Now purists might argue that the Lions actually played at five stadiums, but I will be ego-centric and only claim the three that were used in my life time, and that is a long enough span of time.  I can go all the way back to when they actually played at Tiger Stadium, and back then, you had to willing to endure the elements, just like the players and when the NFL got their other acronym of “Not For Long.”  They are famed for always having a traditional Thanksgiving Day, and the only team that has never played in a Super Bowl.  In spite of their fame for losing; the Honolulu Blue jerseys have been a mainstay in Detroit, since when they did win before the Super Bowl was created.  All this is because we have season tickets on the fifty-yard line, on the visiting team’s side, and we usually just sell the tickets to friends that are really fans.  This year my Bride decided to not try to look for a purchaser for an exhibition game, so we went to see the arena.

We got downtown early to have lunch and some wine, before the game.  We also got the privilege of paying forty dollars to park our car, where we usually only pay ten dollars.  As I said the Lions are still a major draw.  We went to Basement Burger Bar, and the downtown location is the only one of their three locations that isn’t in a basement.  Their gimmick is that they have a menu where you write all the parameters of your burger on the menu and then bring it to you.  My Bride had a Chicken preparation with Truffle-Oil French Fries and I had a “Wagyu-style” burger with Onion Rings on the side.  Both selections were big, filling and a bit sloppy to eat, but we were adventurous.  We also had Mimosas, which was a bad choice, because they brought us a glass of orange juice neither of us could stand, and with the addition of an airline wine bottle of Barefoot bubbly American Champagne Brut Cuvee California NV.  We even ordered a second split each of the sparkling wine to see if it could mask the taste of orange juice, but to no avail.  Barefoot Cellars has a huge selection of value-driven wines, with their iconic footprint label evoking the concept of bare feet stomping and crushing the grapes.  The winery began in 1986, and they were purchased in 2005 by E & J Gallo, which explains how they can call themselves “American Champagne” from a loophole that was agreed upon, when France sued and won the case that sparkling wine made here could not use “Champagne” except for a few wineries that were grandfathered in.  This wine looked like a pale straw-yellow as I was pouring the second bottle into the Mimosa and is pure Chardonnay and made from the bulk method, also known as the Charmot Method.  There was not much nose being offered, and I didn’t try any, as I didn’t want to drink it from the bottle in the restaurant.  

After our lunch, we walked over to Ford Field, named after the Ford family, of automotive fame, and the owners of this lauded football team.  I actually got to see for myself the wonderful seats that we own with two others.  There are six seats twenty-two rows up with nothing to impede the vision of the entire field.  We also went wandering around the stadium and I had a chance to witness how different brands were selling or not selling, though we didn’t check out any of the restaurants that are in the stadium.  I really didn’t see wine listed at the beverage booths, and my Bride said that she wanted a Bloody Mary, that came out in a plastic replica of a caning jar with all sorts of different garnishes sticking out of the container.  She said it was good, and very spicy, but she ended up throwing away the garnishes.  I asked if they had any wine at this booth and the lady produced an individual serving bottle of Barefoot Chardonnay California NV.  When Barefoot Cellars began, they only produced a Sauvignon Blanc and a Cabernet Sauvignon.  Slowly, they introduced new varieties and in ten years, they had achieved coast-to-coast distribution. After they were purchased by E & J Gallo, they are now considered one of the largest wine brands in the world with annual production averaging around twenty-one-million cases.  Even though I get razzed a bit, when I write about brands like this, I still think that they may be the product that will entice a customer to discover other Chardonnay wine.  The wine had a pale gold color and offered notes of fruit and butter, which is surprising since I am sure that wine is produced in huge Stainless-Steel tanks, unless oak chips are added to the tanks along with the juice.  On the palate, this wine offered tones of apple, peach, and vanilla (once again, it must be oak chips) and a short and sweet finish.