Consumer Non-Cyclicals

American Craft Beer Week is Here: A List of Important Beer Events

American Craft Beer Week is underway and picking up speed. The Brewers Association-- a non-profit group recognized as the central foundation for craft beer in America -- designates a week in May to the celebration of small and independent craft breweries. This year, May 13-19 serves as opportunity 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 >>

What Does Climate Change Mean For CA's Wine Industry?

A new study out this week looks at the wine industry through the lens of climate change. The study, which was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, finds that many of the current wine producing regions in the world will be less suitable for wine production, and that at le ... 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 >>

Budweiser Allegedly Watered Down Beer 5 California Craft Alternatives

Anheuser-Busch InBev is being sued by consumers in Pennsylvania, California and New Jersey with companion suits coming from Ohio and Colorado, Bloomberg reports. The complaint filed in Philadelphia alleges that the alcohol content in a variety of Anheuser-Busch products is overstated, which would vi ... More >>

The Corona Compromise: Budweiser Making Expansion Deal

We warned you of the attempted word domination bid by Budweiser by way of beer earlier this month. The Justice Department had filed a lawsuit to block a merger between AB InBev and Grupo Modelo SAB by way of the former's purchase of the latter to the tune of $20.1 billion. It seems this had some e ... More >>

Budweiser Attempting World Domination, Justice Department Says 'Hell Naw'

Anheuser-Busch, brewer of Budweiser, has been looking to buy Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo for $20.1 billion, giving them ownership of brands like Corona, Pacifico and Negro Modelo. But yesterday, the Justice Department sued to stop the merger, saying it would lead to an unfair market share for Anheus ... More >>

The American Wine Market: More Good News

Market research from the Wine Market Council, in its annual analysis of the American drinks market provides more irrefutable evidence that the United States is becoming a wine culture. The country's drinking habits continue to move toward wine above beer and spirits, making it as the fastest growing ... More >>

Liquid Chips? Pepsi Looks To "Drinkify" Snacks

Would you drink your Fritos? How about potato chips? Beer nuts? You may get a chance, because PepsiCo, looking to diversify it's market, is planning to turn snacks into drinks. The Financial Times reports on the remarks of PepsiCo chief executive Indra Nooyi, who said "The fact that PepsiCo is a fo ... More >>

Robert M. Parker Jr. Steps Down as Wine Advocate Editor

In a stunning turn of events, the Wall Street Journal reports that Robert M. Parker, Jr., the single most driving force in the wine industry in the last 30 years, wine's most influential critic and populist, is stepping down from editing his influential journal The Wine Advocate. According to Let ... More >>

Serge Hochar and Chateau Musar: Wine From the Cradle of Civilization

If you're into wine and were in Los Angeles this weekend, you were probably hovering around the Wine Spectator's Wine Experience, a wine affair that sponsors compelling panel discussions (another excuse, like you need it, to drink in the morning) and splendid wine tastings involving California's an ... More >>

L.A. Beer Week: More Local Breweries Bring Shuttles and Tours

There are many ways in which the fourth annual Los Angeles Beer Week, which began last night, represents a major milestone in the city's craft beer scene. In addition to the dizzying number of events this year (the official calendar lists at least 20 separate events happening each day through next ... More >>

The International Pinot Noir Celebration: 300 Wines, 75 Producers, 700 Participants A Movie

While most of the city's denizens of drink were in NOLA celebrating Cocktail Tales and learning indelible lessons on what to drink when, and where, and in what century, I was in Oregon's Willamette Valley at the International Pinot Noir Celebration, an annual event now 26 years strong which does as ... More >>

Q & A With Shafer Vineyards' Elias Fernandez: Summer Wines, Cycling The Upside of High School Band Practice

Elias Fernandez has been the winemaker at Shafer Vineyards in Napa for 28 years -- a lifetime in winemaking terms. While some winemakers hop from winery to winery over their careers, Fernandez says he prefers "the community, the quality" of working for the same vineyard that snatched him fresh out o ... More >>

Natural Wine: An Explanation Where to Find It

What's in a glass of wine? The answer might be surprising. Wine is basically spoiled grape juice. (Whoever first ingested it millennia ago: hat tip.) But these days wine's ingredients can also contain a laundry list of adds in's: sulfur dioxide, egg whites, oak chips, water and numerous chemical ad ... More >>

5 Dog-Friendly Winery Tasting Rooms

A love for wine and dogs can co-exist. People take their pets everywhere these days--dining and drinking out, no exception. Although Los Angeles has approved pets on restaurant patios (per the recent Squid Ink post), rules prohibit them inside. Nor are they welcome at bars or in the tasting rooms at ... More >>

Dom Perignon's Chef de Cave Richard Geoffroy: Champagne, Rainstorms Brutality

Making a prestige cuvee in Champagne is a process so exacting that a Champagne winemaker's title isn't 'winemaker,' it's Chef de Cave, a title that conveys the fact that, despite being subject to the whims of vintage, Champagne is an assemblage, the product of the cellar, and a chef. Indeed great Ch ... More >>

10 California Summer Wine Events

Summer is a wine-drinking marathon in California, and up and down the coast, each weekend brings pleasant opportunities to imbibe outside. The diversity of events reflects the state's varied wine-growing regions. Those on hotel grounds come with a room night package -- a smart way to go. Because i ... More >>

Thanks for Drinking: Craft Beer Sales Rise Despite Sluggish Overall Market

The Brewers Association has just released this year's numbers on U.S. beer sales. If you prefer Manifesto Eagle Rock Wit to Blue Moon (which is owned by MillerCoors) the news is good. Beer sales slowed overall, slipping 1.3% by volume. Within the craft beer industry numbers continued to rise with a ... More >>

In Memory Of A Fundraiser: Wally's Central Coast Wine & Food Event Ends Its 8 Year Run

Wally's Central Coast Wine & Food Celebration, a nonprofit wine and food tasting event that began eight years ago to support the Michael Bonaccorsi Scholarship Fund, has unexpectedly been cancelled this year. "We just don't have a place to do the event," says the event's volunteer publicist, Janni ... More >>

Mars to Eliminate King-Size Candy Bars

Shrink-size me? Candy bar maker Mars Inc. has announced that it is doing away with king-size candy bars. The company says that by the end of 2013, it will only sell chocolate products that have 250 calories per portion, the Chicago Tribune reports. While some might see the move as a cost-saving me ... More >>

Colorado Wine Company Celebrates 7 Years

There is no seven-year itch for the Colorado Wine Company. The Eagle Rock wine shop is more popular than ever with customers who are drawn to owner Jen Morgan and John Nugent's all-inclusive approach to selling wine and the unpretentious vibe of their weekly wine tastings. "I would say it's our rel ... More >>

Top Hops: Best 5 New Craft Beer Bars of 2011

Over the past few years, sales of mass-produced beer (Bud, Miller, Coors and the like) are down along with housing, investments and other barometers of economic growth. Guess what is not down? Craft breweries. Craft beer bars. Craft beer sales. According to the Brewers Association, which represents ... More >>

Q & A with David Larsen of Haven Gastropub Brewery: Beer Geeks in Pasadena, Adventures in Dry Pork Your Brewmaster as Ukekele Player

Orange County's Haven Gastropub has a reputation for rather maniacally obtaining their mercurial selection of craft brews. On one occasion, Beverage Director Wil Dee took a Smokey and the Bandit-style run up to San Francisco to bootleg a vanload from 21st Amendment Brewery, which has no wholesale d ... More >>

Winemaker Q & A With Joel Peterson: On His First Thanksgiving Wine, Atomic Bombs Alice Waters

Joel PetersonThe Young Wine Fiend, Peterson, And His Mom (Center), 1955​Joel Peterson, founder of Ravenswood Winery, isn't exactly the sort of winemaker to veer off the conversation track into lilting conversations about the similarities between playing the bagpipes and making wine. Rather, Pe ... More >>

Food Ads Geared Toward Children: Gov't Waffling on "Voluntary" Guidelines

Happy Clippings​ Is Uncle Sam trying to control what the kids eat these days? Well, maybe just their sugar intake. Earlier this year, the government proposed "voluntary guidelines" for food advertising. The proposed regulations asked companies to cut back on marketing to children between ages ... More >>

Sunset Beer Company Opens in Echo Park Tomorrow

Steven ArmstrongThe sun sets behind Sunset Beer Company​ In April, Squid Ink introduced Sunset Beer Company, a new craft beer bottle shop and tasting bar that was slated to debut in May. Today, the fledgling beer store, nestled in the southeast corner of an Echo Park strip mall, remains dark. ... More >>

First Lady Praises Olive Garden Changes

Anne Fishbeina forkful of spaghetti at the Olive Garden​ How many years does it take to set down a salt shaker? For the Olive Garden (read Jonathan Gold's review here) and Red Lobster restaurants and their four sister chains (LongHorn Steakhouse, the Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze and Seasons 5 ... More >>

Sugar vs. High Fructose Corn Syrup: Court Battle Begins

Guzzle & NoshA little sugar in your bowl?​This morning in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom, a bitter legal battle begins over identity. In one corner, a coalition of table sugar producers complaining about false advertising and attempted "food identity theft." In the other, high fructose corn ... More >>

The Chef vs. The Sommelier: Fig Restaurant's Pinot Chardonnay Face-Off

flickr user cherylknauerPinot or Chardonnay?​When we popped by Fig in Santa Monica recently for a Happy Hour glass of wine, sommelier Matthew Lehman was happy to chat about the new Fig Pinot Noir we spied on the menu -- Lehman helped make it under the watchful eye of La Fenetre winemaker Josh ... More >>

Ben & Jerry's Releases Schweddy Balls Ice Cream

Ben & Jerry's​Back in June, those of us whose love for ice cream is rivaled perhaps only by our love for Alec Baldwin were intrigued by the rumor that Ben & Jerry's was coming out with a Schweddy Balls ice cream flavor. Too good to be true, we thought. Just like the rumor that Baldwin was goin ... More >>

More L.A. Craft Beer News: Enegren Brewing Company

Steven ArmstrongJoe Nascenzi and Matt Enegren at Enegren Brewing Co. ​ As often happens in life, collegiate eccentricities lead to post-baccalaureate vocations. For one Harvard dropout, late-night computer programming led to multi-billion dollar "facebooking." And for three Loyola Marymount gr ... More >>

Support Your State: Drink California Wine During CA Wine Month

Kathy A. McDonaldLearn more about wine this month at a wine tasting seminar​These days, every foodstuff or drink gets a day in its honor. Did you know there's a National Pecan Cookie day (September 21)? One guess on how to observe either National Guacamole Day (September 16) or National Beer D ... More >>

Le Cordon Bleu No Longer Accepting International Students to Culinary Certificate Program

​Cancel that study abroad trip. Le Cordon Bleu culinary school, which has a branch in Pasadena as well as 15 other campuses across the United States, recently became unable to accept international students to its certificate program. Mark Spencer, a spokesman for Le Cordon Bleu's parent compa ... More >>

Brew at the Zoo: Craft Beers Party Animals

gourmetpigs/flickrEagle Rock Brewery's Solidarity​ A dive bar on a bad night can feel like a zoo. Mobs of sweaty and not infrequently hairy folk barrel through spaces designed for fewer bodies. They feed at over-populated troughs: the bar itself, studded with glasses and bottles. They bark ... More >>

Urban Wine Making: Rock Wall Wine, Or How To Share That Bottle Opportunity

www.alamedamagazine.comUrban Winemaker Shauna Rosenblum​Back in the early days of pre-Prohibition winemaking, setting up a winery adjacent to a vineyard was hardly a winemaking prerequisite. A warehouse or garage worked just fine for turning those purchased grapes into wine, particularly in Ca ... More >>

Lompoc Wine Ghetto: Get Your Wine On Alternative

Jeff KirshbaumWinemaker Sashi Moorman of Piedrasassi New Vineland at work in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto.​ Substance outshines style at Santa Barbara County's low-key Lompoc Wine Ghetto. A semi-industrial office park that's in the heart of land-that-time-forgot Lompoc, California, Lompoc Wine Ghett ... More >>

38 Degrees Ale House & Grill: Beer Lover's Paradise... in Alhambra

Daniel DrennonClay Harding, co-owner of 38 Degrees with 38 taps​ Apparently the economic downturn has not hindered craft beer drinkers. They say, even in a recession, folks will still seek an escape from tough times at the movies. The same can now be said of beer bars. Despite dozens of ho ... More >>

Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon Vineyard's Latest Mission

Jeff KirshbaumFamed winemaker Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon Vineyard at his winery's tasting room.​Bonny Doon Vineyard's founder and winemaker Randall Grahm wants to do something really different. Once he ran the 28th largest winery in the U.S.; these days he's on a quest to grow grape vines fr ... More >>

Ferran Adrià Partners with PepsiCo: Your Nitrogen Tank, My Convenience Food

El BulliCan you find the vending machine in this flow chart?​ Ferran Adrià does like to play with products. And the El Bulli chef has a history of innovation and unlikely pairings. But Pepsi? Recently PepsiCo announced a partnership with Adrià, to work on procedures and techniques for new sn ... More >>

Schweddy Balls Ice Cream: Ben & Jerry's Newest Flavor, or A Very Good Joke

Mostly we try and stay away from telephone tag rumor, but this one is just too beautiful not to pass along. Gothamist reports that SNL's Ana Gasteyer has said in an interview that Ben & Jerry's, the ice cream company that has brought us Stephen Colbert's AmeriCone Dream flavor, will be coming out ... More >>

L.A. joins the Craft Beer Revolution: ColLAboration Rock & Brews

Daniel DrennonRob Croxall, El Segundo Brewing, with Jennifer Greenhalgh, Rock and Brews​ This past weekend, legions of L.A. beer fans descended upon two beer "events" -- ColLAboration 2 in Hollywood on Saturday and the Rock and Brews Festival in El Segundo on Sunday. The huge turnout and joyo ... More >>

Q & A With Municipal Winemakers' Dave Potter: On Surfing, Sourcing Grape Stigmas His New Tasting Room

JGarbee Potter In The Former Scuba Shop That Will Become His Tasting Room​If you need an excuse to for a coastal drive, winemaker Dave Potter is your man. He is the face behind Santa Barbara-based Municipal Winemakers, a small but mighty 600 cases per year operation that he tends to between ba ... More >>

Wine on Tap: Restaurants Get Into the Flow

Vinson PhotographyWine Cask Santa Barbara​ Wine has always been tapped from barrels. Rarely though, except at a winery, can you drink it that way. That is changing as more California winemakers are packaging wine in multi-gallon kegs and restaurants junk bottles for tap systems. Draft wine is ... More >>

Sunset Beer Company Retail Beer Shop And Tasting Bar Opening Soon In Echo Park

JGarbeeAlex Macy And Beer Consultant Christina Perozzi With That Westy 12​If you know Alex Macy, co-founder of the LA Craft Beer Crawl and a beer consultant for several local bars over the years, you will appreciate the irony of a recent e-newsletter from Eagle Rock's Colorado Wine Company ann ... More >>

High West: The Spirit Of The Rye, Rye West Their Newest Double Rye Release

J. GarbeeThe Regional Whiskey Face Off Continues ​If you follow the spirits circuit, specifically those of the barrel-aged corn and rye persuasion, High West Distillery in Park City, Utah, has probably been on your radar for a while. If not, you'll hear about this young craft distillery soon i ... More >>

Behind the Kitchen Door: ROC-LA Reports Reveals Restaurant Industry Inequality

Samrod Shenassa​ To many of the 276,000 people working the gritty, grueling jobs in Los Angeles' vast restaurant industry, the conclusions of a report released today by the Restaurant Opportunities Center of LA come as no surprise. Long hours, low pay, no health care benefits, no vacation or ... More >>

Q & A With Winemaker Greg LaFollette: On Bagpipes, Mouth Feel And Pinot Noir Love

Lafollettewines.comGreg La Follette And Assistant Winemaker Simone Sequeira​In the winemaking scene, "getting around" is all part of the gig. The best winemakers handle the grapes at various wineries throughout their career, and often more than one winery at a time, before they find "the one." ... More >>

Q & A With Winemaker Greg La Follette, Part 2: What 6 Kids Will Do To Your Pinot Noir

lafollettewines.comGreg LaFollette's True Love​When we first spoke with Greg La Follette, winemaker at his namesake La Follette Wines, he was telling us how making wine isn't all that different from playing the bagpipes. And why getting to know Pinot Noir isn't all that different from taking o ... More >>

Kids in the Courtyard