September 2012

Hi All.

I am very sad today.  There are changes on Main Street that I don't like.

TonyMatthews has closed.  As of July 31, they have closed their doors.  I know, I know they are on to other things and moving forward in new directions, but at the same time, Tony won't be on the street talking or smiling at people walking by.  Matt won't be behind the counter laughing or being the friendly guy he is.
It just won't be the same.
Placerville just got a bit more quiet....
We will miss these guys, not to mention Suzanne, Tony's certified crazy mother.  We love her wit, her smile and her caring for people here.  She is one of those people who, if you walk in in a bad mood, she can lift you out of it. 
She did this for Gary and I for many, many years....
Like I said, Main Street, Placerville just got a bit more quiet.
But (now this is the grownup me speaking) we wish them the best of luck and hope we will continue to see them on the streets....
We have watched these guys for the last 16 years become a staple in the community, a place to go for great gifts and essentials, foods, and kitchen supplies.  They jumped right in the community with both feet believe me.
We will miss the fact they are not there on a daily basis..
Here's to all of you.....I'm drinking wine just for you.....
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Cafe Luna has finally got a new email address after all these years....AT&T finally ticked me off enough to make me leave them for ever (as if they could care less....).  Our new email address is:

cafeluna@comcast.net

Truth be told, I needed faster internet, and AT&T could not provide it.  So there....
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Gary and I are gearing up for our proposed trip to Merida, Mexico in November....this is an incredible place that friends, and you, our customers have been raving about for several years now.  We have contacted a guy over there who is going to take us around the Centro district for a tour of what kinds of houses we can maybe consider if we were to have a second home there.  We love the fact it is a city that is the second oldest Colonial city in Mexico, full of historical buildings, and considered by many a very European city in the Yucatan Peninsula.  We have always had a major love of Mexico and its culture, and hope to someday immerse ourselves in an long extended stay there.  Merida is also known for its seven parks in the Centro district, and we have found out that every night in one of the parks there is some kind of cultural party, dance, fiesta, or planned gathering that is part of their cultural education for the area.  Centro district is full of restaurants,shopping, and museums and we are looking for this type of experience to rev up our tired bones.....and the fact that we can walk anywhere we want to go is a huge plus.  Mexico here we come.....
will keep you posted on these events.....

So our garden at the house has been extremely happy this year.  It is now three years old now and everything is getting huge.  We have been growing about 15 different hydrangeas and this year they just got nuts with huge flowers. We have been cutting them, giving them away, and starting new plants because I love to propagate plants.  The challenge is taking these little stems and made exact plants from them.  Because you see, I have a lot of time on my hands because I do not grow my own tomatoes anymore.  Every year I try growing tomatoes but forget it.....the tomato worms win, the birds win, and I always lose.  Soooo.....the Farmers Markets in Placerville and El Dorado Hills and Cameron Park are great resources for buying great and unusual tomatoes.  We are lucky here because we have many of the local farmers come in and bring boxes of their vegetables and fruits and we get to hand pick these babies.....Kelen (Helen with a 'K' she tells me...) brought in the most beautiful and sweet tasting orange grape tomatoes that we are using for saute, etc.
This is just like real life right?  They come to your door and you get to pick the best of the best?  I can't wait to retire someday and just answer the door when these guys bring us their wares.  I am ready.....
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Boy oh boy, I love my job.  In the last couple of months, we have had so much incredible wines brought in to us to taste and examine and try with foods.  It is amazing how much difference wines can taste varietal to varietal and region to region.  The Barbera's in the county from one side to the other have a huge taste structure change that sometimes I cannot identify.  Some of the Syrah's, and the Zinfandel's are changing in their flavor components.  I have found a lot of the red wines go for the 'fruit bomb' experience rather than the characteristics of the varietals, but I guess this is the California public demanding big fruit forward wines.

We have one of our wine reps, Bill Gilbert who works with Wine Warehouse out of Sacramento.  He has taught me so much about French wines, South American wines, and Spanish, Portuguese and Italian wines.  Tasting these wines which I admit are very different than what we are used to.  Dry wines, lower in alcohol (generally in the 12-13% range), but mostly how excellent they are with foods.