McMinnville, Oregon: This traveling through Oregon wine country ain't for weenies. Of course, our friends want to meet us at vineyards and enjoy a lovely afternoon in the sunshine catching up while sipping on lovely vintages and snacking on tasty tidbits. Who wouldn't? The weather continues to be lovely during the day, though when we woke at 6a, it was 44 degrees outside. It couldn't have been much warmer inside our RV, so we fired-up our little electric ceramic heater and we were toasty in no time.
We had lunch with Mary and Captain Jim at Brooks Winery - about 20 minutes from our campground. Mary and Jim know the family starting this fabulous place. It sits up on a hill in Amity and today we had a view of Mount St. Helens, Mt. Adams, Mt. Hood AND Mt. Jefferson!
We shared a cheese plate (but chose to dine indoors, as it was a bit windy), and sipped on lovely rosé. I had the fried tofu with sushi rice, pickled papaya, green onion, cashews and rhubarb glaze. Must say, this was a sensory treat and there is no way I could ever attempt to recreate this complicated delight.
the curly stuff on top is not saffron but shaved fried chilis
After lunch, Mary and Jim came back to our RV for the full tour. 30 seconds later, they were in their car, heading back to their house. (They didn't even laugh - but we all owned massive buses back in the day, so they understand our downsizing dilemma.)
After my vegan lunch, DT grilled a steak for dinner and I made a fun zucchini salad kinda like I saw in the New York Times last week. Zucchini in a lemony dressing, parmesan and seasoned bread crumbs. I switched-out the bread crumbs with crushed croutons (Rosemary+Croissant from Trader Joe's) and dang if it was more like a side dish than a salad. Delicious.
We finished the salad, and about half of the steak. I see a steak Caesar in our future.
Meanwhile in California, Leo is out of school today, and he somehow convinced his Mom to bring (Leo and) two of his buddies to our house in La Quinta for 4 days of pool time, golf, bicycling, dining at the clubhouse, etc. Best. Mom. Ever.
Middle schoolers
Remember Lisa in your prayers
Until my next update, I remain, your rosé-tasting Correspondent.
Campground Information: Olde Stone RV Resort (I think it is no longer the Olde Stone Village RV Resort, but I don't know). With the new facility, this campground really has it all (except for a hot tub). Full-service paved pull-through and back-in sites. Picnic tables. Trash pick-up at your site. We are paying $55.42 per night with a weekly rate.