pairing wine & food

A shared passion for wine and designing a wine cellar can really close the gap between client and designer.  After several meetings at this client's home, reviewing several wine cellar designs and enjoying a few glasses of wine together we developed a beautiful wine tasting room & cellar.  This client and I often engaged in conversations about a full bodied...

As you know, Vintage Cellars is located in sunny Southern California.  Sushi and Asian fusion has spread across the country, but it’s been a staple here as long as I can remember.    To bring my sushi experience to another level, I was longing to find a great red wine.  Wine and sushi? That should be interesting... Batman would say “to...

Thanksgiving Day is the ultimate challenge.  In my family, the Thanksgiving meal is served by passing the bowl and scooping up mass amounts of side dishes, followed by the massive serving dish of turkey and the vat of gravy to cover it all. Mashed potatoes & gravy, cranberries, fresh biscuits, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, wild rice--good luck pairing a...

As the holiday season draws nearer, we find ourselves meeting friends and family to drink, be merry, and forget how much money we're spending on Christmas presents.  Whether you're hosting a party or attending one, it's a good bet that sometime this month you'll be faced with that eternal challenge: the wine and cheese pairing.   A wine and cheese...

Wine lovers are often foodies too, and for them, there is nothing more satisfying than a wine perfectly matched to a dish, complementing and enriching the flavors of the food.  Such a meal is truly one of life's great pleasures, feeding both the stomach and the soul.  But with so many wines and so many dishes to choose from, forming...

To all you boyfriends and husbands out there: it's that time of year again.  Valentine's Day is fast approaching, which means that you'd better get thinking about what you're going to give the lovely woman in your life.  Sure, there are the old standbys like a dozen roses or a nice dinner out, but the gift that will truly wow...

Sure, the traditional beverage of St. Patrick's day is beer.  Usually it's a frothy pint of Guinness.  And if it's not Guinness, it's most likely dyed green.   And there are some who love their St. Patty's day beer and wouldn't consider parting with it for anything.  But others, faced with a pint glass of green beer, would prefer to...

1.  Uncorking the bottle before  service improves the wine. It's true that aeration before service does improve some wines.  But studies show that the neck of a wine bottle is too narrow to allow enough oxygen to get in contact with the wine to make any detectable difference in the taste and aroma.  If you want to aerate your wine...

The Easter Bunny is hopping our way, bringing with him (or is it her?) eggs, chocolates, and of course, a big Easter feast. Whether you view Easter as a meaningful religious event, the day that frees you from your Lenten sacrifice, or simply as a time to get together with family and friends and celebrate springtime, Easter always involves a...

So you're on your way to a dinner party.  You stop at a wine shop to pick up a bottle.  But then you stand there, bewildered.  Red or white?  How expensive?  What do your hosts like?  What will go with their dinner? Let us simplify matters for you: First of all, you should not expect that your hosts will serve...

Meet Malbec!  Malbec grapes are a beautiful deep purple color, and they produce a rich, dark wine.  Malbec is commonly used in combination with other grapes to create Bordeaux-style blends, but can stand alone as an exceptional wine as well. The Malbec grape is very thin-skinned, delicate, and easily ruined by frost.  It requires more sunlight than most grapes, and...

Summer's here and that means grilling season.  When the summer days mean it's too stifling to cook over a hot stove, I loveto take the kitchen prep outside and cook as much as I can over the open flame.  Not only does it keep the house cool, grilling outside lets me enjoy the warm summer evenings, and offers the delicious...

It's the height of summer, and tomatoes are at their juicy, sweet best right now.  I've been eating them in salads, on burgers, and even by themselves.  As you know all too well if you grow your own tomatoes, the season for these beauties is a short one, and as you know if you've ever even tasted a home-grown tomato...

Since our post on 3 Android Apps for Wine Lovers is so popular, and more apps are coming out for Android all the time, we figured we'd showcase a few more! Wine Dictionary: Even expert collectors occasionally run across a wine descriptor they've never seen before.  This wine glossary app isn't fancy, but it does the job: whether you're in...

It's that time of year: the leaves are changing and we've traded t-shirts for sweaters and scarves.  Soon, we'll settle in for a long winter's nap.  But what to drink in the meantime? Sure, there are the rich, deep reds that warm you from the soul, like Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon.  These are the quintessential wines of fall.  But...

The First Thanksgiving by Jean Louise Gerome With Thanksgiving quickly approaching, there's no time like the present to start planning your dinner menu--and the wines that will go with it.  Choosing wines for Thanksgiving can be a challenge, because you have to please a variety of palates and complement a variety of dishes.  But have no fear!  Our suggestions will...

Beaujolais Nouveau may just be the all-around perfect wine for Thanksgiving.  It's mentioned in wine guides again and again as the ideal accompaniment for the annual turkey feast.  So let's talk a little bit about this great wine and why it's such a perfect choice for a food lover's favorite holiday. Beaujolais Nouveau is a very young wine (hence the...

There's nothing wrong with picking a wine or two that will please all your guests and complement your full buffet of Thanksgiving dishes.  In fact, if that's your style, we have two posts for you: one on great Thanksgiving wines, and one on Beaujolais Nouveau. But if you're more of the adventurous type when it comes to wine, you might...

Christmas dinners are all over the map.  Some families celebrate with ham, some with prime rib.  Some have a round two of Thanksgiving dinner complete with turkey and stuffing.  If you're Italian, you might enjoy a traditional Feast of the Seven Fishes.  If you're German, you might have a roast goose.  The point is, it's nearly impossible to recommend the...

Domaine Monte De Luz 2008 The Tannat grape is believed to have its origins in the Basque region; however, its use in winemaking is associated with the Madrian region in southwestern France.  One of the easiest varietals to grow, Tannat does quite well in South America, Uruguay in particular. The  Tannat Domaine Monte de Luz 2008 is a very rustic...