Future site of Lorimar Winery's visitor center & tasting room

“I’ve got a song in my heart, and I want our visitors to have a song in their hearts when they spend time here.” Temecula’s newest winery, Lorimar, has a music note on several of its bottles. When I asked co-owner Mark Manfield why, that was the answer I received. Mark grew up in the bar and restaurant business, working in his dad’s restaurant in Kansas City, MO since he was nine years old. When he left college he took over the bar and remained in charge until they lost the family business they had owned since 1948 to eminent domain. Mark moved to California and got into real estate and Read more »

The IFWTWA “Conference At Sea” was an opportunity for a group of writers to not only enjoy a cruise on the Caribbean, but also to see the inner workings of a cruise ship. As a wine writer, I was curious to see the challenges faced by a Cellar Master whose job includes making sure that more than a thousand different wine drinkers each week are happy with what they are offered. Fernando Bacsa has a passion for what he does and he clearly loves his work. He has been with Holland America for thirteen years now and says “it’s not just a company, this is my family.” He does have a family at home in the Philippines, though; a wife and three children. His two sons want to follow in his footsteps and are already in training to work for Holland America.

Fernando got a degree in hotel operations in the Philippines and then began work as a catering supervisor in Libya, working for Moammar Kadafi in the Presidential Palace for five years. He was also employed by Nelson Mandela, so you can safely call him Read more »

All this time you’ve probably been wondering – where’s the wine? At Beacon Point in St. Thomas, we found Guava Berry Wine. I’ll tell you about that stop later in the story. We docked at Charlotte Amalie at about 8:00 Wednesday morning, splitting up into three groups. One group chose the Skyride, a seven minute ascent in a gondola with a spectacular island view. Another group opted for Coral World Ocean Park for a chance to get up close and personal with marine life. My group decided to visit The Butterfly Farm. Located near the Havensight Mall, The Butterfly Farm offers visitors a chance to see butterflies at every stage of their growth cycle. The group there is dedicated to learning more about these delicate creatures and how they impact our planet’s environment.

Green Swallowtail

We were blessed with Read more »

After a wonderful day on the Island of Grand Turk, we re-boarded the ms Eurodam and got right back to work. There were wines, avocado oils and balsamic vinegar to taste! Linda Kissam was our host as we tasted 10 wines from Keyways, Tesoro and newcomer Lorimar. The group was impressed with the selection provided and Linda did an excellent job presenting the wines. We then tasted some incredible avocado oils from Oak Mountain: Toasted Onion, Chili, Roasted Garlic, Lemon Pepper and Key Lime, followed by the Dark Sweet Cherry Balsamic Vinegar. Avocado oils have a higher flash point, meaning they can sustain higher cooking temperatures before burning. All of them tasted delicious and the balsamic vinegar was a big hit. After the tasting, we retreated to our cabin to freshen up and then made our way to the Crow’s Nest for the drawing for IFWTWA’s scholarship auction. Not only am I Read more »

To say this has been an interesting week would be a gross understatement. My wife Laura and I learned we would be joining a group from the International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA) on their Eastern Caribbean Cruise about two weeks prior to departure. Late Friday evening we arrived in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to board our ship the following morning. When we awoke it was 43°, pouring rain and windy. We both remarked the beginning of our Alaskan cruise had been far warmer. The Eurodam is a lovely ship, about two years old now (a baby by nautical standards) and carries approximately 2200 passengers. We set sail under stormy skies about 6:00 pm with the ports of Grand Turk, San Juan, St. Thomas and Half Moon Cay Bahamas lying ahead of us. We quickly began meeting members of our group – Leigh Cort who specializes in historic inns of the south, Chef Jean Read more »

If you look closely, you’ll notice the cougar at Cougar Winery is wearing a San Diego Charger’s cap. There’s your first clue. Next, you’ll notice Radio Margaritaville playing not so softly in the background. This isn’t your parents’ winery. Welcome to Cougar!

Cougar has recently become my favorite winery to visit in the Temecula Valley and there are plenty to choose from. For starters, I don’t think you’ll find a better pourer anywhere than Jamie Schmutzer. Her passion for wine shines through in everything she does. If you’re lucky enough to have her pour for you and you’re not smiling when you’re done, check yourself into the hospital. Clearly there’s something wrong with you. Mike, Kim and Joey are exceptional as well. Any one of them will be glad to give you a tour of the winery, show you the tanks and the crusher/destemmer and Read more »

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Steve and Valerie Andrews from Oak Mountain & Temecula Creek. They were some of the first winery folk we met way before we started WINEormous. They are genuine, no-pretense people and Steve’s wines continue to get better with each new vintage. Kimberly and Buzz Olsen at Tesoro have Read more »