Saratoga Wine & Food Festival delights oenophiles and epicures for three days and nights with dining, dancing to live music, decanting rare spirits, expert presentations about wine and food, live and silent auctions of luxuries, and a Grand Tasting of the world’s greatest grapes. The event begins September 4, 2008. igourmet.com will be at the Grand Tasting, September 6, 2008 along with 250+ wineries and over 25 restaurants. Please join me!

Cheese Sampling

Abbaye de Belloc , France , Unpasteurized Sheep’s Milk

Artisan Raw Milk Manchego , Spain , Unpasteurized Sheep’s Milk

Dorothea , The Netherlands , Pasteurized Goat’s Milk

Kerrygold Aged Cheddar , Ireland ,  Pasteurized Cow’s Milk

Regina Blu , Germany , Pasteurized Cow’s Milk

Beemster Classic Extra Aged Gouda , The Netherlands , Pasteurized Cow’s Milk

Lomo Curado , Spain ,  Cured Pork Loin

Canary Island Chocolate Banana Bites , Spain

Crossing Pairs With igourmet.com at Mohegan Sun Casino in Pocono Downs
 
Crossing Vineyards Wine and Cheese Shop is one of only six retail outlets selected for “Project Sunrise,” a $208 million, 300,000 square-foot gaming and entertainment complex at Pocono Downs. Among the shop’s offerings will be multi-level flights of wine and cheese, paired to complement the flavors of each. Customers can build their own pairings, based on their cheese preferences, with wine suggested by a staff knowledgeable about both products.”Crossing Vineyards and igourmet.com are the perfect pairing, two Pennsylvania based companies that value quality and service,” says Christine Carroll, one of the owners of Crossing Vineyards.

Crossing will feature a wide range of its award-winning wines - they’ve earned nearly 70 prizes in national and international competitions - including limited quantities of its Library Wine Series, which has been held in reserve. Quality wine accessories, Reidel glassware, wine gifts such as decanters and wine bags, wine books, games, wine-related dishes and giftware, and seasonal gift items such as wine-themed Santas also will be available.

The wine and cheese shop will also offer igourmet.com’s line of gourmet food products exclusively. Headquartered in West Pittston, Pa., igourmet.com is the nation’s leading online gourmet food and gift retailer. Lauded by Forbes magazine as the best gourmet food Web site for the past seven years, its product line includes more than 850 imported and domestic specialty cheeses along with an award-winning line of exquisite gifts baskets.

This past weekend we had the pleasure of exhibiting at the Aspen Food and Wine Classic. Attended by Bobby Flay, Jacques Pepin, Masaharu Morimoto, and many more food celebrities, this event attracts the world’s most accomplished wine makers, chefs and culinary experts to its idyllic setting atop the Rockies. The Classic is truly heaven on earth for its 7,000-plus attendees. During the seminar portion of the event, esteemed author and renowned cheese expert Laura Werlin spoke about two igourmet.com cheeses: Abbaye de Belloc and Delice d’Argental. Abbaye de Belloc, a sheep’s milk cheese from the Pyrenees, offers hints of citrus and caramelized sugar, whereas Delice d’Argental, a French triple crème, has a tanginess that nicely cuts its buttery decadence.

Padma Lakshmi, host of Bravo’s Top Chef, stopped by the igourmet.com pavilion to sample Dorothea, a unique Dutch Goat Gouda flavored with basil oil and potato skins. Michelle Bernstein, of Top Chef and Iron Chef fame, raved about our English Cheddar with Carmelized Onions, a great melting cheese that takes cheeseburgers to a whole new level.

The honor of Top Cheese at Aspen went to our Boschetto al Tartufo, which garnered universal “wows” from just about all of the attendees and wooed many back for seconds and even thirds!

Sample the favorites of Aspen for yourself . Click Here to browse the full list of cheese featured at this year’s Aspen Food and Wine Classic.

This year we wanted to reach out to the cheese connoisseur community and invite them to cast their votes for their own favorite cheese. Vote and follow along as Italy, France, England and America send in theri four top competitors to finally see who really is the ultimate “BIG CHEESE”

To make the game a bit more interesting, we’re offering a twelve month subscription to our Cheese of the Month club to one lucky fromage fan! Simply cast your vote on who you think will win the Savory 16 for a chance to win this year supply of cheese!

Click here to Vote Now!

The 9th annual Washington D.C. International Wine & Food Festival is the largest indoor wine event in the Mid-Atlantic.  Over 200 international wineries participated along with food vendors, and manufacturers of related lifestyle products and services. The Washington D.C. International Wine & Food Festival attracts the “who’s who” of companies in the wine and food industries. igourmet.com is proud to be a sponsor of the Washington D.C. International Wine & Food Festival.

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and the coming of Spring by entering celebrations.com’s It IS Easy Being Green photo contest! The winner will receive an Irish Classic Gift Basket and a $100 gift card from igourmet. Five runners-up will win an Irish Cheese Basket.

Submit your favorite Green image! It could be a photo of you wearing something Green, holding a Green item, dancing on a Green, eating something Green – use your creativity and imagination and show us that indeed, It IS Easy Being Green.

 In the United States, it’s customary to wear green on St. Patrick’s Day. But in Ireland the color was long considered to be unlucky, says Bridget Haggerty, author of The Traditional Irish Wedding and the Irish Culture and Customs Web site.

As Haggerty explains, Irish folklore holds that green is the favorite color of the Good People (the proper name for faeries). They are likely to steal people, especially children, who wear too much of the color.

Parade Facts

Today New York’s St. Patrick’s Day parade is the longest running civilian parade in the world. This year nearly three million spectators are expected to watch the spectacle and some 150,000 participants plan to march.

The 108th annual Boston St. Patrick’s Day Parade will honor the “Men and Women of the Armed Forces”. South Boston is Boston’s most Irish neighborhood, and has a glorious tradition of helping others while keeping Irish heritage alive. The parade is led by John Hurley, a Navy veteran and South Boston native.

Chicago is famous for dyeing the Chicago River green on St. Patrick’s Day. The tradition began in 1962, when a pipe fitters union—with the permission of the mayor—poured a hundred pounds (45 kilograms) of green vegetable dye into the river. (On the job, the workers often use colored dyes to track illegal sewage dumping.) Today only 40 pounds (18 kilograms) of dye are used, enough to turn the river green for several hours.

igourmet.com is located only 12 miles from downtown Scranton. The St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Scranton, PA has been going on annually since 1862 by the St. Patrick’s Day Parade Association of Lackawanna County and the parade has gotten attention nationally as being one of the better St. Patrick’s Day parades. The parade route begins on Wyoming Ave. and loops up to Penn Ave. and then Lackawanna Ave. before going back down over Jefferson Ave. to get to Washington Ave. Scranton hosts the fourth largest St. Patricks Day parade in the United States. Tens of thousands of parade goers attend the parade each year.

igourmet.com is a proud sponsor of Bonneville starring Jessica Lange, Joan Allen and Kathy Bates.

ABOUT THE FILM

Jessica Lange, Joan Allen and Kathy Bates hit the road in BONNEVILLE, a story about three friends who ”come of age” for a second time on a trip across the great American West.  Faced with the decision of a lifetime, Arvilla Holden (Lange) loads up her 1966 Bonneville convertible and, with her friends (Allen, Bates) in tow, sets out from Pocatello, Idaho en route to Santa Barbara.

As they detour to spots like Bryce Canyon and Las Vegas, it doesn’t take long for the women to realize Arvilla has something unexpected in store.  But what none of them realize is that what began as a simple trip will end up becoming a chance to rediscover themselves, their friendship, the importance of promises - and of letting go.  Also starring Tom Skerritt and Christine Baranski, BONNEVILLE unites three of the most acclaimed actresses of our time in a story that celebrates fun, adventure and living life to the fullest.

Get ready to hit the road in style with lots of tasty treats in this lovely package inspired by the new film starring Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates, and Joan Allen! Just as Lange and her friends hit the road on an adventure of a lifetime, you and your friends will relish our gourmet picnic-style snacks which come in a beautiful insulated tote, perfect for taking on the road! Finally, get inspired with an exclusive DVD “Sneak Peek” as you hear from the stars of Bonneville about their fantastic journey!

Photos from the Boston Wine Expo.

igourmet.com attended for the 8th consecutive year this past weekend. We were joined by 450 wineries and thousands of wine enthusiasts. Attendees sampled over 1800 wines, enjoyed cooking presentations by 15 celebrity chefs and expanded their knowledge of wine at 25 continuous seminars. The Boston Wine Expo is America’s Largest Consumer Wine Expo.

Here are some of the events we will be attending this year. Mark your calendar!

 —2008 Event Calendar—

1/28/08  Yang Ming - Bryn Mawr, PA

2/9-10/08  Boston Wine Expo - Boston, MA

2/9/08  Make A Wish Foundation - Wilkes Barre, PA

2/16/08  Atlanta Fine Wine - Atlanta, GA

3/1-2/08  DC Wine Expo - Washington, DC

4/4-5/08 NYC Pinot Days - New York , NY

5/14-18/08 Nantucket Wine Festival - Nantucket, MA

6/11/08 Jackson Hole Wine Auction - Jackson Hole, WY

6/13-14-15/08  Aspen Food & Wine Classic - Aspen, CO

6/21-22/08 Splitrcok Wine Festival - Lake Harmony, PA

6/27-28/08 San Francisco Pinot Days - San Francisco, CA

7/18/08  Zoobilee - Philadelphia, PA

7/7-8-9/08 Tanglewood- Lenox, MA

9/6-7/08 Saratoga Springs Wine & Food Festival Saratoga Springs, NY

9/9/08  Hudson Valley Wine & Food Festival - Rhinebeck, NY

9/27-28/08 Hunter Mountain Micro Brew & Wine Festival - Hunter Mountain, NY

9/27-28/08 Hudson Valley Garlic Fest - Saugerties, NY

10/25-26-27/08 Miami Wine Expo - Miami, FL

11/11-12/08 Chicago Pinot Days - Chicago, IL