Who is the man behind the mystery

I figured that I should begin with a little bit of an introduction as to who I am and why I feel like I have any right to be a part of a blog that, hopefully, will have much to do with food, wine, and travel. Any number of things are bound to come up in addition to these topics, but as these are some of my favorites, I will start with them.

So. Why do I want to be a food writer? Well, I went to the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. Does this mean that my taste in food is any better than yours? Probably not. Does this mean that I have any better idea of good food than you do? Probably not. All that this means is that I did put in some time behind the scenes learning about techniques used to prepare food. It also means that I spend too much time looking for that ever elusive perfect burrito that I could always get in the Mission district (if anyone has suggestions for something that might compare to that, please let me know).

In terms of wine, I am still quite the neophyte. I did my internship at the San Francisco Chronicle, in their wine section. Every 2 weeks we were tasting up to 80 different wines. While there, I did learn an appreciation for good wine. I do believe that any varietal has the potential to be great, therefore I don't just make blanket statements such as "I hate Chardonnays". I have actually had quite a few decent ones, including the ones at Buena Vista vineyards, where I spent a week working with them to get some insight into the wine making process. That being said, if I am going to drink a red wine, Shiraz is my favorite, and if you are pouring whites, give me Gruner Veltliner.

I will get to travel in more detail later, but I have visited most Western European countries (the big ones, anyways), as well as a few Central and South American countries as well.

Stay tuned for more to come.