Beer and Wine Festival images from Saturday

Threatening skies overhead were only bluffing at Redding’s 14th annual Beer and Wine Festival held at the Market Street Promenade. Good thing the clouds were in actually, as the temperature was actually just right for the people and food. Here’s a few shots
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The lovely Karry receives a pour of Indian Peak Cab from Z at the Uncorked booth. In the dark blue shirt beyond is Kirk Taylor from GM Specialties on Hartnell. Kirk is a terrific Cadillac mechanic, in case you need one. Always fun to see our local friends and neighbors.
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A Market Street Chef seasons a steak. It’s too much to write about all the great food, but some standouts for me were the samples at this booth from Market Street Steak House, the little clams from the Woodside Grill at Gaia, the Garlic Cilantro Quinoa from Grilla Bites, and the scrumptious Lentil Salad from Trader Joe’s. I asked if you could buy that salad at TJ’s and was told “you have to make it.” Sounds like a plan.
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Along with all the lovely wine, there was something like 27 different breweries represented. Again, some pours that stood out for me was Hop Stoopid from Lagunitas, Mirror Pond from Deschutes, Drifter Pale Ale, and Tumbler from Sierra Nevada. Nice to have all the variations. It occurs to me that some restaurants ought to offer flights of beer, like they do with wine, so you can sample lots of different brews instead of single big pints. Not that big pints are bad…
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A good crowd kept circulating. A DJ kept things hopping.
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Here are some familiar Reddingites. I love the background, too.
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Here are Amber and Tracy, a couple of colleagues of mine. A good time was had by all. Our thanks go to Viva Downtown and all the vendors. I can’t believe we only do this once a year!

Fantastic fairie photo from the fourth.

4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca
One more look at our 4th of July 2010, with an image I took of Erin at Mt Shasta cavorting with street fairies. Erin processed the image till it looked quite surreal, and posted it in Facebook. But it was real, alright. It just looks so …odd. Just another day in Mt Shasta.
4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca

Foodie porn images from a Rivers 4th of July

Rivers restaurant in redding
We received the email invitation to Rivers Restaurant for their 4th of July Dinner:
“Your 7-Course evening will begin with appetizers, and culminate with dessert and the largest fireworks display in Northern California.” Wow. We’ve been trying to shed a few pounds, but this seems worth a rare splurge. The evening was to run from 6:30 pm to 10:30 pm. That sounded long, but I knew my dinner companion, the lovely Karry would approve. We reserved a table on the patio.
When we arrived at the lobby, we were greeted by name, and offered a flute of champagne to take with us into the Lounge. For the Appetizer Course, we were served from trays of stuffed bite-sized portobello mushrooms, some kind of Ahi tiny taco looking things whose name I can’t remember, and escargot baked in filo. My companion’s favorite were the crab cakes with lemon aoli. Champagne refills. I realize the key to enjoyment tonight was going to be pacing yourself. Not easy!

At some point, the wait staff found us and showed us to our table. I had some concern about being seated in a western facing patio on a July day. But the staff adjusted the huge motorized shades continuously, and the high misters performed well. We are longtime Reddingites, so a mere 100 degree day is only warm for us, not a “hot day” by our standards. Anyway, the patio was quite pleasantly temperate. And the city views from the patio are incomparable. We spotted one of the famous local bald eagles from the Turtle Bay webcam as it flew by. Time for the second course:
Rivers restaurant in redding
The Soup Course consisted of a “Vichyssoise of potato and leek, with crispy prosciutto.” A thin breadstick completes the scene. This is a chilled soup, but unlike some gazpachos and melon concoctions we’ve tried where you say to one another “that’s, uh, interesting,” this soup really left you wanting more. On to the Salad Course.
Rivers restaurant in redding
“Seared day-boat scallop nestled atop arugula greens, lightly dressed with a lemon thyme vinaigrette, sided by fresh fig compote and crisp Brioche.” The scallops were as mouthwatering as they look. The arugula was actually nestled in what my companion believes was an edible bowl made by frying parmigiano-reggiano into the shape. Nice touch. Soon, it’s time for the Intermezzo Course
A restaurant journey to Rivers in Redding CA on the 4th.
The waning sunlight dances on “Strawberry Champagne Mint Ice.” I noticed that the chef had to freeze the strawberry slice first, so that it would match the temperature of the ice. Just right.
Intermezzo was occasion to chat with neighboring tables, and for comparing comments. Good people surround us. I noticed that several had decided to try the wine pairing with the courses, and I enjoyed hearing the descriptions. I’m a beer guy, and tried several of their taps. My favorite was our semi-local Sierra Nevada Summer Fest. It seems like you can’t go wrong with whatever Sierra Nevada brews. Soon enough, it’s time for the Entrée Course.
Rivers restaurant in redding
“Surf and Turf Mixed Grill – Filet Mignon with chanterelle demi, Lamb Chop with Dijonaise, and Lobster tail with a sherry reduction.” I don’t write about food all that often. As a rule, I figure you should avoid cliché, and try to convey some description that offers a reader some verbal image of the experience. Unfortunately, all the words I’m thinking of for this plate veer dangerously close to sexuality. Let it suffice that this course tasted even better than it looked, and the main elements displayed rest on flavored mashed potatoes bordered by perfectly cooked asparagus. Pushing back after a bit, I pop in the main gallery for a look.

Rivers restaurant in redding staff

The staff worked in synchrony. It occurs to me that this type of event requires more of a cruise ship type dinner timing, with the courses all arriving at once. This is different than the usual Rivers continuous serving of their broad menu throughout an evening. Their anticipatory services and flawless timing was testament to staff training and adaptability.
As our world spins east, we glimpse the last of the day’s direct sunlight. Immediately, the staff raises the blinds, and ignites oil lamps on the rail. The patio is transformed.

A musical duo performs at one end of the patio, and I’m sorry I don’t know your names. But the music is mellow and appropriate. Below, the river has just a few boats and kayaks. The Redding nightscape competes vigorously with the gorgeous food for our attention. Whatever anxiety I had about spending 4 hours at a restaurant patio have long vanished. The time flies by like the ultralight pilot we see tracking the river at our blufftop altitude. Time for another course, this Cheese Course.

“Parmigiano-Reggiano tartlet with fresh pear and rosemary chutney with candied walnuts.” Okay, so it’s hard to follow up on a course I already described as total sensory overload. This was good, which seems like pale praise indeed. I was losing count of the courses by this point, and I think I had mistaken it for dessert. It wasn’t. Here’s the Dessert course:
Rivers restaurant in redding
“A Dessert Tour of the United States of America. New Orleans banana beignet “Fosters Style, Washington DC chocolate and cherry parfait, Hawaiian mango coconut gelato sided by macadamia nut macaroon.” Well, of course it is. And served on a plate painted with red white and blue coloring. By now, I am in no shape for a dessert tour, or any other kind of tour, but resistance is futile. As the evening darkness descends, the musical duo breaks into America the Beautiful. Everyone rises spontaneously from their tables. The moment is beyond poignant, and our appreciation of all that has enabled this sublime Redding evening is overwhelming.
The staff switches the restaurant audio to KCHO/KFPR and we are treated to the familiar voice of Lorraine Dechter, who introduces Redding’s legendary fireworks celebration.

Thanks for coming up with of this idea, Rivers. I took a bunch of fireworks photos, and some video. But hey, let’s just say the fireworks were terrific, as usual. Our deep gratitude goes out to the McConnell Foundation for their sponsorship. You probably saw them too, if you were almost anywhere in our town for the 4th. For us, the setting was unsurpassed. The food exceeded already high expectations. The staff and guests remind us why we like living here so much. And the natural beauty of Redding on a warm July evening is more garnish on the plate of life. Enjoy yours.

Rivers restaurant in redding regular food

We now return you to our regularly scheduled food programming. Hope you enjoyed a look at our splurge. At least the business went to local people.

Rivers restaurant in redding

Fun Walk photos from Mt Shasta for the 4th of July

We went up to Mt Shasta again this year for Independence Day. We did the fun walk.
4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca
The t-shirt color was red this year. We are a sea of red.
4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca
The weather was excellent, as usual.
4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca
It’s a serious run for some, and people come from around the country. Check results here.
4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca
Along the way, we are treated to some tangy grazing.
4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca
Erin gets a celebrity shot with Dylan Darling of the Record Searchlight.
4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca
Happy Independence Day from our family to yours.
4th of July fun in MtShasta Ca
It’s not Really Redding, but we saw many Redding folks in town today. It was Really Nice.

Free admission to Redding Dragstrip this weekend!!

Points_June_12This weekend is Spectator Appreciation Weekend at the Redding Dragstrip. You can get in FREE for the action on both Saturday an Sunday, June 12 & 13, for seating in the Eastside Bleachers. Qualifying starts at 10 am. Pit Pass and Westside Bleachers admission is only $10. Come check out the new delicious and frugal gourmet menu at the snackbar too. Looking for inexpensive fun and thrills? Watch the fierce competition as the next 2 points races for the Summit Super Series E.T. Bracket Racing unfolds. Come join the Redding Dragstrip as we give back to our community. The longest continuously operating NHRA sanctioned dragstrip in the known universe!
Reding Ca Kool Aprl Drag race

Cleveland and Kimberly get married -a Redding Wedding

Happily, I was invited to this wedding by Erin’s friend Kimberly, of Kimberly Nicole Boutique. You may recognize the couple. She and Cleveland are also on the cover of the new June issue of Enjoy Magazine. It was one of the most gorgeous wedding ceremonies I’ve ever had the pleasure of attending. Kimberly was wearing a stunning Winnie Couture dress. Click here to learn more about winnie couture, if you wanna know why I was so in awe of the dress. The ceremony and reception was held in the Atrium at the south end of the Promenade, behind Leatherby’s. It’s an unexpectedly nice place for a wedding. I shot some video and some stills, and combined the two to the live music from the wedding. The first half is Cleveland’s wedding song, and the second half is Kim’s dad and uncles, the Woods Brothers, singing classic a capella. It’s a real treat, and a rare slice of Redding.

Cleveland and Kimberly Get Married from Skip Murphy on Vimeo.

Our Asphalt Cowboy Pancake Breakfast music video

As promised, we took a few more shots of the 2010 Asphalt Cowboys pancake breakfast at Roaring Gulch in Redding.

The music we used is something of a funny story. I am very sensitive about using another artist’s music on a video without permission, since I’ve had that happen to my music. YouTube has a library of songs in different styles that the artist has given permission to use in advance. That option was broken when I was downloading this video, so I couldn’t pull up a Country & Western type tune, but the  “I’m Feeling Lucky” button functioned. It pulled up this song, and after getting over the style, and watching it a couple times, it seemed to fit the images appropriately. See what you think.

For more images of this great weekend, Paul Heath, a Redding photographer we admire very much, did the definitive Redding Rodeo Week slide show here at A News Cafe. Nice work, as usual. Paul makes a brief appearance in our video trying to get a shot of the photogenic Chita Johnson of KRCR.

Thanks to Redding and the Asphalt Cowboys for a very cool tradition. It’s Really Redding.

Pancakes!

Loved this shot of Chita and Erin at the Asphalt Cowboys Pancake Breakfast from a few minutes ago. They hope for 11,000 breakfasts served this year. Wow.
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Took a bunch of shots, more to follow, no doubt. It’s Really Redding.