There are days when you can eat in, but you end up going out, just because you have been at home all day.  I am one of those people that never post on Social Media that we are at a restaurant or away, first of all, I have always figured that no one cares and I really don’t want to advertise that the house will be empty. We were packing for a trip to see the family in Louisville, and packing is a lesson in logistics.  I mean the actual folding of clothes for the suitcases is easy, there is all the electronic stuff that you have to pack, including extra cords and power packs, I mean I cannot go anywhere without my laptop and neither can someone else I know.  Then there is wine to pack, as one cannot go empty-handed, especially if there is going to be a couple of dinners at their home, and then we need some wine for the suite as well, in case we get thirsty.  We also can and we did travel with an “automobile refrigerator” that can operate both off of the car, and regular electricity as well, and part of it is, that we were bringing about ten filets for one of the dinners.   So, by the time that everything was packed and ready to go, I needed to get out of the house and not have one less mess to contend with, especially for my Bride.

We were going through the list of local restaurants that we could go to, and she kept mentioning fish, and I was thinking it was for Lent, but it was a Thursday evening, but she was trying to watchful of what she was going to eat, as the odds were that when we got to Kentucky, the food would be excellent, but the calorie count could be high.  That is how we ended up at Rocky’s, and to be truthful, I think it has been the first time that I have ever had fish there, but then I am usually a carnivore.  We both started off with a bowl of their Black Bean Soup and I could make a meal of it, it is that good.  My Bride went with her usual Broiled Whitefish, and it is probably the most requested fish dinner in Michigan, but she made a couple of changes and had Basmati Rice and fresh Asparagus.  I went with the Grilled Rainbow Trout with a Whole Grain Mustard Cream, Buttered Redskin Potatoes, Fresh Asparagus and a Dill Cucumber Salad.  Dinner is always great at Rocky’s.

My Bride didn’t want to drink much for dinner, as she wanted to get up early the next day and be on the road, and since we would be sharing the drive, I saw sense in her suggestion.  She immediately ordered a split of J. Rogets American Champagne Brut NV.  Now this wine is a real mystery to me, as I tried to some information on it.  I have seen it listed as a New York wine and as a California wine, though the label says American which is a big AVA.  The wine I guess originates in Canadaigua, New York in the Finger Lakes Region; and the brand was listed in 1979 by Canadaigua Brands which is the second largest producer of domestic wines in America.  The wine also lists itself as “American Champagne” and since it was formed in 1979 (or earlier) it may have slipped through the cracks, since it was perhaps then listed as New York, but it is grandfathered in to use the name “champagne.”  The other mystery is that everyone seems to agree that the wine is produced by the Charmat Method, a bulk process used around the world for popular priced sparkling wine, but the label says “Secondary Fermentation Before Bottling”  and I am neither a winemaker or an attorney, so I shall not go on from there.  The wine is listed by several sources as being made using Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meuniere and since it has an American AVA, the grapes could very well be used and grown anywhere in the fifty states, and the bottle has a screw cap, which negates the pop, but some popular price sparkling wines now use that type of closure.  Now for the good news, it was a decent tasting wine, especially for the price with some yeast, mousse and citrus notes, and bubbles, plenty of bubbles.  As for me, I decided to try something totally different and had Chateau Grand Traverse Ship of Fools White Wine, Old Mission Peninsula 2017 from good old Michigan.  In 1974, Chateau Grand Traverse began with the purchase of a “tired” fifty-five-acre cherry orchard on Old Mission Peninsula, while back then, the smart money was growing Cold-Hardy Hybrids in the western lower half of the state.  Ship of Fools is part of Chateau Grand Traverse Eclectic Wines, which are vintage dated, small production wines.  The wine is a blend of Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Muscat Ottonel and it was a very light and easy drinking wine and reminded me of popular priced Pinot Grigio wines and the good news is that it was not sweet, not a real dry wine, but as I said, very easy to drink with a very soft nose.  While the name of the wine evoked Katherine Anne Porter and a film that I saw with my parents with Vivien Leigh, Simone Signoret, Oskar Werner, Lee Marvin, George Segal and Michael J. Dunn, the choice was lost to me, but what do I know.  The next morning, we were off and running, and oh, by the way, by the time that you read this, we will be back in Michigan resting comfortably at home.