San Francisco Food Blog

Beaujolais Nouveau. While some Francophiles (and others) laud the fruitiness of this light young novelty wine -- released annually on the third Thursday of November -- haters find it seriously weenie. San Franciscan Lionel Lafite is a proponent. His La Provence Restaurant (1001 Guerrero at 22nd St.) plans to celebrate Beaujolais Nouveau this Saturday, Nov. 21, with live music, prix fixe and regular dinner options, and complimentary vino for the first 20 folks who reserve a table.

amd1708/Flickr

Arlequin Wine Merchant is an anti-Nouveau zone.

​At the other extreme is Arlequin Wine Merchant (384 Hayes at Gough), which is organizing a "No More Nouveau" tasting on Thursday (Nouveau's release date), 6-8 p.m. Arguing that Beaujolais Nouveau "almost ruined one of the world's best regions," Arlequin will roll out what it calls "real" Beaujolais crus (growths) from 10 French producers who create more mature wines from the Gamay grape, with results far more layered and nuanced than Kool-Aid-fresh Nouveau. Sample Jean Paul Brun, Pierre Chermette, Marcel Lapierre, and more. Tickts ($15) available at the door.

p200eric/Flickr

Think of it as getting permission to drink 20 percent more.

​The November blitz is coming, and it won't be wearing a Dallas Cowboys jersey. The yearly Bi-Rite Market Wine Blitz is an oakier, more elegant affair. Today through Sunday at 9 p.m. (and again from Dec. 10 through Dec. 13), the store is offering 20 percent off on all case purchases of wine. Time to stock up on, say, Fanucchi Trousseau Gris or Robert Sinskey Merlot for your winter bacchanals. And if you don't want to brave Muni with all those bottles, Bi-Rite will deliver -- for free -- anywhere in San Francisco. Questions? E-mail Trac@BiRiteMarket.com, or call 241-9760.

Nater Tator/Flickr

Go ahead -- we dare you.

​Fifth Floor Restaurant (12 Fourth St. at Market) is hosting a Mad Hatter wine dinner tomorrow evening, complete with a mad-hat dress code and multiple courses from chef Jennie Lorenzo. The celebration starts at 7 p.m. -- it's in honor of the launch of the 2006 Mad Hatter Shiraz from South Australia's Hewitson Wines (a series of similar Mad Hatter events is happening across the country). According to the Hewitson Web site, the hatter nickname comes from friends of chief winemaker and company CEO Dean Hewitson, and doesn't necessarily refer to the Lewis Carrol character. Hmm. Tickets are $75 -- call 323-871-1151, or e-mail madhattertourSF@gmail.com

ZagatBuzz

Let's just hope it doesn't take you an hour to find Marina street parking.

​Get to Bin 38 Wine Bar & Restaurant (3232 Scott at Lombard) before 6:30 p.m. tonight, and a glass of wine will be your free reward. Bin 38 is celebrating its second anniversary today, from 4 p.m til midnight. You'll get to choose from bubbly or a special red or white, subject to availability. The Web site explains its gifting as a chance for customers to "raise a toast to many more years in the neighborhood together." After that first freebie, you'll be able to order special $5 anniversary glasses all night, or until they run out. Bin 38's wine-friendly small(-ish) plates aren't bad, should you decide you want to pair your with something more substantial.

Forget drinking the company Kool-Aid. Twitter employees will soon be drinking the company wine.

Dogpatch-based Crushpad -- a place that allows amateur vinophiles to make and sell their own wine, brand and label included -- has more than a little in common with Silicon Valley. The business philosophy behind both calls for investing in the product and customer experience, with revenue naturally following. Better yet, both believe in creating platforms that help businesses feed other businesses, including nonprofits. It's what's allowed Crushpad to raise over $9 million in funding from its customers, and the stuff S.F.-based über startup Twitter is made of. So it's not surprising that the two companies are collaborating on an interesting online/offline project: The Fledgling Initiative.

Gare and Kitty/Flickr

The makings of a kickass pair of wedgies?

​If you want another option for your used champagne and wine corks -- beyond using them in bad art projects -- there are fashion-forward options in the works. Cork is one material that's migrating from the recycling bin to the shoe store.

A new "upcycling" program plans to utilize some of the billions of old, used natural cork wine and champagne closures to make shoes. This week, a company called ReCORK America announced a new recycling program between Amorim of Portugal, and SOLE, a North American shoe manufacturer. ReCORK's local recycling partners include Rodney Strong Wine Estates, Cakebread Cellars, Whole Foods, the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone, Rutherford Wine Co., and PlumpJack. Other cork donors include American Airlines/Sodexo, The Wine Tasting Network (WTN), and biggie Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines. So far, the sustainability-forward project has collected four million corks since starting in 2007.

SOLE shoes are used by pro teams from the NFL, NBA, and MLB. Look for corky SOLE products at REI, Zappos.com (love the free shipping!), and other specialty retailers.

marydenise6/Flickr

Tastings go down in Del Monte Square.

​Down near Fisherman's Wharf, Del Monte Square at the Cannery (485 Jefferson at Hyde) is launching a new weekly food and wine pairing event organized around different themes. First up for the SF Food & Wine Fest? This Sunday from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m., chocolate and vino fans (and who out there isn't?) can look forward to samples from a dozen boutique wineries, all included in the event's $15 advance ticket (tickets at the door cost $20). Wines are from the neighboring Winery Collective, which carries bottles from small makers across California, from Napa Valley to Santa Barbara. Hand-crafted chocolates from TCHO, Jade Chocolate, and Beligique Truffle Gateau round out the program. The outdoor location offers enough room and distractions for the wee ones, and kids' chocolate tastings of chocolates are a mere $5. Future SF Food & Wine Fest themes include BBQ and seafood.

R. Lauriston

Terroir: Talking up the benefits of natural.

​If you're a bit fuzzy on the term "natural wine," you're not alone. Here's a brief explanation, just in time for the San Francisco Natural Wine Week (August 24-30).

Natural wine is similar in principle to biodynamic and organic wines, produced by winemakers who follow natural practices and take the route of minimal intervention in their vineyards and cellars. There are a few differences, though: First, producers of natural wine haven't received (and often haven't sought) official designation as organic or biodynamic. Second, and more importantly, natural winemakers use ambient or native yeasts, which occur naturally in the vineyard. In the absence of pesticides and packaged yeasts, these indigenous yeasts are what cause fermentation, producing wines that (as the winemakers will tell you) truly reflect the land.

SOMA wine shop Terroir will focus on natural wines from France, mostly, with a few Italians thrown in. Shop owner and wine buyer Guilhaume Gerard told SFoodie the natural movement has been gaining ground in France over the past decade. "It's still not a huge market, but definitely a niche," he said. On Monday, August 24, Gerard will lead a tasting of unsulfured wines. "The same care given to the grapes during the growing season has to be applied in the cellar as well," he explained "Natural wines should not be obstructed by things in the cellar -- no innocultaions, low amounts of sulfur, and no filtration."

Crushpad

Neighborhood get-together: Sorting grapes at Crushpad.

​Interested in making your own vintage while meeting other wine enthusiasts who might be living right down the street? Last year, S.F. DIY winery Crushpad organized five groups in neighborhood winemaking projects, using Crushpad's Dogpatch facilities and grapes from over 50 California vineyards. This year, the neighborhood groups are expanding to nine: the Castro, Haight, Marina, Mission, Nob Hill, Potrero Hill, Russian Hill, SOMA, and a Super Group for those from other 'hoods. There's a tenth group of East Bay oenophiles, too.

Joining costs $26, which entitles you to one bottle of wine from your group's vintage, Crush Camps for sorting grapes and learning about winemaking, updates on your wine's progress, a barrel tasting midway through the aging process, and a spot at the release party. Members can purchase up to a dozen bottles of wine at the $26 price.

Wondering if the Castro vintage will turn out to be muscular, the Haight's smoky, SOMA's rough and oily? Crushpad's Noah Dorrance told SFoodie that last year's wines were indeed very diverse. Three groups made Pinot Noir, the rest Syrah. "Each group did two barrels -- one new, which tends to be more oaky, and one used barrel that's more neutral," Dorrance said. "Also, the grapes all came from different vineyards, and came in at different times -- some at the beginning of September, and others from vineyards only a couple of miles away over 30 days later. The groups had meetings where they could taste all each others' wines, and figure out the different influences and styles."

There's a Harvest kickoff party on Tuesday, August 18th, in Crushpad's warehouse (2573 Third St. at 23rd St.), from 6 to 8 p.m. Sign up for it online. There'll be Pinot for sale from last year's Marina, Potrero Hill, and Super Group. Salty, bright, scores 99 out of 100? Your tastebuds will tell you.

human companion/Flickr

If you've never had the pleasure of drinking with a crew from Australia or New Zealand, Saturday might be the perfect time. Australian outpost South Food + Wine Bar (330 Townsend #101 at Fourth St.) is hosting a Nautilus wine lunch with Kiwi winemaker Clive Jones, one of New Zealand's most celebrated vintners.

On Saturday, August 1, from 1 to 4 p.m., South will be offering a three-course, four-wine lunch, packing a summer menu of chilled heirloom tomato soup with prawn ceviche (paired with a Nautilus Pinot Gris 2008), confit trout with shallot marmalade (with a Nautilus Chardonnay 2006), and organic chicken breast with bacon and figs (with a Nautilus Pinot Noir 2008).

As a door prize, one guest will take home a bottle of Nautilus' top-tier Four Barriques Pinot Noir. Cost: $45 per person (which includes wine). To reserve seats, e-mail info@southfwb.com with "Nautilus" in the subject line.

Photoshop Phlake/Flickr

Varietal tasting time is here, winos! Get your sip on at the Pinot (that'd be Noir) Days Festival, which runs tonight through Sunday. The main event is Sunday's four-hour grand tasting at Fort Mason's Festival Pavilion, 1 p.m.-5 p.m. Fort Mason seems to be considered the primo (and rather obvious) spot for such events. Tickets are $50 for the grand tasting, with 400 samples from 200 Pinot Noir producers. Advanced tickets are highly recommended. Other related Pinot Days events include schmantzy dinners at Pres a Vi in the Presidio, as well as concerts. Cost: $80-$150, which suggests there's more than one way to get your sip on.

Green sparkler.

Italy's wine industry is no stranger to biodynamics. Hilberg-Pasquero and Cascina degli Ulivi, both from the Piedmont region, are leaders in the movement that grows grapes holistically and naturally, often with the influence of astronomy on planting and harvesting. But these wines aren't often exported to the U.S. market. And what Americans are consumed with these days isn't so much holistic green practices as the label "organic," which biodynamic wines also are. But since Italian producers haven't shown much interest in branding their wines organic as a marketing ploy or mere trend, they're usually not certified.

One Italian winery, Mionetto, has finally gotten the message -- it just introduced a certified organic prosecco to the American market, currently available only at Whole Foods. At $15.99, Mionetto Organic Prosecco is significantly cheaper than champagne, more on par with a California sparkler. And it's not made biodynamically, but all of the grapes that go into this bottling are certified organic from the Valdobbiadene DOC in the Veneto. And in another nod to eco-chic, everything is recyclable, from the foil and the necker to the packaging it's shipped in.

Mionetto has been making mid-priced prosecco since 1887. This incarnation, a nonvintage brut, has notes of fall fruits (pears and apples) and anise, and is slightly bitter on the finish. It's a nice, uncomplicated sipper. And it's sure to be only the beginning of the organic bubbly import trend.

Crushpad/Flickr

Get ready for total wine immersion.

Ready, set, swirl: Two events this weekend are sure to have local winos crushin'.

Crushpad (2573 Third St. at 22nd St.) is hosting an open house on Saturday, June 20, 2-6 p.m. Crushpad's Dogpatch warehouse space has become something of a meeting place to talk about and make all sorts of neighborhood wines. For Saturday's event, barrel tastings and El Tonayense tacos have been promised, along with the chance, in Crushpad's words, to "meet our winemakers." (SFoodie has found them to be a friendly, engaging lot.) Reserve your spot now, online or at 864-4232.

On Sunday, Slow Food San Francisco's Golden Glass event takes over the Fort Mason Festival Pavilion, 2-6 p.m. Drink in the most sustainable and terroir-expressive way possible, eh? Tickets are $20-$60. Winemakers and proprietors will be on hand to talk shop. Of course there will be eats -- the event is slated to be "complemented by culinary delights from the Bay Area's top restaurants and artisan producers," and will benefit Slow Food San Francisco's Slow Food in School programs. Try saying that backwards after your eighth taste.

Atwater Village Newbie via Flickr

Bacar: Is the recession creating a new appreciation of wine?

How is the Great Recession making local diners change their ways? One casualty is wine, or at least, the big-ticket trophy wines S.F. restaurant patrons were ordering in significant numbers until last fall's economic gloom blanketed the city like summer fog.

A year ago, Bacar wine director Jay Bordeleau was routinely selling bottles of wine priced at $150 and above, even as high as $250. As you'd imagine, Bourdeleau has seen that traffic jerk to a screeching halt. "Bottom line," Bordeleau told SFoodie, "people are looking for drinking lists, not trophy lists. A number of people are still looking at our red Burgundy list and saying, 'These are great - now let's go back over here,'" Bordeleau said, indicating Bacar's offerings of eclectic reds under $50.

The most severe shrinkage has occurred among business customers, diners who, until last fall, would blithely rack up huge wine tabs and pay courtesy of the company credit card. Wine directors have kissed those buyers goodbye. Even the convention crowds - always important given Bacar's SOMA location - are being cautious. Still, Bordeleau said, he hasn't seen diners abandoning bottles for individual wines by the glass, just seeking lower price points. What the wine director calls the "sweet spot" on the bell curve for bottles is now in the $70-$120 range. "We're still able to sell $18 glasses without too much trouble," Bordeleau said. Sales of dessert wines, however, have fallen off a cliff. As a result, Bacar's wine list has shrunk, though Bordeleau said he's just about ready to start making new additions -- at the lower end.

jspatchwork via Flickr

Flowers Pinot Noir: Where Burgundy meets Sonoma

French winemakers are always talking about terroir, that elusive term that can't really be translated into English, or, for that matter, into American concepts about viticulture. Terroir encompasses all the environmental factors that give grapes their character: soil, climate, weather, and so on. The winemaker influences the grapes further, crafting wine in a certain style.

The best way to experience terroir for yourself is to taste several different wines from different growing areas made from the same grapes and in similar styles. A perfect case in point is California Pinot Noir from Sonoma. There are two kinds of California Pinots: fruit-forward, ripe, American-style wines, and earthy, restrained wines more akin to French Burgundies. The former far outweigh the latter.

toni wahid via Flickr

Years ago, there was an interview with Barbra Streisand in which she described her first taste of wine as a kid: Château Petrus in a Dixie cup at her uncle's pool hall. Now that's a story.

My first taste of the noble grape wasn't so noble. At 13, I snuck a swig from a bottle of homemade "dry" muscadine wine in our basement, given to my parents (Southern Baptist teetotalers) by a well-meaning Waldensian in our little town of Valdese, North Carolina. The wine doesn't bear description (let's just say it wasn't a vinis vinifera moment). But I didn't get caught.

Want a chance to tell your best wine story? Carolyn Jung's blog Food Gal is having a contest: Tell your most memorable wine encounter for a chance to win four food and/or wine books from Jung's collection. Deadline is this Friday, May 29.

Foodnut.com via Flicker

The Last Bottle Board: Any high rollers in the house?

RN74 is a restaurant that makes you feel like starting from the wine list and working backwards to the menu. The food -- though not remotely Burgundian as the name (a highway that runs through the region) would imply -- is lovely, but the reason for the season is wine director Rajat Parr's 80-plus pages of bottles, many rare and collectible. As Chron wine editor Jon Bonné pointed out after an early peek, RN74 is really a wine bar with great food.

So serious is this list that its creator, whose own label is featured as an affordable option, twitters about his Last Bottle Board, a vehicle for promoting the restaurant's wine program, unparalleled in the city. (The wines are from the collection of Wilf Jaeger, an RN74 partner.) The board looks like a train schedule in a French railway station, the kind that flips rapidly through the alphabet until it lands on its destination city. Only in this case, the destination is the very last bottle of something fabulous, like a 1983 Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese for $110. Of course, you have to be able to translate the tweet, which reads "Prum Weh Son Spat 83 $110." And you have to get to the restaurant before it's gone.

Friday, 5/8:

• 8:00 p.m., One Market (1 Market at Steuart): five-course meal of chef Mark Dommen's signature dishes including Dungeness crab salad with avocado, cucumber, and lemongrass sorbet, sous-vide Alaskan halibut, and beef cheeks braised with Guinness, $64 with beer pairing, $74 with wine pairing; to reserve, call 777-5577 and specify "Zagat presents"
• 6:00-8:00 p.m., The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific at Polk): Napa Smith Brewery, details TBA
  

The Press Club

Saturday, 5/9:

• noon-3:00 p.m., K&L (638 4th St at Bluxome): Central Coast Pinot Noir, details TBA
• noon-4:00 p.m., Press Club: fundraiser for Spark, tickets $35 (advance, $45 at door) includes tastings at all eight winery bars and hors d'oeuvres
  
• 2:00-5:30 p.m., SF Wine Trading Co. (250 Taraval at Funston): tasting of ten wines under $10, $10

Sunday, 5/10:

• 3:00 p.m., The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific at Polk): Australian wine tasting and book signing with author Matt Skinner, $10 (happy Mother's Day, moms, you get in free)
  

Monday, 5/11:

• 6:00-9:00 p.m., California Wine Merchant (2113 Chestnut at Steiner): tasting of wines from Benton-Lane Winery, $20
• SF Cocktail Week begins
  

A Lake Merritt moment

Brave the wilds of Oakland tonight, and you can savor $1 tastes served by a straight-up Italian gondolier. Franklin Square Wine Bar in restaurant-frenzied Uptown is pouring wines from the Roero region of Piedmont. Mario Roagna, winemaker for Cascina Val del Prete, will be uncorking Arneis, Barbera, and Nebbiolo (expect up to six 1-ounce tastes for your buck). Oh, and the gondolier? Angelino Sandri, who punts romantics around Lake Merritt for Gondola Servizio, and even sings. We're not kidding.

18 Reasons just set us straight -- the event this Thursday is an hour earlier than the listing on its Web site claims (6:00-8:00 p.m. instead of 7:00-9:00 p.m.). Here's the correct info:

Thursday, 5/7: 6:00-8:00 p.m., 18 Reasons (593 Guerrero at 18th St.): tasting with Bi-Rite buyer Josh Adler of wines on sale for 20% off by the mixed case, $10 ($5 members)

We also updated this week's wine & beer events list. You've been warned.

Chianti used to be one of the great bargains of the wine world. Farmers in the several Tuscan Chianti regions grew a lot of good to excellent Sangiovese, a grape that, in the hands of a skilled winemaker, can make wines as fine as any in the world. However, until recently, when making Chianti they blended 70% Sangiovese with 30% lower-quality grapes Canaiolo Nero, Malvasia, and Trebbiano, resulting in wines that, while often very pleasant, could not be sold at premium prices.

This changed in 1971 when the major Chianti producer Antinori made an unblended wine from its best Sangiovese grapes and aged it Bordeaux-style in small oak barriques. Since this wine did not follow the DOC rules, it could not be sold as Chianti, so Antinori registered it as a relatively unregulated vino da tavola and gave it the proprietary trademarked name Tignanello, after the vineyard. (Subsequent vintages contain around 20% of the equally noble Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.)

The international demand for and unprecedented prices commanded by this wine led other Chianti producers to create their own proprietary "super-Tuscans." The diversion of the best grapes into these new wines resulted in a corresponding drop in quality of the producers' Chiantis.

Friday, 5/1, 6:00-8:00 p.m., The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific at Polk): Sake2Me tasting, $10

Saturday, 5/2, noon-3:00 p.m., K&L (638 4th St at Bluxome): tasting of small, artisan-estate Champagnes, $20

Saturday, 5/2, 2:00-5:30 p.m., SF Wine Trading Co. (250 Taraval at Funston): tasting of Spanish wines, $10

Saturday, 5/2, 4:00-6:00 p.m., The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific at Polk): tasting of under-$20 Italian wines, $10

Monday, May 4, 3:30-5:30 p.m., Bently Reserve (301 Battery at Sacramento): California Cabernet Society of tasting of 100 California Cabernets, tickets $50 with K&L promotional code

Monday, 5/4, 6:00-8:00 p.m., The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific at Polk): Pio Cesare (Alba, Italy) tasting, $10

Monday, 5/4, 6:00-9:00 p.m., California Wine Merchant (2113 Chestnut at Steiner): tasting of wines from Petroni Vineyards (Sonoma), $20

Monday, 5/4, 7:00-9:00 p.m., 18 Reasons (593 Guerrero at 18th): "Italian Basics" class with Delfina wine director Becky Swanson, tickets $35 ($30 members)

In his blog today, Bauer ponders a reader's question as to why, at a restaurant that focused on "very local, farm friendly, organic and sustainable" food, "the wines were predominantly French and Italian." Let's take his responses point by point.

First, Bauer opines that "wines from Chile, Spain or Australia may offer more value per dollar than the California counterparts." True enough, but the wines at the restaurant in question are, as at many of our market-driven, otherwise locavore places, French and Italian.

Next, he suggests that, since "many of these wines are unfamiliar to the average consumer," restaurants can, for example, mark up a Michele Chiarlo Arneis higher than they could a bottle of California Chardonnay. Sounds good in theory, but I don't believe I've ever seen a wine list where local and imported wines had different markups. Most restaurants around here sell bottles for three times the wholesale price, which is double the undiscounted retail list price. (As far as I'm concerned, anything higher is a ripoff.)

Friday, 4/24, 6:00-8:00 p.m.: tasting of around 40 wines from the catalog of importer Louis/Dressner Selections split among three locations, $10:

• Arlequin Wine Merchant (384 Hayes at Gough): French wines with Catherine and Claude Maréchal (Burgundy), Pierre and Pierre-Marie Luneau of Luneau-Papin (Muscadet), Eric Texier (Rhone Valley), François Pinon (Vouvray), and Claude-Emmanuelle and Louis-Benoît Desvignes (Beaujolais)
  
• Biondivino Wine Boutique (1415 Green at Polk): Italian wines with Mauro Vergano of Chinati Vergano (Chinato and other fortified wines from Piemonte), Alessandra Bera of Vittorio Bera (Asti), Arianna Occhipinti (Sicily), Silvio Messana of Montesecondo (Tuscany), Cristiano Guttarolo (Puglia), and Francesca Padovani of Fonterenza (Montalcino)
  
• 18 Reasons (593 Guerrero at 18th): French wines with Eric and Christine of Domaine de Bellivière (Jasnières), Jean-Paul Brun of Terres Dorées (Beaujolais), Christian Chaussard of Domaine le Briseau (Jasnières), Evelyne de Jessey of Domaine du Closel (Savennières), and Franck Peillot of Domaine Franck Peillot (Bugey)
  

Friday, 4/24, 4:30-6:30 p.m., K&L (638 4th St at Bluxome): tasting of Australian wines with winemakers from Rocky Gully, Frankland Estate, Elderton, Hewitson, Wishing Tree, and others, $5

Friday, 4/24, 6:00-8:00 p.m., The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific at Polk): tasting of beers from Deschutes Brewery, price TBA

Saturday, 4/25, noon-3:00 p.m., K&L (638 4th St at Bluxome): tasting of Tuscan wines, $20

Saturday, 4/25, 1:00-4:00 p.m., Wine Club (953 Harrison at Oak Grove): tasting of Bordeaux wines, details and price TBA

Saturday, 4/25, 2:00-5:30 p.m., SF Wine Trading Co. (250 Taraval at Funston): tasting of southern Rhone wines, $10

Saturday, 4/25, 4:00-6:00 p.m., The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific at Polk): tasting of organic wines from Lolonis Winery, $10

Sunday, 4/26, 3:00 p.m.-?, South Food + Wine Bar (330 Townsend at 4th): "Sunday Session" showcasing "some of down under's best Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir," $35 includes "Aussie cheese and nibbles"

Monday, 4/27, Spruce, 6:30-9:30 p.m.: four-course dinner with Talley Vineyards 2002, 2004, and 2006 estate Chardonnays and 2000, 2001, and 2005 estate Pinot Noirs, $130 (not including tax and tip), call 931-5100 to reserve

correction 4/24: I was misinformed by the importer, tonight's tasting is $10

When A16, Incanto, La Ciccia, or some other restaurant with a long list of obscure Italian wines serves you something delicious you've never heard of and you want to buy some to drink at home, the first place to call or visit is Biondivino (1415 Green between Polk and Van Ness). This small shop is jammed to the ceiling with many of the best and hardest to find Italian wines. They also carry some equally esoteric wines from neighboring Austria, Croatia, and Slovenia.

Friday, 4/17 , 6-8, The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific): tasting of local beers from Moylans and Marin Brewing, details TBA

Saturday, 4/18, noon-3, K&L (638 4th St): tasting of eight 2006 Bordeaux, $20

Saturday, 4/18, 1-4, Wine Club (953 Harrison): tasting of Châteauneuf-du-Papes, details TBA

Saturday, 4/18, 2-5, CAV (1666 Market): French, Italian and German wines imported by Fourcade & Hecht with F&H partners Francois Beal and Mark Serrano in person 

Saturday, 4/18, 2-5:30, SF Wine Trading Co. (250 Taraval): tasting of Malbecs from Argentina's Mendoza region, $10

Monday, 4/20, 6-9, California Wine Merchant (2113 Chestnut): tasting of Pinot Noirs from Expression Wines, $20

Monday, 4/20, 5;30-8:30, Lolo (3234 22nd St): four-course dinner with Rhone and Provencal wines from SF Wine Trading Co., $75 includes tax and tip

Finding a cheap bottle of sparkling wine easy: lots of Spanish cavas and Italian Proseccos cost under $8, as do many domestic sparkling wines. However, most of these wines aren't that great--some are bland, some too sweet, some downright nasty-tsting. Finding a delicious one in that price range is a challenge.

Veuve du Vernay Brut Rosé is the best cheap bubbly I've come across in a while. It has a nice strawberry nose, toasty, creamy, floral flavors with a hint of white pepper and rose petals, and a long, dry finish. Though quite fruity, it's not sweet at all, and has bracing acidity.

The label is not very informative: the only factual information it provides is that the wine is made in France and has 11% alcohol. The Veuve du Vernay Web site says it's 100% Tempranillo, which means the grapes are probably grown in Spain, but it nevertheless tastes French.

The fine, long-lasting bubbles (what wine geeks call "the bead") are like those that result from the méthode Champenoise, in which the wine undergoes a secondary fermentation in the bottle, but at this price point it's surely made using the cheaper bulk process (especially considering that the brand was founded by Robert Charmat, son of the bulk process's inventor, Eugene Charmat).

Friday, 4/10, 5-7, Franklin Square Wine Bar (2212 Broadway, Oakland, 2 blocks from 19th St BART): tasting of five Cabernet Sauvignons from Eden Canyon with winemaker Elaine Villamin, $1

Saturday, 4/11, noon-3, K&L (638 4th St): tasting of a dozen or so rosés from around the world, $15

Saturday, 4/11, 1-4, Wine Club (953 Harrison): tasting of Burgundies, details TBA

Saturday, 4/11, 2-5:30, SF Wine Trading Co. (250 Taraval): tasting of Burgundies, $10

Saturday, 4/11, 6-8, The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific): tasting of "weird-a***d whites" including Croatian Posip, Australian Hunter Valley Semillon, Argentine Torrontes, Spanish Viura, and New World Sylvaner, Chasselas and Osteiner, $10

Monday, 4/13, 6-9, California Wine Merchant (2113 Chestnut): tasting of Etude wines, $20

Wednesday, 4/15, 5-6:30, SF Wine Trading Co. (250 Taraval): tasting of wines from Alamos Ridge (Argentina), $5

As I noted a couple of weeks ago in my post about Beltramo's in Menlo Park, most Bay Area retailers specializing in hard-to-find wines and liquors are located in SF. There's one other wine shop / liquor store on the Peninsula worth a detour: Weimax (1718 Broadway, Burlingame). If anything takes you down to SFO, you're almost there. It's just a five-minute drive from the terminal, a couple of exits down 101.

Like Beltramo's, Weimax has a lot of hard liquor you won't see elsewhere. I first visited the place after a trip to Southwest France, when I was looking for a local source for La Vielle Prune, a delicious oak-aged plum brandy ubiquitous in the Dordogne region, and they were the only store I called that had it.

Friday, 4/3, 6-8, The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific): beers from Coopers (Australia), $10

Saturday, 4/4, 11 on, Triple Rock (1920 Shattuck, Berkeley, 3 blocks from Downtown Berkeley BART): 6th Annual Firkin Gravity Festival features cask-conditioned ales from 20 local breweries, $20 admission includes glass, six 4-oz. tastes, and one full pour, additional tastes $1 each or $5 for six

Saturday, 4/4, noon-5, seven locations in Berkeley, Emeryville, Oakland, and Alameda: East Bay Wine Trail open house and tasting with 14 local wineries, tickets $30 in advance, $45 at the door, $10 designated drivers

Saturday, 4/4, noon-3, K&L (638 4th St): American Pinot Noir vs.Burgundy, $20

Saturday, 4/4, 6-8, The Jug Shop (1590 Pacific): Pommery & Heidsieck Monopole Champagnes, $10

Saturday, 4/4, 2-5:30, SF Wine Trading Co. (250 Taraval): tasting of  six wines TBA, $10