On my way to what promised to be the wine dinner of the year; a first for me with a pairing from a thought-they-just-made-sushi bar and Paso Robles winery Edward Sellers, I stopped in at Valencia Wine Bar because they were hosting the event. Say it was fate, say it was because Maru Sushi was…
Let me start with some information about the vineyards we visited on our tour… Papera Ranch – the vines were planted in 1934 by Celestino Papera. Head-trained and dry farmed, the vineyard is mostly Zinfandel with Carignane, Syrah, Petite Sirah and Valdiguie. Stuart Coulson purchased the property in 2007 and he and Chris Bowland of…
America’s only annual Champagne and sparkling wine festival will include more than 60 world-class producers and a host of new events – all set among California’s most breathtaking coastal locales. Tickets are now available. Avila Beach, California – BUBBLYFEST is proud to announce its annual BUBBLYFEST By The Sea will be held October 6-8. Tickets…
I find it interesting and somewhat ironic that some of the leading and most innovative winemakers of our time are making some of the most exciting wines from vineyards that were planted well before they were born, from varietals that are not exactly “of the moment” – many of these wines are labeled Zinfandel on…
Producers from the birthplace of Chardonnay, and a much-anticipated French Forum panel discussion, will be featured at the upcoming annual celebration. Pismo Beach, CA – The International Chardonnay Symposium, the world’s foremost gathering of top global Chardonnay winemakers, sommeliers, journalists, wine industry leaders, foodies and oenephiles will feature a star-studded panel and guided tasting tour…
This week Beaconeers get a glimpse inside Santa Clarita’s only winery tasting room and hear about their upcoming first wine pairing dinner. Downtown Newhall is the home of Pulchella Winery, run by two local couples with grapes from Paso Robles. And, on June 23 at Salt Creek Grille (reminder: this post is from 2011), will…
(Paso Robles, CA) – Tickets for the 34th Annual Paso Robles Wine Festival are now on sale at www.pasowine.com. This four day festival in Paso Robles Wine Country is a celebration of the character, flavors and personality this great region exemplifies, May 19 – 22, 2016. Among the new items to this 34 year Paso…
If you noticed, my favorites were distinctly different than the selected winners, though some of the winners were my second or third choices. (Editor’s Note: Part One ran on this blog on 2/20/16.) It was impressive to see the variety and quality of the best of class entries into the Sweepstakes level of the competition,…
Last Thursday night many locals wined and dined over Les Deux Chats wine. The event, with guest seated both inside and on the patio at Salt Creek Grille Valencia, was a sell-out and I’m here to tell you why! The Teaser/Invitation Les Deux Chats Cellars creates superb hand-crafted, small-lot wines that are a pleasure to…
We try to get wine events that we like listed in our weekly Dear Wine Friend free e-newsletter and/or our SCV Wine Calendar. But every now and then I do the work for you, which means pulling the info from each site and culling it all into one article, especially when there are so many…