I had a great time hosting my second wine tasting on Friday, June 10, 2016. The format was "Bring a favorite bottle". We sampled both Old and New World wines, including a Cleebronn & Güglingen dry Riesling, a San Pietro (Alto Adige) Lagrein, a stunning Hardscrabble Chardonnay from Linden, Virginia, and a delicious Cool Woods Shiraz from the Barossa Valley, Australia. At the next event, we will take a break to focus on Whisk(e)y. See you in July!

Nothing says 'Merica more like double-fisted games of skill. In fact, science has proven that one must balances their beanbag hand with a beer in order to succeed at cornhole. This spread was sponsored by Port City Brewing of Alexandria, VA. Unlike most DC events that offer unlimited beer and food, this event was neither oversubscribed nor skimpy. Hats off to Port City.

Few things say "springtime" more clearly than meat in tube form, $10 beers, and heckling the visiting team. Baseball is a social game that encourages fans to pay attention only 10% of the time - like cricket but with slightly less class and more commercialism.

In college basketball, anything can happen, especially in March. I loved watching my grad school alma mater, Syracuse University (#10 seed), outscore the #1 seed University of Virginia 25-6 in the final 10 minutes, overcoming a 15-point deficit, to secure Jim Boeheim's fourth Final Four appearance. If you've never experienced March Madness first hand, I highly recommend it. 

So there I was ... watching the NCAA tournament on a Friday night, expecting my team to lose to the #1 seed, drinking too much wine, chatting with old friends. Then my team won, and my friend offered to buy me a ticket for the next game in Chicago. Why not?! A quick Hipmunk search, a few hours sleep, and I was on my way.

Every spring DC goes pink, thanks to a gift from the mayor of Tokyo in 1912. The National Cherry Blossom Festival spans several weeks, with peak bloom arriving between late March and early April. It's a great place to picnic, if you can find a quiet spot.

A dream for 40 years, the ski village of Warth is now connected with Lech-Zurs-St. Anton. The new gondola, open since 2013, extends the area to 340km (211 miles) of groomed pistes and 94 lifts. Not bad for a EUR 37 ($40)/day lift ticket.

A powder day in Lech should not be missed. This was taken in the Zugerhorn bowl (bank hard right at the top of the Steinmähder lift)

About as pristine as it gets.

Simply put: Heaven on Earth. Lech is one of the 1,000 places to visit before you die. The skiing, food, and cuteness are outrageous.

Hotel Mohnenfluh above Lech is one of the best places to catch an afternoon beer and short kip in a sun chair. 

Nature's tanning bed ... at 2,800 meters. With amazing panorama views. Val d'Isere is one of France's best ski resorts, which offers extreme beauty and peace in Le Fornet and hard core aprés ski parties at La Folie Deuce.

The Bahamas are gorgeous, as are most of the islands in the Caribbean. From super exclusive to budget all-inclusive resorts, sun, drinks, and delicious food abound.