On A Tank Of Gas: November

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The Art Of Tailgating

Beyond Pony Kegs and Bratwurst

By Suzanne Hurt

Football season, and the tailgating culture that happily accompanies it, doesn’t have to mean scarfing down burgers and chugging beer from a pony keg. Some Sacramentans have turned tailgating into an art.
    When lawyer and UC Berkeley alum Geoff Wong and his pals park a trio of SUVs outside the Golden Bears’ Memorial stadium, their tables are laden with things such as wild mushroom tarts, smoked sturgeon mousse with caviar on crostini, baby lamb chops with cherry chutney and chocolate-dipped strawberries. They also serve fine wines, imported beer and champagne.
    “We’re pretty popular hosts because we always come up with something pretty ‘swelegant’,” says Wong, sipping a 2003 Chardonnay at Paragary’s on a warm Friday afternoon.
    His group has cultivated pre-game festivities for more than 35 years. Tailgating ingredients were refined out of necessity, because Cal had horrible football teams until recently, he says. “We show up every year, win or lose. So for many years, tailgating was the highlight of the game,” he says. “If it’s a horrible team, a lot of wine is consumed. If it’s a good team, the consumption goes down.”
Continued...

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