Check out this wine-inspired recipe from allrecipes.com, and try something new with your wine!

Ingredients
1 cup red wine
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 tablespoon paprika
1 cup brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Cook garlic in oil until tender. Place chicken in the skillet, and cook about 10 minutes on each side, until no longer pink and juices run clear.
2. Drain oil from skillet. Sprinkle chicken with paprika and 1 cup brown sugar. Pour red wine around chicken. Cover, and simmer about 15 to 20 minutes; lightly baste chicken with wine sauce while cooking. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Enjoy!

Remember, you can always find more events on the Post-Gazette’s Event Calendar as well as the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership’s Calendar.

These are just a few of our favorites!

The Summer Playwriting and Acting Intensive /High School
If you are interested in theater, you won’t want to miss this!
Monday, July 26th 2010 – Friday, August 6th 2010 from 10: 00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
For $250.0, enjoy Playwriting, Directing and Acting Intensive workshop Sponsored by the Ayers Foundation.
Week One, Learn how to create 10-minute plays. Daily playwriting classes will consist of in-class exercises in dialogue, character development, dramatic action, structure, and theatricality.
Week Two Focus on the individual writer’s process, with emphasis on how to give and take feedback, while developing a common language in order to discuss new play development.
Register now by calling 412-471-6079. Click here for more information.

Second Annual Homegrown Event
Join the Art Institute of Pittsburgh on Thursday, July 29th 2010 for the second-annual Homegrown event. It’s part rummage sale, part farmers’ market, part outdoor concert and part educational event.
The public is very much welcome, and invited to hear about local sustainable initiatives that explore “how we eat, how we live, how we buy, and how we can change into a much stronger, more sustainable Pittsburgh.”
The rummage sale begins at 9:00 a.m. and goes until 2:00 p.m. Proceeds will be donated to student scholarships.  In addition, educational workshops and booths hosted by local green businesses and nonprofit organizations, plus the farmers’ market, will be running all day.
A local band will take the stage about 5:00 p.m., along with free food (thanks to the Art Institute’s Culinary Club and Slow Foods chapter) and a free raffle for an “Ecocents” booklet, which is a “guide to everything green” in Pittsburgh.

Harris Theater: Sweetgrass

Come to see Sweetgrass this Friday, July 23rd 2010 – Sunday, July 25th 2010 at the Harris Theater.

For just $7.00, you can experience what Kenneth Turan from LATimes calls, “Unexpectedly intoxicating”

An unsentimental elegy to the American West, Sweetgrass is a riveting portrait of a dying way of life. It follows the last of the modern-day cowboys as they lead their flocks of some 3,000 sheep up into Montana’s breathtaking, dangerous mountains for summer pasture. This astonishingly beautiful yet unsparing film reveals a world in which nature and culture, animals and humans, vulnerability and violence, are all intimately connected. (Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Ilisa Barbash; USA; 2009; 105 min)
More Details are available at Pittsburgh Filmmakers website.

Ever wonder how many grapes it takes to make your favorite wine?

Well, according to  800wine.com,
here is the approximate grape to wine ratio:

1 grape cluster = 1 glass
75 grapes = 1 cluster
4 clusters = 1 bottle
40 clusters = 1 vine
1 vine = 10 bottles
1200 clusters = 1 barrel
1 barrel = 60 gallons
60 gallons = 25 cases
30 vines = 1 barrel
400 vines = 1 acre
1 acre = 5 tons
5 tons = 332 cases

P.S.: If you’re a Pittsburgh native or from western Pennsylvania and make your own wine in September (for the holidays etc.), a great place to get your grapes is from Consumer’s Produce in Pittsburgh’s Strip District. Here’s a great old article about Consumer’s Produce from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Remember, you can always find more events on the Post-Gazette’s Event Calendar as well as the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership’s Calendar.

These are just a few of our favorites!

Comics and Graphic Storytelling: A How To Toon Camp
Monday, July 19th 2010 – Friday, July 23rd 2010 from 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. at The ToonSeum

Have a burgeoning artist in the family? An avid comics reader? A video-game connoisseur? Explore the art of comics and cartooning in this exciting camp, taught by Joe Wos and local professional editorial, comic, and animation artists.
Students will examine the techniques of penciling, character design, and storytelling, and how to combine these elements in the production of their very own zine. The camp is designed to emphasize the unique vision of the individual, regardless of experience and skill level, and engender a deeper appreciation of the diverse world of graphic storytelling.

Hairspray
Come see the musical, Hairspray, on Tuesday, July 20th, 2010 – Sunday, August 1st, 2010 at the Benedum Center
Tickets start at $20.50

It’s 1962. Teenager, Tracy Turnblad, has big hair, a big heart and an even bigger dream – to dance on “The Corny Collins Show.” But when her once-in-a-lifetime opportunity arrives, she’ll need the help of a crazy cast of characters to really shake things up.
Visit the Pittsburgh CLO for details!

Pittsburgh Pirates vs. San Diego Padres
Cheer on the Pirates this Friday, July 23rd 2010 – Saturday, July 24th 2010 at 7:05 p.m. at PNC Park at North Shore
Come and bring friends and family to PNC Park!

This Friday, July 16th, 2010 at 5:30 p.m. join the Cultural District Market for a tour of Pittsburgh art.

This quarterly showcase of art and entertainment at various Cultural District galleries and arts spaces is brought to you by the Trust Education & Community Engagement.

Enjoy the finer things in Pittsburgh, at no cost to you!

Click here to see myself and Executive Chef Mark Swomley on KDKA
promoting Local Restaurant Week, where Mark even does a little bit of cooking!

Click here to listen to me on The American Entrepreneur Business Talk with Ron Morris.  Click the “How Will The Pennsylvania Restaurant Industry Respond To the Gubernatorial Election?” Segment.

Duckhorn has always been known for it’s sumptuous Merlot and we will be sampling the newer Estate and Napa selections before tasting the single vineyard offerings from 1993 and 1998! Bill Nancarrow is a native of New Zealand and worked there as a winemaker until deciding to travel to the northern hemisphere to work with one of California’s top Merlot producers. He joined Duckhorn for the 2001 harvest, became the winemaker at Parradux in 2003 and was promoted to executive winemaker for all of Duckhorn in 2007!

“DUCKHORN” WINE DINNER
With Duckhorn Winemaker Bill Nancarrow
Culinary selections by Executive Chef Mark Swomley
Wednesday, May 5, 2010, 6:30 PM
$129 per person excluding gratuity

DUCKHORN SAUVIGNON BLANC’08

CHILLED SHELLFISH SALAD
Yuzu marinated Shrimp, Scallops, Crab and Clams served in a crisp Phyllo Cup
with Mustard Greens, Pomegranate Vinaigrette, Pine Nuts and Chevre

DUCKHORN “GOLDENEYE” PINOT NOIR’06

GRILLED LOIN OF LAMB
With a crisp Potato Cake, Wild Mushroom Sauté,
braised Spring Greens & Stilton Cream

DUCKHORN “ESTATE” MERLOT’05
DUCKHORN “NAPA” MERLOT’07

BRICHE CRUSTED VEAL SCALLOPINI
Layered with fresh Mozzarella, Tomato, Basil and local Farmer’s Bacon and
topped with Beurre Blanc and Balsamic Vinaigrette.

DUCKHORN “THREE PALMS” MERLOT’93
DUCKHORN “HOWELL MOUNTAIN” MERLOT’98

SURF & TURF
Grilled Filet Mignon and creamy Lobster Tart
served with Rosemary Redskins, Baby Zucchini and Cabernet Glaze

DUCKHORN PARADUXX’06

CHOCOLATE DECADENCE
Rich Flourless Chocolate Cake with Fudge Icing,
Caramel and Cherry-Mint Chutney