Happy Birthday to Tama!

We'd like to send out a heartfelt "Happy Birthday" to our lovely colleague Tama Takahashi! 

In honor of her birthday we enjoyed delicious bento box lunches from Spiritland Bistro, paired with a crisp and refreshing 2009 Guglielmo Pinot Grigio--soon to be featured in the Touring & Tasting Wine Club!

For dessert we fell hard for Crushcakes--lemon, vanilla, coconut, and chocolate...soo yum! The chocolate cupcake went especially well with the Riverbench Pinot Noir.

Again, Happy Birthday, Tama! We appreciate all the work you do for us :)

Our Production Manager Tours Monterey County! (part 2)

About a month ago our Production Manager Lisa Walker enjoyed a whirlwind tour of Carmel-By-The-Sea, Carmel Valley, and Monterey. She experienced some of the best the region has to offer in wine, food, and fun! Below is "Part 2" of her adventure:

On Sunday, after finishing up in Carmel Valley, I ventured into Monterey's Cannery Row. Warned that I would be overwhelmed with tourist traps I stepped a little off the main road and stumbled upon the Pierce Ranch Vineyards tasting room on Wave Road. Fashioned from an old house, the tasting room still features the original hard wood floor. I was greeted by vintage music from a vintage record player, and the cool, friendly tasting room host, Jesse. Not only did I feel at home with the quaint atmosphere, but I was pleased to find a refreshing change in the wines poured. Pierce specializes in Spanish and Portugal varietals, and I was thrilled to taste the 2008 Cosecheiro, a blend of Tempranillo, Touriga, Graciano, and Petite Sirah, and an unfamiliar white like the 2009 Albarino.

By far, Pierce was one of the best tasting experiences I've had in a very long time! And for those of you local to the area, or visiting soon, Pierce now hosts live music on Friday nights. A great accompaniment to the artistic wines and hip/vintage atmosphere at Pierce.

A fun thing I discovered in Monterey is the "Cannery Row Wine Walk". Baywood Cellars, featured above, along with Pierce, Scheid Vineyards, A Taste of Monterey, and Bargetto are all located within walking distance of each other on or near Cannery Row. Experience tasting at all five tasting rooms with a "passport" and get it stamped at each location. Turn in your completed "passport" at the final tasting room and be entered to win a case of wine! Visitors can also take advantage of 10% discounts on wine and gifts at each of the tasting rooms. 


And when you are done tasting, head on over to the famous Monterey Bay Aquarium. This was my first visit, and I had high expectations as friends and colleagues had been hyping this marine marvel to me for years now. Let's just say the experience far exceeded my expectations...

Beautiful right?! Imagine it right in front of you! The Monterey Bay Aquarium also offers annual pass holders a private wine tasting and live music during summer evenings. I had my fair share of wine for the day, at this point I was ALL about the sea creatures :)

As if my day--and weekend--hadn't already been a great success, the tastiest portion was still ahead. I had heard such rave reviews of Christopher's Restaurant in Carmel-by-the-Sea, from both locals and visitors, that I stayed an extra night so I could head BACK to Carmel and try it for myself. I started with a salad of grilled asparagus on a bed of greens with roasted red peppers, olives, feta cheese, and a balsamic drizzle. That only paved the way for my entree--pan-seared breast of Muscovy duck with a berry-brandy sauce, side of green beans, and wild rice risotto. It is absolutely mouth-watering to be reliving the dining experience right now! Christopher's was superb and a definite MUST visit on any trip to Carmel! (I had some Petite Sirah from my visit to Pierce earlier. It was a perfect pair with dinner!)

 

Monterey County, you did me well! For anyone looking for a weekend getaway--or longer--I would definitely recommend this wine country experience! Until next time...

Cheers,

LW

Our Production Manager Tours Monterey County! (part 1)

A few weekends ago, our Production Manager Lisa Walker, enjoyed a whirlwind tour of Carmel-By-The-Sea, Carmel Valley, and Monterey. She experienced some of the best the region has to offer in wine, food, and fun! Below she documents her favorite spots:

 

One of the highlights of my Carmel-By-The-Sea wine tasting experiences was at Caraccioli Cellars on Dolores between Ocean and 7th (for those of you who don't already know, Carmel doesn't have any numbered addresses!) Caraccioli is a new edition--like most of the tasting rooms--to downtown Carmel, and a welcome edition it is! I tasted a flight of6 of their wines, two sparklings, two Chardonnays, and two Pinot Noirs--and they were all delicious! Their wines are not, however, for the bargain wine buyer, falling in the $30-$60 range. But the tasting was very generous, and in a lively, modern-sheik ambiance.

Some of the other wineries I visited downtown were Winfield Gallery/Figge Cellars--I love the wine/art combo!; Cima Collina--extremely friendly tasting room host Allie; and Pepe's Vino Napoli. 

One of my favorite tasting stops in Carmel-By-The-Sea, wasn't wine at all! The Cheese Shop in Carmel Plaza is filled with more cheese than you can possibly fathom, with free tastings of about 5-7 of them. Though I just tried the cheese here, they do also feature a wine bar at the rear of the shop. After all the two are inevitable partners!

On day two I ventured into the beautiful Carmel Valley. I had never been here before and was pleasantly surprised with the lush, country-esque feel of the valley. There is quite the wine tasting village in the small town of Carmel Valley. I was only able to stop at two, but loved the different styles of the tasting rooms at Joullian--more quaint and country, and Joyce--hip and warehouse-like. You'll definitely see which is which. Both, though are equally worth stopping through for a taste!

Stay tuned for part two of my wine/food/travel adventure. To come: Cannery Row Walk, Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the restaurant I was dying to try so much so that I headed BACK to Carmel-By-The-Sea!

Cheers,

LW

Big Sur Coastline

Gorgeous photo submitted by Toby! This was taken by Aengus Wagner of the Big Sur Food and Wine festival, taken on the deck at Nepenthe Restaurant in Big Sur. Where do you wine taste near Big Sur?