Beverages

Top 3 Food and Drink Events: Summer Bar Hop, Wine Tasting Wine Festival

First Saturday of Summer Bar Hop Bar hop at six bars in West Hollywood for charity; part of the proceeds will support the Kanzius Cancer Research Foundation. A ticket buys a wristband, which qualifies the wearer for food and drink deals at the Belmont, Cabo Cantina, the Den, Fatty's, the Parlor an ... More >>

High Levels of Pesticides Found in Celestial Seasonings Tea

A scathing report on Celestial Seasonings tea found that 91% of samples contained pesticide levels that exceed U.S. federal limits, Examiner.com reports. Sleeptime Kids Goodnight Grape was one of the 10 out of 11 varieties found to contain excess pesticides. The other flavors were Antioxidant Max B ... More >>

5 Wine and Food Pairings from Vintage Enoteca Sommelier Danielle Francois

It's rare that a small wine bar has an onsite sommelier. It's even rarer that a restaurant has a female sommelier. Vintage Enoteca has both in Danielle Francois who, along with Jennifer Moore, owns the Hollywood wine bar. Their philosophy is simple: Wines should be accessible, affordable and, most ... More >>

Wineries in Support of Gay Marriage

While you're waiting for the Supreme Court to issue its ruling on the gay marriage cases -- it'll probably be around the end of June, so plan your cautiously optimistic celebrations accordingly -- there are lots of things you can do. Like, say, pick up a few bottles of wine for your next Hollywood B ... More >>

What to Drink with Your Pizza: Pitfire Pizza's Wine Program

Drop into one of L.A.'s seven Pitfire Artisan Pizzas and the casual approach to dining is apparent. Order at a counter, find a table (either inside or out) and wait to dig into freshly prepared and flavorful wood-fired cooked pizzas, salads, soups, paninis and pastas. What's not so apparent is the r ... More >>

Now Open: Carson House in Beverly Hills A Craft Beer Menu

Tonight is the opening of Carson House, a new pub in Beverly Hills that will feature an extended list of craft and rare beers in addition to American fare, California wine and cocktails named after parts of the neighborhood. The craft beer offering will be a shift in a part of town generally more ac ... More >>

Is "Mixology" Pure Pretension or a Super Cool Historical Term?

There's been a lot of debate among bar folk about the word "mixologist." When it first started showing up to describe the craft of mixing cocktails a few years back, it seemed to be embraced by the most creative and ambitious bartenders as a way of giving a specification for someone capable of doing ... More >>

Firestone Walker Invitational: Beer Fest Goes Global to Emphasize Local

California beer drinkers are spoiled. Our state is home to both San Diego and the Bay Area -- two of the most important regions to the current craft beer movement -- as well as some of the country's most coveted fresh IPAs, barrel-aged stouts and experimental brews around. And now to top it all of ... More >>

In A Fried Octopus and Heart Song, Beauty Conquers All

Top 3 Food & Drink Events: Master of Sangiovese, Suds & Shellfish A Benefit Dinner

Master of Sangiovese The North American Sommelier Association (NASA) is teaching an intensive certification course on the varietal. Native to Italy, the grape has been planted in other wine regions including California, Australia and Greece, which is among the lessons covered in the two-day course. ... More >>

Now Open: AVA Santa Barbara's Wine Tasting Room A Great Place for Beachside Wine

Like a lead singer with a side solo project, AVA Santa Barbara is winemaker Seth Kunin's side gig. Because Kunin Wines is a well-established, Santa Barbara County-based brand -- known for its Rhone-style blend, syrah and zinfandel -- Kunin decided to create another label, AVA Santa Barbara, to explo ... More >>

A Really Tough Job: Judging L.A.'s International Wine Competition

Would you call this heaven or hell for a wine lover? Getting forty-three Cabernets to taste but not drink, 27 Viogniers to sample and spit out -- and so on, through some 3,200 entries in this year's Los Angeles International Wine Competition. More than 70 judges willing to take on the challenge ga ... More >>

Top 3 Food Events: West Coast BBQ Classic, Springfest CUR-ATE

2nd Annual West Coast BBQ Classic Barbecue aficionados and grillmasters take note: The West Coast BBQ Classic returns to Long Beach. As contestants compete for a $9,000 cash prize and serious bragging rights, general-admission ticket holders can sample their wares for $2 each. Live bands are schedul ... More >>

4th Annual L.A. Vegan Beer and Food Fest Celebrates Animal-Free Food and Drink

Meat and cheese-lovers were out of luck on the Sunset Strip this Saturday, as 40 animal-free breweries and 30 vegan food vendors took over an empty lot for the 4th annual L.A. Vegan Beer and Food Festival -- an event that is quickly proving itself to be one of the city's biggest and best for craft b ... More >>

Q & A With Eagle Rock Brewery's Jeremy Raub: Session Fest The Beer Community Grows Up

There's a common misconception that craft beers are exclusively high-alcohol beverages and that the world of microbrews only includes boldly flavored and anti-macro styles like IPAs and imperial stouts. But spend a whole evening washing down full servings of these big beers and you'll soon realize t ... More >>

Top 4 Weekend Events: Tacos & Beer 5K, Vegan Beer Festival, Gluten-Free Festival Cinco de Mayo Block Party

Tacos & Beer 5K Tacos & Beer 5K will be taking place in Long Beach, sponsored by Exitos 93.9 FM MC Raq-c and MC Nachin, Bud Light Lime, TeQava, and East Los Angeles Tacos. Participants who finish the race will receive a taco and a beer in addition to a finisher medal, goodie bag, and t-shirt. Food t ... More >>

New Wine Region to Watch: China

In less than two decades, wine has gone from sideshow to main attraction at dinner parties in China. According to a The Wall Street Journal article, "China as a Vast Wine Market," wine sales grew by 20% between 2011 and 2012 -- to about $41 billion. Meanwhile, as highlighted by PRI's The World, a ... More >>

Women and Beer: The Ladies at Ladyface and Women's Beer Forum Celebrate 2 Years of L.A. Beer Education

Are you a woman in Los Angeles who loves -- or wants to love -- craft beer beyond Lindeman's Framboise but don't know where to begin? Don't worry. You're not alone. In fact, as this sprawling metropolis has been slowly changing its beer-drinking habits away from the fizzy yellow stuff, both men and ... More >>

Free Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Ice Blended at Coachella

Year after year, Coachella draws a range of notable bands and performers. The weather, however, tends to stay one note: Staggeringly hot. For those headed to the music and arts festival, it might be useful to keep in mind Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf's ice blended giveaway over the weekend.

More Events: A Beer Pairing Dinner, Family Fun Day Spring Cocktail Launch

5-Course Beer Pairing Dinner at Mohawk Bend Chef Erick Simmons and brewmaster Jesse Houck have put together a five-course dinner menu complete with beer pairings. The meal begins with mini pizzas matched with Carillo Kolsch. The first course of potato gnocchi is served with Emil's Special Beer. The ... More >>

L.A.'s Wine Bars Are Better Than Ever. Here Are Our Seven Favorites

Q & A With Lou Amdur: Glazed Hams, Slutty Chardonnays What to Drink at Easter

See also: L.A.'s Wine Bars Are Better Than Ever. Here Are Our Seven Favorites Lou Amdur, may have sold his cozy, Laundromat-and-Thai massage parlor adjacent Hollywood strip mall wine bar, LOU, last March. But he still has that gift for being able to effortlessly hold forth on all things wine and fo ... More >>

Behind the Wine List: David Myers' Hinoki & The Bird

A restaurant is in many ways like a party: You need atmosphere, music, good food and choice of drink. At the recently opened Hinoki & the Bird in Century City, the party is in full swing: entrance jammed, bar, dining room and patios full, and the cocktails and wine are equally flowing. Begin with ... More >>

Q & A With Costco's Syd Birenbaum: Best Bargain Wines, $18,000 Sales His Cure For Your Never-Ending Headache

If your wine-buying strategy at Big Box discount stores typically involves grabbing a case and getting out poste-haste, you might want to reconsider sticking around for a chat with Syd Birenbaum, the unexpected wine specialist at the Costco in Marina del Rey (known as the Culver City branch). Biren ... More >>

New Faces of Targeted Beer Drinkers: Joe College and Hipsters

From Joe Six-Pack to Joe College, the face of the desired beer drinker has changed in the past few years with growing sales of craft beer brands and fruit flavors. Joe College, unlike his older and more blue-collar counterpart Joe Six-Pack, is a "lot more experimental than [he] used to be, sampling ... More >>

5 Lessons From the Sustainable Coffee Culture Panel

If coffee is your preferred source of caffeine, then you may have come across the term "sustainable" in some form or another on a package label. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, sustainability is both a principle and a set of precepts for a productive co-existence between humans and ... More >>

Sugary Drinks Linked to 180,000 Deaths Annually

Now we know you were all really mad at NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg for trying to ban large-sized sodas. But the man may have had a point. Sugary beverages are linked to more than 180,000 deaths worldwide annually, according to new research presented this week at an American Heart Assn. conference. ... More >>

Making Wine on Catalina Island: The Rusack Family's Santa Catalina Island Vineyards

Wine as an expression of a specific locale or terroir is what countless skilled winemakers strive to achieve. A noble goal to be sure, but one winery has taken the task a step further, specifically 22 miles further, offshore on Santa Catalina Island. Buffeted by salty ocean air, the island makes for ... More >>

Baristas Prepare for This Weekend's Southwest Regional Barista Competition

Starting today and going through the weekend, over 30 baristas -- including a good number from Los Angeles -- will be in Santa Cruz to compete in the Specialty Coffee Association of America's Southwest Regional Barista Competition. This would be one of six such regional competitions; the top 6 from ... More >>

Serious Drinking: Discovering Rhone Wines at Decouvertes

Découvertes en Vallée du Rhône is a biennial wine event held up and down the Rhône Valley for four long, thrilling days, involving the systematic tasting of mostly red wine by thousands of eager tasters from all over the world, and the systematic inebriation by same each night. Each day, is roug ... More >>

Serious Drinking: What is Cognac for?

Doesn't this swanky French grape spirit reside in the beverage province of rich, white men in their private, paneled rooms? Isn't cognac what rappers grab at the neck and swig from in their bling-y cribs? Isn't it mostly for postprandial luxuriating or sultry babymaking? What, then, is it doing turn ... More >>

5 Crisp White Wines for your Spring Table

I don't know about you, but this is the week that spring fever has officially kicked in, for me. The sun feels higher in the sky, the backyard patio beckons, the fruit trees are blossoming, and everything feels more redolent and alive. It's time to lock the wine cellar door -- leave the reds to lie ... More >>

Handsome Coffee Roasters Celebrates Its First Birthday Today with Free Coffee

Oh, how good times fly: Handsome Coffee Roasters is turning one year young, and to celebrate, the shop will be pouring free coffees today from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. So maybe take a detour on your way to work this morning, or go on a long coffee break this afternoon. It'll be worth it. The party doesn't ... More >>

Q & A with Sam Adams Founder Jim Koch: Loan Program for Food & Beverage Business, Advice on Opening a Brewery Beer in a Can

It's a familiar story in the beer world: well-educated guy leaves stable or lucrative job to make his homebrewing hobby a profession. Jim Koch's history set the precedent for that narrative. Koch, who comes from a long line of brewers, founded The Boston Beer Company in 1984 with two friends he met ... More >>

What to Eat and Drink at This Weekend's Chinatown Festival

Chinese New Year officially began last Sunday, and the Year of the Snake promises change, contemplation, preparation, and perhaps most importantly, lots of good beer. That is, of course, if you're planning to spend this traditional time of reflection with a pint (or two, or three -- what the heck, i ... More >>

Balance: A 2013 Conference, an Achievement in California Wine (and a Calder Mobile)

For the past three years, a small group of California chardonnay and pinot noir producers has gathered for a conference and tasting called In Pursuit of Balance. In past years it's been staged in San Francisco and New York; in 2013, for the first time, they brought their wines and their message to L ... More >>

New Zealand Pinots To Drink Now

At the New Zealand Consulate in Brentwood last week there was a wine tasting of that country's pinot noir. There were just 18 wines in the seminar, curated by British Master of Wine Tim Atkin; and yet this amounted to a quietly nuanced performance, demonstrating the strides that country has made wit ... More >>

5 California Winemakers On The Best "Ripe and Fleshy" Valentine's Chocolate Wine Pairings

Chocolate and wine. Could there be a more classic Valentine Day's pairing? There's one small problem: "The flavors of [dark] chocolate and wine aren't always that compatible," as a Food and Wine article summarized. Sure, there's that tannins on tannins thing, a double hit of bitter acidity in the c ... More >>

Lucky Baldwins Pubs: New Custom Beer in Today, 96 Kegs of Beer in the Bar 14th Annual Belgian Beer Fest

On the eve of its 14th annual Belgian Beer Festival, Lucky Baldwins Pubs (plural because there are three of them) announced that they will be tapping a special new beer for the first time tonight -- Lucky Baldwins Red, a house Belgian amber brewed exclusively by Brouwerij Van Steenberge in Belgium. ... More >>

Tickets On Sale: Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Fest

The 2nd Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Festival will take place Sat., June 1, 2013 in Paso Robles, rain or shine (expect shine) for adults over 21. Tickets go on sale for $75 Feb. 1 at 12:01 a.m. (that's tonight for those who begrudge the 12-hour clock.) Anticipated as one of the best craft be ... More >>

Cafeina Galeria: A New Silver Lake Spot With "One Bitchin' Espresso Machine"

"This is the story of a cappuccino," says John Ownes, the owner -- as well as the barista -- behind the Spaziale Vivaldi espresso machine at Cafeina Galeria, the new Silver Lake coffee shop that Ownes insists isn't really a coffee shop. "We're a gallery with one bitchin' espresso machine," he says, ... More >>

"Artisan" Instant Coffee? Just Add Panela

Sooner or later, a modern marriage of the current artisan and coffee crazes was inevitable. Still, when that box of Jiva coffee cubes landed on our desk, we found the idea of 'artisan' instant coffee highly entertaining (it was a long day). And, to be fair, our Folgers times have changed. Starbucks ... More >>

Ladyface Ale Companie Celebrates 3 Years as a Top L.A. Brewery

Though Ladyface Ale Companie will be celebrating its third anniversary this week, it was this time eight years ago -- during San Francisco Beer Week 2005 -- that salt-and-pepper-haired Cyrena Nouzille first thought about opening up a microbrewery in the unlikely L.A. suburb of Agoura Hills. Back t ... More >>

Maggie Harrison of Antica Terra: Manfred Krankl's Wayward Disciple

Oregon's Willamette Valley has been luring California winemakers for the better part of two decades -- Andrew Rich, Tony Soter, Robert Brittan, and Cheryl Frances all come to mind as not so recent transplants -- but Maggie Harrison, of Antica Terra, represents a kind of special case. In 2005 Harriso ... More >>

Serious Drinking: Saying Ja to Austrian Wines

The arrival of Beirbeisl in Beverly Hills as a pristine example of Austrian cuisine -- check out Besha Rodell's review, out today -- comes as Austrian wines enter into a kind of renaissance in California, a blossoming of popularity, a flurry of import activity, and the thrilling entry of red wines t ... More >>

Q & A with Boba 7 Founder Elton Keung: Green Tea Heineken, Labobatory Alcoholic Boba

Angelenos are no strangers to quality boba drinks. The city boasts some of the most diverse selections of bubble tea in the States -- from the chronically sweet selections at Half and Half to the aromatic brews at AU79 Teahouse. Elton Keung, a 24-year-old USC alumni, wanted to add another variety ... More >>

Naked Wines: Invest In A Winemaker (And Drink The Benefits)

If your resolutions include expanding your wine fridge offerings beyond Trader Joe's corporate specials, UK-based Naked Wines opened a Napa outpost last year with a wine program that, in theory at least, makes small-batch bottles straight from winemakers more affordable. The California winemaker's ... More >>

Colorado Wine Company: A New Location in Eagle Rock

Six weeks into their new Eagle Rock location, Colorado Wine Company buzzes. A customer asks for a "yummy" Prosecco; another wants a well-priced Chardonnay. Owner Jen Nugent quickly obliges and welcomes a couple who've arrived for the weekly Friday night wine flight tasting. At the same time the Mand ... More >>

A Sparkling Wine Holiday Guide: Bubbles Occasions, or Occasional Bubbles?

It's something of a pity that most Americans think of sparkling wines as wines of celebration -- that extraordinary act of niche marketing has rendered these complex and versatile wines into an unfortunate pigeonhole, when they can, and should be enjoyed anytime, anywhere. Nevertheless, here we are, ... More >>

Cognoscenti Coffee Opens Today in Culver City

After starting his Cognoscenti Coffee as a pop-up coffee cart in Burbank and Eagle Rock, then setting up shop inside Proof Bakery in Atwater Village, Yeekai Lim now has expanded into a room of his very own. Four hundred square feet of room, to be exact: Cognoscenti Coffee's new shop in Culver City ... More >>