California’s only aperitif bar combines local produce and wine. Its drinks are award winning

What’s the difference between the French countryside and that of Yolo County? From inside L’Apéro Les Trois, not much.

L’Apéro Les Trois specializes in aperitifs, small pours of fortified Berryessa Gap Vineyards wine infused with botanicals and local produce. It’s the only aperitif-focused tasting room in California, said co-founder Georgeanne Brennan, who partnered with Berryessa Gap owner Corinne Martinez and winemaker Nicole Salengo to open the downtown Winters bar in May 2022.

Aperitifs typically open a meal, the counterbalance to a digestif at the end. L’Apéro’s owners also recommend turning their aperitifs into spritzes with the addition of soda water, or using in place of vermouth in heavier cocktails.

“An aperitif is not just the prelude to the meal, but to the conviviality that comes,” Brennan said.

The aperitifs’ flavors can be complex, as in a Zinfandel infused with green walnuts Martinez’s brother grows next to her vineyard, two miles from L’Apéro’s tasting room at 22 Main St. A quince-infused Chardonnay is more honeyed, though not so sweet as to resemble a true dessert wine.

It’s the four other aperitifs, though — black mission fig Zinfandel, dry rosé with Blenheim apricots, Sauvignon blanc with Meyer lemon and dry rosé with rosemary and oranges — that have received the most acclaim so far. Each won gold or double gold at the San Francisco Chronicle’s highly competitive statewide wine competition earlier this year.

L’Apéro serves its aperitifs by the $12 glass or in flights, along with cheese plates or small bites such as gougères. The bar also hosts seasonal dinners and Sunday suppers every other month, featuring cassoulet, bouillabaisse or another French classic as the main item.

Brennan is a James Beard Award-winning author of several cookbooks, including “Aperitif: Recipes for Simple Pleasures in the French Style,” published in 1997. She fell in love with the drinks and concept while living in rural Provence, then came up with the idea for L’Apéro after social-distanced drinks with Salengo in 2020.

“How cool is that? As Corinne says, (Brennan) literally wrote the book on aperitifs,” Salengo said.

For Sacramento residents that won’t find themselves in Winters anytime soon, $40 bottles of L’Apéro Les Trois’ aperitifs are carried at Corti Bros. and Magpie Cafe makes cocktails with the fortified wines as well.

What I’m Eating

Roseville’s dining scene saw a welcome boost with the September opening of Uncle Dumpling in Stone Point Retail Center. A marriage of traditional and contemporary Chinese elements, its star dish is xiaolongbao, Shanghai-style soup dumplings that have become a 21st century U.S. favorite.

Large plexiglass kitchen windows show aunties crafting dumplings by hand, illuminated by a neon sign declaring “You Only Live Once.” Bamboo steamer baskets and a giant folding fan decorate the brick-walled dining room, where each table has a guide on how to eat xiaolongbao (place it on your spoon, poke a hole, suck the broth out and eat the rest, with black vinegar or chili oil if desired).

Classic pork xiaolongbao ($15 for eight) are the standard-bearer, soft-bottomed vessels of meat and salty broth. The truffle Berkshire xiaolongbao ($21 for eight) is a more decadent, Instagrammable option tucked in dough dyed black by squid ink and sprinkled with edible gold.

While dumplings, even the soupless varieties, are the clear focus, don’t sleep on the stir-fried green beans ($14) tossed with crumbles of pork and garlic and a subtle layer of spice. Jajang noodles ($14) have a more omnipresent heat, which runs through the tofu, mushrooms, pork and cucumber strips to tingle the tongue and lips.

For dessert: more dumplings! Chocolate xiaolongbao ($10 for five), created by legendary Taiwan-based chain Din Tai Fung and previously unseen in Sacramento-area restaurants to my knowledge, are tinier than their porky counterparts and filled with strawberry and chocolate syrups. Served with a semisweet cheese foam dipping sauce, they came together like bite-sized dessert crêpes in the mouth.

Uncle Dumpling

Address: 1485 Eureka Road, Suite 150, Roseville.

Hours: 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 4:30-8:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 4:30-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 4:30-8:30 p.m. Sunday.

Phone: (916) 886-8132.

Website: http://www.uncledumpling.com/

Drinks: Beer, sake, smoothies and fruit, milk or hot teas.

Vegetarian options: Egg-mushroom dumplings, a few appetizers and hearty plates of garlic-laden spinach, broccoli or bok choy.

Noise level: Quiet.

Outdoor seating: Four patio tables.

Openings & Closings

▪ Roundhouse Deli opened its first Sacramento sandwich shop April 3 at 1914 Alhambra Blvd., where Casa Tulum previously stood. The Ruelas family’s deli, known for its tri-tip tacos, has been a Roseville fixture for decades and opened an Elk Grove location in 2020.

▪ Engawa Fusion’s soft opening is underway at 7301 Stockton Blvd. near the Florin Road intersection in Tasty House’s former abode. The contemporary Cali-Japanese concept serves homey classics such as oyakodon (chicken-and-egg rice bowls) as well as inventive tacos filled with sashimi or tonkatsu.

▪ Slim & Husky’s Pizza Beeria closed its sole California restaurant Sunday at 3413 Broadway in North Oak Park. The Nashville-based, hip-hop-inspired pizza and cinnamon roll concept opened in 2020.