Want to treat your sweetie to a wonderful bottle of wine for Valentine’s Day? Then look no further than Beauregard’s Chardonnay. Owner and winemaker Ryan Beauregard has made a wine par excellence—he never fails to produce outstanding-quality elixirs.
Native yeast fermented and aged in 20% new French oak barrels, 500 cases were produced of the Bald Mountain Chardonnay ($55), so I would say there’s a good chance there’s still some around, even though Beauregard wines sell like wildfire. (A good place to find Beauregard wines is Shopper’s Corner.) Planted in 1990, the vineyard of Bald Mountain in Bonny Doon is owned and farmed by Beauregard Vineyards.
You will love the Chardonnay’s nose of “white flowers, honeysuckle, yellow apple, Meyer lemon, stirred lees, and raw hazelnut—with a touch of oyster shells and wet white rocks.” For sure you’ll be smitten when you taste its refreshing acidity and flavors of “crunchy Asian pear, lime pith, lemon blossoms and yellow apples.” This is a wonderful Chardonnay that’s worthy of a special occasion. If you get some for Valentine’s Day, your sweetheart will love you all the more!
“This vintage is remarkable,” says Beauregard, “and my team put in 110% effort to craft the best wines that can be made from our family estate. I have selected rare and unusual barrels constructed in France, which will hone these wine gems while they mature into wines I will be proud to put my family’s name on.”
Beauregard Vineyards, 10 Pine Flat Road, Bonny Doon. 831-425-7777, beauregardvineyards.com.
Safe Catch Tuna
I love tuna in a sandwich or salad. A good brand I recommend is Safe Catch—one reason being that their Pure Wild Tuna and Wild Albacore Tuna are thoroughly tested for mercury. There’s a lot of junky food out there, so it’s important to check labels for content. Safe Catch is also 100% sustainably caught, and you can find it locally at Zoccoli’s Deli, New Leaf, Shopper’s Corner, Aldo’s Italian Bakery in Soquel, Deluxe Foods in Aptos, and others. Safe Catch is based in Sausalito. Visit safecatch.com for more info.
