From mid-October to mid-November, here are 6 standout cocktails and new menus I’ve been tasting around the Bay Area. 1. 15 Romolo’s Miraculous Milk Punch With in-house sherry expert Ian Adams and an impressive collection of over 500 spirits, 15 Romolo has been one of SF’s greatest bars for over a decade. Their sherry collection is one of their strengths and… Read more →
My 7th year attending Whiskyfest San Francisco (also held in Chicago and NYC annually) and like any other year, the event held many revisits of favorite whiskies (here are last year’s standouts), from Scotland, Japan, Ireland, Canada and the US in the massive underground ballrooms of the SF Marriott Marquis. Between re-tasting greats like Aberlour’s A’bunadh and Hibiki’s gorgeous 21… Read more →
From mid-September to mid-October, here are the 10 standout cocktails and new menus I’ve been tasting around the Bay Area — and it’s quite a season for stellar cocktails. I had a tough time calling out the best overall this month but specifically from a few of these menus where there were a number of stars. Mourad’s Curry & MilkEver-talented… Read more →
Almost daily, I’m tasting a wide range of spirits, wines and beers, whether at restaurants, bars, distilleries, wineries, breweries or as samples crossing my desk. This Summer, here are 10 memorable wines I tasted on menus around the Bay Area, best for different purposes from value to uniqueness. 2013 Terlan Quarz Sauvignon Blanc at Michael Mina The wine list at… Read more →
Through September, here are the standout cocktails and new menus I’ve been tasting around the Bay Area. This is an article I wrote for Blackboard Eats, published September 22, 2015. 1. Black Sands’ Quinine & Pine Brand new Black Sands is a brewery and restaurant (with a killer cheeseburger and bites) but thanks to a cocktail menu created by Nicolas… Read more →
Almost daily, I’m tasting a wide range of spirits, wines and beers, whether at restaurants and bars, distilleries, wineries or breweries or as samples crossing my desk. Over the past few months, there have been many new spirits releases, including these spring and winter releases since the year began. I’ve been having fun experimenting with cocktails with recently released Cent-Anni… Read more →
From mid-July to mid-August, here are the standout cocktails and new menus I’ve been tasting around the Bay Area. 1. Calavera’s Princesa de la Maracuya Just opened in Oakland on August 7th (more on the opening in my Zagat feature), Calavera exudes big city-cool in its lofty dining room, bar and open air porch, serving sophisticated Mexican food and a… Read more →
From mid-June to mid-July, here are the standout cocktails and new menus I’ve been tasting around the Bay Area, including a number of favorites pulled from my July 6 Zagat article on top summer cocktails. 1. Saison’s Milk Punch – and Gardens of Plymouth [From my July 6 Zagat Summer Cocktails article]: With pricey tasting menus and a fantastic (hidden)… Read more →
For lovers of Japanese whisky — akin to and birthed from Scotch and Scotland but entirely Japanese in its sense of balance and harmony — Yamazaki is a special whisky. Privileged as I have been to taste many variations and special casks of Yamazaki over the years, including the acclaimed 1984 and Sherry Cask bottlings, and being the whisky that… Read more →
Partners Mark Nevin and April Sack opened Tofino Wines this March, which made our 10 Hottest Bars Now list for its unique setting, strong wine selection and notable emphasis as wine hangout/bar as much as it is a retail wine merchant. Alongside an ever-changing, stellar by-the-glass wine list and bottle selection, sherry lovers will delight in the growing sherry section… Read more →