Momentos – Pinot Noir
This is my new favorite glass of wine a day wine. It is so good and not too expensive. It is smooth and you can drink a few glasses if you want. There are no ill side effects.
This is a well made wine. It is a Chile wine. They make good wines there. They seem to really know what they are doing.
I am giving this wine a 5/5, mostly on the drink-ability scale.
Angeline – Pinot Noir
This is an excellent pinot noir. This is not as good as the Annabella, but if you pick it up when you think you are getting the other wine you will not be terribly disappointed.
It has a great flavor. It is very smooth. This is a very drinkable wine.
Try it.
I give this wine a 5/5.
La Delizia – Pinot Noir
My initial impressions of this wine is excellent and not harsh. I very drinkable wine. This particular wine is not good with chocolate at all. This is a twist top bottle which makes it easy to take places.
It is an Italian wine and Estate bottled which often means the Estate’s best grapes will go into this wine. One can only hope that the grapes are good.
I had this wine again the other night. Different year I think, and I have to say I really enjoyed it. Two glasses and I was feeling fine. I do not think I would suggest more than that, but the next day I felt good.
It has an intense flavor to it, but it isn’t a bite, just an intense flavor. I can understand why I wouldn’t like this wine with chocolate. It would have brought out the bitterness with the sweet paring with the wine. I would highly suggest this wine to anyone who comes across it.
I would say this is a strictly serve with red meat kind of wine. Finish it before you start in on any deserts or anything sweet.
Overall I would give this wine a 4/5 rating.
Five Branches – Pinot Noir
This is a California wine done right. The taste is smooth and delightful. There is nothing bad about this wine. This might be one of my favorite everyday drinking wines. You can have a glass at the end of the day to take the edge off or to complement your dinner.
This is not an overly expensive wine and not super cheap either.
I would give this wine a 5/5.
King Estate – Pinot Noir, greatest pinot noir in the world!!
Ok, maybe just the best I have ever had. Although it is not an everyday drinking wine from a price standpoint it isn’t that expensive. It is in the $20 – $30 range.
Smooth, unbelievably smooth with every sip. The flavor is not intense or overwhelming in any way. It also isn’t weak. It is simply good. If all wine tasted like this no one would drink anything else.
I like to age my King Estate bottles for a few years, mostly because I feel like I should only drink them on special occasions or give them as gifts. I look forward to the day I can bring a bottle as a dinner party gift. The older a wine is doesn’t always translate into a better wine so remember this. Wine is for drinking.
Have a bottle of King Estate Pinot Noir in your wine cellar or cabinet and find an occasion to drink it at least once every few years. Then replace it.
This wine is definitely a 5/5 wine.
Dragon Jade – 14406 Excelsior Blvd, Minnetonka, MN 55345
Dragon Jade is a sit down Chinese restaurant with no buffet. It is rather nice. The music is set at a low enough level that you can easily converse. The decor is very Chinese. I love their dragon arch which you pass through to get to the main eating area.
The staff at the Dragon Jade is the best. Quite possibly the most attentive waiters and waitresses that you will find anywhere. Plus when you like things a certain way you need only ask once and then you will get it that way from that point forward. Of course that depends on getting the same waitress. They do everything that they can to make sure your meal is just right.
The pricing are low, but the quality does not seem to reflect the low prices. At the Dragon Jade you get more than you pay for. They have full meal choices which include soup, egg roll, and the main dish for less than ten dollars. You can also order dishes and appetizers to share.
Try the cream cheese wantons. Maybe with fresh spicy mustard. It is intense.
The garlic chicken is pretty good.
Two people should not be able to eat that well for that little, but at the Dragon Jade you can.
Afton State Park is fantastic for hiking and outdoor activities. Website
Afton State Park has some of the best and most challenging hiking trails around the twin cities area. They have wooded areas, prairie areas, riverside, and some paved.
The park is huge. It will take you more than one day to walk the entire park. Granted most people do not take advantage of the long trails away from the riverside trail, but for those of you adventurous enough to explore these trails have a lot to offer.
You will need a pass to get into the park. If you plan on going more than a couple of times to any state parks in Minnesota get the yearly pass.
At the entrance there is a ton of parking. There are picnic tables and open areas that you can put down a blanket and enjoy the day. 
I have seen weddings held at this park, or at least the pictures. The background is beautiful. If you adventure down the steps (there is a handicap trail too I think) you can see a bridge and past that leads to the riverside eating area.
A little bit further you can walk the trail that runs along the river. To the right (north) the trail ends eventually. To the right (south) the trail eventually goes up a very large hill and circles back around to the main area. Most people just turn around at the bottom of the hill, but if you can walk up it the sights are nice.
The hill that leads up to the backpack camping is a brutal. At the top past the camping area is a little building and some old farm equipment.
If you head past that there is a single person trail through a heavily wooded area. It is a bit precarious when the leaves have fallen. it makes the downhill walk slick and hides rocks on the trail. This leads back to the picnic area near the river.
The trails in the Northwest section can be rather intense. Both in difficulty and distance. Although Prairie Loop trail is really easy and a little boring the trails off of it are the ones to watch out for and take the time to hike. The northern portion of prairie loop that is just hiking is really fun. It gets down to single person trails in this area. I would say it is good hiking without being too intense.
Trout Brook Loop is a beast. There are parts of it where they put in steps. This might be my favorite hiking area in all of Afton State Park and the most likely to kill me. The climb/walk up is intense. The big hill down seems like it will go on forever. When you get out you can stop and rest at the picnic table and stare at the last hill you will need to climb to get back. Challenging, but rewarding in my book.
There are some simple trails in the southern area. You can avoid walking up the giant hill at the end of the river trail by approaching it from this direction. 
You will walk down instead of up and there is a bench at the bottom as your reward. Then you can walk along the river trail and the only difficult part is the end with the steps to get back to the main area, but you can walk up some, rest and walk up the remaining ones.
Deer Valley Loop in the southwest part of the park is a real hiking trail. It is a lot of single file hiking, but there are a lot of neat things to see in that area. I suggest making sure you can handle this one before you try your hand at Trout Brook Loop. On separate days of course.
Not sure how you take the tractor ride, but I did see some people on one when we finally made it out of Deer Valley Loop.
The park also offers camping, cabins, and yurts to stay in so that you can get the full experience. It is also nice to be able to just get up and go hiking.
In the winter there is snow shoe trails. There are also horse trails for you equestrians. Did I mention the birds. Plenty of wildlife to see here. Pretty blue birds and the occasional deer. Afton State Park is definitely a place to check out if you want to experience the outdoors.
Afton State Park – a great place to stay if you like camping, cabins, or yurts – website and information
If you are looking for an outdoor adventure Afton State Park has something to offer you. Sometimes you want to take advantage of both the trails and just sitting around with friends. That is where staying at a campsite or renting a cabin or yurt comes into play.
Afton State park has both individual campsites for yourself or you and a friend and group sites in case you want to bring the whole family or multiple friends. Each site is out of the way enough that you don’t feel like someone else will stumble into it (I only stumbled into a group campsite once I swear). Most of the individual campsites are up the hill where a lot of the 200 yarders dare not tread. They are out of the way yet close to the main section of Afton alps.
The cabins are all along the same little road and located a bit further south. Only other cabin renters and yurt renters should venture into the area. You get a parking spot or two right by the cabin so if you do not want to walk too far you can always drive from the cabin to the main area.
There are a couple of yurts just past the cabins. They are setback and you will need to walk a short distance from your vehicle, but there is a little red wagon 
(ok it’s black) at the yurt for you to use.
What is a yurt you ask? A yurt is a round building made of wood and covered in a canvas. At the top there is a skylight which allows a ton of light into the yurt during the day. 
When the sun is out there is no place to hide; I mean it allows a ton of natural light into the room brightening up your day.
There is also a wood stove in the yurt to keep you warm, but you will need to add fire to it often as it is small. Something to keep in mind if renting in the winter.
The yurts can hold a ton of people. They come with 2 bunk beds and a futon bed. There is even a kitchen table in the middle. Bring your own bedding and pillow.
You can have a campfire. Make sure you put it out completely before you leave. Minnesota has some strange rule against alcohol in parks. If you plan on drinking understand you cannot be rowdy, you cannot be obvious, and you may need to hide it and act sober like a teenager at a kegger. The bathrooms are outhouses, but they are clean. There are also places to get drinking water from a spigot. What they do not have are showers. I considered sitting under the spigot, but decided against it. The best part about staying at Afton State Park is being able to get up and go straight out for a nice long hike.
If you are looking for a place to setup camp and sleep close to nature I would highly suggest Afton State Park. More for the close assess to great hiking trails than anything else, but also because the accommodations are well maintained.
Chicken and Red Grape Pasta Salad – oh yeah
Gather the following ingredients:
1 small jar Mayo or 2 cups
1 tbsp. Sugar
1/2 tbsp. Mustard
1 tbsp. Heavy Whipping Cream
16 oz Rotelle noodles
Rotisserie chicken
1 celery rib
1/2 lb cheddar cheese
Seedless Red Grapes
large pot
large bowl
small bowl
Cook the noodles and let them sit until they cool to room temperature.
In the meantime mix together the Mayo, sugar, mustard, and Heavy whipping cream in the small bowl. Put this into the fridge to cool.
When the noodles are cool and the mix is chilled start to put everything together. Put the noodles in the large bowl. Pull the chicken apart and add it to the bowl.
Chop up the celery stick and add it. Cube the cheddar cheese and add it to the bowl. Add some grapes.
Top with the dressing from the fridge and mix.
Put it back into the fridge until you are ready to serve it.
William O’Brien State Park, 16821 O’Brien Trail N, Marine on St Croix, MN 55047
The park entrance is north of the city. It took us forever to find it. It was like an epic joke, signs everywhere that said William O’Brien State Park, but no place to park. When you find the entrance you will discover tons of parking.
Go left or right it is up to you. If you want the long trip go right. If you want to see the pond with minimum walking take the left path. It is a fairly nice pond. If you choose the long trip and it starts getting to you there is a cut across.
Overall it is a bit flat for hiking. It is a walking trail. There are some birds that nest there that might be worth seeing. If you are in St. Croix and want to go hiking it is worth a trip around the park once. Get your hiking pin.
There is also cabins, camping, and group camp sites. If you are looking for a place to stay in the outdoors this one is pretty nice.
For more details on the park check out their website: William O’Brien State Park.
