Bordeaux: The Art of Blending Wines

Ahhhhh, Bordeaux, heavenly juice!!!! We signed up at the College of San Mateo Community Education class and got to learn all about Bordeaux!

http://sanmateo.augusoft.net/index.cfm?

We wanted to learn and explore the complexity of the wines produced from the Left Bank of the Gironde River to the harmonious wines of the Right Bank.

Getting ready to taste some great wines and learning about different types of corks

Seriously taking notes and the best part, pouring!!!

Cheers!!

We can now call ourselves savvy connoisseurs of Bordeaux wines!

Fun Cooking School

We signed up at Draeger’s School in San Mateo and it was such a blast!! http://www.draegerscookingschool.com/index.aspx

Not only did we learned to cook, we also got to meet some other students in the class who are super cool.

The class we took was called “Appetizer Party”. Students were divided into groups and everyone got to have hands one experience. We got to enjoy our creation through out the class.

Getting ready and checking out the recipes

We learned to make:

Buffalo-Spiced Shrimp Kebab with Brandied Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce

Monte Cristo Finders with Spicy Apricot Dipping Sauce

Crispy Camembert with Roasted Grapes and Fresh Rosemary

Smoked Salmon and Parmesan Cream Croustades

Spanish Tortilla Bites with Manchego and Chorizo

And Creamy Cannoli Cups

We also got to bring home a complete receipt for all the dishes.

Now we are ready to host our own appetizer party!!

Meeting casts from Love Pyar Whatever

Love Pyar Whatever is a movie about a young man who travels to the U.S. in search of his one true love. The movie also illustrates the clash between eastern and western cultures.

http://www.lovepyarwhatever.com/

The movie is mostly shot  in San Francisco and we had the pleasure viewing the film and meet the awesome cast!!! It was such a blast for us as we were sipping champagne and eating popcorn in the theater. While watching the movie, we recognized many beautiful sceneries from our beautiful city!

The best part was get to meet the cast after the movie and learned about their filming experience. There were abundant talent and it was interesting to learn that the cast range from experienced actors in film and stage to others who are novice.

https://www.facebook.com/LovePyarWhatever/photos_stream?tab=photos_stream

Art & Wine Faire, San Carlos

Now that we are in fall, it’s a great time to visit Art & Wine Faire in San Carlos this Saturday, 10/11 and Sunday, 10/12.

San Carlos is a beautiful quaint town and during the faire, the street is closed and a whole bunch of kiosks are put up. The kiosks show case many unique work of local artists and it’s a great time to start shopping for the holidays (for those over achievers). In addition, there will be tons of food, wine, beer, and music.

http://sancarloschamber.org/san-carlos-art-wine-faire-2014/

From previous Art & Wine Faire we attended and it was truly a blast!!

Union Street Wine Walk in San Francisco

What’s not to love about Union Street? It’s one of San Francisco’s area with fascinating history in the setting for the rich architectural flavor and one foremost shopping streets.

There are boutiques, restaurants, nightlife and much more. AND on Thursday, October 9^th, we can enjoy all Union Street has to offer while sipping wines from various wine makers. In addition, Union Street has the most beautiful people visiting. Gotta check it out!

http://sresproductions.com/union_street_wine_walk.html

http://www.unionstreetshop.com/

An exquisite pop up dining experience at a secret location in San Francisco

3^rd Cousin is in undergoing construction, and until their permanent space opens later this fall, 3^rd Cousin is hosting interactive dining experience out of secret location at the Bernal/Mission border (which is revealed via e-mail, how exciting is that?)

http://www.3rdcousinsf.com/

We truly had the pleasure enjoying chef Greg’s incredible talent presented in 5 course meal!

Secret location was unbelievably charismatic!

There were some out of this world snacks before dinner was served. One of them was uni on potato. How creative is that?

First course was spaghetti squash & pine nut fritter

Second course was duo of Alaskan halibut and local albacore

Third course was seared sea scallops & crisp pork belly

Fourth course was grilled skaushi skirt and sirloin steak

For dessert, it was roasted granny smith apple and local berries

We got to go the kitchen while chef Greg and his team were performing magic and that was truly an experience of a life time!

We thoroughly enjoyed our pop up dining experience and can’t wait for the opening of 3^rd Cousin!!

Pacific Coast Fog Fest

Pacifica is located just 12 miles south of San Francisco along the scenic coast of the Pacific Ocean. The city is known for its natural beauty, and is filled with numerous hiking trails through rolling hills that overlook the ocean surf and forested canyons.

We love watching the surfers conquer the waves, watching spectacular sunsets. We also loves various local restaurants that serve awesome seafood!

This weekend, 9/27 and 9/28, the city is hosting Pacific Coast Fog Fest. http://pacificcoastfogfest.com/

The Pacific Coast Fog Fest is a celebration of everything beautiful in Pacifica which includes the sun, sand, surf and marvelous coastal climate.

The Fog Fest kicks off Saturday morning at 10 am with the Discover Pacifica Parade and Marching Band Competition.  Visitors and then stay and enjoy their Arts and Crafts booths, Food and Beverage booths, Musical Entertainment, Family Fun Fest and a variety of  other activities.

Wine Walk Downtown San Mateo

Wine lovers, you will love this event today at Downtown San Mateo from 2-5pm! http://dsma.org/wine-walk-2014/

Downtown San Mateo is truly booming! With burgeoning restaurant and merchant scenes, we are planning to enjoy this afternoon sipping wine and peruse through local shops.

We were there couple years ago and it was a lot of fun. Merchants opened their shops as “Tasting Rooms” where we sipped wines from various regions.  Many partnered with local restaurants and/or provide light bites for us to nibble while we enjoyed our wine. There was music and a variety of entertainment as well.

We are excited to see how the event turn out this year!

Best Nabeyaki Udon!

If you like Nabeyaki Udon, then you must try Ganko Sushi in San Carlos on 1131 Cherry St. It’s a "hole in the wall" type of place, "mom and pop shop" (literally!! I believe the husband is the chef and the wife is the wait staff).

Nabeyaki Udon is a type of hot udon noodle soup traditionally served in individual donabe (earthernware pot) or iron pots. Besides udon noodles, the soup includes chicken, salmon, crab, napa, carrots.  In addition, an egg (cooked perfectly), 2 large shrimps and tempura shaving are served on top. The broth is super flavorful.

We usually order our own bowl, it’s too good to share!

We’ve had a lot of Nabeyaki Udon and this one is truly the BEST!

Supporting Napa, after earthquake

What happened in Napa was personally devastating because it’s a town that we adore so much! We’ve decided to visit Napa after earthquake to support local vendors and merchants.

The trip brought mixed feelings…many buildings were block off due to the damages,  however, many others also opens up and welcomed visitors. People of Napa are strong and the community pulled together beautifully!

We brought our bike with us so we can cover more distance of Napa without worrying about parking.

We visited the General Napa Store, http://www.napageneralstore.com/

What a great discovery! They offer unique gifts from local Napa artists, personalized wine tasting from local small wineries and exquisite breakfast by the riverfront!

We grabbed a quick lunch at The Pear Southern Bistro http://rodneyworth.com/the-pear-southern-bistro/ and enjoyed “southern comfort food”.

More biking around the river front

For dinner, we spoiled ourselves at Chef Morimoto’s place http://morimotonapa.com/ it was a true dining experience pleasure without any adjectives that can describe the pleasure!

Of course, there were several other places that we supported such as:

·       Oxbow Public Market http://oxbowpublicmarket.com/ (where the locals gather for great food and wine)

      V. Sattui on Highway 29 just before St. Helena https://www.vsattui.com/ (Incredible deli. Try some cheeses before buying, choose a chutney or spread to go with it, grab a baguette and chocolates, and you have a great picnic. Gourmet sandwiches are also great choice).

   

      Overall, it was an amazing experience. We got to talk to the locals about their experience with the earthquake. People of Napa are strong and it's truly a tight community!

Millbrae Art and Wine Festival

Millbrae is known as "The Last Stop on BART" to most people, however, it is also a great place to live and visit especially this long weekend!

This weekend is the 44th Millbrae Art & Wine Festival (August 30-31, 2014, 10 am to 5 pm), which is the The Bay Area's Biggest Labor Day Weekend Bash!

The "Big Easy" is coming to Millbrae for this huge Labor Day weekend event and the theme is going to be Mardi Gras-style feast.

In addition, there will be handcrafted wares, festive food and drink, premium wines, microbrews and margaritas, artisan specialty food and much more!!

https://www.facebook.com/MillbraeArtWineFestival/info

Hope to see you there!