Bourbon Tasting 2011

 After dropping CJ off at camp Steve and I headed to Kentucky for a quick bourbon tasting tour. Our first stop on that blazing hot July day was Buffalo Trace. We opted for the 'hard hat' tour that took us right through the factory. We saw the whole process and enjoyed the learning process even with the withering heat.
The tasting room was nice and cool and there we enjoyed the different bourbons that Buffalo Trace offers. They even distill a vodka called rain that was quite good, if you like that sort of thing. In the gift shop we bought a bottle of bourbon and some souvenirs.

We then headed to Woodford Reserve were we had a more reserved tour. There was an air of snootiness to Woodford Reserve that was reflected in the taste of the bourbon. The old limestone buildings were both cool looking and cool feeling. They have a spring fed water fountain that was quite refreshing. We were able to walk right up to the fermentation tanks and watch the process in action which was very neat.

After our tour we headed to my cousin Tim's house. He graciously invited us to spend the night and to dine with him. He is quite the cook and I don't foresee me ever turning down one of his meals. The salad was yummy with homemade dressing, dinner was an amazing chicken and dumplings and even though I was full I 'forced' myself to eat dessert which was yummy.
The next morning Tim joined us for a tour of Four Roses and Wild Turkey before heading out to spend the day kayaking on the Kentucky River.

At Four Roses we purchased a bottle so that we could compare it with Buffalo Trace.

Wild Turkey had quite the tour complete with an air conditioned bus. We did not care for the less than mild taste of Wild Turkey and left the facility empty handed.

We enjoyed the tours of both facilities but found that bourbon tasting should be reserved for the afternoon or evening!

While Tim headed to the river we headed north to listen to an amazing performance from the Olentangy campers and to pick up our favorite 'college' student.

Several weeks later ,after recovering from morning bourbon tasting, it was determined that our favorite so far is Buffalo Trace, with a combination of  Red Stag and Jim Beam a close second.

Orchestra Camp

This summer CJ went to Orchestra Camp at Otterbein University.
Each morning I dropped him off at Otterbein. When I picked him up in the afternoons his smile was huge. He spent his days learning new music, playing camp games and eating in the student cafe. On Thursday morning Steve and I dropped him off with an overnight bag. He spent the night in one of the dorms like a real college student. We picked him up on Friday after listening to a wonderful performance that spotlighted their learning.
He loved every minute of camp and is planning to spend the whole week sleeping in the dorm next year!

Hot and Sticky

July has been hot and sticky. East Coast sticky. Yucky not at all like Columbus sticky.

This morning all of our back windows looked like this.

And you thought I was exaggerating!!!



Visiting Aunt Nancy & Uncle Dick

CJ and I took a road trip to visit Aunt Nancy & Uncle Dick. On Wednesday morning we hopped in the car and headed east to Central Pennsylvania. About 5 hours into the trip we got off the turnpike and  then made our way through the windy mountain roads. The roads were narrow, steep and lined with lots of trees, it was a fun drive! We turned on their 'road' and continued our journey up and to their wonderful home nestled into the mountainside.

Thursday was spent exploring Raystown Lake by boat. CJ gave water skiing a try but decided against it. I manged to get up on the skis once but it wasn't pretty. What was pretty was the lake and the day.We had beautiful weather with sunshine and a few puffy clouds. After some exploring we enjoyed a picnic lunch on shore and then swam in the lake.

On Friday we spent the day at the pool. CJ and I went off the diving boards and raced each other to the far end of the pool. CJ and Nancy spent time floating and talking. It was another beautiful and peaceful day.

Our evenings were spent on the porch enjoying the cool air and each other's company. After dinner all the competition began. Nancy taught us how to play Canasta. Each night we got a little better, not good enough for Nancy to worry about losing, but better. We will have to practice a lot before we go back.