A Visit with Tom and Ann

Sunday we drove on a beautiful day to Tom and Ann's place in Capon Bridge WV for one last visit before we start driving for the West Coast and to celebrate albeit belatedly Tom's 75th birthday. We brought the dogs with us hoping that they and Levi could romp. Alas, Levi and Grace got into a bad scrap and Levi ended up in his kennel for the afternoon.

This was our first chance to experience their new screened porch off the back corner of the house and it is a fantastic place in which to live. I could spend countless hours there.

Enjoying the Porch

Porch Rules

Tom loves to shop at Zingerman's in Ann Arbor, Michigan and who can blame him? Before I owned a restaurant and had direct access to awesome products, I shopped there too. Their products are second to none, including the awesome Bayley Hazen blue cheese which might be the finest produced in this country. I hear that we might have had some gouda and a slab of pâté except that Levi beat us to it! I could tell a story about my dog Emmy and a certain standing rib roast, but it is not good to speak ill of the dead.

Bayley Hazen Blue from Jasper Hill Farm

To go with the cheese, Tom sliced a loaf of Zingeman's wheat and chestnut bread. The effect was a bit like pumpernickel. I had a hard time picking out the chestnut flour in the bread except for a slight taste of it in the finish.

Slicing a Wheat Chestnut Loaf

Tom secured for us two California Pinots, one from Siduri (Santa Rita Hills) and the other from Böen (Sonoma Coast). The Siduri had lots of candied red fruit and was fairly sweet with little in the way of acidity. The Böen led with a ton of fairly fresh black fruit (blackberry and black raspberry) with a big streak of mocha and chocolate. It had a bit of acidity to help it out. The star of the afternoon was the Speedway Stout from AleSmith in San Diego. This was as fine an imperial stout as I have tasted.

Two California Pinots and a California Stout

AleSmith's Speedway Stout

Catching Up

Grace, the Attention Whore

Chuckie Getting Mommy Kisses

Anxious Charlie Did OK

Grace Napping in the Sun

What a Great Place for Lunch

Tom Slicing Pears for the Salad

Chile Pepper Placemats are Fun

Tom's Arugula Salad with Hazelnuts and Pears

Scallops with Chile-Cilantro Cream and Corn Salad

After lunch we took the dogs for a romp down the driveway lined on both sides with stands of wingstem.

Wingstem (Verbesina alternifolia) in Front of Apple Tree

Bumblebee Enjoying Wingstem Blossoms

Lady's Thumb, Persicaria maculosa

Many thanks to Tom and Ann for a great send off and a belated Happy Birthday! to Tom.