Tag: travel

Getting To Know Wines – Some Freedup Tips

Although any delicious meal can stand alone, a good connoisseur knows how to create a celebration at the table with the right wine. Learning the process can be a little exhaustive, but the following article will help speed things up for you. Put these tips to good use for your next meal.

Do not drink ONLY the best wine that you can find at all times. Sometimes, you will notice that some of the best tasting wines are medium grade and not the crème of the crop. Explore all types of wine and try them with different meals to determine your favorites. By buying less expensive wines, you will be able to try more of them.

Make a habit of trying new wines as often as you can. You will have the best chances of finding a wine that suits your tastes if you take the time to experiment with them. Everyone has different tastes, so just because a wine is said to be excellent does not mean that you will enjoy it, so get out there and try them.

The longer you keep white wine in the fridge, the more the coldness will affect both its smell and taste. Therefore, it is best to only chill wine for several hours prior to serving. This will maximize the taste and enjoyment that you will receive from each bottle you drink. And it means you do not have to wait as long before trying your new purchase.

Use different glasses for red and white wine. A narrow wine glass is better for your white wines, which limits that warm air that touches the wine. Reds need to be poured into wider styles of glasses that have large mouths. The rich flavors of red wines will awaken as the wine warms up to room temperature and is exposed to air. You could just try leaving some wine glasses of different types scattered around your room for a wine drinkers decoration scheme.

Go to places that grow wine. To have a full appreciation for the way the grapes taste, it helps to locate where they’re harvested. This allows you to see the origins of the wine, enhancing your experience. Wine regions are usually extremely beautiful and pleasant to visit. If you really enjoy wine, think about going to a wine country and learning more. Not only is wine country beautiful to look at, you’ll get a new appreciation for wine and also some context on where it comes from. Many wineries have tasting sessions where you can learn how best to appreciate your favorites for free.

In order to fully taste the wine, you have to be able to smell it. Make sure that your nose is as clear as possible prior to doing a tasting. Once you have the glass in your hand, lean your face down toward it so that your nose is partially in the glass. Make sure you smell using both the right and the left nostril.

Left over wine is wonderful for cooking. When you’re down to the bottom of the bottle, do not throw it out. Instead, reseal the bottle and save it for your next meal. You can use the wine to add to your next Pot Noodle, after you have added the boiling water.

Most people cannot afford a wine cellar in their home, but that does not mean you cannot create an atmosphere that is conducive to storing a few great bottles of wine. Try to store your wine in a darker location where the temperature will remain fairly consistent. Doing this will preserve the quality of your bottles of wine until you are ready to drink them and allow you hide in the corner while doing some taste testing.

Topping off a great meal with a fine wine requires a bit of know-how. Hopefully this article has shown you some new ways to select and serve wine that will complement your next celebration. Keep these tips in mind next time you are shopping for wine and practice making the perfect toast!

Turkey Remains A Top Holiday Hotspot

Advice For FreedUp Travellers There

Turkey is a top holiday hotspot, according to tourism reports. It has a rich historical and cultural background and unspoilt beaches. It is sunny for over 6 months of the year. And in winter, there are always the ski resorts to go to.

So, what advice can I offer you if you are going to Turkey?

Do not assume that Turkey will be hot and sunny. We are told this (see above) but this is simply to lull you into a false sense of security so that you only equip yourself with light clothing, a pair of sandals and no raincoat. When the downpour starts, as it does most days you will have no protection.

Travel in Turkey’s capital is easy, if you have nerves of finest steel. The taxi drivers have only two speeds 100 mph and BRAKE! And there are unlikely to be seat belts that you can use. The best you can do is cling to the handle above the window.

Learn a little Turkish. You won’t need much. A little goes a long way. I tried “Thank you very much”  “Teşekkűr ederim”, pronounced  ‘teshkweredereem’ or something similar. It made people smile when I used it (in fact, the cleaner nearly collapsed laughing when I first tried it), although I am a little concerned that I may be putting the emphasis in the wrong place and I am actually telling people, “I am leaving you all my money when I die”.

Maybe that will do for a first lesson.

Alone In A Bar?

What If You Are Alone In A Bar?

Queue the song “You’ll Never Walk Alone” – not in a bar anyway! This post will help you find your way down those rabbit warren back streets and alleyways of life.

Take care if you see a woman or man sitting alone in a pub or bar. Not me, of course, because I keep myself to myself anyway and bring my own book to read if I am not meeting anyone.

But if someone (else) starts to listen to your conversation with others and then joins in with their own tales, you can be pretty sure that, before long, they will try to separate one of you from the general conversation. Next thing, they will be telling their life story. And then pretty soon you will want to lie down in the dark, maybe with a damp flannel over your head, listening to Leonard Cohen while visions of a possible afterlife float through your head.

One of those people came into my orbit on Saturday night when I went to meet friends in the local pub and we were discussing local affairs (as you do!) with a couple of other friends who just happened to turn up too.

Within ten minutes I had learned that my new Best Friend worked for a local utility, that the said local utility had saved millions by changing their location (fascinating!), that she liked camping out alone in rented motor homes on managed sites and that she was thinking of going to a local beauty spot for a  holiday in a couple of weeks’ time.

I also learned what other sites, National Parks and beauty spots she had visited and which ones were accessible by long distance bus services – remind me to travel by train in future! Totally nothing wrong with going to places on your own – I do it all the time – but keep it to yourself! Now, where did I put that Leonard Cohen CD…?