Wine and Spirits Travel

You may have noticed the new banner on the left for My Wines Direct. . We all have to pay the bills and I'm trying to do it mostly with ads that interest me and I believe will be of interest to my readers.  Like me, My Wines Direct is trying to find great wines in out of the ordinary places.  They sample wines from all over the world and try to bring the best of the inexpensive to you.  They are also trying to build a community of wine lovers through forums and newsletters so I urge you to check them out. If you do so before June 30th, you can enjoy this new customer discount for $10 off and FREE Shipping with coupon code AFFNC0610.

My day started as I wish it would every day, with a four-handed massage at Immersion Spa at Borgata’s Water Club. Peggy and Nancy massaged away any bit of tension that was left in my body and I soon forgot that I was going on four hours of sleep. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to take full advantage of the spa’s facilities, which include a fitness center, whirlpool, steam bath for each sex and a co-ed pool with awesome views of Atlantic City and food service in comfortable lounge chairs.  There was just too much more of Atlantic City to see. I bid farewell to my room at Borgata with some photos of the view (above) before heading over to Caesars. The only complaint of the voyage so far was the trip between hotels. Though it was only 2-3 miles, it took over an hour to complete with parking. It appears that everyone in Atlantic City checks in or out on Sunday afternoons. I waited 30 minutes to get my car and 20 minutes to park it at the next hotel. The parking situation

It’s been a few years since I’ve been to Atlantic City and there couldn’t have been a better way to get reacquainted than a celebration of a friend’s birthday hosted at The Borgata , with a little Caesar’s Sex and the City partying sprinkled in. Gail and I have been friends for more years than I care to mention and she was celebrating a milestone birthday of which she doesn’t care to mention.   We gathered on the Jersey Shore with her family at The Water Club Hotel in Atlantic City.  I had been to the Borgata years ago after its renovation and it had always impressed me with its modernly elegant style.   The Water Club is a magnified extension of that classiness, as only the Borgata can do it.  The rooms are large and contemporary, with extra features like flat screen TVs and large enclosed showers.  As nice as they were, however, we were not about to spend much time in our rooms. Dinner was at Fornelletto , an eclectic combination of Northern and Southern Italy.  After a long day

Bloomington is known as a popular college town that houses the University of Indiana. It’s also the home of Indiana’s largest winery and I had the pleasure of visiting Oliver Winery on my trip there. Oliver Winery certainly deserves its label as the state’s largest. It’s a place with many personalities that show through in more than 40 wines. Here you will find the ordinary and the extraordinary in a rare combination of home grown and home blended. From the moment you step into the shop/tasting room at Oliver you know this is something different. The store is filled with unusual sauces, dips, chocolates, jellies and cheeses that all of one thing in common – they come from the Midwest. As tempting as it was to walk away with a sauce called Mediterranean Pinot Grigio from Ohio, Crazy Charlie’s Salsa from Indiana and Zzans Chocolate from Michigan, I remembered that I was there to check out the wine. There are two personalities to Oliver Winery. The first is in its namesake, a col