Lisa's Blue Margarita

Well, this one is kind of leftover from summer, but it is colorful and tastes great. Lisa first had one of these at our favorite Mexican restaurant "The Blue Agave" in downtown Pleasanton. It has taken a bit of experimentation but here is our favorite way to put this together.

1.5 parts Tequila
1.5 parts Fresh Lime Juice
1.0 parts Blue Curacao

Shake the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, then carefully pour into a glass with or without ice. What you have is a very colorful and tasty cocktail.

Honey Mustard Dressing

We have been trying to eat a little healthier lately so I have been paying more attention to the ingredients in the food we buy, and sure enough salad dressings that you buy at the store have lots of bad stuff in them. So here is my attempt at honey mustard dressing that is actually good for you (it also taste better than the store bought stuff).

3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon whole-grain mustard
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place the vinegar, honey, and mustard in a bowl. Whisk to combine. Add olive oil in a slow, steady stream until dressing is emulsified. I cheat on this I have a small milk foamer (very small had held blender) that I use for this.

Australian Pink Floyd

If you are a hardcore Pink Floyd fan like me, this is the next best thing to being there (given that two of the founding members of Pink Floyd have passed away) it is not likely that band will tour again. These guys are a pretty good substitue, http://www.aussiefloyd.com/


12/3/2008 (My 19th Birthday) at the Fillmore, 1805 Geary Boulevard, San Francisco, CA 94115

2004 Kistler Vineyard Pinot Noir

The is one of those "Good things come to those who wait" stories. I bought six bottles of this wine two years ago without tasting it. I put it in the cellar and forgot about it (well not really). Recently we went to our favorite steak house and I decided it was time to give this wine a try. From the moment the cork came out of the bottle I knew I was in for a treat. The aroma is rich, deep and fills the room instantly. The flavors are distinctly cherry and cranberry, with a very rich mouth feel, medium body and good acid balance. The tasting notes from the vineyard say that it should hold up for the next 10 years or so, but I don't think so. I have been kind of down on Kistler for the last couple of years, they seemed to have lost what they had in the late 1990's. But after this bottle I may have to re-consider.

Emergency Fundraiser for Open Heart Kitchen

Open Heart Kitchen is 5 weeks away from closing its doors unless they can overcome a large deficit in funding for this needed program. Open Heart Kitchen provides the only free hot meal service in the Tri- Valley area for anyone in need of a nutritional meal. They also provide a weekend box lunch program for low income kids, ensuring that they have something to eat over the weekend. They also provide food staples for people to bring home - often food that has generously been donated by our local grocery stores. Sadly, this commuity food program is in dire need of funding to keep its doors open.

You can help by attending a fun evening fundraiser event at Blacksmith Square on Thursday November 20th from 5-8 PM. There will be free wine tasting, hors d'oeuvres and live music by Roger Kardinal. Program Director Linda McKeever will be on hand to discuss the program and accept your donations. Checks, cash or credit card donations are gratefully accepted. Open Heart Kitchen is a non-profit organization and your donations are tax deductible; Tax # 94-339-6038.

If you can not make it to this evening event , please feel free to go on-line and make a donation via their website at www.openheartkitchen.org. For more information about this fundraising event, please call 925-963-8019.

PinotFest 2008, A Public Tasting of a Sexy Wine

If you go to one wine tasting event this year, go to this one.

This is an extensive tasting of pinot noirs from over 50 of Oregon and California’s best producers is held from 3:00 to 6:00 PM. In addition, the afternoon features sumptuous hors d’oeuvres to complement the wines and an opportunity to meet the winemakers.

For more details go to http://www.farallonrestaurant.com/

Date: Saturday November 22, 2008
Time: 3:00 until 6:00 PM
Place: Farallon, 450 Post Street, 4th Floor
Ticket price: $100 per person.

Participating Wineries Include:
Adelsheim, Argyle, Au Bon Climat, Bonaccorsi, Brewer Clifton, Byron, Calera, Cambria, Chehalem, Costa de Oro, Domaine Drouhin, Domaine Serene, El Molino, Etude, Fiddlehead, Flowers, Fort Ross, Foxen, Freestone, Gloria Ferrer, Greenwood Ridge, Handley, Hartford, Hendry, Hitching Post, Iron Horse, J Vineyards, Keller Estate, Kosta Browne, Littorai, Londer, Lynmar, Marimar Torres, Melville, Merry Edwards, Michaud, Morgan, Patz & Hall, Paul Hobbs, Peay, Pey-Marin, Ponzi, Rex Hill, Radio Coteau, Saintsbury, Sea Smoke, Robert Sinskey, Siduri, Skewis, Soter, Talisman, Talley, Testarossa, Thomas Fogarty, Whicraft, Williams Selyem

The Next Generation Wine Tasting

Here is a great wine tasting event in San Francisco. It is for newer wine makers, in other words wine makers that have been in the business for less that twenty years. If you go make sure to try the Viader "V".