I’m not big on religion. I don’t go to church, temple, or meeting for worship any more. For me, lately Sundays have meant traveling, or scrambling to finish up schoolwork, or napping on a bus. Or maybe a combination of the three. But today, despite a cold that just picked up mid-week (to my chagrin), I had my Sunday all to myself. I could do whatever I wanted to do. I could sleep all day. I could go workout (though that one was less likely all hopped up on Dayquil and zinc). I could online shop for spring break. OR, I could be semi-productive. And, with a hamper full of dirty laundry and a bare pantry, I went for the latter.

Two loads and a delicious Mexican omelet later, I was left wondering what was up next. And then, courtesy of my new friend, Ian (aka the Dashing Rogue), I was alerted to a wonderful Sunday pastime. Enter Tria’s Sunday School.

Sunday School, according to Tria’s site:

Learn about and enjoy a different not-so-common wine, cheese and beer every Sunday—at incredibly low prices. School was never this delicious! Limit one each per guest at the Sunday School price. Please, no returns: if you try it, you buy it.

That sounded good to me. And, after a quick jaunt down the street, I found myself faced with this delightful lineup:

As you might be able to tell, I steered clear of the wine choice for the day (though the SPARKLING MALVASIA SECCO did look divine) and stuck with beer and cheese, two of my favorite treats that could possibly be enjoyed on a Sunday (or really any day).

On draft, Dock Street Brewing Company’s Sexy Beast, a chocolate stout. According to the writeup at Tria:

With 22 pounds of Belgian chocolate—100% cocoa, no sugar—thrown into the boil, this Sexy Beast is quite the well-endowed Imperial Chocolate Stout. The unsweetened chocolate yields a silky smooth texture and adds a bittersweet bite to the roasted, toasted malt flavors. Pouring a sultry jet black, Sexy Beast flaunts a funky, almost smoky complexity due to a unique new Belgian yeast strain originating from Eastern Flanders.

I found myself kind of wishing that perhaps a little sugar WAS thrown in with the cocoa. This beer, while rich in flavor, displayed that telltale burnt taste that I am not too fond of in a lot of chocolate and coffee flavored beers. The line between toasted and charred might be a little too thin for my liking. As I’ve just recently enjoyed Sixpoint’s 3beans  more than one should be able to reasonably enjoy a beer, maybe I’m just a little spoiled.

Luckily, the spoiling continued with a bite of the chosen cheese of the day. And, since it’s the year of cheese and all….. Well, I consider myself a fortunate lady that such an awesome deal exists every week.  Here’s a bit about the Meadow Creek Mountaineer to the Tria writeup:

The mineral rich soils and deep, pure well water provide the natural sustenance that allows the cows to produce the highest quality milk. Today’s cheese was inspired by traditional Alpine-style cheeses from Savoie and the Valle D’Aosta. Mountaineer is a semi-hard cheese made entirely from Jersey cow’s milk, with a smooth supple texture, natural brown rind and off-white to pale yellow interior. Aged in cellars for a minimum of six months, Mountaineer develops a complex flavor, predominately nutty and sweet with hints of butterscotch.

This melt-in-your-mouth Mountaineer was paired with caramelized onions (served with the TINIEST spoon. Which apparently makes me silly-happy….) and, as it’s inspired by Alpine-style cheeses, I think it inspired me to say that, in general, I’m a big fan of the Alpine style of cheese.  Though described as semi-hard, I felt like at points it was bordering on soft territory and was easy to cut through with a butter knife and enjoy with the accompanying bread and garnish. For less than $10, this beer and cheese combination were just what I needed for a late Sunday lunch. And, as the beer clocked in at a comfortable 8%, I got to enjoy the rest of my grocery shopping with a pleasant little warmth in my belly, making those guacamole samples in Whole Foods doubly appreciated.

Rest assured, I’ll be back to Tria soon. And I might just have to go ahead and clear off my Sunday schedules for the future.

What does your Sunday schedule usually entail?

How about your DREAM Sunday schedule?