Hola Sizzlers! It has been an eventful morning; it downpoured and rained cats and dogs (luckily I got to wear my Hunter Wellies to work...I work in marketing...Wellies are acceptable.) Then I rushed into the office to work on a new project only to find that the other half of the creative dept. was filming some sort of commercial/ad/something....at the row where I sit. An hour later I finally got to sit and work. RAR.

As I stared out the window waiting for my desk to be evacuated by the person wearing a straw hat and floaties (don't even ask!) I was trying to think happy thoughts. Naturally, after thinking about puppies and beaches, I thought how nice a glass of wine might taste later on this evening.

Before you do anything, click here, play this song, and read along. You're welcome.

Red Red Wiiiiiiine. (& Champers) Girl's night out at Provisions.

It's no secret I love me some red wine. My penchant for wine has followed an interesting path; starting with the magnums of Rosé and Moscato that I started with in college (gag!) and then I got real classy and only sipped Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay. Then the white wine phase died. To the day, I can only handly maybe one glass of crisp white wine with a full meal, otherwise count me out.

It's alllll about the red, amigos. Once I started, I couldn't stop. Throw in my little jaunt to Italy 2 summers ago, and it's fair to say I'm a budding connoisseur.

So, in the spirit of Thirsty Thursday, and the fact that Easter is upon us and it's a custom in the Sizzle Household to indulge in a glass or two (or maybe more, who knows) during the Easter feast, I shall be showering you with some of my favorites. Now, for my beer drinkers, I even saved a spot for you. I love beer, but we'll save that for another post! Maybe I'll even go wild and do a hard liquor post... But for now, we shall indulge in the delightful world of the red.

DISCLAIMER: I try to keep these all on a reasonable budget. It's always nice to splurge, but when you also have a taste for J.Crew and shoes....well...yeah.

I tried this wine with a dear friend who used to slang wine here in Houston, and she was spot on with this recommendation. It's sexy (because it's French) and has a rich, dark and spicy element. Click here for more in depth reviews.

Ok, fine. I'll be honest. I really was drawn to the label first, but I really do love Independent Producers. They give good wine. This Washington wine is not too sweet in the way of Merlot, and was super smooth and delightful. Click here for more info.

I'm a huge fan of Pinot Noirs and red blends, and this bottle was great for the price. It has a very full flavor, but doesn't punch you in the tastebuds. A great wine to pair with a meal instead of just on its own.

GO BUY THIS NOW BEFORE I DRINK IT ALLLLL.

Now for one of my current favorites. THIS.IS.AMAZING. I tried this wine initially at Dolce Vita over pizza and a Caprese, and was really impressed. I went to Central Meerkat a few days later and found it for an incredible price. I keep it in my house all the time now. This earthy Italian is cultivated in volcanic soil so you get some great mineral notes (which I love!) and apparently the volcanic soil lends itself to health benefits? SURE. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. More info here.

I had a glass of this a Paulie's recently and was very impressed. Dark and violety, and just lovely all over. Very well priced and very well reviewed.

This is another great Italian. VERY well priced, and very tasty. It's so good someone at Forbes decided to write about it. Read it here.

How could you not like it? It has an OWL on it!!

And now for my beer drinkers. Half of the allure of this beer was that it was illegal to sell in Texas, but in the last 6 months or so (maybe even longer) it's been making it's way in! (legally!) Central Meerkat has it and Paulie's has been selling some too. I first tasted it over fresh gulf oysters in NOLA, so the experience was just insane. It's a white beer with citrus notes and I can't get enough. Just be careful because too many of these can HURT the next day. Not that I know from experience. Just what I heard.

And there you have it my friends. The inaugural Thirsty Thursday. So finish your work, go home, and pour yourself a little something. Because TheSizzle told you so; you definitely deserve it!

Cheers, Chin Chin, Salut, Santé, 1,2,3, DRINK (like in college)

Amigos! Pardon the hiatus, but I've kind of decided that weekend posts are for the birds. I'd like to keep the weekends free for people to go outside, smell the roses (don't inhale too much pollen) and disconnect a little from the Facebook/Instagram/Twitter worlds.

That being said, I had a superb weekend. Lots to catch y'all up on.

For starters, Friday night I really just wanted to chillax and have some vino with amigos, and that's exactly what (kind of) happened. We grilled out and stuffed our faces with fresh tuna sliders, all kinds of salads, grilled veggies, cheese, burgers and some special apps made by my friend who has recently been crowned one of Houston's hot up and coming chefs. (Stay tuned for an exclusive interview!)

We started out being normal 20/30 somethings and then once the drinks started flowing, we got a little goofier. We got a little game of catchphrase going, then the flip cup started, then next thing you know, we're all gathered around the TV in the living room playing with Apple TV and playing music videos... One of our friends was particularly inspired to hear a certain song... I'll give you one guess.

So that happened. What you're never ended a Friday night like that? You're missing out.

Saturday morning I bounced out of bed to IAH to pick up MainSqueeze from a business trip. We decided we wanted to bust out our bicycles and enjoy the Springtime weather. 4 hours later, our bikes were ready. I don't even want to talk about how this happened, but all I'll say is that it involved the kind folks over at Bicycle World, some failed attempts at repairing a tire in the Academy parking lot, rubber cement, some expletives, and FINALLY we were ready to rock.

Tour de Houston was so fun. We spent the rest of the weekend on bikes pretty much. We biked to LowBrow, West Alabama Ice House, Lizzard's and then ended the night with dinner at the new Pico's. I personally prefer the original (and yes, I realize how bratty that sounds, but it's just the truth!)

Sunday, we biked to Brick & Spoon for brunch. Amazing bike ride and great brunch. We snagged a table at the bar to avoid the wait, and were greeted by a very enthusiastic bar staff. I went for an Irish Coffee and the "American Breakfast" and MainSqueeze got the Cajun Omelette and the biggest Bloody Mary I've ever seen. His omelette was #NomCity and the roasted corn grits were the highlight of my meal.

Post brunch, we biked around the Menil Collection, then headed to watch the Master's at Jackson's Watering Hole. We got a bit stir crazy and wound up biking to Boheme (one of my favorites) for super Sunday happy hour, which involved champers and a delightful corner booth in a garden-like atmosphere. We even made a lizard friend. After mimosas, we headed BACK to West Alabama to see Bubba Watson clinch the victory. WHAT.A.DAY.

Sunday night was finished off with some delightful seafood pasta from Ruggles Green and a Game of Thrones episode so exciting/WILD that I just can't even begin to tell you about.

Phew. All that biking and adrenaline from Game of Thrones had me NOT ready to face Monday. Oh yeah and this weather? NOT ok.