Thanks to a vigilant field informant, I discovered this delightfully drinkable and seriously affordable Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. The 2008 Vin-Koru is 12.8% alcohol and loaded with lemongrass and pepper. The central core of minerals and salt leads to a very lively finish of tart peaches and fennel. This could be your new summer tipple — and for $5.99, it is definitely one of mine. Check TJs.
This Saturday – 6-9pm – June 27 – bring your own plates, utensils & glassware and take a seat at the long, long communal table for a summer al fresco feast. Dining on farm-fresh dishes in the middle of Kelly’s Swift & Ingalls parking lot. The idea is effortless. Mark Sanchez, Kelly’s co-owner explains, “think of it as a farmers market – you simply go around to each vendor, select what you like and pay as you go.”
Well this becomes all the more interesting since the vendors include Everett Family Farm providing fresh salads and curried deviled eggs. Corallitos sausages and old-fashioned hot dogs from Gary’s Snappy Dog. Crab and artichoke lasagna from Nuevo Southwest Cafe. wild steelhead salmon from H&H Fish, and rosemary chicken and grilled artichokes (more…)
Come on over to the warm side of the Santa Cruz Mountains this Sunday, June 28, where from 2-5pm Vino Locale will host a vivacious wine tasting, auction and sales wrapped around some of the top women in local winemaking. The event – a fundraiser for the Women’s Center of Walnut Avenue in Santa Cruz – includes plenty of wine tasting, vineyard sagas and crostini for $25/person.
Look for Val Ahlgren, from Ahlgren Vineyard, Christine Slatter of Hunter Hill, Mary Lindsay from Muns Vineyard, Mary Kay Alfaro from Alfaro Family Winery, Anne Moulton from Burrel School Vineyards, Katy Lovell of Poetic Cellars – and other wine femmes. Learn more than is decent about the behind-the-scenes operations of small, artisanal wineries. You’re bound to discover a new favorite wine. Vino Locale is located at 431 Kipling Street, just off University and across from Zibibbo.
Here’s my story, even if it isn’t what you expected.
I never made it to Israel. I got as far as Newark, when root canal complications got the best of me.
Swelling, pain, fever – the full Cleveland. And flying to the East Coast the day after major root canal work was probably, in retrospect, a bad idea. In a diagnostic epiphany, my prescient physician B. Hilberman pronounced it a case of “bad mazel.”
So I cancelled my flight to Tel Aviv. Cancelled my original return flight to SFO, and – after paying handsomely for the privilege – made a new return flight reservation.
Then I killed time by 1) seeing the Francis Bacon exhibit at the Met, 2) consuming pizza at Otto in the Village, and 3) mega-dosing ibuprofen, Cipro and lying flat on my back.
In the meantime, I got to know the lounge staff at the Hilton Newark Airport (Cobb salad dinner, left), and the labyrinthean off-ramps of the New Jersey Turnpike. Heavy skies, leaden humidity, the look of perpetual acid rain — the northeast reminded me all over again just why I live in California.
So, I have no tips for great dining in Jerusalem. Alas. But I can reveal that a subtle and delicate balance of anti-inflammatory pain killers, high powered antibiotics and steady doses of red wine can indeed help win the fight against pain and mid-career disappointment.
Onward!
If you like to try wines by the number, you might want to look for vintage 2006 wines under the Vine Hill wine group’s Cumbre label. These Cumbre wines blew away the reviewers at Wine Enthusiast magazine — you’ll find their point spread in the July 2009 issue.
2006 Cumbre Hicks – 94 points
2006 Cumbre Raffaelli – 93 points
2006 Cumbre Santa Cruz Mountains (blend) – 92 points
Vine Hill’s playful Gatos Locos label garnered 89 points for a 2006 Gatos Locos Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir. Keep your eyes peeled for the group’s new Vine Hill label, named for the historic vineyard location, showcasing the work of winemaker Sal Godinez.
In fact, why don’t you come on down and meet Godinez, taste some of his ridiculously drinkable wines for yourself?
He’ll be pouring the Cumbre label at Vinocruz, on Saturday, July 11th, from 3-5pm.
A book of sensory adventure: The rituals, passions and discoveries of an engaged life.