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Putting Green Back in your pocket this St. Paddy’s Day

Friday, March 16th, 2012

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Every St. Patrick’s Day morning, the bars in downtown SLO open their doors at 6am to welcome crowds of green garmented guests eager to begin the festivities with an Irish Coffee or Irish Car Bomb.  Soon rounds of Jamison shots will be passed around with bag pipes blowing in the background.  Oh what fun!  On the other hand, if you are seeking a more subtle celebration, come visit us at Tolosa Winery!  We will be pouring our “green” wines, not in color, but environmentally friendly, from our sustainable and solar estate vineyards.  

 

St. Patrick’s Day Offer:
We want to put some “green” back in your pocket by offering $5 gift cards on Saturday, March 17th, 2012  for purchases of 6 or more bottles!

 

Guests can also enjoy wine and cheese pairings with John Shakley, who is guaranteed to be dressed in green and orange from his socks to a vintage Ralph Lauren shirt or sweater (see last year’s photo).  In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, John themed one of the four pairings; 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon with Cahill’s Irish Porter cheese. Here’s a little clip from John’s description: Cow’s milk from County Limerick, Ireland; pasteurized to protect us from the occasional intoxicated milking cow! Send John an email at jshakley@tolosawinery.com if you would like to make reservations for this weekend’s pairings.

 

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Cheers,

 

 Kathleen Colleen Noonan – Tolosa resident Irish Girl

P.S. Stay away from the green beer and drink GREEN Wine!

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Weekend Wine Pairings Expand to Charcuterie and Chocolate!

Wednesday, January 25th, 2012

What we(I) need is “CHANGE” ! – by John

 

A few weeks ago, I realized that in spite of having a potential inventory of 150 cheeses from Vivant, that I was beginning to get a “bit’ bored with my offerings.  If the concept of being bored with a menu reaches me, than sooner or later, I was afraid it just might reach my loyal “repeat” customers.

 

That’s right, I do have a group of customers that not only come routinely, but are quick to point out what is new to them and what is not.  These are my most important customers because they are my best critics.

 

As a result, three weeks ago, my first step was to contact Patty Menna, a local choclatier and owner of the Truffle Garden, with a plan to list her chocolate truffles weekly, next to the cheese.  The result was immediate.  We sold out that weekend.

 

Today, three weeks later, I thought as long as we were at it, we should offer charcuterie as well.  This way, not only could we offer a third choice, but a couple could enjoy one plate of each with a knife for sharing. 

 

Most important, I won’t become a “one trick pony”-something us seniors fear most!  But not to fear, I won’t be offering panini’s or mac and cheese as of yet! 

Most importantly here are the 3 Menus for this weekend January 28th :

 

Charcuterie and Wine Pairing Menu:

 

·         2009 No Oak Chardonnay

Prosciutto with apricot/Busseto

·         2009 Chardonnay

Duck Pate/Fabrique Delices

·         2009 Pinot Noir

Sinocchiona-locally produced  pork with fennel and Chianti.

·         2008 Syrah

Chorizo from Spain

 

Truffle and Wine Pairing Menu:
Local handmade truffles from the Truffle Garden. 

·         2009 No Oak Chardonnay

Lemon Hazelnut Truffle

·         2009 Chardonnay

Orange Truffle

·         2009 Pinot Noir

Lavender Truffle

·         2008 Syrah

Mexican Chocolate Truffle

 

And last but not least our Wine and Cheese Menu for this weekend: 

·         2009 No Oak Chardonnay

Mango Ginger White Stilton

·         2009 Chardonnay

Vella Jack

·         2009 Pinot Noir

Mont d’Or

·         2008 Syrah  

Sartori Sar Vecchio

 

All are the same price at $20pp or $15 pp club members each. If you would like to make reservations email me, jshakley@tolosawinery.com  or give us a call at (805)782-0500!

 

JOHN SHAKLEY

CONCIERGE, TOLOSA WINERY

 

 

 

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“Lamb-Chopper” cheese

Wednesday, November 3rd, 2010

This week John “hand” delivered the wine and cheese menu to me so he could act out the pairing of the newly added “Lamb Chopper” cheese. Just picture John revving-up a motorcycle and saying “it’s a lamb riding a Harley, get it “Lamb-chopper” ! Thanks for the laugh on this hump-day Johnny, sometimes I wonder if you choose the cheeses based on their name, rather than pairing, I mean did you see the “Blondie’s Best” ?  Attached is the Lamb Chopper label and we’ve got a great menu for this weekend so check it out.

 

2008 No Oak CHARDONNAY

Mt. Tam. Cheese

Cowgirl Creamery’s  signature cheese, made from organic cow’s milk from the Straus family dairy in beautiful Marin county.

This elegant triple cream cheese has a buttery  earthy flavor, reminiscent of white mushrooms.

The creamy, predominately lactic cheese works well with our white Burgundy

 

2007 Chardonnay

“Lamb Chopper”

100% Sheeps milk from Holland, imported by cargo(not Harley’s) to Humboldt County where the men are weak and the cheese is strong!

A smooth buttery organic cheese that will leave you humming “born to be mi-ia-ld(not wild) long after the sweet fruity taste is gone.

The long complex “lanolin” like finish is quite close to a perfect match to our Chardonnay..

 

2007 Pinot Noir

“Blondie’s Best”

Raw cow’s milk from California’s Sacramento Valley, where the cow’s produce milk and the politicians produce close to “nothing” !

Named after the Pedrozo’s first dairy cow who wandered the pastures long after her day.

A semi firm cheese with a bright yellow paste and a young flavor.

Young cheeses almost always pair well with young wines and our Pinot Noir should fit the bill perfectly!

 

2007 Petite Sirah

Blue Paradise

Made from pasteurized milk this lovely cheese comes from local, sustainable, dairy farms near Mineral Point, Wisconsin.  Wisconsin of course is also known as home to thousands of hogs -Harley Davidson that is !

Tony and Julie Hooks started Hooks creamery in 1976 and Blue Paradise has become a standard.  A rich, double cream version of blue cheese, aged from three to six months.

Full flavored, rich and smooth with a long finish.  Perfect match for our full bodied Petite Sirah.

A Wisconsin Sunday Harley ride ”story” up the Mississippi, provided at no additional charge

 

Email Jshakley@tolosawinery.com for reservations or call (805)782-0500.

Visit our updated tasting menu online every Wednesday for current pairings.

 

Katie Noonan

Event & Marketing Administrator

(805)782-0300 ext. 20

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Ever heard of the cheese called Livarot?

Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010

This upcoming weekend for the wine and cheese menu we have four great cheeses, but when I was posting the pairings online today this cheese caught my eye! Maybe it’s because it’s lunchtime, but this is definitely worth a trip to the winery this weekend!

Paired with our 2007 Pinot Noir we have a cheese called Livarot (LEE-va-roe). Livarot, a cow’s milk cheese, is named after a village in Normandy and is one of the regions oldest cheeses.  Livarot is circled by five “straps” of rush leaves(or paper) that prevent the cheese from collapsing during maturation.  (You too could collapse if opened in a small room during the “breathing” process).  Washed with salty water and turned often during maturation process. 

One would think, the strong spicy flavor would over power a Pinot, but we find it a “perfect match” !

 

Click here to view the full menu for September 25th and 26th or to make your reservations email Jshakley@tolosawinery.com.  

 

Cheers,

Katie Noonan

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