I often have purple teeth.

I like wine. I realize this is probably less than a shock, but I really do. Especially when you partake as a social activity...more specifically, wine tasting. Even when they all start blending together and you can't taste the difference between a Pinot Noir and a Zinfandel, it's just fun. Especially with my parents. When we were in San Diego, Temecula (the So Cal wine country) was almost exactly half way between us, so we'd meet, have lunch, and do a little tasting.

My mom gets giggly and camera happy, my dad and I exchange quips, and we all buy more wine than we intended to. It's great.

So when we decided to head to Paso Robles this weekend for the 311 concert and some wining, I realized my parents had never been to the Central Cali wine country and we were due for some family intoxication. So, we invited them along.

And I'm glad we did...we did some damage. It's completely impossible to hit all the wineries, but we can always try. Hit our usuals, including Rio Seco, Pear Valley, and Falcon Nest, and added a couple new stops, like Eberle (where we got a tour of their "cave"), and Ortman (they pulled an AMAZING 2002 Zin out of reserve and let us try it). Yum.

Speaking of yum...we didn't just pick up wine. At Falcon Nest, the vineyard matriarch is a wonderfully feisty lady named Carol who loves wine and to chat with her patrons, and her husband Francesco, an Italian gentleman with (at least) two talents—wine and food. They only make a few wines—all reds (not super strange for the warm region), but to balance it out, they/he also do Italian food. They serve it, they talk about it, and this time, they sold it.

Puttanesca. Mmmm. Especially when you see this short of an ingredient list...yuhuhuhum. With some fresh pasta, fresh french/sourdough, a nice bottle of red (obviously), and a caesar salad...fantastic.

I was a bit put off by the price tag, to be honest (10.95), but I had a free tasting coupon and the wine is good (and the explanations/company from the owners is better), so I felt ok splurging.

So thanks for driving up, Mama and Daddy...we had fun. We'll drink with you anytime. Just in case our lushness wasn't evident...Love you.