Big Basin Scores Again
Winemaker Bradley Brown continues to capture the attention of influential Wine Spectator tasters. His 2007 Odeon Santa Cruz Mountains Syrah/Cab blend won a 93 ranking by WS (see the current May 2010 issue). And his 2007 Santa Cruz Mountains Mandala Syrah took a 91. I...
Back to the Garden!
Gardening Workshop on April 25: Home gardeners listen up! Get some fresh ideas at a Spring Gardening Workshop on Sunday, April 25 from 10 am to 1 pm at the UCSC Farm.UCSC's Alan Chadwick Garden manager Orin Martin and gardening instructor Trish Hildinger will lead...
New Carniglia’s
Girls of the golden west gathered last week for lunch on the wharf. Not only did the weather cooperate for an outing with my mom and aunts — Boulder Creek girls all — but we found ourselves joined for a schmoozefest by surfer/philanthropist George Ow Jr (George...
Soif on the half-shell
Oyster scene @ Soif - We checked it out last Monday, and especially loved the kumomotos and the sensuous, briny kusshis - accompanied by a light, crisp and lively Muscadet, 2008 Domaine de la Pepiere from the Loire Valley. Yes, the ultra-fresh oysters - served with a...
Davenport Gallery
Through April 30 catch the vibrant coastal landscapes on exhibition at the new Davenport Gallery. Works by Ray Ginghofer, Peter Loftus (shown here), Brian Rounds, Frank Galuszka and Claire Thorson help to create technical expressionist synergy. The rich colorwork of...
At the Roadhouse
Rare salmon on polenta made the perfect finish to a day in Davenport.
Paintstik Technique Class @ Lenz
Shiva Paintstiks are the designer version of largescale crayons for professional artists. Think of oil paints in stick form and you're there. Thing is, they require some practice to really achieve a good result. That's where Andy Lenz comes in. Longtime local artist...
The Eclipse – must-see movie!
At the Nick now. Go see it, if only to feast on the brooding presence of Irish actor Ciarin Hinds. For more, read my review in the current issue of Santa Cruz Weekly.
Clash Bash
It wasn't enough that Sam Worthington stunk up Avatar. He's gone and done it again, this time wearing Greek armor along with his burr cut and clenched jaw. Against all odds, and certainly against good judgment, Worthington somehow landed the hero's role of Perseus, in...
La Posta, Friday, 5pm
My longtime friend Donna Blakemore and I sit at the wine bar in La Posta, sipping Italian white wine turning gold in the lowering sunlight. The occasion is simply to catch up with someone I see only once a year. The wine reinforces the pleasure of our reunion. Made by...
Davenport Gallery/Landscapes – April 17
Paintings by Frank Galuszka, Ray Ginghofer, Peter Loftus and Erika Perloff, among others, will be showcased at the Wind & Weather show at Davenport Gallery, through the end of the month. The exhibition features leading specialists of plein air landscape paintings....
Windy Oaks Estates – Wine with a View
Every Saturday from now until the end of summer, from noon to 4pm, the beautiful hilltop Corralitos vineyards and tasting room of Jim and Judy Schultze is open for visits. Enjoy current release estate pinot noirs, newly released 2008 'One-Acre' estate Chardonnay,...
Big Bunny Fun
Or at least a colorful table display. This is how adults in deep denial as to their actual emotional maturity adorn their dining room table during official holidays. Not all of them. But this one. Who can resist ranunculi in loud colors that exactly match the Peeps du...
Spice Whirls
A splendid dinner was enjoyed by us spiceheads last week at the newly re-opened Ambrosia India Bistro. Better than ever is what I thought of our multi-course dinner, which included a sumptuous Lamb Tikka Masala and an order of strange and addictive Dum Aloo – potato...
Beauregard’s Bald Mountain
Rachel and Ryan Beauregard have good reason to smile. They're in love, starting a family, get to hang out in vineyards any time they want to — and sample an endless supply of Beauregard Vineyards wines (made by Ryan). Here they pose at the top of the 40-acres Bald...
A Taste of Big Basin
Big Basin Vineyards Open House, Saturday, April 10, noon til 5pm Make plans to visit one of the truly hidden gems of Santa Cruz Mountain wine country this coming Saturday, April 10, at 830 Memory Lane, Boulder Creek, from noon til 5pm. The extended Big Basin Vineyards...
Well-strung Cult Figures
If there's a stringed instrument that David Lindley hasn't mastered, it doesn't exist. The former lead guitarist for Jackson Browne, whose soaring riffs burned their way through most of the classics of Browne's golden age - and beyond, into the eclectic world music...
Artisanal Pizza
Giving authentic meaning to the phrase "artisanal pizza", muralist James Aschbacher moonlights as a pizzaiolo for close friends and lucky neighbors. I was treated to one of Aschbacher's thin-crust pizzas when I lunched this week with the artist and his wife,...
Kitchen Magic
Surrounded by the sacred artifacts, fetishes and flavorings of his alchemical trade, and clad in ceremonial robes, well-seasoned shaman of all things culinary—Joseph Schultz—prepares for an intensive workshop in Greco-Turkish cooking at the demonstration kitchen...
Yawning in Wonderland
Tell me I'm not alone in finding the new Tim Burton exercise in narcissism a crashing bore. (Except for the miraculous vision of Johnny Depp.) Obviously made to cash in on the momentary 3-D craze, Alice in Wonderland, the newest screen visitation to the holy shrine of...
Bargain Cab
More from the infinite well of surprises that is Shoppers Corner's bargain wine rack. Here, for example, is a ridiculously well-made cabernet sauvignon - H by Havens, 2006, North Coast. For under $10 (I cropped this with the price label still on it so you could be...
Bistro Laurent – Zinfandel Dinner
We got lucky last week. Our favorite restaurant in Paso Robles—Bistro Laurent—was preparing a four-course prix fixe dinner in celebration of the three-day Zinfandel Festival that annually takes over the town, the vineyards and the tasting rooms of this vibrant...
The Garden
The Garden, a 2009 Academy Award nominee for best documentary feature, will be shown Thursday, March 25, 7 p.m. at the Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave, Santa Cruz. Proceeds will benefit the California Food and Justice Coalition. The Garden documents the rise of a lush...
Verdelho Undressed
I love the new label that maverick winemaker Jeff Emery is trying out for his crisp 2009 Quinta Cruz Verdelho. Actually, the duct tape here isn't so much a cloaking device as it is expedient. The labels haven't yet been attached to this latest installment of Emery's...