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| | Are you more like a Pinot or Cabernet? Um, it's a hard grape to grow, as you know. Right? It's uh, it's thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early. It's, you know, it's not a survivor like Cabernet, which can just grow anywhere and uh, thrive even when it's neglected. No, Pinot needs constant care and attention. You know? And in fact it can only grow in these really specific, little, tucked away corners of the world. And, and only the most patient and nurturing of growers can do it, really. Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot's potential can then coax it into its fullest expression. Then, I mean, oh its flavors, they're just the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and... ancient on the planet. -- Miles Raymond, describing why he likes Pinot, Sideways (2004)
Over the Easter weekend, I used my vacation time and with a few friends, we drove over to Buellton and Solvang for some Sideways-inspired wine tasting tour. My friend, Dan, being a HUGE fan of the indie-flick Sideways, wanted to follow the movie and hit all the locations that were in the movie. We even stayed in the same inn that the characters stayed in. We rented a couple rooms and Dan was my roomie. Luckily, neither of us was like Jack (from the movie), so one didn't wind up playing golf while the other got all the hot chicks. Not that we didn't bump into some hot chicks in one of the wineries (scantily-clad, rowdy college girls from UCSB). I tend to go for the more dependable, less rowdy, Asian girls, however. We hit about half of the wineries from the movie and even got to meet the guy who served wine in the movie (sans the cowboy hat)! Another treat was we saw the exact same car Miles' (from the the movie) drove parked at the inn that we stayed in. For lunch, we ate at Solvang Restaurant (where Jack, in the movie, declared his one goal for the week). We also had one of the best ribs in town at AJ Spurs, where Miles and Jack had dinner and Jack started hitting on the waitress. Of course, a dinner course would not be complete without some red wine to pair up with. BBQ beef and pork ribs were paired up with a bottle of Cabernet Noir. Awesome! Haven't had such great BBQ all year.
 My flying hand! |  Hey, that's Miles' car! |  Passing by the Ostrich farm... just like the movie. |  Solvang Restaurant is where Miles and Jack go first.. |  A decision is made! |  Nojoqui Falls in Solvang |  Some great, rolling hills in Solvang.. |  A nice little hike to the waterfall.. |
Ah, such beauty...... watch out for them pesky hobbits!
Let me show you how this is done. First thing, hold the glass up and examine the wine against the light. You're looking for color and clarity. Just, get a sense of it. OK? Uhh, thick? Thin? Watery? Syrupy? OK? Alright. Now, tip it. What you're doing here is checking for color density as it thins out towards the rim. Uhh, that's gonna tell you how old it is, among other things. It's usually more important with reds. OK? Now, stick your nose in it. Don't be shy, really get your nose in there. Mmm... a little citrus... maybe some strawberry... -- Miles Raymond, Sideways (2004)
 Ah! a celebrity from.... |  Yes, it's the guy in the hat! |  I didn't meet Sandra Oh here..but, OH well! |  And, now a toast! |  Welcome to AJ Spurs... excellent BBQ |  ...where Miles and Jack ate last. |  The Hitching Post.. where Maya works. |  A baby miniature horse! |  Must...resist...temptation.. |  Awesome Danish breakfast! |
Posing with creator of Little Mermaid, Hans Christian Anderson...
We came back on Sunday night, but I still had Monday off, so I hung out some more. Actually, I had some tickets to a taping of Mad TV, so me and my friends hung out in LA area... We hung out at the Brea Tar Pits and LACMA. It's interesting I never really noticed how cool the architecture was. Pretty neat stuff there....
 These elephants actually move...slightly. |  Fossilized candy... great eats! |  LACMA does have good architecture. |  A very big toy fire truck... |
| | | Posted 3/31/2008 11:21 PM - 16 comments
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