Charleston Wine Tasting at Middleton Place

So last Wednesday we went to the Middleton Place wine stroll for the first time for some old fashioned Charleston wine tasting. Every Wednesday starting in early May 'well to do's' can meet up starting at 5:30pm and go from table to table in whatever garden the wine tasting is set up in, mingle, and repeatedly taste the delicious wines.

I discovered I really haven't been drinking enough wine lately, because part of the fun last week was guessing the kind of wine, vintage, and origin of a mystery wine on each of the three tables. It was really quite tragic, because I could not tell the difference between a Riesling and a Pinot Grigio, or a Malbec and a Pinot Noir. Gone are the days where I drank 3 glasses of wine every night after work. I'm lucky to have 4 glasses a week now, and they are usually enjoyed in one day, Friday evening or Saturday. Now I'm actually drinking each week what I have told my doctor all these years. (Threeee glasses max!)

So as we parked ourselves next to the table we liked the most and proceeded to have multiple tastes (treated more so as an open bar than a wine tasting), we eavesdropped on the conversations around us. Most of the crowd at the wine stroll looked like they were either part of the historic Charleston preservation society, were retired, or had their golf cart parked in their garage next to their Volvo SUV. As we listened into what was being said we heard someone mention that there was 'riff raff there' that night. And when you look around and you can't really tell who the riff raff in the crowd happens to be...well, guess what? You're it.



Since I'm not the kind of person that is bothered by such things we got a few more refills of wine and enjoyed walking around the grounds, interacting with a goat, a feisty peacock, a water buffalo, and some baby alligators. For $15 a person, two hours of wine, entertainment (self-made), and strolling in the beautiful setting of a well kept historic plantation is absolutely worth it and a screaming deal, even if you have to force the richie rich crowd to slum it in your presence. I kid...I actually feel quite at home with the 'well to do' crowd...just don't wear jeans, shorts, or flip flops. And leave your jorts and tie-dyed shirt at home, as well! And finally, be prepared to enjoy your evening. Cheers!

Parent's Weekend

So most people think of parent's weekend as college kids welcoming their parents to their school and showing them around. I'm in my early 30's and my parent's weekend was a little different, since I've been out of college for 12 years.

My husband and I moved to Charleston, South Carolina with our almost 11 year old Corgi mix less than 2 months ago, from Southern Pines, NC. Originally from the Washington, DC, area, we had always dreamed of getting out of the rat race and traffic of Washington DC and moving to the warm, inviting south, full of beaches and water, and friendly people. So we moved to North Carolina for a year and that wasn't perfect for us...it was really nice, but not perfect, at least not for us. Charleston seems to be the pinnacle of what you would want in any city. It's gorgeous, the weather is amazing, and we finally live in a state that has palm trees that grow naturally (it's the freaking Palmetto STATE! Hallelujah!).

There is only one problem. We only have two friends in Charleston. I mean, we've met a few other people but I wouldn't say we could call them on a whim to hang out. And we are so used to having tons of friends and family around, it's really quite new to us to be pretty alone in the world. The fact that I work from home doesn't really help, either.

So having my mom, stepdad, niece, and nephew come to visit this weekend was awesome. I like to do just about anything, and love the history of Charleston. I like to think of myself as a nerd that's kinda cool. I took a personal day off of work recently to go visit Drayton Hall, a historic plantation in West Ashley, with my Canon Digital Rebel camera to take some artsy shots and work with them for fun.When you don't know a lot of people, you have lots of time on your hands all of the sudden to do things like that. This weekend, I decided to take my family to Middleton Place, another plantation in the West Ashley area of Charleston that looked amazing on their website.

Middleton Place was really very pretty, with wide, expansive grassy lawns and gardens overlooking the Ashley River. And the weather was absolutely amazing...sunny and upper 60's/low 70's. Talk about a perfect day for learning about my new town. Afterwards, we went down to the Battery in historic Charleston and decided to explore the area. Since I'm totally obsessed with the price of real estate, we walked along the water and I looked Zillow up on my iPhone to see if one day I could possibly afford to live there. But alas, that is not going to happen until I make my millions from whatever amazing idea I have at some point.

I gotta say, thank god for parents and the money they have for things like Carriage rides, which I've always wanted to do, but given the current economy, I feel like I can't really splurge for stuff like that. I mostly look for things to do that are more reasonably priced...or free, like the beach (thank god for that). I realized while on the Carriage ride that I would really like to be a SOB at some point (a resident that lives South of Broad) and I could also be a SNOB if I couldn't afford to spring for the SOB status (Slightly North of Broad). Either one would be great, because really I think I was meant to be born in the south in an amazing historic house that was passed down from generation to generation, and I can be a SNOB no problem if need be, and even a SOB if someone cuts me off in traffic. I did live in the DC area for 20 years, for god sake!

To finish off our day, we went to Garibaldi, an Italian restaurant on S. Market St, which is absolutely amazing. This was the second time I have eaten there, and the price is reasonable, the atmosphere very quaint and cozy, and the waitstaff very attentive. Of course, my husband, who was out of town the entire weekend was very jealous that he missed out. I'm sure this place will become a regular evening out for us. We've tried a few other Italian restaurants in Charleston and this one beats the others by leaps and bounds. It's really that good...but I still have a lot to learn about this city. Hopefully I'll meet some nice peeps soon with tips on what to try next.