Happy Birthday

... to me!

Today is my 34th birthday, and one of the more memorable. Last night Myron made reservations for both dinner and a room at Woodlands Resort & Inn, in Summerville, SC. Woodlands is one of the most award-winning inns in the US, and the dining room is similarly lauded. It is one of three properties in the US to achieve Mobil 5 stars in both dining and lodging, and the only property in South Carolina to receive the AAA 5 Diamond Culinary Award.

I won't turn this into a review of Woodlands, but we had two stand out experiences I have to share. First was the Shooting Star Blue Franc 2005, which was served with the chef's tasting menu. It was paired with a truffled mac and cheese, itself a luscious an extravagant dish, and the wine matched it perfectly. The bouquet was intoxicating, the taste was soft, and the finish assertive but not explosive. This is arguably one of the best wines I have ever had and I'm going to have to find some, price be damned.

Second was the flight of Grand Marnier I had with dessert. I have known for a while that there are a few different iterations of Grand Marnier. The most common is called Cordon Rouge, which is the red label. There is also a 50 year and 150 year version, named for the vintage of the cognac that goes into the liqueur. If you like Grand Marnier and you have a chance to try these other versions, do it! The only bad thing is now I'll have a hard time going back to the lesser quality after having tried the higher end varieties. *sigh* If only all my problems were so easily solved.