Turn a trip into pleasant wine journey
EL PASO -- I was recently invited to attend a gala at the University of Notre Dame, and honestly, my first thought was, "What will the wine be like throughout the weekend?"
After long delays, and unremarkable airport food in Denver, I arrived too late to have dinner the first day.
On the second day, my first opportunity to have a glass of wine was at my favorite Italian restaurant in the area, Lucchese in Elkhart, Ind. The wine, a Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, is exceptionally priced at $17 a bottle, and while the wine is short in the mouth, it is fruity and smooth and always a great accompaniment to pasta at Lucchese.
The following day, I went to Papa Vino's for lunch because it serves several good wines by the glass. Papa Vino's serves wine in small individual carafes, a method I first saw used at Osteria Via Stato in Chicago. I love this method of serving a glass of wine, because only a small, reasonable portion is served and the remainder stays in the small, individual decanter.
In El Paso, I have only seen that replicated at Toro Burger Bar in Kern Place.
At the "Hannah & Friends" gala that night, each table had a bottle of red and a bottle of white wine. Not surprisingly, hosts Charlie and Maura Weis provided nice wines, although unfortunately, my table was occupied by enthusiastic red wine drinkers, so we had to share one bottle among us. Typically, wines served at large gatherings as these are unremarkable, and sometimes not even drinkable, so the evening's wines were a pleasant surprise.
On the final evening of my trip, we went to the Weis home again for a wrap-up party. We entered the backyard, where celebrity guests were drinking wine being served in plastic wine glasses.
Before I could be served a glass of wine in a plastic glass, Maura Weis led me into the house, pulled a special bottle of wine from her cabinet, and gave me her most special wine glass, embossed with pictures of horses, to reflect her passion for things equine. There are some advantages to being perceived as a wine expert, true or not.
On my return home to El Paso, I traveled to the airport in Chicago via the South Shore Line, which takes you from the South Bend Airport to Michigan Avenue, aptly named the Magnificent Mile.
I always allow ample time to experience a downtown Chicago restaurant. After walking eight blocks, I arrived at my chosen restaurant, sopping wet because it was a hot and humid Chicago day. Although the restaurant was closed for a private party, fortunately there were plenty of other options to explore. Downtown Chicago is easily navigated, even with luggage in tow, and O'Hare Airport has easy subway access to the heart of downtown, so downtown dining experiences are quite accessible from the airport.
With a little planning and effort, any trip can become an enjoyable wine journey.
Riccardo Barraza , of Italian Imports, is a regular contributor to the El Paso Times.