Travelling Lore

Despite last weekend's rainy weather we went to visit North Mountain Vineyards , a colleague's Virginia winery.  Set in the Shenandoah Valley area of the Appalachians, this region's ancient limestone-rich soil provides ideal sites for growing grapes.  (Tablas Creek has a great explanation on the benefits of limestone-rich soil.)  North Mountain grows an impressive 10 varieties of grapes on their estate.  These include, but aren't limited to, Cabernet Franc, Chambourcin, Gruner Veltliner, and Zweigelt.  Not only was it my first time trying Chambourcin, but we were all introduced to the latter two Austrian grape varieties.  Verdict: more please! After our tasting the winemaker gave us a tour of the barrel room and gave us a sneak peak tasting of three wines that will be bottled a few more months down the road.  They were absolutely delicious and I predict that these bottles will sell quickly!  They tasted wonderful directly from the barrel ...

...to let you all know that I picked up a part time position at a local winery as a Tasting Associate!  Since I love visiting local wineries so much I jumped at the opportunity to become a Tasting Associate as a fun way to learn more about wine.  I started last month at  Greenhill Winery , which is located in the Middleburg American Viticulture Area of Virginia.  Everyone I've met so far has been very welcoming and helpful and I couldn't ask for a better way to start a new job.  Even though I'm still learning about all of the wines, I jumped in full swing today as everyone who visited the winery seemed to arrive all at once.  (That's how it always happens, right?)  No better way to learn than to take a deep breath and go for it! To give a quick background, Greenhill Winery opened in August of 2013.  The property consist of 128 acres, 16 of which are currently under vine.  At the moment Greenhill Winery has six wines in their tasting: one...

Last weekend I ran my very first 5k hosted by the German School of Washington D.C.'s Oktoberfest Run with a group of friends.  For those who don't know me, running has always been my least favorite way of working out.  I'd much rather be in the gym doing abs or doing some Les Mills Body Pump.  In fact, the farthest I'd ever run before was about two miles--and that was only a few days before the 5k!  Though my completion time of 40:30 has plenty of room for improvement, I was pleased with myself for going through with it.  The group mentality of being together with everyone else trying to accomplish the same thing was encouraging. I doubt I'll ever find running enjoyable, but let me just say that if you put your mind to it, you can do it.  When I first started I could barely run a mile without huffing and puffing.  But by sticking with it and going for a 1-1.5 miles run a couple of times a week, you'll definitely start to notice an improvement i...

Last weekend my boyfriend and I hosted a blind wine tasting party.  We provided the hors d'ouevres and light dinner fare and asked our guests to provide a bottle of wine for the blind tasting.  Thanks to everyone who came out for a memorable evening!  I'd also like to thank Limes and Lavender 's Etsy shop for her mini chalkboard signs and South House Boutique 's Etsy shop for her burlap wine bottle bags .  They were exactly what I was looking for this type of event! Pinterest was a good source of inspiration to figure out what types of cheeses would be good choices for different types of wines.  Little did I know that everyone would bring only red wines!  The poor Brie de Paris was left without a chardonnay wine partner. Olives and salami and crackers, I believe, are quintessential appetizers for a wine-filled evening.  Like many others, I think Whole Foods has the best olive bar around; I'm especially partial to the garlic-stuffed green...

This past weekend my boyfriend and I decided to make an afternoon out of some light W&OD bike riding accompanied by checking out some local breweries and a winery.  Our first stop was at Adroit Theory , which is a nano brewery in Purcellville, Virginia that focuses on crafting barrel-aged beer.  Their brewery presentation is very different from something you might generally expect.  They have a very casual feel like you might expect from most breweries, but they have a heavy metal theme reflected in their decor and bottle-naming series.  I personally liked that they decided to try something different with their decor theme; it helps make them stand out and reflects (I assume) the interests of the owners.  They have some beautiful barrels used as tables in their tasting area where you can sip on your brew and watch them label bottles behind the glass production room. Adroit Theory doesn't have a set flight, but they do offer tasters--which range fro...

I discovered Sole Society about a month ago, which is a website that focuses on selling shoes, bags, and accessories for women and where shipping is always free.  I made my first purchase several weeks ago after receiving a coupon and finally deciding on a weekend travel bag .  I'm very happy with that purchase, so I decided to take the leap into my first shoe purchase with them. One of the things I'm pretty excited about with SS is that they consistently make shoes for those of us with smaller feet; they even make shoes as small as a size 4!  I took a big leap of faith and chose two pairs of shoes on Final Sale (no returns)--because I'm pretty frugal about clothes and am always looking for a deal--and crossed my fingers that everything would work out.  Thankfully it did!  Not only were they true to size (it really helps to read product reviews), but I was pleasantly surprised at how cushion-y the shoes felt.  Needless to say I will be a repeat custom...

This is the year of Boston.  A short two weeks after our surprise birthday appearance we flew back for the annual Maine Labor Day Weekend beach and lobster dinner weekend.  The weather (and the company) couldn't have been more perfect considering the initially less than thrilling rainy forecast for the weekend.  So happy to have had so much sun shine down on us in Maine! But first, Harpoon Brewery !  We had a few hours of afternoon fun there trying all of their beers.  Of course I checked all of them into Untappd .  I personally don't think their beers are super amazing, but their UFO flight (except their plain hefeweizen beer) was pretty decent.  Hello UFO raspberry, white (orange and coriander), and big squeeze (grapefruit) tasters!  The UFO white is the one you'll find most often in bars in the area. And then off to Maine!  Proof of the perfect weather: Plus I learned that in nearby Portland, ME there are a ton of craft ...

Last weekend my boyfriend and I flew to Boston to make a surprise appearance for his brother's surprise birthday clambake.  We had such a wonderful time both exploring new parts of the area and surprising his entire family.  Happy tears were shed and of course the fun-filled weekend came to an end much too quickly! We started off our long weekend by exploring the Boston Harbor Islands .  They're just a hop and a skip away on a short ferry ride, which was perfect for a day trip.  We docked at Spectacle Island first, bought lunch, and hiked to the top of the island for a wonderful view of the Boston skyline. There's also a beach by the Visitor's Center where you can scavenge for sea glass (though they do request that you leave what you find on the island for others to enjoy). Then we hopped on over to Georges Island , which is home to the Civil War era Fort Warren, which is truly a magnificent structure.  It's impossible to get a photo of the ent...

I love weekends where I get to try out wineries in the area and if I get to go two weekends in a row, well, the more the merrier!  Last weekend I went to Breaux Vineyards , which is the seventh largest winery (in terms of grapes produced and bottles made) in Virginia.  Unfortunately I didn't take any photos, but this winery had a very pleasant layout that allows you a good view of some of their grape vines.  They are also dog and picnic friendly.  If you don't want to pack your own picnic, they have fresh baguettes, cheese, and other morsels for purchase. The place was a little busier than I expected, but it didn't really take a long time to snag a tasting.  We were taken to what I assume is the overflow room in the back for a tasting.  The gentleman in charge of our tasting, a retired engineer, was quite lovely.  He was very patient for those of us who had questions (me!) and wanted a repeat of the wine information.  He even threw in an extr...

I had a pretty low key weekend, so I had time to do some Pinterest-inspired nail art. Light purple: Rimmel Lasting Finish Pro "Wild Orchid" | Dark purple: Rimmel 60 Seconds "Deliciously Dark" Pink: Orly "Cotton Candy" | Silver: Revlon "Sequin"

Food time!  My basil plants needed a haircut, but I didn't want to waste all of that fresh herb-y goodness, so off to Pinterest I went for a basil-inspired recipe.  I decided to make Basil Quinoa Cakes found on the Greatist .  Mmm, delicious! Although they took a while to make (from prep to finish), it's a super easy recipe.  Just cook the quinoa, combine all of the ingredients, and plop 1/4 cup at a time into a pan.  The recipe calls for bread crumbs, but I took the suggestion of using 2 slices of gluten-free bread and 3 tablespoons of gluten-free flour and it worked great without compromising the taste.  (I don't have celiac disease, but I choose to go gluten-free as often as I conveniently can because it makes me feel less bloated.)  I also chose to fry each side for about 5 minutes instead of 10 because I didn't want my quinoa basil cakes to be super crunchy.  The best part about this recipe?  That it makes about 12 cakes, which c...

Let me start off by saying that I have no intention on making this blog's primary theme about fashion.  Unless it's a fashion blog about daily or weekly outfits, new clothes purchases are an expensive thing to blog about and I'd rather put my money elsewhere.  Also, the prices of some brands out there are ridiculous.  However, I do enjoy an afternoon of shopping every now and then as many women do.  No shame in that. I hadn't gone on a big shopping spree in quite a while and was looking to update my wardrobe with some chic basics to incorporate both in and out of the office.  I was inspired, via Pinterest, by the chic, modern-day Audrey Hepburn look meets casual prep (minus all the polo stuff...not my thing) with some nautical notes mixed in.  It sounds like a lot going on, but obviously you don't have to mix all of these looks into one outfit.  So, without further ado.... H&M: white and blue jeans | white blazer (only available in blac...

Happy belated Fourth of July!! I hope everyone had a wonderful time celebrating the USA's independence! :) Unfortunately, I forgot my camera and therefore wasn't able to document how I spent my holiday.  I did enjoy my time at Lake Anna, though, with my boyfriend and a lovely mutual friend and her family.  Smorgasbord galore!  I'm still full! We drove back on Saturday and stopped at a couple of wineries on the way.  One of my favorite things to do is visit Virginia's wineries when given the opportunity. Our first stop was at Gray Ghost Vineyards .  They have a cute set up with wrought iron chairs and tables from which you have a lovely view of their grape vine varietals.  They don't have a view of the mountains, which is always an added bonus, but I always appreciate when I can look out at the vines from which they pick their grapes and make their wine.  Since I prefer visiting wineries that grow and use their own grapes, the whole farm-to-ta...

This past week and a half has been a whirlwind of travel.  From Denver to D.C. to Jacksonville/Orlando and back to D.C. again.  Whew!  This week was rough after flying back home on 4 hours of sleep and then working a full work week.  There really just aren't enough hours in the day to get everything done! A side note with all that travel: I think I'm done flying with U.S. Airways.  I've only flown two round trips with them, but every time something goes wrong.  This time their bag handlers tore my bag.  I don't even think it tore on the baggage conveyor belt; in fact, it looks like it was slashed with a knife or something.  I could have carried it on, but they had everyone in Zone 4 and higher gate check their bags because there was allegedly no overhead bin space left.  That turned out to be complete crap, by the way; there were a handful of completely empty bins.  Not only that, but in my experience they always board late, take of...

Hello from Colorado!  This is my last full day here for work and then it's home sweet home tomorrow!  I wish I'd had more time to actually explore a little bit of CO and see Dinosaur Ridge , but I was in an education conference for two full days.  Maybe next time! Being on travel means I don't have my Norway photos with me.  Instead, here's a recent mani. :) OPI's glitter "Polka.com" over Wet 'n Wild's "On A Trip" Also, congratulations to Team USA for winning their match against Ghana!

Another post so soon?! Time to cross something off of my blog's To Do List.  Here are a handful of some of my favorite photos from Ireland and Northern Ireland.  I apologize for the watermarks, but it's just to discourage people from stealing my photos and claiming them as their own.  Now, onward! Cliffs of Moher in County Clare, Ireland.  It was especially windy the day we toured at the Cliffs, but the views were great and we were quite happy that it wasn't raining!  In fact, we got quite lucky with the weather for the majority of the time that we were in Ireland, with the exception of the first couple of days in Galway. This is my favorite photo from the entire trip.  As you probably well know, Ireland is known for having a lot of sheep.  This one was watching us as we made our way down from looking at the Clochan on the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland.  That pink coloring on its back isn't blood, so don't worry!  It'...

Talk about long time, no see!  When I started this blog I definitely had the intention to post more often than once a month.  Then again, I'm one of those types who gets all of these ideas into her head, becomes incredibly excited about all of them, and then tries to do them all at once as soon as possible.  Of course, we all know how that goes: all of those ideas end up in the "partially done" pile! In my defense, though, I was on vacation for 2.5 weeks having a blast in Ireland and Norway, which slowed down the progress of this blog.  I've also been slowly organizing the apartment since moving in with my boyfriend.  However, progress is progress and my walk-in closet (which is a luxury in itself around here) is slowly starting to come together. One of those many blog ideas floating around in my head is an "After" post to display my oh so amazing organization skills, which are being honed everyday.  As anyone who's decorated/organized their living a...

About the author: I'm Celeste, a Northern Virginia gal living right outside of Washington, D.C.  Outside of blogging I have a full time job in the geoscience field as well as a part time job at a local Virginia winery.  I have a wonderful fiance named Matt who also loves to travel and an adorable calico cat named Sally whose favorite toys are wine corks.  When I'm not blogging I enjoy traveling (obviously!), visiting wineries and breweries, photography, football, and eating. About the blog: Corking Around evolved several times throughout its short existence.  What started as a lifestyle and fashion/beauty blog quickly evolved into a blog focused on travel, wine, and beer.  This blog aims to share my travel adventures for anyone looking for travel inspiration and tips. Advertising:  I do not currently advertise or endorse any specific brands on this blog.  All photographs and opinions are my own.  Any links to outside websites ...