Although I love my classes (not to sound nerdy, but I'm slightly totally completely obsessed with my major), I needed to de-stress after a week of classes. My friend Georgie and I went to Agava, one of my favorite restaurants in Ithaca, for some fab southwestern fare. We started off with some sassy drinks.
I went with the Tumbleweed (left), made with Del Maguey Vida Mezcal, Fresh Lime Juice, Ithaca Ginger Beer, and House-Made Pomegranate Syrup.
Georgie had the Agava Chihuahua Margarita, made with Blanco Tequila, Cointreau, House Made Lemon Sour, Grapefruit Juice, and a Salt & Sugar Rim.
I was blown away by the complexity of this drink. The pomegranate syrup brought a sweet/tart element, the ginger beer gave the drink some spice, and the tequila left me with a smoky aftertaste. As a girl on a countless search for the perfect "umami", this was one of the best cocktails I've ever had.
For my main course, I treated myself to the wood-oven roasted Mushroom Quesadilla, featuring fontina cheese, herbs with arugula, roasted beets and white truffle oil.
This was all of my favorite things wrapped (quite literally) into one. I am a sucker for a fancy cheese, and the fontina in conjunction with the stellar truffle oil was superb. My favorite salad ingredients are beets and arugula, so that was an excellent bonus.
For brunch the next morning, I returned to the Cafe Dewitt and had a Hazelnut Waffle with Local Peaches and Caramel Whipped Cream.
What is there to even say about this? It was brunch perfection. The crunch of the hazelnuts, the sweetness of the local peaches, and the wildly indulgent caramel whipped cream made for a very happy Fran.
That day, I was joined by my friends Georgie, Greg, and Evan for a mini Finger Lakes wine tour! We stopped at two wineries and a cidery.
Beautiful Sheldrake Point Winery.
Georgie, Greg, Fran, and WINE at Lucas Vineyards.
I met a cat friend at the Bellwether Cidery!
Overall, I tasted some delicious wine. I tend to be a red fan, but I loved the Pinot Gris at Sheldrake Point. It was so fruity and reminded me of summers in the Hamptons. At Lucas Vineyards, I adored the Rosé. At Bellwether, I was a little too excited: I'm a bit of a hard cider fanatic. I loved every cider, and purchased bottles of the Liberty Spy and Original ciders. I also got a commemorative glass with the tasting, and bought so much cider (my friend Evan bought two bottles as well) that we got a free tote!
We also made a pit stop at the Cayuga Lake Creamery.
This is super embarrassing- the ice cream was so good I forgot to take a picture of it. Yeah, I wish you could see it, but yeah, it was THAT GOOD. I had the fluffer nutter flavor, which was so rich and decadent and absolutely scrumptious. This is a bold statement, considering I'm a total ice cream addict, but this may have been the best ice cream I've ever had.
On Sunday, I attended a Pinterest party and had even more delicious food. However, I'm going to feature those noms on What I Ate Wednesday: in the meantime, enjoy these pics and try not to drool all over your keyboard!
What did you eat this weekend? Have you ever been on a wine tour? Share below!
I would tell you what I ate over the weekend but, well you saw it all ;)
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to do a cider tasting at Cellar D'or!