Over the last few years I’ve started a tradition of taking a “themed” summer road trip. Two years ago it was ghost towns. Last year it was craft breweries. This year things have taken a different direction – we are visiting quilting stores.

See if you can figure out which trips were taken with my sons and which one with my wife…

As usual, I’m exaggerating, but (again, as usual) not by much. Fortunately we are also including a few winery tours on the agenda. So far today it’s a tie, with 3 stops in each category. I don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but I do know what tonight will bring. Evenings are meant for follow-up tastings of the day’s wines.

Wine tasting is a bit of a tricky theme for a road trip. The problem is the wine; as we all know wine and driving do not go together. So I’m forced to sip … and then spit. It’s not nearly as unpleasant as it sounds. In fact, I think you can actually taste the wine better that way. After a dozen wines, there is absolutely no doubt you can taste more when you spit. But it is also frustrating, because I really do enjoy wine. Fortunately, in the evening you can sample the wines bought during the day. Maybe I’ll provide an update later this evening.