On a Three Hour Tour.....

A great time was had by all aboard and, hopefully, vicariously by our listeners. The first show we've ever broadcast from out at sea. The Grapevine Radio crew climbed aboard the luxury motor yacht Papagallo II along with Meridian's winemaker, Lee Miyamura.

Chef/owner Leonard Gentieu cranked out great appetizers and sandwiches, Elmer (from Meridian Vineyards) manned the bar in the ship's salon and made certain everyone was well served with fine Meridian Wines. Don't miss their current Zinfandel, btw.

While we were out at sea Kathy called in from Mendocino where she was on wine judging duty.
Luckily Chris Taranto, Communications Director for the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance, filled in as my co-host and did a great job. The photo above is Chris & Cliff broadcasting live from the bow of the Papagallo.

Also on board with us were Ron and Teréz Tyni owners of wildly popular Upper Crust Trattoria and Catering and Cynthia Vaughn & Jim Roberts of High Ridge Manor B&B. Jim also took the above photo of Chris Taranto and I.

We thank everyone involved for a great cruise and a fun show out on sunny Morro Bay.

Beer & Food Pairing, Oh My!

Kathy and I chatted with Matt Brynildson, the Master Brewer and GM of Firestone Walker Brewing last Saturday and got into the subject of food and beer pairing.

Matt recommended this site, created by Sean Paxton, the Homebrew Chef, for more on the subject and recipes from Sean.

Giant Egg Lands at Winery ... Biodynamically

Check out this little video clip from Wine Spectator Magazine's website. Very interesting (if you're really into fermentation).
You should see it under "Most Recent Videos." If not, use search word, "Egg" at their site.

http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Free/Video/0,4258,,00.html

Size Matters! A Wine Bottle Guide.

To the right is the "Bible" of wine bottle guides. Literally. It seems these big fellers are all named after guys in the Bible.

Jeroboam is the name of "a mighty man of valor who made Israel to sin" (Kings 11:28 14:16). Rehoboam was the son of Solomon while Methuselah is a Pre-Noachian patriarch stated to have lived 969 years. That's a vintage with some age on it.

The reign of Nebuchadnezzar (I've usually heard it pronounced, "Nebah-kah-nezzar") extended from B.C. 604 to 561. In 598BC he laid siege to Jerusalem and in 588 again captured the city, and carried Zedekiah, who had rebelled against him, captive to Babylon. The name Nebuchadnezzar, or more accurately Nebuchadrezzar is derived from the Jewish Scriptures. But in the inscriptions it reads Nebo-kudurri-ussur, i.e., "may Nebo protect the crown"; a name analogous to that of his father Nebo(Nabu)-habal-ussur. ("Nebo protect the son") and to that of Belshazzar, i.e., "Bel protect the prince." No wonder the bottle is so big.

Melchior, King of Light and Balthazar, King of Treasures are two of the Three Wise Men (the other being Gaspar, The White One). Finally, Salmanazar, was an Assyrian king.
This is giving me a great idea for designing a Nativity Scene!

You Can Use This Chair as a Floatation Device!

I saw this on the blog, vinography.com. It was an entry in the "Design a Champagne Chair" sponsored by Veuve Cliquot.

Father's Day is coming soon....

As I always say, "Chair and chair alike."

Show of Shows on 5.12.07!

Wow. Chef Rick, Archie McLaren and Gary Burk... all in a single bound... uh, er show.
Chef Rick's cuisine is legendary in these parts and beyond. Archie is an internationally recognized expert de vino and the creator of the Central Coast Wine Classic, one of California's foremost wine events.

Gary Burk of Costa de Oro Winery makes one of the finest Pinot Noir's in the state (and is one of Kathy's favorites... and she's really picky!).

But don't the "legendary" status of these guests fool you, it was a really fun, lively show and one of our listeners won dinner for two at Chef Rick's with wine provided by Gary. What a great couple of guys!

Picture from left to right: Kathy, Gary Burk, Chef Rick, Cliff, Archie McLaren.

On a Roll with Bubbly Syrah, Gourmet Cheese, a Cheval.. Everything but the Kitchen Zinc

I know it's a mouthful, but there's so much going on around here in Merry Month of May.
The San Luis Obispo Vintners Roll Out the Barrels was a huge success this year. The Barrels on the Plaza, a week ago Thursday, was great. The cominbation of barrel samples, barrel making demos, Mariachi Band, and locally grown, locally made foods was terrific.

Pictured: water color of Hotel Cheval

And got to taste Kelsey's new Sparkling Syrah.. unreal!

The SLO Vistors Conference Bureau put on a great seminar with Brian A. Baker of Baker and Associates presenting market research on "Foodie Tourism" and how perfectly our county is poised to be a major player in this industry.

Last nite, Thurs. May 9, was a reception at the beautiful new Paso Robles European style luxury hotel, Hotel Cheval. Stunning. You've got to check it out. They will have the Pony Club, their wine and exotic beer bar open in a couple of weeks. A zinc bar and beautiful woodwork, looking out over the plaza.

They were serving amazing poo poo's from Dinning with André, Villa Creek, Artisan and Vivant Fine Cheeses among others. The cheese were great and segmented, three scallop appetizer by Andre was a work of art.