Wine, Tiaras, & Giant Chess

Have you ever gone on a day trip with a famous person? Well I have and that person was Catherine "Catty" Amos.This past Saturday, my high school friend, Catty and I ventured to Culpeper, Virginia. Culpeper was her one-time home but apparently it, and she, left a lasting impression. I was excited to see this town for myself. Little did I know that I was there with one of Culpeper's most popular former residents.

(I should clarify that Catty and I went to high school together. She is not in high school. I need to make that known since the words "wine tasting" will appear multiple times in this post. I don't want you to think I contributed to the delinquency of a minor.)

Now, Catty only lived in Culpeper about a year and a half but we weren't out of the car 15 minutes when she saw people she knows. It was great because I got to learn all of the town gossip. Sure, I don't know any of those people, but I now know all of their business. I don't like to spread gossip. But, I'm certainly not opposed to knowing gossip. Especially when it involves....oh wait...no, I shouldn't tell you.

Getting the 4-1-1 from Miss Minerva

(And, in Catty's defense, she wasn't even the one spilling all the gossip. Those Culpeper folks liked to chat. Even to strangers, like me. I guess I was trustworthy by association.)

This is where I should tell you the story of my wallet. Basically, I went to Culpeper and my wallet stayed in DC. Of course, I didn't know that until I was in Raven's Nest Coffeehouse and had ordered myself an acai green tea and a super delicious almond scone. That was the moment when Catty officially became my sugar mama for the day. God bless her. No wonder this town loves her.

So, after we "made the rounds" at the coffee shop, we walked to the farmers' market. You guys know I love a farmers' market. Armed with zero dollars, I pretty much just tried all the samples. All of the produce looked amazing and the market - albeit small - was wonderful. Quality instead of quantity, my friends. And by "quality," I mean oreo cookie bread. Yeah, that's a thing.

Our next stop in our day of Virginia fun was a trip to local Old House Vineyards. The property was gorgeous (much like the weather that day) and we were very excited to walk around the rows and rows of grapes.

Although we weren't so excited about the grapes that it deterred us from heading straight to the tasting room first. Mama didn't raise no fool. We tried nine different wines and surprisingly the rose was our favorite and we each bought a bottle. (Well, one of us bought two bottles because the other person is the dumbass who left her wallet at home.) Rose is making quite a comeback in the wine world. Don't be scared folks, it doesn't taste like a wine cooler like some people (me) often think, based on the color.

My sunglasses are on my head. That's why my hair is doing that weird  slicked back thing. Hindsight also shows that this picture would've been better if I'd put my hand on my hip too, for symmetry, instead of trying to secretly hold my own hand. 

Following our tasting we walked around the vineyards a bit. Unfortunately, they were preparing for a wedding that afternoon and much of the land was blocked off. Catty and I were pretty much confined to the giant chess game (yes.) and rows of grapes. We were going to stealthily steal some grapes but then we couldn't find any. Rows and rows and rows of grape plants but not a grape to be found.

Next on our tour de Culpeper was lunch. Catty suggested we go to her favorite lunch spot, Thyme Market. That's also where she made me try this cheese spread they call "Culpeper Crack." And then she bought some. So, essentially she became my crack dealer.

We enjoyed wraps (and crack) at a table outside in the alley. It wasn't as gangster as it sounds. (Do gangsters eat wraps?)

Culpeper may be a small town, but it (she? Are cities girls? Like boats?) has some great shopping. It was probably a good thing that I didn't have my wallet. Otherwise I would've been all bling-ed out in the jewelry I wanted to buy. Or, even worse, I might've bought this because it made me giggle:

I had to make the picture jumbo-sized, just to make sure you got the full effect. I think this is probably supposed to go in a
garden or something. But, I like it on the table. It's more of a conversation starter that way. I want a whole litter of
table-diving puppies statues. 

Our shopping excursion also led to two additional wine tastings, this time in wine specialty stops. If there is a wine tasting, Catty and I will find it!  The same goes for tiaras, obviously.

This is the face I make when I wear a tiara. This is also probably why I was never in pageants. 

And then there were these hats.

Catty's hat looks cute. Mine looks like I put some potato chips on my head and attached a price tag like a crazy person. 

Well, now this post is just getting silly. But that's what makes road trips to Culpeper so fun. And, if you haven't been there before, you should definitely go. Great food, quality shopping, delicious wine and a beautiful setting. And, the people are pretty special too. Try to take Catty, if you can. And also, your wallet.