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A Taste of Asia

A Taste of Asia

Whenever a pandemic isn’t disrupting the social calendar, I consult each fall with Dr. Ron Jan on the pairing of foods and wines for A Taste of Asia, a banquet fundraiser for the Paul Hom Asian Clinic, the oldest Asian health clinic in the United States, dating...
Helping Hands

Helping Hands

One person’s name may appear as the author of a book, but many other people help, from providing inspiration to contributing talent. At the top of my list of people to acknowledge and thank for helping me write “The Signature Wines of Superior California:...
Lodi’s Expansive Embrace

Lodi’s Expansive Embrace

In the wake of the George Floyd killing and the wave of protests that followed, Rodney and Susan Tipton asked themselves what they could do to help improve race relations. It was a discussion likely occurring in homes across the country, but the Tiptons were well...
Halloween Treat

Halloween Treat

The late Tim Spencer, winemaker for his family’s St. Amant Winery of Lodi, was pretty much a traditionalist when it came to making and marketing one of his favorite styles of wine, Port. He was one of the earlier if not the earliest California grape grower to...
Read Like the Wine?

Read Like the Wine?

I’m a fan of Molly Young’s lively New York Times newsletter “Read Like the Wind,” her guide to older, forgotten and just generally overlooked books. Her tone is personable, funny, smart and helpful. Her enthusiasm almost invariably sends me to the library, AbeBooks or...