Getting the Band Back Together

While it has been lovely out this weekend in San Francisco, the winter months have brought more and more days where it just seems too (relatively) cold to do much of anything outdoors. We may venture out for work and groceries, but we’re always happy to throw off our hats and handwarmers and warm our toes in our snug little apartment.

But lest you think this hampers our ability to get down, we have one thing to say: Rock Band 3. Yes, that’s right, we’re getting the band back together, just in time for a wintry global tour! And all from the warmth of our own swanky blue couch. To be fair, only Josh was in the band before, but he was nice enough to buy me a keyboard so I wouldn’t miss out on the epic sets about to blast through our television.

I used to think only children played with toy instruments. Then I tried playing “Rehab” by Amy Winehouse on Easy mode, and stopped feeling quite so smug about my own musical abilities. A palsied grandmother might have an easier time hitting all the notes. There is much band practice in our future, which means I may have graduated to a “medium” skill level by the time that darned groundhog decides winter isn’t going to end.

We’ll post a picture of the band (Iron Rhino), soon, but for now having an imaginary band has reminded us that we can still party like real rock stars. With champagne!

Or champagne and pizza to be exact. This is easily becoming our favorite celebratory meal, both for its ease and fabulous tastiness. Featured in the photo is a classic around our apartment, the pesto pizza with fake grilled chicken and mozzarella. Paired with this was another champagne gifted to us, the Saint-Hilaire Blanqutte de Limoux Brut 2006 ($12). This very pale, very bubbly champagne was so carbonated it was audibly noisy in the glass, like the roar of the crowd from backstage. It did have a mild yeasty taste that melded into sour notes once consumed. It was tart and tangy, and seemed to waffle between dry and wet in our mouths. Its top-of-the-mouth floral flavor built in our mouths the more we drank, leaving us less satisfied each time. While this champagne's flavor was bold enough to fill our palates, it wasn’t tasty enough to pair with our robustly delicious pizza, or our recently developed rock band egos.

Score: She gave it a 2, he was in a kinder mood and gave it a 3.

Recommended: Leave this one for the roadies, folks.