Wine
Mira! Another good rose
Currently ranked #2 for summer rosés at our house, Miraval, by celebrity winemakers Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie really is a good one. Nicely produced by Rhone powerhouse Chateau Beaucastel (who just happen to be partner-owners of California’s Tablas Creek), this wine delivers just what you’d expect: a sophisticated summer rose with plenty of flavor,…
Read MoreVesuvio Rosso
Here’s a nice sub-$20 food wine. Nice acid and balance, a little bright cherry and a hint of smoke from the volcanic soil. Pretty ruby color. This could very well be wine that Pompeians drank as the sky darkened and ash began to fall. Or maybe not. But if they did, they’d probably have this…
Read MoreSi, c’est bon
https://vine.co/v/MgETrtFVQzi/embed Here’s another excellent rose, although it’s not the stereotypical crisp, minerally yet fruity summer wine. It has a little more body and flavor than most. Since the label says it “was aged on lees and under a fine veil of flor for one year in 100-year-old foudres”, I was expecting it to be wilder…
Read MoreSummer Friday Evenings
A nicely balanced, refreshing Oregonian rosé. It was good with a little late afternoon sunshine and even better with Pad Thai and a Thai spicy beef salad. Very low alcohol, so you need not be afraid when you notice the bottle is more than half gone. We’ll be having this again!
Read MoreWine from Rancho Cucamonga
Yes, somewhere between downtown Los Angeles and San Bernardino (and I’d suspect it near Rancho Cucamonga) is an AVA I’d never heard of. An AVA is a geographic description like Napa or Carneros or Champagne, for that matter. Vines have been a part of southern California since the Mission days. This vines here, apparently, aren’t…
Read MoreReason for this Ryme
Stopped into wineshop Domaine LA for the first time to pick up some wines ordered at a winemaker dinner @almarestaurant last week. While there, decided to look around a bit. Having spotted a pinot grigio by Viarta, I asked if Domaine LA had the ribolla gialla. Nope, but they did have an unfined unfiltered Napa…
Read MoreWinemaker Dinner @almarestaurant
Tuesday evening at Alma in downtown LA. 4 courses paired with three impressive Sancerres by young winemaker Stephane Riffault.
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A crisp, green apple-y champagne with a little honey on the finish. Fine as an option from our much-beloved non-Champagne Parigot Rose.
Read MoreTry wines and tasty food!
Try wines by the glass and a fun assortment of things to eat. Also a nicely curated draft beer list and excellent local and imported wine for retail sale. We liked the Lovers Sandwich (ham and blue cheese on excellent bread) so much we had another one the next day. @ 15 Degrees C: http://t.co/5ZmPkoaz…
Read MoreCopper River Morels
Simple stuff. But it starts with great ingredients: Copper River salmon (only available for a very short time each year, purchased from our butchers @McCallsmandf), fresh morels, excellent cream, a fine Benjamin Leroux Nuits St. Georges (burgundy). It almost makes itself. Almost. Recipe from, if you can believe this, gourmetfood.about.com. The recipe was followed…
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