Taste of Sacramento: Three locally owned spots that give Old Sac its flavor
Editor’s note: Taste of Sacramento runs every two weeks and aims to highlight local favorites that might not always be in the news. Have a neighborhood suggestion? Drop an email to jpatrick@sacbee.com.)
It’s easy to miss The Underground Tasting Room as you wander through Old Town in Sacramento. The wine tasting room is located on the corner of Pioneer Square at 2nd and I streets, but it’s on Sacramento’s “original level” — about 10 feet below street level.
Sacramento was a Gold Rush town, but the early days were tough. The city was devastated by multiple floods in the 1850s and 1860s. Eventually, the decision was made to lift it higher, and wagon loads of earth were hauled in for the purpose.
But the original level still exists in Old Sac. Today, a rustic flight of stairs leads down to a brick courtyard, accented with a water fountain, planters, and decorative wine barrels. This is the entrance to The Underground Tasting Room.
This is casual wine tasting. Don’t feel bad if you’re wearing a T-shirt and tennis shoes. No need to brush up on your “wine speak.” Beginner palates are welcome.
“I kind of customize every tasting experience for people who don’t necessarily know what they want,” said Nathan Pereau, general manager and sommelier. “It allows me to feel the customer’s palate out and then steer them towards things they enjoy.”
The Underground Tasting Room features locally-grown wines from the Rendez-vous Winery in Clarksburg and the Twisted Twig Winery in Placerville. In addition, the tasting room will soon include wines from Fenton Herriott Vineyards, also located in Placerville.
Pereau describes The Rendez-vous wines as “big, fruit-forward California styles.” By contrast, The Twisted Twig offers a full-bodied, European style: “Lots of barrel-aged, bottle-aged, mature wines,” said Pereau. “Dry wines with a decent amount of strength and structure to them.”
If you choose one winery or the other, you get five tastings for $10. If you like to combo-taste and want to sample from both sides of the list, you can get seven tastings for $12.50.
Each pour is accompanied by a background of the wine and why it might appeal to your palate. Riesling can range from bone-dry to syrupy sweet (in wines, the word “dry” refers to the absence of sugar). Zinfandel loves the California heat, especially with day and night temperature swings.
Customers can also experiment with food pairing, matching the wine with artisan meats, cheeses, olives, and crackers. When food pairing, Pereau looks for either complementary or opposite flavors.
Wines by the glass are $9-$12. The cost for a bottle ranges from $19-$54.
The Chef’s Olive Mix
The Chefs’ Olive Mix is located on the other end of the block, across from the Pony Express Terminal. It’s billed as a world-class tasting room for olive oils and balsamic vinegars.
In theory, it’s an “all-you-can-drink” olive oil store. Tasting is free and it’s self-serve.
You browse the aisles reading product descriptions until something looks tasty. There’s a stack of sample cups next to each flavor and a sampler bottle with a spout. Bread is provided on request.
The Chefs’ Olive Mix provides a list of suggested pairings, including blood orange olive oil with raspberry dark balsamic and butter olive oil with dark chocolate balsamic. You can also ask for advice from the staff.
The product list includes extra virgin olive oils from both the Northern and Southern hemispheres, fused and infused, seasonal and gourmet.
Olive oil and balsamics cost the same. The cost for a wine-sized (750 milliliter) bottle is $36.95. (There are a few exceptions, such as the black truffle olive oil, priced at $79.95 for the 750 milliliter bottle.)
The Spud Shack
The Spud Shack is located on 2nd Street between the Chefs’ Olive Mix and the Underground Tasting Room. It’s a hole-in-the-wall, with no room for seating except on the benches outside.
You can get French fries here, but also Mexican fries, English fries, Canadian fries, Dutch fries and Thai fries. The Spud Shack specializes in “worldly fries.” Pick a country off the menu and fries will be made in that style.
In the Ireland offering, fries are smothered in melted cheddar and bacon. English fries come with a side of malt vinegar. Dutch fries have a side of mayonnaise.
The difference between France and America? Do we eat French fries here or not? According to the Spud Shack, American fries are served alone or with salt or ketchup. French fries, however, come with a side of thousand island.
There is no sample platter, since the fries only get cooked once an order is placed.
The Spud Shack offers a few other snacks. You can buy a deep-fried, bacon-wrapped hot dog, fried mozzarella, fresh-squeezed lemonade and funnel cakes.