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16 Day Moroccan Passage Cruise

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to Southampton, England
March 12 - 28, 2022
Sky Princess

Day 8 - Saturday, March 19, 2022,
Azores Islands (ponta Delgada), Portugal
Arrive 8:00am Depart 5:00pm

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Princess Patter, Saturday, March 19, 2022

PORT STOP CANCELLED DUE TO WEATHER

Crater Lakes, Sete Cidades & Wine Tasting
Port: Azores Island (Ponta Delgada)
09:30 AM - 01:15 PM $89.95 Per Person
Activity: Moderate

Take in the magnificient views of Sao Miguel on this active, half-day guided tour via motorcoach that takes you past small, picturesque villages and farmhouses built of undecorated lava. Visit the rim of a volcanic crater for panoramic vistas of Crater Lakes, two lates (one green, one blue) that inhabit an extinct volcano's caldera. Enjoy a photo stop along the shoreline of the modern-day Sete Cidades, a small village located in the southwest portion of the crater. As you journey down the crater, view Santiago Lake, another of the azure bodies of water in this volcanic landscape. Indulge in a fantastic wine-tasting experience at one of your port city's 4-star hotels. Marvel at the glistening harbor from a veranda as you partake in some of the island's finest wine and cheese. A perfect way to cap off your island adventure before returning to your ship!

SILVERADO VINEYARDS
WINE BLENDING EXPERIENCE
Vines Wine Bar Deck 5 Plaza
5:00 PM $37.50 Per Person

We had already booked two wine events for this cruise that were published. We did not find out about this particular wine event until I was sitting in the Vines Wine Bar and saw a table set up with 8 places. I asked my server what that was all about. They said it was a wine tasting event that cost $37.50 per person. I don't know how people found out about this wine event as I did not see it published anywhere. I asked for Barbara and I to be signed up for it, but two of these events were already sold out. The server put our names on a waiting list in case they decided to do it a third time. We got called around noon today to let us know they were going to have that third time today at 5 PM. We had to move our dinner reservation as we had aleady booked to have dinner at that time.








This is the same Silverado Wine Experience that we had attended on at least one prior Princess cruise. They opened four bottles of pure, non-blended wines all Silverado Estate Grown from Napa Valley, California, including: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec. All were from Mt. George Vineyard, Coombsville, except the Cabernet Sauvignon. The wines ranged in alcohol volume between 14.2% and 14.8% and I believe all were 2014 vintage. The presenter described the Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot as heavier wines and the Cabernet Franc and Merlot as lighter wines.

The experience was to blend them to create a blend that we preferred. The presenter first had us create a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, and 25% Cabernet Franc, which was excellent. We were provided with a beaker to measure and do the blends. After that, we were on our own to make other blends. We were also provided with a tray of various cheeses, crackers, figs, grapes, etc., and a small cup of honey. The presenter had us try some blue cheese and honey on the wheat bread along with the first blend and it was delicious.

After we completed the blending experience, he served us each a glass of the 2017 Ancient Peaks Renegade, which was a red blend from Paso Pobles, California.

All of these wines were very good, including the 2017 Ancient Peaks Renegade from Paso Robles, California. A fresh bottle of it was opened in front of us. Actually, all the wines from Silverado were fresh bottles that were just opened. I did ask the person leading this event if the wine bottles had been stored properly during the two years that cruising had been suspended. He assured me they had been kept in the wine cellars of the ship and kept at the proper temperature.

A new thought occurred to me. We had been ordering wines by the glass for this entire cruise so far as any that are $12 per glass and under are included in our complimentary drinks package. Any wines over $12 per glass and we just pay the difference from $12 per glass. But I realized these wines by the glass are being poured from bottles that have already been opened and are located at each individual bar on this ship. Depending how popular or unpopular a particular wine is with the passengers, some of these bottles were probably opened many days ago, maybe even some left over from the prior cruise. There is no telling how long the wine has been sitting in these bottles since they were first opened. I'm sure they put the cork back on after each pour, but that does not stop the fresh air that gets into the bottle with each pour from altering the taste of the wine, usually for the worse. This is definitely a case where a Coravin should be used to prevent the air from getting into the bottle after each pour. There is a good chance that this is what is ruining the taste of almost every wine served by the glass. All of the Silverado wines served from freshly opened bottles were very good, and the Ancient Peaks Renegade that he had just opened and served was much better than the glass of it that we had ordered earlier in the cruise.

This is another reason to dissuade us from ever purchasing a drinks package in the future, unless like on this cruise, it is included along with all service charges as a free cruise package benefit. We will still continue to compare the complete cruise package cost to what it would cost to just purchase the base cruise price plus the add-ons that we want (internet and pre-paid gratuities). So far, the complete discounted cruise package that includes the drinks package and service charges has come up costing less than purchasing each feature individually, even without the drinks package.

They gave us so much wine at the Silverado Wine Blending event that I was totally wiped out! I could barely keep my eyes open during dinner and dared not order any more wine to have with dinner. I was more wiped out than Barbara as my sleep had been a bit irregular during the cruise. We had to move the clocks forward one hour about every other day. Yet, I still got up before 10 AM every day so that I could answer our cabin door when room service delivered breakfast around that time.

First Passing Ship
We've Seen During
This Cruise

Someone said the only other ship that had been spotted on this cruise was a freight ship, but we did not see that one.

Dinner In The
Estrella Main Dining Room
8:20 PM Deck 6 Midship

Menus

Starters


1. Scappop Ceviche with Avocado - lime and lemon juice, cilantro, bell pepper, tomato, sweet onion.
2. Beef Stuffed Yucca Fritter, Chimichurri Sauce - roasted bell pepper aioli.

Salad / Soups


1. Chilled Gazpacho Soup (v) - tomato, cucumber, cilantro, avocado, jalapeno.
2. Roasted Garlic Cream Soup (v) - toasted garlic crouton and sage.

Mains


1. Turkey Hot Pot - white meat, vegetables, creamy wine sauce, sweet potato crust.
2. Chili, Line and Cumin-Marinated Skirt Steak Fajitas - sour cream, tomato salsa, guacamole, flour tortillas.

Dessert



1. Nutty Irishman - Irish Cream, Frangelico, coffee.
2. Orange Grand Marnier Souffle - vanilla bean sauce.
3. Black Forest Cake with Sour Cherries and Kirschwasser - chocolate shavings.

Having gotten so wiped out from all the wine at the blending event, and now with over stuffed tummies from dinner, we just headed back to our cabin and went to bed.

Click on each photo above for a larger image.

If in this report you see any typos, misspellings, factual errors or other types of errors, please let me know. Please include the web address (URL) of the report in which you found the error. Thank you! Send your email to:

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