A big big boost

Yesterday Hubby and I drove a few miles into the nearby countryside. We parked at Sutton Cheney wharf and took a stroll along the canal ... a try out for my new boots!

I'd had to wait until the shops reopened as I wanted to try them on before buying. Friday we were in town for my second vaccination so took the opportunity, they are so comfy. 

Our walk was 3.8km starting along the canal then up and over the bridge to walk some of the Battle of Bosworth Battlefield site and back through Ambion wood to the wharf. There were plenty of others out walking, with and without four legged friends. Everyone stepped aside with a cheery 'good morning'. 

It was so nice to be out and about; an added bonus was we saw some baby Moorhens, I had never seen babies before, so cute! 

It was so lovely to be out in the spring sunshine, it does make you feel good .... and today I feel even better as Mr Postie delivered the best letter ever. 

A few weeks ago I had a follow up scan for my breast cancer, it is awful waiting for results and this was the first scan since my operation last April. I'm sure the whole UK heard my scream .... no abnormality seen .... it's gone, and it was in writing. 

Oh my, what a weight lifted, the last 18 months of yuk yuk yuk have worked. 

I feel so so happy and so so grateful to everyone at George Eliot Hospital and University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, they are amazing! 

Hubby and I opened a bottle of Chapel Down Sparkling Bacchus this afternoon to celebrate, we have saved a little for this evening. We have also celebrated with a glass of Bond Street Distillery Signature Gin, part of a gift from our son which I was saving for when it was all over .... and today it is! 

I am still smiling from today's news, and I think the robin was smiling too. I know who was visiting and his watchful eye has helped me throughout ... thank you Dad 😘

Aldi wine ... with friends

Over the last year we have enjoyed meeting our friends on a video call every Saturday. With life a bit 'off' our regular quiz nights and wine tastings have been very much needed by both of us. 

We had a great Wine Tasting Night in January and a Virtual Cocktail Night in February - both super fun. We all live quite close so swapping the mini bottles is not a problem, in fact it made a nice drive out at times, if only 10 minutes! 

However swapping wines in this way is not possible with our friends who live near London but we did want to do a virtual wine night. Problem solved, we both have an Aldi store nearby so arranged to meet one morning by phone in our own stores. It was quite surreal to be standing looking at the wines talking to our friends 100 miles away and choosing the same wines to try. 

One that caught all our eyes was a white Malbec, I have enjoyed many Malbec wines but never a white wine.

Argentinian White Malbec at £6.99 is a good wine for summer days. As with a red Malbec it has red berries but has a lighter flavour with hints of strawberries and floral blossom. 

 

Our red choice was French, from the southern Mediterranean coast very close to the Spanish border, and made from a grape grown in both couthries - Grenache Noir. 

Pierre Jaurant G has a medium body with plenty of fruit. The wine was slightly tannic even though we had decanted our bottle a few hours earlier, but was fruity with a good finish. It was nice to find a bottle of just Grenache, especially at £6.49

It was a lovely evening chatting by video with our friends and sharing the same wine, something we have enjoyed in person in the past and will hopefully be able to do again in the not too distant future.

It's been a while since we shopped in Aldi, there were many new wines in store which of course tempted us into buying a few to try. We chose four whites and six reds, including the tasting two. 

Our whites were Stellenbosch Chardonnay Reserve,  Pierre Jaurant French Vermentino and Mimo Moutinho Portuguese Loureiro. 

I am looking forward to tasting all of these as they are all new to me, not just being from Aldi but the grape or region. I have had South African Chardonnay but not a Stellenbosch Reserve; likewise with the Vermentino, a grape I have tasted but not from France. The Portuguese Loureiro is one I am especially looking forward to as it's from the Vinho Verde region and a new grape to me.     

The reds were a combination of wines we have enjoyed, wines other people have recommended and new wines that caught our eye. 

Portuguese Douro is one we both enjoy and is great value at £5.49. 

The labelling on the Coteaux de Beziers really stood out, especially as we have enjoyed many holidays in the area and have visited Beziers many times. Listed as Pierre Jaurant French Red Blend it is a Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot wine.

It's a good job we picked up an Original Series Stellenbosch Cabernet Sauvignon as it's no longer available. Another label that caught our eye was Cambalala South African Pinotage, it's a grape Hubby enjoys and is looking forward to tasting. 

Our final red was on the recommendation of a member of Cuvée Reserve, a wine forum for sharing everything about wine. I'm keen to try this  Specially Selected Uruguayan Tannat, I'm not sure what we'll be pairing it with so there's an opportunity to study both my wine and recipe books.

All in all a good Aldi visit, we picked great wines to enjoy with our friends and had a lovely evening, and we have some lovely new wines to try .... cheers.