by Christina Waters | Nov 21, 2011 | Home, Wine |
The countdown is on for a December 2-3 opening of the area’s newest wine tasting room, lodged—logically enough—in the midst of a suite of popular tasting boites at Ingalls & Swift, aka Surf City Vintners by way of Kelly’s.
Arms still aching from a marathon session of sanding, staining and hauling barrel staves down to the new facility, Lore James—Vine Hill’s marketing director—was happy to give me a tour of the emerging tasting room.
“This is where I hope the entire Westside will come and spend their weekends,” she said showing me the clever zig-zag counter design that architect Mark Primack devised to aid in conversation flow and space sculpting. “A stainless steel top will be set in place along the wood top,” James explained.
The new wall sconces were one of her finds on a website called barlights.com. “I wanted something that would be rustic industrial, but not too industrial,” she explained. (more…)
by Christina Waters | Nov 20, 2011 | Home |
An unbelievable deal awaits at Shoppers Corner in the form of a 2006 Pinot Noir Anderson Valley from Demuth Winery that drinks like $45 but costs only (better sit down) $9.99.
Details. This garnet-hued baby is accessible yet complex, immediate but not superficial. Salted plums, licorice, a hint of star anise all bound up with licorice and cherries. Perfect with a big bird (turkey perhaps) or salmon. Go get some before I buy it all myself!
by Christina Waters | Nov 17, 2011 | Home, Travel |
The excuse was the outstanding de Kooning retrospective at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, a sleek exhibition setting that lives up to its classically modern name. But the first thing we did was head up to the 5th floor Terrace cafe for a delightfully civilized early lunch. Armed with an appropriate regional wine – a Merlot from Pellegrini Vineyards, North Fork, NY 2006 – we dove into beautiful plates of seasonal flavors.
For my sweetie, slices of organic chicken with marinated squashes and hearts of romaine lavished with mustardy vinaigrette. For me this warm eggy tart of roasted cauliflower and Bayley Hazen blue cheese, (more…)
by Christina Waters | Nov 4, 2011 | Art, Home |
Proving how easily a 250-year-old opera can provide musical epiphany, George Frideric Handel came to San Francisco last week with his delectable pastiche of arias, recitatives, and impossible vocalese —the opera Xerxes.
It was probably one of Benjamin Franklin’s favorite operas, this Italian tale of mistaken genders, identities and lovers, written by a German composer and widely performed in London. What San Francisco Opera audiences feasted on at last Saturday’s matinee performance was the aural luminescence of seven of the world’s finest Baroque singers vying with each other for complete dominance of the gorgeous music, the witty set design and some of the longest, most complex passages ever written for the human voice.
It was a banquet of trills, glissandoes and accelerated arpeggios. (more…)
by Christina Waters | Nov 3, 2011 | Home, Wine |
My friend Mateo scarfed down two orders of the Cajun fried oysters while I took my time over this deeply comforting appetizer of sautéed fresh porcinis on toast dusted with parmesan reggiano and topped with a fried egg.
It was all the better with a glass of Birichino Malvasia Bianca, a creation of Soif wine buyer and resident oeno-maestro John Locke, who tells me that his young Birichino wine label will be including two pinot noirs—one from Central Coast grapes and another small batch from Santa Cruz Mountain fruit, along with a malvasia, vin gris and grenache—in its 2011 vintage.
More to drink. More to like.
by Christina Waters | Nov 3, 2011 | Home, Wine |
Write this down: Palacios “Petalos” Mencia.
Now go to Soif.
Say out loud the words you wrote down.
Wait for a glass of scarlet wine to arrive.
Swirl, sniff and drink.
Be amazed.
