Plenty of Treats at Little Italy Mercato

After Trick or Treat on India Street Friday night, you may be craving some healthier treats. Morroccan Date Ranch will tempt you with Nature's Candy, and Polito Farms has sweet oranges ripe and ready. Had enough sweets to last a while? Treat your body to a raw food lunch at Peace Pies' booth and a Green Fix smoothie next door. Eat a peach or a pluot. Take home fresh asparagus to steam and serve with a squirt of lemon juice, or make an Asparagus Strata. You'll forget those Snickers bars in no time.
Click Here for Little Italy Mercato

STRATA YOUR STUFF
Easy and impressive for breakfast or dinner, all Strata starts with bread, milk and eggs; then the possibilities are endless. This is a favorite of ours.
Asparagus Strata Cut 1 bunch asparagus from Suncoast Farms in one-inch pieces, and steam until tender. Chop one onion, 1 red bell pepper and 2 cloves garlic from Mercato farm stands and sauté with asparagus in olive oil. Toss with one small loaf French bread, cubed, from Belen Bakery or Bread & Cie, 2 cups shredded pepper-jack cheese from Springhill Farms, and 3-4 stalks chopped fresh tarragon from Schaner Farms. (For heartier dish, add 1 cup cubed ham.) Spoon into greased baking dish. Beat 12 fresh eggs and ½ cup milk or half and half, 1 tsp salt, and ½ tsp pepper. Pour over bread and vegetable mixture. Let stand for 10 minutes. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Serve and strut!

TASTE LITTLE ITALY NOV 5
Taste the flavors of Fall at the Taste of Little Italy next week! More than 23 restaurants serve samples of their specialties at this event. Stroll through the neighborhood and discover the rich palette of dining possibilities in Little Italy while enjoying live music on India Street. Tickets are limited so call 619.615.1092 to reserve or buy them at the Mercato! www.tasteoflittleitalysd.com

Premier San Diego Wine & Food Festival Nov. 12-16

by Frank Mangio

The 5th annual San Diego Bay Wine & food Festival touches down Wednesday November 12 through Sunday November 16, serving up over 160 wine and spirit purveyors with over 800 wines, 6o of San Diego’s Top Chefs, a Big Bottle Auction, cooking and wine tasting classes and a $50,000 Chef of the Fest Competition. It’s the largest food and wine festival in Southern California.

Wednesday the 12th the fun starts with Wine Rave 2008 from 7pm to 10pm at the W Hotel. Twenty-five of the edgiest wine and spirits on the market today get things going while wine and foodie fans frolic and dance the night away.

Thursday the 13th The San Diego Wine and Culinary Center is the location for four seminars ranging from wine appreciation and Feng-shui cooking to arousing the senses with Chocolate and Vino. The learning and tasting continues on Friday the 14th highlighted by the Celebrity Chef Luncheon and Big Bottle Auction from 11:30am to 2pm at the San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina. Top Winemakers and chefs will sit together with visitors over a gourmet lunch in a one-of-a-kind event, capped by big bottle and other in-demand items in a spirited auction.

Later that day, more seminars at the wine and culinary center including a Rhone Varietal panel, a Surf, Turf and Cocktails get together with “Sam the Cooking Guy” and a Master Sommelier Blind Tasting competition.

Top Chef All Stars and Ted Allen Food & Wine Ambassador seminars are scheduled at Macy’s School of Cooking. Friday evening is the Reserve and New Release Tasting from 6:30 to 9:30pm on the Hornblower Yacht where you can meet celebrity food and wine authority Ted Allen.

Some of the 60 top San Diego chefs that will cook and compete for “Chef of the Fest” for $50,000. in cash and prizes, Sat. Nov. 15 at the Grand Tasting Event at Embarcadero MarinaPark San Diego; part of the San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival.

The Saturday Grand Tasting is my personal favorite: a waterside pastoral setting at Embarcadero Park North with a choice of over 800 wines with cuisine from over 60 chefs stations, from 12 to 4pm. The theme is “lip smacking, glass clinking, celebrity watching, swishing, swirling, mouth watering kind of fun!” The 5 day extravaganza is capped off with a Champagne Tasting Brunch on the Hornblower yacht Sunday from 11am to 1pm.

Choose each event or purchase them all in an unlimited package. For schedule details and tickets access www.worldofwineevents.com or call 619-342-7337. Don’t miss it…The San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival Nov. 12 thru 16, the one the L.A. Times called one of their “favorite events of the year.”

Wine with Cheese – a Natural
I have to admit, my knowledge and taste for cheese was limited to Kraft Cheddar and that stinky stuff my mother would grate on to our nightly bowl of pasta (Pecorino Romano if you’re wondering). As I developed a palate for fine wine, my choices for cheese got more demanding. Other Americans are doing the same. The latest annual statistics show we are eating about 32.5 pounds of cheese per capita, up from 27.3 10 years ago. And we’re trading up to quality.

Every time I go into an artisan themed specialty cheese shop, I see things I have never tasted before and I wonder what kind of wine they would go with. Now that we have many more whole and organic food markets, the selections seem infinite.

Italian cheeses have always been a favorite with Americans, led by Provolone and Mozzarella. This came about due to the popularity of pasta and pizza. Current popular cheeses include Parmigiano and lots of offshoots like Reggiano, Grana Padano and Pecorino Romano. These are hard cheeses, full of flavor and ready to take on any red wine, even the richness of Port. Italian soft cheeses in addition to Provolone and Mozzarella include: Asiago, Taleggio, Ricotta, Gorgonzola and Stracchino.

That cheddar I mentioned earlier can come in some luscious styles, not just the bland Kraft American we grew up with. Its tell-tale tang is most evident in English cheddar from cow’s milk, it has a fine texture if aged about two years.

The best are “bandaged” (wrapped and bound) during aging. It goes best with a Ruby Red Port, but I’ve been happy with a lovely cabernet as well.

Local Wine Bytes (formerly local sip)

The Art of Food & Wine Palm Desert is a four day celebration at various points of interest in the desert Thurs. Nov. 6 thru Sun. Nov. 9. The Marriott Desert Springs Resort has a lot of the fun with Fri. night decadent desserts and sumptuous wines and champagnes. The Grand Tastings on Sat. & Sun. are there also with wine and delicious foods prepared by the best chefs in town. Tickets and other info available at www.artoffoodandwine.com, or by calling 866-968-2783.

Pinot Noir tastings from Burgundy, Oregon, Russian River Sonoma, New Zealand and elsewhere are featured at Bacchus Wine Market, downtown San Diego Fri. Nov. 7 from 4 to 8:30pm. Fee is $20.pp. Call 619-236-0005.

Tuscany Restaurant in Carlsbad brings you a winemakers dinner on Sat. Nov. 8 starting at 6:30pm. Featured wines are from the Umbria area of Italy, home of the Sagrantino varietal. $75. ea. Call 760-929-8111.

Wine Vault and Bistro has a Lafite Rothschild 7 course wine dinner on Sun. Nov. 9 starting at 5pm. A Lafite specialist will by on hand to host. $65. pp. RSVP at 619-295-3939.

Firefly in Encinitas has a busy schedule of 3 wine dinners in November: Wed. Nov. 12 with Bonterra Winery, Thurs. Nov. 13 with Testarossa and Fri. Nov. 14 featuring one of the leading Paso Robles wineries, Ecluse. All come with a wonderful menu. Cost for each is $75. Call in an RSVP for each at 760-635-1066.

The Westgate Hotel downtown San Diego has an Inspiration Vineyards Wine Dinner on Wed. Nov. 12 with a 6pm reception start. This is a small production lovely wine from Sonoma. $89. ea. Phone 619-557-3655.

Touring Napa-Sonoma Wine Country

Photo and Article by Frank Mangio

I recently viewed the movie Bottle Shock, an attempt to capture the essence of the wine event that catapulted the Napa appellation into world prominence: the Paris Wine tasting of 1976, when French judges declared two Napa wineries, Stags Leap with its Cabernet Sauvignon and Chateau Montelana with its Chardonnay, to be the winners against a group of established French counterparts. It was another disappointment by movie makers who only deal in what may make money, with disregard for the truth and beauty of the matter.

If you want to know what really makes Napa-Sonoma the crown jewel of winemaking, you have to walk the walk and get up there. It’s the only place I know where the heady odor of grapes fill the air and the senses with the scent of sweet Cabernet and Chardonnay perfume-like vapors. These two varietals rule.

Cabernet Sauvignon is really a hybrid grape, originally a Bordeaux style blend of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc that thrives in both Sonoma and Napa.

The same for Chardonnay, California’s most popular white wine with many styles to choose from. You can get a toasty, full-bodied “chard” or a lean mineral-like version. The traditional barrel fermented kind will give off a butterscotch and toast quality, while the newly popular un-wooded types will go toward a citrus and mineral-like profile.

A good place to begin your Chardonnay tasting tour would be Grigich Hills on Napa’s Highway 29. You may see 82 year old Mike Grgich in the tasting room talking up his latest lovely Chardonnay, the 2006 and the first one certified organic and biodynamic, a natural process without chemicals of any kind. Mike was the winemaker of the Chardonnay that won it all at the famous ’76 Paris Tasting.

Grgich Hills is one of the most visited wineries in Napa, home of 50 year winemaker Mike Grgich.

It gets a little more complicated when it comes to “best Cabernet Sauvignon” as both Sonoma and Napa have champions. Sonoma Cab was recently complimented in a recent article by my friends at Wine Spectator, the world-best wine publication. In it, the top Cab was from the Knights Valley area of Sonoma, a 2005 Les Pavots which scored 97 points. 11,000 acres are devoted to Sonoma Cab, but Napa devotes 19,000 acres. The argument can be made though that with Sonoma closer to the ocean and cooler, Cab grapes feel more at home in that environment. One thing you can count on when you go: the wines you taste will be among the world’s best.

Frankie’s Steak & Seafood in Temecula
Fast becoming a local favorite in Temecula, Frankie’s Steak & Seafood delivers with delicious entrees, big town ambience and some cool jazz and other entertainment in the busy bar.

Sinatra, Sammy and Dino of the Las Vegas “Rat Pack” are in full evidence with a piano, martini bar and images reminding customers of the fun and decadence of the “good old days.” Owner Frank Vessia features aged New York steaks paired with an extensive wine list. Wine Tasting Wednesdays from 5-7pm are a must.

Five wines paired with rustic appetizers are just $20. per person. Vessia has his own vineyard and produces Italian style in-house wines. For a reservation call 951-514-5212.

The Local Sip
Congratulations to Meritage Wine Market in Encinitas on being awarded “Best Wine Shop in San Diego,” by ABC TV San Diego’s Channel 10. They cited Meritage’s ability to provide the best of the personal and business wine needs of the community. Contact number is 760-479-2500.

Vino 100 in San Marcos is staging a “Wicked Zin” Halloween party on Fri. Oct. 31. $15. ea. Call for details at 760-591-3113.

Celebrate the Craft is a two day art,wine and food celebration at the Lodge at Torrey Pines, Sat. and Sun, Nov. 1 and 2. For more information please call 858-777-6635.

Meet winemaker Pablo Fallabrino with wines from Uruguay at Bacchus Wine Market in the Gaslamp District of downtown San Diego Sat. Nov. 1 from 5 to 8pm. Fee is $10. ea. Signature wine is Angel’s Cuvee Ripasso from Tannat. Details call 619-236-0005.

When in Rome Restaurant in Encinitas has its annual Harvest Wine Dinner Thurs. Nov. 6 from 6:30pm. Five wines from Puglia, Italy will be served, including Primitivo and Aglianico. $75. pp. Call 760-944-1771.
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Note: Taste of Wine TV will be on location at the 2008 San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival. We are looking for an experienced on-camera co-host to interview chefs and winemakers. In exchange, we will provide an entry ticket to the event, and access to the wine, food, and fun that comes with this world-known festival. The time committment for helping us will be around 90 minutes, then you are free to enjoy the event. If interested, please e-mail Mike Bragg at: WineNews@TasteOfWineTV.com

New Guide Makes It Easy to Enjoy Wine Country

When Bob and Cindy Rhodes (pictured) set out to write a guide book about Temecula wineries, they took a little different tack with The Grape Escapes 2 ($19.95). They actually visited the wineries, tasted the wine and talked with the owners and winemakers. “We are not connoisseurs, just a normal couple who enjoy wine,” explained Cindy.

After tasting 250 wines and going to nearly four dozen wineries, the husband and wife team have made it easy for visitors to figure out where to go. “There are so many wineries in Temecula now it’s no longer easy to go for just one or two days,” Cindy says. She points out that the 271-page book is not just about wine. There are sections in the book covering best picnic area, restaurants, delis and shopping. She’s even included a special chapter on “Going in Style,” after experiencing Keyways Vineyard & Winery’s renovated bathrooms. Cindy said Keyways has plenty of dark wood to appeal to the male tastes. But it also has lots of “little touches” that only a female could appreciate, including a lady’s room with hammered copper stalls and Brazilian onyx sink countertop that is lit from below. “Women are more interested in (a first class bathroom) than guys are,” she said.

The book can be found at Temecula area wineries (Keyways, Oak Mountain, Ponte and Orfila) Barron’s Marketplace on Rancho California Road , the Temecula Valley Visitors Center in Old Town Temecula and online at www.thegrapeescapes.com

Buy Tickets for Temecula Harvest Wine Celebration

by Don McAuliffe

The early bird gets the worm at the Harvest Wine Celebration on Nov. 1-2.

Temecula Valley vintners and growers celebrate the 2008 grape crush with two days of food and wine. Sign up before Oct. 15 and the cost is only $79 a person, which includes food and wine both days and a souvenir wine glass. After October 15, the price goes up to $89 per person.

For Temecula and Murrieta residents who want to enjoy the festivities on Sunday only, the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association is charging $59 per person. The Harvest Wine Celebration is a great opportunity to visit 22 award-winning wineries from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day and sample great wine and wine-friendly food.

As Joe Hart, owner and winemaker at Hart Winery, says, “You get to try the wine with food, which is really what wine is all about – it’s a beverage to accompany food.”

Travel from winery to winery and taste barrel and tank samples of new and unreleased wines. For more information or media passes call 800-801-WINE.

San Diego's Little Italy Mercato: Every Saturday, ALL Year Round (Rain or Shine)

Lucky for all of us, San Diego has one of the longest growing seasons in the country, so the Mercato will fill Date Street every Saturday morning, year round, rain or shine, from 9 am to 1:30 pm. Buy citrus throughout the year, but not always the same variety. Tomatoes will go out of season, but sweet potatoes, beets and kale will be back. We combine a Certified Farmers’ Market with a city market, with bread, coffee, sea salts, chocolate and more available all year. And of course, the live music, great food and view of the bay never go out of season!

BLOOM WITH A VIEW


Rafael Acosta Jaramillo has been working with orchids for more than a decade, first as an employee, then as the owner of Vista’s Orchid Source. Now he brings half a dozen varieties of these hauntingly beautiful plants to the Mercato every weekend. Free with every pot: Rafael’s friendly instructions for keeping your orchid in bloom at home.


KEEP YOUR COOL
With fresh eggs, fish, meat and cheese, fruit and vegetables, hummus, popsicles and salami available every week at the Mercato, how do you take a minute to enjoy a panini and a little live music and still get your treasures home safe and cool? Pick up a green insulated bag, complete with Mercato logo and a zippered top, for just $10 at the Mercato Information Booth. Bring it back each week and do yourself and the planet a favor! Shop the Little Italy Mercato every Saturday from 9 am to 1:30 pm, year-round. Shop Date Street, from Kettner to Union.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Tickets for the second annual Taste of little Italy will be available at the Mercato Information Booth this Saturday. Get ready to stroll the neighborhood sampling specialties from 23 neighborhood eateries, and enjoying live music on India Street November 5th. Tickets for the last event sold out – get yours now!
Photos by Ramona d'Viola, April Gillette, and Tim Stahl.

www.littleitalymercato.com

The House That Almond Champagne Built

by Frank Mangio

Wilson Creek Winery and Vineyards in Temecula Wine Country stands as a beacon to a wine family’s hard work and an attitude of “let’s make it fun.”

The Wilsons, with patriach Gerry and his energetic wife Rose, gathered themselves together and acquired the 20 acres they first organized in 1996. They sold their homes and businesses, spread out over the country, and came to Temecula to make wine.

As Bill Wilson puts it, “we are right in the middle of Southern California wine country, 20 miles from the ocean".

The decomposed granite soil and climate are perfect for growing grapes and we enjoy the southland lifestyle with about 20 million people to draw from. We want to put Temecula on the map as a major wine country.” Over the years, it’s been Wilson Creek’s Almond Champagne that single handedly has lifted the winery into prominence. This gold-medal winner is naturally fermented, with a hint of almond added, that has enchanted champagne style wine lovers. It has amazed me with its popularity and wide distribution into wine shops up to the largest of supermarkets and discount wine departments.


Bill Wilson, General Manager, toasts his new restaurant, Creekside Grille. (photo by Frank Mangio)

Prices vary, with the wine club at Wilson Creek listing it at $16.95.
“We have tripled our 5 year business plan,” declared Bill. “ It has allowed us to build new facilities that are functional, including our new Creekside Grille which is kind of a Southern California Wine Country Cuisine Menu. It’s an easy to understand lineup of great food and wines…nothing ostentatious, just comfortable food.”

The chef is Clay Blake from the fine restaurants in Seattle before re-locating in wine country. Hours at the new addition are 11 to 5pm daily with a lovely Sunday Brunch. Reservations at 951-699-9463.

Etienne Cowper, the lead winemaker at Wilson Creek, loves to “bring out the personality of the grape to produce an enjoyable wine.” He has increased the breadth of wines presented. I can personally attest to his handicraft with the new release 2006 Zinfandel( $32.95) with just the right balance of concentrated fruit and spice that a great Zin posseses. www.wilsoncreekwinery.com.

2008 Harvest in Temecula Wine Country Successful
Saturday and Sunday October 1 and 2, Temecula Wine Country is planning its 2008 Harvest Celebration with winning wines, barrel tastings and food sampling. They have good reason to celebrate. With wide smiles, the winemakers all feel that the ’08 harvest is among the best ever! “it was an ideal growing season. Just the right amount of early rain and a mild summer. The grapes have gone crazy,” asserted Bill Wilson of Wilson Creek.

Mike Tingley of Keyways exclaimed “so far, fruit quality is excellent.” August was the right time to pick Chardonnay and Syrah used in sparkling wines with red grapes the last to be picked.

Up north the cold snap last spring is going to hurt the ’08 vintage in Napa and Sonoma, so Temecula’s 33,000 acres could be producing an ’08 vintage better than most others in California.

The Local Sip
The Wine Loft in Carlsbad has a Halloween flight going on Fri. Oct. 24 from 5 – 9pm. Sample Bogle Phantom and other “spooky” specials. Details at: 760-434-9463.

Wine Street in Carlsbad is asking support for the Komen Breast Cancer Foundation at its Tasting for a Cure on Fri. Oct. 24, 4 to 7:30pm. Great lineup of wines to taste plus raffle drawing. $20. ea. Phone: 760-431-8455.

Alternative Wines on Fri Oct. 24 starting at 6pm presents Pairng Wine and Cheese, featuring fabulous cheeses from Venissimo. Fee is $29. RSVP please at 858-780-9463.

Thornton Winery in Temecula celebrates its 2008 Hallow-Wine Party on Fri. Oct. 31 starting at 7pm. Four Star buffet includes 2 glasses of lovely Thornton wine plus champagne reception. Prizes for best costume. $85. pp. Cal 951-699-0099 for an RSVP.

Explore Australia is the theme of the wine dinner at Tapenade in La Jolla on Tues. Oct. 28 from 6:30 to 9pm. Enjoy D’Arenberg wines such as Viognier, Shiraz, Riesling and the brand’s blends. $92. ea. RSVP at 858-551-7500 x 1.

The famous New Zealand wine Kim Crawford is being poured at an Institute of Wine dinner at Roppongi in La Jolla Mon. Oct. 27 from 6:30 to 9pm. You will taste Rose, Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Merlot. Cost is $90. for members and $105. for non-member guests. 619-297-0951.

San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival - 2008 Dates!

The San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival returns this fall with an action packed week of festivities for your inner foodie and wine lover!

Click here for Dates and Events
You won't want to miss the 160 world-class wineries, 60 fine dining restaurants, gourmet foods, celebrity chefs, wine dinners, cooking classes, wine tasting classes, olive oil competition, live and silent auctions, personalities, and whew, more food and wine than you know what to do with! Come join more than 6,000 taste makers including legendary wine makers, celebrity chefs and others with great taste (just like you!) on November 12-16, 2008 in sunny San Diego. All tastings included in ticket price!!

Spanish Wines Starting to Move Up

by Frank Mangio

Difficult vintages can hurt a country’s chances of sustainable growth in international wine sales. Wine aficionados, columnists and wine shops can get down on an appellation, and recovery can take years. Such was the case with wines from Spain.

Spanish wines have a curiously different approach to a release year. Most wine growing areas promote their wine time from harvest, and in a barrel and bottle as preferred or premium. I would jump on a bottle of “Tampranillo Reserve Red” that was five to ten years vintage for under $25. only to be disappointed by the raw tannins and weak flavor. Some research revealed that the heavenly vintages of ’97 through 2000 in Italy and France were ordinary or even poor in Spain.

This vast grape growing area cultivates more acres of vineyards than any other country in Europe with a wide range of climates and soils. The Rioja appellation is the most important of the growing grounds of Spain. Its “bodegas” or vineyards have turned in some impressive performances in the 2001 and 2004 vintages.

The Tempranillo grape varietal is the most popular and best represents the concentrated fruit flavor of Spain. Many are single estate wines that mature in French Oak.

Spanish wines have recently moved up the ladder in sales in the U.S. About 10% more of these wines were sold last year over the year prior, and about 44% more than five years ago. The two solid wines from Rioja are: the 2004 Bodegas LAN Edicion Limitada ( $48.) and the Bodegas Muga Torre Muga ($88.). An excellent value is the Bodegas Marque de Caceres 2001 ($23).

In Temecula Wine Country, you can enjoy Spanish wines at La Cereza where owners Buddy and Cheri Linn have devoted themselves to a lineup that included Tempranillo and Garnarcha, the Spanish version of the French Grenache.Foto by Frank: The tasting room at La Cereza Winery in Temecula Wine Country, where Spanish wines are featured.

The Garnarcha, which was one of my top ten wines tasted in 2007, has an excellent blackberry, smoky flavor with spice accents.

La Cereza’s tasting room also functions as an art gallery where customers can view original Spanish art, which is recreated onto the labels of the La Cereza wine bottles. A fun side attraction is Hemingway’s, an exotic Spanish cigar and wine bar. www.lacerazawinery.com.

Annual Temecula Wine Classic
The Temecula Wine Growers Association presented the 2008 Food and Wine Classic a few weeks ago, unveiling award winning wines from 22 wineries.

The appellation received over 40 Best of Class/Double Gold awards and one of the member wineries, South Coast, received the Golden Bear Award as the best winery in the state! Congratulations to: Baily, Bella Vista, Briar Rose, Callaway, Cougar, Falkner, Filsinger, Hart, Keyways, La Cereza, Leonesse, Maurice Carrie, Miramonte, Mt. Palomar, Oak Mountain, Palumbo, Ponte, South Coast, Stuart Cellars, Thorton, Wiens and Wilson Creek.


The Local Sip (San Diego / Temecula)
The 7th annual Grape Stomp and Crush Party at Cal State San Marcos is Sat. Oct. 11 from 1 to 6pm, in the Founders Plaza. Wine tasting, live music, BBQ and Bocce Ball are all featured. $25. each. Call 619-871-7643 for more info.

The Four Seasons Aviara is the location for a Clos Pegase Wine Dinner with owner Jan Schrem, Wed. Oct. 15. 6:3opm reception with a lovely 5 course dinner including reception. $120.79 each. Call 760-603-6800 x 5056.

Wilson Creek Winery in Temecula has a harvest Festival Grape Stomp Sun. Oct. 19 starting at 5pm. Wagon rides, a great buffet from the new Creekside Inn, live music with Tony Seraci and dancing! $74. each. Call 951-699-WINE.

Wine Street in Carlsbad has “Tasting for the Cure” with a great lineup of wines benefiting the Susan Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Raffle drawings. It happens on Fri. Oct. 24 starting at 5pm. $20. ea. 760-431-8455.

Host Your Own Wine Tasting Party

by Frank Mangio

Thinking about a wine tasting to spice up your fall social season? It’s guaranteed to raise your standing as party planner. My “local sip” section is burgeoning with places to go to kick up your taste buds and enjoy conversation on wines. But chances are you can name a dozen or so friends that would love to gather and taste your choices.

Here are some some suggestions to help you in creating a memorable time.
Choose 10 to 12 couples for the tasting to keep control of the tasting and enhance conversation about what they are tasting.

Make a contest out of it. I would suggest a blind tasting (cover the bottles up to the top with a bag) of about 7 to 10 different wines from various parts of the world.

Make an attractive invitation, informing your guests what they will be doing, what areas the wines come from and a brief description of the wines. Their goal will be to match the description with the actual wine bottle tasted, which has a number on it. I always enjoy offering bottles of wine used in the tasting, as prizes for most correct choices. Each guest gets a form with this information on it when the tasting contest begins.

The host should supply appetizers before the tasting and mild cheese and crackers between tastings plus a container and water for cleaning glasses.

When all the guests have gone through the bottles and marked their choices, as host you need to gather the forms and score the entries which should have the names of the “contestants” somewhere on their forms.

When the winners are announced, be sure to give the forms back to your guests so they can go through and note how they did and what wines were their favorites.

The fun keeps going when the wines are revealed. The only thing red wines from districts as widespread as Napa and Australia have in common is the color. When they are tasted side by side, the distinctive qualities of the wines are revealed for all to compare and debate. I prefer to choose wines that range in price from inexpensive (about $10.), to middle priced (about $70.). Some typical varietals to include are: merlot, cabernet sauvignon, sangiovese, syrah, grenache, malbec, zinfandel, pinot noir and malbec.

You might want to explore others, or place a syrah and an Australian shiraz in the same tasting (they are the same grape, but do taste distinctly different due to geographic differences). A blend or meritage can be used but these are difficult to identify due to several grapes combined in the bottle. So start planning, and put your own creativity to work. The result is always a fun party.

Lovely Wines to Add to your List
Wine never ceases to amaze me with the number of wonderful varietals and vintages that out there waiting to be discovered. The following examples typify the rewards that await the patient wine lover:
Wilson Creek Estate Zinfandel 2005, Temecula Valley. $34.95. Beautifully crafted from aged gnarled vines with deep cherry and plum flavors. Captures the essence of superior Zin. www.wilsoncreekwinery.com.

Chateau Ste. Michelle Chardonnay 2005, Columbia Valley Washington. $13. Warmed and nurtured by the intense, long sunny days of Northern Washington. Rich and ripe with tropical flavors. www.ste-michelle.com.

Thornton “Thorny’s” Cote Red Blend 2005, Temecula Valley. $14. Bright, cheery blend of 62% Syrah, 22% Barbera, 11% Sangiovese and 5% Grenache. You will be in delicious wine heavan with this marriage of Rhone Valley and Italian varietals. www.thortonwine.com.

Villa Antinori Chianti Classico Reserve 2000, Tuscany Italy. Price varies. The 2005 is now released and its price is about $20. I laid the 2000 down 5 years ago and opened it recently to taste its aged vintage.It was remarkably beautiful as the terroir opened up with breathtaking detail. Silken minerality, earth characteristics that was of an Italian opera…truly music to the taste buds. This wine is truly one I can recommend you store for 5 to 7 years.

The Local Sip (San Diego and Temecula)

Savory Casual Fare in Encinitas presents their first winemaker’s dinner on Thurs. Oct. 9 starting at 6:30pm, featuring Duffy Keys “B” Cellars of Napa Valley. Four courses with some beautiful blends. $75. pp. Call 760-634-5556 for an RSVP.

Carlsbad Wine Merchants is bringing in Opolo Wines, a real taste treat, on Fri. Oct. 10 beginning at 5pm. Fee $20. ea. One of the best from the west side of Paso Robles. Call 760-804-9994.

Vine to Glass in Oceanside has a new menu of wines and is promoting “red wine and your health.” New selections include: Santino Zinfandel, Justin Cab and a by-the-glass special on Felsina Rancia Classico Reserva, a personal favorite. Call 760-757-1037.

Robert Renzoni Vineyard in Temecula is presenting a Columbus Day party Sun. Oct. 12 from 1 to 5pm. Complimentary glass of wine, music, dancing food and fun, plus 30% discount on all wines. $30. in advance, $35. at the door. 951-302-VINO for details.

Belle Marie Winery in Escondido has their next winemaker’s dinner in their Chateau Wine Cave on Sat. Oct. 18 at 6pm. “A Tuscan Feast” will feature cuisine from that area paired with premium Italian wines. MC will be owner Mick Dragoo, an expert on the Italian terroir. $89. pp. RSVP at 760-796-7557.