Added on 08/27/10 at 11:07 am
2009 Solis Winery Fiano Estate
So I can’t say I was angry, but I will say I was disappointed. The wine was nothing short of superb, but my fellow panelists simply didn’t get it.
To set the stage, the “other” whites category at large wine competitions are, shall we say, is The Land of the Misfit Toys. If you’ve never tasted these sorts of wines, well, generally you aren’t missing much. Often times they are comprised of the end-lots of what didn’t make the cut of better quality wines, all mixed up, given a fancy name and sold over the counter at tasting rooms. A winery marketing director will pay a small fee to enter the obscure blend into the competition hoping it will get some recognition to help sell the inventory which would otherwise be flushed. Read More
Added on 07/27/10 at 7:34 pm
San Diego’s own San Pasqual Winery is hosting it’s inaugural food and wine class called ”A Perfect Pairing: Cooking with Chef Dave at San Pasqual Winery“. The class focuses on the basics of BBQ and the sharing of championship BBQ pitmaster secrets.
Taught by San Diego’s own award winning BBQ Pitmaster Dave Vindiola from Smokealicious BBQ and CookingwithChefDave.com, the class offers a great introduction to the entire BBQ process. The August 7th event will cover everything from types of wood and fire, how smoke and spice work together, selecting the proper cuts of meat, as well as prepping, and of course cooking. Read More
Added on 06/21/10 at 10:44 am
***UPDATE!!!
Go San Diego cards on sale from 6/22 – 7/1. Save 10% instantly at checkout. Also, enter code “Hasslefree” at checkout to receive a free trip protection waiver.
As a longtime San Diego resident and someone who used to manage beach vacation rentals, I’ve been asked countless times about getting the best deal on family entertainment while visiting San Diego. While surfing the web yesterday I stumbled upon The Go San Diego Card, an absolute no brainer for the tourist season.
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Added on 04/29/10 at 5:20 pm
Buy one wine class, get the 2nd one free!
I’ve proclaimed 2010 as “The Year of Happiness”.
Heck, local real estate prices have been on the rise for 8 consecutive months and the stock market has risen nearly 37% over the last year. We certainly have not seen that in a while!
Now is the time to treat yourself (or your Mom!) to something special, and I’m here to offer my own little incentive to do so. Keep this email as a “Buy one super fun entertaining and informative wine class, get one super fun entertaining and informative wine class free” coupon.* Read More
Added on 04/18/10 at 8:16 am
Accidents can sometimes result in glorious revelations. The evolution of sparkling wine is certainly a delicious example.
Centuries ago, temperature controlled environments in which to produce wines were not available. The now famous wine destination of Champagne, located about an hour-an-a-half drive north and east of Paris, experiences very cool fall and winter temperatures. Cold enough to slow down and eventually halt the fermentation process of the wines being produced. Early winemakers would see that fermentation had stopped and therefore bottled what they had Read More
Added on 03/30/10 at 2:18 pm
I often tell my clients, and anyone who will listen really, that I’m all about finding quality wine for the price–no matter the price. Basically what I’m talking about is getting a good bang for your buck.
Typically this strategy finds me scouring competition results for under priced stars and other moderately priced choices. However that doesn’t mean I won’t recommend bottles from the upper end of the market when warranted.
The 2006 Staglin Estate Cabernet Sauvignon is warranted indeed. Read More
Added on 03/22/10 at 9:05 am
The 2010 San Diego International Wine Competition was held over the weekend where over 30 judges from around the United States tasted through nearly 2,000 total entries and awarded medals to hundreds of wines.
North San Diego County’s Fallbrook Winery showed up prominently in the final tally. Read More
Added on 03/09/10 at 10:22 am
I just couldn’t leave this one alone.
The “iconic” Lindsay Lohan is suing E*TRADE because one of the babies they use in their commercials shares her same first name. Yep, for real!
I guess I didn’t know that Lohan now owns the rights to that particular name. Maybe parents should be paying her royalties every time the legion of American Lindsays write their name on term papers, create a YouTube or Facebook account, or even-dare I say-get a job as a radio or television personality. Read More
Added on 02/25/10 at 6:27 pm
Wow.
I really wasn’t in the mood to blog tonight, but when I opened and tasted the 2007 Dry Creek Vineyard Russian River Valley Chardonnay I just had to sit down and pound out a few paragraphs!
I must admit that I’m a RRV chardonnay honk, as I much prefer the characteristics that come out of this AVA’s best vineyards over her sometimes more heralded Napa and Carneros bretheren. However, I’ve had more than my fair share of really bad RRV chards before too. Read More
Added on 02/23/10 at 8:33 am
While working on his M.A. in psychology, Eddie Osterland became fascinated with the world of wine. So much so that he altered career paths and became the United States very first Master Sommelier.
His unique story began in the 1960’s when wine in the United States was not what it is today. Truth be told, at the time there were actually more orchards than vineyards in the Napa Valley. To receive the best instruction available he would be forced to move overseas. Read More
