by Christina Waters | Feb 1, 2007 | Food, Home, Wine |
Discovering wonderful wines may not be the answer to world peace, but it helps vamp for time until that day arrives. My house red for the past year has been the sensuous 2001 Carignane from River Run Vintners. Made by the skillful, non-invasive hands of J.P. Pawloski, this glorious bouquet of spice, licorice and berries goes with everything. Pawloski is an auteur, and the proof is in every glass of his fabled red wines. Each time I visit Staff of Life Natural Foods I grab a few bottles. Until this week. OMG! I called J.P. to find out if this was truly the end of my favorite Carignane. Alas, it was true. “We’re all out of the 2001,” he admitted.
J.P. told me that he could put his hands on some of the 2004 vintage of this exceptional varietal, made from vines planted near Aromas 95 years ago! “The zinfandel is even older,” he added, pausing for effect. “Those vines are 115-years-old.” Guess that’s why they call it “old vine zin.” So now you know what to look for. A fairly non-descript, burgundy and silver label. Affordable prices – $10ish. Low alcohol — the Carignane is 13%. Sensational drinking. You can chat with J.P. yourself — there’s no reliable web site — by calling the winery at 831/726-3112.
Wine Bonanza:
Go immediately to this Santa Cruz Mountains Winegrowers Association link – SCMWA – nd consider the possibilities for The Ultimate Winemakers Dinner, February 27, involving fine local wines, and their winemakers followed by a dinner at the Shadowbrook. But not simply a dinner, dinner. A major dinner. Consider starters of golden chanterelle and truffle soup. (more…)
by Christina Waters | Jan 25, 2007 | Home |
It’s official! Oswald owner Eric Lau called me yesterday to reveal that February 17 is the last day for the popular downtown Santa Cruz bistro in its current location. Negotiations are just about completed for a new location — and I’ll let you know when and where, as soon as the deal goes down. Meanwhile – you’ve been told. Now go out and do the right thing.
Oswald – 1547 Pacific Avenue – 831 423-7427.
Open for dinner Tues-Sat.
by Christina Waters | Jan 25, 2007 | Food, Home |
Restaurant reviewers over the ages have figured out a few tricks to make their jobs go smoother. Sometimes it happens during the actual review dinners – things like asking for copies of the menu, wearing wigs so that we won’t be recognized, making reservations under an assumed name – that kind of thing. But often the spin happens after the fact. In the writing itself.
There are a few clues that you, the consumer, can detect to help you read between the lines, so to speak.
1) The use of the word “interesting,†as in, “The sweetbreads seviche with red bell pepper puree had an interesting flavor.†What you are really being told is that the dish tasted like poodle poop. It was disgusting.
2) The word “spare†is always a sign of trouble. If the restaurant decor is described as “spare,†what the reviewer is saying is that the room looked empty, cold, uninviting — sort of like a cross between a tasteful funeral parlor and lockdown at Soledad.
3) Here’s another red flag: if the critic goes on and on about the decor, you can be sure that they are vamping for time. They are struggling to write something positive. In other words, the food stinks. So they’re concentrating on other, safe things rather than the culinary agenda.
4) Relentlessly chirpy, upbeat commentary — especially if there’s a long passage reciting the background, history and close family connections of the owners — is a sure sign that this isn’t a real, anonymous review but a feel-good package of promotional writing, designed to flatter the owners (read: advertisers) and above all, to avoid saying anything negative about the food, the service, the value for the money.
(to be continued. . . )
by Christina Waters | Jan 25, 2007 | Home |
Many of you instinctively realize that, yes, there is something uglier than even the River Street sign. And it is right here in downtown Santa Cruz, a mere two blocks down the street (from the much-loathed River Street sign), nestled beneath the also-ugly Town Clock. I refer, of course, to that mock-Guernica, Frankenstein-in-bronze, anti-war statue we are forced to endure every time we want to drive to the bank, or across the Water Street bridge to go to the gym.
I’m sorry to offend the sculpture’s perpetrator, but this is a flagrant waste of good bronze. In a town that likes to congratulate itself on being an artist’s enclave, how in God’s name did such a mind-numbingly ugly eye-sore find such a prime location? Just because someone with good intentions assures you that they have an important artwork to showcase — don’t believe them until you see the evidence. The road to hell is paved with people promising to sell you perfectly nice bridges.
Here’s another view – exhibit B, if you will.
by Christina Waters | Jan 25, 2007 | Home, Movies |
The dark Spanish melancholy that informs director Guillermo del Toro’s small masterpiece of magic realism, gives this film unforgettable power. As dark as any Zurbarán or Ribera, Pan’s Labyrinth interweaves two worlds and two realities — that of a child’s fairytale longings, and the ruthless fascism of Franco’s Spain.
If it sounds like a marriage of hope and hell, it is — but the ending alone, which spins yet another uncanny twist, is pure enchantment. Del Toro’s imagination (Hellboy) provides visuals that evoke Cocteau and Buñuel, with a healthy dose of Brothers Grimm as visualized by Frida Kahlo. The deeply saturated colors of the film stock add to the mood of otherworldly adventure. (more…)
