Sip This: Firestone Walker Opal

Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Opal Farmhouse Ale: This beer is as multifaceted and attractive as the gem it’s named after. Officially a Wallonian (that’s the French-speaking part of Belgium) Saison (originally brewed in winter for the summer, hence seasonal), it’s got some slightly funky Belgian yeast at the heart of its brew, giving it a classic rustic under-flavor. Unlike some saisons, though, the result is more wine-like than barnyard.

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Santa Barbara's Oldest Foodie Fundraiser

In Santa Barbara there’s a fundraiser as old as Beyoncé and Natalie Portman. That’s Taste of the Town, heading into its 32nd year for the event this September 8, as it keeps raising money for the Arthritis Foundation. If you ask honorary cochair Tina Takaya from Opal Restaurant what makes this, of all the noble Santa Barbara fundraisers, special, she says, “It’s the very first one. We’ve had 32 years to shore it up. For instance, this year I got them to change to really good wine glasses. Great wines deserve great vessels to drink them from. These are glasses you’ll want to take home.” Indeed, the great wines will be poured from more than 40 local wineries, including stars like Au Bon Climat, Beckmen, Cargasacchi, Dragonette, Foxen, Jaffurs, Margerum, Presqu’ile, Qupé, and Whitcraft.

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