In climes so mild and unobtrusive, the rare violent storm captures our attention like a galloping herd of rhinos. California is hella wet this week, and having been lulled by years of sun and drought, it’s hard not to be preoccupied with the level of rain and wind we’re sheltering from and moving through. Two cars sit fully submerged five blocks away, on Webster street, below the 580. Some folks are panicked, and some stricken, with flooded basements and businesses. Still others, those with a solid roof and nothing to lose, are excited about the weather, looking on with fascination and wonder.

I watched the loose ellipse of cloudmass on the radar screen with surprise and recognition; it moved like the whimsically named storms that creep up the Atlantic coast and land with a tremendous, sweeping force. At night, waves of unsteady wind audibly strain the window panes and make the bed feel lost at sea, then a sudden silence follows, and lingers until another gale comes hurtling. The Claremont Canyon Jordan Trail is closed this week, busy remaking its own pathways, eroding unseen. And with the rain, the spent, ragged firs of yesteryear lie prone upon our sidewalks, traveling like the water, inevitably back to the land.

It feels strange to begin the year with such outward turmoil, but perhaps it’s oddly fitting. In any case, it’s what we’ve got; upending change is the not-so-new normal, and we did ask for rain, did we not? At this time of year Oakland Yard’s reliable sixty-eight degrees feels downright cozy, and we invite you to enjoy the comfort, hospitality and fine libations we’ll continue to offer throughout this wet winter. If you’ve taken to teetotaling, and your personal January is dry, you’ll be happy to hear we’ve beefed up our alcohol-free shelf, with two new low-sugar botanical sodas from Casamara Club - that makes four all day - and a damn good ‘phony negroni’ from St Agrestis that tastes remarkably like the hard stuff. And for the rest of you...

TONIGHT 1/5 - THURSDAY NIGHT FLIGHTS: French Reds & Austrian Whites

2020 Domaine de la Dourbie Petit Canet
2021 Château d'Oupia Les Hérétiques
2019 Clos Perdus l'Année Rouge
2020 Umathum Sauvignon Blanc
2021 Hiedler Loss Gruner Veltliner
2021 Schloss Gobelsburger Riesling

SATURDAY 1/7 - SPANISH TASTING FLIGHTS

2020 Parra Jiménez Gulp Hablo Verdejo
2021 Desconcierto Albariño
2021 Celler Escoda-Sanahuja Nas del Gegant
2019 Juan Gil Monastrell

May we all retain our power - and agency, love, and compassion in this new year.

Cheers,
Max