perfect weather!

Was such a nice change from last year's rainy evening... we have now attended three years (all three years) Wine Walk to Ca d'Zan the Ringling mansion and estate. For those of you who know us or have attended the IPNC (International Pinot Noir Celebration) with us in Oregon, the ALL three years will not surprise you. My IPNC attendance -at ten plus years- and Phil's -at closing in on- 20 years would indicate that we are loyal to our wine events LOL....

here were the good and bad things about this year's Wine Walk

THE GOOD:

• Number One thing - the weather was perfect
• Number Two thing - the terrace at the Ringling was the VIP Lounge and was an absolutely perfect spot to - well - lounge around waiting for the sunset and finish off the eating path that takes you from the front door to the Bay... 
• Number Three thing- although I found nothing fabulous in the extra wines poured for the VIP ticket holders - it was a nice idea to have some extra stations along the way
• Number Four thing- several of the food stations were wonderful! The France one was my personal favorite but the American and the Spanish also had some good eats as well. 
• Number Five thing- the band was really good and well located so the music could be heard but wasn't overwhelming.
• And a shout out to the Cake Zone for the fabulous cup cakes!

THE BAD:

• The very first station was not at all ready and had no food or wines out despite it being more than five minutes after the opening time when we arrived  - hence no review of the German station except to say I would recommend against using this caterer as they clearly can't get their shit together...
• None of the wines were fabulous- and now I know that we have been seriously spoiled at the IPNC over the years with fabulous tastings of wines up to and including the Madame Bize-Leroy's wines, but seriously, this is a one night event - not a three day festival and yet a higher per hour cost than the IPNC.... 
• On a beautiful night like last night NOTHING should be held inside like the American station was last night - not that I don't like the circus museum but with such stunning weather - this part should have not been in a dark hall inside - and they too had issues - no one there to serve the beer they were hyping (not that it matter to me)  and the security woman was way over the top officious at that location - she clearly had the "gun and badge" syndrome...

However- nothing could have put a damper on the lovely evening - a great way to spend a few hours!

here are links to the two prior years:

http://semifreelife.semifreelife.com/2014/03/we-walk-walk.html

http://semifreelife.semifreelife.com/2013/04/march-madness.html

the entrance - you can see the blue sky weather we were blessed with!

the bay side of the house-

 
as the sun set the windows reflect its glorious hues

the menus-

an interior view

this would be an impressive thing to win-

because you can see the view of the tower in this aerial shot of the mansion-

and here is the menu that we missed because they weren't ready despite the security forces holding everyone for five minutes past the opening hour- I would definitely skip having these folks do any catering for you!

all in all a lovely evening but with some execution of logistics issues that made it just a shade under perfect...but hey, not everyone can be Pat Dudley! (the woman who ran the IPNC for many years) and so we continue towards our season's end- up tonight Itzhak Perlman at the Van Wezel. Stay tuned for more...

we "walk the walk"

LOL- so to speak...  So last night CBGB came down and the four of us headed out to the Wine Walk to Ca d'Zan.  Phil and I had gone last year on a very busy Friday night just after we closed on our condo and really enjoyed ourselves. So this year we invited CBGB and we made a foursome...

the event is simple- wines from many countries/foods from many countries and a lovely setting alongside Sarasota Bay as the sun goes down...

the little passport has all the wines and foods listed in for planning your "trip" around the estate-

so we stopped in for sea bass and empanadas at the Chile/Argentina station and sushi and sake at the Japan station.... terrine and tenderloin pizzas at the California/Oregon one and salumi at the Italy stop--- then topped it all off with tenderloin from a carvery station at the VIP tent- then we walked to the Terrace to sit for a bit to end the evening-

the layout had been altered this year due to very heavy threats of rain and we liked the one from last year a bit better but the rain held off and we enjoyed the evening despite the changes necessitated by the threatening weather...

up next for us- a week of farewell touring for Phil (read - we go to all his favorite restaurants one last time before he heads north)

up next for me- the Sarasota Film Festival where I have tickets for five films.

Also 4000 Miles at the Asolo with Georgia (in the historic Asolo Theater) and lots of cleaning and putting away at the condo- for the summer away. And finally, once it has really actually warmed up - the girls and I will head home for the summer.

we have lots to catch up on at home (Ed's Potsticker House soup dumplings! for one example) and we have theater tickets for four plays and a concert and a Goosefoot dinner - in the first two and a half weeks after I am home.  Then, before we know it, we are off to France with CBGB for our barge trip with our friend Captain Anna! Lots of fun in store for us this summer, including a trip to the Maritime Provinces for an "Epicurean Adventure" LOL- sounds delicious!!! Stay tuned for more details.

it's sooo livable

but then again- isn't every 30,000 square foot house? LOL

the home was built in the twenties for 1.5 million- a lot of money at the time- but it was done in a mere two years- which is astounding!

much of the decorating was Mabel Ringling's own design and of course they were filling both the home and their personal art museum with things purchased on numerous European trips (where they also were interviewing circus acts!- what a life!)

he was a real estate magnate along with the circus business and many other investments - and at one time was among the top ten wealthiest men in the country-

but let's get to the house- the morning Lynn and I went was perfect blue sky weather heading to a warm afternoon...

coming up from land side towards the house-

time has made some changes and this piece of statuary has been mostly swallowed by the banyan-

a side door to the ball room from the terrace

details of the terracotta work-

and inside view looking out at the bay from the ball room-

the "grand court" ceiling- and skylight- the wood work is all pecky cypress

the living room-

the lounge

dining room - could hold up to twenty two at the table between the dining room and entry area which adjoined the dining room-

butler's pantry

kitchen area

wine "attic" - the storage was on the third floor-

a shelf in the master bedroom held this cover of time-

 

the master bedroom



clothes from the closet in the master bedroom-

John's bathtub one solid piece of Sienna marble!

one of the guest rooms

a guest bath (one of 15 bathrooms - about half were in the staff's quarters)

the game room on the third floor- with the ceiling painted in fresco including a painting of Mabel and John in Carnivale costume- keeping with the venetian theme of the house-

view of the grand court from the third floor game room-

the views from the tower-

the view from the tower was magnificent! and as we headed to Treviso to meet Phil for lunch we discussed what their lives must have been like- the parties, the travel, the servants (who lived quite well in their 15,000 square foot quarters) - certainly of a bygone era.... but very livable! LOL!