I first came to California in 1993 and got a job as a busser and wine stocker at Chez Panisse restaurant in Berkeley. At that time, the California wine scene was dominated by high alcohol, oaky Cabernets and Chardonnays. ‘No wimpy wines!’ was the Ravenswood slogan, and much sought-after reds had names like ‘Screaming Eagle’ and ‘Relentless.’ At Chez Panisse, where domestic wine was a small but important part of the list, buyers Stephen Singer and Nicholas Griffin had relationships with small local vintners who were making more balanced, food-friendly wines, like Steve Edmunds of Edmund St John, Jay Heminway of Green & Red, Ted and Deborah from Navarro Vineyard, and they featured what seem now like fringe classics, such as Bonny Doon’s Cigare Volante, Alban Viognier, and Sean Thackrey’s Pleiades, as well as the more standard Chateau Montelena, Ridge, and Chalone. 

At Smith & Vine wine shop in Brooklyn, where Daniel, Glenny, and I all worked together over a decade ago, our bosses and restaurant service veterans Patrick Watson and Michele Pravda managed to find and stock many of the most interesting and iconoclastic west coast wines of the time; despite their distance, they had a nose for what was new and delicious in California, and they introduced us to Matthiasson, Clos Saron, Arnot-Roberts, Banyan, Wind Gap, Martian Ranch, Donkey & Goat, Broc Cellars, Marietta Cellars, and La Clarine Farm, among others. 

Since we opened Oakland Yard in 2016, another generation of California winemakers has stepped up to the plate, and we’re delighted to taste and promote the wines of these talented relative newcomers, like Martha Stoumen, Scott Schultz, Kristie Tacey, Isabella Morano, Jaimee Motley, Emily Virgile & Drew Huffine, and Terah Bajjalieh, who will be at the Oakland Yard tasting bar this Saturday 5/17 from 2 to 6pm pouring flights of her new releases. Come enjoy a tasting flight, chat with a skilled and amiable winemaker, and witness a small part of our dynamic history of winemaking in California. 

And don’t forget to stop by our Welcome Wednesday food pop-up this Wednesday 5/21 from 5 to 9 with Bar Tanuki !!! 

But first…TONIGHT - THURSDAY NIGHT FLIGHTS: 
Piedmontese whites and chillable California reds 
2024 Elvio Tintero Vino Bianco Secco 
2023 Tenuta San Giacomo Gavi 
2021 Ezio Poggio Caespes Timorasso Terre di Libarna 
2023 Las Jaras Glou Glou Red 
2021 Bodkin The Hill and the Vale Red 
2022 Pax GMS Mendocino Red 
Tasting Flights $15 from 5-9 and wines by the glass until close! 

SATURDAY 5/17: Winemaker Terah Bajjalieh pours flights of her new releases
2024 Terah Wine Co. Vermentino 
2024 Terah Wine Co. Rose 
2023 Terah Wine Co. Skin Fermented Falanghina 
2023 Terah Wine Co. Pinot Noir
Tasting Flights $20 from 2-6 and wines by the glass until 9pm!

Cheers, 

Max