by Sandra Crittenden

  My daughter and I were both delighted to be asked to recommend some wines this year for Mother's Day in the  Houston Chronicle . Check out our selections of pink sparklers to enhance your family celebrations at the following link. "From the get-go, wine worked for Sandra Crittenden. Restaurant gigs during her college years afforded opportunities to taste..." https://www.houstonchronicle.com/life/food/article/Houston-mother-daughter-duo-offer-wine-15250654.php

Fall Creek Vineyards is one of the Texas wineries that I have visited the most, both at their Tow and Driftwood locations. This year the Aulers are celebrating their 45th anniversary in Texas wine so this month, I share some of their story in Galveston Monthly magazine, on the stands now. Ed and Susan Auler have proven that together they can do just about anything. In the early years of their marriage, Ed was practicing law while Susan was the ideal mother taking care of their children. As if that was not enough to keep a young family busy, the two also took over operations of Ed’s family cattle ranch... Read the on-line version at  Galveston Monthly.com

Jeremy Parzen  gave me this bottle of Scarpa Freisa Secco 'La Selva di Moirano' Monferrato 2006 to review. He is a friend and also works with the winery. Since I had taken my daughter to a  Scarpa  tasting at a local wine bar last fall, I decided to include her in this tasting.  I also thought it would be fun to share how we go over a bottle of wine at family meals. Please excuse any Italian mispronunciations. Scarpa Freisa Secco 'La Selva di Moirano' Monferrato 2006 - This wine is very complex yet still somewhat youthful with notes of sour cherry, leather, sage, and black olive with a distinct savory element. It is beautifully structured, dry, with fresh acidity, fully resolved, smooth elegant tannins, and a lingering finish. It is very food friendly and quite easy to drink. As my daughter states in the video, "it's elegant with a rustic flair". Highly recommended. If you are a long time reader of this blog, you may have followed our Mother/Daughte