Daily Loaf

Chris Sherman was the St. Pete Times restaurant critic for 17 years, until he decided to give up the gig at the end of 2006 because of ongoing health problems. He remained a staff writer for the Times and became the restaurant editor and travel writer for its sister publication, Florida Trend Magazine, where he hands out the generically illustrious Golden Spoon Awards.

Now, as of November 1, he’s blogging for big Bay area wine and spirits shop B-21. Does that constitute a conflict of interest, considering his work at Florida Trend? Eh, it certainly wouldn’t here at CL, now that we’ve trended towards giving a voice to people in the community on our blog and in the paper. Although it is curious that in his first post, when he mentions his work at the St. Pete Times, the outgoing link goes to B-21’s weekly newspaper ad, not the Times site.

Until 2/22, get $2 off any 750-ml bottle of wine priced $9.99 and up. Check out the specials on Pillar Box Red (my house wine right now -$9.99), Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc ($12.99) and Bodegas Atalaya ($12.99). See the ad and print out the coupon.

B-21 in Tarpon Springs (delivery available to the entire Tampa Bay area)

Sunday was a day that reminds us all why we live in Florida. The slight breeze and bountiful sunshine motivated me to endure a very lengthy drive to Tarpon Springs where the large wine retailer B-21 hosted a seminar on Spanish wines.

I had never been to B-21 (queue appalled gasps from my fellow wine enthusiasts), but as I navigated the congested rows of bottles ranging from the coveted to jug varieties – and seemingly everything in between – I understood why I’d heard so much about this place.

From the outside it appears like any dated spirits store, and well, from the inside, the decor harkens its 50’s heyday as well. Read the rest of this entry »