Eight Bridges Brewing - Livermore

4/5 stars

GIANT Jenga! That's what we saw right when we walked through the door. How can a place not be awesome with giant Jenga? And indoor cornhole? And Yahtzee? AND PUPPIES?!

Puppies and beer. It's just... it's just... it's fluffy, hoppy awesomeness.

Oh, and have you ever heard a tower of giant Jenga blocks fall? It's quite impressive. Like thunder in a bottle.

3 Steves Winery - Livermore

3/5 stars

3 Steves was super friendly, but the wine wasn't as tasty as what we'd get in Sonoma or Healdsburg. I'm also not usually a fan of non-champagne houses making champagne... it's not easy! There was a brut, white wine blend (not bad), chardonnay, three cabs blend, chilean blend (this was pretty good), younger vine zin, "Three Brunettes" blend, merlot, cab franc, cab sauv, and a port. Even though the wines weren't our style, we still enjoyed the $10 tasting and sitting outside, breathing in the clean air and watching the hawks fly across the green hills...

A nice place to celebrate Valentine's Day :)

Altamont Beer Works - Livermore

4/5 stars

Altamont was FUN. Very chill with attentive staff despite the crowd. We found a nice spot at the bar and chatted with regulars while sipping super hoppy beer. We tried the Hella Lite, Rich Mahogany, Shot Away IPA, New Kids on the Hops, Ganja Juice, and the Something New stout. Hoppy is not my style, but the Ganja is worth a try. I'd go back for the Berry White: a summer wheat/cream ale brewed with pale malt and white wheat; finished with natural blackberries...

Wente Vineyards - Livermore

2/5 stars

Valentine's Day weekend, hubby and I decided to discover Livermore. Did you know Livermore has craft breweries? Did you know Livermore has wineries?

WHO KNEW?!

So we started our adventure with Wente. It. Was. Packed! I think the staff was overwhelmed. We were overwhelmed. So instead of doing a tasting, we escaped the crowds and ordered 2 glasses of wine (the sauvignon blanc and the riesling) and walked the property. It was HUGE. Very mission-style. Unfortunately, the white wine was served warm (ick) and was either bland (the sauv blanc) or syrupy sweet (the riesling).

We left uninspired...

Onward!

Clif Family Winery at Velo Vino - St. Helena

5/5 stars

This place was very special. And, it was FUN.

Super friendly staff.

EXCELLENT wine.

Laid-back atmosphere.

Bruschetta food truck.

We accidentally "crashed" the rose of grenache launch party. All our wine was paired with yummy snacks. It is, HANDS DOWN, the BEST rose I've ever had. If you think you don't like rose, you should try this "ballet slipper" rose. It's extremely lovely and the prettiest pink. Bright, with aromas of pear, mandarin, and watermelon Jolly Rancher, I am kicking myself for not buying another bottle. We're just going to have to go back.

Laura, the winemaker, spent time with us and we enjoyed speaking to her. She speaks like a teacher. She's wonderful.

We went home with half a case! Including the rose, the gewuztraminer (dry! which is the best way to have gewuzt so it's not too syrupy sweet), and the sauvignon blanc (a treat of peach)! We also tried the prochetta bruschetta and the arancini. The bruschetta (Long and Bailey Farms pig, garden herbs, red onion, aioli, and parmesan) was awesome, but the honeynut squash arancini stole the show. It tasted like macaroni and cheese! We would've ordered more if we didn't have dinner reservations at Ad Hoc ;)

Honestly, I would've signed up to be a club member if we lived closer to attend the parties!

The Bywater - Los Gatos

5/5 stars

I am obsessed with this place. 

Since January, if anyone asks me where I want to eat or where they should eat or where their mom should eat... I say TheBywaterTheBywaterTheBywater!!!

The first time we went for my birthday and I was *so* giddy, I want to take this moment to thank the staff for putting up with me. I mean, I literally squealed like a fangirl when David Kinch stood by my seat at the bar. Squealed. Like. A. Pig.

I think the Birthday Gods were kind because we found parking right away and there was NO LINE! Woo! 

Right when we entered, we were ushered to an empty spot near the bar with a great view of the kitchen. We started with half a dozen oysters (my favorites are from St. Simone), and a Hurricane for me (jamaican rum blend, passion fruit, campari, lemon) and a Sazerac for him (rye, armagnac, hermsaint, peychaud's bitters, gomme). Hubby said it was the best Sazerac he's ever had.

Actually, everything you drink at The Bywater will be the best you've ever had. Reason: Tin Roof Drinking Company. Claire & Chad are not rising stars in the cocktail scene, they ARE the stars. They've created a menu highlighting New Orleans ingredients, dazzle, and idiosyncrasies. Yes, they're talented, but they are also super humble and thoughtful. Claire spoiled us and spent the evening talking to us. I had such a wonderful time because of her. She even made me a birthday cocktail: tequila, lemon juice, honey, herbsaint, sparkling cava, and the fluffiest egg whites ever.

We also had the:

PRAH-LEEN (bourbon, pecan, banana & lime): tastes like pie

Frappé (herbsaint, apple & lime): this has a very distinct taste (anise) and if you want a cocktail you've probably never tasted before, get this one

Irish Channel (whisky, cognac, nitro cold brew coffee, cynar & spice mix): it goes really well with the butterscotch pudding

Shrimp Po' Boy: BEST SANDWICH IN THE BAY AREA (possibly the world)

Red Beans & Rice: succulent, tastes like bacon

Butterscotch Pudding: I'm christinepuddin and I adore pudding

Now you wanna hear about my other visits here? (I told you I was obsessed.) I'll keep it short and just tell you that we were spoiled silly by the awesome Jeremy & Nikki. This is what we had:

West Indy Sour (cabernet wine, cognac, all-spice dram & lime) 

No Mayo (gin, aperol, St-Germain, lime & champagne)

3 Dots and a Dash (2 types of rum, falernum, lime, all-spice dram, bitters, honey, oj, and tiki love)

The Maguey Sour (the only mezcal I've ever liked, orgeat, lemon, egg white & benedictine)

And because it was almost-Valentine's Day (and because it's SO hard to get): Old Rip Van Winkle 10 year... and in case you were wondering, hubby said that Pappy wasn't just hype ;)

The Restaurant At Meadowood - St. Helena

Going again soon... so moving this to the top of my blog because *squee*...

5/5 stars

Transcendent. I felt like I was floating, watching this girl, this couple, experience this - they are very lucky.

The dining room is quite intimate, with only 20 or so tables. Dark wood, cream-colored walls, crisp, white tablecloths with bright, yellow flowers in cloudy vases, and big windows allowing lots of light. We got seated next to one of the windows, overlooking the porch and the trees. An envelope with the restaurant's seal greeted us. It wished us a happy anniversary.

Olin was our host for the evening and he was friendly and easy to talk to. He asked us if we wanted to see the menu or if we wanted to be surprised. We said we wanted to be surprised. We were there for the journey. And one of the best parts of this journey? Getting to see what vessel Chef Kostow was going to use to display his food. The ceramics were part of the joy.

My husband did the wine pairing, but I opted for the bartender's, Sam, wild and wonderful concoctions. He even makes his own root beer. He delivers the drink with stories about what inspired them - thoughtful childhood memories. He was so sincere and incredibly talented.

I didn't get to speak to Chef Kostow that night when we toured the efficient kitchen, but I saw him again a couple weeks later when he came to Google to talk. I got another cookbook signed and got to tell him that his mashed potatoes with caviar was the best thing I'd ever eaten in my life.

The teasers:
Olive
Kale chip with chorizo
Clam

The menu:

Gwen avocado oyster rancho chimiles walnut
Fermented potato caviar nasturtium
Broccoli whelk agretti
Abalone coal roasted eggplant smoked pepper
Cod cooked in sunflower petals
Kohlrabi cooked in it's own juice flax seed mustard
Squab "tea"
Grilled squab hibiscus leaf berries
Veal short rib tendon roe dill
Alpine cheese roasted pumpkin honey truffle
Olive oil coconut borafe
Ha'ogen melon padron pepper vanilla
Praline

The highlights:

Fermented potato caviar nasturtium: Picture a smooth, white, perfect mound of the most delicious mashed potatoes ever made. Then imagine dipping your spoon into the center of it and, to your surprise, exposing a heart of tiny, quivering, shiny, black caviar. Served with warm, fresh, tiny, fluffy, buttery, salty rolls. Best. Thing. I. Have. Ever. Eaten.

Alpine cheese roasted pumpkin honey truffle: The presentation was fun (it was served in the pumpkin itself) and the cheese was creamy and only slightly pungent. It was perfect paired with the sweet honey and the homemade sourdough rye. I am not a rye fan, but I ate that entire loaf.

Grilled squab hibiscus leaf berries: Chef Kostow seems to utilize every bit of the plant or animal. Before we had the squab, we drank its tea. The squab with berries was amazing. It reminded me of the nursery rhyme, "Sing a Song of Sixpence":
Four and twenty blackbirds,
Baked in a pie.
When the pie was opened,
The birds began to sing;
Wasn't that a dainty dish,
To set before the king?

I am no king, but Meadowood made me feel blessed. I'm coming back, and I'm bringing family.

(Oct 1, 2014)