Cali Style: Wine tasting in Santa Barbara and Santa Monica treats

So a week ago I took a little weekend jaunt to visit friends who live in Santa Monica. Aside from the general shock to the system of sunshine (I feel like a mole squinting in the sun when I go somewhere warm this time of year), we had a lovely and mellow time. We had a few choice treats in Santa Monica and spent a lovely Saturday exploring Santa Barbara wineries – an area made popular by the movie Sideways, but one I’d never been to. So, without further ado, a short commentary on finds:

Santa Monica treats:

Vanilla Bake Shop (512 Wilshire). Now, I’ve been to my fair share of cupcake joints, having lived in New York during the whole height of the Magnolia Bakery craze, but this joint has something going for it. In a completely genius move, in addition to regular cupcakes, they make mini versions. This not only allows you to taste more cupcakes with reduced calorie-guilt, but also allows them to charge even more per bite. Everyone wins! Although the red velvet cupcake could have used a little more cream and a little less sugar in its icing, the highlight was the Strawberries & Cream. It was a little bit of extra-light shortcake, a little bit of fresh whipped cream, and some fresh strawberry. Sure, it wouldn’t travel well, but it was a delicious afternoon treat. So thumbs up.


Santa Barbara Wine Tasting:

Los Olivos Café and Wine Merchant (2879 Grand Ave. in Los Olivos). A lovely wine country lunch spot on the main drag in Los Olivos. A satisfying burger to fortify ourselves for tasting and tasty pizzas. It’s attached to a well-stocked wine store with decent prizes and a deep selection of California wines, from Santa Barbara and beyond.

Consilience Wine Tasting Room. Just down Grand Ave. from the café, this was our first stop and, frankly, disappointing. I was eager when they had a Petite Sirah on their tasting list (j’aime petit sirah), but their wines were generally very high in alcohol and the 2005’s, the bulk of their tastings, were a bit young for drinking. But – the young woman manning the tasting room was delightful.

Daniel Gehrs Wines. Further down Grand Ave. was this tasting room, with serious Kenny Loggins playing in the background. The highlight was their 2005 Fireside Port from Amador County, served with a chunk of dark chocolate. However, it took serious restraint to keep myself from buying a case of their 2005 Paso Robles Syrah, for which they were running a case special of $10 a bottle.

Alma Rosa Winery. (7520 Santa Rosa Road in Buellton). Once we ventured out of Los Olivos and into the countryside, we headed to this gem, up a winding dirt road, over a stream (seriously) and in a cabin on the side of a hill. In addition to the fattest cat I have ever seen (apparently from eating picnic scraps) and the nicest porta-potties I’ve encountered (technology has definitely advanced), Alma Rosa had some delightful wines. Definitely a good picnic spot if it’s that kind of day. The hands down highlight was their 2005 Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir, and their 2006 Santa Rita Hills Pinot Blanc wasn’t half bad either.

Sanford Winery. (5010 Santa Rosa Road). Further down the winding Santa Rosa Road is this operation, somewhat slicker than the others. Apparently the Alma Rosa folks started this place, then sold out to a big company and moved down the road. It was pretty crowded by mid-afternoon, but still a friendly place. We were especially enamored with the chocolate covered blueberries on the tasting bar. A favorite (and bargain) here was their 2006 Sauvignon Blanc from the Santa Ynez Valley.

Fiddlehead Cellars. (606 Penna Drive in Davis). This place is so classic California wine boom. It’s basically a small warehouse space in one of those strips of warehouses where you’d find the UPS store next to a dog food distributor. What was so perfect was when we pulled up there were two Porsches out front – a convertible and an SUV – and their corresponding 50-something couples inside. The tasting room was manned by a delightful portly fellow, and won the award for best wines of the day. Their 2007 Pink Fiddle Rose, using Pinot Noir, was a smashing hit and their 2004 Seven Twenty Eight Pinot Noir, from the Santa Rita Hills was terrific. Certainly one of the day’s lessons was that the Santa Rita Hills make a decent Pinot Noir.

Road Trip: France, Part Three

The third and final installment of Road Trip: France saw us headed south in the trusty Renault Twingo to Bordeaux, Languedoc and Provence.

Although we were poor young folks, Bordeaux was surprisingly accessible. We stayed at the completely delightful Chateau de Foulon where we had an apartment complete with little kitchen and sitting room for under $100 a night (although, admittedly, was this before the dollar went to crap). We had wonderful breakfasts in the main chateau with the other guests in the regal dining room and the Count even came in to say hello before heading out to ride his horse one morning. There were great grounds that you could wander around with a little pond and a picturesque crumbling barn and peacocks and swans wandering about. Divine.

We made a loop of the Margaux region's wineries with the assistance of the tourism authority's vineyard map. Chateau Giscours probably had the best tour and facility, but our absolute favorite was Chateau Lascombes. This vineyard makes a grand cru wine (the fanciest - I'll save the discourse on appellations for another time) and doesn't really give walk-in tours, so was completely quiet, yet somehow they took pity on us and showed us around. We ended buying serious bottles here, although I think this vineyard is still a good bargain as it's not the fanciest or best known.

Having had our fill of tannins, we headed south into the not-as-travelled Languedoc region. In the interest of full disclosure, our next step was seriously in the hinterlands. It took champion navigational skills and a lot of windy mountain roads to find our way to La Cerisaie, a B&B in the small town of Riols. There's not much doing in this neck of the woods, but it was Bastille Day when we visited, so we were treated to the local parade down the middle of the village complete with firecrackers going off every which way. Complete with a pool and a delicious in-house restaurant, La Cerisaie was a great little escape. I imagine we could have filled a few more days with some ambling into the hills and sipping wine on the terrace.

But we had tracks to make, so after a detour to Barcelona, which is a tale for another time, we made our way to Provence. Specifically, another B&B gem called Le Mas de la Tour in the small town of Fontvieille, outside of Arles. This place was classic - provencal fabrics in the room, a warm pool outside and breakfast under the arbor. We had a perfect day trip to Arles to see the forum, buy some gifts, and while away the day in a cafe. It's also great hiking, jogging, walking country. We explored the local Montmajour abbey, took in the daily market, and generally enjoyed the loveliness of Provence.

Unfortunately the French road trip had to end too soon (although the auto adventures continued later in Italy), so our last leg was a drive to Nice, complete with insane laps of the city trying to find the train station, a day wandering the waterfront waiting for our overnight train to Rome, and general overload of summer tourism in Europe after weeks in the quiet countryside.

On the practical side: there are three key tips for a French road trip. First, Autoeurope typically has really good long term car rental rates. Second, the Rivages guide (now published in English by Fodors as the Rivages Guide to Bed and Breakfasts of Character and Charm, but more frequently updated in the French version or on the website) is indispensable. We found each place we stayed from this book, including places called only the night before. It is now referred to among the inner circle as "The Magic Book". Third, Michelin maps cannot be beat and the Michelin website has great maps for travel planning.

All in all, I'm a big fan of the European road trip as, not only does it make me use my limited foreign language skills, but it is far less likely that you will find yourself at a table next to an American couple and far more likely that you'll stumble into those delightful, unpredictable experiences that just don't happen on the well-trod path.

Croatia: Renting from Captain Morgan

So my fellow traveler has written far more comprehensively about the highs and lows of a week in Istria. Thus, I shall only briefly write my own observations from our week in this lovely Italian-influenced region of Northern Croatia.

The Captain Morgan Myth. Local legend has it that Captain Morgan, he of the rum and other pirate-related fame, came ashore in Croatia and settled in a little town now, predictably enough, called Mrgani. According to at least one local, the myth must have some kernel of truth to it because folks in this town have the surname Morgan, which sure isn’t Croatian.

Anyways, some enterprising locals have renovated a farmhouse in said town and now rent it to mostly British, occasionally American, tourists like us. Thus, we came to rent Villa Captain Morgan. All credit is due to Jon for finding the place, which was ridiculously affordable and lovely. Four sizeable bedrooms, fireplace, good kitchen, pool, trellised yard. Plus very private, as the whole thing was walled in, I presume originally to keep the chickens in, but it works nicely for a vacation house. Mrgani is nothing but quiet – no stores, cafes, nothing – but it is scenic.

There’s also a little gem of a site about ten minutes down into the valley called Dvigrad. It’s a cluster of Roman ruins on a hill and is apparently a town that was abandoned when disease came calling. It is completely unregulated, so there’s no admission fee or sign – you just clamber up the hill and around the ruins. Despite the lack of protections, it’s remarkably well-preserved and a neat, quiet little spot with views of the valley.

The Hill Towns. Due to a period of Roman occupation, Istria has a smattering of hill towns, a few of which we visited. Motovun was cute, although I don’t think it could occupy more than an afternoon. And the German high school tour group that spent the afternoon we were there bellowing drinking songs from the bar at the top of the hill made it rather less quaint than I would have hoped. Nonetheless, a good place for a stroll to the top, a café, and a stroll back down.

We made the, I think it fair to say, mistake of eating at Zigante Restaurant, the self-appointed truffle mecca of the area, just down the hill from Motovun. Now that we’re back, the New York Times tells me we should have eaten at a joint in Motovun called Barbacan. Regardless of whether Barbacan is actually good, the lesson of the truffle restaurant is that the best thing is the truffle cheese, available in any of the tourist food shops on the main drag in Motovun.

We also took a sunset walk through Groznjan, maybe a twenty-five minute drive from Motovun. I wish we would have gone earlier in the day, as the place is chock full of galleries, many of which were closed. Groznjan was even more scenic than Motovun – broad views, little alleys with flowerpots, a church with benches under arching trees, rows of cypress trees on your way out of town. Serious chamber of commerce brochure stuff. Anyways, we didn’t eat there, but the guidebook consensus seemed to be that Bastia, where we had an espresso, is the place to eat.

We did not make it to Opatija, which was a bit further afield, but that was the third of the recommended trifecta of hill towns.

The Seaside Towns. Villa Captain Morgan was about thirty minutes’ drive from the seaside town of Rovinj. I found this place to be a real gem – a peninsula with the church of Saint Euphemia and its campanile on top and Venetian houses cascading down to the rocky shore line. A farmer’s market at the bottom of the hill to keep you well-fed, harborside cafés to keep you caffeinated, and lanes going up and down the hill for some strolling. Not too much to speak of craft and shopping wise, but I suspect with a few more years that will change. If I were a sailor, I think Rovinj would be the perfect port to cruise into for a weekend.

Aside from our farmer’s market shopping, we ate a few meals in Rovinj. As with pretty much all of the restaurants we tried in Istria, a few lessons.

• Choose seafood over pasta. Despite the Italian roots, the Eastern European roots seemed to win out most of the time with pasta, resulting in sauces that seemed like they were made with more cornstarch than anything else. Grilled fish, scampi, and octopus, however, was more successful. This was true at Giannino’s (+385 52 813 402) and La Puntulina (+385 52 813 186), the two places we had dinner and Marina Gostionica Osteria (+385 52 811 063), where we had lunch on the harbor.

• Stay away from the local varietals. The predominant white grape was Malvazija and the predominant local red was Teran. Neither was very good. Our few wine successes came from ordering a locally made Chardonnay and a dessert wine from Arman vineyards.

• Don’t be afraid to choose based on the view. On the whole, the food was not spectacular in Istria, so I would definitely advocate for choosing the best seaside view. We spent a cocktail hour and a subsequent dinner at La Puntulina, a restaurant hanging over the rocks, with the perfect sunset view. Overpriced for the food, but worth it for the location.

• Take a boat ride, but bargain with a smaller guy and skip the canal. We hired a boat to take us to the Limski Canal, billed by all the books as being “like a Norwegian Fjord.” But first we tried to take one of the big charter boats, and the people essentially ran away from us instead of bothering to take the boat out with six people. The guys with smaller boats hang around the Rovinj harbor, sometimes with a sign up. I’d bargain them down a bit (I think we paid $20 a person for a few hours), and then take a ride. Skip the Limski Canal, though. The coastal areas and little islands are much more scenic. We didn’t see any for rent, but a sailboat would be ideal, as the waters are pretty calm.

We also spent a day in Pula, at the tip of the peninsula. It has a grand Roman ampitheater, but unless you’re a big ampitheater buff, I’d say skip it if you’ve been to Rome. My takeaway from the visit was that it was interesting that the Romans had made it to Pula and bothered to build a smaller ampitheater there. Pula is nice enough, and a bigger town than Rovinj, but it is a working port, so its seaside areas are neither walkable nor particularly scenic. Mostly due to big shipping cranes all over the place. My view is that a seaside town without much seaside isn’t much worth a visit.

For next time. Things we didn’t do, but I wish we had:

• Eaten more donuts. I think the culinary highlight of the trip may have been these little donut holes that were sold by street vendors in Pula and Zminj. Should have had more.

• Done some bike riding. The roads from Mrgani north to Motovun and Groznjan would have been great for doing some bike rides. Unfortunately, my gimpiness precluded anything that active.

• Spent more time on the water. Although the hill towns were cute, I think the bottom line is that the Adriatic is the real draw in Croatia. It was a bit chilly for swimming and such, but I think any future trip will have to involve sailing.

• Spent more time, generally. In keeping with one of my general travel principles, a week is not long enough for a vacation to a new place. Two weeks is better.

One Week In Argentina

Seeing as I'm not doing any actual travelling in the near future, I thought I would do some rough sketches of places I'd like to go. I recently read Paul Theroux's Old Patagonian Express. In addition to reconfirming my undying adoration of Theroux, it gave me the itch to check out South America, a continent I've only gotten near, but never actually all the way there. (I think Trinidad is the closest I've been, as the crow flies). Although there is serious draw to see Macchu Picchu and tackle Brazil, one seems overrun and the other too daunting, so my current thought is Argentina.

Flights are such that a week in Argentina, flying in and out of Buenos Aires, would actually be pretty doable. Plus there's minimal risk of jet lag, so the week won't be filled with struggling with sleep cycles. So, here is my plan for one week in Argentina.

Buenos Aires. BA is getting a lot of press these days about how "European, yet affordable" it is. Sounds good to me. I've recently heard positive feedback from a honeymooning friend at work, a too chic travel website and Mike's parents, so I figure it has broad appeal. So, first, hotel thoughts. The grande dame hotel is the Alvear Palace. So if I were to go with my mom, I'm staying there. Otherwise, I'd stay at one of the smaller places in the Recolata or San Telmo neighborhoods. The Cocker (as in spaniel) looks lovely - stylish but not overdone, all suites, some with roof gardens, for around $100 a night. The Art Hotel is also getting a lot of write ups these days. It's another affordable town house-turned-inn, this time in Recolata.

As for activities in BA, I think it would be a wandering-with-occasional shopping adventure. Sounds like Palermo Soho resembles its namesake in an earlier incarnation (that is to say, lighter on the H&Ms). Bar Uriarte is apparently a restaurant gem in that neighborhood. Although not a big steak eater, I'd have to succumb to the local reputation in BA and eat some. Restaurant Dora is supposed to be excellent, as is La Cabrera. With all that walking around, I'd need snacks. Empanadas are a good place to start. Apparently La Cupertina in Palermo on Cabrera, has a tasty sweet corn empanada. For 60 cents. I'd certainly stop in at a Havanna cafe, a local chain, for alfajores - sandwich cookies filled with dulche de leche and covered in chocolate. Yum. Word is the Argentinians don't do a half bad gelato, either. So I think I wouldn't starve.

After a few days in BA, I think I'd be itching for some adventure, in which case I think I'd hop a flight to Mendoza. Mendoza is Malbec country and, as I've fallen prey to buying lots of wine on vacation and lugging it back, I might as well do it somewhere affordable. Finca Adalgisa is apparently a rustic but lovely place to stay in the area and Club Tapiz is the old-vineyard-as-minimalist-inn variety. As for eating, one vineyard, Bodega Carlos Pulenta, apparently has an excellent restaurant.

If hopping on a plane seems to trying, then I'd go to one of the estancias (the Argentinian agritourismos, I'd say) within driving distance of BA and herd some cattle, eat some beef, and drink some wine. Estancia El Martillo seems like a good place to do such things.

Of course, this is a very short trip. An extra week or two and I'd probably fly my way to Torres del Paine, way down in Patagonian Chile for some serious hiking and maybe some sailing around. I've always thought the Explora Lodge (also known as Hotel Salto Chico) would be out of this world. But that's for another post.