Wine
Square Peg Winery – Dry Farmed Pinot Noir from the Russian Valley. Need I say more? This family owned winery is located up in the Russian River area and produces lovely pinot noirs from bright with berries, to earthy and deep. The owner’s wife is also an artist, so when you go to visit, you may enjoy quality wines and be surrounded by gorgeous art! Definitely on my list of stops next time I’m up in the Russian River Valley.
San Luis Obispo had a big showing this year with a large educational tent including foods, wines and spirits from the area. As a Cal Poly SLO Alum, I was so proud to see so many quality offerings come out of this area.
Tablas Creek / Paso Robles – French style whites and rhone blends. The Tablas Espirt Blanc was refreshing, creamy yet light and was a perfect fit for a warm event day.
ReFind / Paso Robles – Brandy from grapes? Yes, please. Re:Find Distillery has the luxury of starting with a premium base fruit, ripe red-wine grapes, which affords us the ability to craft superior spirits.
If you’re planning a trip to the Central Coast, make sure to stop off in Paso Robles to this amazing little distillery located in the stunning Adelaida region.
Harmony Lavender Farm – Not only was great food and wine represented for the San Luis Obispo area, but samples of dried lavender were offered up.
This wonderful lavender farm had a self-fill sachel display showcasing the fragrant lavender flowers that come from the San Luis Obispo area. This farm offers tours and other fun activities throughout the year. Make sure to stop here (great for kids as well) on a trip up through the Central Coast.
Finally, Preston + Parker wines from San Diego (but using Paso Robles area grapes) is one of our local favorites. They just launched ‘Dreamer” a new lovely white wine blend that is perfect for a crispy fall day and paired well with the rich restaurant offerings.
Sarah, one of the owners, also does a fabulous wine pour pose!
Food
Korean BBQ Jackfruit from FireFly at Dana Point
Jackfruit is so in and all I can say is ‘finally!’ This fruit can shapeshift into any meaty lookalike and it’s awesome. Firefly did a great job with their Korean Bulgogi interpretation.
Hamachi bites from Marina Kitchen on a seaweed cracker. Fresh and delicious. Great appetizer bite!
Il Fornaio presented seared tuna on hearty artisan bread with a light Italian olive mixture. The tuna was perfectly cooked and was a delicious and satisfying bite, especially with all of the drink sampling for the day! I could have eaten these all day. Il Fornaio of Coronado never disappoints!
New Products to Try
Magic Bullet – Hangover Helper. Geez, where was this BEFORE the start of the event? I was assured it wasn’t too late and I quickly downed a shot glass of this.
Magic Bullet is a tasty, nutritional, healthy beverage that is designed to support and accelerate your body’s own process of eliminating alcohol toxins, helping ensure you are fresh the next morning. Here’s the kicker, you can actually mix it WITH Vodka. Oh, my.
Chosen Foods Avocado Mayonaise – Love mayonaise but hate the bad fats that go with this? This new avocado mayo is a great alternative and creative combo flavors as well!
Chosen Foods avocado oil mayo is made with our pure avocado oil instead of genetically modified, industrial seed oils like soy, corn & canola. They offer great varieties such as Black Garlic and Harrissa.
Another great year in America’s FInest City! Can’t wait to see what 2017 has in order for us all.
Gratuitous Puppy picture from the event. Because, puppy.
