Why Lodi Needs to Be Your Next Wine Country Destination

Spring is nearly upon us, which means it’s wine tasting season! Granted, you can actually go wine tasting year round, but now is generally the time I start daydreaming about driving around wine country and checking out vineyards with unbeatable views and delicious pinots. In previous years, I’ve toured Sonoma, Long Island, the Finger Lakes, and Paso Robles — but this year, I headed somewhere new: Lodi.

And you know what? After spending time there, I’ve seen the light. (Or at least the sunlight filtering through rows and rows of old vine zinfandel grapes.) I’ve become an official lifelong #LodiWine fan. In fact, if I wasn’t headed abroad soon, I’d be back in town for their ZinFest in mid-May.

But what wine does Lodi specialize in? And how the heck do you even get there? Patience, Vino Jedi. Here’s everything you need to know about why Lodi needs to be your next wine country destination.

Picture this: you’re sitting on the beach in Hawaii in your comfy lounge chair. You’ve got Colson Whitehead’s “The Underground Railroad” in hand, your SPF 50 sunblock applied, and your sharpest Oakleys on. What’s missing from this picture? Why, a cold beverage, of course. You need to get a drink in Hawaii, stat!

Only problem is, where do you even start? The hotel bar is always a safe (and, let’s face it, usually lazy) option, but if you’re reading this post, you probably want something that’s a cut above a typical piña colada.

Not that I have anything against piña coladas… oh wait, I do. I’m allergic to pineapple, so that’s never happening. I’m pretty sad about that one. But I digress.

If you want to find a drink in Hawaii that will rock your world, read on to discover some of our favorites.

In the “Five O’Clock Fridays” series, we’ll highlight a particular drink we’re loving right now. Depending on where we stumble upon this brilliant beverage, we’ll either provide a recipe to go along with it, or provide tasting notes and point you to where you can purchase it. Today’s edition: the Green Monk Fizz!

I don’t know about you, but Valentine’s Day usually sends me into a tailspin of stress. I always want to find the perfect grand romantic gesture, something that would have Lloyd Dobler — John Cusack’s character in Say Anything — nodding in approval.

Of course, this mostly revolves around upping our food and drinks game, not holding up boom boxes playing Peter Gabriel songs (though Mr. Five O’Clock does think it’s romantic when I sing to him, which happens maybe once a month). Sick of buying champagne every year, then, I decided to mix things up and seek out some creative pink and red drinks for my valentine this February.

Whether you’re in the mood for love or hanging out with your BFFs for Galentine’s Day, we’ve got you covered in the Valentine’s Day drinks department. Read on to see our colorful roundup of cocktails, wine, and beer!

Ahh, dear, sweet icewine. It’s one of those dessert drinks that leaves you feeling like you’ve tasted the nectar of the gods and are experiencing life fully for the first time.

I kid, I kid. (Well, somewhat.) Truth be told, though, icewine is pretty darn fantastic. The Niagara region in Ontario, Canada is world-renowned for its premier icewines, which is why we were so excited to fly out in January 2017 for the annual Niagara Icewine Festival. After a full weekend sampling icewines ranging from the traditional to the groundbreaking, here are the Niagara wineries you need to put on your itinerary for your next trip.

(Updated August 2018) Manhattan, you’ve got some grade A competition when it comes to cocktail bars. Sure, you’ve got Dead Rabbit, Death & Co, and Raines Law Room. But sometimes, I just want to be able to walk for three minutes to get to my next bar instead of schlepping my stuff 20 minutes on the subway, you know? That’s why we’ve created this nifty Brooklyn cocktail bar crawl itinerary for everyone out there who wants an amazing cocktail without the hassle of taxis and trains.

It’s Five O’Clock Here: making your bar planning as easy and fun as possible. ~~Oh man, that sounded way too cheesy.~~

Read on to discover where you should go next time you’re in Brooklyn, NYC’s coolest borough.

What if I told you that my top sightseeing priority in Seattle wasn’t actually a killer craft beer spot? Would that be heresy? (Egads, say it ain’t so!) True, Seattle is nailing all things beer and cocktails (read about it here). But there’s another place which I believe should be on every Seattle visitor’s itinerary: Chihuly Garden and Glass.

I fell in love with Dale Chihuly’s glass art back in 2008, when San Francisco’s de Young Museum held a special exhibition highlighting his work. I was captivated by the vibrant colors of the installations and the innovative techniques that Chihuly used to manipulate the glass. When I heard that Chihuly Garden and Glass opened in 2012 in Seattle Center, then, I knew I had to go.

It’s really true that words do not do this place justice. Instead, I’ve created a photo essay so you can get a taste of what I saw in September 2016. (But I swear, nothing’s like experiencing it firsthand. You’ll have to see it for yourself!)

Despite being an East Coast transplant who lives and breathes New York City, I still find myself missing the West Coast at the most unexpected times. Sometimes, it’s those San Diego beach photos I see on Instagram during an especially vicious blizzard. Other times, it’s the thought of open spaces and towering California redwoods when I look up at silver Manhattan skyscrapers. But lately, I’ve been missing another West Coast city: Seattle.

Seattle has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember. It may have had something to do with watching that particular Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks movie as a teen (I used to daydream about spending Valentine’s Day dining at the Space Needle). Or maybe it was because my sister-in-law, Rachel, had lived there for years, and her verdant, tranquil photos of the Pacific Northwest were giving me a major case of FOMO.

But whatever the reason, I finally made it over to the Emerald City back in September 2016. What I found was not only those amazing open spaces, but a bar scene that’s a cut above elsewhere.

Here’s a round up of my favorite places to drink in Seattle right now.

I’m a huge film buff. In fact, spending hours in a cool, dark theater watching the latest Coen brothers’ masterpiece or Audrey Tautou film gets me just as excited as jetting off to Iceland or Barbados. That’s why spending this past weekend as a bright-eyed newbie at the Toronto International Film Festival was undoubtedly one of my top experiences this year.

As with any first—first date, first job, first time eating piping hot Shanghai soup dumplings—you’re bound to do some things right, but you’ll also make some mistakes. Here’s what we learned during our first trip to Toronto’s prestigious cinematic event.

UPDATE: Sadly, Betony closed its doors on December 31, 2016. RIP to one of our favorite cocktail spots.

Cocktail lovers, rejoice! No longer do you have to avoid Midtown Manhattan if you want high quality craft cocktails: Betony has got you covered.

You have to understand, Mr. Five O’Clock and I have been trying to find a suitable after-work spot to meet for drinks in this area for nearly four years. We’d wander around the oasis that is Central Park down to West 30th Street between 5th and 7th Avenues, desperately attempting to find some glimmer of hope.

It’s not that there’s a shortage of bars here–you can find Irish pubs galore near Penn Station and overpriced watery drinks all over Times Square. But there was nothing on the level of craft cocktail bars like Death and Company or Little Branch.

Enter Betony. This restaurant, located on West 57th Street in Manhattan, contains a beverage program so good that people will drop by the restaurant just for a drink. We can’t keep a secret this good forever, so here’s why we think Betony is Midtown Manhattan’s best cocktail spot.

Category: North America

Why Lodi Needs to Be Your Next Wine Country Destination

Where to Drink in Hawaii Right Now

Five O’Clock Fridays: Green Monk Fizz

Pretty in Pink (and Red): Delicious Valentine’s Day Drinks

Love Icewine? You’ve Got to Visit These Niagara Wineries

The Perfect Brooklyn Cocktail Bar Crawl

Photo Essay: Chihuly Garden and Glass in Seattle

5 Places You’ll Want to Drink in Seattle Right Now

How to Survive Your First Toronto International Film Festival

Why Betony is Midtown Manhattan’s Best Cocktail Spot