So many seasonal festivals everywhere, and nowhere more so than in California, a state larger than most nations.
Our neighboring city of Brentwood just had CornFest; our ‘hood of Oakley celebrates the annual Almond Festival. There are county fairs, street fairs and weekly Farmers Markets. Chambers of Commerce and nonprofit societies statewide sponsor fundraising weekends. Hell, even the city of Martinez, a mere olive’s toss west of Oakley, celebrates its putative history as the birthplace of a classic cocktail, with the annual Martini Festival.
Lots of diversity in theme, lots of range in terms of vibe, but one festival constant: Bring cash. Plastic frequently ain’t no good at these clambakes. Greenbacks buy you scrip or raffle-type paper tix from the roll. Sometimes you even trade your scrip in for tokens, which are then accepted in exchange for your wine pour.
But gotta tell ya, a glug from a bottle of Sauv Blanc pulled from a bucket of ice water and free-poured into a plastic cup on a 90-degree cloudless Sunday afternoon can easily elucidate our funky U-Pick, Gnarly Vine, Bad-Bocce Playing, Previously-Neglected-Model-Home existence. Three years running, soon. And here we are.
Down south in Livermore, home to, if you’ve read Kathy and me before, the wineries that fuel our semi-annual Fall and Spring “Port Run's, and holiday open houses of their own device, we ventured farther west toward downtown to attend the “Art Under the Oaks” shindig.
Held at the Alden Lane Nursery, and cosponsored by the Livermore Art Association, it was a cool little fest celebrated over a quarter-century, offering wares from local artists and winemakers, as well as spotlighting a huge array of flora for sale at the gorgeously appointed nursery, laid out in concentric circles with paths interspersed to live music.
As Kath’s photo may suggest, the “Oaks” in “Art Under the Oaks” are the full-meal deal, shielding more than a couple of our fave Livermore winery tasting tables. We dipped into some nicely unusual varietal stuff from familiar stops on our Livermore tours. Rodrigue Molyneaux was offering a case special of Pinot Blanc and an outrageously minty Cabernet for pickup at the winery close by. Before heading off from Alden, we toured the citrus circle. Man, grapefruit growing in pots! Exotic oranges! Buddha’s Hand fully formed!
My envy was as green as our tiny Meyer lemons in the backyard here in Oakley.
OK, no particular order, but we got to RodMoly to buy the case of wine. Again I say OK, but when one has announced the intention to buy a case of wine (albeit for a deep discount of $100), would that one be expected to pay the winery tasting fee? As one may say at the London Olympics, “Gob smacked, mate!” Years ago, I talked about “Fee Creep.” Apparently, it’s here, too.
Did not hurt that the Steven Kent winery, umbrella to the Pinot-centric La Rochelle (the only Livermore wine club to which we $ubScribe), allows us to taste gratis. SK’s “Barrel Room” is an oh-so civilized respite: It’s intimate, yet a host leads you to a wood-topped tasting board atop a barrel, and you are looked after by a professional staff fully capable of pulling a few “extra” bottles out of their collective sleeve. Have not had a bad tasting there yet. Never would have thought that spendy SK could be our $afe harbor when trying to escape tasting fees.
Sometimes, that same little joy that you get at a free festival is worth the journey. That citrus was really green. But, with a smile on my face, I say so was that Sauvignon Blanc.
And I say so with taste buds that are more palimpsest than palate.
RIP: Rich Pato
Richard V. Pato, local Oakley grape grower, died July 10, 2012.
I would like to say that I interviewed him for the local CoCo blog, I have to say that a self-effacing phone call and a tractor-side handshake were all that I got from a local cat who grew the do, and told me that the widening of Empire Road, adjacent to his vineyard acreage, into a suburban thoroughfare was “a pain in the neck.” Yep, he actually said “neck.
Rosenblum Cellars, owned for years now by drinks giant Diageo, has committed themselves to vineyard-designated sites up and down Cali. “Pato,” in our burg, Oakley, was just one of them. I have a call in to Diageo to see what happens now.
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