Walla Walla: New November roadtrip for Fall!!
Did you know that Walla Walla, home to sweet onions and yummy wine is the largest city in Walla Walla County, Washington?!...or that
Walla Walla is in the southeastern region of Washington, approximately four hours by car from Seattle, Washington and thirteen miles from the Oregon border and 5 hours from Ketchum, Idaho?
Walla Walla is home to the lovely Whitman College, the oldest bank in Washington state, and it even hosts a state pen!
I bet you didn't. Now, let's get movin'....
Yep, last month I took a little drive and got to play with the Masons and the Maybos
What a treat......or dare I say, "hoot"?!
The first activity in Walla Walla was at the insanely, lovely Abeja winery.
Minus the fact that it was butt-ass cold, like thirty-two-degree-East-of-the-Mountains-cold, it was a beautiful, sunny, and extremely enjoyable weekend.
Yes, it's true! We got to see Scott and Anne and Addy at 2 different locales in Walla x 2!!
Scott is not "under the influence". But he is under
his influence. And that is something that does not need to be explained for those of us that all know and love him, now does it? (Smirk)
And yes, he is suffering from a pot-belly.
I believe it is a condition that he has had since he was a very small child, and it sometimes gets inflamed when he is around co-conspirators or is making appetizers for 700.
Fortunately, Addy does not suffer from Mason-pot-belly-syndrome, but I know that she does have strong Mason-super-dork genes in her which makes her even more endearing and lovely than she already is. Isn't that one of the 500 million reasons that we love these people?
Anne, you are so cute.
Pow-wow under the heat-lamp.
OH! And look! There are the Maybos, (Sam, Claudette, Kelley, and Monika), and Mark Wagon-er (just kidding, Mike). Yay. :)
Scott and Anne of course made nutty(meaning crazy-delicious) food
Cold Smoked Salmon Tar Tar in Carrozza with Creme Fraiche
Autumn Mushroom Strudel with Red Onion Tellicherry Pepper Marmalade
Lettuce Cup with Scott's Salumi Cotto, Crispy Napa Cabbage Slaw & Cabernet Reduction
Tunisian Spiced Pork Rib,
that went along with some nutty (meaning crazy-delicious) wine.
At Abeja, they had a pretty, nice, outdoor kitchen (for warmer times, like not now).....
......a wood-fired oven.....
....and a sitting area.
We got "cheesey" not "whiney" in the wineyards.
After the day we had a nice dinner at Mark's house and then went out. My camera is not great after five, so there is no evidence....you will just have to take my "word" for it.
The next morning we moved pleasantly slow, and we then had a serendipitous tasting at Longshadows (one of my super-faves since forever) and Mason encounter #2!!
Thank you, again, Scott and Anne and Dane.
At Longshadows, Claudette found out that she has a special love relationship with Iced Wine. Nice!
Meanwhile, Kelley was trying to remember who was watching Sampson while at the same time pondering: "How the hell do they get all that wine into these tiny little bottles??"
Scott, again, was talking about the many fine attributes of Steve Perry, while Nick was trying to look interested, even though he has no idea what a "Steve Perry" or a "Journey" is, Addy was completely enthralled, because she grew up loving the band Journey because of her father's little-known-obsession with Steve Perry, and Anne was thinking about which great ice-cream of hers would go best with the magnum of Sequel wine that she was planning to sneak out of the winery when they leave.
Or.....
They might have been trying to figure out where to go for lunch because they were starving.
It was very pretty at the Longshadows.
We also visited L'Ecole.
L'Ecole is in an old schoolhouse that still has creeky old hardwood floors and steps. The windows are big and the wine is yummy. I didn't take any pictures there.
"Oh! Wait", except for this one of some Maybos doing some more thinking....
"Oh!....and this little gem!"
-No, it's not me.
And on that note, I left Walla Walla on a Sunday afternoon; a late Sunday afternoon, as the sun was setting at 4pm.
Welcome Daylight Savings Time!
Or is it the end of Daylight Savings Time?
Whatever it was, "Bienvenuto".
P.S. Happy Birthday to Shurley and Doris!! oxxxxx
That being said, it is amazing what you can do in a small space and also how long it takes to clean up a mess in a small space! Every move must be calculated and before you put something down, you have to pick something else up so that there is a space to put something down in. Well, now you have something else in your arms, so you have to move something else so you can put the other thing down, and now you have a new thing in your hands. Oh! I'll put it over there on that chair that is blocking the door.....But wait, everything that was in the oven is on that chair. Dang it! ....What about my bed, "in the next room"? Great idea! Two steps later, shoot, it's covered in clean laundry. OK. Maybe I'll put this thing on the floor and put the laundry away so then I can put the thing that's on the floor on the bed. Shit! I can't move. I'm surrounded! If I move I will step on the thing on the floor. Bathtub?
........and giving the old cuisinart a healthy rest....just like the I-talians like to do.
