September 3, 2010

The English Beat @ Wiens Family Cellars

IMG_1365

Have you ever had the fantasy of hosting your favorite band in your own backyard?  You know, having a huge party (maybe it’s your birthday bash) where say, the Clash, or perhaps Wilco, or if you’re thinking really big, maybe Mick, Keith & the boys (“Ladies and gentleman, please welcome…the Rolling Stones!”) play your private party for just you and a few hundred of your closest friends and family.  I know I’ve always entertained this dream.  One of my best friends, when he was back at Long Beach State, hired a local band to rock his fraternity’s annual huge block party.  The band?  … [Read more...]

“Aroma Table” Wine Tasting in Idyllwild

aromatable

If you’re like me, you enjoy trying to pick out all of the bouquet “notes” that are associated with a particular wine you’re out tasting in the wineries.  It’s like a personal challenge, isn’t it?  Can you detect the apricot in a Viognier or the black pepper of a spicy Syrah or the smokey mocha of a Rhone-style blend?  It’s not easy, but just like anything else, it takes practice and some direction/training.  But where you can receive such training so you can develop your “nose” for wine? Glad you asked.  Winemaker Chris Johnston’s Middle Ridge Winery, located in Idyllwild, is … [Read more...]

Barrel Tasting at Stuart Cellars

Barrel Tasting Stuart

I love being outdoors on a summer night.  I love the warm mugginess after a hot July day, a day where the world seems to come to a standstill because of the excessive heat, but relents and encourages us to come out and play in the evening.  The trees and flowers give off their musky scents, the westerly breeze sends the mercury dipping, but not too low - it’s still quite warm enough to wear shorts or a sundress.  Add some fine wine, tasty food pairings, a smooth band providing cool Latin rhythms, and a cozy courtyard filled with good friends, and you have what I would call a perfect summer night. Stuart … [Read more...]

4019′s At Barley & Hops

4019barley

Barley & Hops Olde World Family Tavern, one of the premiere beer bars in Temecula, was the sight of the latest rockin’ set by local favorites the 4019’s.  Deftly blending late-50s rock, a ton of 60s-era rock/pop, Southern rock guitar from the 70s, an 80s punk ‘tude, and the commercial side of grunge from the 90s, the 4019’s lays claim to certainly the most versatile – but also perhaps the best – band in the Temecula area. The newest addition to Barley & Hops – the Draft Room, with over 20 beers on tap, a pool table, foosball, and 3 more flat screen TVs – serves as the bar’s … [Read more...]

Cowboy Jubilee Music Festival

cowboyjubilee

This wonderful event is a fundraiser to benefit the children’s education programs at the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, and a celebration of the ranching and cowboy way-of–life. The Jubilee Dinner, Dance and Concerts at the Ranch begins on July 17 at 3:00 pm and will feature 3 shows, dinner, dance, western artisans, historical displays and specialized vendors, silent and live auctions. Last year, the Cowboy Jubilee was rated as one of the top five events of the year in the Temecula Valley by local media.   The spotlight continues on the Jubilee for a 4th year to musically, poetically, and … [Read more...]

Temecula Hot Summer Nights

hotsummernights

Article by: Marilyn Wrye-Tipps What a great place to be!  This Friday July 9th, the City of Temecula kicks off it's Hot Summer Nights program.  The streets of Old Town will be filled with fun, games and music for the whole family. Baily's Courtyard will play host to Aunt Kizzy's Boyz .  Hailing from San Diego, AKB will be ripping off some down-home blues that will take you to the swamps of Mississippi.  Lead Singer "Sugaray" Rayford is revered as one of California's foremost soulful "Blues Shouters".  The Boyz recently played to a standing ovation at the Pechanga Showroom where they … [Read more...]

Temecula Valley Int’l Jazz Fest

2010 TVIJF Logo

Poncho Sanchez and Trini Lopez will headline this weekend’s Temecula Valley International Jazz Festival, July 9-11, at the Temecula Valley Cultural Arts & Music Center.  Modeled after the Vancouver Int’l Jazz Fest, one of Canada’s biggest and most successful music showcases, the TVIJF is a combination of free and ticketed events and is produced by Musicians Workshop, a non-profit public benefit corporation. Here’s the awesome line-up: Friday, July 9th – Opening Night Dinner & Concert Ray Brown, Jr. (Ella Fitzgerald’s son) Keith Droste Trio Tracy Niles Jon Laskin Big … [Read more...]

Wine, Love, and Gypsies

blondgypsies

The Blond Gypsies gave a rare Southern California performance Saturday, June 26th, bringing their unique Gipsy Rumba & Flamenco Guitar music to Palumbo Family Vineyards & Winery. Surrounded by horse ranches & budding vineyards and sitting atop of the rolling hills off of Monte De Oro, Nicholas and Cindy Palumbo’s boutique winery provided the perfect venue for Latcho and Andrea, the duo that call themselves Blond Gypsy.   About 100 dinner guests – a very eclectic and beautiful crowd – sat in the winery’s courtyard, enjoying the clean, warm Temecula air and the fruits of the vineyards.  … [Read more...]

Support Local Music

supportlocalmusic

Rock and Roll is alive and well in Temecula.  Want proof?  Head out to The Vault, an all-ages music venue (no alcohol sold) located within the walls of the Temecula Sounds School of Music & The Arts, the Valley’s longest-running music school.  The Vault is a small, stripped down, no frills, warehouse-style haven to catch your favorite local and touring indie bands – in short, the perfect place to anchor the Temecula rock scene. I dropped in last week to catch Victory Records’ artist Amber Pacific, playing one of their last So Cal shows before heading back home to the Seattle area (and … [Read more...]

Wild Child at Wiens Winery

Wild Child at Wiens Winery

You know the day destroys the night Night divides the day Tried to run Tried to hide Break on though to the other side! So the Doors sang, opening their set with their hit “Break On Through (To The Other Side) at Wiens Family Cellars.  Jim Morrison in his leather pants hovering over the mic stand, Ray Manzarek leading the melody via his organ, Robby Krieger riffing on his six-string, and John Densmore keeping the ship sailing with his strong backbeat.   Except…it wasn’t Jim Morrison and the Doors circa 1969 – it was Wild Child, and it was this past Saturday evening.  For those … [Read more...]