In this post, the Rolling Stones Hackney Diamonds concert in San Jose, sipping bubbly and nibbling on oysters in Sonoma, and the perfect light cocktail recipe for enjoying on a warm summer day.
Grooving to the Stones (again!)
They’re baaaaaack! The Rolling Stones proved again that they aren’t gathering any moss. We just saw them put on a great show this week at Levis Stadium in Santa Clara. This was the Stones’ final stop on their North American tour, and it was our third time seeing them live. Talk about inspiring! Mick Jagger and Keith Richards are 80 and Ronnie Wood is 77, ages where average people (if they live that long) are starting to slow down. Not these guys! Their musicianship is still stellar and all three are still spry and were able to bounce around the stage the entire time. Although their beloved drummer Charlie Watts passed away in 2021 at the age of 80, their replacement drummer, Steve Jordan, kept the beat going strong. They played a couple of their new songs “Angry” and “Bite My Head Off” along with a sampling of their many greatest hits.( I was a little disappointed that they elected not to play “Beast of Burden” which is one of my favorites.) All in all it was a fun night!
Concert Tees
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I decided to skip the lines at the concert and bought my t-shirt ahead of time from the Rolling Stones Official Amazon store. This is a women’s style that’s comfy and soft and I know I’ll wear it a lot. I’m wearing a large and it’s loose even though it’s already been through the dryer. It’s a bit longer than a typical t-shirt, which I love since I’m tall. If you’re petite I suggest sizing down.
Clear Bags
Do you own a clear bag yet? If you like to go to concerts, sporting events, etc. you may want to consider one. Many venues only allow clear purses, backpacks, bags, or fanny packs for security reasons. If you try to bring a regular purse into one of these venues you may be denied entry or asked to check your bag. Fortunately there are so many great clear styles to choose from now. My favorite clear bags are from Hammitt. They’re well-made, guaranteed to last, and come in lots of great color combos. I originally had the Tony clear small (which was accidentally donated when we moved – a sad story for another day) and now I have their medium Charles crossbody in a fannypack style. Coach also makes a cute clear cross-body. If you’re looking for a basic budget clear bag there are also lots of attractive options on Amazon too.
My Picks for Clear Bags
Concert Outfit Ideas
While I opted for a simple concert tee and some distressed jeans, some of the concertgoers went all out on their outfits. I wish I had pictures of some of the wild and amazing outfits we saw. That got me thinking about what DO you wear to a concert when you’re over 50? Anything you want apparently! I came up with some more subdued but still stylish outfit suggestions inspired by a Rails outfit I spotted on Pinterest. My advice is go with comfortable shoes! You’ll be doing a lot of walking, standing and dancing!
More sips in Sonoma
I wouldn’t blame you for thinking that all we do is go wine tasting on the weekends. It’s not often we go two weekends in a row, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do! We made plans with friends to visit Abbot’s Passage winery for their Oysters & Bubbles event on Saturday and decided since we were making the drive to Sonoma we might as well visit the Kunde winery too. We hadn’t been there in ages. Their grounds are beautiful and if you’ve never been it’s worth the drive up the valley.
Our tasting included a charcuterie plate and five varietals. The winery was established way back in 1904 and has been continuously owned and operated by the Kunde family ever since. We like their Sauvignon Blanc, which can be found in most stores in the Bay Area. It was fun to try some of their blends not available in stores and we brought home their Sauvignon Blanc Block 4SB20 (the location of the grapes) that we look forward to enjoying with friends. Kunde offers a variety of tasting experiences including cave tours and a mountaintop tasting. We’re looking forward to trying one or both of those in the future.
After leaving Kunde, we headed back down the road about ten minutes to get to Abbot’s Passage (formerly Valley of the Moon winery.) As I mentioned in a previous post, Abbot’s Passage is a sister winery of Gundlach Bundschu Winery, and is in fact is the main production facility for GunBun. Abbot’s Passage is a female-owned business that supports women in the wine industry and beyond.
They are in the process of rebranding and have updated all of their labels to reflect their new look. I love the artwork! It’s by a local female artist. The screenshot above is from their website. I hope they are planning to make prints!
We enjoyed hanging out in their courtyard and sampling fresh oysters (which I forgot to take a picture of!) sampling good wine, and eating fried chicken sandwiches. Yum.
The “Bicicletta” Cocktail
Any cocktail with Italian name sounds elevated don’t you think? I came across this recipe in Better Homes and Gardens’ July issue. The “Bicicletta” gets its name from the Italian word for “bicycle”, and it apparently got its name from a story about a couple of older Italian men who like to have a few of these and then wobble home on their bikes. (I don’t recommend drinking and biking – in fact it’s illegal in CA.) Anyhow, when made correctly and consumed responsibly, it’s very refreshing!
Bicicletta Recipe: Courtesy of Better Homes & Gardens
3 ounces white wine
2 ounces Campari
Club soda (to top)
Add the ingredients to a tall glass or a wine glass with ice. Stir a few times to combine and garnish with an orange slice or peel. This recipe works best with a Sauvignon Blanc or maybe a Pinot Noir.
This cocktail is a little less sweet than its relative, the ubiquitous Aperol Spritz, plus it’s lower in alcohol, which are both good things. I’d love to know what you think!
Thanks for stopping by! If you missed my last post about wine tasting plus a round-up of some beautiful belts for fall you can find it here. Have a great week!
