Central California Wine Tour, October 2008; PART THREE

The denoument:

• Day Eleven (Sunday, 10/19/2008): no wine today. Car broke down along the CA-1 (while gazing at the Elephant seals), and we needed AAA to get us back to Cambria…
• Day Twelve (Monday, 10/20/2008): waiting for a fuel pump; no wine (and no car to go to wine!) today…
• Day Thirteen (Tuesday, 10/21/2008): the mechanic ordered the wrong fuel pump (Volvo’s need a Volvo fuel pump – a fact that I, a completely non-expert mechanic, learned quickly after an internet search on Monday, but somehow this basic concept was missed by our “expert” mechanic (Cambria Tire & Auto; 2421 Village Ln; Cambria, CA 93428-3433).
• Day Fourteen (Wednesday, 10/22/2008): on the road home! Abridged wine tasting was comprised of:
  • Melville: nothing memorable tasted. Mostly 2006 “leftovers” available at time of tasting. The staff in the tasting room were memorable, however. Despite the fascist views of the winemaker, which  are decidedly non-dog friendly, the staff were more open-minded, and came to visit our puppy in the car, the only place where she was allowed. Nothing at all for the cellar, neither from this visit, nor ever in the future. Granted, Melville doesn’t need us, but I encourage all pet owners to consider other winemakers nevertheless.
  • Foley (6121 E Highway 246, Lompoc, CA 93436; 805.737.6222; tasting daily 10am-5pm; $10): last tasting on our vacation. Based on my recounting of the vacation to date, the tasters brought out wines off the tasting list (which, parenthetically, was thin – Foley makes great wines, and they sell out quickly). For the cellar, 2 bottles of “2006 ‘Clone 2A’ Pinot Noir” ($40).
• Day Fifteen (Thursday, 10/23/2008): back to work, alas. No more wine tasting notes for the immediate future, except for gems from the cellar…

Central California Wine Tour, October 2008; PART TWO

The pay-off:

• Day Eight (Thursday):
  • Harmony Cellars: another old friend. We love the town of Harmony (pop 18), and always make sure to visit! The glassworks are amazing! There is some evidence a small cafe may be opening – it would be most welcome. Post Office has closed, due to worries about the structural integrity of the building!
  • Sea Chest: no wine here, but an absolutely fantastic dinner. One of our very favorite places along the central coast. I had the seafood marinara. YUM! Beautiful views of sunset. No reservations accepted, and there is a line at opening time of 5:30pm. The best seats are at the bar, where you can watch the chefs do their magic, and yet keep an eye to the beach and sunset.
• Day Nine (Friday):
  • no wine today
• Day Ten (Saturday): our first foray into the Harvest Wine Festival. Our strategy has been to do our main tastings before the festival began, and primarily hit unique opportunities (e.g., wineries only open during regional events) during the festival. Good plan!
  • Jack Creek Cellars (5265 Jack Creek Road, Templeton, CA 93465; 805-226-8283; tasting Fri-Sun 11am-4:30pm; $7): we’ve been looking for this vineyard all week! First, we were told they were sharing a space with Pasolivo. Nope. Then we were told they were somewhere on York Mountain Road. Nope again. Today we were heading elsewhere when, what should we see, but a sign on Vineyard Road  that “Jack Creek” was open for tasting today! Hooray! And was it worth the wait? Unfortunately … not really. We tasted “2006 Pinot”, “2006 Reserve Pinot”, and “2006 Syrah”. Sadly nothing was memorable… I’m told the 2005 Pinot was sumlime, but they are long sold-out. If we can find this vineyard one more, we will try it again in the years to come. Nothing for the cellar from here.
  • Starr Ranch (9320 Chimney Rock Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805 227-0144: currently offering tasting only during regional events): our second stop, and who should we see there but … our friends from Pasadena Pat and Melissa! This winery is only open a few weekends per year (during Paso festivals), so this offered a unique tasting opportunity that brought us all together. We tried “2004 ‘Crooked Road” Cabernet Franc”, “2005 ‘Crooked Road’ Odysseus”, “2006 Windfall Gypsy Road” and three pre-release wines:  “2006 Windfall Tempranillo”, “2006 ‘Crooked Road’ Odysseus”, and “2006 Starr Ranch Syrah”. Very cool site – the “crooked road” leading up to the winery is lined with walnuts and persimmons, both of which are a significant part of the activities at Starr Ranch. The wines were fun. To be honest, I am not an expert on pseudo-barrel tasting (the pre-release wines were bottled earlier this week!), but I was not blown away. I did really enjoy the “2005 Odysseus” ($45) and added one bottle to the cellar.
  • Thunderbolt (2740 Hidden Mountain Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-226-9907; tasting Fri-Sun 11am-5pm): the biggest disappointment of our tasting tour. I was tempted to visit, not because of their reputation, whatever that may be, but rather since they pair wines with food as part of the tasting experience. For me, that’s where the magic begins. To be certain, finding and enjoying a great wine  is fun, but when you can transform a wine by complimenting its extraordinary flavors with the right food, then, my friend, you have achieved alchemy. Having said that, Thunderbolt achieved nothing. If I may be policitically incorrect, I would say this is white trash wine. I enjoyed nothing. My tasting experience was mixed – I was passed-over for two of my food pairings (which, to be fair, may be understandable given that the tasting rooms over Harvest Weekend were busy), and was glad to leave. Nothing even remotely considered for my cellar from here.
  • Wild Coyote (3775 Adelaida Rd., Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-610-1311; daily 11am-5pm; $5): an unexpected stop! The winery looked really cool from the road, so we made an impulse stop. Very fun! The owner/winemaker gave the tasting; his wife provided homemade carnitas. Yum-o! Tasted “2006 Rose ‘White Owl’”, “2006 Zinfandel ‘Shaman’”, “2005 Merlot ‘Black Elk’”, “2006 Syrah ‘Big Chief’”, “2006 Blend ‘House of Reds’”, and “2007 Zin Port”. All very interesting. For the cellar, 2 bottles of “2006 Syrah ‘Big Chief’” ($25), and one bottle of  “2006 Blend ‘House of Reds’” ($25).
  • Carina (3525 Adelaida Roadm, Paso Robles, 93446): a new edition to Paso Robles!  Moving from Santa Barbara, this weekend was supposed to mark their “grand opening”. In reality, it was more of a grand preview, as only the shell of the cellar was completed! We tasted outdoors, on planks set across barrels. It was fun, and one of my favorite spots so far! Tasted “2006 Viognier Central Coast”, “2004 Syrah Santa Barbara County”, “2006 ‘Sybilline’”, “2006 ‘Clairvoyant’”, and 2005 Petite Syrah Sunset Ridge”. For the cellar, 2 bottles of “2004 Syrah” ($11 each – half price discount!) “2006 Clairvoyant”($25).
  • Sylvester (5115 Buena Vista Drive, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805- 227-4000; tasting is free, or $5 for ‘gourmet’ pairing; daily 11am-5pm in winter): OK, Sylvester doesn’t really count as a boutique winery, or something particularly special, in the conventional sense of the word. However, it is extremely dog-friendly, and, as one of the first wineries we visited in Paso many, many years ago, it holds a special place in our heart. Tasted for the barrel  2006 and 2007 merlot, cabernet sauvignon and meritage. All good. Also paired cheese with “2006 Kiara Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon” (with Pecorino Toscano), “2004 Le Vigne Cabernet Franc” (with Campo de Motealban), “2004 Le Vigne Merlot” (with Hirtenkase), “2005 Le Vigne Cabernet Sauvignon” (with Comte), and “2003 Kiara Reserve Sangiovese Port” (with Roaring Forties blue cheese). For the cellar, 2 bottles of “2003 Kiara Reserve Sangiovese Port” ($25, WE 94). The tasting and recipe for “Saganaki” was amazing.
  • Brian Benson (2985 Anderson Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-296-9463): another impulse stop. Brian is a young star in Paso, starting his own line as an offshoot from the family business at Dark Star. The wines were … fine (great labels, following Brian’s passion for cars!). My experience was tainted as the “2006 Syrah” was corked (tried it twice to make sure) but the pourers were too lubricated to be able to discern this. A real shame. RP gave a 90 to that wine, and I wanted to try it in its glory, but no luck… Nothing for the cellar.

Central California Wine Tour, October 2008; PART ONE

The Plan:

• Day One (Thursday):
  • Fiddlehead Cellars: (tasting at FiddleHeadquarters in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto; tasting Thurs-Sun 11am-4pm; tasting fee $10). Ohmiblog! I (re)fell in love with Pinot’s at Fiddlehead! The tasting room itself was fun – a simple room in an industrial park; warehouse tasting of amazing wines! Got two bottles of “2005 Oldsville Reserve Pinor Noir” (Willamette Valley, $48).
  • Palmina: (also in the Lompoc Wine ghetto – 1520 East Chestnut Court, Lompoc, CA; 805-735-2030; tasting Thurs-Sun 11am-4pm; tasting is $10, but I paid $5, I think because I was nice to the host!). Italian varieties, and presented in an off-road style. The winemaker, Steve Clifton, is certainly marching to the beat of his own drummer in original presentations of classic Italian wines. Interesting…

• Day Two (Friday):
  • Taste SLO (1003 Osos St, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401; 805-269-TASTE; tasting Mon-Sat 11am – 9pm, Sun 11am – 5pm; Taste’s  Enomatic Wine Pouring System lets you sample up to approximately 72 different wines from producers in San Luis Obispo’s Edna Valley, Arroyo Grande, Avila Beach and Nipomo Regions. Pay per automated pour with a prepaid, pre-selected amount, card). Tasted 2006 Laetitia Reserve Pinot Noir, 2006 Laetitia “777″ Pinot Noir, 2004 Javadi Sangiovese, 2006 Ortman Sangiovese, 2005 Wild Wood “Tipsy Dog” Pinot.
  • Cayucos Cellars (131 North Ocean Ave., Cayucos, CA 93430; 805-995-3036; tasting daily 11am-5:30pm – closed Tuesdays & some holidays). “Cayucos” means “canoe”, and this is reflected on the family-made label design. An entirely family-run winery, the owner’s son has presented our tasting both on this trip, and from two years ago! Cayucos has a new tasting room on “main street” Cayucos (leaving their spot on the side of a thrift shop!), and it is lovely. For the cellar, one bottle of “2003 Syrah” ($26), and one bottle of “2003 Pinot Noir” ($24).
  • Barrel 27 (2323 Tuley Ct., Suite 110, Paso Robles, CA, 93446): For the cellar, two bottles of “2005 Syrah” (WS 89; $18).
• Day Three (Saturday):
  • Bella Luna Winery (1850 Templeton Road, Templeton, CA 93465; 805-434-5477; Fri-Sun 10am-5pm). For the cellar, one bottle of “2006 ‘Lot One’ San Benito Barbera ($38). One of the two partners gave the tasting, after a night of light frost. His partner was a fighter pilot in Vietnam, and hence they offer a “Fighter Pilot Red”.
  • Wild Horse Winery & Vineyards (1437 Wild Horse Winery Ct., Templeton, CA 93465; 805-434-2541 ext. 10; tasting daily 11am to 5pm). For the cellar, one bottle of “2006 Pinot Noir ‘Bien Nacido’ Vineyard” ($50)
  • August Ridge (8790 E. Highway 41, Creston, CA 93432; 805-239-2455; tasting room hours are Fri 12noon-5pm and Sat-Sun 11am-5pm or by appointment). A relatively new winery and vineyard (I think this is of order their 3rd year). Owners from the SF Bay Area, and still struggling with country music. Me too! For the cellar, one bottle of “2005 Sangiovese” ($33). Tasted 2007 Arneis, 2006 Nebbiolo, 2005 Sangiovese, and 2006 Barbera.
  • Still Waters Vineyards (2750 Old Grove Lane, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-237-9231; tasting Thurs-Mon 11am-5pm). No tasting and nothing for the cellar here; very offputting welcome, and we walked (drove) away. G’bye.
  • Cass Winery & Vineyard (7350 Linne Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805.239.1730; info@casswines.com; tasting Mon-Fri 12noon-5 pm, Sat-Sun – 11 am to 6 pm, Closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas). Had lunch (which, despite the hype, was extraordinarily average; I had the Cuban Pork sandwich which was mediocre covered with cheese; K had the Crab Cakes, which were small and unmemorable); nothing for the cellar.
  • Pretty Smith Vineyards & Winery (13350 River Road, San Miguel, CA 93451; 805-467-3104; tasting Fri-Sun 10 am-5 pm). A truly one-person show! Even the labels are designed by the grower/owner/winemaker, who also presided over my tasting. And the best part … she is Canadian, eh! Rock on. For the cellar, “2006 Estate Sauvignon Blanc” ($16).

• Day Four (Sunday):
  • Hansen Vineyard (575 El Pomar Dr., Templeton, CA 93465; 805-239-8412; tasting Fri-Sun 11am-5pm). For the cellar, one bottle of “2007 Estate Viognier” ($18). Family run winery (the winemaker/grower gave the tasting). B&B on-site.
  • Justin Vineyards & Winery (11680 Chimney Rock Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-238-6932; tasting 10am-6pm). For the cellar, one bottle of “2006 Cabernet Sauvignon” ($26).
  • Adelaida Cellars (5805 Adelaida Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 800-676-1232; tasting daily 10am-5pm). For the cellar, 6 bottles of “2006 Pinot Noir” ($25; HMR Estate Vineyard), 6 bottles of “2005 Schoolhouse Crush” (RP: “One of the top CA wines under $20; $14) and 1 bottle of “2004 Nebbiolo” ($35 – first release of this vintage; had to try it!).
• Day Five (Monday):
  • York Mountain Winery (7505 York Mountain Road, Templeton, CA; 805-238-3925; tasting daily 11am-4pm). Even though we tasted at the opening, I think the hostess was stoned. Well, good for her. Bagel got a treat!
  • Turley Wine Cellars (2900 Vineyard Drive, Templeton, CA 93465; 805-434–1030; daily 11am-5pm; $10). For the cellar, one bottle each of “2006 Dusi Vineyard Zinfandel” ($48); and “2005 ‘Dogtown’ Zinfandel” (WE: 89; Lodi; $52).
  • Four Vines Winery (3750 Highway 46 West, Templeton, CA 93465; 805-237-0055; tasting daily 11am-5pm daily; $10, including etched winery Riedel “O” glass). For the cellar, 3 bottles of “2006 Maverick Zinfandel Amador County” ($25), and 3 bottles of “2006 Biker Zinfandel Amador County” ($25).
  • Chumeia Vineyards (8331 Highway 46 East, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-226-0102; tasting daily 10am-5pm; free). Pronounced “koo-may-a”, Greek for alchemy. Tasting hosted by the owner/winemaker, who was having a bad day – his Syrah froze the night before, and he was scrambling to get everything else off. Plus the women’s washroom toilet was plugged… Dog-friendly vineyard. For the cellar, 1 bottle of “2006 Zinfandel” (Dante Dusi vineyard; $32), and 1 bottle of “2006 Viognier” (WS 86, WE 82; $16)
  • Martin & Weyrich Winery (2610 Buena Vista Drive, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-238-2520; tasting 10am-5pm). For the cellar, 2 bottles of “2003 Zinfandel” (Dante Dusi Vineyards; WE 85; $18); 2 bottles of “2006 Pinot Noir” ($18); 1 bottle of “2003 Nebbiolo Vecchio” (WE 82; $20); 1 bottle of “2002 Flamenco Rojo” (WE 90; $18)
  • Silver Stone Winery: (827 13th Street, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-226-2788; tasting daily, hours vary). For the cellar, 3 bottles of “2005 Chardonnay Santa Maria Valley” ($16), 1 bottle of “2005 Onyx” ($40; 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot, 7% Syrah)
  • Orchid Hill Winery (1140 Pine Street, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-237-7525; tasting 11:30am-6pm). For the cellar, 2 half-bottles of “2005 Estate Pinot Noir” (WE 90; $12.50 per half); 1 bottle of “2005 Estate Zinfandel Primi” (WS 82; $28)
• Day Six (Tuesday): “Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day”.
  The heavens and earth may have been made in six days, but I needed a break after five. No wine tasting today…
• Day Seven (Wednesday) : “Back in the saddle again…”
  • Windward Vineyard: (1380 Live Oak Road, Paso Robles, CA 93466; 805-239-2565; tasting daily 10:30am-5pm; $10). Tasted 2006 and 2007 Monopole and Reserve estate pinot noir. I have always been intrigued by pinots in Paso Robles! Windward claims a micro-climate that supports this cooler weather grape. Personally, I enjoyed these wines, and congratulate Windward for continuing to sail into the wind.
  • Grey Wolf Cellars: (2174 Highway 46 West, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-237-0771; tasting daily 11am-5:30pm; $5). A wonderful, family owned vineyard. The owner claims to be primarily a grower, yet has made some fantastic wines. Earlier forays into Rhone blends were well received by the critics, especially Robert Parker (and by me!). Current efforts are more Zin based. For the cellar, one bottle of “2006 ‘Preditor’ Syrah” (RP 91; $36), and one bottle of “2006 Chanticleer Cuvee” (RP 93; $36; 63% Syrah, 25% Petit Syrah, 12% Zinfandel).
  • Hunt Cellars (2875 Oakdale Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-237-1600): for the cellar, one bottle of “2001 ‘Cab-Ovation’ Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve” ($65)
  • Linne Calodo: (3030 Vineyard Drive, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-227-0797; tasting daily 11am-5pm; $10). For the cellar, I added one bottle of “2006 ‘Sticks and Stones’” (WS 91; $65; composition: 65% Grenache, 24% Mourvedre, 11% Syrah). The tasting area/cellar is currently under massive construction. I am guessing these are the fruits of the very positive reviews of many Linne Calodo 2004-2006 wines by e.g., Wine Spectator and others. If I am correct, it seems the views of the pundits matter… The tasting menu included 2007 “Pale Flowers”, 2006 “Outsider”, 2006 “Cherry Red”, 2006 “Rising Tides” and 2006 “Sticks and Stones”.
  • Opolo (7110 Vineyard Drive, Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-238-9593; tasting daily 10am-5pm). An old friend (one of the first vineyards I visited on my first trip to Paso, many years ago). Bagel got a treat! For the cellar, “2004 ‘Rhapsody’” (Best of Show - Twin Cities Food & Wine Expo in Minneapolis; $45)

Cambria au Lait

I’m on a quest to try all the coffee shops in Cambria! All have provided decent coffee, but hey, Cambria is one of the bright, shining jewels of California’s central coast, so shouldn’t there be equally magnificent coffee? Let the quest begin!

To be clear, this is a tasting of latte’s, and a search for my favorite double latte. No doubt, the best coffee or espresso in Cambria may be different. But I like to start my day with a double latte, and I want the best Cambria has to offer.

So far, I’ve tried a number of places and all have given what I would describe as “usual fare” – good selection of coffee, tea and espresso drinks; all with “usual” prices. Associated food options are varied. Here’s the scoop:

• Linn’s Cambria Restaurant (2277 Main Street, Cambria, CA; 805-927-0371; open 8am-9pm daily). Great pie (worthy of a whole other post!), takeaway breakfast, lunch and dinner – see the website for menus) and … coffee. Usual fare (espresso, latte, etc.) and a good pastry case. The latte was OK; not great, but not bad. Typical prices ($3.75 for a double latte). Note that Linn’s is a bit of a megapolis in Cambria; on the same block (but in different buildings) are the restaurant, the gift shop, and a cafe that closes at 6pm. There is also a shop on the farm. Very confusing. Linn’s is the WalMart of Pies in Cambria! My tasting came from the takeaway counter in the restaurant.
• Sandy’s Deli and Bakery (604 Main Street, Cambria, CA; 805-927-3000; open 7am-4pm daily). Typical deli fare and espresso based coffees. Nice interior and patio to enjoy a bite and a coffee. Strangely, although they open at 7am, breakfast choices are few (smoothies, quiche). Sandwiches are made while you wait.
• Cambria Coffee and Candy Company: on Main Street, right across the street from Sandy’s. Thus far, this is my favorite coffee in Cambria. Unimpressive pastry case (wrapped muffins, etc.) Internet access, and ATM.
• Cambria Coffee Roasting Company (761 Main Street, Cambria CA; 805-927-0670; open 7am – 5:30pm). May be the only coffee house in Cambria that roasts its own coffee beans. Good selection of teas. Good coffee; probably my second favorite in town.
• Rainbow Bean Coffee and Ice Cream (2320 Main St Cambria, CA 93428; 805-927-3710). Nice latte – I had a 12oz double for $3. Pasty case is minimal, but … they have ice cream! Not sure I want that for breakfast, but … maybe!!!
  

Alien Sunsets

Star Wars fans will recognize this immediately: “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” Luke Skywalker looked out to the horizon, and saw the double sunset of the twin stars of Tatooine. What a strange world it seemed!

Turns out that Earth may be the cosmic oddball, and sunsets like Luke saw on Tatooine may be the most common type in the galaxy.

Astronomers using the Spitzer Space Telescope studied a bunch of binary stars, looking for a tell-tale pile of dust and rubble that indicates planets are forming around the distant stars. What they found was a surprise:

In twin stars systems where the stars are relatively close together (less than three times the separation of the Earth and our Sun), it was more than twice as likely to have planet-forming conditions around them than around single stars like our own sun.

Further, since binary stars are more common that isolated ones, this means that the regions where most planets may be located are in these Tatooine-like systems. And that makes own solar system, with many planets but only one Sun, a bit of an oddball!

Watch out, Earth! Here comes the Sun…

In maybe 5 billion years from now, Earth is going to be a pretty uncomfortable place to live. Even though our Sun is a poster-child for alternative energy (the Sun’s source of energy is hydrogen fusion), even “green power” won’t last forever. The Sun is about half-way through its supply now.

And when it’s gone…

The Sun will get bigger. Much, much, much, much bigger than it is now, and that’s bad, bad, bad, bad news for us. Poor Earth will be totally engulfed in the atmosphere of our bloated Sun, and will be utterly destroyed. The outer planets will probably survive, for awhile, but their orbits will be disturbed. They’ll be crashing into each other, bombarded by asteroids and comets, and a whole bunch of debris will litter the skies.

Science fiction, or science fact?

It’s happened already in many other solar systems in the Universe. Just yesterday, NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope released the picture above showing what happened in a distant solar system much like our own.

The tiny white dot in the middle is the remnant of the star. The small red circle around it is the dust from comets crashing into each other, at a distance from the star equivalent to the distance between our own Sun and Pluto. The red cloud around this small circle is dust thrown off into space. The spooky green glow comes from gas and dust thrown far into space as the dying star threw off its outermost layers. For those of you interested, such beasties are known to astronomers as “planetary nebulae.“

This is sort of a good news, bad news story.

The good news is that, in the Helix nebula at least, some of the material in the outer solar system survived when the star died.

The bad news is that the poor surviving planets, comets and asteroids are involved in a massive, ongoing smash up, and all we are seeing is the dust leftover as they pulverize each other.

Our solar system is going to look very similar in about 5 billion years. I guess that gives us some time to figure out where we are going next…

Let’s get it on

First post. No fanfare. No explanations.

Here’s an incredible image of the spiral galaxy M81, as seen in the infrared by NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope. If you click on the thumbnail, you’ll be taken to the Spitzer webpage with more information about the image and this object.

I hot-diggity-dog this pic.

We’ll talk later about what infrared light is. You probably know already. This galaxy looks very different in the infrared, compared to what you see in visible light. At the Spitzer site on this webpage, check out a trippy movie that shines an “infrared spotlight” over the galaxy.

I’m flying in space.