It is hard to think that my Bride and I have almost been together from Day One back in 1993, and now we are going to start a new chapter with new adventures…eventually.  As one old saying goes “Mann Tracht, Un Gott Lacht” and if you don’t know Yiddish it means “Man Plans, and God Laughs.” Robert Burns also understood this when he started his poem “The best laid plans of mice and men…”  Lest, you get concerned, all is well, the new chapter is just not starting off as we had envisioned as we started taking these steps.  My Bride feels that God had a reason for her to retire when she did and we are still young and we have lived through inflation periods and Bear Market recessions before.

One of her girlfriends from way back took us out for dinner, actually she was taking my Bride out to celebrate her retirement and I was collateral damage (actually I was invited from the get-go, it just sounds funnier).  She had taken us to Rocky’s of Northville and we all actually remember it as Northville Charlie’s.  Only nowadays, we were having dinner at the Early Bird Menu and the restaurant was packed, so thank God for reservations.  Even during the “science” when our governor was trying to kill all the restaurants, the parking lot at Rocky’s was still packed, with people picking up orders to go.  We started by sharing an order of Whitefish Pate.  Then there were two orders of Broiled Whitefish and one order of Sirloin Tips.

Now these two have been going round and round for years, about whose turn it is, about buying gifts and all the crazy things that friends end up having discussions about.  My Bride started another discussion that will go on for a bit, as she made us get there early, not only to get a table, but to order a bottle of wine, since her girlfriend may drink a glass of wine, when they get together.  We had a bottle of Piper Sonoma Brut NV, which was founded in Sonoma County in 1980 by the Marquis d’Aulan, whose family has been linked for generations with Champagne and Premium wines.  The sparkling wines are made in the classic technique Methode Traditionelle, just like the wines from Champagne.  Each vineyard lot is hand-harvested, fermented and aged separately.  Primary Fermentation occurs in tanks and barrels, then bottled waiting for the Secondary Fermentation.  The fruit is sourced from across Sonoma County and produced in Healdsburg.  This wine is a blend of seventy percent Chardonnay, twenty percent Pinot Noir, three percent Pinot Blanc and seven percent “Aged Reserve Blend.”  The wine was a pretty pale golden color with petite bubbles with note of citrus and brioche.  On the palate crisp citrus with tinges of green apples and brioche, a nice creamy texture, fresh acidity and a nice finish.  Here’s to the next chapter and whatever surprises that come our way.