There's a reason most people pay someone else to refinish their hard wood floors. It's hard! And dirty and dusty. And, you spend hours on your hands and knees scraping corners and cleaning base shoe. My husband and I decided to refinish the floors in our new home this weekend and by Sunday; I was exhausted and ready for a refreshing red wine and cheese.

I decided on a warm and earthy Charles Shaw Merlot from Trader Joe's to go with my bleu cheese, cheddar and whole wheat crackers. Called "Two Buck Chuck" due to its low price, the hearty full taste went well with these tastier cheeses, adding richness to the whole experience. I only drank two glasses of this delicious red and put the rest of the bottle in the refrigerator for another meal.

Now I'm not usually big on putting red wine in the fridge and then trying to drink it again, but in this case, there wasn't much I could do about the whole situation. I certainly wasn't going to try to drink a whole bottle of wine by myself.

The next day I made Swiss Steak for my son's twentieth birthday and decided to finish the bottle with my husband at that time. To my surprise, it actually tasted as good the next day as it did the first. Normally reds have a tendency to get bitter and acidic when left in the refrigerator; even just overnight. What a surprise to find a bottle of red that tastes great even the next day. And it was really good with this Easy Swiss Steak that can be made in a crock pot.

This classic crockpot dish is great every time - especially if you're on a budget. I always serve this with instant mashed potatoes.

Ingredients

2-3 lb. cheapest cut steak you can find (the crock pot makes them soft)

1 medium onion

Garlic powder

Onion powder

2 8 oz. small cans tomato sauce

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can of mushrooms drained

Directions

Sprinkle the steak with your favorite spices.  Brown the steak in some butter on both sides.  In a mixing bowl combine tomato sauce, soup and mushrooms.  In the mean time, slice the onion into medium slices.  Take the steak and put in the crock pot. Cover with the sliced onions and pour over the soup mixture.  Set crockpot on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours. 

Other great pairing would be:

Crockpot Swiss Chicken Casserole

Good Hungarian Goulash

Grandma's Beef Brisket

Sizzling Beef Salad

So whether you're refinishing floors or just looking for a good red wine, try the Charles Shaw Merlot. I guarantee you'll enjoy the experience. Have a tasty week!