Cata y Vino 2011
Cata y Vino is a two-day wine tasting event in Santiago, Chile, that pairs wine enthusiasts with key winemakers and industry professionals. Combined with gourmet food tastings, an exclusive salon for premium participants, and an extensive wine list, it was a memorable evening.
While a traditional tasting event might include only one or two sparkling wines, Cata y Vino hosted nine producers pouring bubbly. Casillero, Cono Sur, Valdivieso, Santa Carolina, Casa Blanca, Vina Mar, Porvenir, Finca Flichmann, and Norton were all set up to impress the guests on their way into the formal exposition room.
One of my personal favorites is Concha y Toro's Casillero del Diablo Brut Reserva. Unfortunately, it isn't available in the United States, but that's just another of the many great reasons to visit Chile.
I spent the most time with the sparkling wines, but the selection of wines in the exposition room was also impressive. 38 wineries were pouring, representing six Chilean regions. In the salon, wineries poured their finest wines with enthusiasm.
The focus of the event was on wine, but one of the biggest attractions seemed to be the mixed paella served by Trujillo, a company which produces meat products as well as an irresistible cream cheese. After all of that wine tasting, the paella was a welcome addition to the event.
1000 Corks Arrives in Chile to join 2011 Start-Up Chile Team
In May, we at 1000 Corks learned that we'd been invited to join an innovative program offered and funded by the Chilean government, Start-Up Chile. Not only are we thrilled to live in Chile and experience everything it has to offer us, but we are also excited to use this opportunity to improve your user experience on 1000 Corks.
If you have feedback on your experience with the site, this is the time to let us know. We happily accept suggestions for new online wine stores to add or change, as well as how we can improve your search results or provide more information on your favorite wines.
In the meantime, we'd like to share our initial experiences in Santiago, Chile. A featured menu item, Pisco Sour, is one of our favorite Chilean drinks. Pisco, the liquor that Pisco Sour is based on, is similar to brandy or port, originally distilled from grapes they felt were not suited for wine. The origins of Pisco are claimed by multiple Latin American countries, so we'll leave that for the lawyers - but suffice it to say that Pisco works very well in a Pisco Sour.
Pisco Sour is a cocktail in Chile and Peru which is often cheaper than bottled water in a restaurant. It consists of Pisco, lemon or lime, egg white, simple syrup, and bitters. If you enjoy all things sweet and sour, you'll enjoy this drink.
For anyone who wants to know more about what's happening with all of the start-ups and people involved in our program, we've created a new site that aggregates the blogs of all the participants. It's at Chilean Startups and is updated every hour.
Salud!
Python and Linux Consulting
For the last few years I've been running a Python consulting firm called The Penguin and The Python.
1000 Corks is just one of the many projects that we've done. Our work for clients includes everything from a semantic search engine to a National Institute of Health funded nutrition and wellness program.
But we don't just build websites. We're often hired to rework and add new features to old Python code, where the original programmer has moved on long ago.
We also do a lot of work with Linux servers: everything from helping clients choose which ones to buy, to deploying them in racks. We've seen a lot of interest recently in moving Python code from old servers to the cloud.
So if you like 1000 Corks, and need something done, please contact us.
You're also welcome to take a look at my new Python blog.
Los Olivos
We spent a recent Sunday in Los Olivos with the infamous Caroline Henry, the author of two wine blogs: Missinwine and Wizinwinebiz.
Our first stop is now one of my favorite tasting rooms in Los Olivos - Blair Fox Cellars. I should point out that I still haven't been to every tasting room in Los Olivos - I find I have only the patience and the liver to hit three or four a trip. Caroline was professional enough to spit - but I'm not. All that spitting makes wine tasting hard work!
It had great wine, a lovely ambiance, a very charismatic pourer, and it wasn't very crowded. Of all the wines they poured, the Viognier was my favorite. It was blended with a bit of Roussanne which just really made the wine stand out. Interestingly enough, they had to externally-source the Viognier for 2008 because the grapes they normally use were destroyed by frost.
It was also interesting to hear the stories the pourer told about the Sideways effect. Sideways really changed Los Olivos. Before the movie, Los Olivos was split: there were about a dozen tasting rooms in town, and a dozen art galleries. Now there are two art galleries left, and two dozen or so tasting rooms.
Tied with Blair Fox for my favorite tasting room in Los Olivos is Qupé. It's not quite as intimate as the Blair Fox space, but that's to be expected considering how much more wine Qupé makes.
Qupé actually poured one of their wines with a Soirée Decanter, which is sold by many fine stores. The decanter attaches to the bottle, which is neat - and not something that I remember seeing a tasting room actually do before.
The Soirée is an ingenious device you attach to the end of your bottle, and it aerates the wine. There's no doubt that it will improve the taste of certain immature wines, although you'll have to experiment to find out exactly what type of wines you like better with it. I can't think of a better endorsment than Qupé using it when pouring.
I remember being at the first North American Wine Blogger's Conference, and the inventor of the Soirée was showing off his invention while we ate at a winery. The winemaker pointed out - and quite rightly - that you could get the same affect by sticking a straw in the bottle and blowing. But somehow I don't think Miss Manners would find that appropriate.
One thing I didn't know until now was that Au Bon Climat (ABC) and Qupé share the same wine-making faclity. In fact, they are having an open house on Sunday, April 17, 2011. This event happens only twice a year, and will certainly be worth checking out.
There are a bunch of other brands made at Clendenen-Lindquist Vintners besides Qupé and ABC. They are:
I'm not familar with some of these labels, but clearly I'll have to be on the look out for them.
The only thing you absolutely have to do when you're in Los Olivos is to stop by Enjoy Cupcakes. Since our last trip in 2009, they've added a flight option, where you can try any six of their mini cupcakes for $10. They offer consistent options as well as experimental, so you'll almost always find something new on the menu.
If anything, the cupcakes are even better than I remember them. For our gluten free friends: They'll specially make gluten-free cupcakes if you order them in advance, although I'm not sure what the minimum quantity is.
We finished the day by eating at the Hitching Post II. This is, of course, the restaurant made famous by Sideways. It was the first time I've eaten there. There's something about restaurants featured in movies that makes me nervous. Maybe it's just how disappointing Mystic Pizza (the eponymous restaurant that was the basis of a Julia Roberts film) was.
But, Hitching Post II was a wonderful experience! I split a 26 ounce Angus Rib Chop - and we still had leftovers. Included in the entrée cost was a baked potato, salad, and shrimp cocktail. It's refreshing to get a great steak and not have to pay extra for every side dish - like you do at most steak houses these days. For our designated driver, the restaurant even offered a complimentary appetizer and a non-alcoholic beverage.
The owner of the Hitching Posts, Frank Ostini, makes his own wines with a partner Gary Hartley, a commercial fisherman. They are sold under the Hartley Ostini label. We had the 2007 St Rita's Earth, a Pinot Noir. It was a fantastic bargain at only $35 for a very, very drinkable Pinot. You'd be lucky to find that good of a Pinot in a retail store at that price, but at a restaurant, it's almost unheard of.
You Are What You Eat at Silvergreens
Undeniably, cooking and eating at home can often net you the tastiest and healthiest of meal options. There are, however, times when going out is necessary, such as during our in-city move within Santa Barbara. There is only so much you can do in those last critical days in an old place, after the cookware is packed, and once you've moved into the new place.
Thank goodness for Silvergreens. We can vouch for several of the menu items at this local chain cafe (just two locations), especially those listed on the menu as Silvergreens' favorites, but this particular meal is one of our favorites. The Steak & Avocado Premium Sandwich on Honey Wheat bread and the Crispy Thai Chicken Salad (you can also request grilled chicken) can be ordered individually as a half or full size. There are also Half-and-Half and 3-some specials that allow you to customize your meal with any sandwich, salad, and/or soup, plus a free cookie or $.50 fruit cup.
What makes Silvergreens unique is that they are happy to let you know exactly what nutrients you're eating when you order it. At this point, you might be imagining a blow-up print of a traditional nutrition guide when you walk in the door. With Silvergreens, it gets personal - the patented Nutricate receipt breaks down the calories, fiber, fat, and protein in your food and then gives you a nutrition total for your order, like so:
To ease the pain of the calorie count on the receipt, you can flip it over to find not only fun facts and information, but also a coupon for a return visit. From a free Strawberry Lemonade to a discounted frozen yogurt, you'll count yourself lucky to experience this appealing cafe.
Help Make This Guy's Life Better
Below you'll see two men. The one on the right is Oscar Quevedo. He lives in Portugal where he makes a fantastic mind-blowing Port.
Presumably Oscar has some really good karma from a previous life.
The one on the left is Luiz A. G. Alberto. Luiz lives in New Jersey. He works in Information Technology. We're not exactly sure what life choices Luiz made so he ended up in New Jersey working in Information Technology. We can only guess.
Luckily, we can help. By voting on Facebook for Luiz, we can send him to Vienna. He's recently been to Vienna, but remember he lives in New Jersey. He deserves to go again.
Luiz has said that he will donate the prize to a charity, to be chosen by the people who vote for him. Let me be the first to say, Luiz, that you should keep the prize for yourself. That's my vote.
But, Luiz, if you are uncomfortable with that - an acceptable solution would be to give the prize to the man pictured below, Robert McIntosh.
Have you seen the shirts this guy wears? (We'd like you to continue to read our blog, so we present a crop of Robert's face - and not the shirt. You're welcome, blog readers.)
So please, vote for Luiz.
