Holiday

Bon soir, mes amis!  It’s almost time for one of our favorite days, Fat Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras (same thing, but French.) The holiday is celebrated the day before Ash Wednesday, which signifies the beginning of Lent; that means it’s a great excuse to party. You don’t need to be in New Orleans…

The blustery weather has blown through San Diego, rain has come and gone, and for the first time in a couple of years, flowers are nodding in the breeze. The drought might not be completely over, but this spring is a welcome respite! We think that a little celebration is definitely in order, especially since Easter’s almost here and, as we’ve mentioned before, Easter and beer have quite a lot of history in common. Bavarian monks used to brew beer for Lent, a fast that lasts about a month and a half. The beer, Dopplebock, was brewed to be “liquid bread,” so it was dark and hearty, offered a lot of nutrients, and packed quite a punch – often up to 13 percent alcohol! This probably made the Lenten season, which ends with Easter, a lot easier to bear. Beer,…

Image Source: Flickr user Mark Gstohl Mardi Gras is almost here! This is one of the best times of year to be a lover of food and drink. It’s related to Carnaval, which comes from the phrase “carne vale,” or “farewell to the flesh,” and in the Christian calendar is the time of feasting before the self-deprivation of Lent begins. The Mardi Gras feasting and partying day is also known as Shrove Tuesday, the day that precedes Ash Wednesday. Both days are known as “moveable feast” days, which got their name because their dates move throughout the year in relation to Easter Sunday, which is always held on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Northern Hemisphere’s spring equinox. That’s a mouthful, so to speak. But we love moveable feasts so much that’s what we do! Every…

Today’s the day! Superbowl Sunday always gets people worked up, whether they’re fans of the teams, enjoying the high drama (especially this year), or just watching the Puppy Bowl instead.  Either way, beer and food are integral parts of Superbowl (or Puppy Bowl) Sunday!  We know this, love this, and think everyone should make the most of it. Since salty foods are a big thing for any football game, here’s our tips for enjoying every moment of today: Get bitter! San Diego’s signature Double IPA style is a great match for Superbowl foods.  Salty burgers, fries, and chips and guacamole are all perfect foils for your favorite hoppy brews.  Try Alpine Beer Company’s Exponential Hoppiness for a breathtaking match for your game viewing. Not hoppy enough for you? If you look very, very carefully, you may be able to find…

  Happy Saint Patrick's Day! Saint Patrick's Day is a Christian feast day that is celebrated as a holiday in Ireland and Northern Ireland.  It's also a special day in America, and around the world, for members of the Irish Diaspora. Oh, who are we kidding! It's one of the best days of the year for beer lovers. Especially since we now don't have to settle for green beer which, let's face it, isn't anywhere near as good coming up as it is going down.  But now that San Diego is truly a full fledged mecca for beer lovers, with a strong population of Irish people and Irish-Americans to boot, Saint Patty's is way more than just a day to imbibe. It's a day to savor!   Instead of going green this year, why not go red?  Red ales are…

The holidays have barreled down on us like a freight train and suddenly, it’s almost 2015.  Are you prepared for the parties and gifts?  How about dinners with family and friends? Prepared or not, there’s very little that can’t be improved with the proper application of delicious wine and beer, so here are some of our suggestions to help you add to your holiday spirit.  Enjoy! First of all – what do your winter holiday plans entail? If you’re looking for last-minute gifts, the following beers are timely and delicious.  If you don’t celebrate (or are just boycotting the holidays this year) we think that the best thing you can do is treat yourself, whether it’s celebratory or “just because.”  The best way to do that, in our opinion, is to sample some of the many legendary San Diego beers…

It’s almost holiday season. Well, actually, since holiday season starts right after Halloween these days, we guess it IS holiday season! This the time of year that we tell all of you how thankful we are for all of you.  We couldn’t be in this business without you, our fellow beer, wine,nd food aficionados, and all the good things you bring into our lives. We’re also thankful we live in such an amazing corner of the world, where fine, locally-produced food and drink is available everywhere we turn! Since we know you appreciate good meals and drinks just as much as we do, we thought we’d share some tried-and-true suggestions with you to make your Thanksgiving Day as delightful as it can possibly be. First, to the food.  Do you have too much to drink hanging around the house? Is…

It’s the spookiest time of the year! Halloween is on its way.  Kids are donning costumes, scary movies are all over Netflix, and ghosts are wailing in the trees (or is it just the Santa Ana?). But we haven’t forgotten about that other celebration of All Saint’s Day and All Soul’s Day: Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.  That’s the Mexican celebration of the dead, where you can go to the graveyards and talk to your loved ones who have passed on. We are so close to Mexico here in southern California that we would be remiss if we didn’t mention Baja California’s vibrant beer and wine scene.  But you shouldn’t have to cross any international borders to sample them, if you don’t want to! First up, let’s talk about the craft beer scene, which in no…

  You know how we keep saying this is the best time of the year for beer and wine lovers?  We do, because it is!  It's not only a gorgeous time to experience all of southern California's unique and unforgettable beauty without contending with too much crowding and traffic, but it's also harvest time, when the grapes are squeezed and the hops are threshed.   This is also when great events take place for those who love their wine and beer.  One such happening is Oktoberfest, a loosely-knit series of beer festivals.  There's the huge one in Munich, which draws at least 6 million visitors a year (!) and then the various local Oktoberfests that showcase local brews all over the world.  We like those better, because not only do you save yourself hundreds to thousands of dollars in airfare, we…

It's Labor Day! If we lived anywhere but this absolutely beautiful part of the world, this would be the unofficial end of summer and beginning of fall. But since we're in southern California, the march of the seasons are a good deal more subtle. However, this is a great time to start planning outdoor barbecues and backyard parties with friends, and we're all for that! Labor Day is actually a day to celebrate the rights and achievements of workers, long pressed tightly under the thumb of the manufacturing industry. After the Industrial Revolution, the average American worked more than 80 hours a week, with no days off, simply to put food on the table, and children as young as 5 were already working in the mines. Labor unionized and revolted, organizing strikes and rallies. On September 5th, 1882, thousands of…