Pop O' Mint and Some Seriously Hot Wine

I snatched these mint heels up during the Sole Society 50% off sale and I'm pretty sure they're my favorite buy so far this year. I've been getting a little bored with my style lately and this pop of color is a perfect start to remedy that. 

I found this inspiration outfit (right) on Pinterest and used it as my guide. I'm not ready to dive into the deep end of the color pool just yet, so the simple black and white outfit was perfect. To dress it up a bit for the office (the shirt is pretty sheer), I added a tweed jacket. I took the pic of myself before my jewelry was on, but the gold really works well with the gold piping on the shoes. I wish I had some similar colored earrings to tie it all together. Hmm, looks like a shopping trip is in order!

Jacket: Banana Republic Factory (Similar, Love this one)

Shirt: Banana Republic Factory (Similar)

Pants: You guessed it! (Shop)

Shoes: Sole Society (In Red, Similar)

Necklace: Lia Sophia

Watch & Ring: Micheal Kors (Watch, Ring)


In other news, Brad & Angie have branched out into the wine world. I'm not really a fan of those two, but I am a fan of wine and who am I to discriminate against those who produce it? Reports are that the duo was very involved in the process as they own the French Chateau where it was made. Dubbed the "Miraval Rose 2012", their first wine is being sold at a surprisingly low $23 per bottle. Good luck getting your hands on it, though, as it was pretty much sold out in a few hours of its online release. There's a chance we could find it in restaurants in the near future, so if I happen to come across it you'll be the first to know.

 Have a great weekend!

~ Sara

Best (Rainy Day) Intentions

I woke up yesterday morning to urgent, panicked news reports of the end of the world. We're talkin' Noah-style rain, blizzards, flooding, sleet, hail, you name it. Storm of the century, people!! 

So imagine my excitement when I got a chance to wear my adorable new herringbone rain boots (my favorite birthday present from my awesome sister)! I got all bundled up, even threw on my favorite Burberry scarf (my favorite Xmas present, also from my amazing sister) and I was ready to brave the elements. 

Boy, did I feel like a moron after an entire of day of nearly clear skies without a drop of rain and here I was, trudging around the office in rain boots. Sigh....

Oh well, at least I got to try out a comfy, adorable outfit in rehearsal for an actual rainy day. 

PS - Here's a perfect example of how an outfit looks SO much better in the abstract than it does on me...

Trench: Banana Republic

Sweater: H&M (Similar, Similar)

Jeans: Banana Republic

Boots: Chooka (different than shown)

Scarf: Burberry

Watch: MK 

Bag: Michael Kors

PPS - After a year of having constant gel polish on my nails I'm giving them a break and letting them recover. Please excuse the man-hands, they look awful...

~ Sara

Behind the Cellar Door

Well, folks, it's official. Lodi's Wine & Chocolate Weekend has been one-up'd. 

While I will always love W&C and everything it stands for (hometown pride, bedazzled shirts and all), I have officially fallen even more in love with Amador County wine and its amazing event, Behind the Cellar Door. 

First thing's first...outfit!

That's us girls!

A few of us gals (that's us and here's what I wore) - and one very patient designated driver - embarked on our journey up the foothills to Amador County and had fun day filled with a ton of really nice wine and even more delicious food.  

How do I love thee, BTCD? Let me count the ways:

1) The Crowds (or lack thereof). Forget the idea of being crammed into a tiny tasting room trying to fight your way up to the bar for a taste. This event is not nearly as crowded as some others. Everywhere we went there were a decent amount of people, enough to give a sense of vibrancy and energy to the event - but not Vegas nightclub-esqe crowds to contend with, thank goodness.

2) The Wine. Even though this should be the focus of wine events, often it gets buried under all the other hoopla. Not here. It is very rare to find bad wine in Amador and this event is no exception. At each location I found myself more and more enthralled with the quality of the wines, impressed by the amount (no abbreviated tasting menus here, careful!) and also by the variety. A Vranac from Macedonia? Why, sure!

3) The Food. We're not talking Ritz crackers and spray cheese here. This event is very focused on food and each location features literally an entire meal. Even if you're not that into wine this event is worth attending if only for the edible offerings. This is a huge plus for DDs!

4) The Views. The hills of Sutter Creek and Plymouth are absolutely gorgeous and provide a picture perfect backdrop for this event. Almost every winery is situated in the middle of a beautiful landscape, and the best part of it all is that it totally reminds me of Tuscany. With a glass in your hand a a full belly you can almost trick yourself into thinking that's where you are.

OK, so here's a quick rundown  of the wineries we visited on this trip. I recommend them all, but found a new one that I'm now totally obsessed with.

 Avio Vineyards

  Highlights: Superfriendly staff and owners. Beautiful Tuscan-themed tasting room with a little western charm mixed in. Raspberry champagne!

Best Wine: "Barbed Wire Red": A bright and fruity red blend for everyday drinking.

Food:  Tuscan stew with polenta and "Zinful" brownies

  Sierra Ridge Winery

  Highlights: Gorgeous view, friendly staff, large covered deck

Best Wine: Barrel tasting of their Vranac, a grape from Macedonia. Since it was young it was very fruity and tannic. We also tried the bottled Vranac which had mellowed and deepened but was more round and full.

Food:  Homemade ravioli with homemade pesto, salad, bread and mini cupcakes. 

Feist Wines

  Highlights: Besides everything? A quaint winery housed in a Gold Rush era building in little Amador City (the smallest incorporated town in CA!). Adorable rustic-chic tasting room, art, tipsy staff and a honky-tonk band! What a find!!

Best Wine: Viognier. Medium-bodied with green apple and floral notes. Love!

Food: Smoked sausages and chicken with salsa verde and gourmet cheeses.

Wilderotter Vineyards

   

Highlights: Every wine is amazing, especially the whites. Cute Tuscan-looking building and grounds. Sam, our entertaining, beer-drinking host!

Best Wine: Too hard to choose just one. My favs are the Roussanne - a light, citrusy white and the Ambroisa - a Grenache/Tempranillo blend that is floraly and fruity.

Food: Grilled Poblano Rubbed Chicken Tacos with BBQ Onions & Slaw and a Red Garden Potato Salad - courtesy of Sam, the resident food guru! Best food of the day.

Vino Noceto

 

Highlights: Large tasting area, Italy theme, comparative tastings of local and foreign wines and a talented latin guitar player!

Best Wine: 2009 Misto Sangiovese - won best of show at Amador County fair!

Food: AMAZING crackers from nearby Andrae's bakery, tomato soup, flatbreads and desserts.

Cooper Vineyards

Highlights: Views from the back deck area, good wines all around, largefood spread.

Best Wine: I'm a sucker for their 2009 Barbera.

Food: Italian antipasto, marinated beef, salad, bread, desserts.

 

 and finally....

  Karmere Vineyards

Highlights: Best wine in the area, beautiful grounds, fun staff, resident dog and more. It's pretty much my happy place.

Best Wine: Julie Ann Barbera, Haley Zin, Peach Sparkling Wine. Not even funny how good these are.

Food: Chili and cornbread which was perfect for the end of the day.

I hope everyone enjoyed reading this and that it inspires you to make the trip next year. I'm hesitant to spread the word too much since it's like my little secret, but since only about 4 people read this blog I think I'm safe. :)

Cheers!!

~ Sara

My Cone of Happiness is a Cone of Amador Wine

It's Friday, so I'll keep this short and sweet. And by sweet I mean awesome. 

Back by popular demand...Sheriff Rocky! As you can see, my attempt at recreating a hilarious meme was met with his typical disdain for all things humorous. 

Clearly he was not amused by his Cone of Happiness one bit. Poor guy needs to loosen up.

Told you it was going to be awesome. You know what else is awesome? Wine tasting! 

This weekend is another of my favorite wine events, Amador County's Behind the Cellar Door. It's a lot like Lodi's Wine & Chocolate Weekend which is probably why I love it so much. Wineries from the Plymouth area (GREAT wine in this area if you haven't tried it) feature special wines, barrel tastings and most importantly, good food! I believe this will be the third year I have attended this event and it has never failed to be absolutely fantastic. The thing I love about Amador wineries is that not only is the wine really good (LOVE the Barberas!) but everyone is super friendly and the experience is even less pretentious and more laid back than in Lodi, which is saying something. I'm really looking forward to this and also to posting about all the wineries, wines and food. Stay tuned!

It goes on on Saturday and Sunday and you can buy tickets a the Amador Vintners Visitors Center at 9310 Pacific St. in Plymouth. If you don't have any plans for the weekend you should try it out. Make sure to get a DD - you'll need it!  

Now if I could only think of what to wear.....

~ Sara

Spring Inspiration...and The Start of a Tan!

The next few days are expected to be really nice here in Sacramento, and I am feeling that spring itch comin' on. Like I said before, I don't LOVE this particular season, it does mean that it's sooooo close to summer and that's enough to make me at least respect it. 

This morning I had an urge to wear a skirt for some reason. Maybe it's because I actually found a gradual tanning lotion that doesn't make me smell like a swimming pool and finally have a touch of color on these gams. Shout out to the *new* Jergen's Natural Glow Daily Moisturizer. Every year they seem to come out with a new formula but this time they got it right. There is very little odor and after 3 days I have managed to at least stop glowing like a Twilight character. It's totally worth the 8 bucks.

Running through my Pinterest inspiration pics, I noticed that I had 2 pics of outfits with chambray shirts, white bottoms and white necklaces. 

Since my favorite thing to do (and only way I actually look like I know how to dress) is recreate others' outfits, I immediately knew that I had the pieces to pull it off and also to make it office-friendly. To top it off it felt very Spring-y to me. Here's what I came up with. Excuse the wrinkles.

I added a cardigan for the cool morning.

Cardigan: Old Navy (Similar)

Shirt: Old Navy (Shop)

Skirt: Forever 21 (Similar, So fun)

Shoes: Steve Madden 

Belt: Banana Republic

Necklace: GroopDealz (Shop)

Purse: Louis Vuitton (Shop)

Love this weather but I'm still pretty excited to get back to some boots and scarves next week! 

~ Sara

Breaking News: Sole Society 50% off!

If you are not a member of Sole Society, you need to get over there ASAP and join the party. It's one of my favorite places for shoes. They release cute new styles almost every day and the prices are very reasonable.All you need is your name and email. There's no commitment or anything, you they just ask that you sign up before shopping. A bonus is free shipping and returns!

Sign up here!

Once you're signed up, head on over to the 50% off sale section for their End of Season sale. Super good deals!! There are few pairs that I've been eyeing for awhile and I'm so glad I waited!

Here are my picks.  I figured that since they are so inexpensive I might as well try some colors and styles that are a little risky for my tastes. We'll see how it goes.....

~ Sara

Sunday Brunch Inspiration

Sunday was one of those days that was just perfect. Sunshine, decently warm weather and nothing at all important to do. Days like that, in my opinion, are meant for spending with friends, gossiping on sun-drenched patios over  cocktails and decadent, delicious food. And that's why God created brunch.

Brunch is by far my favorite meal for a million different reasons:

 

1) It's perfectly acceptable to drink at 11am. 

2) You can order a cinnamon roll and french fries and call it a meal. 

3)  You can roll out of bed, throw on stretchy pants and a pair of sunglasses, call it your "morning-after celebrity" look and you'll fit right in. 

So I declared Sunday a brunch day and decided to try out a fun Sac spot that I had seen on the Best Brunch list in SacTown Magazine: Roxy.

 

Unfortunately it was a TEENSY bit too cold to sit outside, but the interior decor made up for the lack of fresh air. Think cowhide & crystal chandeliers. Nice but not stuffy, with bustling, vibrant energy that wasn't loud and crazy. 

The menu was large for brunch and they even had 4 types of Bloody Marys and another handful of different mimosas. I'm on a mission to find the best Huevos Rancheros in the world, so if it's on the menu, I'm ordering it. Roxy's was very good: flour tortilla, over-easy eggs, spicy black beans and a TON of sauce. After looking at the picture of another person's HR on Yelp (below), I'm pretty sure they over-sauced mine (it was literally drowning in it), but it wasn't a show stopper. I loved the flavor and spice level and the sides of guacamole and sour cream kicked it up a notch. Still going to continue my mission, but it's worth a spot on my top 10 list.

Other dishes we had (I tried a little bit of everything) were the ancho-cheddar biscuits and gravy (again, drowning in gravy that my friend said tasted like enchilada sauce but I really liked) and the Breakfast Burger, which was literally a huge burger with a fried egg and bacon. Roxy is known for it's beef and I can see why, it was damn near perfection. 

The highlight of the meal was the donut holes with 3 dipping sauces. Holy hell, these are good. I'll be back for you, little buddies, oh yes.

The lowlight (surprising) was the Bloody Mary. I have a Bacon Mary, but there were no vegetables, too little bacon and too much horseradish - or as I like to call it, the devil's seed. Not horrible, but not Pour House's either.

 Overall I give the brunch experience a 7. I'd like to go back to try out happy hour because if there's one thing I love almost as much as brunch it's happy hour!

The other fun part of brunch, of course, is the outfit! I love to find laid back, funky outfits that you normally wouldn't wear, say, to a nice dinner or to work. I had this Pinterest inspiration picture in my mind for a while and thought it would be perfect for the occasion. 

 I was able to snap a shot of the actual outfit on my way out the door (still working on that tripod thing...), and I also did a Polyvore set to show the difference between the two. Normally I prefer the Polyvore pictures (I hate pictures of myself), but I think it's fun to recreate inspiration outfits and see how it compares in real life. This outfit was super fun to wear and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

 What are your favorite brunch spots??

~ Sara