Weeks Gone By and Weeks to Come

Given that winter can be wet, harvest extends through the fall, and so many people take off for the summer, it shouldn’t surprise me every year that the spring is when so many food and drink events occupy my calendar.In just the past couple of weeks, I co-hosted one of my cellar raid dinners for the Just 8 Supper Club at Clean Slate in Solvang, taught at Lindsey Reed’s UCSB Wine Class, spoke about my book Vines & Vision to a long-running Santa Ynez Valley men’s group at Chomp (also in Solvang), and attended many of the Taste of Santa Barbara events, including the wine experience last Sunday, where I moderated three back-to-back panels and got to meet in person Chef Guidance Moon of Momma’s Soul Food Fusion and Gabriel De Loera of Big G’s Barbecue.

And they’re not over yet. Here’s a rundown of what should be on your calendar for the next few weeks and beyond.

Pintxos & Pours @ Gala, May 30: The Anacapa Street restaurant is pushing its Spanish vibe by selling à la carte pintxos — the small tapas-style Basque dishes made famous in San Sebastián — alongside $45 flights of wines made in Santa Barbara County from Spanish varieties on May 30. The featured wines are albariño from Dolina (Rusack winemaker Steve Gerbac’s label), piqpoul from Babcock, graciano from Longoria, and mencía from both Babcock and Longoria. See galasb.com.

Firestone Walker Invitational, May 31-June 2: Okay, the main event on June 1 almost certainly sold out within minutes of its ticket release. (I’ll be there with my buddy Dr. Pepper, marking our return after skipping it since the pandemic.) However, that’s not the only way to indulge in the Paso suds scene next weekend. On May 31, the brewery is throwing a Brewery Block Party that starts at 1:30 p.m. with barbecue, beer (samples/guest taps/special bottles), games, and three bands. Then, on Sunday, June 2, the Taproom will host “Beers @ Brekky” to show how well brew can go with breakfast burritos and egg-topped burgers from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. See firestonewalker.com.

Alternative Tastes Wine Fest, June 7-8, Paso Robles: Anything that celebrates grape varieties beyond the usual cast of cab, chardonnay, and pinot noir gets my endorsement, and this event, which boldly pairs crisp, fresh albariño with the lush, powerful red grape tannat, is venturing where few events have dared to go. Hosted by Brecon Estate — whose owner Damian Grindley hosted albariño fests before — the schedule kicks off with a sunset dinner on Friday, June 7, at Brecon, and then features a grand tasting, charity auction, and seminars on both grapes on Saturday. Tickets range from $75 to $195. Click here for details and tickets.

Just 8 Supper Club @ Clean Slate, July 11 and September 5: Technically, these events are in the summer season, but they’ve been selling out quickly, so here’s your head start to get some of the eight seats per dinner. We’re following the same format as the past two dinners: I raid my cellar for exciting, expensive, and most of all interesting wines to pour alongside a menu crafted by Chef Melissa Scrymgeour. Click here for tickets and details.

Bummer News: Frinj and Arnoldi’s

I was really bummed to hear some bad news about Frinj Coffee, the Goleta-based effort by organic farmer Jay Ruskey to turn Southern California into a global hub for growing coffee. I’ve been following Ruskey’s efforts for a decade now, and wrote this cover story in November 2021. In fact, he named the company after this article called “Farming the Fringe” that Ethan Stewart and I worked on together, featuring profiles of Ruskey as well as other farmers growing oddball crops.

After being sued by a former employee and investor in December, Frinj filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January. This is merely a reorganization, Ruskey assured me, a stance supported by the fact that the biggest coffee project in California still remains an ally. Read all about that here.

Then came Sunday night’s news that Arnoldi’s Café was closing, although that does seem like a temporary situation. I first found out about Arnoldi’s when I was graduating from UCSB in 1999. My parents made me call around to get post-ceremony dinner reservations for about 20 of us, and everywhere that I knew of was booked. I scoured the phone book, calling every spot, and eventually talked to someone at Arnoldi’s who said they could accommodate us on the back patio.

Although the restaurant wasn’t exactly known for great food back in those days — their culinary renaissance came when the new slate of owners came in a few years later — the whole scene was actually quite perfect for my family. The bonus for Arnoldi’s was that my great-uncle Merv Griffin was in attendance. They very much knew who he was — which can’t really be said as much today — and were very honored to have this world-famous celebrity in their establishment.

I started returning to Arnoldi’s a few years later, when the new ownership team came in, spruced up the place, and brought on the legendary Willy Gilbert — who was my bartender during my Jimmy’s Oriental Garden daze — to serve drinks a couple of nights a week. I just took my son there a few months ago, and everything was great.

My fingers are tightly crossed that this news is indeed temporary. My condolences to the family of David Peri, the co-owner whose recent, sudden passing prompted the closure. His biography, full of helping others, is one to be respected.

Good News: Potter’s Point

This isn’t really food and drink news, aside from the fact that I ate and drank a lot with my good friend, the late artist Chris Potter. But thanks to the efforts of Supervisor Laura Capps (with a background push by our mutual friend Suzanne Kaljian Cohen), the City of Goleta recently named a prominent bluff on the Ellwood Mesa as “Potter’s Point.”

A handful of his friends spoke at the hearing, including yours truly, making it the first time that I’d ever both spoken at and covered an event. Read all about it here.

Next, we are working on getting a bench and perhaps a permanent easel for all to use erected near the spot. That’s a bit more complicated than just naming something. More on that to come.

And as you read this, my friends and I are on the annual backpacking trip that Potter co-created. It’s the 20th year of this affair, and there’s about 20 guys going this year in honor of our buddy. I’ll report back, at least on the foods we enjoyed.

From Our Table

Here are a couple of stories you may have missed:

• Vanessa Vin files her report from the Court of Master Sommeliers Americas (CMS-A) for hosting its Annual Women’s Sommelier Symposium.
• I hung out with Elise Magistro, the owner of Luretík Olive Oil, which is an incredibly delicious, authentic, and multiple-awards-winning product grown from 1,000 trees in her Santa Ynez Valley backyard. Learn more here.