Last Saturday evening my husband and I welcomed several friends and neighbors to our home to celebrate the beginning of summer with good food, wine and conversation. The temperatures that day stretched into the mid-90s, so we started out indoors, with everyone (as happens so often) clustered in the kitchen and dining area. We toasted the start to summer with Champagne (Piper Heidsieck NV Brut) and a table full of cold appetizers: cheeses, crackers and bread, crudite and a lemon-garlic dip, some home-made spring rolls and fruit. As the sun lowered in the sky and a light breeze sprung up, though, we all adjourned to the back patio to relax around the table in comfortable chairs.  Our lazy Susan, crafted from the top of a wine barrel, made it easy to share the open bottles around the table without anyone having to get up.

For those of you into wine, I’ll share that we started with three white wines — a 2019 Holus Bolus Rousanne from California, a 2020 DeLille Cellars Willamette Valley Roofline Chardonnay and a 2018 Fog Crest Chardonnay from Sonoma — each quite different but refreshing and light. As we moved on to the lighter reds (a 2015 DANCIN Rogue Valley Pinot and a 2015 Solemn Cellars Malbec from Walla Walla) we delved into some warm flatbreads topped with goat cheeses, hot honey, arugula . . . a little of this and that. All the while, our guests — some of whom had known each other for years as friends and neighbors, others who were new to each other — were enjoying lively conversation and much laughter. As a hostess, I am always delighted when folks from different backgrounds and aspects of my life hit it off so well and have a good time. As happens at virtually all of our gatherings, travel quickly became a focal point of many conversations. Mark had recently returned from a two-week sojourn in an RV in New Zealand, Jay and Donna just got back from Spain and Portugal, and others shared plans for upcoming trips or past experiences. Next-door neighbors Sarah and Landon are looking forward to a July trip to Italy, their first, and because the rest of us had visited there at one time or another, we all had tips and stories to share. The consensus seemed to be that Italy was a favorite destination for everyone, and the memories bubbled up of Sienna, Florence, Cinque Terre and more. When I learned Sarah and Landon would be stopping in Orvieto for a day, I was eager to share with them our experiences there: the awe-inspiring cathedral;

Photo 315924818 © Olga Mazyarkina | Dreamstime.com

the extensive and fascinating underground city;

Photo 119021614 © Frank Bach | Dreamstime.com

and the wonderful artisans and their wares which lined the narrow, winding streets.

As Harry fired up the grill to prepare our New York steaks and asparagus while the potatoes roasted in the oven, the more robust red wines were opened to accompany the main course: a 2016 Tensley GSM red blend from Santa Barbara, California; a 2015 Va Piano Black Label Syrah from Walla Walla; and a 2016 Corliss Syrah, also from Washington state. Each one proved luscious, full of dark fruit, balanced and lingering on the palate. The sky slowly darkened as we lingered over our meal and the wines, with candles and a string of lights along the edge of the roof providing a warm glow to our convivial mood.

We wrapped up the evening with two options to accompany our summer-worthy dessert, a light meringue confection served with raspberries that is a family-favorite recipe: a La Marca Prosecco rosé sparkler and a 2004 Rosenblum Zinfandel Port-style wine from California.  Full as we were, everyone managed to enjoy a little of each, as we were all reluctant to wrap up what had been a truly lovely evening. The party broke up sometime before midnight, the evening still warm, both temperature-wise and from the pleasure of each other’s company.

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor