Playing Hookie

I spent a short time working outside and decided it was just too nice to work....so I went for a drive. No real destination in mind, just towards farm and vineyard country. Two great wineries and 4 purchased bottles of wine later I am home. Many of my senses are sated. The hills and fence rows were ablaze with golden trees splashed with random blotches of orange and red. Fall colors are at their peak here. There were apple trees dripping crimson drops of fruit hanging over one of the dirt roads I traveled. The haze of Fall hung over everything else, from plowed fields with old barns, to farm houses with the last vestiges of summer flowers surrounding them. The orange in the tree line was mimicked by the piles of pumpkins at roadside stands and on nearly every front porch. At the first winery my nose was filled immediately upon getting out of my car with the fragrance of ripening grapes. I wandered past  vines filled with deep purple clusters amongst  crinkled yellowing leaves and into the winery itself. One of the whites I tasted, and bought a bottle of, had the fragrance that exactly matched the one my nose was filled with when stepping out of my car. It is a 2005 Chardonnay and I had to buy it to preserve that memory. I also got a 2006 Pinot Noir there. A really special bottle that I hope to share with someone special one day. Or just drink when I am feeling very festive. On to the next winery up a  scenic winding climbing gravel road past farms with fields filled with alpacas, goats, and sheep. Past neat and tidy farm buildings filled with hay.  The view alone from the top was worth the trip. Twice I stopped, got out and just took it all in. In case you couldn't tell I am enamored with Fall. It has always been my favorite time of year. I have purchased the wines from this particular place at our farmers market, but it was nice to see that the wine maker himself was pouring today. Another Pinot purchased as well as a white table wine called "Peace" that is a blend of riesling and gewürztraminer... crisp but not too sweet. My best description would be that it tastes like Summer! Now if only I had a hand to hold or shoulder to lean on while looking out over those vistas, or someone to laugh with over the silly verbage sometimes used to describe wine, all my senses would be happy. (that first pinot really diid have a creamy, buttery finish)