As much as I like to try different restaurants, there are times when we just need to go have a quick meal. There are plenty of places that I guess can fulfill this need, but how can one go wrong at a steakhouse? One of our sure-fire ideas for fast food with wine is Fleming’s Steakhouse, especially when one can sit in the bar area and take advantage of their special bar prices. We went in and split an order of the Baked Brie, nothing out of the ordinary, but not an item, one usually encounters in a more generic family style restaurant, and couple that with house made potato chips that are served in the bar. We also went with two orders of their great Bacon Cheeseburger, of course I miss the hand battered onion rings, because now it is served with French fries, and I am not a fan of those.

The two wines that we had while enjoying the Baked Brie both evoked the heart, in different ways. The Benvolio Pinot Grigio 2014 that I had is from Friuli-Grave and is just a light white wine that is pleasant enough, especially on an early warm spring day. You may ask what does Pinot Grigio have to do with the heart. I guess you have to be a true romantic to realize that Benvolio was the attempted peace maker between the Capulet and the Montague’s in the famed story Romeo and Juliet.

The other wine is straight to the heart; Colby Red 2014 is a California red blended wine made with Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Shiraz, Merlot and Petite Sirah. It is an interesting popular priced red wine, but the real interest is behind the wine. Colby is the son of Daryl Groom, the winemaker, and his son underwent heart surgeries as a child. Every bottle of wine helps support charities that promote heart health. Colby is almost an adult now, and is a seasoned volunteer with the American Heart Association and is the national spokesperson for the Children’s Heart Foundation. They have already raised $750,000 from sales of the wine and their goal is to raise one million dollars. So having an appetizer can be good for the heart in many ways.