Taste of Wine
Small plates, big pours and big news at Flemings
Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar is an unforgettable night of fun and flavor in a palatial setting where the culinary good life is toasted nightly.
Judging the first-ever San Diego wine competition
When I got the call to be a judge for the first-ever commercial wine competition at the San Diego County Fair, it made me stop and think about just how far the quality of San Diego wines had come that the district could take its place as a formidable wine country.
Wine is right ingredient for successful fundraising
Community organizations large and small can be grateful for the powerful draw that wine can be, to raise funds for their activities to help the needy.
Thornton unveils champagne jazz with an energized Mindi Abair
If I likened the kickoff Mindi Abair concert at the beautiful outdoor Thornton Winery in Temecula to wine, my quote would be: “I came expecting Merlot and got Zinfandel!” Mindi, the ever-seductive charmer with her cooing smooth jazz and tenor sax notes, this time came with two legendary rockers from the 1980s, Jeff Golub who [...]
Chicago-style wine & food launches in San Diego
A twin launch recently resonated with San Diego diners when Davanti Enoteca and Mia Francesca opened side by side in an upscale food court in the Del Mar Highlands Center, next to the renovated movie theater.
Temecula Wineries open their hearts to troops
The wineries and the community of Temecula are opening up their hearts and wallets to Marine Corporal Juan Dominguez who chose Temecula to be his home after suffering a triple amputation of both legs and an arm in combat in Afghanistan. The goal is to build a “smart home” with state-of-the-art features to allow him [...]
Along Sonoma Coast sits a fortress for Pinot Noir
Along the Sonoma Coast, high on a ridge overlooking the Pacific Ocean and barely accessible, sits Fort Ross Vineyards and Winery, home of the finest Pinot Noirs in California. It meets all the demands of this “queen” of the wine grapes: high elevation, a coastal strip with plenty of sun and nighttime fog blanketing the [...]
The 1920s come roaring into downtown this month
It’s good to be bad at Wine & Dine-Prohibition, a roaring good time to benefit ElderHelp, April 21 from 7 to 11 p.m. at the Westin Gaslamp Quarter Hotel in downtown San Diego.
Italian wines have had a checkered life in the U.S.
Italian wines have had a checkered life here in the U.S. For a time, led by Chianti with its Sangiovese, the grape of origin in Tuscany, it seemed it was on every table either California grown and bottled, or brought over by an army of Italian makers, who sensed they could fill the jugs with [...]
How do you say ‘WOW’ in French?
I had just seen the film “Midnight in Paris” when my assignment schedule had me at the door of Pamplemousse Grille in Del Mar. If you caught the movie, it has the main character experience surreal flashbacks to the era of the golden ‘20s in Paris, France where the food and wine were magnets for [...]
