Cool Sampler Kit

Clayhouse Wines recently got a sampler kit going with TastingRoom.com and we were lucky enough to receive one of them. This way of tasting wines is beneficial to the consumer and the winery. The consumer gets to taste six Clayhouse Wines in 50ml bottles to see what they like rather than buying a 750ml bottle and hoping for the best, and for the wineries, they get to put more varieties and vintages in front of people to show a more rounded lineup of their wines.

Why a Clayhouse Wines Tasting Kit?

Aside from all the obvious, it’s just a fun way to taste wines and understand what a winery is all about. We’re very appreciative for the TastingRoom.com sampler from Clayhouse, and without further ado here are the wines in this particular set:

Handy Guide to Clayhouse Wines

2009 Estate Cuvee Blanc ($23): 40% Grenache Blanc, 40% Roussanne, & 20% Viognier

2008 Estate Malbec ($35): 86% Malbec, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Merlot, & 3% Petite Verdot

2006 Hillside Cuvee ($33): 56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Petite Verdot, 7% Malbec

2006 Estate Cuvee ($30): Petite Sirah, Syrah, Grenache, Petite Verdot, and Mourvedre (no percentages given)

2007 Show Pony Petite Sirah ($40): 1.5% Syrah added to this

2007 Estate Petite Sirah ($23): A bit of Syrah blended in, no percentage given

Little Bottles

Seriously, what better way to taste the whole lineup of Clayhouse Wines than a spiffy kit with a great spread of their best stuff? It’s like being right in their tasting room, but in the comfort of your own home! If you’re into this kind of thing, be sure to check out TastingRoom.com for more tasting kits. They have all kinds of different taster combos for you to choose from. Not a bad gig, if you ask us.

So, if you can’t get to the Clayhouse Tasting Room in downtown Paso Robles, get on their website and order yourself a sampler kit! Beside the obvious tasting of great wines that you’ll have, you’ll enjoy a unique and interesting tasting experience…and you can tell all your friends how cutting edge you are when it comes to tasting wine!!!

Incredible Views on 46 West Vista Point

I can’t tell you how many times we’ve driven by the “big turnout” on Highway 46 West (I guess it’s a “Vista Point”), and most of you probably know the one I’m talking about. It’s the one where you overlook all the rolling hills and look down on to Cayucos, Morro Bay, and most impressively Morro Rock. This is a top ten view in Paso Robles on a clear day without question.

So here’s the deal…spur of the moment this past Sunday, rather than sit around at home and write like we do on so many Sunday afternoons, we decided to head over to that Vista Point with a picnic and our work materials to watch the sun set.

What to Do on 46 West Vista Point?

The view was amazing even with some foggy clouds in the sky but we did miss the sunset due to a little bit of marine layer. It was still super cool to hang out there for a couple hours enjoying the Central Coast. Annie busted out her laptop and did some writing while I went old school and used pen and paper…crazy huh?  We even got to do some people watching while eating our picnic because so many people stop at this turnout for the photo op…and let me tell you there are some strange people out there, but I’m sure you knew that already!

This is the entire point to our 50 Adventures in 2012, get out of the house and go do something different…something you haven’t done before. If you’ve never danced in the rain or hiked that trail you always drive by then put it on the list. Is this a bucket list…???Maybe; we just view it as a take-advantage-of-being-alive-by-getting-out-there-and-living-out-loud list!

So what are you waiting for? An invitation? It’s not going to come, this is about you creating and living your adventure!!

Related articles

• Montana de Oro – Our Adventure #2 of 2012 (hootnannieblog.com)
• Cambria, Around Every Corner…Another Adventure #4 (hootnannieblog.com)
• A New Adventure for the New Year 2012!!! (hootnannieblog.com)

Social Communities

We meet again you social media infidels! This post may not be that interesting to those that consume products but don’t care about social media or marketing, so we apologize ahead of time. We feel that after spending three years involved with social media we have learned a ton on how to use it in such a way that you aren’t spamming the gonads off of the people you’re trying to communicate and connect with.

First key to this online space is simple; it IS changing on a weekly basis. Each individual social site is changing all the time, there are new sites coming into play regularly, the metrics and analytics are evolving constantly, and there are new creative ways to use these tools coming about daily.

What is social media?

A social tool or platform used to build an online community of supportive and engaged people by listening, interacting, and adding value to one another.

The term “social media marketing” is often used, but we actually do not endorse it because we feel it throws people off. The most important word in that three word term is SOCIAL. No matter which social networks you are on and using (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, Instagram, Flickr, Pinterest, Foursquare), they ARE NOT a soapbox for you to stand on top of while using a megaphone to scream your message out.

If you are using social networks this way you are treating it as a traditional form of marketing and advertising (like print ads, radio, television, phone books, direct mailers, email blasts that your customer can’t reply to, etc.) in which you are the one talking and the consumer is left with no voice. This is one of the reasons why social networks have become so insanely popular…it is the first time in the history of advertising that the consumer has a voice and can instantaneously connect with brands.

Rather than go on and on, which we could, we will leave you with some general bullet points of advice and we will be sure to do more posts like this in hopes that it will help small businesses in Paso Robles, on the Central Coast, and anywhere else that are stopping in to check it out.

• If you have an account set up on one of the social networks but you don’t use it, we suggest you delete it or hide it. We are in the process of doing that ourselves. If you have an account but don’t respond to anyone you will surely be pissing people off…it’similar to not answering your phone.
• You can’t post something to Facebook (or any other network) and just walk away. Check back in and respond to anyone that is commenting to you, and every once in a while engage the people that ReTweet or “Like” the stuff you’re posting. You wouldn’t walk away from someone talking to you at your place of business, you can’t do that online either.
• The unwritten online rule is for roughly every 10 posts 1 can be about you. This is a rather arbitrary number but the point is to think about how often you are posting about you. If you post 1 to 10 times per day and all posts are about you or promoting yourself than you don’t understanding “SOCIAL”.
• You need to respond to all feedback…positive, neutral, and negative; this can be difficult but it must be done. You must also know how to deal with those that are ranting and dissatisfied, don’t rant back.
• You can post relevant information about your business/ products as well as information important to your industry, but you should also be posting any combination of the following: news articles that are interesting, jokes, funny videos, quotes, photos of you brand/ service/ product, short videos, and so on. The point is that you will have to do the homework to find out what is important to the community you are building and what is making people talk. This is an ongoing adventure so don’t get caught sleeping. Observe, listen, and watch what is going on…the engagement or lack thereof will let you know how you’re doing.
• We encourage you to promote what social networks you are on by adding links on your website, adding that info to any literature you may have, including it in any emails you send out, or anywhere else you advertise. If it works you can even get the social media decals and put them up in your place of business.
• It really does pay to continuously research what tools are out there and what those tools are being used for and how they are being used. Our world, business included, is evolving into MOBILE-SOCIAL-SHARING…now’s the time to dip your toes in the water!

We could write pages and pages of thoughts and opinions about social media based on our experience! One last tip before we call it quits until another article is this: WARNING- We are pleading with you to be cautious, do not fall for those people claiming to be social media pro’s when it’s obvious they are not, all you have to do is check their Facebook and Twitter pages to see what they have or have not done. Anyone try to sell social to you needs to be social. If they can’t do it online for themselves they won’t be able to do it online for you!

If you have any questions regarding social networking you can leave a comment or email Hoot direct at matt@hootnannieblog.com.

Bell Street Farm

While on a jaunt to Santa Barbara wine country, we came upon Bell Street Farm in downtown Los Alamos for lunch. We had started at Riverbench Winery and when the subject of lunch came up Bell Street Farm came highly recommended. It was one of those times in the day when food was highly needed! We made the 10 minute trek to the quaint old west town of Los Alamos and took the one main road through town. Lo and behold, there sat our food mecca and we couldn’t get in the door fast enough.

To start with, this place is beyond cool inside! The overall look is modern farmhouse kitchen and it makes you want to sit down and stay a while! You can order your lunch and take it to go or sit at one of the tables inside…or even grab a table on the patio out back, which is what we did. The people were great, especially the owner, Jamie Gluck who added a whole lot of color to our afternoon. He was welcoming, humorous, and just a fun guy!

So, the other really interesting and cool thing is that we had lunch with a couple of “new” friends. When I say friends, I mean that we met up with a couple from Kansas City. How did we come across this couple, you ask? Well, Matt has been chatting with Brent Anderson on Twitter for a couple of years, and had gotten to know him virtually quite well. When he mentioned that he and his wife were coming out to CA to visit his old stomping grounds in Santa Barbara wine country, we were ready to join up! We met them for some wine tasting and then lunch. It was a great afternoon and we can’t wait to head out to Kansas City sometime soon! We feel pretty strongly about the power of social media and this experience was another example of how powerful it can really be!

Bell Street Farm Food Already!

Anyhooo, on to the food and whatnot, shall we??? When reading the menu at Bell Street Farm, you’ll see that you can order salads and sandwiches made from locally sourced ingredients. We all had something different, and every dish was excellent! From the Rotisserie Pork Shoulder wrapped in Pork Belly (served as a sandwich or as a salad) to the Tamarind Chicken Sandwich to the Old School Grilled Cheese and Ham, it was all incredible. They’ve got wine, beer, and other assorted bevvies, along with a fantastic looking assortment of baked goodies for dessert. Something for everybody!!!

Check it out…

Bell Street Farm is the perfect stop when you’re out exploring Santa Barbara County…pop in and say hi to Jamie and the crew! You’ll be glad you did!

Related articles

• Caymus, Mer Soleil, Belle Glos, Conundrum, What More do You Need? (hootnannieblog.com)

Yes, we consider this an adventure.

Going to the movie theater wouldn’t seem like an adventure to most but to people like us it most certainly is! Why? Well, we’re glad you asked…we struggle to sit still for two hours therefore in the past five years we have only been to two movies and that was only because we were with people that pushed us to go with them, but when you leave Hoot n Annie alone, the movie theater just isn’t on the agenda.

So the adventure was going to watch a movie at the theater alone for the first time in our life together. Annie picked the movie The Descendants and Hoot buckled into the theater seat for the two hour escapade with popcorn, Hot Tamales, and water.

Why This Adventure Could be Stressful

What if we get bored? What if we need to go to the bathroom we won’t be able to pause it? What if someone in the theater has a dumb laugh or talks too much? What if there’s a kid kicking the back of my chair of a tall dude in front of me blocking my view? How do people deal with all the stress of going to the theater?

Turns out there was no stress on this adventure and the two of us were able to sit together quietly and watch the entire movie. It was actually fairly enjoyable and it was nice to escape into the dark cave of a theater and be absent from the world for a bit. Anyways…the point here is to do those things that aren’t always necessarily top on the list and that you may view in a negative light…but without having all the information you just don’t know.

Who knows if we’ll go to the theater again but if and when we decide to do it again it will have a far more enjoyable feeling attached to it than it did before. We did it! We dispelled the mystery!

Bloggers

We “blog“. We’re “bloggers”. Or, so that’s what “they” say. We like to think that we “write”. That’s what this blogging phenomena really is…it’s people writing, sharing their thoughts, feelings, opinions, photos, videos, voice, and whatever else comes across their mind with whoever is out there reading. As I’m sure you know, there are some really interesting blogs out there and some not-so-great ones. What differentiates these is really up to the reader, after all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? There are blogs about all the standard stuff like food, wine, travel, sports, etc. There are blogs about specific life experiences like having kids or being a single dad. There are obscure blogs about believing in aliens, extreme underwater basket weaving, and how to raise your own snails for escargot. It’s all right at your finger tips…you decide!

Why Bloggers?

We’ve been doing this bloggers thing for a little over 2 years now, and our mission is still the same as it was when we started; put out interesting, valuable content, tell a story, and do it all with heart. In other words, we want to talk to you like we talk to each other and our friends. We want to get to know you…and for you to feel like you know us. The ability to talk about things like wine, food and life in general is something that we all have in common. The funny thing is, we all have our own experiences and our own opinions, but we’re all right, there is no wrong!

So, now that you know all the good let’s get down to the brass tacks of it, shall we? It’s not all wine and romance up in here. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a TON of fun, cool, exciting and interesting things that we do on a regular basis…but then there’s the behind the scenes part, too. Creating and uploading videos takes time and patience…and a fast internet connection. Deciding what angle to present our thoughts from and then actually writing it all up can be tedious and frustrating. For starters, we have to agree (for the most part) and then we have to actually execute. Hoot does a lot of the writing, Annie does a lot of the technical stuff. Sometimes the roles cross and sometimes we don’t like what the other is doing/producing. It takes time, and energy, and creativity when we don’t always feel like it.

Sound crappy? Well, it’s not, actually! It’s been a really cool learning process for us individually and as a couple. This blog has been something that we’ve built and grown together.  It’s definitely challenged us, pushed us, rewarded us, and makes us always think of ways to make it better. It’s not always interesting, well-written or educational, but it’s always us!

So, thank you for reading, thank you for paying attention, and most of all, thank you for sharing YOUR story! We love it!!!

So it seems most of our adventures have involved the ocean thus far and it’s simply because we absolutely find nothing but beauty and peace there…it keeps pulling us back. However, a couple of our previous ocean adventures were more based on some cool hikes and the ocean just happened to be there (haha). This time, we’re off to Cambria, CA….

The Cambria Adventure

This time we stopped in Cambria, CA., and yes we have been to Cambria before but never packed a picnic and took chairs over to find a peaceful place to sit and snack. The spot we found was fantastic…some rocks out in the ocean being slammed by waves and a little inlet was draining water back into the ocean…breathtaking!

What’s so great about a serene moment in time like that is that we would chat for a little bit and then have prolonged moments of silence where we each would separately wander through our own individual thoughts and ideas; nothing quite like those moments, and to be able to spend them together is fantastic!

After hanging out there for roughly an hour and a half to two hours, we put the snack satchel (yes, I said satchel) and chairs away and decided to walk down the beach heading north, as far as we could and then proceeded to walk all the way down to the south end of the beach on the boardwalk…which is where we started.

It was a beautiful 65 degree Cambria day and the beach is a great one to check out a little closer when you have time. We’ve been enjoying these types of adventures because we get to enjoy nature (more specifically the beaches on the Central Coast), we get some good exercise in, and we’re doing it together.

You know after you’ve been with someone long enough you start running out of stuff to say right?

Well these adventures give us all kinds of stuff to chatter about…just think about your own life and how you always end up talking about those cool, fun, off the wall times…they become part of your story!

I will say that once we were done with our Cambria beach adventure we did what any normal person would do and that was head over to Moonstone Beach Bar & Grill for a couple of afternoon drinks at the bar.

Nothing like another great adventure on the Central Coast! Cheers!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Related articles

• Montana de Oro – Our Adventure #2 of 2012 (hootnannieblog.com)
• Schooner’s Wharf, Cayucos, California – Bar Bites (hootnannieblog.com)
• Harmony Headlands Adventure (hootnannieblog.com)

We stopped in at Shale oak Winery recently and got some video of their back patio which we did not get the first time we went.

That aside, we stopped in and had a glass of wine; I had the Cabernet Sauvignon and Annie had the Syrah…both were quite nice on this chilly Paso Robles day. They were out of the only white they had, the Albarino…which was amazing, but hope they’ll have another white or two in there some time soon.

Hang Out at Shale Oak

This is a great place to grab a glass and hangout, with the fantastic back patio and the cozy tasting room with fireplace…there are plenty of choices for lounging! It’s one of those places that you want to just grab a glass and relax for a while.

We’ve been trying to make a concerted effort to slow things down a bit and relax more often. We’re surrounded by beautiful places and seem to have a hard time taking it all in; it’s about taking the time to enjoy each moment and appreciate your surroundings. After all, this is one of the most beautiful places to live!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Related articles

• What’s New? Shale Oak Winery is New! (hootnannieblog.com)
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• Cypher Winery at Artisan Monday Night Supper (hootnannieblog.com)

Honestly, we don’t even know what to tell you about Cypher that Christian, the owner, winemaker, marketer, can’t tell you better! He stands out as one of Paso’s true characters in the wine business and no shit, he truly understands all aspects of the business.

Christian has had some insane blends one of which had up to roughly 10 varietals in it! He does some insane marketing, and comes across as this brazen and brash wine guy…but you know what? He’s got a vision and he has the gonads to bring that vision to fruition.

As you may know, Artisan Restaurant throws Monday Night Suppers during the Winter months that feature a local winery paired with a local food source. The result is number one, a great party! You’ll also find some of the most incredible dishes and terrific wines, all together served up to you family style.

What Did Cypher Winery Pour?

On this night at Artisan’s Monday Night Supper Christian poured:

Grenache/ Mourvedre/ Zinfandel/ Grenache Blanc “Pistil” Rose 2010

Grenache Blanc 2010

Mourvedre “El Pelon” 2009

And there was a fourth pour that we were too drunk to take notes on…yes…it happens sometimes when we’re having fun.

Anyway, enough about us and back to Christian…bottom line is he’s a cool cat. We are huge fans of people that choose to stand up outside the box and grab the reigns!  He’s one of THOSE people…he stands out in a crowd…he lives out loud; something we should all do.

Thanks to Artisan Paso Robles, Cypher Winery, and Windrose Farms for such a great Monday Night Supper!!

Click here to view the embedded video.

 Related articles

• Windrose Farm Stars at Artisan Monday Night Supper (hootnannieblog.com)
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Artisan is this great Paso Robles restaurant that does Monday Night Suppers each Monday from January through March where they pair a winery with a local food provider of some sort. That food provider may be a farm, a cheese shop, a dairy, and so on; all this paired with a Paso Robles winery…can’t beat that! Windrose Farm is this awesome local food supplier that specializes in biodynamic and organic farming.

Windrose Farm Foods Featured

The night we went it was Windrose Farm and Cypher Winery. In this post we’re going to cover the food we had and in our next post, we’ll cover the wine we had with the food. Each course is carefully paired with the featured wines to showcase the qualities in each.

The first course was lamb tartare, smoked dried tomato, sevillano olive and shrimp “spaghetti”, winter squash, brown butter, pepitas.

The second course was braised lamb shoulder and roasted leg, tepary beans, chorizo rioja, kale, chimmichurri papas bravas, albondigas, sheep’s milk ricotta.

The third course was dessert, which was apple pie cake, hazelnut caramel ice cream served with Joebella Coffee (a local coffee roaster).

All of the food was amazing, Chris Kobayashi, chef and co-owner of Artisan, was amazing as usual, along with all the staff!!

The idea of doing these Monday Night Suppers not only brings the farmers and winemakers in to chat with the customers but it also is a great way of getting people into the restaurant during what may normally be a slower time of year for a very unique experience.

It’s just a lot of fun to chat with these farmers and winemakers and hear some stories behind all their hard work and to know it’s local is a huge added bonus. Community supporting community, business supporting business, and people supporting people…a wonderful thing about Paso Robles!

We got to talk to Bill and Barbara Spencer, owners at Windrose Farm…

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Our Caffeine

Okay, okay…Starbucks may not be an adventure to most of you but hear us out… Our definition of adventure was to get out and do something that we haven’t done before, so even though we have physically been in a Starbucks before we had never made a point to go do the Starbucks “thing”.

What’s the Starbucks “thing”?

We packed up our laptops and paperwork and headed to Starbucks to enjoy the real Starbucks experience. It’s all about finding a quiet spot to sit with your technological device or old fashioned paper and pen, all while smelling and hearing that coffee shop environment. Use their free wifi, read a book, people-watch, and sip on your huge cup of caffeine. We hear it’s how things get done these days!

The pull of free money.

So, due to having a bunch of gift cards from the Holidays, we decided to go and do this Starbucks thing…and to be honest, it was awesome. They have it down to a science; the coffee and breakfast food we ordered was fantastic and the service was top notch…but to finally sit for a while and experience the establishment was quite enjoyable. We hung out for about two to two and a half hours and got a fair amount of work done and really enjoyed the vibe. Luckily for us, a good friend of ours, Jeanette, works at the Starbucks we went to and she took her break with us which was pretty cool. It was awesome to see the system they have in place and just relax and watch the world go by. It’s pretty amazing to see how many people need their Starbucks fix!

Anyways…adventures don’t have to be this big crazy insane thing…it just needs to be something new to push your mind.

Please read again???

We received a ton of feedback after a recent post we did on customer service so it has been our goal to start a regular series on the

good, the bad, and the ugly of customer relations in our daily lives. Our number one goal is not to bash any person or business, but to get people to understand what they’re doing correctly…and what they are doing incorrectly.

So let’s begin this journey by asking you what you look for in a customer service experience. What’s the one thing that turns you ON to a business and what’s the main thing that turns you OFF to a business? It could be a winery, a restaurant, or some other hospitality related business…we’re curious! We hope to have this lead to numerous other ideas/ topics we can write about here…so let us know and let’s keep business names out of this for now. Cheers!

Wine Marketing: We’ve Got Something On Our Minds (hootnannieblog.com)

Do Your Wine Marketin Tactics Stink  (hootnannieblog.com)

Natures Touch Samples

You’ve seen us sipping on wine at the Paso Robles Garagiste Festival…we’ve shown you the small production winemakers that are living on the edge, making wine and living the dream! We’ve also given you the “feel” for the event, from the setting to the crowd to the food.  What we haven’t shown you is one of the attendees that stands out; Natures Touch. What’s a Natures Touch, you ask? Well that’s easy! It’s a living, breathing, local market in downtown Templeton.

What Does Natures Touch Offer?

Natures Touch is ALL about eating local. It’s about supporting your local growers, producers, and suppliers. It’s about knowing

where your food comes from and getting closer to the source. When was the last time you were perusing the vegetable aisle at Von’s and you grabbed some of those delicious apples that were grown just down the road? Yeah, probably not recently. When you go food shopping, do you know where your money is going? Is it going back in to your community? These are all things that were taken into account when owner, Melanie Blankenship opened the doors at Nature’s Touch.

If you’re interested in what you’re growing and eating, Natures Touch is the place for you. Not only do they have a marketplace with fresh produce, meats, eggs and other wonderful things, they also have a nursery where you can get what you need to create your own bounty! Not only can you learn what your local growers are doing around here, you can also learn what you can do yourself. You never know…you just might have a green thumb, too!

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Talley Vineyards are located in a beautiful part of San Luis Obispo (although there aren’t really any ugly parts of this county) very close to where Orcutt Rd. and Lopez Dr. meet.

Talley Vineyards

I’m not going to bore you with all the generic information other than to say that the wines we tasted through were very nice. There are two different tasting lists, one is $6.00 for five tastes and the other is $12.00 for five tastes. This area of San Luis Obispo really does make some great Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs due to the cooler temperatures, and Talley is no different. They also have a nice cool climate Syrah, which I am enjoying far more than the warmer climate Syrahs. The price points are pretty reasonable, with most being between $15.00 and $36.00, most are in the $20’s it appears. Good price range to be at in my opinion.

Talley Has a Rich History

All this aside, the thing I am most intrigued by is the story. You hear us talk about the significance of “story” from time to time and for many reasons, but at the end of the day any good business has a great story and they have the ability to tell it well. The Talley story is one of family history and legacy, as they started farming the area in 1948 and now three generations later, Brian Talley, has continued on. If you are at interested in stories of SLO, this is one to check out at on their website.

We’d also urge you to stop in for your Chardonnay or Pinot Noir fix and check out the beautiful scenery and patio area, a good spot for a glass of wine and a picnic. The staff in the tasting room was great too, no complaints from us.

Cheers!!!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Related articles

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Water Running Over the Rocks

I think we found the promised land…and it’s in Los Osos, CA.

Well, if it’s not the promised land then it’s certainly up there. The place is called Montana de Oro and it is Disneyland for the outdoor lover and beautiful scenery seeker!! There are numerous (as in a LOT) trails you can jump on and walk, run, or bike (even a handful that you can take your horse on) your heart out.

While many trails lead you toward the coast, some of the trails are on the east side of the road which take you up in elevation through wilderness to amazing viewpoints of the ocean, although we did not do one of these this time, we will absolutely go back.

Cool Valleys of Rock

Where To Go in Montana de Oro?

Our first stop was at a dune trail which took you out to the dunes south of Morro Bay, we didn’t hang out there because we were looking for tide pools. The second stop was breathtaking; beauty smacked us in our face and we lived to tell about it! This little beach spot had unique rock formations and really cool small rocks all over the beach. Words can’t really describe the scene!

Rock Hallways

The final stop a little further down the road was a hike called “Bluff Trail”, and I literally do not know how to describe it. The trail is a loop, you go in at one spot on the road and it drops you out at another part of the road 2.1 miles later, but it takes you by some of the most obscenely gorgeous California coast line we have seen.

Montana de Oro Coastline

The craziest part was that you could walk right up to the bluff edges before it dropped 7 or so stories…just a guess on height, could have been more. It was simply majestic up there; we actually ended up eating lunch right near one of the bluffs (and unlike some morons we took all of our trash with us when we left).

This really is a must see place here on the Central Coast…this trail was not very difficult and was used by walkers, runners, and people on mountain bikes.

Costs: gas driving there, bread and lunchmeat for sandwiches. There were no entrance fees or any other charges. Pretty good deal for an infinity of beautiful scenery!

Click here to view the embedded video.

The View....See???

We love the ocean…not sure if you’ve noticed that before, but it’s both of our favorite place to just “go” to. The ocean is peaceful, yet

powerful; beautiful, yet dangerous; familiar, yet mysterious. There’s definitely a pull there, whether it’s the tide or just an emotional kind of thing, we both feel excited to go, at peace when we arrive, and sad to leave the ocean. So, one of our favorite ocean spots is Cayucos, California. It’s the quintessential funky beach town located right between Morro Bay and Cambria on the Central Coast. Smack dab in the middle of Cayucos is the BEST spot ever…Schooner’s Wharf!

Why is Schooner’s Wharf so great?

Schooner’s has a little something for everybody. Besides great food, tasty drinks, and a million-dollar view, they’ve got the perfect “vibe”! We always sit in the bar, but they’ve also got great patio and indoor restaurant seating. The bar looks out over the beach and the Cayucos pier, and you can almost always find a group of locals hanging out playing dice or chatting about the scene. If you’re lucky, you might even catch the local pirate, Randy who likes to frequent Schooner’s for a cocktail or two…don’t worry, he’s a friendly one. There might be a football game on, or a lively group of tourists taking pictures of the dolphins in the waves, but there’s always something to look at!

Okay, now that we’ve convinced you to check them out for their vibe, here’s some pics of their food for you to drool over…

It’s hard to sit by the ocean and not order a cup of clam chowder, right? Well Schooner’s is awesome; tons of clams and all the other right stuff.

Schooner's Clam Chowder

After the Clam Chowder came some incredible Ahi Tuna & Fresh Veggie Egg Rolls, served with Wasabi and Spicy Chili Dipping Sauce. Ummm, okay, these were out of control delicious!!!

Ahi Tuna Egg Rolls

Then came the Baja Shrimp Quesadilla that had fresh Pico de Gallo and Spicy Jack Cheese, all grilled up inside a tomato tortilla.

Shrimp Quesadilla

So, again, we encourage to find your favorite place…wherever that might be. Just be sure that place feeds not only your belly, but your soul! Sit, relax and take it all in! We sure did!!!

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We haven’t been to Tolosa Winery since we had a party there for Annie when she got her Master’s Degree, about 4+ years ago…so, it was time to go back!

This really is a great spot across from the airport in San Luis Obispo, the tasting room is well done (as you’ll see in the video) and the back patio is breathtaking (which you won’t see in the video) They have tables and chairs out back along with an outdoor tasting bar and a big grassy area; all with vineyard and production facility views.

The Tolosa Tastings

They had two tasting lists you could choose from, the House Flight is $8.00 and gives you five wines and the Limited Release Flight (offered Friday through Sunday) was $15.00. We took one for the team and did one of each…the House Flight included two Chardonnay’s (both 2009’s, one of which was no oak), a Pinot Noir (2009), a Grenache (2009), and a Cabernet Sauvignon (2007) while the Limited Release tasting included a Chardonnay (2009 “1772”), two Pinot Noirs (one 2008 “1772” and one 2009 “1772”), and two Syrahs (one 2008 and one 2008 “1772”).

We were impressed with the Syrahs, mainly due to the fact that it seems we enjoy the cool climate over the warm climate Syrahs. The Cabernet was quite nice as was the 2009 “1772” Pinot Noir and the Chardonnays. It’s a good list that you’re bound to find something tasty on, give it a shot!

The staff in there seemed really cool and the place felt comfortable to be in…as you know, we want to feel invited and engaged and they did this well. There’s a big window that looks out into the production facility, which is pretty cool and they have wine glasses with different “smells” in them, as you’ll see in the video, which was a cool extra; we hadn’t seen this in a tasting room before.

So there ya go…now get back to work!

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Victorian at Halter Ranch

We got to spend New Year’s Eve, 2011 in style this year at a swanky restored victorian, thanks to the amazing people of Halter Ranch Winery and the Cork Dorks.  Adam Montiel and Jeremy West are the “Dorks” that do a weekly radio broadcast on 92.5 The Krush that features local winemakers. We were honored to be invited to join this New Year’s Eve extravaganza at the Halter Ranch  property, with Adam and Jeremy and a bunch of other wine biz friends. The property is located on the west side of Paso Robles, roughly where Vineyard Drive meets Adelaida Road.

About Halter Ranch

This place is simply breathtaking…the entire property is worthy of a photo hanging on the wall, with it’s amazing old barns, the tasting room, and the old Victorian…simply put, it’s a must see in Paso Robles. The Victorian is one of the most beautiful buildings in our area, inside and out…they’ve managed to keep all the original charm but bring in all the modern conveniences to boot.

The Cork Dorks

Barn at Halter Ranch Winery

We asked Adam why New Year’s Eve here at Halter Ranch and here’s what he had to say…”Halter Ranch has been a favorite of ours since our Cork Dorks episode a couple months ago. Kevin’s a uniquely talented winemaker, and the fact that HRV got their hands on him after a bunch of years at Justin, I know is exciting for them. He and Skylar make a great team, and I can’t wait to see what the next few years have in store for these guys. Their ranch has a rich history, and it’s gonna be something special to watch (and taste!) them take it to the next level. ”

The Spread!

It was the perfect place to spend New Year’s Eve…no cell phone signal, tons of local wine, good food, and great friends; just as it should be. As you’ll see in the video, we were bound and determined to have a lively time, which always happens when you hang out with the Cork Dorks. These guys bring the party and, well, you best be prepared!

 

 

We also eye-spied the SIP (Sustainable in Practice) logo on the back of the Halter Ranch “Cotes du Paso Blanc”. This means that Halter Ranch Winery is growing their grapes and producing their wines using environmentally sustainable processes. Way to go, guys!!!

SIP Certified Label on Halter Blanc

Click here to view the embedded video.

Cheers, and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

 

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HnA at the Harmony Headlands

We’ve started a new adventure game! Make a list of 50 adventures you want to do this year…and then get off your arse and go do them!

The idea came from talking about wanting to explore more of San Luis Obispo County than just the wineries and restaurants…we aren’t going to stop doing those things but we were starting to get a bit of a reputation!

What is an Adventure?

The definition of adventure to us is: something we have either never done before or at least never done TOGETHER before. Our goal was to have a pretty detailed list, as in each adventure was pretty descriptive; rather than just write down “let’s go hiking”, we wrote “let’s take some cheese and crackers and go hike the Harmony Headlands Trail over off of HWY 1”. So, that’s what we did for our first adventure.

This trail is amazing…park in the lot on the West side of HWY 1, just South of Harmony and walk in about 45 minutes to these amazing cliffs above the ocean and just soak it all in. We found a cool little spot to sit and watch the waves crash while we ate some cheese and crackers and simply breathed in the scene (literally).

Crashing Waves

After hanging out for about an hour and a half we walked a little bit more before heading out. The trail is easy to navigate and not very strenuous at all but it was a great hour and a half walk round trip. We were extremely fortunate to have a beautiful central coast day, 70 degrees and sunny! Annie saw lots of seals and otters, oops, turns out those were seaweed, and Hoot made it a few hours without needing a beer…good times were had by all two of us!

What is the Goal of Adventuring?

The goal here people is to get up and go. There’s plenty of time to sit or lay down when we die, now IS the time for adventure. It’s also a fantastic opportunity to go do new things with the one you love (or like or tolerate…whatever) which is great for conversation and tightening the bond. Adventure brings people together!

There are 52 weeks in the year, so 50 adventures should be quite doable. We will talk about each adventure we go on so you have ideas of other things to go do in SLO County, or use these as ideas to brainstorm for adventures in your own area.

So what are you waiting for…Go Live, Go Adventure!

Click here to view the embedded video.

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We recently went on an adventure to Monterey, California. This is a great coastal town that has all kinds of beauty every where you look. Monterey is a huge ocean bay that boasts a history that was worthy of John Steinbeck‘s musings back in the 1940′s. Ever heard of the novel “Cannery Row“? This was Steinbeck’s novel about the life happening along the coast led by those in the fishing industry during the Great Depression. The book created a lot of notoriety for the area, turning it into a sought-after tourist destination.

Why Monterey?

Cannery Row in Monterey has a ton to offer…there is the Monterey Bay Aquarium that draws people from all over the country and even the world. There is also the raw beauty of the coastal waters and marine life that would attract just about anybody looking for a scenic getaway. We wanted to hang out and feel the vibes of the bay…and we did just that! We walked, we talked, we took lots of pictures, but most of all, we relaxed, slowed down and enjoyed our surroundings and each other. What this always involves is good food and wine at the local joints.

The C Restaurant + Bar at the Intercontinental

There’s this beautiful restaurant right downtown Monterey in the middle of Cannery Row called “The C Restaurant + Bar” situated inside the Intercontinental Hotel. This place is modern and comfortable all at the same time, serving up incredible food and great wines, along with all the other trimmings that any classy ocean-front restaurant should offer.

We had some interesting dishes; Abalone over Angel Hair Pasta with Oven Roasted Tomato and Black Truffle Viniagrette. This went along well with our trusty standby, Crispy Calamari. The C served up their Calamari with Crispy Green Beans and Lemons.

Abalone

Crispy Calamari, Green Beans, and Lemon

Get out there and enjoy life…food helps!