T's Pre-Birthday Celebration!

A few weekends ago Brian and I enjoyed a small getaway in San Francisco, a well needed date night and a pre-birthday celebration for me! Since we had already made plans to attend Citizen Cope's concert, with our friends, the Roberts, we figured we may as well spend the night! We planned our evening perfect, staying at the Hotel Palomar, reservations at Moussy's for dinner, and drinks afterwards at Bourbon and Branches, all perfectly planned prior to the concert. Unfortunately the Roberts were a tad bit late to the restaurant, so Brian and I indulged on many appetizers and a bottle of wine - HEY, it was Happy Hour, how could we resist! The food was amazingly good - can't wait to go back! DAMN YUMMY OYSTERS!

Once the Roberts arrived, we had grandfathered ourselves to the Happy Hour drinks, and indulged on more food! Citizen Cope was playing at the Fillmore and since he, the Fillmore and LiveNation failed to announce a headliner, we nixed our Bourbon and Branches reservation! DAMN!!! That was a bad idea, some goofy band was headlining the show - but at least we all had time to hang out and share some good laughs! Citizen Cope was not at all what I had imagined - his performance skills need some work...but we still enjoyed the music. Sadly to say, after about an hour and a half into the show, we all decided to leave, and headed over to Bourbon and Branches for a night cap! A zillion drinks to choose from, and Brian got stuck with some 'chick' drink. Me, I had a superb drink, the Revolver! I found the recipe on line, so Brian and I could make more at home! You should try it - it's delicious! RECIPE: The Revolver - This recipe by Jon Santer, Todd Smith’s right-hand man, is a beautiful way to enjoy bourbon. Along with the Bulleit Bourbon (a premium Kentucky brand), it calls for Tia Maria, a Jamaican rum-based, coffee-flavored liqueur.

2 ounces Bulleit Bourbon 1/2 ounce Tia Maria 2 to 3 dashes orange bitters Orange peel for garnish

Combine all ingredients except orange peel in a mixing glass with ice and stir. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and add orange peel. Afterwards, we all headed back to the Hotel, exhausted and a little tipsy! And the only reason why I say a little tipsy, here's a secret, Melanie accidentally knocked her entire drink into my lap - YIKES! LMAO!!! We all blamed the huge drink menu! LOVE YA MEL!! :)

Brian and I slept in (free of any hangovers) and were ready for a fun-filled day: breakfast at the Red Door, and wine tasting at SF Vintners Market. OH MY GOODNESS, the food is DELICIOUS at the Red Door!!!! The restaurant is tiny, so we had to wait maybe 15 minutes for a table - but the waiter indicated that the wait around the time we arrived (10:30am) is usually over an hour - how lucky were we!!! Here's Brian posed near a Oak Wine Barrel makers demonstration.

Stuffed and ready for some wine, we headed over to Fort Mason and OHHH WEEE, over 100 wines uncorked and ready to serve! The event started at 12:00 and we were cup in hand at 12:15! So many good wines, so little time - LOL!! Brian and I enjoy Pinot Noir's, so we found ourselves at almost every Pinot Noir table. We tasted some exquisite wines and met some awesome winemakers! We narrowed it down to 4 wineries.

We took pictures w/the winemaker/owners at each purchase, but the lighting washed out the images of Barlow's pictures, 6 bottles of their Barrouge, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

Second, Suacci Carciere, 6 delicious bottles of Chardonnay for me to enjoy on some hot summer nights! Here I am with the vineyard owner, John Suacci.

Third, Tomari Cellers, 3 Cabernet's and 3 Pinot Noir's! Me again w/owner Tom Afzal pouring wine into my mouth! YEA BABY!!

Sadly, our favorite Pinot was no longer available at Tudor, their Santa Lucia '06 Sarmento Vineyards Pinot was superb! Brian became quick friends with the owner Dan, talking it up about wine and kite surfing! Dan and his wife even invited Brian and I to dinner, which we could not attend! Luckily we can make a purchase online with an awesome friends discount, and hope to see Dan again at an upcoming wine tour!

After 5 hours of wine tasking, Brian and I ended our night at Perbacco, an Italian restaurant located on California Street in the financial district! The food here is something else - the flavors so intense! Our appetizer: SALUMI MISTI – A selection of house cured salami - YUM! I had the MARZAPANE – Blood Sausage w/Braised pears [don't be frightened I am a fan of Portuguese Blood Sausage, so the meal was perfect for me, although, I usually have blood sausage fried over white rice]. Brian had PAPPARDELLE – Pasta ribbons w/Rabbit. We also enjoyed their heavenly flavored brown butter Brussels sprouts w/caper and shallots!

Turning 37 may not be the most exciting age, but my birthday weekend was AWESOME! Looking forward to next year!