tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62823789156649438042024-02-19T02:24:23.979-08:00The 2 Dollar Wine ConnoisseurA Blog about Enjoying Wine Night on a budget. Wine doesn't need to be expensive to be enjoyed. We will examine how to have Wine nights without breaking the bank from the point of view of 2 wine Novices.
We will also be featuring a little Travel and Restaurant reviews.
brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-11027569446212147102016-03-20T11:47:00.003-07:002016-03-20T11:47:28.737-07:00Wine Adventures: The Blind Rabbit in Anaheim<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 21px; text-align: left;">“Which way you ought to go depends on where you want to get to...” </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 21px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 21px; text-align: left;">― </span><a class="authorOrTitle" href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8164.Lewis_Carroll" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-weight: bold; line-height: 21px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">Lewis Carroll</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 21px; text-align: left;">, </span><span id="quote_book_link_13023" style="background-color: white; color: #181818; line-height: 21px; text-align: left;"><a class="authorOrTitle" href="https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/2933712" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Alice in Wonderland</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">We went looking for a Rabbit. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">It wasn't an easy task at first but then we spotted it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span><b style="font-size: xx-large;">The Blind Rabbit that is</b><span style="font-size: x-large;">. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I don't know how we didn't know about this place the first time we went to the Anaheim Packing House, but once we found out about it we had to go back again. We are suckers for any kind of secret hidden bar. Good Time at Davey Wayne's in Los Angeles was totally cool--so the second we found out about this place we had to check it out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">At first we couldn't even find the entrance, but with a little persistence we figured it out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">This little hidden bar was right up our alley. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">It had music and the feel of something from the 1930's. It reminded us of the Tower of Terror at Disneyland.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">The Blind Rabbit is a fun little getaway that transports you to another time and another era.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">They had some cool and unique cocktails. Being a Tiki fan we of course had to try the Topless Hula Girl.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">We also had to order a glass of Black Stallion Chardonnay.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">(After all this is a Wine Blog)</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Pb3qvk9ib8pF6DxyEIwq8WCdUB3EYJ5bDWw43ml94gbnLJIAJ6QutQghihVIu6JvnRGsUX2BIGqsSt3JeADI6AnXLJyFzPdpTZbp2oDKnelBjHISL2W6QjFcaE0gwWOHkNypc6IkTRFA/s1600/Blind+Rabbit+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Pb3qvk9ib8pF6DxyEIwq8WCdUB3EYJ5bDWw43ml94gbnLJIAJ6QutQghihVIu6JvnRGsUX2BIGqsSt3JeADI6AnXLJyFzPdpTZbp2oDKnelBjHISL2W6QjFcaE0gwWOHkNypc6IkTRFA/s640/Blind+Rabbit+3.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Here is a cool little Fireplace area that is filled with old books, makes for a unique addition to the atmosphere.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6celCRiJE02SPi2CmIINUayYuki_OMdAUOR4s48bDoC_IOo8-o1cD7hretdyN_E3UclTwgskkylihWLDqoQpDUPX4adrAcXsB_9T3iqcas1vQ18irBAPOjSCgDdDP34568xALG5ePOmkL/s1600/Blind+Rabbit+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6celCRiJE02SPi2CmIINUayYuki_OMdAUOR4s48bDoC_IOo8-o1cD7hretdyN_E3UclTwgskkylihWLDqoQpDUPX4adrAcXsB_9T3iqcas1vQ18irBAPOjSCgDdDP34568xALG5ePOmkL/s640/Blind+Rabbit+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Your bill arrives in the inside of a hollowed out book. A nice touch.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEius5Lng83nckvTsHznioqfZAHNx1r2QtSn58JKL76zh7VkSXIv1cPFLPuE-eb2qSez9HuRJBlT7v2BNzmU2qdWsl1z9s-n80_YjOsrTZROLiHVnEhXWzVvuGswbFchuWyIYZBbBrjGaMbW/s1600/Blind+Rabbit+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEius5Lng83nckvTsHznioqfZAHNx1r2QtSn58JKL76zh7VkSXIv1cPFLPuE-eb2qSez9HuRJBlT7v2BNzmU2qdWsl1z9s-n80_YjOsrTZROLiHVnEhXWzVvuGswbFchuWyIYZBbBrjGaMbW/s640/Blind+Rabbit+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Goodbye for now Blind Rabbit ---we hope to see you again someday.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Check out our Facebook page for more Wine Adventures.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/2dollarwineconnoisseur/">https://www.facebook.com/2dollarwineconnoisseur/</a></span><br />
<br />brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-79995507970411670012016-03-13T11:30:00.000-07:002016-03-13T11:30:59.253-07:00A Wine Adventure at The Brix in Sunset Beach: The Good, The Great and the Burnt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxYjK3j0DteaJeWgKZ2pNN_1R7BIYLTrenoU_Tp58Z0wfcWBtFqGWFpkKnnQJkVX2EtrDnIzwbTp9VcAi32Py4XdT7jJNMTWoxPGrddSVWL0qB763BK4296QferxWLhjzzQd4dZU7gqupt/s1600/The+Brix14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxYjK3j0DteaJeWgKZ2pNN_1R7BIYLTrenoU_Tp58Z0wfcWBtFqGWFpkKnnQJkVX2EtrDnIzwbTp9VcAi32Py4XdT7jJNMTWoxPGrddSVWL0qB763BK4296QferxWLhjzzQd4dZU7gqupt/s640/The+Brix14.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Brix is located along PCH in Sunset Beach California.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We have driven by this place numerous times and we finally decided to stop in a check it out. We had seen this place on the TV Show "Bar Rescue"and they had given it a nice makeover and a new name. It was renamed the Pacific Coast Wine Bar for which the interior signage is still displayed. The bar went back to the old name The Brix shortly after the show aired. </span><span style="font-size: large;">The owner that was shown on Bar Rescue recently sold the bar as we meet the new owner who was really nice. He referred to it as "The Meeting Place" (A Third name perhaps?).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Good</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The inside of the bar looks great and they have a cool chalkboard showing what flights they currently offer.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT1MMwlT2NnElLvjC8frZZvzaIA5MkXE081aON2-agKAPMSb1DKsh1mgjzIRSeOD21JMupYpjDszWbbGYpEc3lvbrQwp7Unc-EOwwood1dKgcbZ6kQujyKo_YrvE9C3xQFb0aAOlG2puG2/s1600/The+Brix8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT1MMwlT2NnElLvjC8frZZvzaIA5MkXE081aON2-agKAPMSb1DKsh1mgjzIRSeOD21JMupYpjDszWbbGYpEc3lvbrQwp7Unc-EOwwood1dKgcbZ6kQujyKo_YrvE9C3xQFb0aAOlG2puG2/s640/The+Brix8.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here is a sample of one of the wines we tried. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">Carmenet was a decent Chardonnay</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Great</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Enjoying a glass of wine in a place that has nice atmosphere and great music!! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The performer Kurt Hunter played a set that perfectly fit the wine bar setting. He was excellent.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWq-e0GAxWDweyUExm1GqR24J-uuEb7udheovKWeLGO3iH3skPiFzxZefNZn3yAP52N7K_GKtDpf73X4b1L8BqyoJd4BJhvh9K2QcX6dli39lhghGFgkyShXiHN4Z8SRxII5ciorOxOeqD/s1600/The+Brix4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWq-e0GAxWDweyUExm1GqR24J-uuEb7udheovKWeLGO3iH3skPiFzxZefNZn3yAP52N7K_GKtDpf73X4b1L8BqyoJd4BJhvh9K2QcX6dli39lhghGFgkyShXiHN4Z8SRxII5ciorOxOeqD/s640/The+Brix4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Even with a new owner The Brix struggled in the food department.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The bar has gone back to the strange Deli menu that in no way matches a Wine Bar. </span><span style="font-size: large;">We had already had lunch in Huntington Beach so all we ordered was some Truffle Oil Popcorn with shaved Parmesan. Truffle oil makes everything better...But no matter how good the Truffle oil is it can't save burnt Jiffy Pop Popcorn. Is this a warning of things to come??? I mean if you can't even get popcorn right ---what must the other food be like.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLeMUGA5Bj8bAYAyoHmwhsrfWewVIRNv80HdC1k2RbUfL9_mrxKIZoBGw-HCckh3q3sFaDXMVRoxJS3qu86h21nYoU1g0S03zMtA9G1krYI16EqMfwgx9K1XAAhM2T1lxDJFFB5UgVshl9/s1600/The+Brix7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLeMUGA5Bj8bAYAyoHmwhsrfWewVIRNv80HdC1k2RbUfL9_mrxKIZoBGw-HCckh3q3sFaDXMVRoxJS3qu86h21nYoU1g0S03zMtA9G1krYI16EqMfwgx9K1XAAhM2T1lxDJFFB5UgVshl9/s640/The+Brix7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Gordon Ramsay would have had a field day with this place. They were having a special party on their outside patio and decided to bring some free samples around to the bar patrons. Probably not the best idea!!! I guess the popcorn was just the precursor of what was to come. They started bringing out some severely burnt food. </span><span style="font-size: large;">So badly burnt in fact, it was nearly unrecognizable. We were pretty much laughing as they passed it out to customers watching their reactions. We quickly became giddy with excitement to see what was going to be next? Your guess is as good as ours as to what this was....some sort of chicken perhaps??</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9QTspXcWltON0p7JsyTFd5w6Unu2HPsk3-m5IO08J-5RDUyj7RxFr7hsyyr464IaiBDTkz0LKew8alVqRMzEDSrTqC2KHfVw1zhW4Y1inC0x47axJ13J9rYbZwG3r7u2jxhSFtwkZBU8z/s1600/The+Brix6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9QTspXcWltON0p7JsyTFd5w6Unu2HPsk3-m5IO08J-5RDUyj7RxFr7hsyyr464IaiBDTkz0LKew8alVqRMzEDSrTqC2KHfVw1zhW4Y1inC0x47axJ13J9rYbZwG3r7u2jxhSFtwkZBU8z/s640/The+Brix6.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoawvSxsHBlPi8Qd99QVQ1q7tPKRxpegNJ5Rpd0SI2X6m5rmNjHouyblIMaGo6Rfet34DxCuGHZi7hkwW0BrM_m4pqhU9FKFd02R8MY8JFhnESgcS3vmvdufQBo1sPpfligyokOJi0XIF7/s1600/The+Brix12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></a><span style="font-size: large;">You can see some soogy potatoes amongst the charred remains. We wondered "I hope the special party wasn't getting burnt food like this". Someone should have had the common sense to look at the food before handing it out as a "Freebie" to the paying customers. I couldn't imagine being a server walking around with these blackened lumps of coal and pretending to be proud of the chef's creation. Perhaps the waitress who wandered around sipping from her giant goblet of wine (bigger than any of the customers) passing out the samples was her way of dealing with the traumatic food offerings. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Handing out burnt food samples isn't the best way to get people to order off the menu. Hopefully the new ownership will get things turned around . </span><span style="font-size: large;"> And a new chef can craft a menu that will fit the cool vibe of this wine bar. </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpHlTiixNMBHO6BnvQpyB7bHm6S4_4TLTXTFB6cwZ854jZcPbKdaWKgibSpgc2AaHfvDyGzqhIXNYEl4cPH7Z44jhi7ekxcGxrixC0RtYIXBrQnF31zMCmyEiXCkp3UL6z7qeh2eWJfNxt/s1600/The+Brix15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpHlTiixNMBHO6BnvQpyB7bHm6S4_4TLTXTFB6cwZ854jZcPbKdaWKgibSpgc2AaHfvDyGzqhIXNYEl4cPH7Z44jhi7ekxcGxrixC0RtYIXBrQnF31zMCmyEiXCkp3UL6z7qeh2eWJfNxt/s640/The+Brix15.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If we see that their menu has changed we may go back and check it out again, since other then the food we felt it had great potential. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Check out our Facebook page for more Wine Adventures.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/2dollarwineconnoisseur/">https://www.facebook.com/2dollarwineconnoisseur/</a></span><br />
<br />brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-53910724307918326742016-03-09T22:04:00.000-08:002016-03-09T22:10:18.918-08:00A Wine and Cheese Adventure: The Anaheim Packing House<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">We had a little Wine Adventure in the O.C. Orange County has a lot of cool places for a Wine Adventure. We previously discussed the O.C. Mix and The Camp....which you can check out here.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://2dollarwineconnoisseur.blogspot.com/search?q=OC+Mix">http://2dollarwineconnoisseur.blogspot.com/search?q=OC+Mix</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This last summer one of our Wine Adventures took us to Anaheim.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We had never even heard of the Anaheim Packing District before until one of our Facebook friends has posted about it and we thought it was worth checking out.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRMUmiq_Lf76Gzgvn2CbWzXoSHoChXDxOyVC9I3n6w30CGsKSnjbhKQMou_GggPkQrc9z4hWxuMHpoY1vYvYECv_ym69onQO485xS5Cm2kQyu2cS98rMHKefocp2UFvwBBD7bAYFYwmWa6/s1600/Anaheim.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRMUmiq_Lf76Gzgvn2CbWzXoSHoChXDxOyVC9I3n6w30CGsKSnjbhKQMou_GggPkQrc9z4hWxuMHpoY1vYvYECv_ym69onQO485xS5Cm2kQyu2cS98rMHKefocp2UFvwBBD7bAYFYwmWa6/s640/Anaheim.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> The Anaheim Packing District is a really cool little spot with a bunch of food options and shops. We would say it has the same general feel of the O.C. Mix and the Camp.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkOQSzWqq36fISzk0olIypd3g5fn5VJ3OS7t8xHwr-ZtigSN8coUq4Zq0hsCpD53-mZhk6CwENBNY5f9GFmlA3QBpU2Jvjz4L6Qpf9PuVzaQnH0hoxGEJcXMlNPFsF8b-lXd-xjyMNS-c6/s1600/Anaheim+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkOQSzWqq36fISzk0olIypd3g5fn5VJ3OS7t8xHwr-ZtigSN8coUq4Zq0hsCpD53-mZhk6CwENBNY5f9GFmlA3QBpU2Jvjz4L6Qpf9PuVzaQnH0hoxGEJcXMlNPFsF8b-lXd-xjyMNS-c6/s640/Anaheim+7.jpg" width="476" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">After we wandered the shops we stopped and had a couple of glasses of wine in this stylish little wine getaway. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Among the Restaurants and hangouts sits the BXCR which is a cool little Wine Bar set inside on old Boxcar. Their chef wasn't there the day we stopped by so we will have to come back to try out the food next time. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here is there website</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.bxcrwinebar.com/">http://www.bxcrwinebar.com/</a></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQQHUura3tOOun3miGyrZF74XblWfPC7e9Dw3B0EFZXwsb-p9_j_ZDh3hodCDzNMihiEeNVCVmXjOBa2-F5NtCbbHzq2weCJfWR3XJ9FGJ3pBINXkcO60gTHrgiAuvdk18a0TtKawi4a75/s1600/Anaheim+14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQQHUura3tOOun3miGyrZF74XblWfPC7e9Dw3B0EFZXwsb-p9_j_ZDh3hodCDzNMihiEeNVCVmXjOBa2-F5NtCbbHzq2weCJfWR3XJ9FGJ3pBINXkcO60gTHrgiAuvdk18a0TtKawi4a75/s640/Anaheim+14.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVLQwIaMeR94fO3o6YbIipFdJNhtnmiKBSIYeaEU6qxEFSDCQLV7SrkaNAHX4qBQFZYa4S5vv7eqxm0jSZ3jlqvmtYaQVUlYOKn2LYxUjxt8zxuzlnaVqgJy2A9ShDOYDGnQChj2ABhrT_/s1600/Anaheim+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVLQwIaMeR94fO3o6YbIipFdJNhtnmiKBSIYeaEU6qxEFSDCQLV7SrkaNAHX4qBQFZYa4S5vv7eqxm0jSZ3jlqvmtYaQVUlYOKn2LYxUjxt8zxuzlnaVqgJy2A9ShDOYDGnQChj2ABhrT_/s640/Anaheim+8.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The look and vibe of the place was right up our alley.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Very Urban Industrial</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We stopped and ate at a place called the Black Sheep Grilled Cheese Bar......OMG this is worth a trip to Anaheim all by itself. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> It is associated with The Cellar Wine Bar in San Clemente and has the best Grilled Cheese sandwiches ever. We would totally recommend this to any lovers of Cheese.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Outside was an Arts and Crafts Farmer's Market style area and within walking distance is the Anaheim Brewing Company if you want to do some Beer Tasting. A reason for us to return as if the Grilled Cheese Bar wasn't enough of a reason.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here is the website for the Anaheim Packing District</span><br />
<a href="http://anaheimpackingdistrict.com/merchants"><span style="font-size: large;">http://anaheimpackingdistrict.com/merchants</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">To follow our Wine Blog on Facebook go here to our new Facebook Page</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/2dollarwineconnoisseur/?ref=bookmarks">https://www.facebook.com/2dollarwineconnoisseur/?ref=bookmarks</a></span><br />
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<br />brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-81193722158600451652016-01-12T21:09:00.000-08:002016-01-12T21:09:40.753-08:00A Wine Adventure at Rancho Los Lomas.<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Nestled in the hills just outside of Lake Forest lays Rancho Los Lomas. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">We had originally heard about this place after seeing a friend’s pictures from their wedding.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">It looked really cool so when a Wine Tasting Groupon came up for this place it gave us a reason to finally go and check it out.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">The spot for wine tasting wasn’t what we were expecting when we arrived.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">It was a cool little outdoor open barn with a country flair.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">The Groupon was for Wine Tasting and a small cheese plate.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We tried five Wines from Canyon Road Winery -all of which we enjoyed. The Pinot Grigio was our favorite .</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">The wine tasting itself was great</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">as we sipped wine and listened to current country music in this cool rustic environment.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we lived in the Lake Forest area I could
easily see this becoming a hangout.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
staff was great and the place has an easy going vibe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aside from the wine they actually have a full
bar and you can do beer flights as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In fact they brew <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the beers themselves
at the property under the label<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Towne Park Brewing Company. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjguxQZfK8Fu95THJD5TSwF9C59cjCBnOx0AwZsfXWR0YwkIWq1WvJquDPgtwMzqGF18YJyvy90-VGKqZBjHf2D-c7VJMq_SgPi0mlr2LHr1y7LNMQfW-EQglx9CqcW_vqCZX1_HfuFo9lE/s1600/IMG_0529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjguxQZfK8Fu95THJD5TSwF9C59cjCBnOx0AwZsfXWR0YwkIWq1WvJquDPgtwMzqGF18YJyvy90-VGKqZBjHf2D-c7VJMq_SgPi0mlr2LHr1y7LNMQfW-EQglx9CqcW_vqCZX1_HfuFo9lE/s640/IMG_0529.JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">Our
favorite was the Blonde Ale you can see the fun description below.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB0-VGwRrnUuIG7bnDFUlo7oAFNcrK7iDkiVMAGfJqcfH4G5Gps1kOBr7_TcXxXnlGOArwTk_yFm6fQpXGF4FEp-Fg5GBQM4-yVaGv2wOnIypXJdH99lNKo0pmddZHmoMl6vIka0N8wnrh/s1600/Wine+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB0-VGwRrnUuIG7bnDFUlo7oAFNcrK7iDkiVMAGfJqcfH4G5Gps1kOBr7_TcXxXnlGOArwTk_yFm6fQpXGF4FEp-Fg5GBQM4-yVaGv2wOnIypXJdH99lNKo0pmddZHmoMl6vIka0N8wnrh/s640/Wine+3.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZYu4V5Ilm8c95Ulnu3pg1DPnyTRuTyNVwOWPQVmY8qHkpdWzLN7HkZEhez3YIklJW8i2hQkKs44aLsvE2-fLtVdVLWUB8BfyZQPwtVozJGxtA0YuLD7yv-Zx_D0T_JkXHiE9IzvyyQ_g/s1600/Wine+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZYu4V5Ilm8c95Ulnu3pg1DPnyTRuTyNVwOWPQVmY8qHkpdWzLN7HkZEhez3YIklJW8i2hQkKs44aLsvE2-fLtVdVLWUB8BfyZQPwtVozJGxtA0YuLD7yv-Zx_D0T_JkXHiE9IzvyyQ_g/s640/Wine+4.jpg" width="584" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEielu1fNfvMKkAqofBwLhNR95I3yqi3lYZnJowpbscQSjDOwynBMKvBLw1VtLe_X_yq0utC4HDPYVOV_L9bVM65EmSUyt1paOnOAEdhM-K0OoqiGUgPE1o-ku0RHlV11_Iu7__bkTLxz6Wf/s1600/Wine+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEielu1fNfvMKkAqofBwLhNR95I3yqi3lYZnJowpbscQSjDOwynBMKvBLw1VtLe_X_yq0utC4HDPYVOV_L9bVM65EmSUyt1paOnOAEdhM-K0OoqiGUgPE1o-ku0RHlV11_Iu7__bkTLxz6Wf/s640/Wine+5.jpg" width="474" /></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">We talked with them and found out that they will be
opening in early 2016 a Brewery in Anaheim near the Anaheim Packing
District</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">(which we will make sure to
check out once it opens).</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">The only thing I would suggest is that if you are hungry
grab something to eat first as the cheese plates were good, but the portions
were small. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rancho Los Lomas is definitely
a place worth checking out for a weekend excursion or as a possible wedding
Site.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The location is cool –because it
is like a little escape from the city that is easy to get to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They also have some zebras, tropical birds
and a tiger, so if you are adventurous after stopping for a drink it is like a
bonus trip to the zoo.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigAnT_HGQOz3Nw5tsfWAyyIW3hyphenhyphenC93qwsfLmag7_tFfjFn0yzcYnXZudZfuqDpWznuHGRJXJeisxk_wwwsgBhbWmG26E_MKVLIZXGbSwEQlEdJUkRyxVLV-ye5lCr3mfwipp1_IyEJoOZA/s1600/Wine+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="381" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigAnT_HGQOz3Nw5tsfWAyyIW3hyphenhyphenC93qwsfLmag7_tFfjFn0yzcYnXZudZfuqDpWznuHGRJXJeisxk_wwwsgBhbWmG26E_MKVLIZXGbSwEQlEdJUkRyxVLV-ye5lCr3mfwipp1_IyEJoOZA/s400/Wine+8.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Their Website is here.</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.rancholaslomas.com/"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium; mso-spacerun: yes;">http://www.rancholaslomas.com/</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Check them out and spread the word.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Up next we will take you to the Anaheim Packing District for a little adventure we had earlier in 2015</span><br />
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brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-26817125216576040812015-07-05T12:27:00.000-07:002015-07-05T12:27:04.851-07:00Wine Selection of the week: West Coast California Square Chardonnay<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG25oWu0s_Ey-yA7ywz8riJSViAL27SkStzkgpx-7HYZXh5OHvmXJ-jMsIpJGlL4zza5mH5dTqbc3Navusfl-Xh3sfTkJts7MY9r815OgD07OYZFQYpgWKnG2ST2n0sRGSrGzDhP-t2QN0/s1600/wine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG25oWu0s_Ey-yA7ywz8riJSViAL27SkStzkgpx-7HYZXh5OHvmXJ-jMsIpJGlL4zza5mH5dTqbc3Navusfl-Xh3sfTkJts7MY9r815OgD07OYZFQYpgWKnG2ST2n0sRGSrGzDhP-t2QN0/s640/wine.JPG" width="472" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">For about $15 dollars you can get this enjoyable buttery wine at Total Wine and More. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Bottle:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The bottle is gorgeous and perfectly displays this wine. It looks like it should be a Whiskey bottle and totally stood out to us in the store. When we saw that it was from the Russian River Valley we knew that we had struck gold. The bottle is so cool, we could see it being displayed in some creative way after the wine is gone.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Wine:</b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">The wine itself has a nice balance of fruit, butterscotch and creme brulee. A lot of wines claim to have certain flavors -but this one really delivers. The buttery goodness rolls across the tongue, definitely our pick for wine of the week.</span><br />
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brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-23626386144643915062015-06-26T21:55:00.000-07:002016-03-19T14:45:16.052-07:00A Wine Adventure: Off The Vine in San Pedro<div style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 1.35em; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">This past weekend we checked out a little wine bar in San
Pedro that we had picked up a Living Social deal for recently. It is called "Off The Vine" and is located
on 7<sup>th</sup><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "calibri";"> St.</span></span> in Downtown San Pedro.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It is in a little theater district that reminded us of Retro Row in Long Beach<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "calibri";"> </span></span>(on a smaller scale).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We went early in the afternoon
on Saturday, as you can see from the picture below we were the first ones there!</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Our Living Social deal was for
a small Meat and Cheese plate (which was simple, yet really good) and a Wine
Tasting that included 6 different wines. <span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "calibri";"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The
tasting of the day was a red wine tasting –We aren’t normally big Red wine fans
–but all of the wines we tried were good. It included wines from Chile and Portugal and even one from Croatia. </span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">We liked the </span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "calibri";">Obsession Red Blend from California </span></span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">the
best and got a bottle to take home. </span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "calibri";"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">This
Living Social deal was a really good value –but the thing that would bring us back was the </span>Flatbread<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"> that we ordered in addition to our deal. </span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">The
</span>Flatbread<span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"> was made up of Havarti Cheese with Fig and Arugula and it was fantastic, </span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "calibri";"> </span></span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">in
fact I’m craving it now just writing about it. </span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "calibri";"> </span></span><span style="color: #444444; font-size: large; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">The
server was really nice and told us a little about each wine---(something you
don’t always get at busier wine tastings). </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4k1W7T6w_8Bo-0-Cg5B0julgVrH9WyaejcjwpbNb3-Rs_zyOSVEPoY3ZickRjbciuS8wz8H7zOtv7FH2W_joXZu0NOfXDYw7bNMc5-j-StQjZM4G6jUr1oD00_IsuUrgwuv-9ivZRjHgt/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4k1W7T6w_8Bo-0-Cg5B0julgVrH9WyaejcjwpbNb3-Rs_zyOSVEPoY3ZickRjbciuS8wz8H7zOtv7FH2W_joXZu0NOfXDYw7bNMc5-j-StQjZM4G6jUr1oD00_IsuUrgwuv-9ivZRjHgt/s400/photo.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">So if you are in the San Pedro
area and want a little wine getaway Off The Vine is the place to go.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here is our version of the Havarti, Fig with Arugula flatbread..</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">I added a little drizzle of balsamic glaze to ours to give it just a little kick.. I'd say it turned out pretty darn good!! </span></div>
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brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-36889189423519960192015-03-01T10:20:00.000-08:002015-06-27T10:28:05.830-07:00Wine at the Disneyland Resort: Alfresco Tasting Terrace: Disney Flight of Wines<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">When Disney's California Adventure opened about 10 years ago it brought with it wine tasting. Definitely a representative adventure associated with many regions of California. Originally sponsored by Robert Mondavi - The wine section of DCA is a great little section of the theme park and has been home to the Food and Wine Festival that was a staple of the park for many years until Carsland went into construction. The Food and Wine Festival may not be returning (even though the one in Epcot is still going strong), but that doesn't mean you can't have a great wine experience in the park.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">We had read earlier this summer on the Disney Parks blog that the Alfresco Lounge above the wine tasting area would be serving a unique wine list of Disney related wines.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">I love that the menu tells you about each of the wineries and what their Disney connection is. This list features 8 wineries from what they are calling the "Disney Family of Wines: The wineries include:</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">Fess Paker Winery (Davey Crockett)</b></div>
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<b style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">MacMurray Ranch </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;"><b>Silverado Vineyards</b></span></div>
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<b style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;">Chappellet Winery </b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Skywalker Vineyards (Star Wars Wine)</span> </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">When we went during the Summer we each did a different Flight of wines and then we had to try the </span>Skywalker<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: large;"> Star Wars Wine. Which was excellent by the way.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">A great touch that all Wine Flights should have is the little Wine Flight info cards that tell you about each of the wines you are tasting that would also serve as a great way to order wines that you like </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG-7ENnXzN9CsYBd3mG1_6rByPbR5nwv2oCYJki19TKf2makfHFXMR_Ju1WVDlVLBvVScug6qEXXyvn1-JQ8WlX0z2ZcFzqWLCXTS7ChezbZRv5kw8IkgXC2i2zD3hNa0xSILZQ-ilZ6G4/s1600/photo+(18).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG-7ENnXzN9CsYBd3mG1_6rByPbR5nwv2oCYJki19TKf2makfHFXMR_Ju1WVDlVLBvVScug6qEXXyvn1-JQ8WlX0z2ZcFzqWLCXTS7ChezbZRv5kw8IkgXC2i2zD3hNa0xSILZQ-ilZ6G4/s1600/photo+(18).JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">To accompany the wine flights we had a tasty Aged Cheddar Risotto Bites with roasted garlic aioli and marinara and a flatbread that was also good. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">So the next time you are at the parks and want a perfect little getaway from the crowds --definitely check out this little hidden gem.</span></div>
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brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-26960226721720172662015-01-29T21:55:00.000-08:002015-06-27T10:28:17.039-07:00Wine Adventures with the 2 Dollar Wine Connoisseurs: An OC Wine Adventure<div class="ecxMsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21.2999992370605px; margin-bottom: 1.35em;">
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="background-color: #444444;">We had a little Wine Adventure the other weekend in Orange County visiting 2 places we hadn't been to yet</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="background-color: #444444;">We started our adventure at The OC Mix</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #444444; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">The OC Mix is a cool little unique shopping center. It was like an in-door swap meet for cool people, with artsy stores like a tiny little vinyl record store, a bourbon shop and clothing and design stores. I saw this little beauty in the record store - but it was really pricey.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="background-color: #444444;">We wandered through the shops and then settled in for lunch at a place called We Olive and Wine Bar -which had olive and wine tastings. The olive oil was great -from a really good aged balsamic vinegar, to an amazing pineapple flavored olive oil, as well as a good lemon cake one. We had a cheese plate with amazing cheeses from the shop across the way (which is connected to the Cellar in San Clemente). You aren't going to find a better combo than We Olive and Wine Bar and The Cellar Cheese Shop at the OC Mix.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"> </span><span style="background-color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;"><span style="color: white;">There is also wine tasting across the way in a large culinary store that is obviously designed for Master Chefs- we didn't stop for wine there- but checked out the store --which also has a little cafe. We already had our sites on our next stop which was in the same area called The Camp</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #444444; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">The Camp is a quirky little shopping area setup like campground. A total Hipster spot that had some cool stuff like a Pirate Bakery -that had some really good breads. There was also a Vegan Eatery an Italian restaurants and an REI style camping store. We of course came for the cool little wine bar called The Wine Lab.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #444444; color: white; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">lWe shared a good bottle of wine called Gold Crush Chardonnay and had more delicious cheeses with honey pairing and a flatbread pizza.</span></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #444444; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">The Wine Lab had a cool vibe and atmosphere and was playing Ferris Bueller's Day Off on a loop in the background. We look forward to visiting both of these wine bars again. Check them out and let us know what you think. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #444444; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">Here are links to the OC Mix , We Olive and Wine Bar, The Camp and The Wine Lab</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We were in Mammoth Lakes for the Thanksgiving weekend and stopped by a cool little wine bar at the area known as The Village.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Wine , Crepes, Paninis, and Fondue are featured at the coolest little wine bar called Side Door Cafe in Mammoth Lakes, CA. We had stopped the night before for a Christmas Tree lighting with the kids and sat for a few minutes on the outdoor patio area --while the kids had kettle corn. We knew we had to come back again the next night and check the place out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We had a nice reasonably priced bottle of Russian River Valley Chardonnay </span><span style="font-size: xx-small; text-align: start;">called Pech Merle which was a very good, smooth Chardonnay typical of the Russian River Valley region. We</span><span style="font-size: large;"> enjoyed some great Swiss Gruyere Cheese Fondue and followed that up with a tasty S'mores Crepe!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The bar itself had a cool jazz/retro feel and was a great place to relax and get out of the cold. This place is not only a wine bar/ but has a full cocktail menu as well, and in the mornings fronts as a coffee house (which is ideal for a snowy mountain resort).</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here is their website.....If you make it up to the mountains be sure to drop in.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.sidedoormammoth.com/">http://www.sidedoormammoth.com/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The village is a really cool area that features lodging, shopping and restaurants. They have fun outdoor games and fire pits that really brings an Aspen like feel to Mammoth Lakes.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: normal;">After our mishap with a Living Social deal for a place near the beach called The View (which had closed after being open only a few months) – we were able to cash in that unused coupon with Living Social for a new deal at a place called The Five O’Clock Wine Bar down in the Alamitos Bay Marina area of Long Beach.</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We had been there before when it had a different name after dinner one night, and had enjoyed the chocolate fondue.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: normal;">Well the name changed and so did our experience. The place was super crowded when we arrived as an annoying Art/wine class was going on.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The art class was crowded and the instructor sounded drunk –so we decided to sit away from the loaded art class and in an obscure alcove area located next to the broken ATM machine.</span></span></div>
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The Living Social deal was for a wine Flight and a shared appetizer which we thought would be a good start to the evening and then we expected to order more.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The wine flight itself was nice, but the cheese plate was tiny and looked like something I could throw together myself with scraps from the fridge and we weren’t even given utensils to spread the cheese on the meager offering of crackers.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>After the wine flight we waited awhile for our waitress to return hoping to order another glass of wine and maybe something more substantial to eat.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We waited quite awhile as the annoying mood ruining art class rambled on and our waitress never returned.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> We </span>finally decided we should go inside to see if we could order something else.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The interior area was now fairly empty – our waitress was nowhere to be found so we walked up to the counter and stood there ignored by the staff , which seemed more content on chit chatting with their friends than serving customers.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> We</span> stood there waiting for several more minutes until what we assumed was an owner walked out<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>(she appeared to be drunk herself!!).<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>She then proceeded to tell the waitress<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>“ I want you to leave –because I don’t want to pay you for tonight…..go ahead and just talk with your friends” .<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 21px;">We sadly</span> agreed the staff was slacking off, but the owner/manager should have pulled her into the back room and should not have canned her in front of the customers, (Very Unprofessional) which she herself proceeded to ignore as we stood there getting no service for several more minutes as she (The Owner/Manager) then sat chit chatting with her own elderly friends.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> We </span>walked outside and agreed that we should definitely go somewhere else, since apparently no one here was interested in serving us.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">It was like an episode of Kitchen Nightmares.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It would be fun to own a wine bar, but if you are going to own one.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Rule 1: Hire good staff.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Rule 2: Don’t use owning a wine bar as an excuse to drink your own inventory while at work and inappropriately fire the bad staff you hired in front of the customers.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Rule 3: Actually serve your customers.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The customers shouldn’t have to seek you out to get service and after doing so still get ignored , because you are too drunk to notice them.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: normal;">Apparently you need to get to the 5 O'clock wine bar at 5 O'clock before the staff gets too drunk to care about the customers.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: normal;">Our Facebook page is here</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/2dollarwineconnoisseur">https://www.facebook.com/2dollarwineconnoisseur</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=666318&u=1120322&m=51707&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://static.shareasale.com/image/51707/CrazyDogSun3_00.jpg" height="81" width="640" /></a><a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=655384&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="40% off everything 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/2014_Q4_TripleOffer_Oct11toOct12_72.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=370135&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="Wedding Paper Divas 30% Off Sitewide Cyber Week 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/29318_468x60_WPD_Wedding_Invitations_030.jpg" width="640" /></a>brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-23044077157199788142014-07-04T17:38:00.002-07:002015-06-27T10:28:39.708-07:00The Red Barrel - The best little Wine Bar in Long Beach CA that you may not know about yet.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large; line-height: normal;">As we reported previously we were really excited when a wine bar opened up in our neighborhood.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Having visited the Red Barrel several times now <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>and our love for it keeps growing (along with their selection of wines).<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Our favorite Chardonnay at the Red Barrel had been the American Wine Company Chardonnay ---but now they have added one of our favorites from another great place 320 Main in Seal Beach called Snapdragon.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We got lucky enough to stumble in on Tuesday evening which is currently<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>All-Day Happy Hour so the Snapdragon was only $5 a glass.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We are also looking forward to someday making it in on a Friday or Saturday night when they have live musical entertainment.</span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large; line-height: normal;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large; line-height: normal;">The service is always excellent no matter which waitress is there. <span style="line-height: 21px;"> They are all v</span>ery attentive and friendly.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: normal;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: normal;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The food has been outstanding each time we have gone.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The menu has expanded since our first visit and all of the new items we have tried have been great.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>This time around we ordered Flatbreads.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The Italian Hawaiian was perfect and the four cheese one was tasty as well.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: normal;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: normal;"><span style="line-height: 21px;">Just this past Tuesday we met up with some friends and this time</span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: 21px;">we tried the Kobe Beef Sliders with Applewood Smoked Bacon and</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri; line-height: 21px;">Blue Cheese, and liking the flatbreads as much as we do, we gave the Margherita Flatbread a try. We loved them both!! </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large; line-height: normal;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Check out the Red Barrel and visit often….we want this place to thrive and be around for a long time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">Follow our Facebook page below</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large; line-height: normal;">Check out their facebook page here.....</span></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Next time we will discuss our Guide to some of the Wine Bars of Long Beach</span></b><br />
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<a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=655384&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="40% off everything 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/2014_Q4_TripleOffer_Oct11toOct12_72.jpg" width="640" /></a>
<a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=370135&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="Wedding Paper Divas 30% Off Sitewide Cyber Week 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/29318_468x60_WPD_Wedding_Invitations_030.jpg" width="640" /></a>brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-45806415038833731372014-06-12T21:41:00.000-07:002015-06-27T10:28:50.778-07:00Seattle Wine Adventure<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">We went to <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Seattle for a weekend wedding in September.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It was a busy weekend of wedding rehearsals, rehearsal dinners, weddings and receptions.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We did have some free time the night we arrived that we took full advantage of by walking to a cool wine bar in downtown Seattle.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The place was called the Purple Café and we were impressed! <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It has a big metal door, but the rest of the restaurant was all<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>glass windows <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>that looked out on the city streets.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> In the</span> center of the restaurant was a spiral stairway of wine.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Very cool!.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We decided to try a White Wine Chardonnay flight with some appetizers <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>that had three wines.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisRPRw2KhwFpLZFktPNO8PxKzQdBRfuvqSUDp76J7pZw0dAu-WovYhDfC7eIBFGRHTUGEPCHuuFVizCR-CIRyhX_DfbxsGS0IIDZVAdombgam4weGANt4abBqbRgJ63MGZvbR0X68-s7s2/s1600/Seattle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisRPRw2KhwFpLZFktPNO8PxKzQdBRfuvqSUDp76J7pZw0dAu-WovYhDfC7eIBFGRHTUGEPCHuuFVizCR-CIRyhX_DfbxsGS0IIDZVAdombgam4weGANt4abBqbRgJ63MGZvbR0X68-s7s2/s1600/Seattle.jpg" width="476" /></a> </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">One wine was from Washington,<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>One from Oregon and<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>then one from<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>California. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">We noticed that the closer we got to California --the better we liked the wines.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">After our flight we got a reasonably priced bottle of Martin Ray Chardonnay from</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 21px;">(you guessed it) the Russian River Valley. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This wine was excellent and is right up there with Hanna as one of our favorites.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; line-height: 21px;">Buttery, Smooth and delicious.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; line-height: 21px;">I joked that my wife </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; line-height: 21px;">should write an ode to Martin Ray</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; line-height: 21px;">like I did to Hanna.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">(Here is our Hanna blog)</span><br />
<a href="http://2dollarwineconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2012/07/ode-to-wine-named-hannaour-favorite.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">http://2dollarwineconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2012/07/ode-to-wine-named-hannaour-favorite.html</span></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">While researching a future trip to the Russian River Valley---It turns out these 2 wineries are literally neighbors.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> Here is the Purple Cafe's website ...Definitely worth a visit if you go to Seattle.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.thepurplecafe.com/">http://www.thepurplecafe.com/</a></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">The View at 1900 in Long Beach</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRQh24_Aa-ravoeLT_PN3S0_ubQQ7F3qM50CJX1HlYmWZKlfmbk_xvTZolC3VlqVUZRrjemLewBoD52KDtkX9Hv6d9jzXuZ59GSVefRotgaNkUSCs7IJ9A1kVxa6k2zX3Cv8z20_LkvXtb/s1600/Aboutus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRQh24_Aa-ravoeLT_PN3S0_ubQQ7F3qM50CJX1HlYmWZKlfmbk_xvTZolC3VlqVUZRrjemLewBoD52KDtkX9Hv6d9jzXuZ59GSVefRotgaNkUSCs7IJ9A1kVxa6k2zX3Cv8z20_LkvXtb/s1600/Aboutus.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">(This was the view we were looking forward to)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: normal;">We got a Living Social Groupon for Easter<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>for a good deal at a brand new wine bar in Downtown Long Beach called The View at 1900.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It looked really nice online.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It had <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>a <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>sunset view overlooking the ocean with a good menu and the new wine machines, the kinds that work when you buy a card and then sample a whole bunch of wines.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>So I got off extra early from work and we drove on down there only to find out that it had already shutdown.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Shutdown??<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>But it supposedly just opened.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">We don’t know<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>why or how it just wasn’t there anymore.</span><span style="line-height: 21px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> It had just opened in March of this year 2014 but was already closed by May of 2014, with no explanation when we tried to redeem our Groupon??</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We're wondering if the location which was in a residential apartment tower doomed it. They probably did the Living Social Deal to build awareness---but apparently not enough people showed up? Who knows? <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: normal;">So if you have a Living Social coupon for this place get a refund now and save yourself the drive.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUZzafOi1P3e0Z_vV9BiCbmHCuC0KgRR0vDcseWZP6iLmPDCudLRKVy7NObnp6II21_t6ahUlk5afKWvIZrbqmG-LWEBrI0DtmTmzxXfiiXVZi3fwq90S7y1fZv9_hYBGP3_xVBO28Kyn_/s1600/photo-160.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUZzafOi1P3e0Z_vV9BiCbmHCuC0KgRR0vDcseWZP6iLmPDCudLRKVy7NObnp6II21_t6ahUlk5afKWvIZrbqmG-LWEBrI0DtmTmzxXfiiXVZi3fwq90S7y1fZv9_hYBGP3_xVBO28Kyn_/s1600/photo-160.JPG" width="478" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Our Wine of the Week is this Russian River Valley Chardonnay that we picked up at BevMo. We couldn't find several of our favorite Chardonnays (like Hanna) so we decided to try something new. That's when we came across this gem of a Chardonnay which we found to be a tasty wine with notes of pear and vanilla. It has more of an acidic finish to it than the buttery finish that we like so much but it was definitely worth the purchase. This wine was a bit of a splurge as we normally try to keep our wine reviews to our favorite finds under $15 (This wine ran us about $24) but we felt is was a good find and worth the time for our review. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqDm8jW0w-phZiDYFO2q2MMHdmPBwqHSTsSnk8sVwpM-I-1lVkJBGXukVJCPlT4uElWKOOkgVRl01RAposS1Sh96zvF4ZTXI6HbUXkbBwTzRwhm3W3zxeSpiEdYpCZhtLHqbbj-IB8N79M/s1600/photo-161.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqDm8jW0w-phZiDYFO2q2MMHdmPBwqHSTsSnk8sVwpM-I-1lVkJBGXukVJCPlT4uElWKOOkgVRl01RAposS1Sh96zvF4ZTXI6HbUXkbBwTzRwhm3W3zxeSpiEdYpCZhtLHqbbj-IB8N79M/s1600/photo-161.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Just like most good Chardonnay's this wine would pair well with a light chicken or turkey dinner, personally I think it would be fantastic served along side a homemade Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo or even a good cured meat & cheese plate! </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYx59tKhE8MiIIDAgNYD2j1VxDg5MvM7HV3q-47Tzei9uFIc85N9gWxFBaZn2rCjFFDhaAv4q-fypp7d5BSVZIAOVGWfe9iy4gWZ5bFFQh7F7IGKZn0p49q53sEl2_Wytbjbw66RkIUkKS/s1600/Handsome+Devil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYx59tKhE8MiIIDAgNYD2j1VxDg5MvM7HV3q-47Tzei9uFIc85N9gWxFBaZn2rCjFFDhaAv4q-fypp7d5BSVZIAOVGWfe9iy4gWZ5bFFQh7F7IGKZn0p49q53sEl2_Wytbjbw66RkIUkKS/s1600/Handsome+Devil.jpg" width="302" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My husband told me that they finally named a wine after him (lol). He may have his mistress Hanna (Chardonnay) --- but now I have my Handsome Devil. I'm normally a Chardonnay girl myself, but this Handsome Red Devil is hard to resist. He is a smooth and charming Cab with no bitter aftertaste that has a hints of cherry and vanilla. This fellow has quickly become one of my new favorites. It can be found at your local Target and is our choice for wine of week.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK7-4DYfxCIpkVktXQOh2i5UxTWeGE5l-oqKbSXLP6jS2TrSV1Avb0YphpD-S_wXW8UHchmlCT_WgFKRvNkdPLA4i4RVbPQtv_pfhCLyt1LXV_WbRskVJhGterJDmf_OSwptuNcpWLYmkO/s1600/Red+Barrell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK7-4DYfxCIpkVktXQOh2i5UxTWeGE5l-oqKbSXLP6jS2TrSV1Avb0YphpD-S_wXW8UHchmlCT_WgFKRvNkdPLA4i4RVbPQtv_pfhCLyt1LXV_WbRskVJhGterJDmf_OSwptuNcpWLYmkO/s1600/Red+Barrell.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">A new wine bar within walking distance from our house??? Yep it has finally happened. A wine bar in the neighborhood that we could actually walk to. Earlier this week a friend of ours posted a picture on Facebook from a Wine bar in Long Beach. It turns out that it is right around the corner from our home. So we anxiously headed over there the first chance we had to check it out. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The place is called the Red Barrel and it is located near the intersection of Ximeno and Atherton in Long Beach, CA. It sits in an odd spot between a Baskin Robbins and a laundromat. They are so new that they didn't even have permanent signage yet, but the inside is really nice and immediately makes you forget where you are. They have nice ambiance and the decor includes wine artwork created by the owner herself, and the kind of music you would expect in a nice wine bar. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The staff was extremely friendly. We loved our waitress Emily, she was outstanding!! Not to mention this place has some really good food.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> We shared a Grilled Cheese Panini with Maple bacon and a Margarita Flat bread pizza, all of the food was made fresh and did we mention it was delicious. The wine we </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> tried included Black Stallion Estate -which was a 2012 Chardonnay that had a crisp apple taste to it. We also tried a wine called American Wine Company Chardonnay from 2012, this one was from Sonoma and had the buttery taste that we love. Both wine and food choices were exceptional and we just can't wait to go back again!! So we just wanted to spread the word and let people know about this great new place in our neck of the woods.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNDD5fAbJId74DPJ3mY9mQjvR4YbQgcYk_atu7zesG8__giuMcT1ynrX5iCrUJtLqhwEykaIMmP25WQCiGcUxUo0MrMmnOn2_qZrCzFr1wS32TEgJet0uSW2PzJuQp3QD182lDWnHHRbQy/s1600/Red+Barrell1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNDD5fAbJId74DPJ3mY9mQjvR4YbQgcYk_atu7zesG8__giuMcT1ynrX5iCrUJtLqhwEykaIMmP25WQCiGcUxUo0MrMmnOn2_qZrCzFr1wS32TEgJet0uSW2PzJuQp3QD182lDWnHHRbQy/s1600/Red+Barrell1.jpg" width="478" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Up next we will talk about a really cool wine bar we visited in Seattle while up there for a wedding in fall of 2013. Look for that soon and check out our other Wine Adventures.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh19-0kVIa1G_aOv9RicMXxoXKIAqDy6gtPCp04c7CWjkxTn_-Qeo1R_Uc79dVoDrDqxwqiY4ZFWnWDjyFjPCp5JLcdYVzud-b0-InH-zIV-ksA5P9-ddZQJMCBMuYSkgx41C-ZJ0J0FiSd/s1600/IMG_0203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh19-0kVIa1G_aOv9RicMXxoXKIAqDy6gtPCp04c7CWjkxTn_-Qeo1R_Uc79dVoDrDqxwqiY4ZFWnWDjyFjPCp5JLcdYVzud-b0-InH-zIV-ksA5P9-ddZQJMCBMuYSkgx41C-ZJ0J0FiSd/s640/IMG_0203.jpg" width="478" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">During the summer of 2013, on our way to a dinner at the Sunset Restaurant in Malibu we stopped for some wine tasting at Rosenthal. It is located right along Pacific Coast Highway and was a nice find on our way up the coast for a fun day adventure. A wine tasting room right across the street from the Pacific ocean with some of the coolest ocean and surf inspired labels ever. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Here are some samples of some of the unique Surfrider labels .</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHw-ajtpqbVQdfiRU_72iV6uko2vSGHwS-x6II4O2nuAXxmBk1gT12lWUmX4rFalYd4PAu0vbYN3Z3LHjwLmh-YYLxTdTUA_6-QiPh2tbif7sNBRbLR6c8TQhTlyxiQ8y0QOC_Ady7NCG-/s1600/IMG_0204.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHw-ajtpqbVQdfiRU_72iV6uko2vSGHwS-x6II4O2nuAXxmBk1gT12lWUmX4rFalYd4PAu0vbYN3Z3LHjwLmh-YYLxTdTUA_6-QiPh2tbif7sNBRbLR6c8TQhTlyxiQ8y0QOC_Ady7NCG-/s640/IMG_0204.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Instead of doing a tasting of a bunch of wines we decided to just select a bottle of Rosenthal Chardonnay and relax in their nice outdoor seating area and listen to some tunes. We absolutely loved the outdoor seating area with its tops of barrels reused as tables. The wine was a pleasant smooth Chardonnay and the music was enjoyable.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGfMCwqh_e_SU2J5HJ3NOtjqEMwq7OiTdS1gT0HabmPbHUyhT36kugSN8lSSnQ6BpS7aC8MCnByz4gM7_vet7UwA80eauEnVT1zOGttfJUqK2xb9VaYeMcWTiCGB2vfmAMtUr2Uez1pK9s/s1600/IMG_0205.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGfMCwqh_e_SU2J5HJ3NOtjqEMwq7OiTdS1gT0HabmPbHUyhT36kugSN8lSSnQ6BpS7aC8MCnByz4gM7_vet7UwA80eauEnVT1zOGttfJUqK2xb9VaYeMcWTiCGB2vfmAMtUr2Uez1pK9s/s640/IMG_0205.jpg" width="478" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw1vcHU0m0cpdDdl2eHsV5_oES2mVw6AsANEsA_W2Q0-4xNkCxOgUFzfXm0remtcdkYu-nlylEfeee_QyBLaWhxs-B2tu-Svm-9iARYWqu9119YC3ugBexV2fMvC7HComL3XASpyG1lwva/s1600/IMG_0208.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw1vcHU0m0cpdDdl2eHsV5_oES2mVw6AsANEsA_W2Q0-4xNkCxOgUFzfXm0remtcdkYu-nlylEfeee_QyBLaWhxs-B2tu-Svm-9iARYWqu9119YC3ugBexV2fMvC7HComL3XASpyG1lwva/s640/IMG_0208.jpg" width="478" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">It was a relaxing afternoon stop on our journey to a delightful beach dinner. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Below is one of the bottles that we had to take home with us.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQgG7eUx7D9Tl3ORtB93hjyhLl9co-Id3ucWfY9wbRHRR8xXIfrleE1EKAJySKihqDHFMc0NS7iwIBJ4k731lkRmMIKq5DhdVu7gS_mSTmo-8Z7Sg80RLoPCymRlsZ2CYnqGLX0eNd7Dpl/s1600/IMG_0215.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQgG7eUx7D9Tl3ORtB93hjyhLl9co-Id3ucWfY9wbRHRR8xXIfrleE1EKAJySKihqDHFMc0NS7iwIBJ4k731lkRmMIKq5DhdVu7gS_mSTmo-8Z7Sg80RLoPCymRlsZ2CYnqGLX0eNd7Dpl/s640/IMG_0215.jpg" width="478" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">We would definitely recommend a stop at Rosenthal if you are in the Malibu area.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Here is Rosenthal's website......</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.rosenthalestatewines.com/visit">http://www.rosenthalestatewines.com/visit</a></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI48q-0J7FFTMTPjTCGe4IsqNYlzlN4ARNUmDWXHvd1EX9Nxo_x3ZKnuxQwtp3MpLnp9msx3ixTbrS-xkdnBakDWkDbmYevh2SNNTG7Rft0s93-8pl23p-PmVNnHYzyKRwLOjHJOwkWIhX/s1600/Iron+horse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI48q-0J7FFTMTPjTCGe4IsqNYlzlN4ARNUmDWXHvd1EX9Nxo_x3ZKnuxQwtp3MpLnp9msx3ixTbrS-xkdnBakDWkDbmYevh2SNNTG7Rft0s93-8pl23p-PmVNnHYzyKRwLOjHJOwkWIhX/s1600/Iron+horse.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Wine and cheese night! Time to break in our new Eiffel Tower wine glasses and a new reasonably priced Chardonnay. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> Described as a delightful "new wave" Chardonnay that features flavors of apple, citrus and pear. We thought that is was a decent Chardonnay - but not one of our favorite. This wine is from the Napa region and as described did have a clean finish, but not the smooth buttery qualities that we enjoy from our favorite Chardonnays . It still made for a good night while enjoyed with a three cheese plate we whipped up at home that featured a hardened drunken goat cheese (that disappointed), some Swiss and a nice Blue Cheese.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This wine at Lazy Acres.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: normal;"><b>As a part of my Birthday and Valentine’s Day we headed to Las Vegas for the weekend in order to see the Eagles at the MGM Grand.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>On our list of places to go was The Hostile Grape at the M Resort, which is located just off the freeway as you enter into Las Vegas.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We had looked it up online and thought that it looked like a really cool wine bar to visit.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We found the Hostile Grape and almost exited before our adventure began because it sounded like there was a stand up comedian inside and we didn’t want to walk in mid act.</b></span></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="line-height: normal;">I said that we should push on and so we ventured inside. <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It ended up being a musician that looked like a Johnny Depp impersonator that they had found wandering the streets of Vegas.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>He was actually decent playing a wide range of songs that included an odd version of Like a Virgin on the guitar.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> We overheard a couple of guys talking on the way in about how it was the assisted living wine bar, since the crowd was much older. </span></span><span style="line-height: normal;">We sat down at an open table and waited….and waited until finally deciding that maybe they don’t come to your table here.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It was the kind of wine bar that had the self serve machines that we had enjoyed using previously at the Splash Wine bar in San Diego and the Las Vegas Hilton.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We purchased a $50 wine card –that also had a onetime $5 card activation fee (if you come back again you just bring the same card).</span></b></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We ordered a cheese plate which wasn’t on the menu that night (since they were having a special Valentine’s Day menu featuring food from the Steak House Anthony’s).<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The cheese plate was actually pretty good especially the hardened goat cheese with honey comb.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></b></div>
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</span><b>About $32 into our card it stopped working. I had to go up to the bar and let them know that is was giving me an error message and that I should have about $18 left on it. The bartender told me that has never happened before and that I had used up the card. He was able to pull up on the screen and tell me what the last wine I had sampled was and continued to argue with me that the cards had never malfunctioned before and that I had used the card up. I continued to argue my point. At this point I was basically being called a liar by the bartender . He asked if I would like to talk to the manager. </b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b> " Sure" I said and then suggested-"If your machine can tell you which drinks we have tried it should be able to tell how much we have used". He added up the amounts and then finally admitted that we should still have $18.25 left on our card. The manager came over and told him that they had been having problems with cards today. The manager then fixed the card adding the amount left back onto the card. I didn't get an apology for basically being called a liar about the issues with the card.... which was really annoying. </b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>We thought that maybe that is where the bar got its name the Hostile Grape from, since they argue with the customers. We joked that maybe it should be called the Angry Grape. Our original plan was to get another glass of wine once the card was used up, but after this incident we decided to just finish off the card and head to our hotel. Unfortunately this wasn't as easy a task. The card died again at about $9.00 mark and we had to wait a good 10 minutes for the manager to finish gabbing with a set of customers. Upon bringing the problem to his attention again --we were given a new card....which we used up and then left. No apologies, no I'm sorry for your inconvenience twice, nothing. The $5 activation fee was a waste---since I don't think we will be returning due to the bad customer service from this place that we had really high hopes for. Let's hope that our next wine adventure goes better.......</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Stay tuned for some of our 2013 adventures that we are slowly getting around to writing about.</b></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=370135&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="Wedding Paper Divas 30% Off Sitewide Cyber Week 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/29318_468x60_WPD_Wedding_Invitations_030.jpg" width="640" /></a>brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-90362231775979456222014-02-08T21:03:00.000-08:002015-02-09T18:19:08.094-08:00Wine Adventures with the 2 Dollar Wine Connoisseurs: Return to Rio with mixed results<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Revisiting the Rio Wine Cellar with mixed results.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">In one of our first wine adventures about 4 ½ years ago we visited the really swanky Wine Cellar at the Rio in Las Vegas.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It was one of our first wine tasting adventures together and we loved it.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The Wine Cellar is a gorgeous wine bar located downstairs in the Rio hotel and casino.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>You walk down a staircase into what looks like a traditional wine cellar. <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The look and feel of the place is really cool. <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>There is seating throughout the meandering pathways amongst the crates and rows of wine.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The very first time we came here as wine novices (not that we aren’t still novices) we totally loved the place. So we decided it was about time to revisit it (now that we have a wine blog)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> Upon our return in Febru</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">ary of 2013….</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">we weren’t as impressed with it as the first time around.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The style and decor of the bar is spot on (If money wasn’t an option I would probably build something that looks just like it in my basement if I had one).<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Unfortunately the mood of the place didn’t match the abience.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>In a stylish wine bar one expects to have music that matches the environment that helps set the mood.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The location of the Wine Cellar at the Rio doesn’t lend to this being a possibility.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It is located right below the Rio Sky<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>stage show, which features really bad loud versions of Britney Spears and Will I AM tunes blaring at a ridiculous volume and overtaking any sense of relaxing atmosphere that could have existed in the Wine bar area.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>They should have sound proofed the area or found some other way of closing it off from the mind numbingly bad dance beats that bombard the ear drums.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Even when the show isn’t going on the soundtrack lingers and permeates the area---wiping away any music that is playing within the wine bar itself.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The other issue we encountered on this return trip was the lack of wine knowledge from the bartender we had.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We ordered a flight of wine and he didn’t seem to know what he was serving us.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>“Here is one that I think is French" he said.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>It was a let down this time.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The Wine we had was fine it is just the experience that was lacking.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We both agree that the issues are something that could easily be fixed.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Finding a way to remedy or somehow sound proof your wine experience from the full blown dance party going on above seems easy enough, all the while preserving the elegance of the total wine experience. At the very least we think this place could really benefit if the they were to hire bartenders/waiters/waitresses who were actual wine friendly connoisseurs themesleves. </span><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> On that note we are heading back to Vegas this February and we will be stopping at the "Hostile Grape" at the "M" Resort. We have heard great things about this place so stay tuned and look out for a blog about this really soon.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=370135&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="Wedding Paper Divas 30% Off Sitewide Cyber Week 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/29318_468x60_WPD_Wedding_Invitations_030.jpg" width="640" /></a>brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-34464774792351975642014-01-04T07:56:00.002-08:002014-01-04T07:56:18.130-08:00A look behind the glass walls at Napa Rose<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Here is a quick behind the glass of the Napa Rose's Wine Cellar (that Disney Parks Blog posted this week). I love the look of this cool glass wine cellar. If I had Bill Gates money I would totally want something like this inside my house. I thought I'd share this cool look behind the glass walls.</div>
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Here is a blog we did about one of our experiences at the Napa Rose</div>
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<a href="http://2dollarwineconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2013/03/wine-adventures-with-2-dollar-wine.html">http://2dollarwineconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2013/03/wine-adventures-with-2-dollar-wine.html</a></div>
brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-76788132115626179532013-12-26T17:48:00.000-08:002015-06-27T10:29:48.822-07:00I’ve got a Peaceful Easy Feeling about this Wine Adventure.<div style="text-align: center;">
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We headed down to the South Coast Winery on a mission back in September 2013. A mission to see Song writer<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Jack Tempchin (who wrote several Eagles songs as well as some of Glen Frey’s solo<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>work) He was there to sign bottles of South Coast's Peaceful Easy Feeling Cabernet. Being huge Eagles fans and wine fans this trip was a no brainer.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Plus it gave us an excuse to head back to Temecula to visit the South Coast Winery and several other area wineries.</div>
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Our first stop was at the Callaway Winery, where we stopped for lunch at their restaurant The Meritage.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We both had a great meal with a view of their vineyard, enjoying a bottle of Callaway Reserve Chardonnay.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Definitely a restaurant worth visiting in Temecula .<span style="line-height: 21px;"> W</span>e wanted to stop by later for a dessert, since they had on the menu<span style="line-height: 21px;"> an a</span>pple cobbler with brie----maybe that is an excuse to return again soon.</div>
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Up next we briefly stopped at the Europa Village to just check it out before stopping at<span style="line-height: 21px;"> M</span><span style="line-height: 21px;">aurice Carrie winery</span><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>for some wine tasting.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We tried several good wines<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>including<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Cody’s Crush which was a pleasant red wine blend that didn’t have the aftertaste or bite that many reds do.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We also liked the white wine blend<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>called Heather’s Mist<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>which we got a bottle of to bring home with us.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We originally wanted to eat here at a place called the Plantation house (which is no more),<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>because of some legendary baked brie bread that our friends raved about.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> T</span>he restaurant may be gone but the bread was still there.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Unforuntately we were still stuffed from lunch so we can't comment on it other than to tell you it seems to be a pretty popular menu item, and it did look delicious!! </div>
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Up next we made our way to the South Coast Winery</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span"> At the South Coast Winery we met </span>with Jack Tempchin <span class="Apple-style-span">and got our bottles of Peaceful Easy Feeling Wine signed while snapping a quick photo with the music legend. <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Then we hung around for some wine tasting while enjoying Jack do an acoustic version of the song his namesake bottle of wine is named after.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>This was a pleasant surprise as was a taste of the wine itself.</div>
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<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>One last note: Brad's favorite wine from the days tasting was a dessert wine called "Daybreak" it tasted a lot like melted caramel so needless to say it was a must have for our wine collection.</div>
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Kim's favorite of the day was the South Coast GVR a white wine blend</div>
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Tune back in soon as look back at another Wine Adventure from 2013<br />
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brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-36204096907752191722013-12-10T22:30:00.001-08:002015-02-09T18:17:14.848-08:00Wine Adventures with the 2 Dollar Wine Connoisseurs:Wine, Cheese and Fries at the Montage<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"></span><br />
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We had wanted to visit The Montage Resort for their Cheese Gallery for over a year and finally got the chance while in the Laguna area this last weekend.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The Loft restaurant located at the Montage features a cheese gallery that sounded too good to pass up. <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The cheese gallery features 150 cheeses from around the world.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Fromagiers prepare a selection of cheeses from the types of cheeses you like and pair them with house-made jams and honey.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We selected a five cheese plate that cost about $30, What a Deal!! It featured<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>a Goat cheese with Rosemary, and an 18 month aged white cheddar, a creamy french Brie, a mild semi soft cheese (chef’s choice) and the best of the bunch a Blue Cheese from Minnesota.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We paired this cheese plate with a bottle of Sonoma Cutrer Chardonnay which made for the perfect dinner.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We also ordered the fry sampler that paired three types of fries with three types of dipping sauces!! We loved it!! <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7My0WdOi_NOEMPQ2Ihf82fzpHXKFDlDQAGWdqnx1zuPazrzEabRihBJt9sCeA7KoM_xjHSD1gHvdtBwWH5iW2OnVUX0DbDD3yDsNXwkL7EqbRFtLcy226Lg-6CwNo6X6-NJQEo0g1i5yU/s1600/Montage+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7My0WdOi_NOEMPQ2Ihf82fzpHXKFDlDQAGWdqnx1zuPazrzEabRihBJt9sCeA7KoM_xjHSD1gHvdtBwWH5iW2OnVUX0DbDD3yDsNXwkL7EqbRFtLcy226Lg-6CwNo6X6-NJQEo0g1i5yU/s640/Montage+2.jpg" height="640" width="550" /></a></div>
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I would definitely recommend a trip to the Montage for any cheese lovers…..plus you can’t beat the view.</div>
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After the meal we stopped upstairs and took a seat in the lobby lounge to watch the beautiful sunset while enjoying a glass of wine and a delicious holiday cocktail “A Santa Baby Martini”.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We both agree that if money wasn’t a factor that we would build our dream house at the Montage.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The view is something you would expect to find only in Hawaii.</div>
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<a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=370135&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="Wedding Paper Divas 30% Off Sitewide Cyber Week 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/29318_468x60_WPD_Wedding_Invitations_030.jpg" width="640" /></a>brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-26603120884805747592013-10-22T22:52:00.001-07:002015-02-09T18:21:10.686-08:00Wine Adventures with the 2 Dollar Wine Connoisseurs: Up Lounge ---Wine Down<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><b>To celebrate our anniversary this year we went to the Up Lounge. It is a part of the Sky Room in downtown Long Beach.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The Up Lounge definitely didn’t live up to our expectations.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>We had wanted to go here for several years, so when our anniversary came around we decided to meet a couple of friends that were also celebrating their anniversary . <span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The entrance to the Sky Room is on the side of the Breakers building which is basically an old folk’s home.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>Everything about the building said old (1930’s old) .<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The ground floor entrance lead down a haunted hallway past old photos and memorabilia of the early days of Long Beach.</b><span style="line-height: 21px;"><b> </b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px;"> </span></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><b><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The elevator to go up to the Sky Room looked like it was straight out of the Tower of Terror ride at Disney’s California Adventure.<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The Sky Room itself looked nice (though our friends that actually ate there said the food wasn’t as good as they had hoped for the price).<span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span>The Up Lounge was up some narrow old staircase that seemed straight out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie (Vertigo anyone?)</b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_2GujpHFtHv3fgOsy4CwOxu7uaTZeMydhl9qxX1VMRu_doTChqpgWjikEXOH2xHiIljw57iGku7lfVwfVP5wiBYOqq6fq3XfTuEclM4RNycPAEkiqCphtjJ5HbF2uRELUVj7T7OtHgt7E/s1600/Sky+Room+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6SlA_mkV_gqkh0GkS7bmMczR1SxH2LaTO8uqc50phj0RkuCzfURilhJksE6fN-oIgnKrMU17zeXXpqFDVutVRHdt4jIqU_zURKZBCQLWLF6XfbhoqcR_CWsWeHPEKw5wdF_xxN2m5pEVE/s1600/Sky+Room+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6SlA_mkV_gqkh0GkS7bmMczR1SxH2LaTO8uqc50phj0RkuCzfURilhJksE6fN-oIgnKrMU17zeXXpqFDVutVRHdt4jIqU_zURKZBCQLWLF6XfbhoqcR_CWsWeHPEKw5wdF_xxN2m5pEVE/s400/Sky+Room+2.jpg" height="400" width="298" /></a></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">I can’t even imagine how drunken people make their way safely back down after a couple of cocktails.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">The Up Lounge nothing like what we expected.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> We thought it was going to be this fancy rooftop are overlooking the harbor. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">We choose this place based on the website because of the food menu that featured Flat breads and cheese platters. When we asked for the menu once up there the online menu didn’t really exist.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">That menu is actually for the Wine down Lounge at the bottom of the building and if you wanted wine at the UP Lounge you needed to go back down the dangerous stairs and get it from the Sky room.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">Even though it had a view of the ocean, it was cold and had no wine or food as advertised. So we just meet up with our friends and headed down to the bottom floor via the Haunted Elevator. The Elevator emptied out into the old 1930’s lobby of the Retirement home.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">There was a cool old amusement park model that we wanted to check out ---but we were chased away quickly by angry nurses. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> So we made our way to the </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">The Wine Down Lounge which was completely empty when we entered at 8:30pm on a Friday night.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;"><span style="line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 21px;">We ordered some wine and hung out with our friends and ordered a 5 cheese plate which was actually really good salvaging the evening. The bartender there actually was someone who used to take my dad's backpacking classes at Long Beach City College and so we hung out and listened to some of his stories. I'd recommend the Wine Down Lounge (although it was so empty) because the cheese platter was so good. The Up Lounge.......NOT SO MUCH></span></b><br />
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<a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=370135&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="Wedding Paper Divas 30% Off Sitewide Cyber Week 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/29318_468x60_WPD_Wedding_Invitations_030.jpg" width="640" /></a>brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6282378915664943804.post-39998120735551127262013-09-25T21:10:00.001-07:002015-02-09T18:20:12.386-08:002 Bad Wines<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">We finally ran into a Russian River Valley Chardonnay that we didn't like. I don't know if it was just a bad bottle or if Clos Du Bois Sonoma Reserve 2012 is just that bad. The bottle we had the other night smelled like stinky feet. As you lifted the glass of wine to your lips it had the distinct smell of dirty socks. Apparently Clos Du Bois is French for stinky socks. The taste was tolerable, but the smell just made it not worth drinking. I couldn't get the stench of sock out of my nose. As we have mentioned before the Russian River Valley is like the Holy Lands as far as we are concerned, we hope to make a pilgrimage there someday. I don't know where this wine went wrong? Maybe instead of barrels the wine was aged in socks??? Maybe they bottled it right after the grape stomping??? I'm not sure what happened, but smelly sock wine is not on my "buy that again" list.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Another recent Wine we were not impressed with was The Skinny Vine. It describes itself as The Slim Chardonnay.......Flavor that Flatters......NOT SO MUCH....</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">We like our Chardonnay buttery and this Chard was not. It tasted like a bottle of Wine that your teenager had tried with her friends and then tried to hide the fact they were drinking by filling up half the bottle with water. Slim yes, Good tasting NO. Watered down is what it was. Another wine for the...."Don't buy that again" list</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=370135&u=714728&m=12808&urllink=&afftrack=" target="_blank"><img alt="Wedding Paper Divas 30% Off Sitewide Cyber Week 728x90" border="0" height="79" src="https://i.shareasale.com/image/12808/29318_468x60_WPD_Wedding_Invitations_030.jpg" width="640" /></a>brad chowenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13900138057391996937noreply@blogger.com0