Wine, Travel & Food News from Vino-Sphere: August 23, 2017

A weekly round-up of news, notes and happenings

TEXSOM Best Sommelier Announced

Andres Blanco of Caracol Restaurant in Houston is the 2017 TEXSOM Best Sommelier. The 2017 TEXSOM Best Sommelier Competition, presented by Texas Monthly, takes place during TEXSOM, one of the most prominent and influential wine education conference in the United States, held annually at the Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas in Irving, Texas.

Blanco topped an impressive field of 26 other competitors in a rigorous three-part wine examination involving service, blind tasting and theory. An elite panel of Master Sommelier judges named Blanco the 2017 TEXSOM Best Sommelier. To participate, candidates must be a current resident of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico, or Texas and must not have passed the Court of Master Sommeliers’ Advanced Sommelier Examination.

Free Shipping on Dry Rosé

Sheldrake Point, an outstanding Finger Lakes winery, is offering free shipping on three or more bottles of dry rosé. Use promo code SIP SUMMER.

Museum of Broken Relationships 

Looking for a unique outing? Happen to be in Zagreb? Kutrubes Travel suggests you check out the Museum of Broken Relationships. This museum has been awarded the Kenneth Hudson Award 2011 for ‘the most unusual, daring and, perhaps, controversial achievement that challenges common perceptions of the role of the museums’. Sounds like an interesting place, and it is.

BBQ Pork Ribs with Syrah BBQ Sauce

Grilling out this Labor Day. Check out this recipe from Sunstone Vineyards and Winery – one of the coolest wineries in Santa Barbara.

Speaking of Barbecue

The Montgomery Inn, a well-known barbecue restaurant near Cincinnati, is offering their Summertime Barbecue Bonanza that they say makes grilling healthy and basically foolproof. The Summertime Barbecue Bonanza consists of four slabs of the family-owned company’s hand-rubbed, USDA-inspected ribs, two pounds of pulled pork, two pounds of brisket baked beans, and a bottle of the original, sweet and tangy Montgomery Inn Barbecue Sauce and the newest addition to the family, the hot and spicy chipotle Barbecue Sauce to top it off. You can save $75 when you order online by using Promo code: summerfun and item #004BB

Winesong Weekend Coming to Mendocino

The 33rd Annual Winesong Weekend, a spectacular weekend of award-winning wine, fabulous food, fine art, music, merriment, and charitable giving held on the Mendocino Coast, will take place September 8^th and 9^th. Activities include a Pinot Noir Celebration, Wine and Food Grand Tasting in the Gardens, and silent and live auctions.

Harvest In Santorini

The harvest on the Greek island of Santorini is in full swing through the first weeks in September. Santorini is known for its deep blue waters, incredible sunsets and superb dry white wine. Greece’s most noble white grape, Assyrtiko, benefits from the volcanic soil. Learn more about Santorini’s winemaking tradition here.