we spotted another pbr mural on the side of the graveyard tavern in east atlanta village. just when we thought we had seen them all, another one pops up.

be sure to check out the paintings in our june post, when we first started noticing the hand-painted ads around atlanta.

– ryan & gub

anytime we head towards the coast, we try to visit nearby lighthouses. they are always fun and fairly historical, plus they provide great views when you can climb to the top. last year we visited a few southeast lighthouses between a trip to hilton head island, sc and our anniversary trip to amelia island, fl.

the amelia island lighthouse was awesome! tours are offered on the first and third wednesday of each month and begin in a small museum with old photos and information on the lighthouse. the tour-guide, who happens to be the granddaughter of the last amelia island lighthouse keeper, gave an oral history filled with stories of growing up on the grounds. it was very interesting. we also walked around the lighthouse, although we couldn’t climb it.

next, we visited the st. johns river lighthouse on our way to st. augustine. the lighthouse was on a naval station, so we could only see it through a barbed wire fence. it was still worth visiting though, especially since we got to take our car on a fun ferry ride on the way.

we also went to the st. augustine lighthouse which was great! the black and white striped painting was one of the cooler designs we’ve seen on a lighthouse. we were able to climb to the top and get a great view of st. augustine and the atlantic ocean!

on a different trip to hilton head we stumbled upon the harbour town lighthouse. although more of a tourist attraction than navigational aid, the lighthouse does appear on navigational charts and has a light that can be seen for 15 miles. you can also climb to the top for a great view of the island.

– ryan & gub

we recently tried rustico prosecco by nino franco. we’ve been keeping an eye out for this bubbly since it was mentioned in june 5th’s splendid table episode. prosecco is a dry sparkling wine made from glara grapes, which are mainly grown in the veneto region of italy. these italian grapes were formally known as prosecco grapes.

the fermentation process of this sparkling wine takes place in stainless steel tanks, making it less expensive to produce then champagne. as a result, prosecco has drastically risen in popularity outside of italy in recent years. if you’re looking for a great bubbly for under $15, keep your eyes out for a prosecco.

we found the 2008 rustico at the candler park market in atlanta. we spent a nice summer evening drinking this crisp, dry prosecco!

– ryan & gub

we heart peaches and boiled peanuts from our nearby roadside produce stand! david’s produce & specialties has the feel of an old general store and offers all sorts of southern goodies. they sell locally-grown organic produce, including great heirloom tomatoes and shelled peas, as well as homemade sweets, preserves and sauces. the homemade layered cakes are supposed to be amazing, although we haven’t tried them.

– ryan & gub

david’s produce & specialties

3561 lavista road
decatur, ga 30033
404-325-0709

we always visit york beach if we are up in maine. it’s this beautiful little beach town with picturesque houses along the coast. near the boardwalk you’ll find an old timey arcade called the fun o rama as well as indoor candlepin bowling and putt putt. it’s pretty awesome. there are also lots of shops and restaurants to check out as you walk along the cute streets in this new england beach town.

one of the years we visited york beach the fog was so thick you couldn’t even see the ocean. there is a photo of the fog below.

– ryan & gub

we have been on a kick of trying white wines from unique regions of the world. we recently had a rhône wine from the côtes du rhône appellation, which we learned is one of the oldest vineyards in france. we had a bottle of 2007 belleruche from m. chapourtier, made with white grenache, clairette and bourboulenc grapes. we enjoyed this crisp white wine along with fresh cut cucumbers from our garden. it was dry, light and great for summer drinking.

be sure to click on the image above to see a larger version. the wine label featured braille, which we had never noticed on a bottle before.

we found the belleruche from m. chapourtier at the candler park market in atlanta.

– ryan & gub

we really enjoyed the ola podrida show last wednesday night at the drunken unicorn! they played a steady stream of hits from their two albums and left you wanting more. seeing the songs played by a full band was great as well, we had only seen david wingo play solo before. with a full array of instruments, the songs were loud and rocking. highlights were jordanna, your father’s basement, and cindy, which closed the night.

i picked up belly of the lion on soda bottle colored vinyl and also grabbed a cool split 7″ ola podrida put out with xoxo panda, aka her space holiday. the packaging for the split 7″ is really amazing, plus it’s on blue and white swirled vinyl. order the belly of the lion vinyl here before they are all gone, only 250 were pressed.

listen to some ola podrida songs on their myspace page.

– ryan & gub

we picked our first ripe cantaloupe and it was amazing! as a tribute, we gathered photos to show the life of our melon.

fyi, we learned that you can tell if a cantaloupe is ripe by lightly thumping where the stem meets the navel of the melon. if the stem easily breaks off, it’s ready!

– ryan & gub

we wanted to remind you that ola podrida is playing tonight in atlanta at the drunken unicorn. entry is $8 and the doors open at 9 pm with ola podrida playing at 11:30 pm. you don’t want to miss this show!

– ryan & gub

after recently trying an albariño, we’ve been keeping an eye out for other wines mentioned in last month’s splendid table episode. we found the 2008 la cana at the candler park market in atlanta. we spent a nice summer evening on our front porch drinking this refreshing wine. it went great with the chilled, steamed shrimp leftover from the beaufort stew at gub’s mom’s birthday.

the wine describes itself as:
“where the steep hillside vineyards meet the tranquil rias you’ll find groves of rush canes known locally as juncos which are as emblematic of galicia as the albariño grape itself. offering lush aromas of white peaches and ripe pears followed by flavors of pineapple and bright citrus the wine finishes on a crisp dry wine.”

– ryan & gub