Living in DC, we have some pretty cool chances to party in unusual places — dining in embassies, galas in museums and sipping Pinot alongside primates.The Friends of the National Zoo's annual Grapes With Apes is coming up Sept. 22, when you can taste a variety of wines and get after-hours access to the Great Ape House.
And Metrocurean can get you there for free.
Two lucky readers will win a pair of tickets, a $110 value, to the event. To enter, please leave a comment with what wine you're into these days by Friday at 10 a.m. I'll announce a winner in the comments on Friday, so be sure to check back.
For full details on the event, click here.
73 comments:
I'm trying to become more educated about wine- so far, I find more of the crisp white wines taste better vs. sweet dessert-y ones.
I'm interested in all things wine-tasting...particularly new experiences. Have done a lot of VA Wine tasting and just got back from a trip to Napa/Sonoma...but drinking with Apes? THAT would be a first :)
Great contest! I'm very much into Prosecco lately. I love having a glass on the front porch. An affordable bottle is Mionetto Prosecco. It's pretty good at only $14 bucks.
I am into bubbles right now. Champagne, prosecco, sparkling wine, etc. A fluted glass of bubbly perks up any meal!
Sounds lovely! I'm into Chateau Smith by Charles Smith--a great name, screwtop, and of course DELICIOUS wine!
Grenache Cote du Rhone
Upon a business trip earlier this year, a business contact purchased Caymus' Cabernet Sauvignon for the table. Delicious!
I drink mostly chardonnay right now - but when I'm enjoying read I tend to choose Malbecs.
Love tempranillo based wines from Spain's Rioja region, but I can get down with VA wines like Capital Vinyard's cabernet franc bottle.
After spending six months in Argentina 4 years ago, I've been a huge Malbec drinker.
Just recently went tasting down in Charlottesville, and I loved the fruit wines (particularly the Blackberry) from Hilltop Berry Farm and Winery.
Vouvray--the ones of Huet are amazing and you can get Le Mont for about $35 a bottle.
I am also a huge huge drinker of White Rioja in the summer and the wines of R.Lopez de Heredia (white or red) cannot be beat for quality and price.
Right now I'm really into an Italian white called Cornarea. Slightly fruity and very slightly effervescent - was perfect for the summer!
Crios malbec rose the perfect fall wine
Big fan of malbec, these days. Alma Negra is tough to beat!
its hard to come by as the company has since gone out of business but La Sera Red Malvasia is very good.
Sauvignon Blanc from Dry Creek Valley, but with the impending cold i'm looking forward to getting back to my Zins
I've definitely been loving the underappreciated, underpriced Petit Syrah. Recommend 'The Crusher', among others.
As many people have previously mentioned, summertime for me = anything and everything bubbly, and I do love a good prosecco since it brings back memories of entertaining abroad!
Like many, I've been into rose as of late. I tried an especially interesting one on vacation in Arizona this summer, the Caduceus Lei Li Nebbiolo Rose. Nebbiolo in a rose? It actually really works.
I'm a cab kind of guy.
I have been trying some Pinot Noirs
Stopped by Philip Carter Winery's tasting room this weekend. They make a tasty Cab Franc: http://www.pcwinery.com/wines.html
Mmm...a Malbec.
Ooh, with the transition of warm to cool weather, I'm enjoying reds served slightly chilled, like Brachetto from Piedmont. Cork Market has a great Brachetto - name is escaping me, but its delicious. Go ask about it.
Rose is my summer love
Perfect. I've been really into Pinot Noirs recently, mainly from California. Russian River Valley had a great year in 2007 and I just found a really reasonably priced winery that I really like. Hoping to find more!
chateauneuf du pape is my current love
Not too picky on brands, but I love a dry grassy white in the summer
Recently, tempranillos have become my favorite red to sip. They're perfect for warm summer days or cool fall nights.
I would love the chance to attend this event. Fingers crossed. :-)
Really oaky chardonnay
Torrontes from Argentine. White and light.
Moving away from Pinot Grigio and into Cab and Malbec as the weather gets cooler
Prosecco is always my favorite, however, I have finally been dipping into reds lately!
yes, great contest idea! I'm lately becoming a rose fan, particularly the darker ones (rose of pinot, they're sometimes called).
I'm into anything bubbly actually, not much of a wine drinker, but love the bubbly. My husband however lately is into Malbec.
I'm a wine N00b. I'm usually into margaritas but I'd love to learn more about wine. This could be a really great even for me to get started.
My favourite discovery this summer was white Cotes du Rhone/Chateauneuf du Pape wines. Delicious!
Pinot Noir has always been my go to wine, but I like to mix it up on occasion depending on the meal / atmosphere. Drinking with apes I'm not sure what the appropriate wine would be, but I would love to find out! Cheers!
LOVING Spanish reds right now, especially as the season is changing. They're bright, bold and hearty but smooth enough to not require accompaniment by a huge meal. Current favorite is Las Rocas Garnacha.
With the weather changing, Riojas are great!
My boyfriend and I just got back from a glorious trip to South Africa after one of his diplomatic visits. After spending a few days on safari with the animals, we explored Capetown's Stellenbosch wine region. It was in Stellenbosh that we discovered a lovely Cap Classique from Villiera Wines. I would highly recommend pairing a nice Cap Classique with some Roydon Camembert from the Paarl region. Sharing such delights with the primates at the Zoo would truly be beauty and the beast.
Grapes with Apes is an awesome idea! I hope they can handle their liquor. I hereby challenge each of the apes to a game of beer pong. Its on like donkey kong!
Clearly I could use some refinement. Please send me to be an ambassador of goodwill to bridge the gap between man and ape...and wine.
Red - malbec, White - sauvignon blanc (or fume blanc)
My wine preference . . . sharing a glass over dinner with good friends. In the past, my personal preference has been a dry white with no relationship to oak. Now, I prefer to remain open to the preferences of those I love. Jambo and Pro to my cousins in the fur!
Am I the only Reisling fan out there...?
Lately I have been obsessing over Malbecs. I love the depth of flavor that you tend to find with the variety.
malbec, malbec, malbec. preferably at a dinner with friends.
Just got back from Sonoma and found that I love love love a GSM blend!
sauvignon blanc, malbec and cabernet sauvignon are just a few of my favs.
With summer coming to an end I seem to be returning to nice smooth reds :-).
I'm really liking Wineworks from Charlottesville right now.
trying to get myself out of my seasonal wine drinking rut- reds in the cold weather, whites in the warm. Have been on the hunt for a good white for cooler weather and heavier food. Problematically, I hate chardonnay! Gewurtraminers are really fitting the bill at the moment.
Cab is my go to but on a recent trip to California I fell in love with Artesa Chardonnay!
I love free wine!
I have resigned myself to the fact that I love the sweet wine but as long as it is sweet I will drink it. I love Riesling, Moscato, and almost every wine from North Carolina's Duplin Winery who specializes in wines from the muscadine and scuppernong grapes.
I'm into sweet red wines lately, although moscato hasn't failed me yet!
Renwood Zinfandel Ice Wine
Always love Purple Moon Merlot. Pick it up at Trader Joe's for dirt cheap and turn it into killer mulled wine! This rain is making me crave it!
Loving exploring all the fantastic wines that Spain has to offer... all without leaving my neighborhood in DC!
Now that fall is on the horizon, I've started switching from Gruner Veltliner and Zinfandel (which is awesome at a cooking) to Pinot Noir.
I was recently turned onto reds, and Pinot Noirs take the cake every time. I'm also a huge fan of the menage a 3 red wine blend... it's a good transition wine for people who arent full on fans of red yet
I always love Rhone and Rhone-style wines, but my current preference has been Muscadet (melon de bourgogne is the grape). Great wine for summer foods with the right balance of fresh fruit and crisp acidity.
I love reading everyone's drinking habits! This is great.
Dry, crisp white in spring, summer, fall; dry reds in winter. Always thought that oaky sounded quite sophisticated when asked how I liked my chardonnay, but finally figured out that I don't like oaky much. Okay?
I've been into Prosecco this summer - haven't made the switch to something better suited for fall.
Early fall is great for a good Pinot Noir
Just visited a winery in Tampa that makes wine from fruit other than grapes and loved their grapefruit wine-- unique, not too sweet, crisp flavor very refreshing! But in general, I love a good Montepulciano d'Abruzzo
Recently I've really been into red Meritages. Visited Pollak vineyard over the weekend- they have an excellent one!
The Graduate. When you start with lemon extract, it is nothing but up from there ... age 16. We have enjoyed wines from all over the world. In our quest to explore the world, we tried rare grape varietals that are slowly making come back from regions like Saint-Mont and Madiran, France. And it is always nice sit in the front of our house with the tiki torches lit, our 19 year old cat and bottle of Patricia Green Nefarious ... age much older and refined. Male in training.
The randomly selected winner (who also made me laugh) is Curious George!
Please email me at metrocurean AT gmail.com to claim your tickets. Thanks to everyone who made me want to crack open a bottle of wine with each comment.
Sorry, I said two winners didn't I?
Also a winner of 2 tix: Jenny N. you are my second winner. Shoot me an email metrocurean AT gmail.com. Congrats!
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