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WHO DO YOU INVITE TO A HOT DOG DINNER? ANGELS & COWBOYS.

These days, I try to find any opportunity to feel normal. So when a day of working at home, washing my hand, and sitting in Zoom meetings gave way to an unseasonably warm evening and an invitation to eat hotdogs with friends, I jumped at the chance.


Good friends don’t have to impress each other. Good friends don’t need a formal invitation or fancy food. They can get together at the last-minute and make hotdogs for dinner. Because with good friends, it’s not about what’s on the table, it’s about who’s around the table. It’s the company and the conversation that matters. Of course, the wine matters, too.

That’s why, when I hung up the phone, I grabbed a pack of Hebrew National all-beef hot dogs and a couple of bottles of my new favorite red wine: Angels & Cowboys Proprietary Red, 2018, walked over, and settled into my friend’s backyard.


As the hot dogs came off the grill, I opened both bottles, poured (into disposable plastic) glasses for my friends, slipped off my mask, and took a sip.

From Sonoma Valley, Angels & Cowboys Proprietary Red is a blend of Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Verdot, Sangiovese, Petite Sirah, and Malbec. Founded in 2014, Angels & Cowboys is a collaboration between Yoav Gilat, founder of Cannonball Wines, and Michael Schwab, a graphic designer from Northern California. Maybe that’s why the label is so simple and appealing. Out of the bottle, the wine is a beautiful deep garnet color and tastes like autumn in a glass. I sniffed, I sipped, and immediately detected a tangle of berry and plum flavor with spicy notes of cardamom and mineral creating earthy robustness that I welcomed after a summer of drinking chilled whites, rosés, and fruity pinot noirs.


This was my first taste of the 2018 Angels & Cowboys Proprietary Red. Since that evening, I’ve shared bottles with friends from the neighborhood and beyond and enjoyed I’ve it at home with my family and with the presidential candidates during the debate. It’s my new house wine and because it’s less than $20 a bottle, I can afford to drink it with a roast of lamb, as the winemaker suggests, or pair it with hotdogs. It goes perfectly with both.

By Carol Band, our Wine Connoisseur

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Thanksgiving & Wine

With November right around the corner, you may be starting to think of your menu for Thanksgiving Day. The thing about turkey is, it pairs well with most wines, so do not stress! We’re here to help you find the perfect wine(s) that will go with your Thanksgiving menu.

Not sure what to get? Read through some of the wine characteristics that all pair well with a typical Thanksgiving dinner!

  • Pinot Noir:  Most pinots are dry, light- to medium-bodied with flavors that include cherry, forest floor, and notes of vanilla. It’s light yet has personality, making it perfect for any thanksgiving day meal!
  • Chardonnay: You can’t go wrong with pairing Chardonnay with your Thanksgiving dinner. Although the grape’s expressions vary worldwide, the wine’s crisp acidity, mineral undertones, and fruit-forward nature bring out the best that turkey has to offer.
  • Sauvignon Blanc: Known for its refreshing crispness, due to its high levels of acidity and low amounts of sugar, Sauvignon Blanc is a pairing for turkey.
  • Rosé: It’s light, refreshing, and fun, making it a great wine to serve as guests are arriving.
  • Zinfandel: It’s delicious fruity undertones go very well with the rich flavors of a Thanksgiving meal.
  • Chenin Blanc: A later harvest Chenin blanc is an excellent choice for a dessert wine (especially for pies!) Or try it with milder meats and flavors during your Thanksgiving meal.

Here are a few wines we are loving for Thanksgiving 2020!

Thanks for reading!

Your friends at Mystic Wine Shoppe

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Apple Cider Cranberry Margarita

It’s officially Fall, and we couldn’t be more excited for the foliage, trips to the farm, pumpkin beer, and hardier cocktails. This month we wanted to take a cocktail we love, the margarita, and make it fall-themed. Cause, why not!

We used one of our very favorite tequilas for this cocktail – Milagro. Not only is it smooth, but it’s reasonably priced. Great value, indeed. The Apple Cranberry Margarita would be perfect for small gatherings this Halloween. Just add a few fake spiders into the glasses to make it festive and spooky.

Ingredients:

  • 2  ounces of Milagro tequila, or something equally as delicious
  • 1/4 cup of apple cider (or juice)
  • 1/4 cup of cranberry juice
  • Splash of soda water
  • One apple slice for garnish

Make: Pour tequila, apple cider, and cranberry juice together. Mix and strain into glass. Add soda water and garnish.

Love ice? Keep it in a fancy mug!

 

Thanks for following along! Cheers!

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5 Fall Cocktails Trending for 2020

See ya, summer, and hello, Fall!  Today we’re sharing five tasty and trendy fall cocktails, cause it’s still 2020 and we all could use a stiff cocktail.  Grab your quarantine buddies, put the game on, and start mixing up one of these fun cocktails. Cheers!

Ginger Pear Cocktail: recipe yields one drink

whiskey cocktail with rosemary

Pumpkin Old-Fashioned: recipe yields one drink

  • 11/2 oz bourbon whiskey
  • ½ oz orange liqueur
  • 1 oz maple syrup
  • Dash of aromatic bitters
  • 2 tbsp pumpkin puree
  • Garnish with orange peel and or rosemary sprig
  • Shake ice, bourbon, orange liqueur, puree, syrup, and bitters-double strain-pour over ice-garnish-enjoy!
  • Source:  https://www.thespruceeats.com/pumpkin-old-fashioned-recipe-761379  

Apple Pie Moscow Mule on a table

Apple Moscow Mule: recipe yields two drinks

  • 4 oz local apple cider
  • 4 oz caramel vodka (or plain)
  • One bottle of ginger beer
  • Garnish with cinnamon sticks and or apples cut into slices
  • Shake vodka and cider- pour-over ice-top with ginger beer-garnish-enjoy!
  • Source: https://www.thecookierookie.com/apple-pie-moscow-mule/

apple cider sangria

Fall Sangria: recipe yields eight drinks

  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 2 apples,1 pear, 1 orange (thinly sliced)
  • 2/3 cups pomegranate seeds
  • 1 bottle Pinot Grigio
  • 2 cups apple cider
  • ½ cup brandy
  • ¼ cup of orange juice
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • Club soda
  • Put cinnamon sticks and fruit in a pitcher- add wine, apple cider, brandy, orange, and lemon juice- refrigerate for 6-8 hours-pour into glasses add a splash of club soda garnish with extra fruit-enjoy!
  • Source: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/apple-cider-autumn-sangria/

Cranberry Ginger Gin: recipe yields one drink

It’s going to be a great fall! Pick up the key ingredients for these cocktails at our Mystic Wine SHoppe and get ready to dive into the fall season. Thanks!

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Summer’s Not Over Sangria

We’re not ready for summer to be over yet, so we’re savoring the last of summer with this mouth-watering sangria! Plus, with all that left-over fruit and half bottles of rosé from your Labor Day gatherings, this should be an easy cocktail to whip up! What we love about sangria is that it can be made in so many different ways. So check out our recipe, but please share your sangria concoction with us!

What makes this sangria so different is the use of rosé wine and a splash of vodka (cause, hey, it’s 2020).

 Floozie Rosé

  • Ingredients:
    • 1/2 cup of fresh fruit (we had leftover fruit salad, so we used blueberries, strawberries, and peaches)
    • 3 ounces of rosé – we love Hugh Hamilton’s Floozie Rosé
    • Splash of vodka – we love Monkey Paradise Vodka
    • 2 ounces of sparkling water
    • Splash of orange juice
  • Make it: Mix all ingredients together in a fancy glass and enjoy

Tip: If you have more time, soak the fruit in rosé before adding to drink!

 

Let us know your favorite sangria recipe!

Thanks for following along!

Mystic Wine Shoppe

 

 

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Frozen Piña Colada Cocktail

Summer isn’t over yet! In fact, we have a month left of HOT and sunny weather. So pull out your blender and mix up this month’s tasty and sweet Frozen Pina Colada. You, and your quarantine crew, won’t regret it!

This delicious cocktail recipe comes from Vera, our cocktail guru at MWS.  What makes this recipe so great? The ice cream… of course!

Ingredients:

  • Coconut Gelato | we used Häagen-Daz’s Pineapple Coconut | 1 scoop
  • 1 Oz of pineapple juice
  • .25 oz of Coco Lopez
  • 1.5 oz of Bacardi Silver
  • .25 Doc Brown Really Bad Dark Rum (more if you want to add a floater)
  • 1/2 cup ice
  • Maraschino Cherries and whipped cream for a garnish

Make: Add all ingredients into a blender and mix well. Garnish with a cherry and whipped cream

Want to make it a little more fun? Add a dark rum floater to the top of your drink!

We hope you LOVE this recipe! Thanks for reading!

Your friends, Mystic Wine Shoppe

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Diving Into Hampton Water Rosé

Out on the far southeastern tip of Long Island is a playground of the rich called “The Hamptons.” It’s rumored that there, every summer, the rosé flows like water. That’s how Hampton Water Rosé got its name. And yeah, it was launched by rocker Jon Bon Jovi and his son, who wisely partnered with acclaimed French winemaker Gérard Bertrand to create a wine that is much better than the mid-life anthem “It’s My Life.” Made in France, with a blend of 60% Grenache, 15% Cinsault, 15% Mourvèdre and 10% Syrah, the wine was proclaimed “Best Rosé of 2018” by Wine Spectator.


I didn’t know that when I picked it up, I just liked the label, which features an illustration of a woman diving into the water. So, even though my tastes edge more toward Salisbury Beach than Sag Harbor, I brought a bottle of Hampton Water to accompany a weekend with my adult kids on a lake in New Hampshire. It was almost 5pm when my daughter and I brought some snacks down to the dock and opened the bottle.

The sun was low, the water was sparkling and the wine was cold and delicious. I’ve found that some rosés can be too sweet, others a little harsh—a little alcohol-forward. This wasn’t. It was fruity and fresh and bold enough to stand up to ice cubes and even a splash of seltzer (hey, the day was still young!). We were impressed with the bottle’s glass stopper and we loved the way the wine tasted with sweet dark cherries and as well as with Irish cheddar. It even went with Cheez-Its (as I said, we’re not in the Hamptons).

After a glass each, we decided to try to recreate the picture on the label by diving off the dock. Our attempts resulted in a few stinging belly flops and exuberant splashes that damped the Cheez-Its. That’s when we decided that not only does Bon Jovi makes a very nice wine, but he was right: ‘We ain’t gonna live forever.” So we climbed out of the water, toweled off, and finished the bottle. Like the man says “It’s now or never.” We choose now.

By Carol Band (our local wine connoisseur)

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Summer Cucumber Spritzer

Ready for a DELICIOUS, refreshing, and hydrating cocktail?! If so, then look no further than our July Cocktail of The Month. The Summer Cucumber Spritzer was created using one of the finest cucumber vodkas we carry, V-One Vodka. This vodka is infused with real Polish ‘ogórek’ cucumbers with just a hint of Meyer lemon to create a truly refreshing and drinkable flavored vodka. 

Seriously – it’s an amazing vodka!

Did we convince you to make this yet? Keep reading for how to make and enjoy!

Ingredients:

  • 2 ounces of V-One Vodka – Cucumber Flavored
  • 1 cup of soda water – we used Perrier (ginger beer is also a good choice too)
  • 2 lime wedges (one squeezed and one for garnish)
  • A hint of lemonade juice to sweeten it up (any juice would work)

Make: Mix it all together and enjoy it on a sunny warm day!

We hope you find yourself sipping this cocktail along the beautiful coast of somewhere soon! If you do, please be sure to tag us on social media at @MysticWineShop

Thanks, Taylor – Your cocktail & marketing expert 😉

 

 

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