First things first…Our contest winner going to the Okanagan is Ron Davies…he’s going to Kelowna next weekend!

Over the next few weekends we are visiting…the Niagara Fall Wine Festival, the Okanagan Fall Wine Festival and in three weeks, Tom Arnold and Arj barker (Flight of the Conchords) from the Vancouver West Jet Comedy Festival. Then a day on board the spectacular Rocky Mountaneer food and wine train with Jurgen Gothe. And finally finding food and wine heaven in Calgary.

It’s our San Francisco and Napa Special. Chefs, Master Sommeliers, Winemakers, Hoteliers, San Francisco TV stars, a Bounty Hunter and a man named Hoss, who dedicated his restaurant to his slain parents.

HOUR ONE

Our good friend Liam Mayclem, one of the Hosts of CBS TV’s Eye on the Bay, rejoins our show. After all he lives, works and informs the people of San Francisco every night, so we place ourselves in his manicured hands. He in turn leads us to Roland Passot, the proprietor of La Folie on Polk Street. Long one of the best and best known chefs in SF he reveals over dinner how it all started and what kind of food town SF is. Liam supplies colour commentary. La Folie is on the just released Top 100 restaurants of SF.

EaterWire: 19 Newcomers to Bauer’s Top 100
www.lafolie.com
cbs5.com/eyeonthebay

Hoss Zare is from Iran. He was on his way to being a brain surgeon at UC Davis, and to make ends meet he started working in the food service industry and one of the places he worked was the original Fly Trap. It’s been an institution off and on in SF since 1906. Slowly food became more important than people’s heads. However, he didn’t get truly serious about Zare at Fly Trap until his parents were slain and he dedicated his restaurant to them and especially to the cooking of his Mother. A menu that features spices from the Middle East and a wine list unlike any you have ever seen. I sit down and talk to Hoss and Master Sommelier Chris Blanchard. www.zareflytrap.com www.mastersommeliers.org

Mere blocks away from Zare is Masa’s, another SF institution, which is also on the just published list of San Francisco’s Top 100 Restaurants. Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants
EaterWire: 19 Newcomers to Bauer’s Top 100

Our guests are Master Sommelier Alan Murray and Executive Chef Gregory Short. The food is California French and the 800 label wine list is superb!! We end the interview with a food fight. http://www.masasrestaurant.com

Ending Hour One is a visit to Napa’s new resort/hotel/spa Bardessono. Surrounded by many of the best restaurants in America, they have to be at the top of their food and wine game. Guests are GM Roger Owen Young and a wonderful character, Chef Sean O’Toole.

HOUR TWO

Now we come to The Bounty Hunter…right in the town of Napa.

Yes, The Bounty Hunter is a gathering place for food and wine. But what a place! It’s the concept of Mark Steven Pope, the bounty hunter himself. He’s a merchant, A negociant, A vintner. In short, he’s our kind of guy. He has developed over the years amazing relationships with the winemakers and growers in Napa and Sonoma. As a result his shelves are filled to the brim with hard to find, rare and unavailable wines. There’s a lot more to this story which is why we’ve made it a two part interview. LOTS of info you can use here. Enjoy!

“Lots…talk about taking the mystique out of wine, Pope and The Bounty Hunter are actually doing it.”- SF Chronicle
www.bountyhunterwine.com

Kelly D McElearney from Ehlers Estate Wines has been on our show before. At Cornucopia in Whistler and the California wine tour. She’s Director of Marketing for this organic winery between St. Helena and Calistoga. She’s also wine royalty as the D in her name represents Duckhorn, her family name. Kevin Morrisey is the GM and Winemaker and he has worked at Stags Leap and Petrus. We talk organics, fundraising through wine sales that helps heal hearts in Canada, we find out why Ehlers is one Napa’s legendary Ghost wineries and the myth behind the palm trees in the area. www.ehlersestate.com

And to finish our special San Francisco/Napa off, The Wine Diva Daenna Van Mulligen takes us through the best bottles of the area, as only she can. Take notes you’ll be glad you did. www.winediva.ca