this is halloween

And we used the pumpkin ice cream for an ice cream pie with an Oreo cookie crust. And we drank Schramsberg Crémant. And we watched...

got any ones?

So my job has it perks: good wine, good food, good people who also love good wine and good food. But it definitely has its shortcomings:...

not a utensil in sight

Woke up this morning craving Ethiopian food, all because last night's dinner was just so damn good. A group of us (sans costume,...

breaking the fast

For two days, neither of us ate. Because food was too much of a reminder, and even watching the Food Network hurt. Thankfully,...

please come home

Do you remember the day we allowed ourselves to be that couple, and we walked on the beach, holding hands? Do you remember the tiny...

dining alone

isn't as awful as you may think. I do it often. At lunch, nearly every day during the week. At brunch, today. I sat at the counter,...

don't laugh

I am cleaning my closet and folding my clothes and making piles. I am rearranging the furniture, setting up my iPod (yes, finally),...

reminders

Don't let it get to you: The fatigue from smiling so much and trying to entertain strangers, as you attempt to bring a 12-hour work...

the experiment

Dear cats: I thought you were supposed to bury your poo. I thought this was a Cat Thing: cat + litterbox + poo = bury. But no....

about paso robles

1. Instead of asking you for a $5 tasting fee (or any tasting fee at all), you will be asked if you've gotten a chance to sample...

potluck trivia

The origin of the potluck is not the Native American custom of potlatch, where the host throws a huge ceremonial dinner and sometimes...

diable incarné

Eric Asimov's recent article proves Michel Rolland is just as charming as he was portrayed on the big screen. My absolute favorite...

napa

One ritual: counting the hot air balloons on my drive to work. This morning, there were 11. But I could only capture two. The...

two days of sun

...

hello, I am an oinker.

Last night the fabulous Geisha came over for Sake House, Sauvignon Blanc and "Sex and the City" reruns. (The wine didn't exactly...

it rained

And this morning the streets were wet and the sky was heavy and it really, truly felt like fall. I am imagining mugs of hot cocoa....

could I be a workaholic?

Perhaps. Tonight I went to a fancy wine party at the de Young. I ate goat cheese and currant cones (amazing -- I could spend the...

now

I am a city girl. I am the one our production team laughs at because I think manual punchdowns and shoveling pomace are "fun" and...