUrgh! Last month left us with loads to whine about.
Sore nipple, sick kids, and worse, school holidays!
We’ve all had something to deal with, and loads to complain about. Not a lot of time to think, however.
So, I felt a wine with lots of “S’s” in it would be the way to go. Something nice, mellow and relaxing … a South Bay Shiraz 2006 from South Australia
Described as
Big licks of spicy shiraz with loads of blackberry fruit and judicious use of Oak to compliment the wine by providing structure. Tannins here are just right , not overly aggressive. tart or dusty but as Goldilocks said ” Just right!” The mouthfeel here is the surprise packet at this cost as it provides a lovely long lingering finish and shows excellent value for money. So fill the cellar and poor it any night of the week and enjoy!
Sounds to me like just the ticket for soothing sore nipples (although we don’t recommend you rub it on your nipples before feeding baby. That would just be a waste of good wine!), dealing with sick kids and surviving the school holidays.
Better still, it’s only $7.99 a bottle from the Real Mums Wine Club
(for white wine lovers, you could always try last month’s recommendation, the South Bay Sauvignon Blanc, not from South Australia but South Africa – it’s only $7.99 a bottle too.)
Remember, the Wine Club is free to join, and you run the risk of gaining yourself a bottle of Penfold’s just by signing up!
Make sure you tell us what you think of the wines, too.
And check out this month’s Wine Club Special Offers
(We do recommend that you enjoy your wine whilst drinking responsibly!)
Wednesday’s W(h)ine – September Sauvignon
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s almost the end of Term 3, which means the school holidays are rapidly approaching.
And if that’s not bad enough, the kids – apparently, according to the ‘good’ mother’s out there, due to it ‘getting on in the year’ – are just plain tired and oboxious.
But wait, there’s more. Nits are doing the rounds again at school, which means another few weeks of “bonding” with the kids, attempting discussion whilst we comb nits and other crawly things out of their hair, treating the whole family every second night with some nuclear strength lice killer, that you can’t use on a daily basis because it will disolve your head.
Oh, and you get to wash the sheets twice a day. You know, just to make sure there are no opportunities for the lice to continue laying.
Combine all that with the joy of having to explain to some snotty, tantrumy, sleep deprived 3 year old that, no, they can’t have their favourite stuffed toy because it is currently in quarantine. Nit quarantine.
So, whilst sitting in the bath, some noxious substance nuking our heads, I’ve decided to select a nice sauvignon blanc to assist me in dealing with the situation.
A nice little South African affair – because, let’s face it, we’d rather be anywhere than here doing this – South Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2007.
Usually priced at $18.00 per bottle, it is only $7.99 from the Real Mums’ Wine Club
To join the Real Mums Wine Club (and go in the draw to win a bottle of Penfolds Grange) for free, click Here
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