Drinking in Las Vegas.

Last night, whilst the majority of my family toddled off up The Strip to see the musical-fountain extravaganza at the Bellagio Hotel, I took my mother, aka Vinomum, for a drink at our hotel's bar.
The Mandarin Bar, located on the 23rd floor of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, is a lovely place to enjoy a glass of wine and the bright lights of Sin City.  Floor to ceiling windows ensured that my mother and I were able to drink in the unimpeded sights of some of the goings-on on the Las Vegas Strip.  My mother had a pleasant glass of Okanagan Estates Merlot and I had a glass of The Federalist Zinfandel (sorry, did not pay attention to the respective vintages).  Once again, I really enjoyed The Federalist and it paired wonderfully with the appetisers I chose for our big girl's soirée. 
Bottoms up, mother!

Where in the US of A is Vinogirl: Part 2?

Today I woke up in Las Vegas!  How did that happen? 
My family holiday has progressed into the Silver State; we are all up for some more fun in the sun, and I'm up for a glass of bubbles.
To be continued...

Viva Las Vegas!

I just got back from a few whirlwind days in Sin City. I was there primarily to attend a wedding (and a wonderful event it turned out to be), but also to grab a little rest and recreation with family and friends. Las Vegas might not be everyone's cup of tea, but I happen to love it.

Money, and lots of it, is the name of the game in Vegas, but curiously gambling seems to have taken a bit of a back seat. Casino-resorts must have to constantly come up with new and innovative ways to display all sorts of consumer goods, not in the least fine wines, as an irresistible means to separate visitors from their winnings, or more likely their hard-earned wages. When one thinks of Las Vegas there are a lot of things that spring to mind, but fine wine is probably not one of them. However, presumably most people are familiar with the gimmicky Wine Angels of Aureole, in the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino, who retrieve customer's wine selections from a 42 ft Lucite tower. Onda Ristorante and Wine Lounge, in The Mirage, impressively displays wine bottles in a back-lit, approx. 16 ft high wall of barrels at the entrance to the restaurant. It's very eye-catching, it had me making a detour, across the casino floor, away from the Dolphin Habitat where I had been heading with my nieces OTW. I'm easily distracted, what can I say?

I didn't actually drink much vino on this trip as my partner in wine-crime, Vinomaker, decided to stay at home with the Vinodogs. At the wedding reception, held at Bouchon in The Venetian, I had an okay glass of Sancere and a passable domestic Merlot, but that was it.

So, my Las Vegas jaunt by numbers; 3 days, 108 degrees F, 6% humidity, 2 glasses of wine, and zero Elvis sightings.