A day with Ms. Yoga is either spent shopping or wining and dining, and the latter was the unanimous vote.  It was a win, win decision as my wife surrendered her beautiful ladies wrist watch for a piece of plastic and rubber on her wrist that keeps track of her steps.  So, we were out visiting downtown areas where she used to live.  We went to the City of Plymouth and the City of Northville; both rather historic in Michigan and both are still great places to wine and dine. 

Now downtown Plymouth seems to always have something to do, I think it is like thirty-nine weekends of the year, they have events in the park and adjoining streets downtown, if you go there enough, you even learn how to walk around and learn where to park, during the busy times.  The first two eateries that we went to were closed, because of private parties, so we decided to try a place that has been there since we all could remember and none of us had ever been to.  The Post Local Bistro was established in 1978, if memory serves me right as the Post Bar and Grill as it was the first building next to the old Post Office.  We were going out for dinner that evening, so in honor of Ms. Yoga we were going to have noshes and wine.  We decided to just get their Party Tray and our waitress assured us that it would be fine for the three of us.  I liked that they didn’t go upscale and call it a Charcuterie Tray.  One thing I learned years ago, was to ask, what is on the tray, because there are certain cheeses that don’t agree with me, and certain cured meats that don’t either, as I keep saying “I am a pain in the arse.”  Not only did they have a nice collection of noshes, they also had a Whitefish Dip, so my Bride was ecstatic, as Whitefish is the unofficial State Fish.  I selected a wine that I have had before from the Wagner Family of Wines, as in Chuck Wagner of Caymus Vineyards. The wine was Bonanza Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 5 California NV. I have stated before that it the old days, this wine would have been perhaps in a gallon jug with a finger ring, but with the pedigree of the winemaker, even for a wine with no vintage, it was very tasty.  This is a bulk wine produced under a great pedigree of fruit made from the “bonanza” of great vineyards in the state of California.  A nice deep red with notes of black and red fruits.  On the palate there are tones of fruit, dark chocolate and soft tannins with an easy finish.  Not what I would select for a filet, but perfect for what we were looking for.

We still had time to amble around wo we moved up to the City of Northville.  We went to Simply Wine which is a cute wine shop that looks and feels like it belongs there.  Maybe a bit more than half of the store is a wine shop with a large assortment of world-wide wines and the majority were affordable and then a few unicorns tossed in the mix as well.  In the back are some wine barrel tables and chairs, a dozen automatic argon-gas -filled wine dispensers that you use a preloaded credit card to pour a sample up to three different quantities.  The help seemed quite gregarious and much more knowledgeable especially compared to the corner party stores. The ladies started before me, as I ran into a friend and had to catch up for a bit.  I had to get a glass of wine and catch up with the ladies and I chose a glass of Soter Vineyards Mineral Springs Ranch Pinot Noir Yamhill-Carlton AVA/Willamette Valley 2020.  The winery is a two-hundred-forty-acre Biodynamic farm in the heart of the Willamette Valley in Oregon.  They have forty-acres devoted to Pinot Noir and their White Label is considered one of the best in the State.  The Fermentation and Maceration of this wine goes for thirty days, followed by twelve months in barrel of which forty-five percent is new French Oak.  They made 1,340 cases of this wine.  The wine had a nice deep red color with nice legs and offered notes of black fruit and spices.  On the palate tones of black cherry, plum and blackberry, soft tannins with additional notes of leather and a finish more of wine, than terroir.  A very enjoyable wine, and the wine bar would be a nice place to meet people for a glass of wine.