if you like pina coladas (then you’ll LOVE this wine)

A few years ago, a friend went to Hawaii and brought back the most. amazing. white wine. ever. It was light, not too sweet, not too oak-y, just perfect. And impossible to find in the continental U.S. I was living in Boston at the time, and I went to every liquor store throughout Back Bay, Beacon Hill, Government Center… everywhere. Every time I traveled, I would walk up and down the aisles of the local liquor store like a raging alcoholic in need of my fix. I was just looking for Maui Blanc! I even considered buying it online and paying the exorbitant shipping price to ship it up to friends in New Hampshire (you cannot ship alcohol to Massachusetts). But, alas, I went without. Until last week, when I walked into Cleveland Park Liquor and Fine Wines and saw it on display for $15 a bottle. Amazing. Seriously, if you live in northwest D.C., it is worth the trip to CP Liquor to grab yourself a bottle. It will be your own little tropical vacation in January.

bright photography

Has anyone else seen the cover of the Washington Post this morning? I was completely mesmerized by this photo, which is a high dynamic range (HDR) composite image. Pop Photo explains the process for creating an HDR image here, using Photomatix or Adobe Photoshop and Bridge, and this post from Smashing Magazine highlights 35 phenomenal HDR images (how amazing is the photo of the Golden Gate Bridge?).

i’m dreaming…

Oh, I’m sorry. I’m remembering our very white Christmas in 2009, when Snowmageddon (Part Un) hit around this time. In the picture above, I’m pretty sure I was dancing in the middle of a very empty Massachusetts Ave, right by Union Pub. Today, on the first day of winter 2011, I stopped counting the number of Washingtonians I saw wearing shorts by Friendship Heights (count: 5+). Maybe it is because I have a ticket out of town to the Florida Keys for next week, but I am a little wistful tonight, dreaming of a white Christmas.

found: happiness on the hill

[View of the Capitol from Pennsylvania and 8th]

[Carolers at Eastern Market]

[Cookie cutters from Hill's Kitchen]

I’m going to be honest with you, there are so many amazing places to eat and shop in Northwest that I am usually hard-pressed to go farther from home than Metro Center/Gallery Place. After the last 24 hours, I am rethinking my lazy ways.

Last night, I met some friends at the Chesapeake Room on 8th Street SE for dinner and drinks. My search for the perfect cider cocktail ends here. Nothing will compare to their ‘Tis the Season cocktail, made with apple cider, house-infused clove rum, canton and cinnamon.

One of my friends recommended a trip to Hill’s Kitchen on D Street SE, and I went back to Capitol Hill this morning to stop there and Eastern Market. I picked up adorable cookie cutters  in the shapes of dinosaurs (really, a must-have for every preschool teacher) and Massachusetts and D.C.

walking [on] a winter [wild side?]

 

Last night we took a walk down the street to see the National Zoo’s free “Zoo Lights” exhibit. 

The Pros: the hum of the crowd, the Christmas music, the vendors selling hot chocolate with peach sschnapps, cider or mulled wine.

The Cons: the very small ice skating rink. It costs $5 to skate ($7 if you need rentals), and the “eco-friendly synthetic ice skating surface” leaves much to be desired. There were only 3 people on the rink when we walked by.