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Join the Fight Against Breast Cancer!

Join the Fight Against Breast Cancer!

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Tough Enough to Wear Pink

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a special time to commemorate those we’ve lost, celebrate survivors and renew our promise to support breast cancer awareness and research. It also serves as a reminder to ourselves and loved ones to schedule a breast health check-up or mammogram.

After you have that covered, join us in celebrating Tough Enough to Wear Pink Day on October 19. We’re asking our fans to show your support for breast cancer awareness by wearing pink and encouraging your household, coworkers and friends to do the same on October 18.

Paso Pardners in Pink - Purple Cowboy

We’ve also saddled up with our friends at Clayhouse wines through Paso Pardners in Pink.  Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red and Clayhouse Cabernet Sauvignon, two delicious wines from “Cowboy Wine Country” have teamed up to give back to Tough Enough To Wear Pink, the western community’s grassroots campaign to battle breast cancer. A portion of the sale of each bottle goes to Tough Enough To Wear Pink.

2017 marks the 13th Anniversary of the founding of Wrangler Tough Enough to Wear Pink. To date, more than $25 million dollars have been raised through Tough Enough to Wear Pink, the campaign encourages competitors and fans at rodeos and western events around the country to wear pink to raise awareness and funds. It’s all made possible with the help of sponsors like Wrangler, Montana Silversmiths, Pro Rodeo Cowboys Association, Clayhouse and Purple Cowboy wines. Our goal is to raise $50 million dollars by the 20th Anniversary of Tough Enough To Wear Pink in 2024.

Throughout October, Tough Enough to Wear Pink will be sharing breast cancer “Survivor Stories” collected over the past few months. We’ll announce the “Survivor Stories” grand prize winner of a trip to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo and Gold Buckle seats at the end of October. Make sure you’re following the Tough Enough to Wear Pink Facebook Page so you don’t miss an update.

And don’t forget to wear your PINK on October 19!

Support Paso Pardners in Pink!

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Paso Pardners in Pink - Purple Cowboy

This year, we’re recognizing Breast Cancer Awareness Month early with the start of Paso Pardners in Pink. We’ve  joined forces with friends from Paso Robles in the fight against breast cancer through Paso Pardners in Pink.

Paso Robles, California

Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red and Clayhouse Cabernet Sauvignon, two delicious wines from “Cowboy Wine Country” have teamed up to give back to Tough Enough To Wear Pink, the western community’s grassroots campaign to battle breast cancer.

Wine Sisterhood founder, Terry Wheatley, is a breast cancer survivor and the Purple Cowboy wines she created have long given back to Tough Enough To Wear Pink. Terry co-founded Tough Enough To Wear Pink in 2004 with the idea that cowboys would wear pink at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo on one night of the competition to raise awareness. The idea took off and Tough Enough To Wear Pink is celebrating its 13th anniversary in 2017. To date, $27 million has been raised at rodeos and western events to support families facing breast cancer, early detection and research. The goal is $50 million by the 20th anniversary.

Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red

Find Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red Near You | Shop for Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red Online

A portion of the sale of each bottle goes to Tough Enough To Wear Pink.

Don’t forget to also mark your calendars for Tough Enough to Wear Pink Day, October 18! Wear pink to show your support!

Garden-Fresh Summer Sides

Garden-Fresh Summer Sides

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Purple Cowboy Barbecue

An end-of-summer cookout just isn’t complete without a few delicious sides to pile on next to your grilled fare. We found some delicious summer sides to round out the season. And don’t forget the best barbecue pairings: Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red and Trail Boss Cabernet.

Cheers!

Grilled Corn Recipe

Olé Olathe Grilled Corn 

Get the most out of the end-of-summer sweet corn with this tasty side dish that pairs beautifully with barbecued ribs and burgers.

Ingredients

  • 4 ears olathe corn, shucked, and silks removed
  • 1/3 cup olive oil mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • cayenne pepper

Black Bean Corn Salsa

Black Bean Corn Salsa

  • ½ cup cooked black beans
  • ½ cup corn kernels
  • 1/4 cup red salsa (choose which spiciness works best for you)
  • 1 red tomato, seeds removed and chopped
  • ½ bunch cilantro, stems removed and chopped fine
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

Mix all ingredients together in a medium bowl. Salt and pepper to taste.

Vegan Pasta Salad Recipe

Vegan Pasta Salad Paired with Girl & Dragon Pinot Grigio

Don’t knock it ’till you try it! This vegan pasta salad recipe creates its creaminess from a dressing made of silken tofu instead of mayonnaise. We found that a little extra salt makes it all the more tasty. Bonus: you don’t have to worry about this one going bad in the heat so quickly!

Ingredients

  • 16 ounces small pasta shapes like bow ties, shells, elbows or Rotini
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 1 cup celery, diced
  • 1/2 cup diced red onion
  • 1 cup silken tofu
  • 4-5 Tbsp fresh dill
  • 3-4 Tbsp agave nectar or cane sugar (or honey if not vegan)
  • 1 tsp garlic salt
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • 2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 Tbsp dijon  mustard

Instructions

Cook the pasta noodles according to package instructions, drain, rinse with cool water and set aside.

Chop red pepper, celery and onion. Set aside.

Make the dressing by adding silken tofu, dill, salt, pepper garlic salt, agave nectar (or sugar or honey), vinegar, olive oil, and mustard to a blender. Blend until well combined. If it’s not blending properly, feel free to add water one tablespoon at a time until it becomes creamy.

Taste the dressing – adjust seasonings as needed. We added more salt and mustard.

Mix the noodles, veggies and dressing in a large bowl. Chill in the refrigerator. This pasta salad becomes even more delicious the longer it chills.

5 Reasons to Fall for Paso Robles

5 Reasons to Fall for Paso Robles

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5 Reasons to Fall for Paso Robles

Located along U.S. Highway 101 in the center of California’s Central Coast lies Paso Robles, one of California’s fastest growing wine regions. Paso Robles, or “Pass of the Oaks,” boasts a climate that is ideal for wine growing and is home to more than 40,000 vineyard acres.

Purple Cowboy wines are produced with grapes sourced from Paso Robles. Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red and Purple Cowboy Trail Boss Cabernet Sauvignon both capture the sense of maverick western adventure and open spaces found in Paso Robles.

Aside from being home to our favorite wines, here are our top five reasons to fall in love with Paso Robles:

Top five reasons to fall in love with Paso Robles:

Location

Close to the ocean, the mountains and the desert, Paso Robles is halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, along California’s Central Coast. Paso Robles is easily accessible by one of the area’s airports or by car via Highway 101.

History

Winemaking and grape growing were introduced to the area in the late 1700s by Franciscan Friars, but the area was first known for its rejuvenating hot springs. Later during the late 1800s, it became known as the “Almond City,” possessing the world’s largest concentration of almond orchards. The early twentieth century ushered in the city’s first commercial wineries.

Paso Robles hot springs

Hot springs

Thermal springs in the area are said to have healing powers. The Salinan Indians, some of the area’s earliest inhabitants, knew the area s the “Springs” or the “Hot Springs.” Take their cue and after a long day of sightseeing and wine tasting, consider a relaxing dip in these therapeutic waters.

Hearst Castle

Sights and scenery

When you’re not wine tasting, take a stroll along one of the area’s scenic trails. Try the Salinas River Walk or Shoreline Trail. Don’t miss a visit to Hearst Castle. William Randolph Hearst, along with architect Julia Morgan, created an American castle to showcase Hearst’s legendary art collection. The 165 rooms and 127 acres of gardens, terraces, pools and walkways are worth a look, too.

Purple Cowboy Paso Robles

The wine

Paso Robles Wine Country, with its warm days and cool nights, is home to more than 40 wine grape varieties. The region produces Bordeaux, Rhone and Italian wine varieties, as well as Zinfandel and almost everything in between. You may need to plan a return visit to check off more than 200 wineries in the area.

 

Use a few of these resources to plan your next trip to Paso Robles:

Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance

Travel Paso

Fodor’s Travel Guide to Paso Robles

 

Happy traveling!

Father’s Day Feast

Father’s Day Feast

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Purple Cowboy Trail Boss Cabernet is perfect for the dad who loves movies starring John Wayne, Clint Eastwood and Randolph Scott. This wine captures the love of all things western. It’s sturdy enough to stand proudly next to a Father’s Day feast of grilled Porterhouse steak, barbecued ribs and over-sized burgers.

Tips to Grilling Greatness

Prep and maintain your grill for barbeque success.

Keep your grill grates clean! At the end of grilling, while grill is still hot, brush grill with a steel grill brush and then lightly oil with a clean kitchen towel.

Avoid washing your grill grates with detergent or abrasive cleaner. Much like a good cast iron pan, your grill will form a layer of carbon and become a non-stick surface—but only if you don’t use harsh cleaners!

Essential grill tools: Long pair of heavy-duty, spring-loaded tongs, long heavy-duty spatula, long-basting brush, long-handled stiff metal grill scraping brush and a spray water bottle to extinguish flare-ups. Except for the spray bottle, commercial restaurant grade is best! Webrestaurant Store and Amazon are good on-line sources.

For either gas or charcoal/wood grills: be sure to preheat grill with lids closed for three minutes and re-oil the grill grates prior to grilling.

Thinner cuts should be placed directly over heat (direct heat grilling). Larger, thicker cuts should be cooked away from the source of heat with the lid closed (indirect heat grilling).

Handle meat a little as possible during cooking.

Great reading (and Father’s Day Gifting) about grilling and barbequing from the experts:

Cheers to a fantastic Father’s Day Feast!

Celebrate Breast Cancer Survivors!

Celebrate Breast Cancer Survivors!

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The fight against breast cancer hits close to home here at Purple Cowboy. Our co-founder, Terry Wheatley, is a breast cancer survivor. She lost her grandmother to the disease, her mother had a double mastectomy before the age of 40 and her daughter Katie had undergone two surgical biopsies before the age of 20.

Terry created Tough Enough to Wear Pink, a nationally-recognized campaign and framework for rodeos and western events to help them promote breast cancer awareness and fundraising to benefit their local communities.

Once again, we’re asking you to share your personal breast cancer “Survivor Story” in the “Celebrate Survivors” campaign.

By submitting your story, you’ll be entered for a chance to win two tickets to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas this December!

Your story may also be featured across our social media channels in October in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. (Don’t worry, we’ll contact you before anything is posted!)

Thank you in advance for helping in the fight against breast cancer and supporting Tough Enough to Wear Pink! Learn more about Tough Enough to Wear Pink at: http://www.toughenoughtowearpink.com/.

Don’t forget! Our Purple Cowboy Wines are proud to support Tough Enough to Wear Pink! Learn where to find them near you.

Cheers to Western Tough Month!

Cheers to Western Tough Month!

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April is Tough Enough to Wear Pink month!

Each April, the Western community turns pink to support breast cancer awareness and research, designating it Tough Enough to Wear Pink month.

The cause hits close to home for our team at Purple Cowboy and many of you in our community. Terry Wheatley, Purple Cowboy creator and founder of Tough Enough to Wear Pink, is a survivor herself; lost her grandmother to breast cancer, and both her mother and daughter have been affected by the disease.

Throughout April, we’ll be sharing stories across our social channels to support our friends and family who are “Western Tough.” One of those “Western Tough” teams, Twisted X, will again be sharing breast cancer survivor stories on their Facebook page every day in April.

Follow Twisted X and Tough Enough to Wear Pink on Facebook so you don’t miss an update.

As a reminder, here are some other ways you can support breast cancer awareness and research through Tough Enough to Wear Pink:

Cheers to a beautiful Tough Enough to Wear Pink Month!

Support “Tough Enough” at a Rodeo Near You

Support “Tough Enough” at a Rodeo Near You

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Purple Cowboy is a proud supporter of Tough Enough to Wear Pink in the fight against breast cancer. Tough Enough to Wear Pink nights at rodeos and Western events raise funds for breast cancer research and awareness to benefit their local communities.

In honor of Tough Enough to Wear Pink Month this April, we encourage you to head out and attend a Tough Enough Night at a rodeo near you.

Here are a few across the U.S. to get  you started:

  • RAM National Circuit Finals – Kissimmee, FL – Tough Enough to Wear Pink Night, April 8
  • Red Bluff Roundup – Red Bluff, CA – Tough Enough to Wear Pink Night, April 23
  • Clovis Rodeo – Clovis, CA – Tough Enough to Wear Pink Night, April 30

Visit the events section of the Tough Enough website and the Events section of the Tough Enough Facebook Page for a long list of events. We hope to see you at a show soon!

Mardi Gras-inspired Muffulettas

Mardi Gras-inspired Muffulettas

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Muffulettas were invented in 1906 at that very same Central Grocery in New Orleans. It’s a sandwich built on a whole loaf of round sesame bread — the whole loaf turns into a sandwich. Muffulettas are then stuffed with salami and ham, loaded with Provolone and made unique with a perfectly greasy olive salad – the oil soaks into the bread for the perfect February treat. The flavors came from a late 1800s, Sicilian wave of workers that entered New Orleans in big numbers, bringing their tasty cuisine to Southern Lousiana. If you really want to eat like a local, eat your muffuletta with local Zapp’s potato chips and you’re set for the season.

When serving, muffuletta sandwiches are delicious with red wines like Purple Cowboy Trail Boss Cabernet and Purple Cowboy Tenacious Red – the salty mix of olives and salami brings out the fruitiness of the wines.

Here’s the Wine Sisterhood’s take on the Muffuletta sandwich – happy munching!

Olive Salad Ingredients:

1 cup chopped green olives
1 cup chopped black olivesed
1 tablespoon capers
1/3 cup diced roasted red bell pepper
1/4 cup diced celery
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped fine
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Sandwich Ingredients:

1 round loaf of Italian bread — anywhere between 6 and 10 inches in diameter, cut in half crosswise with the insides scooped out

at least 4 ounces each thinly sliced salami, deli ham and mortadella

at least 4 ounces thinly sliced provolone cheese

Directions:

At least 6 hours before preparing sandwich Make the olive salad by mixing together the chopped green and black olives, capers, roasted bell pepper, celery, parsley, garlic, red wine vinegar, olive oil and salt and pepper. Set in a non-reactive bowl and put the bowl in the refrigerator.

Queso and Purple Cowboy for the Big Game!

Queso and Purple Cowboy for the Big Game!

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Purple Cowboy Cabernet and Queso

Next Sunday, eyes will be glued to the TV, watching THE big game of the year. Our bellies will be glued to all the tasty treats this all-American tradition entails. The Wine Sisterhood shared this almost-effortless queso dip recipe that is perfect to bring along to that game-day party.

Queso Ingredients

Queso

Ingredients:

1 bell pepper – chopped fine
1 onion – chopped fine
3 stalks celery – chopped fine
1 pound hamburger meat
2 tablespoons taco seasoning
1 18-ounce can of diced tomatoes, drained
1 4-ounce can of diced green chile peppers, drained and rinsed
2 pounds American cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Step one: Open a bottle of wine, pour yourself a glass and sip. (Don’t forget! You can search for any of the Middle Sister Wines using the wine locator here. And remember, all of the wines featured in this post are available in the Middle Sister Online Wine Shop.)

Step two: Heat 1 tablespoon neutral oil over medium-high heat in a large saucepan or dutch oven.

Queso - celery, onions and peppers

Step three: Add bell pepper, onion and celery, stir to combine. Saute vegetables for about 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly. Add hamburger meat, stir to break up. Cook until brown. Add taco seasoning. Stir through until combined.

Weekend Queso Recipe

Step four: Add drained diced tomatoes and rinsed chile peppers. Stir through until combined.

Queso - Add the cheese!

Step five: Add American cheese in chunks and stir through to incorporate.

Queso Chip Dip Recipe

Serve with tortilla chips or large corn chips and enjoy! Keep a batch warm in a slow cooker for all-day enjoyment. Pair with a glass of Purple Cowboy Trail Boss Cabernet!