M-O-O-N, that spells “fun”

Post Date: May 5th, 2012

 

Werewolves, take note! The biggest and brightest moon of the year will be making an appearance for Cinco de Mayo.

The full moon has had a dangerous reputation for centuries. Women have “moon babies,” people lose their minds, and emergency rooms fill up with people suffering from strange and exotic injuries, or at least that's how the old wives' tales go. Tales of crazy behavior and the moon's phases are so inextricably intertwined that they spawned the word “lunatic,” which comes from the Latin word luna, meaning, of course, moon.

We don't think any of this is a bad thing. In fact, we think that this is a great time to go a little crazy! Come howl at the supermoon with us and we'll show you the best places to let your lunatic flag fly: Join us for the Cinco de Mayo weekend festivities!

Brooke B., Moonbat

Posted in Beer, Breweries, bus tours, Food and Vine, Happy Hour, holiday, Uncategorized, Walking Tours, Wine, Wine Train, Wineries |

Leap into Fun!

Post Date: February 29th, 2012

Ask us about our Saint Patrick's Day tours!

Leap into something new, turn your routine on its ear, and have fun doing it! That isn't just a suggestion – it's part of a long and storied tradition.

Leap years, as you probably know, occur only in years divisible by four (or, in the case of a brand-new century, by 400.) The extra day that gets added onto the end of February helps synchronize the Gregorian calendar with the solar year, keeping important dates, such as the spring equinox, from drifting off into other seasons.

Since it is out of the ordinary, the Leap Year is also the subject of colorful folklore. In the British Isles, back when gender roles were much stricter, February 29 th was traditionally the only day that women could propose marriage to men; if he turned her down he had to pay a substantial amount of money, either to the would-be bride or to the Crown. It all started, according to tradition, in Ireland sometime around the 5 th century, when St. Bridget complained to St. Patrick that women had to wait far too long for men to propose – and thus, “The Ladies' Privilege” was born.

Whether or not the story of St. Bridey's Complaint is true is anybody's guess. What is indisputable is that February 29 th is associated with good luck (babies born on this day are thought to be exceptionally blessed) and a happy break in the routine.

So, whether you need a romantic setting to pop the question, a decadent way to celebrate your singlehood, or just a way to enjoy yourself on a lucky day, this is the perfect time to shake up your schedule in the best way possible: by booking one of our popular tours and savoring delicious wine, beer, and tasty food with us. And if you miss the quadrennial, don't despair – there are plenty more tours coming up!

Cheers!

Brooke Binkowski

Resident Journalist

Posted in Beer, Breweries, Food and Vine, Happy Hour, Health, holiday, Theme Tours, Tours, Travel, Uncategorized, Walking Tours, Wine |

Bikes and Beer

Post Date: January 14th, 2012
 
In San Diego, Saturdays are always so nice and sunny. So, it’s hard to resist just grabbing the bikes and seeing where the road takes us! Last weekend, we discovered the Silver Strand bike path. It’s a beautiful, flat trail with the ocean on one side and San Diego Bay on the other.
 
We left our little apartment in Banker’s Hill and headed south. We biked through downtown and then even further to Imperial Beach. That’s where we picked up the Silver Strand Bike Path that led us straight up to Coronado.
 
Made it!
 
After a 25 mile bike ride, we were very thirsty. Fortunately, it was just about lunch time and Coronado is home to the delicious Coronado Brewery! We parked our bikes outside and ordered ourselves a couple of beers.
 
We ordered Cherry Stout and the Orange Blonde. Refreshing!
 
It was almost impossible to decide what to order for lunch. Everything on the menu looked delicious! We finally settled on a bratwurst burger on a pretzel bun, a cup of chili and a salad, to share.
 
Time to eat all the calories we just burned off!

 

In a matter of moments, we consumed… everything…
 
 
Fortunately, there is a lovely ferryboat that will take you from Coronado to Downtown in about 15 minutes for about $4 and you can bring your bike! After a quick stop for coffee, we boarded our vessel home.
 
 
What a great way to spend a Saturday morning and afternoon!
 
Cheers!
Heather
La Jolla Wine Tours guide and cyclist

Posted in Beer, Breweries, Happy Hour, Health, Local Business, Tours, Travel |

Biking and Kebabs

Post Date: January 3rd, 2012
The weather in San Diego this past Saturday was gorgeous! After spending the last three winters in NYC, its lovely to spend a warm, sunny day out biking on New Year’s Eve.
 
This New Year’s Eve I combined two of my favorite things: cycling and Mediterranean food! While out on the bikes, we stumbled upon this little hole-in-the-wall place called The Kebab Shop.
 
Parking the bikes in front of The Kebab Shop.
 
 
The Kebab Shop storefront.
 
Having experienced many Mediterranean cuisine restaurants in NYC, we are tough critics. After browsing the menu, we decided to try out the staples. Falafel and lamb. The tall stacks of rotating lamb and chicken slowly roasting on a vertical spit all day were too tempting.
 
We were pleasantly surprised by both the falafel and lamb shwarma. The falafel was decently priced; $1.99 scored you 6 freshly fried and crisp falafel balls served with your choice of garlic yogurt or spicy sauce. The falafel is deliciously crispy on the outside while maintaining a soft and chewy texture on the inside. Lightly dipped in the homemade garlic yogurt sauce delighted our taste buds and had us drooling for more.
 
Falafel and garlic yogurt sauce.
 
Fortunately, we had ½ a scrumptious lamb shawarma to enjoy next! The smell and texture of the lamb was perfection. It came wrapped not in a pita, but in a handmade tortilla. It is a delicious San Diego twist on the traditional shawarma wrapped in flatbread. The wrap is well worth the price. You are served a large ~12 inch long wrap stuffed with lamb, sauce and salad for $6.79.
 
Lamb Shawarma. Delicious!
 
If we weren’t on our bikes, I would have ordered a New Belgium Fat Tire to pair with this delicious lunch. They offer a small selection of craft beers on tap, so we will definitely be returning to The Kebab Shop for dinner sometime soon!
 

 

Cheers!
Heather
Tour Guide

Posted in Beer, Breweries, Happy Hour, Tours, Wine, Winemaking, Wineries |

A Taste of Little Italy

Post Date: December 29th, 2011
 
There are so many delicious neighborhoods in San Diego to explore. I recently moved within walking distance of Little Italy, so I decided to check my new local eateries.
 
After only a few blocks, I came across Pete’s Quality Meats and Grilled Sandwiches.  Their window claimed to have the best homemade sausage sandwiches in town!
 
 
So we stepped inside to find a friendly Italian guy manning a well-loved grill warming sausage and peppers.
 
 
After a quick look at the menu, we placed our order. One homemade sausage sandwich with everything please!
 
 
Sandwiches with everything come with grilled onions and peppers, the steak with melted cheese. You can add salt, pepper, mustard, and hot sauce to taste. The sausage is hand made daily. Sweet and rich, without being over herby, it is unlike any store bought brat. The bread is crusty on the outside, tender and sweet on the inside, and caked with sesame seeds.  A few minutes and few bucks later, we started devouring our delicious lunch. Paired with a Stone Brewery IPA, this lunch combination would be hard to beat! Bon Appétit!
 
  
I’m looking forward to future food exploring! After all, we need to find something for dessert…
 
Cheers!
Heather

Posted in Beer, Breweries, Food and Vine, Happy Hour, Local Business, Tours, Uncategorized, Walking Tours, Wine, Wine Train, Winemaking, Wineries |

Drinking in the Dark

Post Date: September 9th, 2011

Our lovely Coaster Train Wine Tour today started off beautifully in a scenic north San Diego Village. We ate more than enough at our partner fine-dining Italian restaurant and learned all about wine tasting and the process of evaluating wine. Once full of delicious Italian fare, we strolled over to our first urban Winery and sampled a large assortment of their wine. Our talented winemaker, and his crew were busy moving things around in the winery in preparation for the harvest. Grapes are coming soon! Our hostess, Sherry, was nice enough to describe the basic wine making process and our guests enjoyed poking around the winery to check out all the fancy equipment. Once finished, we had some extra time before the coaster, so we walked down towards the water and just enjoyed the sights and sound of the ocean waves for a while. Very refreshing.

We caught the train south in perfect time. Little did we know it would be the last running coaster train for over 3 hours! We enjoyed window shopping in our next little coastal village before arriving at our next boutique winery. We tasted our way down their wine list while reports of the blackout started rolling in. Knowing that the trains were not running for a while, our winemaker invited us to stay. A winery is the PERFECT place to be stranded in a blackout! The power being out did not stop our guests from ordering lots of delicious wines. Together, they ordered a case of wine to be delivered to their home in Minnesota. We were the only guests there our winemaker and tasting host treated our guests with special off-the-menu tastings. We had fun conversations about winemaking and how long the winery could operate without power. The winemaker reported to us: “Only one day.” Good thing they got power up and running again quickly!

While waiting on the platform, we made some new friends. Lots of people ran out of gas and were hoping the Coaster could take them home to San Diego. One couple needed to get home to their dogs in Chula Vista. Our guests raved about the wine tour they were on and how much they ate and drank all afternoon. Our new friends were envious so we shared some leftover cheese and bread with them. Even after waiting an hour for the train, we all agreed that there are worse places to be stranded. Considering worst case scenario was to lay on the gorgeous beach there, watch the sunset, sip on a glass of Muscat, and dine on chocolate and cheese all evening…. I’m sure I was not the only one secretly hoping the Coaster would not come

But alas, around 6:45pm a train pulled into the station. When the doors opened, a whole bunch of people exited the train shouting “freedom!” Apparently they have been stuck on the train since the power shut off around 3:40pm. Oh dear! Along the way south, we saw a broken sewage pipe in the road off to our left. The streets were completely flooded and blocked off by police vehicles. The news this morning reported that over 3.2 million gallons of sewage have contaminated our lovely beach towns. How unfortunate!

Next we arrived in a usually bustling town which was eerily quiet and deserted. Our final winery stop was closed but our guests were amazing and completely understanding. They enjoyed all of the wines and VIP treatment at our other stops. Before we hugged goodbye I gave them complimentary tickets for our winery that was closed so as they could experience that wonderful stop in the future. I left them with their dark chocolate bar to enjoy at their leisure and said goodbye. Their plans that evening were to drink Muscat and dine on chips and chocolate next to their hotel pool. Lovely!

Thanks to our tour guide Heather for the above blog post.

Posted in Food and Vine, Happy Hour, holiday, Local Business, Theme Tours, Tours, Travel, Walking Tours, Wine, Wine Train, Winemaking, Wineries |