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Surf's Up
With the recent rain storms that had passed through southern California, I was itching to see the big waves that always follow. But there was a football playoff game going on, too.
What to do? Watch waves crashing into pylons or watch grown men crashing into one another?
I hopped in my car and headed for a pier. I chose carefully, selecting one that is mere steps away from a great pizza and beer joint.
My Seaside Discovery
Gary's dad loves the ocean. Whenever he and his wife come to visit, we make every effort to walk along a pier, a boat deck, or an ocean-rimming boardwalk. This time we did all three. We walked down Harbor Drive in San Diego, gazed up at the sails of the Star of India, then boarded the Midway, an aircraft carrier-turned museum, for a three-hour tour.
When the huge bay doors began to roll up, it just happened to be happy hour. And we just happened to be walking distance to The Fish Market, where the boys drank Ballast Point ales and slurped oysters, and us girls discovered the luscious Pear Flower martini.
Home Cooking (Far from Home)
"There's a new Filipino restaurant downtown!" I texted Eric as soon as I read the restaurant review. "Let's take the kids."
"But I don't like Filipino food," my Filipino husband joked.
One of the things I first noticed about Eric's family was how food was such an integral part of it. You couldn't enter his parent's house without being told—not asked—to eat. And you didn't leave without a heaping plate of leftovers under aluminum foil: Lumpia, pancit, adobo chicken. Yum.
But after moving from San Diego to Minnesota, far from the home cooking of my mother-in-law, authentic Filipino food became a rarity. That is, until last Saturday night.
Continue reading "Salneval Albariño 2007 Spanish White Wine" »
Duck, Duck, Duck, Rabbit
I love it when people give me beer. Especially when it’s beer I can’t personally get my hands on here in southern California.
As great as the selection is here, I always have a sneaking feeling that the beer of my dreams is waiting patiently for me in a faraway land . . .
My most recent beer present: a very fine barleywine from some stellar brewers in North Carolina, a state I’ve never even driven through on the way to somewhere else.
Inside/Out Day
Some days are meant to be spent inside. With gale-force winds and sheets of rain pouring down, today was one of those day. So, I grabbed my cameras and we went out.
A short drive to the coast did not disappoint. We sat in the car watching the handful of surfers being tossed by the raging waves and made a few dashes into the rain to get some photos and video. With the gear soaked, wind picking up and Shelly and I dripping, we decided to head home and start our happy hour a little early with something hot and soothing.
Sometimes staying in is good but rewarding yourself for getting out is even better.
New Friends and Old Vines
Each time we go to our neighborhood restaurant, we often run into old friends and are introduced to new ones. Barstools are rearranged, making room for a gathering.
Kate the bartender sets two napkins in front of us and smiles warmly. "What can I get you?"
My husband usually goes with some form of Bourbon. I'm less predictable. But when I can't decide, I have a back-up plan: The house red.
The house wine at most restaurants is a cheap, unnamed bottle. At Spasso, it's something different. Inexpensive, yes. But also delicious. Marietta Old Vine. A spicy red with dark berry notes, it's an amazing value for an exceptional wine.
Winter's Ale Tale
The scene: a suburban home in wintery western New York.
The cast: nine people at a dinner table, ages 2 to 63.
The plot: meeting the family.
Face to Face
I met one of my clients in person for the first time this week. Technology makes it easy to connect and work with colleagues and clients from afar. But there's something about a face to face -- even just once for no reason other than happy hour -- that is so ... energizing.
When he ordered a Bombay martini straight up, we immediately started discussing different brands of gins -- Boodles, Tanqueray 10, Hendricks. Turns out, his favorite drink is The Vesper, and I had to confess to this side-project of mine. Of course, we didn't just talk about gin, and I now better understand his business and the way his team works.
But the best part? I can't wait to tell him about this limey Rangpur (tm) Martini.
Wine and Survival
If it weren't for the warmth of friends and neighbors—and friendly invitations to share a bottle of wine—I'd probably give in to my propensity to sleep the winter away. So when my next-door neighbors called with an impromptu offer for dinner at their place, I seized the opportunity.
Social connections are the key to survival in the Minnesota tundra. A glass of crisp Torrontés and some fresh, yummy guacamole doesn't hurt, either.
A Grapes and Hops Jackpot
It’s not unusual for beers to be aged in port barrels or whiskey barrels. But recently I was fortunate to try a beer that had been aged in Pinot Noir barrels during a Hollister Brewing night at a local pub.
Just like the places we grow up have a huge influence on us, the place where a beer grows up and ages is equally important.
And for this Belgian Quad-style beer, growing up in Pinot Noir barrels means a nice, gently sour fruit-and-wine flavor added to a really stand-up dark, strong Belgian beer. A mighty fine result.
Continue reading "Hollister’s Pinot Noir Aged Belgian Quad" »
Collecting New Perspectives
We just returned from a visit to the ice-and-snow-snug Midwest, where our friends treated us to a few days of survival in style. Who knew summersaults with a 2-year-old in a slant of sunshine on soft carpet, the invigorating inhale of frozen air on the way to dinner, or the constant sparkle of snow could be something to get used to?
Still, the arrival home was even more of a shock to the senses. Gentle outdoor air on skin! The scent of ocean and grass! Traveling is so awesome for perspective.
Our New Year's resolution: Travel more. Gain more perspectives.
G very nearly captured this moment in a glass, and we call it Rum Ruby.
Like a Fine Wine...
Two of our oldest, closest friends were visiting, and as we were planning a warm and cozy dinner in—a sharp contrast to the numbing cold outside—my husband turned to me in anticipation. “How about we open that bottle tonight?” Instantly, I knew exactly which bottle he meant.
Wines tend to go in and out of our wine cabinet within a few weeks. Except for one—a 2000 Francis Coppola Director's Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon we picked up ten years ago while wine tasting in Napa Valley.
Continue reading "Coppola Winery Director's Cut Cabernet Sauvignon" »
Beer and Champagne? Yes We Can!
Who can ring in the New Year without Champagne? Not this beer lover. So I was really excited to learn of a local pub’s signature New Year’s cocktail – the Champliny.
It’s part champagne, part Pliny the Elder double IPA (from Russian River). In a land known for super hoppy beers, it’s the perfect southern California compromise for beer snobs and Champagne lovers alike.
A little fruity, a little bubbly, a little hoppy -- the tastes blend surprisingly well, with neither really dominating. It is an extra bubbly, fruity beer? Or a hopped up glass of champagne?
Make one yourself and you be the judge.
