Earlier in the week I posted about possible Valentine’s Day date spots.  Today I have one Valentine’s Day gift idea for the food lover in your life (or you!) that will give again and again and do a world of good for hungry children in Massachusetts.

Taste of the Nation tickets are currently 20% off with this code: VDAY2012. The Taste of the Nation event is on April 19, 2012 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston. It is an AMAZING gathering of chefs from around Boston, and it is absolutely one of my favorite events of the year.

Just check out this year’s honorary chef chairs:

Jody Adams, Rialto and Trade

Joanne Chang, Flour Bakery and Myers + Chang

Gordon Hamersley, Hamersley’s Bistro

Andy Husbands, Tremont 647

Taste of the Nation benefits Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign, which is dedicated to ending childhood hunger by making sure kids get the healthy food they need every day.

One hundred percent of ticket sales goes to this cause.

For a recap and photos of last year’s Taste of the Nation, check out my post. Hope to see you there this year!

http://traveleatlove.com/2011/04/take-the-pledge/

Technorati Tags: Boston, charity, charity events, events, Food, Share our Strength, wine

The Boston Sommelier Society is hosting its Winter Gala at one of my Boston favorites, Les Zygomates, and  they are offering a special ticket discount to readers of Travel, Wine, and Dine.

The Winter Gala will celebrate Boston’s fabulous wine industry with an evening of Champagne, wines from around the world, live jazz, and of course food from Les Zygomates.

Tickets are $99 each, but if you use the code traveleatlovemm, you can get them for $79. A portion of the event proceeds go to Boston Healthcare for the Homeless. Interested? You can visit the event page for more information and to register. Don’t forget to use the discount code!

Technorati Tags: Boston, events, wine

Whisk(e)y A Go-Go featured whiskey expert Matt Chivian talking about nine different whiskeys that hailed from the US, Ireland, or Scotland. Food pairings were made by The Gallows, and they were not just great with the whiskey, but they were winter comfort food at its finest.

Here’s the lineup:

American Whiskey by Michter’s American Whiskey Co.

“Single Barrel” Straight Rye Whiskey (Kentucky) paired with Deviled Eggs w/House Smoked Fish

“Unblended” American Whiskey (Kentucky) paired with Apple and Cured Ham Mince Meat Pie

“Small Batch” Bourbon Whiskey (Kentucky) paired with Pulled Pork Sliders

 

Irish Whiskey bottled by Cooley Distillery

Slane Castle “Premium Blended” Whiskey (Ireland), paired with GreatHill Blue Cheese, Honey, Citrus on Brioche

Single Malt Scotch Whiskey Bottled by Gordon & MacPhail

Benromach Distillery 10 year (Speyside)

Ledaig Distillery 16 year (Isle of Mill)

Pulteny Distillery “Old Pulteny” 21 year (Highland)

          Glenrothes Distillery 30 year (Speyside)

The above were paired with The Gallows’ Scotch and Barley Soup with Oxtail, while the below was a slightly sweet, slightly gingery dessert all on its own.

Dunkeld Atholl Brose Scotch Whisky Liqueur

As you can see, the tasting lineup was pretty spectacular, and it featured some really tasty, well-balanced choices. My personal favorites were the Slane Castle Whiskey, which is smooth and light, perfect for blending in cocktails as a rum substitute, the Benromach 10 year because of the earthy turf undertones that reminded me of a rainy Irish day, a hot whiskey, and a fireplace, and the Glenrothes Distillery 30 year because of it’s toasty, slightly sweet notes and lovely smoothness.

It was a great way to spend a Sunday evening with friends; I even got to catch up with blogger buddies from Beantown Eats! The Urban Grape does a fantastic job with every detail of their events, from choosing great businesses to partner with for delicious food pairings, to important details like offering a coat rack for guests. The tickets for the whiskey pop up event were $15 each which, considering how much whiskey and food was available, is pretty amazing. Their events sell out fast, so keep an eye out!

Are you a whiskey/whisky fan? If not, what other spirits do you like for wintry cocktails?

Speaking of cocktails, I am finally checking out The Hawthorne tonight. Any suggestions on what to order?

Technorati Tags: Boston, cocktails, events, Ireland, Scotland, Urban Grape, whiskey, whisky

I was actually expecting the event to be a ladies’ night, so I was surprised at the very large number of men there! I arrived solo and enjoyed a sample of a Chambord martini while waiting for my friend to arrive.

I sampled some Solixir, a really delicious line of refreshing drinks infused with healthy botanical extracts.

And checked out some glittery hair pieces and hats that were for sale.

When my friend arrived, we decided to head out to the Del Frsico’s bar area to get a little bit of air. While everything at the event was delicious, it was very well attended, and the crowd was not the most mannerly group I have ever met. People cut in line for drinks, pushed, shoved, walked in front of things while I was taking pictures. Liberty Wharf, as much as I love it, unfortunately tends to attract the self-important type. As the great Countess Luann put so well, Money can’t buy you class.

Before we headed out we grabbed the fabulous gift boxes which contained a can of Solixir and an Elizabeth Grady mud mask which I was very excited about. It also contained a gift card for lunch at Del Frisco’s. I am definitely going to make a point of a fancy business lunch sometime soon! Del Frisco’s also has a fun Sunday deal; I can imagine Sunday would be a little less crowded, thus making for a great date night.

Our experience at the Del Frisco’s bar was much better. We promptly got seats thanks to some nice gentlemen, and we each had a VIP martini and a lemon drop martini. Del Frisco’s has a fun bar scene that makes for good people-watching. Their cocktails are truly first rate (and strong!), and the whole vibe is kind of swanky. It’s a great place to grab some bar bites and cocktails or even an after dinner drink. We ended up having a  fabulous evening on the water. But we both agreed that our preferred way to visit Liberty Wharf is by boat. Only six months to go. . .

What’s the best cocktail you had recently?

Technorati Tags: blogging, Boston, Chambord, cocktails, Del Frisco's, events, Restaurants