We had just got back from Crystal Mountain and there was another get-together in the works.  This time four of the five sisters would be together, but they were all getting together to celebrate a two-year-old, who was getting her own birthday party, because her Mother didn’t want to the event to be co-mingled with the other birthdays as is the usual way to celebrate.  They used one of the sister’s home for the party, that had a swimming pool and invited some of their friends over as well, which is not a problem.  In fact, we even had an extra guest show up, as my Favorite Daughter was in town for a couple of days and she wanted to see everyone.

It can be an expense to cater an affair for twenty to thirty people, that is why most of the birthdays are grouped together for a once a month party.  The birthday dinner was very casual, consisting of hamburger, cheeseburgers, hot dogs and bratwursts, and three chicken breasts for three people that won’t eat the first four choices, and I am not one them just for clarification, because I am known to be fussy.  I think the menu was chosen, because the Father of the recipient of the party could do the food on the barbeque, while the Mother relaxed and let all of the other women take turns with the child.  I am glad that my Bride and some of the other sisters volunteered to bring dishes to the party as well.

We always bring wine with us for any gathering, just like we always bring food and this was no exception.  My Bride wanted one of her tried and true go-to Chardonnays and I wanted to bring something a little different even though I knew it wouldn’t be the best pairing for the meal, it was a hot summer afternoon, and I wasn’t going to be using the pool.  The other white wine for the afternoon came from a wine tasting that I had attended.  That wine was Milou Chardonnay 2016 from the Languedoc district of France, the fruit coming from the plateau of Asperes. Languedoc is getting more and more scrutiny as people are looking for some more affordable table wines. The terrain for this wine was basically limestone and clay, and had the taste of a basic Chablis. This wine is designated as a Vin de Pays D’Oc and while some may turn their nose at it, it was really good. It had the color of light straw and a soft nose, but it tasted very good, with even a nice finish. It was the type of Chardonnay that can fool people who claim that they don’t like big oaky and buttery California types, most would find it refreshing and then they would be surprised, but that is the beauty of wine.  My Bride decided that she was going to use the pool, and I and my Favorite Daughter went out for a drive and some coffee to catch up, but we were also going to meet for dinner one more evening, before she was going home.