Wine Pairing Cookies? Totally Awesome!

Ok, so I'm one of those people that likes chocolate with beer. It's kinda weird but actually tastes pretty good. Recently I came across cookies at Decadence Fine Cakes & Confections specially crafted to be eaten with your favorite wine.

Now I've learned to like wine though I prefer beer or vodka. I was a bit skeptical at first, wine with cookies...really? So my love for cookies and most anything sweet I had to try cookies paired with wine. I tried the Orange Almond Sables first with a nice glass Sauvignon Blanc and the experience was totally unique. The combination of orange, almond, sugar and wine is absolutely something you need to experience to appreciate.

Decadence makes all their yummy creations from fresh ingredients like home grown eggs (the owner has her own chickens), fresh butter, sugar and flour work together to make really tasty deserts. All their cookies are baked to order so you know what you get will be fresh. Lastly these are not expensive at all, a dozen cookies costs about $10.

Santa Barbara's Custom Canvas & Vinyl

We recently helped Alan & Francie at Custom Canvas & Vinyl in Los Olivos to create their first website. During the process I learned that they are a family owned business t providing Santa Barbara County with custom awnings of all styles and sizes for residential, commercial and industrial businesses. They can design, fabricate and install awnings of all shapes and sizes for your home or business. Their also offer motorized and manual retractable awnings, vertical drop solar shade systems, store awnings with custom graphics, exposure covers, canvas & vinyl curtains.

If you are an architect, building contractor, interior designer or own your home Custom Canvas & Vinyl can create a long lasting and attractive solution. Whether your canvas product is for rain, sun or simply to beautify your home or business, they will do their best to satisfy your situation or ideas.

For more information check out their website at http://www.awningssantabarbara.com/

Living in the Country - Life in Santa Ynez

Ok, so I'm a city boy, I'll admit that. I grew up in Santa Barbara where if you had problems getting water to the house we called the City and they came and fixed it. If the problem was my side of the meter we called a plumber.

Up here in Santa Ynez we have an acre and a half. Nice yes but a lot of work. We can't get cable or DSL cause it's a bit rural. Being rural we have a septic tank and a well. The septic is pretty simple, everything flows downhill and eventually it seeps back into the ground. The well is another matter entirely.

We have a two pump system, a booster pump that pumps water to the house, the well itself 180 feet underground. When we have problems we call A&A Pump & Well service, which I have to do now and again. Over the years I have called them for many silly reasons, mainly because I'm a city boy and just didn't know how the thing works. I've learned sometimes when both pumps come on at the same time it trips the booster. I've also learned ants will nest in the electrical parts and gum up the works.

So now when something is amiss with the water I check all the simple things A&A Pump & Well has come out to fix. After hours and weekends the owner will drive out from Lompoc (about 30 miles) when I call and I always feel bad when the problem was something simple, so I learned from watching them to check the simple things before calling.

The point of this story is learn what you can when you can, it's cheaper that way. But if you need to call for help call the best pump and well service in the Santa Ynez Valley, A & A Pump and Well!