Wine & Country Living

Sitting in Vintage Cellars, Walla Walla, on a Wednesday evening among local merchants and wine makers, is an exciting event for anyone who wants easy conversation and loves good wine and wonderful brew. Right now, November's Fall Release is all the talk. Check out your newspapers for event happenings. For the Touchet Valley, Markeeta Little Wolf's concert is the talk; do you have your ticket?

Friends and I are first meeting for a light dinner and cocktails at jimgermanbar and then attending the musical event. We'll scoot over to Anchor Bar afterward for a night cap and will see you all there!

I have a great little dessert to share with you that I have been working on for the holidays, but you can make this treat any time you are looking for something interesting and refreshing. I plan on serving it during Thanksgiving dinner. You might pair this dessert with a local ice wine, a Syrah or a glass of Dumas Cellars 2009 Cowcatcher Red, a wonderful example of winemaker Jay Dewitt's, twisted vine abilities at a reasonable price; just $24 a bottle. The Cowcatcher is fashioned after a Bordeaux blend and packed in ripe cherry nuances, cheeks flushed in green tea and a long tongue soaked in crushed new leather tannins, swirling in a lipstick smear of 48 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 26 percent Cab Franc, 15 percent Merlot, 6 percent Syrah and 5 percent Petit Verdot. Because Jay Dewitt, Ali and Doug Harvey, of Dumas Cellars, walk the terroir with utter respect, yours truly, Judith Henderson of Wine and Country Living, gives Dumas Cellars, 98 points for the 2009 Cowcatcher red blended wine. Congratulations to you all! Until next week, "eat art drink imagination!"

Red Wine Black Tea Crush

Serves 4

1-large package raspberry gelatin

1/2-cup boiling black tea

1-cup cold ginger ale

1-cup red wine

Dissolve gelatin in boiling tea. Add cold ginger ale and red wine, stir well and freeze 6-8 hours. Scoop to serve, add a lime zest twist, serve immediately.

PS- My webmaster and I are building a new Web page, my current www.chefjudithhenderson.com web page will be down for two weeks. I will let you know when I am back up with new pages covering the entire U.S. food and wine market, columns, live food and wine blog, my cookbooks and a new bottled food-line for sale with Pay Pal. Thanks for your patience, Judith

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Chef Judith Henderson www.chefjudithhenderson.com