winner takes all

There is a slight, but obvious shift in the weather. The sunshiny days are fewer and less, while the drop in temperature seems to have appeared out of nowhere. I spend most of my time at home, looking very elegant in baggy pants, and thick, white cotton socks.

The Husband and I invited our friends, Kim and Brian over last night for a fun game of Texas Hold-'em, while we watched Season 8 of American Idol (I've been hooked on it since my university days in Michigan) and enjoyed a bottle of wine of Italian red, from the Montepulciano region. 

The 2007 Gran Sasso Montepulciano d'Abruzzo is one of the nicest, value-for-money Italian red I've had in awhile. Costing only NZ21.50 from our local wine store, Millar & Co., it's also won a silver medal at the NZ International Wine Show. While I don't typically buy into wine awards and the such, from my tasting last night, I had to agree with the result. 

A clear, deep ruby in the glass, the Gran Sasso has a wonderful nose of ripe cherries and blackcurrants, with a slight hint of smokiness and leather on the palate. A light to medium-bodied wine, it is surprisingly succulent and silky, and well-balanced with soft, smooth tannins that caresses the tongue without any chewiness. Yum!

For the price, the wine was certainly a winner for me, and so was the night spent indoors, playing poker with my husband, and our wonderful friends. I'm all in.