NBA Treats

LeBron James

1, 2, 3, Work Hard 4, 5, 6, Together...

That's the rallying cry for this years' Cleveland Cavaliers. It's most likely what every other team will aim to accomplish as well. The NBA season has begun, and like a kid in a candy store, I'll be devouring all the sweetness. The West is still loaded, as many as ten teams will battle for the eight playoff spots. Back East it appears to be a two-horse race. Chicago and Cleveland look the best on paper. The next tier includes Toronto, Miami, Washington & Charlotte, leaving the last two spots up for grabs. Let the games begin. Only in the NBA!

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GIANTS GIANTS GIANTS

 World Series Champions 2014

Congratulations to the San Francisco Giants on winning their third World Series in five years. Dynasty may be the most appropriate superlative. Again, three in five years. This title was won on the road, a great game seven to say the least. Affeldt and Bumgarner were stellar in relief. Mad Bum was ridiculous—21 innings pitched in three World Series appearances and only 1 earned run. Sandoval had 26 hits this post season. Hustle Pence had 22 base knocks in October. This team epitomized team, just as they have done in each of their World Series runs. Big ups to Bruce Bochy, what a leader. The other managers who have won three or more World Series are all in the Hall of Fame. In a sport that drifts through three seasons and endures the truth of 162 games (plus the playoffs), you can see why baseball still has the magic. What a game. What a team. What a way to end it.

Congratulations San Francisco, the Giants are World Series Champions. Viva Gigantes!

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Go Giants!

Pence & 'Panda'

Game 7 of the World Series is tonight. And you know what they say about game 7's, anything can happen. The KC faithful are sure to soak in whichever result occurs—the last (home) game of the year. It all comes down to this. Mad Bum has been phenomenal. The two guys in the photo have been pretty dynamic for the SF squad, plus, Buster is due. One GAME for all the marbles. Go Giants!

Tune in at 5:00pm pacific time for the last chance at some good old-fashioned baseball. Game heaven, game seven. Go Giants!

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Truck or Treat

The SOMA strEATfood park in SF will once again host the annual Truck or Treat celebration on Halloween. Open daily for lunch and dinner, the trucks have gained a following. There's an abundance of vendors offering up a ton of selections from all over the culinary spectrum that is street food. 

October 31st is always a party and the pairing of food and music sounds pretty delicious. Street fair takes on a whole new meaning with this event—Truck or Treat III is San Francisco's only nighttime outdoor Halloween dance party. SOMA is sure to be buzzing due to the cast of DJ's, Halloween-only inspired food, beer and drinks, light shows, and spooky movies. For tickets click here. Festivities begin at 7pm and run until Late. Of course costumes are encouraged.

Be extra careful, there are a lot of youngsters out mobbing for treats. Respect all the designated drivers and remember to tip the cab/über driver. Happy Halloween.

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What ALES You?

The Great American Beer Festival wrapped up not too long ago and a couple of the winners are close enough to visit, at least over the course of a weekend. With craft beer continuing to grow, almost everyone can now enjoy a cold one from their own neck of the woods. Those of us in northern California are obviously blessed with an abundance of amazing high-end oat sodas and barley pops. 

The next time I'm headed to Tahoe I'll try and blast over to Reno in order to hit up Brasserie Saint James, awarded best mid-sized brewpub and brewer of the year. Showing good taste, Saint James tends to brew a broader range of ales, going against the grain of the west coast's hop obsession. The Pils De Resistance is a lager fermented near freezing temperatures. They produce a Kolsch inspired by a performance at the Cologne Opera House, the Köln Concert. Daily Wages is a traditionally brewed, herbaceous Saison, which won gold for best French/Belgium Saison. And for the warmth of the golden hour there's California Steamin'.  It's only 5.5% and has a surprisingly low IBU of 39, considering they use four different hop varietals. Not only do they create quality beer, their menus look amazing too.  

Long Beach has the other approachable winner. Beachwood BBQ and Brewery may need to update their website (eek), but apparently their crushing it where it counts. Beachwood was named best large brewpub and brewer of the year. Mocha Machine took the gold for best coffee beer and Un Atout won silver behind Saint James in the Saison category. Beer and barbecue is always a good combination. Hopefully I'll make it down to the LBC. Until then I'll be on the look out for these and others while perusing the beer aisle or at the bar of a good tap room. Cheers.

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Fort Ross

Fort Ross | Harvest Festival | Oct. 18th

Looking for something to do this weekend, that doesn't involve the metropolitan area? I will be enjoying the beauty of Sonoma's rugged coastline at the Fort Ross State Historic Park. Harvest festivals are a autumnal right of passage. There are few settings that can rival this coastal fort established by Russian settlements over 200 years ago.

The morning of October 18th will begin in the historic orchard with the gathering of pears and apples. Then it's onto the windmill, how cool? Throughout the day Draft horse carriage rides will transport attendees, both literally and figuratively. There will also be a traditional field blessing and plenty of storytelling. Make sure to stick around for the firing of the canon at 1:00pm and 3:30pm. Awesome.

The event runs from 10:00am - 5:00pm. For a good portion of that time there will be continuous baking and juicing—with the bounty from the orchard. Be sure to carpool as there is a $20 per car fee. There may even be some mushroom hunting to be had. Don't forget to wear layers and bring cash. Enjoy.

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