Revolution Wines is stepping up its game when it comes to food, adding Executive Chef Darren Thompson to the staff and rolling out larger portions of food, with an eye to expanding the kitchen within the year. “Instead of just small plates, we’re going to be doing more entrée-size portions,” Thompson said. Last week, Thompson introduced several sandwiches, which are the initial phases of the refocus on food. “Right now, our capabilities are kind of limited,” he said. “We have plans to put in a hood and a stove and that kind of thing. When we get that up and running, we’ll have more entrées.” Current favorites such as the cheese pairings and bruschetta won’t be going away, but owner Gin

Preliminary designs for the new Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op at 29th and R streets that will offer shoppers nearly 10,000 additional square feet of store space and more than double the amount of available parking were unveiled to residents and business owners at a community meeting Tuesday at Revolution Wines. “I’m excited for every aspect of it,” said Tahoe Park resident Donna Parten. Parten, a co-op member since the 1970s, said she is looking forward to more parking outside of the new location, and the increased space on the inside – similar to what she experienced at the former Elk Grove co-op location. “I’m hoping it will be spacious and have more room for products so we’re not ru

Wednesday was ladies’ night at the Goodies and Glam event, hosted by Face it Salon, Spa & Boutique on 18th and L streets. Patrons were invited to taste wine from Revolution Wines and cake and cookies from TreyBCakes. They shopped, got their makeup done and even scored a quick facelift. Owner Sherie Scalzi, 30, said this was the first event that was broadcast to the public, and that they will continue to have monthly events. Face it Boutique, which opened seven months ago, houses designs from local artists and students like jeweler Caroline Hearn from the International Academy of Design and Technology in Sacramento. “I have really, really loved working with local designers, so we try to

Sacramento’s wine industry received a boost last month with the approval of an ordinance that promotes agricultural tourism, a move local wineries said they are excited to see. The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously in December to adopt new zoning code amendments that will potentially foster growth of Sacramento’s wine industry. The changes will take effect in just a few days. Among other things, the ordinance provides the grape growers of a certain size the right to produce and bottle their own wine; gives wineries the ability to open small tasting rooms in agricultural zones; and eliminates the requirement for conditional use permits for private events, with restr

The Newton Booth Neighborhoods Association (NBNA) is honoring Mike McKeever, Executive Director of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG), with the organization’s 2011 Growing Together Award for his role earlier this year as the volunteer mediator in a neighborhood development controversy. The NBNA represents the Poverty Ridge, Newton Booth, and Alhambra Triangle neighborhoods in Sacramento’s District 4. The award will be presented to McKeever Thursday, November 10th, at Newton’s Night Out, a neighborhood event to be held at Revolution Wines, 2831 S Street, from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm.  McKeever will be in attendance. The Growing Together Award, established in August 2011, is gi

About 200 people are expected to don seersucker clothes for the upcoming Seersucker Ride by Sacramento Tweed, where a bicycle ride, a picnic and culture will intersect. The ride was delayed from this weekend to June 26 due to unusually wet weather. “I love that it allows people to come together and meet each other,” said organizer Rick Houston. “Lots of people in town are interested in cycling ... and this gives everyone an opportunity to meet.” The riders will meet at 11 a.m. June 26 in front of Revolution Wines and Temple Fine Coffee and Tea at 29th and S streets. Riders bedecked in their finest seersucker outfits – summer is (usually) too hot for tweed, after all – will assemble, th

It was a night filled with drinks and divine desserts for the Sacramento Children’s Chorus’ Wine and Chocolate: A Harmony of Tastes fundraiser at Revolution Wines Friday night. According to Sacramento Children’s Chorus’ executive director Daphne Quist, the event was held in honor of the chorus to raise money for the organization, some of which will go toward tuition scholarships for students. “It was a great success for our organization,” Quist said. This is the first Wine and Chocolate event for the Sacramento Children’s Chorus and Quist hopes to continue it every year. Corporate sponsorships, individual donations, concerts and one large event each year help fund the organization, Quis

Valentine’s Day has traditionally been celebrated with a simple dinner for two. Couples exchange cards professing their appreciation for one another, gift the usual candy and jewelery and call it a day. As Valentine’s Day draws closer, many people are looking to celebrate that special day in a more memorable way. Sacramento has a number of exciting events and specials to choose from on Valentine’s Day and the weekend prior. While many make reservations at their favorite restaurants, why not book a Valentine’s Day Lovers’ Cruise, provided by Hornblower Cruises, for a change? “Sacramento’s Cupid’s Valentine’s Weekend Brunch Cruise,” on Sunday, is a two-hour cruise departing from the L-S

It's a blessing and a curse to be a wine lover living in Sacramento. After all, you're surrounded by hundreds of wineries producing some of the world's best vintages – from urban wineries like Revolution Wines and Rail Bridge Cellars here in the central city to Sacramento County, the Sierra Nevada foothills and beyond to Napa Valley. But when you want to do some wine tasting, that blessing can feel like a curse. How do you choose from all those tasting rooms? And with more and more of them charging tasting fees, how do you find the best deals: from free tastings and fees that apply toward purchases to private tastings well worth the extra bucks? A couple of local wine connoisseurs have

Revolution Wines is coming out of the cellar, so to speak. Sacramento's first urban winery is trading its back-door warehouse location at 2116 P St. for a Midtown corner at 29th and S streets, next to the new Temple coffeehouse. The relocation to 2831 S St. will increase the winery's visibility and allow for the expansion of its wine-tasting and production facilities, said Gina Genshlea and Craig Haarmeyer, managing partners along with Genshlea's husband, Joe Jr. "I think we always knew we'd outgrow that space. That was just a starting point," Gina Genshlea said Tuesday at the new location. Revolution Wines is the only urban winery in the grid. The business started in a garage in 2004

At 9:00 am, nearly a hundred cyclists showed up for  Sacramentos first Tweed Ride sunday for the all day neighborhood bike ride. Amazing as  the idea gave birth just a little over a month beforehand. Thanks to powerful internet networking the idea traveled fast and soon the restaurants that accepted  to participate got what they reserved, a lot of love from the enthusiasts dressed in fine vintage tweed.  The scramble to amass the finer vintage look was on and the final result a best dressed contest showed us the need for such an event.  The enthusiasm was contagious as was the creative impulse for both vintage bike and dress alike. Many cities have such a ride already in place. New York,

Pop culture has power - enough power to affect the wine industry. In 2004, the feature film Sideways came out, and according to Sonoma filmmaker Rudolf N. McClain, merlot sales in the United States dropped. Of those well-studied in wine statistics, McClain is among them, having just completed his first documentary on merlot in 2008. The dramatic effects of Sideways boil down to one pivotal scene, he explained at the Sacramento premiere screening of Merlove Saturday night. It’s the scene where protagonist Miles Raymond, the oenologist in the film, says, “I’m not drinking any f***ing merlot.” That one statement statistically curbed the sales of merlot, and pinot sales went up by 30 perce

In the midst of Bordeauxs, chiantis, pinot noirs and chardonnays, merlot can be underappreciated in the world of wine, or at least that's what Napa Valley filmmaker Rudy McClain would argue. On Saturday, the crimson underdog will have a shot at glory as the Revolution Wines winery and the Sacramento Institute of Fun hosts a Sacramento premiere event for the screening of McClain's new documentary, Merlove. McClain's film includes interviews with merlot makers from around the world. A complimentary dinner will be provided at Revolution Wines, including pizza from Midtown's Luigi's Slice, and local merlot labels Black Hole and Route 3 prior to the film. The screening will be held at the nea