Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Proof.
In Praise of the Bellissima Bellini
My favorite food and wine pairing is the bellini cocktail. In essence, it's fruit juice for grownups, but that description hardly does it justice. Prosecco and white peach puree team up for a sophisticated yet entirely approachable potent potable. Like the mimosa, which pairs sparkling wine with orange juice, the bellini is lovely to have along with a sumptuous brunch. But it's also the perfect thirst quencher at any time, especially on a hot summer day in Venice, where it was invented.
By Denise Shelton5 years ago in Proof
Three Steps of Perfect Pairings
FOUNDATION AND CREATION The magic that wine can bring to food was introduced to me from an early age before I even thought to try the strange-smelling grape juice. My mother would spend the holidays cooking and baking with every moment she had. It became impossible for me not to get caught up in the preparations for daily meals and countless sweets meant for friends and family. To this day, I have a practical library of recipes, most of which I have yet to even try.
By Jonathan Ryder5 years ago in Proof
A Parent's Guide to Wine Pairings. Third Place in The Perfect Pairing Challenge. Top Story - November 2020.
Ask any sommelier, casual wine enthusiast or twenty-two year-old college girl what their favorite wine is and you will get answers that run the gamut from dry to sweet, cheap to expensive, and "more about taste" to "will mess you up after just one glass". Wine is an amazing drink like that, it brings people together. There are some who get paid to swish it around in their mouths and spit it out. There are people who buy wine glasses with quirky sayings about their favorite blush. Then, dear readers, there are parents. Parents don't care about the specifics. Parents don't care about whether its supposed to be cold or room temperature. Just pour. It. In. A. Glass. Or don't. We're flexible.
By Markita Daniel5 years ago in Proof
A feast in Autumn
Crab (Hairy crab) paired with yellow rice wine is a very classic match in Chinese cuisine. “When you feel the Autumn breeze, it’s the time to eat crab; the chrysanthemum is blooming; you can smell the crab’s aroma.” In late Autumn, the hairy crabs have reached their peak. The meat is firm and full, the crab cream is golden, and the crab paste is like white jade. Paired with some warm yellow rice wine, even the cold in autumn cannot stop our enthusiasm for eating crabs. After all, the delicious carb can only be tasted this season from September to November. At this season, hairy crabs generally strong and mature. The flavor of the crab cream and crab paste is the best. Later in December, the hairy crabs will look a little empty that not as plump as before.
By Golden Maple5 years ago in Proof
wining and dining
Fish eye is probably my absolute favorite. Give me a nice, sweet flavor and I'll be your best friend forever. I'd share it with whomever is brave enough to join me by the fire pit. What says you? What's your go to bottle when you want to enjoy a night in? And what about food? Cheese and wine or beer and nachos?
By the nomadic trio5 years ago in Proof
Top 5 Classic Boozy Drinks
Everyone enjoys a little something now and then, this also goes with drinks. I'm sure given the trouble with Coronavirus, everyone's liver is probably in a form of trouble. So for those who don't have troubles with their liver, here are a few cocktails and mixed drink ideas for up and coming parties or to help keep up with the Jones'.
By Heather Wilkins5 years ago in Proof
Wine Here, There, and Everywhere
If Covid-19 hasn’t taught me anything else, it’s a new appreciation for wine. It sounds really bad when I say it out loud, but I drink (almost) every day. I used to only drink alcohol socially, but one day I saw an article on Facebook that changed my outlook on drinking forever. It said that the antioxidants found in red wine could significantly reduce the chances of catching a cold. I’m not sure how the words “could” and “significantly” can coincide, but it was on Al Gore’s Internet, so it must be true… maybe. This news excited me so much because I catch a cold every year sometimes 2 or 3 times even during the summer months. No one likes being sick, but I especially hate having a cold. Regardless of the medicine I take, the symptoms persist 7-10 days, and while it’s a God-awful feeling, it isn’t bad enough to take time off from work considering the sick leave rate of 8 hours per month. I’m sure there are other foods with cold-fighting antioxidants, but wine is so much more fun. There are many places nearby with inexpensive choices: Trader Joe’s, Aldi, Total Wine, grocery stores, and local sellers. It’s now a permanent fixture on my weekly grocery list; and no, I haven’t had a cold since.
By Tia Ramsey5 years ago in Proof
Wine and therapy
Wine therapy can be defined as a series of refinement strategies that employ red wine and must. Must is the repeatedly crushed fruit juice that consists of the skins, seeds, and fruit stems. The substantial part of the must is called pomace and generally produces up 7–23% of the must's absolute substance, making it the initial step in the winemaking process (A History of Wine as Therapy, 1964). A beauty treatment born in France to obtain the most from the antioxidant, toning, and detoxifying properties of grapes promptly escalated to the rest of the world, notably in Italian wine lands (A History of Wine as Therapy, 1964).
By Dr. Reanna Waugh PhD5 years ago in Proof
Religion and Wine:
As one of the original alcoholic drinks of contemporary human civilization, wine has imparted itself into practically every significant religion of the world. Since the birth of time, the doctrines of Europe and the Middle East gradually embodied this “nectar of the gods“ into their observances, declaring its fame and continuity throughout generations and millennia of individual growth. During great courses of time, the recipe of wine was secured as a mystery of religious faiths and influential established families of Sumerian and Egyptian authorities (Fuller, 1996). When wine eventually reached Ancient Greece and Rome, it created an original set of gods and rites focused on this compelling alcoholic drink (Fuller, 1996). As those ancient civilizations collapsed, wine worked to withstand the dark and middle ages under the preservation of Jews and Christians, instructed by various wine displays in the Bible (Fuller, 1996).
By Dr. Reanna Waugh PhD5 years ago in Proof
Hobbit Food Feasting
“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” - The Hobbit My favorite part of the Holidays is the feasting and merriment. Spending hours with friends and family over shared bottles of wine and tables full of decadent food. Growing up, my family always did a traditional Christmas meal with turkey, casseroles, and pies. However, in the last few years, we've started something new that I think will stick for many years to come. On Christmas Eve I create massive charcuterie boards and we pop open several of our favorite wines from our favorite label: Lazarre.
By Ciara Brooke5 years ago in Proof
