What happens when you cross a winemaker with a passion for his heritage and a chef who considers food an artful experience?

Local artists, chefs and vintners will take center stage on morning news programs starting this weekend to promote the area and the Lodi Wine Stroll taking place on April 13.

Zumba let people shake it like they did as teenagers

Chef Iradh Herrera gave a silver mixing bowl filled with cream and sugar one last stir before adding a very special ingredient: liquid nitrogen.

The following is a list of public meetings in the Lodi and Galt areas this week:

Who doesn't like live cooking demonstrations, shopping with a glass of wine or enjoying an outing at a local favorite with friends?

The 2012 Lodi Spring Wine Show will be held this Friday and Saturday, March 30 and 31, at the Lodi Grape Festival Grounds.

Next weekend, the 2012 Lodi Spring Wine Show will be held March 30 and 31 at the Lodi Grape Festival Grounds.

Like most of Lodi, you’ve probably fallen in love with Alebrijes, the Mexican Bistro that opened in Lodi in 2007. If you’ve never tried chef Ruben Larrazolo’s creations, you have an opportunity to visit the restaurant’s new location in Downtown Lodi that is now featuring more unique dishes and their own fruit-infused tequilas.

On behalf of all the volunteers with the Lodi Support Our Troops organization, thank you for coming to our fundraiser at the Van Ruiten Family Winery on Nov. 5. This event could not have been so successful without the almost 400 people who attended and the generous donations and sponsorships that we received.

The following is a list of public meetings in the Lodi and Galt areas this week:

It’s a quiet Thursday afternoon on the Delta. Chef Ruben Larrazolo has finished grilling carnitas and salmon for the lunch rush and has a little time before guests start arriving for dinner at the new Alebrijes at the Lighthouse in Isleton. 

Anaheim has Disneyland. Nevada has Burning Man. And Lodi? It has the Spring Wine Show.

During the annual event, the Ole Mettler Pavilion at the Grape Festival Grounds turns into a happy place for the wine-loving crowd as more than 40 wineries share their artful bottled creations, olive oil companies offer tastings and restaurants prepare hors d’oeuvres that pair with the weekend’s selections. 

Next weekend’s show kicks of at the Grape Festival grounds and runs March 25 and 26. The event is also packed with live music, prizes, a basket giveaway with more than 100 bottles of wine and chances to meet the wine makers.

Holding a brown lunch bag in each hand, one of Lodi's premier chefs said the contents of one bag represent what food is and the other shows what is wrong with it. He opened the bags. One featured a fresh Russet potato. The second bag contained a carton of McDonald's french fries.

Nobody wants to give up the perks of a good lifestyle, even if they are facing tough economic times. There are still books to splurge on, art that can’t hang anywhere but in your home and food cravings you can’t resist. Local foodies, artists, writers and musicians agree that while people are being careful and cutting back, some are willing to splurge while others find alternatives. Smart spending was a big trend in 2010, but local experts have noticed some other trends in their fields over the year.

Staffers share their holiday 2010 wish llists:

Once again, it's time to grab a glass and sample some of the best food and wine Lodi has to offer. Forty-two wineries and 16 restaurants and catering companies will be on hand offering fresh creations designed to compliment the varietals that will be served at the ninth annual Taste of Lodi on Sunday.