Dreaming Tree Wines (and my high school Dave Matthews obsession...)
Happy Friday everyone! Thanks for all the FANTASTIC feedback on the blog!! It was so fun hearing from so many of you. As promised, I entered everyone who commented in a drawing for a Yellow Table apron, and the winner is: Maria Isabella! Congrats. I'll put your apron in the mail early next week.
Because it's Friday, and because the Grammy's happen to be coming up this Sunday, I wanted to share with you all a recent discovery I made: Dave Matthews, i.e. the musician (and more importantly, my high school obsession!) makes wine. Well, I suppose that's old news, given that he's had a winery outside his hometown of Charlottesville, Virginia, for several years, but his newest line of wines come from California. As a blogger, I'll be honest – I get asked to sample products all the time. Most I pass on, unless I feel like it's something I can write about, and will enjoy trying. But when I had a chance to sample Dave Matthew's wines this week, well, that was a no-brainer.
You see, as a high-schooler, my Dave Matthews fandom new no bounds. I not only went to 20+ concerts (and snuck backstage to meet him at two of them), collected all his albums and traded bootleg cassette tapes, but I also played in not one, but two, bands that were strongly influenced by Dave Matthews Band (i.e. we played a lot of DMB covers!). Because I play violin, being in a rock band may seem random, but DMB's music was super-inspirational for me because of violinist Boyd Tinsley's mad fiddle skills. I learned all of the violin solos in his songs, and had a blast performing with the guys in both bands. I'll never forget hearing the drum beat beginnings to "Ants Marching"...that song was my absolute favorite to play.
I had my dad dig up a few pictures from old photo albums to share with you all, from my DMB obsession days... (Mind you these were taken 20 years ago, so be kind!!)
My rock-n-roll days...!
Me, as a freshman feeling super-cool hanging out with junior guys!
That time my brother Davis and I snuck backstage to meet Dave Matthews...
Over the years, as my music career waned (ha!), my interest in food and wine grew. Years passed and I sadly lost touch with Dave...until this week. When I received two bottles of Dreaming Tree wines at my door, I knew it was time to reconnect with my high school crush.
So here's the story: Dave paired up with famed Sonoma winemaker Steve Reeder to create a line of everyday drinking wine named for a song ("The Dreaming Tree") from his 1998 album "Before These Crowded Streets." There are four Dreaming Tree wines at the moment: the usual California suspects, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as two blends that I sampled: 'Everyday,' an aromatic white blend of Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Viognier, and Albarino, and 'Crush,' a juicy red blend of Merlot, Zinfandel, and Petite Sirah. These wines, which retail for $15, are simple and fruit-forward - perfect for a casual dinner party or back-porch sipping. Because the white is on the sweeter side (which is not really my preference, as I tend to go for bone-dry, minerals whites), I'd recommend drinking it with spicy Asian food; the red would be great with a grilled ribs or pizza.
I like the fact that Dreaming Tree wines are committed to sustainability – the bottle’s cork closure is both natural and recyclable, the label is made with 100% recycled kraft brown paper, and the bottles are extra-light.
While I was writing this post, Brandon put on some old school DMB music for inspiration, and it took me back 20 years instantly. Makes me wish I could gather all of my old bandmates back together for a little reunion/jam-session. And clearly, we'd need to share a few bottles of Dreaming Tree, to complete the circle.
Have a great weekend, and see you Monday!
xo, Anna
P.S. In the event that you want to try these wines, they're available online and in select stores.