Let us Give Thanks for...

Black Chocolate Stout
The imperial ale favored by Catherine the Great; this three mash brew boasts two centuries of perfection. This chocolate version is a luscious dark blend of specially roasted malts. Serve it in a snifter with chocolate desserts, cheesecake, fruit tarts or ice cream. Black Chocolate Stout is only offered once a year as a seasonal treat; its limited availability makes it fit for a queen (or king).



Columbia Winery Cellarmasters Riesling A perfect pairing for a Thanksgiving meal! The textures are smooth and light but with complex characters making this white a delightful companion to the traditional root vegetables served at holiday meals. It might even rescue an over-cooked bird and the chef. The Senior Editor at Cork Review offered this helpful insight: "Want to be rich, lose weight, and look good naked? Buy this wine."


Beaujolais Nouveau by Georges Deboeuf
This special offering from Georges Duboeuf, the King of Beaujolais, is not released until the third Thursday of November just in time for the holidays. Wine Spectator finds this year's vintage to be exceptional:

...."the wines displayed good concentration, with more strawberry and dark berry and cherry fruit than in past years. Additionally, there was fresh acidity, and it was well-integrated, without rendering the wines too crisp.

Franck Duboeuf, proprietor of Georges Duboeuf, the négociant his father founded, called the vintage superb. "In 2003 and 2005 we thought we were lucky to see such grapes in our lifetimes," he said at a New York promotional event. "But these [vintages] were surpassed in 2009."

Duboeuf said many factors contributed to the success of the vintage, but very dry and warm weather in August was key to promoting fuller physiological maturity in the grapes. He also noted that "fantastic weather conditions" during harvest, which began very early, Aug. 25, afforded growers and pickers lots of time to bring in healthy fruit, without any sorting."

Try the Beaujolais Nouveau as a special treat to accompany poultry, cheeses and desserts.


ChocoVine This is bliss. Cabernet Savignon and Dutch chocolate blended into a lush velvety taste experience. This is a favorite item at Out of the Blue; North Georgia's top seller of ChocoVine. Ask for a taste on your next visit to the store and you'll smile too....


Cheese! Out of the Blue has an exceptional selection of fine cheeses and Fra'mani Handcrafted Salumi The Cabot Clothbound Cheddar is a Gold Medal Winner at the World Cheese Awards. Thanks to a partnership between Cabot and Jasper Hill Farm, a small artisan start-up helmed by brothers Andy and Mateo Kehler, this cheese and others allow farmers a better return than what was possible with milk alone. And artisan cheeses allow farmers to stay solvent while also supporting the local economy. But the proof is in the tasting; this cheddar is the best.

The Penguin You love sodas, so do your children. But you don't want additives, preservatives, phony colorants, sweeteners and flavors. Enter the best dressed fellow in town. The Penguin transforms water into sparkling water or soda without batteries or electricity.You control the amount of carbonation by pushing the carbonating lever downward several times until you hear the penquin chirp. One chirp means the water is lightly carbonated; five chirps will make super-fizzy seltzer. In addition to sparkling water and seltzer, the Penguin enables you to be a soda mixologist with over 25 regular, diet and caffeine-free soda flavors

Our unofficial independent survey results: the Penguin's fizz is the coolest fizz this holiday.

We wish everyone a very blessed Thanksgiving,

Sarah & Co.