California’s Central Coast American Viticultural Area (AVA) is a “super AVA” that consists of multiple smaller AVAs. The Central Coast AVA extends approximately 250 miles from, San Francisco to Santa Barbara, and includes places like Santa Barbara (remember the movie “Sideways”?), Paso Robles, Monterey, and Edna Valley. These areas are known for growing a variety of grapes including Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Syrah.
Bastille Day is celebrated on July 14th. It commemorates the storming of The Bastille, a medieval fortress, armory, and political prison, in Paris. Its fall was the French Revolution's flashpoint, and ultimately led to the French Monarchy’s downfall and the creation of a republican democracy. On this day, the French celebrate "Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity".
Sangria is a Spanish wine cocktail, which generally consists of wine, brandy, fruit juice, and sliced fruit. In recent years, both the white and red varieties have become popular. Sangria is great for summer parties. It can easily be made in large quantities, is refreshing on a hot day, and goes great with Prosciutto, burgers, and hot dogs. We have assembled several recipe options for your 4th of July weekend party. Add red, white, and blue fruit for a festive flair!
Red wine isn’t supposed to be cold, right? Wrong… sometimes. The wine world is warming up (ha!) to the idea of chilling certain red wines for summer drinking.
As summer and Father’s Day approach, attention tends to turn toward grilling. Over the last handful of years, the number of grill-focused tools, blogs, recipe books and TV shows seem to have multiplied by a factor of 10. At this point, you can grill pretty much anything—meat, vegetables, pizza, fruit, and even desserts. But what constitutes a good “grilling wine?” “Grilling wines” need three things: acidity, flavor, and body.
