Cheese, Wine and Bandits Corner

September 11th

I took this photograph yesterday while Monica, Bandit and I were driving around Kansas, where we're visiting family for a nice visit as Mildred likes to say.

I wasn't thinking about September 11th when I took it. We were just driving along and something about the scene made us stop.

The sunflowers. The old windmill. The open fields and endless sky.

It felt peaceful. Simple. Kind.

And then I woke up this morning and realized why I wanted to share it today.

Twenty-five years ago, I was in New York City on September 11th.

I remember that day. I remember the fear, the confusion and the unimaginable sadness. There are things from that day that I will never forget.

But today, I don't want to relive them.

I want to remember what happened afterward.

I remember the incredible kindness and compassion that filled New York and then seemed to spread across the country.

Strangers helped strangers. Neighbors checked on neighbors. People looked one another in the eye. We hugged a little longer. We listened a little more.

For a little while, we were simply people taking care of people.

That's what I want to remember today.

Maybe that's why this simple scene in Kansas means something different to me this morning than it did when the three of us stopped to take the photograph yesterday.

It reminds me of the world I think most of us still want. A place where the earth is happy, the sky seems endless and people are kind to one another.

Today I'll remember those we lost and those who ran toward danger to help people they had never met.

But I'll also remember the humanity that came afterward.

I wish we could find a little more of that again.

Be kind today.

Be kind every day.

This Week's Cheese: Chabichou du Poitou

Sometimes we can geek out about cheese. Okay, maybe more than sometimes, but that's our job!

Then there are times when a cheese is so good on its own that the best thing you can do is leave it alone and smile at it.

This week we're featuring one of our favorite little goats, Chabichou du Poitou.

Even the name makes me smile. Say it three times fast and try not to smile.

It's a small goat's milk cheese from the Poitou region of France, with a beautiful natural rind and a texture that changes as it ages—soft and creamy when young, becoming a little denser and more complex as it matures.

But here's what we really love about it:

You don't need to do much.

Put one in the middle of a platter and surround it with a few other good things. Open one up with a warm baguette. Grab some simple crackers. Or just put it on a plate and start eating.

That's it.

No elaborate recipe. No twelve different accompaniments necessary.

Good cheese doesn't always need help.

A Chabichou, a warm baguette and a bottle of something good.

Sometimes simple really is better.

We'll be sampling this wonderful little favorite all day Saturday.

Come in, have a taste and grab a little goat for the weekend.

Three Wines. Three Places. One Saturday.

This Saturday Gary's back at the tasting table, and apparently two wines weren't enough this week.

So we're opening three.

We start in northern Portugal with the Soalheiro Alvarinho 2025 from Monção e Melgaço.

We love Alvarinho, and this is a great example of why. Fresh, bright and mineral, with beautiful fruit and plenty of acidity. It's the kind of white that wakes up your palate and makes you immediately start thinking about what you're going to eat with it.

In other words, it loves food!

And since we're sampling Chabichou du Poitou this Saturday too, you know where we're starting.

Little goat. Glass of Alvarinho. Done. Easy like Sunday morning.

And if you have any of the cheese left, put it in your Sunday omelette with some chives. You're welcome.

Next we're heading to Tuscany with La Spinetta Il Rosé di Casanova 2025.

Made from Sangiovese and Prugnolo Gentile, this is everything we want from a rosé—fresh, delicate and mineral, with fruit, flowers, citrus and enough going on to remind us that rosé doesn't disappear just because Labor Day is over.

It's one of our go-to rosés. And because it has a little more structure, this is a great way to wine down the summer wine.

We drink rosé all year. You should too.

And finally, we're off to Beaujolais with the Stéphane Aviron Morgon Côte du Py 2023.

This takes Gamay into a deeper, more serious place. Dark fruit, a little spice, smooth tannins and wonderful freshness. It's still incredibly easy to drink, but there's enough structure here to remind you why Morgon can be so much more than the simple Beaujolais many people have in their heads.

Three grapes. Three regions. Three completely different wines.

Sounds like research to us.

We'll be pouring all three Saturday from 12–5 in Ridgefield, and both cheese shops will be tasting our little Chabichou too.

Come taste. Ask Gary questions. Learn something new.

And maybe go home with a little goat and a few bottles.

That's a pretty good September Saturday..

A Great Weekend at Lime Rock Park

We're back from the Lime Rock Historic Festival, and we came home with a little something we weren't expecting.

Our 1967 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GT Veloce, “Helen,” received the “Star of the Rock” award at the Sunday in the Park Concours.

Yay!

Don't you love an unexpected surprise? Almost as good as free cheese!

We brought the Alfa because this year's featured marque was Alfa Romeo, and mostly because we love any excuse to drive her and spend a weekend surrounded by old cars and the people who love them.

We also got to drive her in the opening parade!

Winning something wasn't really part of the plan, but... Yay :-)

The Alfa isn't a trailer queen. We drive her. She gets dirty. She carries picnic supplies. She takes us down back roads and occasionally reminds us that owning an old Italian car requires a sense of humor.

That's part of why we love her.

Thank you to everyone who stopped to say hello at the track, visited us in Kent and grabbed one of our grilled cheeses at the concessions. It was really fun seeing so many familiar faces throughout the weekend.

The ribbon and trophy will find a home somewhere in the WKNDDRVR gallery—or maybe in our garage for a little while.

Now let's get out and enjoy this perfect late-summer driving weather.

See you on the road.

order your wine here

Platter Order Link Kent

Platter Order Link Ridgefield

Bandit's Corner

Are we there yet?

Apparently we’re going to Kansas.

Wait a minute...

I know Kansas.

When Mom and Dad picked me up in Kentucky on January 20th, I was only about 10 weeks old. Instead of heading straight home, we drove to Kansas City to meet Aunt Michelle—and Ziva, the yellow Lab who I now consider my girlfriend.

I was young. What can I say? Things moved quickly.

The next morning we drove to Manhattan, Kansas, to meet Grandma and the rest of Mom’s family.

That was more than half my life ago, so Mom and Dad weren’t sure I would remember any of it.

When we pulled into Aunt Michelle’s house, I got excited. Really excited. Same thing when we got to Grandma’s house.

Humans apparently think because we’re dogs we forget things. Maybe we don’t remember addresses or know what state we’re in, but we remember people. We remember smells. We remember places. And I’m pretty sure we remember how someone made us feel.

Apparently elephants aren’t the only ones who never forget.

And did I remember?

Of course I did. I’m Bandit Monkey Brown.

These were some of the first people I met after my whole life changed. One day I was a puppy in a Kentucky shelter, and suddenly I had a Mom, a Dad, a road trip, a girlfriend and a whole family in Kansas.

Not bad for 10 weeks old.

Now I’m bigger, my legs are much longer, and I’ve got quite a few more miles under my paws. And judging from this picture, I’ve also perfected the art of sleeping while the humans do all the driving.

Maybe these Kansas trips are actually training.

I keep hearing Mom and Dad talking about WKNDDRVR, our Petrolicious Post adventures and a whole bunch of mini road trips coming up—great roads, interesting places, people who make things, food, cheese, picnics and, hopefully, plenty of places that welcome dogs.

Apparently I’m part of the crew.

I like the sound of that.

After all, my very first adventure with Mom and Dad was a road trip. Maybe I’ve been training for this job since the day they picked me up.

Bandit thought of the week: Maybe home isn’t just one place. Maybe it’s all the places where the people you love are excited to see you—and you’re just as excited to see them.

Now...

Are we there yet?

See you on the road,

Bandit Monkey Brown

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Let's get out and drive! WKNDDRVR and 109 Cheese in Kent are the perfect destination

Lime Rock Park Too!

Thank you Lans for the great photo!

breathe, eat cheese, get home,

drink wine and repeat if needed.

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It's what we strive for in all our shops.

The less ingredients the better!

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We are now carrying CarPro and Griot's Garage automotive cleaning and maintenance products in our gallery

Come check out the exhibit by

Richard James in our gallery now.

Also, we have the continuation work from

Sean Smith

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