Chef Robert's Top Wine and Sprit Picks for 2011

Wine...love it!

Over the next 12 months I will taste and review some awesome wines.

I promise I will not sugar cote my option.I will tell it like it is.

Much of what I'v learned come for the school of tasting.

ok...here are my rules for wine:

1. Be open minded, don't get in a wine rut. Try all kinds. Look, some will be winners others not. That's the adventure.

2. You don't have to spend a fortune.

3. The label tell the story learn how to read and understand the terminology, it's really simple.

4. Develop your taster! My wine mentor Gary Vay-ner-chuk from

Wine Library TV http://tv.winelibrary.com/ explains it this way! Watch

FUN!!!!

Ok, for real tune into Wine Library for a great learning opportunity.

But what about us diabetics? Here's what the ADA recommends.

A Few Guidelines

Use alcohol in moderation. Alcohol can dangerously lowerblood sugar in people with diabetes who take insulin or diabetes pills. If you choose to drink alcohol, talk to your doctor or dietitian about how to drink safely. Pregnant women should not drink alcoholic beverages.

• If you choose to drink alcohol, limit the amount and have it with food. Talk with your health care team about whether alcohol is safe for you.
• Women should drink 1 or fewer alcoholic beverages a day (1 alcoholic drink equals a 12 oz beer, 5 oz glass of wine, or 1 ½ oz distilled spirits (vodka, whiskey, gin, etc.).
• Men should drink 2 or fewer alcoholic drinks a day.
• If you drink alcohol at least several times a week, make sure your doctor knows this before he/she prescribes a diabetes pill.

More Tips to Sip By

• Drink only when and if blood glucose is under control. Do not omit food from your regular meal plan.
• Test blood glucose to help you decide if you should drink.
• Wear an I.D. that notes you have diabetes.
• Sip a drink slowly to make it last.
• Have a no calorie beverage by your side to quench your thirst.
• Try wine spritzers to decrease the amount of wine in the drink.
• Use calorie-free drink mixers -- diet soda, club soda, diet tonic water, or water.
• Drink alcohol with a snack or meal. Some good snack ideas are pretzels, popcorn, crackers, fat-free or baked chips, raw vegetables and a low-fat yogurt dip.
• Find a registered dietitian to help you fit alcohol into your food plan.
• Do not drive or plan to drive for several hours after you drink alcohol.

Adapted from the book Diabetes Meal Planning Made Easy. Written by Hope S. Warshaw, MMSc, RD, CDE, a nationally recognized expert on healthy eating and diabetes.

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The first Spirt to talk about...is Iowa's newest vodka, the brainchild of a television weather guy and his transportation engineer brother.

Mississippi River Distilling Co.

Maker of the new River Baron vodka, a River Rose gin coming in February and a not-yet-named bourbon scheduled for late next year - opened its doors for tours and tastings in Le Claire Iowa for the first time in December 2010. Owners Ryan Burchett, 36, and Garrett Burchett, 30.

Mississippi River is Iowa's third microdistillery. The list also includes the makers of Templeton Rye, a wildly popular whiskey that is mostly distilled in Indiana, and Cedar Ridge Vineyard in Cedar Rapids.

So what does it taste like?

Sweet and Smooth... It's a great sipping Vodka. The nose has hints of vanilla and a clean no burn moth feel.

Here's my version of the RIVER BARON ROOT BEER FLOAT of LOVE

for 1
Ingredients:
2 ounces River Baron Vodka
4 to 6 ounces root beer
1 scoop vanilla ice cream

Directions:
Pour vodka and root beer into a tall glass. Add ice cream and serve with a straw.

Check out the Baron @

www.mrdistilling.com

http://mrdistilling.com/blog/

http://www.facebook.com/mississippiriverdistilling

Please feel free to feedback to me your comments.

Buon Appetito!

Chef Robert The Happy Diabetic

www.happydiabetic.com

Taste for Life:

Recipes for eating and living better from “The Happy Diabetic”

We’re changing the way you eat one recipe at a time.