There are so many slot iPhone apps coming out now that’s it hard to keep up; but here are some of my favorites:

Video Poker Pay Tables 9/6
$1.99 on iTunes

This tidy app from videopoker.com shows how to spot a video poker machine with the best odds by a quick glance at the pay table.   Amateurs and Pros alike will love this app.

Sun And Moon by Aristocrat
$1.99 on iTunes

This is just one of hundreds of slot titles available for free play.  This one represents the entire category of games developed with “Australian math,” which is largely responsible for today’s 1¢ video games surging to the top of the charts.

Cleopatra by IGT
$1.99

Again this is one of many video slots available, but like the iconic game above, Cleo helped energize the video game market which eventually moved reel slots into second place on most casino floors.

Playboy Hot Zone by Bally
$2.99

Just another video-slot-in-an-app but this one has lots of bells and whistles.   They have a feature called Hot Zone which is like playing Tetris on top of your game for bigger bonuses.  It has pretty good sound as well.

As the Pechanga Wine Festival nears, we wanted to take a look at some of the amazing wines that will be poured all day April 2nd.

The unique addition to this year’s Wine Festival is the broad selection of wines we’ll have from vineyards from around the world. Check out a few of them below:

Robert Oatley’s ‘09 Sauvignon Blanc, Pemberton (Western Australia)

You may have seen Sandy Oatley, the vineyard’s chairman, recently on Oprah’s “Ultimate Australian Adventure.” The vineyard has been gaining popularity and rave reviews and recently launched in the U.S. in 2008.

The Pemberton wine region in Australia is perfect for growing Sauvignon Blanc. The elevated cool, maritime climate of the region maintains the core freshness and zesty aromatics of this popular variety; arguably the home of Sauvignon Blanc in Australia, says Oatley.

Review: “Fresh floral fruit, traces of herbs and hay, and a handsome dry mid-palate with attractive depth. From a remote area of Western Australia with huge potential for this variety.” - Dan Berger, former LA Times wine columnist.

Graham’s Six Grapes Reserve Port (Portugal)

Six Grapes is a big hearted wine. It is fruity and robust and of superb quality. It is blended to be as similar as possible to a young Vintage Port. It has often been referred to as “the everyday Port for the Vintage Port drinker.”

Graham’s “Six Grapes” pairs wonderfully with rich, dark chocolate desserts, as well as strong cheeses like a creamy blue.

Review: Wine & Spirits gave it 91 points, stating: “The wine has deep color and grip, bright plum and fig richness, dark, sweet tannin…It’s beautifully blended.”

Villa Maria Estate’s 2010 Private Bin Sauvignon Blanc (New Zealand)

This vibrant Sauvignon Blanc is bursting with a fruit-salad-bowl of flavours including ripe gooseberry, passionfruit, fresh citrus lime and exotic herbaceous aromas.

Review: Wine Spectator gave it 90 points, stating it “offers a wonderful mix of pineapple, citrus and passion fruit notes that are ripe, fragrant and terrifically refreshing. A beam of acidity keeps the focus and persistence of the flavors, showing hints of mineral and white pepper as well.”

Reviewers from Villa Maria’s site suggest it with seafood like crawfish or shrimp (a classic combo with wine in New Zealand).

Cavas Valmar’s 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon (Mexico)

Made from grapes in the San Vicente Valley, San Antonio de las Minas and Guadalupe. This elegant wine has a dark ruby color with oak and ripe fruit aromas.

It’s full bodied, with good extract and longevity, and is an ideal match for rich cheeses and aged red meats.

We have a confession to make: We’re addicted and in love with playing two premier iPhone slot games - Cleopatra from IGT and Cash Spin from Bally Technologies.

They are just as fun to play as their counterparts here at Pechanga, although with no actual money at stake, it loses a bit of the excitement. Nevertheless, for some lunch break entertainment, or even during those exhausting meetings, these two sure make time pass nicely.

And yes, Cash Spin lets you spin the wheel with your finger and everything.

Check them out in the iPhone app store by searching “Cleopatra” or “Cash Spin.” Let us know what you think of them. FYI: Cash Spin costs $1.99 currently and Cleopatra is free (although it also started at $1.99). We hope Bally makes the same move soon.

-RC

It was a “Do or Die” fight for former heavyweight contender Chris Arreola on Friday for ESPN Boxing at the Pechanga Ballroom. Arreola came and conquered with a TKO in 2 minutes and 18 seconds. Watch his post interview and the punches that ended the fight below:

Southern California’s first Mega Share Bad Beat Jackpot just hit at $208, 085 late Friday night, paying off 30 percent of the jackpot ($62,501.00) to the losing hand of four queens to Monique Tolentino of Murrieta.

The royal flush held by Perry Panno may have won the pot, but took second in the jackpot payoff, with 20 percent or $41,617.  Such is the nature of a “Bad Beat” jackpot, where the losing hand wins. In the Pechanga Poker Room, it took beating quad tens or better to trigger.

When the high hands were declared, there are two qualifying rules that come into play: both the winning and losing hands must play their two hole cards, with the board playing first. In this instance four queens (Qc,Qd,Qh,Qs,Ac) was beaten out by nothing less than a royal flush of clubs (10c, Jc, Qc, Kc, Ac). It is a requirement of the jackpot trigger to use both hole cards for each hand, which they were in this instance.

The other six players at the table shared 30 percent ($62,426) of the jackpot, or  $10,404 per seat. In addition, all 183 active Texas Hold’em players in the room took home a combined 20 percent ($41,541) of the jackpot, or $227 per seat.

The Pechanga Mega Share Bad Beat Jackpot is funded by a portion of a $1 promotional drop per hand in all live Texas Hold’em games. Thus, the Mega Share Bad Beat Jackpot increases with every Texas Hold’em hand and has now been reset to $93,453. However, in order to increase players’ chances of winning, the jackpot will begin a new tier system, whereby as each ten thousand dollars is added to the jackpot, the hand qualifier reduces by one (i.e. – quad 7’s, quad 6’s etc.) until any four-of-a-kind qualifies at $130,000.