With two previous events under their belts, the brothers of Baltimore were at it again. Good Fellas, LLC, brings you Wine & Pasta 3 “Dominic Nicksolo’s” Day Event. 

On June 18^th, Chuck Bryant, Dominic Capers, Dorian Owens, and Steve Love better known as The Good Fellas hosted the third edition of their signature event, “Wine & Pasta”. While the title may very well be familiar, the event was totally different from those preceding. This go around, the four insightful minds of The Good Fellas added a fifth member to the starting line up, the creativity and feminine touch of Ebony Kennedy of Kennedy Consulting & Events. Together, The Good Fellas & Kennedy Consulting & Events set out to bring heat to an already humid Saturday afternoon with an amazing day party.

With Baltimore already a buzz from several other events around the city, (definitely evident from the traffic) The Good Fellas and Kennedy Consulting & Events took on their biggest undertaking to date, converting the already amazing Maryland Historical Society into the Wine & Pasta vision for the afternoon. Apparent by the hustle and bustle of people organizing and sound being checked, with barely a fraction of time to spare, the proverbial stage was set for an amazing afternoon. The pre-launch of Wine & Pasta 3 appeared ready and waiting  to accept its attendees with hundred of bottles of wine being chilled, burners lit on the numerous tables of pasta, and speakers wired throughout the entire first floor and court yards of the spacious open floor plan of the venue.

Enter the people. – As you would have it, the Baltimore crowd trickled in in its typical fashionably late manner. If first impressions were always accurate, we would have bet that this event would have been a huge mistake. As we would have it, first impressions sometime leave you with a false sense of reality. No sooner than it appeared that the event may be a little flat, the people began to arrive. By evenings end the event was packed with fashion conscious men and women enjoying every inch of the beautifully converted Maryland Historical Society and all of the wine, pasta and live music they could handle. As for the “wine & pasta” we would be remiss if we didn’t comment. As we made our way around this huge venue, we took note of all types of wine,

 With temperatures sweltering on a freakishly hot May spring afternoon, TTR made its way to Mt. Airy, MD for the 2011 Linganore Caribbean Wine Festival. 

After taking the hour plus drive up Route 270 to Mt. Airy, TTR arrived to the vast open land of the Berrywine Plantation/Linganore Wine Cellars. Because this was our first visit to Linganore, we were awestruck by the shear size of the location. The winery sits atop hills and hills of open fields. Breathtaking would only begin to explain the views of this winery.  While taken aback by views, even more impressive were the number of people that made their way out to Mt. Airy for this event. 

Upon entry, we could tell from the shear number of people in line that we may be in for a treat. While we have visited many wine festivals before, never have we been to one that was exclusive to one vineyard. Even with that, TTR always remains unbiased; we entered with no preconceived thoughts and/or ideas. Soon after entering we made our way over to the main pavilion where Linganore had all of their wines available for tasting. Of course this area was packed with patrons doing tasting, buying glasses, or even purchasing bottles to take back to the area in front of the stage where the majority of the people had already pitched their tents, set their chairs or laid their blankets.  Despite the temperature, most people appeared to handle the heat rather well. Our best guess would be this was due to the great music provided by the DC Pan Jammers and the Image Band;

It goes without saying that when someone thinks of great entertainers within the music industry, at the top of the list will always be the surname Jackson. Albeit the Jackson 5, the undisputed King of Pop Michael Jackson, or his incomparable baby sister Janet Jackson, the Jacksons have single handedly shaped the music industry for decades on end. On Thursday, March 24^th, TTR had the honor of attending the 8:00 p.m. sold out “Up Close and Personal” concert tour of the youngest of the Jackson clan, Miss Janet Damita Jo Jackson.

After somewhat of an extended hiatus from the stage, disappointing sales of her last two projects "20 Y.O." (2006) and "Discipline" (2008) and a few notable success on the big screen headlining Tyler Perry’s “Why Did I Get Married” (2007), “Why Did I Get Married Too” (2010), and “For Colored Girls” (2010), Janet Jackson is back to what she does best, performing the hits that made her one of the worlds biggest and well known stars.

No sooner that Janet appeared on stage, the sold out Constitution Hall erupted into full blown screams and cheers.

During the first week in October, TTR packed up several of our cameras and made the 45-minute ride from Washington, DC up to Baltimore, MD to visit with Goodfellas, Inc. for an event entitled Wine and Pasta Part 2 (Click here to see the previous review). The event was a huge success with tons of people,Goodfellas, Inc. great food and plenty of wine. Following the event, we were certain that another Wine remix , and the Goodfellas, Inc. Goodfellas are at it again. On Saturday, February 5th TTR visited with these gentlemen once again to take in Wine & Pasta (A Special Event for Dorian Owens). While this event was similar in title, quite a bit was changed and some things were definitely improved upon.

In October, we noted that Goodfellas, Inc. introduced a unique and very interesting concept to gain entry into their event. There was no monetary cost of admission; the fee for entry was merely a personalized invitation and two bottles of wine. The wine would in turn be used as an open bar for all patrons to enjoy. This time however, tickets were sold at a cost of $35 each, which included all the wine and pasta one could drink and eat. Although this was a bit of a change from what we expected,

With the hustle and bustle of the holiday season in full swing, TTR took a break from the headache of the crowded malls and packed parking lots to visit The Zone in Upper Marlboro, MD. On December 22^nd, The Zone played host to an event promoted by Jason M. and Rikita J. of Society 626 entitled “A Black & Blu Christmas” featuring Black Alley and Kinda Blu, two local bands that have made a great name for themselves in the Washington, DC area.

Located at 5753 Crain Highway, (just off of Pennsylvania Ave, in Upper Marlboro), The Zone is definitely what we would consider a low-key restaurant/bar tucked away in a county that offers minimal in the realm of entertainment and lounge establishments.  While traditionally one may be used to the glitz and glamour of downtown DC lounges and bars, The Zone offers none. However, even with that said, the venue is a great experience for a county that suffers from lackluster venues that go out of business as quickly as they appear. If you live in the county and searching for restaurant/bar that won’t give you the clamor of the typical DC night life then The Zone is a good bet.

Now onto the event itself; first to the stage was Kinda Blu.

A few months ago TTR did a review on a venue that we deemed “The Sanctuary” this was due to its resemblance to the fictional poetry set depicted in the motion picture “Love Jones”. While the venue that we will not name may have given off the physical vibe of the dark, cozy surroundings of “The Sanctuary”, it lacked one key ingredient, poetry.  Well, on Friday, November 5^th, TTR found that key ingredient while visiting with Cedric “Jusme” Hand for his “Jus Wine & Cheese Poetry” Open Mic event at Annie’s Art Gallery inOpen Mic at Annie's Art Gallery Temple Hills, MD. While Temple Hills may come across as a bit odd for a “poetry event”, we know from past reviews that with great promotion and a loyal following, anything is possible; and for the record, neither Annie’s Art Gallery nor Jus Wine & Cheese Poetry” failed to impress.

Upon entering the venue located at 5814 Allentown Way, we were instantly awed by the number of people packed into this small venue. It was immediately evident that something special was about to take place. Greeted at the door by a friendly host who took the entry fee (cost for admittance, and all the wine, sangria, and cheese that you can handle) the low-lit gallery grabbed us with what we can only describe as an eerie feeling. But not eerie in that things appeared strange, but just a tad bit eerie because the artistic people that attended this event seemed to some extent deep in thought. Later we realized why.

On Saturday, October 2^nd TTR took our cameras up I-95 for the first time to Baltimore, MD to visit with Good Fellas Inc. While TTR has never visited Baltimore for a review, after learning of an interesting party concept deemed Wine & Pasta part 2, we figured this would be worth the short trip.

After the short ride, TTR arrived at this party’s location and found it quite interesting that the event was being held outdoors at what appeared to be an open lot between row houses on Cross Street. While the location somewhat caught TTR off guard, it definitely worked, apparently it worked for all of the invited guests as well. People arrived by the carload and the event was soon packed with guests relaxing in their lawn chairs and enjoying the evening. What made this event so unique was there was no cost for admission; well not really, the only requirement was that guests bring two bottles of wine, hence the name Wine and Pasta. The wine was then placed at the “wine table” and open to every attendee to enjoy. Shortly after we made our way inside, we snuck over to the wine table and were blown away by the number of bottles of wine that were brought by guests. Everything from Merlot and Riesling to Zinfandel and Mascato, you name it, it could be found on the table. Of course the second part of the event was based on food, and Good Fellas didn’t miss the mark here either. Free food was provided on a first come first serve basis until supplies ended. And like anything free, it went rather quickly, yet we heard no complaints. Most guests seemed to revel in the fact that everything was free and they could go back as often as they liked.

On Sunday, September 19^th, TTR took a ride out to Centreville, Virginia to visit with old friends Creality, LLC for the 35^th Annual Virginia Wine Festival. While TTR has visited this location before for the Virginia Vintage Wine Festival, (see June 11^th review) closing out the summer the very same way that we started it couldn’t be more perfect.

One of the many patrons. With the weather absolutely ideal, TTR made it’s way around Bull Run Park totally taken aback buy the sheer size of the crowd. On this picture perfect Sunday, TTR chatted with many of the Virginia winery representatives explaining their product in great detail, spoke with a few food vendors, and admired the work of the craftsmen participating in the event. From the smallest sample, to purchase made by the glass, bottle, or case, patrons seemed to enjoy everything about Virginia’s finest wineries.

With an interest in the close out of the summer and outdoor events, TTR visited the last big wine tasting of the season with our old friends Across-the-Way Productions at Bull Run Park.  Speaking of wine, TTR also took a drive up to Baltimore, MD to check out Good Fellas Inc., where they hosted a unique party concept "Wine and Pasta part 2".

Check back for both reviews in 3, 2, 1.......... (okay maybe not that soon, but please check back shortly).

On Sunday August 22^nd, TTR visited with the Veritas Wine Bar in Northwest, Washington, DC to partake in a wine tasting event hosted by Metropolitan Events. Metropolitan Events or ME for short is a company with local roots (College Park, MD) that provides full service management and event planning2031 Florida Avenue Northwest Washington, DC services for an assortment of events. From cooking participation classes to wine tastings and game nights, ME professional services does it all. 

Upon entry into Veritas Wine Bar, (2031 Florida Ave, NW) TTR immediately notice the quaintness of the location. ME definitely picked the perfect location for this event. Decked out with exposed brick walls, tall tables, and an extended bar, Veritas is undeniably a fashionable yet low key location that everyone should check out. 

As usual, TTR arrived a few minutes late in order to give the event time to get going prior to formulating our opinions and capturing video. As it turns out, other invited guests also had the idea of being fashionably late. As a result TTR was still the very first to arrive, definitely something that we don’t like to see when our intent is to write a review.

****Disclaimer****

TTR was under the impression that this event was more of a social gathering thus it was assumed that people would slowly trickle-in as with any other local Washington, DC event. It’s also safe to assume that most others also presupposed the same.