California Wine and Food - Articles - Beyond California

Taking a Chance: The Right Choice in Travel Part III

no@spam.com (Marianne Lucchesi Hamilton) — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 08:56:38 EDT

Monsieur Weber outdoes himself the following day. After breakfast on our balcony, we jump on the bikes and head off. It’s worth noting that on this somewhat overcast, sultry day, I have chosen European Female biking attire: skirt, camisole, strappy sandals, and chignon. As we pedal off, I envision myself as “Burgundy Biker Babe.” Only an American on holiday can ...

Taking a Chance: The Right Choice in Travel Part II

no@spam.com (Marianne Lucchesi Hamilton) — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 08:55:06 EDT

And then … as we arrived at our destination in Burgundy, it was apparent that serendipity wasn’t quite finished with us. Our surroundings at the Chateau de Challanges were almost too perfect to process: Butterflies from hydrangea, to lily, to primrose. A chorus of birds with seemingly inexhaustible lung-capacity chirped and trilled, and the perfume of 100-foot trees laden with snowy blossoms hung heavy in the air. Somewhere behind the scenes...

Taking a Chance: The Right Choice in Travel

no@spam.com (Marianne Lucchesi Hamilton) — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 08:53:29 EDT

In travel, there are moments of divine serendipity. Or rather, there can be if we allow them to happen. True, that does require a willingness to venture beyond our normal comfort-zone. But if we do, the rewards can be profound.

My mate and I discovered this in a huge way during our recent European excursion. His business took us to several of the EU’s most famous locales – London, Paris, Amsterdam, and ...

Coast to Coast Part 2

no@spam.com (Dan Clarke) — Thu, 24 May 2007 08:36:02 EDT

We are due to check in at the historic Homestead in Hot Springs this afternoon. It’s nearly two o’clock when we leave Wade’s Mill and we have another stop scheduled in the Raphine area. After a hurried—but surprisingly thorough—tasting at Rockbridge Vineyard, we head for the famed resort. The roads are...

Coast to Coast; A Californian Visits Virginia

no@spam.com (Dan Clarke) — Thu, 17 May 2007 08:32:23 EDT

My friend Dan Malcolm called last month. He publishes several trade magazines for agricultural audiences and he explained that his readers might want to know about the grapegrowing scene in Virginia.

Carpe Diem: Why Not Rome For Your Birthday?

no@spam.com (CWF Sources) — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 08:18:57 EDT

A long band of golden sunshine was peaking through the night sky as my wife and I approached Rome on our nine-hour Delta flight. I will never forget it. It was a streak of a special hue that is forever etched in my consciousness. I had visions of...

Carmenére – Chile’s Unique Grape

no@spam.com (CWF Sources) — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 07:44:17 EST

We (my wife and I) recently had the opportunity to vacation in Chile and, of course, explore their fine wines. The trip was fascinating for a number of reasons, not the least being my first introduction to...

What’s the Rush. Let It Breathe

no@spam.com (CWF Sources) — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 07:24:26 EDT

By Matthew A. De Bellis ROME -- I was early, so I decided to stroll the blocks that flow out from the Spanish Steps, an unusual, neat grid of streets in a city where orderliness is fleeting and everyone gets lost. Amid this rare symmetry are stores that flaunt 100-Euro bath towels, framed antique etchings and dynamite broaches, like the one I saw in the form of a huge housefly with precious wings laced with diamonds. And then the clothes: shop after shop displays high fashion accoutrements and matching prices.

Cataluña, Part I

no@spam.com (CWF Sources) — Wed, 07 Jun 2006 07:22:38 EDT

I didn’t even know how to spell the destination.

My schoolbooks would have called the region Catalonia, but the invitation to explore the wine and food of this region referred to it as Cataluña. A map I picked up called it Catalunya.No matter. I was going. In any era, this northeastern corner of Spain would have had appeal, but in recent years it’s become one of the most creative parts of the culinary world—perhaps the most creative.

Dropping in for Tea

no@spam.com (Dan Clarke) — Thu, 25 May 2006 07:03:54 EDT

It was the smoothest and most scenic flight I can remember.

Our 35-minute float plane ride from Vancouver was efficient, but it was also fun. Seated right behind the cockpit, we could share our pilot’s view as we gracefully descended into Victoria’s Inner Harbour. The 18-passenger De Havilland Twin Otter touched down and taxied to a dock just a few hundred yards from our destination.

The hotel was in sight, but it was at street level and definitely uphill from the harbor.