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| The Storm Cellar |
The mixology
team at the popular restaurant-and-bar at Santa Barbara’s Kimpton Canary Hotel
launched a unique charity drive this summer – Cocktails for a Cause. A new
mixed drink is introduced each month and proceeds from the sale of each order –
shaken or stirred – are earmarked for a different non-profit. When they asked
to team up with me for the month of August, I jumped at the chance, and I let
my taste buds lead the way.
A cocktail
novice myself, my contribution was to suggest that a local wine be a main
ingredient in the cocktail. Wine as a mixed drink ingredient can be challenging
– the powerful flavors of big red wines, especially, can clash against popular
spirits like vodka and bourbon. So Finch & Fork’s lead mixologist, George
Piperis, went white, with the 2018 Storm Sauvignon Blanc, right off the Finch
& Fork wine list.
The wine has
plenty of merit on its own. Santa Barbara County’s 2018 vintage was cool, so the
sauvignon blanc grapes, which were sourced from three vineyards in different
corners of the Santa Ynez Valley, “saw a long hang time and a lot of acid
retention, so it’s made in a style that fresh,” says winemaker Ernest Storm of Storm Wines.
Piperis
agrees. “It has a dry, crisp character,” he tells me last week from behind the
bar as he concocts what he’s calling the Storm Cellar, a tip of the barman’s
hat to the winemaker. Combined with equal parts gin, along with ginger, lemon
juice and soda water, and served on ice, the sauvignon blanc helps create a
spritzy, bright, refreshing cocktail. A raspberry liquor floater adds a spark
of color and a touch of sweetness that elevates the drink’s zesty pop. The
Storm Cellar is super easy to sip, downright delicious and perfect on any
August night. It’ll sell for the month of August, and for August only, for $14.
Watch George serve up the Storm Cellar:
Also among
my duties: to select August’s charity, which gave me a chance to spotlight the
wonderful work of the Santa Barbara Vintners Foundation. The philanthropic arm
of the Santa Barbara County Vintners Association has represented the vast
majority of our area’s vintners in donating to myriad local causes. The
Foundation was classified as a nonprofit organization in 2000 and has donated
hundreds of thousands of dollars through high school and college scholarships
and to altruistic groups like the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, People
Helping People and the Santa Barbara Foundation. Its biggest gifts go to Direct
Relief, with a focus on the well-known international aid group’s local projects;
thanks to their spectacular biennial Santa Barbara Wine Auction, it’s raised
more than $5 million for the Goleta-based group, including the more than
$900,000 it reeled in last year. Find out more about the Foundation’s work at sbvf.org.
“It doesn’t
matter how much wine we make or sell, it’s more about whatever we can do for
others,” says Jessica Gasca, Foundation president and winemaker behind the
Story of Soil label. “People in the wine business are generous and they want to
give back.”
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| Me & the Finch & Fork team: George Piperis, left, restaurant manager Josh Blumenthal & food & beverage director Bryan LaFontaine |
One dollar
from the sale of every Storm Cellar will go to the Santa Barbara Vintners
Foundation. Any thirst concerns during the month of August, then, should be
taken directly to the Finch & Fork in downtown Santa Barbara, at 31 W.
Carrillo St. The bar is open all day from 7am for breakfast, lunch and dinner
and hosts Happy Hour every weekday from 4-7pm. Check out the predominantly
local wine list and the whimsical lineup of cocktails at finchandforkrestaurant.com.
Just be sure
to order the Storm Cellar by name.
Cheers!
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