I cannot believe that it has been three years since I last visited Prosser, WA. I went to visit my college roommates' hometown and check out the Prosser Wine and Food Fair -- probably my first large-scale wine experience (meaning that I was exposed to a lot of wineries at once, not that I necessarily drank a lot of it like Moos did). Here I am with J.Jo and Moos in 2007.
Since that time, the Prosser Wine and Food Fair has only gotten bigger and relocated to the Washington State University Experience Station (insert college experimenting jokes here). It was probably a good idea to move the intoxication-by-wine event from the local high school football field, where I had last attended. Don't want to send mixed signals to the kids, right?
This time around, the event was bigger and my group was hotter as I was joined by the Wives and my wife. Trust me, nothing looks better than rolling with three beautiful girls to a wine event. I'd rather take three dates over limo service any day. Here was the entourage.
We were impressed by the reds - Merlots, Cabernets, Sangioveses - but were dumping out the too-sweet whites - Rhubarb(?!), Viognier, Chardonnay, Petite Verdot. Yuk. Vin du Lac and Heaven's Cave Cellars and Columbia Crest were the standout winners for me. The weather was too hot for prolonged red wine drinking so we quickly transitioned to beer and enjoyed what Horse Heaven Hills Brewery had to offer, including a kickass apricot beer. We threw down two pitchers of that in no time.
We attended a post-party at one of the two "hot" bars in Prosser where you basically pay a $5 cover to sit in a restaurant featuring bright lights and loud music. God help this town. The entertainment for the night was a way-too-drunk girl sitting near us who couldn't keep the tattoos on her chest from falling out of her dress. It was sad but well worth the cover price.
During our mornings in Prosser we were able to crash at Moos' aunt's backyard pool, which was amazing. Sorry guys, but I have to abide by the no-swimsuit-photos policies enforced by wife and Wives (though anything can be bought for a price).
Amanda is a natural amphibian, so she and I spent the most time in the water while the Wives worked on their tans. I don't think we've had a chance since our honeymoon to just sit and do nothing. It was so relaxing. We also got some more down time when traffic was delayed by 90 minutes(!) on the way home, but all-in-all it was a great weekend.