Athenaeus' Banquet

April Food Day - No Joke

2009-04-01T04:10:00.000-07:00

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold,

it would be a merrier world."

J.R.R. Tolkien (1892 - 1973)

Today is the first April Food Day; as I posted on Monday, this is a very important effort among bloggers to help raise hunger awareness and raise money for Feeding America. Please take a minute to visit Feeding America's website to learn about the good work they do to feed as many as 4 million hungry Americans each and every week.

My challenge remains, for every comment posted on these two April Food Day posts, I will donate an additional dollar to my already planned gift. Please leave a comment then visit Feeding America at the link below to make a donation, even if it's only a dollar.

White House DIY

2009-03-31T06:18:00.000-07:00

New York Magazine this week reported that Barack and Michelle Obama have decided not to use taxpayers' money to renovate the White House family living quarters. Traditionally new presidents are allotted $100,000 per term by Congress to overhaul the White House personal quarters and the Oval Office. Camille Johnston, director of communications for the First Lady has said that “[they] are not using public funds or accepting donations of goods for redecorating their private quarters.” Also, the Obamas are not using White House Historical Association (a private charity dedicated to maintaining the White House) funds.

It's not clear whether the Obamas will spend more or less than the traditional $100,000 from their private funds, but given Michael S. Smith's past projects it's quite possible that the budget could far exceed $100,000. Smith's client list includes Rupert Murdoch, Steven Spielberg, and former Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain—for whom he procured that infamous $87,783 rug while Merrill was being acquired by Bank of America under the guidance of Federal Officials. We'll likely never know the budget as a result of the Obamas’ decision to absorb the cost. While not in the same league as Murdoch, Spielberg, or Thain, the Obama's have been quite comfortable the last few years; the couple reported $4.2 million in household income on their 2007 tax returns.

This won't be the President's first White House project, President Obama has already surprised his daughters with a swing set outside the Oval office and Michelle has been working with White House staff on a vegetable and herb garden on the grounds.

April Food Day

2009-03-30T10:40:00.000-07:00

The wonderful authors of Pigtown*Design and Easy & Elegant Life have set into motion a brilliant plan to help raise awareness and dollars for Feeding America (formerly America's Second Harvest), a national food bank with 200 member banks across the country. They're calling April 1, 2009 April Food Day and asking bloggers to post on the great work that Feeding America is doing during these difficult times.

This is a cause that I started with in kindergarten and have never stopped giving. I posted on the struggles facing foodbanks in December and asked readers then to help Feeding America and/or their local foodbanks at that time. Needless to say not much has improved since the holidays for many Americans and the December donations are long gone. It's time for bloggers to unite in this effort to donate what we can to help fill the shelves of these very important resources.

Feeding America is very efficient (we should all do so well with our grocery shopping) with every dollar you contribute providing seven meals or 10 pounds of food. A $25 gift provides 75 meals. In fact Feeding America has a 4 star rating from Charity Navigator with nearly $0.98 of every dollar given spent on doing the good work of getting food into the hands fo those who need it.

In addition to my planned donation I will donate an additional dollar for every visitor who comments on this post between now and April 2nd up to an additional $100.

A New Owner for Troubled Greenbrier

2009-03-24T05:21:00.000-07:00

In January I posted about the struggles facing the historic Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia. Last Thursday, March 19th, the 231 year-old Greenbrier succumbed to the current recessionary pressures and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. According to court records the resort has lost more than $90 million in the last five years including $35 million last year alone, though it's unclear if any of this loss is attributable to the extensive renovations done in 2006 and 2007.

The landmark property, which has hosted 26 Presidents and some noteworthy royals including Monaco's Prince Rainier and Princess Grace and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, has been owned by the railroad CSX since 1910. According to a statement released simultaneously with the bankruptcy filing the Greenbrier Hotel Corporation said it has struck an agreement to sell the resort to Marriott, pending the bankruptcy court’s approval and contingent on its renegotiating labor contracts before the sale. Labor costs associated with union contracts have been but one major hurdle in recent years.

If the deal goes through Marriott would receive $50 million over two years from CSX Corp. to operate the resort. Marriott in turn would pay CSX between $60 million and $130 million within seven years, depending on timing and the hotel's financial performance. CSX would be cutting loose a n0n-core asset blamed for a 32 percent drop in CSX's fourth-quarter 2008 earnings.

A Well Stocked Bar XIII

2009-03-17T05:02:00.000-07:00

Top of the morning to you!

In honor of St. Patrick's Day today's post, the latest in the Well Stocked Bar series is dedicated to Irish Whiskey. Unlike the Scottish, Canadian, and Japanese who spell Whisky without the 'e', the Irish just as the Americans use the 'e' as a way to differentiate their product.

Although akin to Scotch Whisky the differences begin very early with the grains utilized in making their whiskey. Scotch Whisky is distilled principally in that it was distilled primarily from barley while traditional Irish whiskey is distilled from a mash of mixed grains including barley.

Today, most Irish whiskey is blended from a mixture of pot-still whiskey and cheaper grain whiskey produced in a column still (it's also more mild in flavor). Bushmills is the exception in that it produces its whiskey purely through a column still rather than a blending with pot-still spirits. Most Irish whiskey is distilled three times, but so is the Scottish single malt Auchentoshan; thus it is a common myth that triple distillation is the main distinction between the two varieties. To my mind and palette the principal difference between the typical spirits of Scotland and Ireland is that peat is almost never used in the malting process in Ireland while it's used in the majority of malts in Scotland imparting the smoky, earthy overtones loved by many, but not all whisk(e)y drinkers. I like to think of Scottish Whisky as the beverage of fall and winter while the lighter whiskies from Ireland are better suited to spring and summer.

Though Ireland produces and exports whiskey on a grand scale it's done through only three distilleries compared to Scotland's more than 80 (though many of these are owned by conglomerates). The Big Three Irish distillers are: New Midleton Distillery (Jamesons, Powers, Paddy, Midleton, Redbreast, and Green Spot), Old Bushmills Distillery (Old Bushmills, Black Bush, 1608, and Bushmills 10, 12, 16, 21 year-old single malts), and Cooley Distillery (Connemara, Knappogue, Michael Collins, and Tyrconnell). Of the three only Cooley's is completely Irish-owned. New Midleton distillery is part of the French beverage giant Pernod-Ricard while Bushmills is owned by rival giant Diageo.

In celebration of all things Irish (in a single pint glass) here's a recipe for an Irish Car Bomb:

3/4 pint of Guiness stout
1/2 shot of Bailey's Irish cream
1/2 shot of Jameson Irish whiskey (substitute as you like)

Add the Bailey's and Jameson to a shot glass, layering the Bailey's on the bottom. Pour the Guinness into a pint glass 3/4 of the way full and let settle. Drop the shot glass into the Guinness and drink immediately with great speed, exercising caution not to damage your teeth with a sliding shot glass; if you choose to sip the mixture it will curdle and lose whatever pleasantness it had during the first moments after its creation. While I've never fell victim to this beverage I have seen many who have, limit yourself to one then return to your whiskey or beer.

A Well Stocked Bar XII

2009-03-12T05:58:00.000-07:00

The Angel's Share - The whisky that is lost to evaporation during it's time in the barrel is referred to as the Angel's share.

This post, the latest in a series dedicated to the necesseities and niceties of a Well Stocked Bar. The previous posts on Scotch Whisky have included VI - Blended Scotch Whisky, VII - Speyside Single Malts, VIII - Highland Single Malts, IX - Lowland Malts, X - Islay Malts, and XI - Island Malts. This post is dedicated to Campbeltown, a once great Whisky producing region. Today only two distilleries are in operation, though combined they produce whiskies under the names of four classic distilleries.

Glen Scotia is one of only two distilleries in Campbeltown, with Springbank being the other. This small geographic area was once the home of over thirty distilleries, the majority of which closed between the first and second World Wars. First registered in 1835, it was overhauled in the early 1980's and has passed through the hands of several owners over the years to various degrees of success and failure. Glen Scotia is housed in what appears to be a small townhouse which has the added distintion of being home to a ghost - a previous owner who drowned himself in Campbeltown Loch after being falling victim to a financial scam.

Springbank, in addition to its own label, also produces two additional malts in their original style though their original distilleries closed many decades ago. The "original Longrow" was produced by Longrow Distillery, which was closed in 1896. Today Springbank Distillery produces Longrow single malt whisky in the same distillery equipment as it does its namesake malt. Despite this the malts have very different characters with the Longrow's much more heavily peated and drier character (think Islay malts) than the more floral Springbank. Springbank also began production of Hazelburn in 2005. Hazelburn was once the largest distillery in Campbeltown producing as much as 192,000 gallons per year at its peak, though it shuttered its doors in 1925 due to financial difficulties.

When Times Get Tough, The Tough Make Furniture?

2009-03-09T05:43:00.000-07:00

"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity;

an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."

Winston Churchill

Over the last week or so I've seen two different stories about luxury marquis in two very different industries making furniture in order to keep their factories busy.

The first, and more logical company to take this step is Petrof, the Czech piano maker founded in 1864. Over the last year as the economic climate has worsened and the demand for hand made pianos has seen similar declines the company has begun to make furniture and furniture grade kitchen cabinetry (pictured above). Currently their factory's production is 50% pianos, and 50% casework. It's not the first time the company has produced other products as a way of surviving difficult economic times, in the 1930s it produced wooden railway sleeper cars and in times of war it made grenade boxes.

The second, is the venerable luxury car company, Bentley. Their skilled woodworkers in their factory in Crewe has long been making gleaming walnut Bentley dashboard and wood trim. After an extended holiday furlough, the Daily Telegraph reported that these same craftsmen, 140 in total, have started using walnut off-cuts to make cabinetry, occasional tables and reception area furniture. The company, a division of Volkswagen, plans to use the furniture in Bentley showrooms. If the demand for these pricy pieces of rolling art remains depressed and the furniture is well received there are rumors that Bentley might come out with a line for the public. The company has been offering humidors, jewelry chests, and similar items for the past few years as custom order items with 20+ week lead times.

A Bentley Executive with a piece of their select burled walnut.

The upside for both of these firms, beyond the bit of revenue they receive from these side projectes is that they can keep these very skilled artisans employed in their workshops, many of whom are second and third generation craftsmen with very specialized skills. The danger in this strategy is that the demand for furniture is also less than robust.

A Little Something Extra - Heering Cherry Liquor

2009-03-06T04:38:00.000-08:00

When having friends over for dinner and various amusements we're always looking for a little something extra in the way of food or beverage. Last weekend we hosted a classic fondue night with three courses of steaming goodness.

To start, the classic Gruyere/Emmenthaler cheese fondue with cubes of toasted whole-grain bread, Honeycrisp apple slices, and grilled slices of chicken-apple sausage (a recent addition and by far the favorite dipper). Served with ice cold Prosecco.

For the main course, Coq au Vin style broth made with homemade chicken stock, a generous amount of the house favorite Chateau Neuf du Pape, and a variety of mushrooms served with seasoned cubes of filet of beef and chicken breast. Served with the remaining bottle of Chateau Neuf du Pape with a friend or two you didn't mind the 3-5 minute wait for each tender morsel.

Finally the dessert course which included dark Scharffen Berger chocolate mixed with a bit of heavy cream and our secret weapon: Heering Cherry Liquor. This unexpected addition made the chocolate that much more memorable. Dipping strawberries, frozen bannanas, and pound cake was a decadent treat. Served with the dessert was a drink inspired by a Kir Royal, except with more Prosecco and a generous splash of the Heering Liquor.

Ever since fondue night I've been experimenting with other beverages featuring Heering. Here are a few of my new favorites:

Singapore Sling (the quintisential drink featuring Heering)

1 part gin
2 parts Heering
4 parts pineapple juice
generous splash fresh-squeezed lime juice
splash Cointreau
splash Benedictine (if you don't have this use extra gin and bitters)
dash Grenadine syrup
dash Angostra bitters

Mix all in a shaker and pour in glass filled with ice. Garnish with a slice of pineapple and cherry.

Blood and Sand (reminiscent of a Rob Roy, pictured below)

1 1/4 ounce Scotch
1/2 ounce Heering
1/2 ounce sweet vermouth
1 ounce fresh squeezed orange juice
Flamed orange zest for garnish

Combine all the ingredients in an ice-filled cocktail shaker. Shake until cold and then strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Flame the orange zest over the top of the glass.

Copenheering (very clean and refreshing, perfect for the warmer months)

1 ounce Heering
1 ounce vodka
Lemon Peel Twist
Crushed Ice

Chill the glass, then fill it with crushed ice. Mix the cherry brandy and the vodka together, and pour into the glass. Garnish with lemon peel.

Open That Bottle Night 2009

2009-02-25T06:18:00.000-08:00

(Wine "Library" at VIÑA COUSIÑO MACUL outside Santiago, Chile)

I’ve written before about Dorothy (Dottie) Gaiter and John Brecher the wine columnists for the Wall Street Journal. I have been a big fan of theirs for many years and reading their weekly column (and now watching the video on WSJ.com) has become a weekly ritual

To my mind, one of their greatest achievements has been their creation of Open That Bottle Night (OTBN). It’s a holiday of sorts designed to provide a “reason” to open that bottle of wine too good, too rare, or too emotionally significant for you to ever find a worthy occasion to open. OTBN is celebrated on the final Friday of February. This year, the 10th Anniversary of OTBN is February 28, 2009.

The celebrations take on a number of different forms from quiet dinners at home with that special bottle to large parties where guests bring their bottles and share in a large tasting and/or dinner. Hinton’s Wine Store near my home is hosting its 4th annual OTBN at their Bin 75 wine bar with a complimentary event to those lucky 30 people who come and bring that special bottle.

Here are the suggestions from Dottie and John:

1. Choose the wine. You don't necessarily need to open your "best" wine or your most impressive wine, but the wine that means the most to you, the one that you would simply never open otherwise.

2. With an older bottle, the cork may break easily. The best opener for a cork like that is one with two prongs, but it requires some skill. You have time to practice using one. Be prepared for the possibility that a fragile cork may fall apart with a regular corkscrew. If that happens, have a carafe and a coffee filter handy. Just pour enough through the coffee filter to catch the cork fragments.

3. Otherwise, do not decant -- at least at first. Many OTBN wines are old and fragile. Air could quickly dispel what's left of them. But if you are opening a younger wine, taste it first; if it seems tight, and especially if you don't plan to linger over it for a few hours, go ahead and decant.

4. Have a backup wine ready for your special meal, in case you are opening an older wine that really has gone bad.

5. If you are having an OTBN party, ask everyone to say a few words about the significance of the wine they brought. This really is what OTBN is all about.

6. Enjoy the wine for what it is, not what it might someday be or might once have been.

7. Drop us a note at wine@wsj.com about your evening. Be sure to include your name, city and phone number, in case we need to contact you so that we can share your account with other readers.

Our plan this year is to have a few friends over with a few special bottles of wine toted back from vacations around the world. Having the event and the collective courage will help me open a very rare bottle of single vineyard unfiltered 1996 Malbec bought in Argentina a few years ago at what was then a ridiculous 25x the cost of a decent Malbec, but still a deal given the battered Argentine Peso. It was intended as a souvenir to be saved for a very special occasion which we haven’t found yet, but the suspense is now building as we prepare to open it this Saturday for OTBN’s 10th anniversary. Last night I put it on end to allow the sediment to begin moving down to the bottom of the bottle. It will be served with roast rosemary lamb chops with a blackberry port sauce.

Salud!

High Praise for Sucré

2009-02-24T10:34:00.000-08:00

During our recent trip to New Orleans we stumbled into Sucré on Magazine Street. What drew us in was a very modern and tasteful little store lined with cases, the ones in front selling ice cream and gelato. It reminded us of the geloterias in the fashionable parts of Buenos Aires.

Inside the service and selection were equally wonderful. After a few minutes of perusing we were greeted by a very enthusiastic gentleman at the chocolate counter at the back of the store who began telling us about each hand crafted chocolate. His passion was infectious and we purchased a box of six chocolates to eat right there in the store. Our selections included: Absinthe, Avery (salted chocolate caramel), Port, Bolivian (made from single source beans), Sicilian Pistachio, and Raspberry. All of these were excellent with the Avery and Absinthe our favorites.

We were also treated to samples of their King Cake which was very good and instead of the typical colored sugar was decorated with edible glitter that made for a much more refined presentation. We brought back a bag of their Mardis Gras Cream coffee as a gift and have been assured by the recipient that it's quite delicious.

If you're looking for a gift for a chocolate lover and want something more unusual than a box of Godiva place an order from Sucré and your recipient will not be disappointed.

A Taste of Mardi Gras

2009-02-23T04:50:00.000-08:00

I just returned from a trip to New Orleans so please enjoy a series of Nawlins and Mardi Gras themed posts. I discovered a newish sweet shop on Magazine Street that inspired this post on King Cakes, though the picture above is not one of their delicious confections. More on the shop in the days to come.

The “modern history” of the King Cake began in 12th century France when the cakes were baked on the eve of January 6 to celebrate the Three Kings’ visit to the Christ Child. A single token was hidden in the cake as a surprise for the finder. This tradition was not invented to celebrate the Epiphany, but was instead an adaptation of a pagan tradition.

The more ancient history is believed that in pre-Christian Western Europe the pagan Harvest celebrations involved a sacrifice ritual of the “sacred king.” How was this unfortunate chap selected? Well this is where the cake comes in. Several men of the tribe, would eat of a cake in which a coin or bean was placed prior to baking. Whoever got the slice that had the coin or bean was the chosen one and was treated like a king for the year, the catch was that at the end of that year he would be sacrificed and his remains returned to the soil to ensure that the harvest would be successful.

The custom came with French settlers to Louisiana in the 18th century and continued to be associated with the Epiphany. During the 19th century with the increasing focus on Mardi Gras the tradition seems to have shifted and for a short time became a weekly event between the Epiphany and Mardi Gras and determined who would host the next weeks party. It was also during this period that they began using a porcelain baby in lieu of the coin or bean as the baby hidden in the cake symbolized the difficulty that the three Kings had in finding the Christ Child and of the gifts they brought.

In 1870, the Twelfth Night Revelers, one of the major Mardi Gras crews, held their ball, with a large king cake as the main attraction. Instead of choosing a sacred king to be sacrificed, the Twelfth Night Revelers used the bean in the cake to choose the queen of the ball. This tradition has carried on to this day, although the Twelfth Night Revelers now use a wooden replica of a large king cake. The ladies of the court pull open little drawers in the cake's lower layer which contain the silver and gold beans. Silver means you're on the court; gold is for the queen.

Unlike the French version of the cake - la galette des rois - still served for epiphany which is round without a hole in the middle, the king cake is an oval-shape with a large hole in the middle. The dough is basic coffee-cake dough, sometimes laced with cinnamon. The dough is rolled out into a long tube then shaped into an oval with the ends twisted together to complete the shape. This twisting is also a convenient place to put the baby if one wanted to increase one’s odds of finding it. The cake is then baked, and decorated with simple purple, green, and gold granulated sugar, the colors of Carnival.

A Well Stocked Bar XI

2009-02-11T23:00:00.000-08:00

"It is a golden maxim to cultivate the garden for the nose, and the eyes will take care of themselves." ~ Robert Louis Stevenson

The Islands Scotch Whisky Region encompasses all the island distilleries except those on Islay. Of Scotland's 790 islands only 7 are involved in the production of Scotch Whisky, they include: Mull - Tobermory, Orkney - Highland Park and Scapa, Jura - Isle of Jura (pictured above), Arran and a whisky by the same name, Shetlands - Blackwood (though the distillery has been planned for some time it does not yet exist and spirits labeled Blackwood are actually purchased from a Lowland distillery) and Skye - Talisker.

Whisky from the Islands tends to have similar characteristics of Islay whisky, only a bit more subdued, due in large part to the reduced exposure of the malted barley to peat smoke. These whiskies tend to be lighter in color and a bit smoother than either Islay or Highland whisky and in some ways remind me of Speyside malts with a hint of salt.

I have seen the whiskies of Orkney, Highland Park and Scapa included in the Highland region. Orkney is an archipelago of 70 islands lying to the North of the Scottish Highlands. Scapa is located on what is called the Orkney Mainland - despite being one of the islands, it is named as such as it is the biggest of all. Highland park takes its name not from The Highlands, but from the fact that the distillery was built on a hill in the parklands above the town of Kirkwall. There's also a certain logic to this classification as the taste profile is similar to Highland whiskies.

Talisker is my favorite line of the Island whiskies and has a long and interesting history on the Isle of Skye. Talisker has over the years increased its single malt offerings including the excellent 18 year and the 25 year cask strength bottlings, though the majority of the production goes into the Johnnie Walker blends. I'm not alone in my fondness for Talisker, the Scottish writer Robert Lewis Stevenson referred to Talisker as 'the king of drinks.'

'Slaandjivaa' (to your health)

Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin's Dinner Party Guide

2009-02-06T05:00:00.000-08:00

The following are Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin's suggestions for the makings of a successful dinner party as contained in his Physiologie du Goût, ou Méditations de Gastronomie Transcendante; ouvrage théorique, historique et à l'ordre du jour, dédié aux Gastronomes parisiens, par un Professeur, membre de plusieurs sociétés littéraires et savantes, or more simply Philosophy of Taste. Some of his suggestions hold up better than others:

1. Let not the number of the company exceed twelve, that the conversation may be constantly general. Athenaeus: Still very good advice if your intention is to have a dinner party conducive to a catholic dialogue. We've all been to those large parties where you end up between two people, neither of whom manage to capture your attention for long as you lean forward and strain to hear what you imagine to be much more interesting things being said just a few seats away.

2. Let them be so selected that their occupations are various, and their tastes analogous, and with such points of contact that there will be no need for the odious formality of presentations. Athenaeus: This is good advice for all manner of parties. If the assembled persons are all of a similar interest it is not so much a party as a convention or meeting.

3. Let the dining-room be well lighted, the cloth spotless, and the atmosphere at a temperature from 13-16 degrees C (60-68 degrees F). Athenaeus: I think central heating has made us accostomed to a room a bit warmer than this.

4. Let the men have wit without pretension, and the women be pleasant without being coquettes. Athenaeus: Certainly the advice pertaining to the gentlemen is correct, but I'm a bit less certain if coquettes in their modern incarnation are appropriate or not as guests as I am at a loss as to imagine an acquaintence who might be labeled as such.

5. Let the dishes be exceedingly choice, but few in number; and the wines of the highest quality each in its degree. Athenaeus: This might be the simplest definition of a good host/hostess is one who provides the best possible in food and beverage for their guests.

6. Let the order of service be from the more substantial dishes to the lighter, and the simpler wines to the most perfumed. Athenaeus: This is a foreign concept for an American palette, but a novel idea. Have you ever served, or been served your courses from meat to fish to salad to dessert?

7. Let the meal proceed without undue haste, since dinner is the last business of the day; and let the guests consider themselves as travellers about to reach a shared destination together. Athenaeus: I like this so much I'm considering printing the quote on my next dinner invitations.

8. Let the coffee be hot, and the liquors chosen with special care. Athenaeus: Not much to be said here.

9. Let the drawing room be large enough to admit a game of cards for those who cannot do without it, while leaving ample room for post-prandial conversation. Athenaeus: An after dinner game is certainly the easy way to amuse your guests, though a stimulating conversation over coffee and after dinner drinks is certainly the ideal.

10. Let the guest be detained by the charms of society, and animated by the hope that the evening will yet develop. Athenaeus: A polite warning against boredom.

11. Let the tea not be too strong, the toast skillfully buttered, and the punch carefully prepared. Athenaeus: This is tradition I was previously unaware of and do not anticipate the resecutation of.

12. Let none leave before eleven o'clock, but let all be in bed by midnight. Athenaeus: A good general rule for host and guest alike.

Do you have any dinner party musts or must nots? Anything on which you disagree with Monsieur Brillat-Savarin?

In Memoriam Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

2009-02-05T04:59:00.000-08:00

"The discovery of a new dish confers more happiness on humanity, than the discovery of a new star." Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

February 2nd marked the 183rd anniversary of the death of Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin the great 18th to 19th century gastronome. Brillat-Savarin was a renaissance man in the truest sense of the word having studied law, chemistry, medicine, and of course food in the context of living the good life. He had a command of five modern languages as well as Latin and used them frequently in both conversation and the written word. A good example of this was his fondness for the English word sip for which he did not find a suitable counterpart in French.

Brillat-Savarin's jobs included provincial lawyer (his family's trade), he was a deputy to the National Constituent Assembly, during the Revolution he was a political refugee living in Switzerland, Holland, and the United States where he tought French, gave violin lessons, and played in the Park Theater orchestra where he was the first violin. With the formation of the Directorate in 1797 he was welcomed back to france where he became a judge and author of several books on law, politics, and his most famous on food published just two months before his death: Physiologie du Goût, ou Méditations de Gastronomie Transcendante; ouvrage théorique, historique et à l'ordre du jour, dédié aux Gastronomes parisiens, par un Professeur, membre de plusieurs sociétés littéraires et savantes. Despite it's unwieldy title and occassionally unwieldy language the book has become a classic among gastronomes and the English translation by M. F. K. Fisher, published in 1949 is a classic in its own right.

His influence in food remains today with Brillat-Savarin cheese, a soft cow's milk cheese created in 1930's Normandy and named after Brillat-Savarin. And the often overlooked Gâteau Savarin cooked in a Savarin mold (see picture below). Many of his quotations live on, perhaps most famously, "Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are." And one of my favorites, "A dessert without cheese is like a beautiful woman with only one eye."

Here's a recipe I've been perfecting for a Gâteau Savarin inspired by one I had in Bruge, Belgium several years ago. Please forgive the absence of a photo as I have never photographed the process nor the finished product.

Tools:
9-10 inch Savarin (ring) Mold (or Bundt pan)
1 Large mixing bowl

Ingredients for the dough:
3 large eggs
120 grams white sugar
3 Tbsp whole milk
90 grams unsalted butter melted
210 grams cake flour
3tsp dry yeast

Ingredients for the syrup:
1/2 l water
1 black tea bag
250 grams sugar
Zest of 1 orange
1 vanilla bean
1/3 cup light rum (100 Cane or similar)

Instructions:
1. Cream the eggs and sugar together until smooth, add milk and melted butter.
2. Stir in flour and yeast, work for no less than 10 minutes until firm and well formed ball, roll ball into a log sufficient to coil into the Savarin Mold.
3. Put into a greased and floured Savarin Mold, cover with a towel, and put in a warm place until it doubles in volume.
4. Bake in an oven pre-heated to 375 degrees F for 25-35 minutes until golden in color.
5. While the cake is baking bring water to a boil, remove from heat and add tea bag. Let stand for 3 minutes.
6. Remove tea bag and return to heat and add sugar and split vanilla bean, simmer until sugar is completely dissolved.
7. Remove vanilla bean and add orange zest, continue to simmer for two minutes. Remove from heat and cover.
8. Remove cake from oven and immediately pour syrup evenly over the top of the cake. Let stand up to 8 hours.
9. One hour before serving pour rum over cake.
10. When ready to serve remove from mold and slice.

Tomorrow tips from Brillat-Savarin on hosting a dinner party.

The Widow Clicquot Reviewed

2009-02-04T14:34:00.000-08:00

"I drink it when I am happy, and when I am sad.

Sometimes I drink it when I am alone.

When I have company, I consider it obligatory.

I trifle with it if I am not hungry, and drink it when I am.

Otherwise I never touch it - unless I am thirsty."

Madame Lilly Bollinger

The Widow Clicquot by Tilar J. Mazzeo was on my Christmas wish list this past year; I was excited about this book based on the promising subject matter, but I must preface this review by saying that this book was a major disappointment. Having said this I beg your patience to continue with this review as there were some diamonds among so much uninteresting rock.

Ms. Mazzeo started her quest to reconstruct the life of Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin Clicquot with a well intentioned zeal, and clear desire to extol the virtues of a businesswomen before the term had even been coined. Her initial premise was flawed in that Madame Clicquot, by her own admission, was like most businesswomen of the Napoleonic Era in that she stepped into the role as the result of a death of the patriarch either their fathers or husbands, in this case her young, fragile husband. Rather than take up the reins on her own she immediately embraced male business partners and professional sales and managerial staff to whom she delegated many of the major duties of running a wine wholesale business and ultimately a full production estate winery. While Clicquot’s accomplishments were many, as were her failures, they were not done by her alone as the precursor of the modern female entrepreneur. To expect this of a young widow in the mid 1800s was simply too much to hope for and an unfair imposition of our modern constructs; fighting against fact to prove so is unfair to Clicquot as it distracts from her authentic accomplishments.

The narrative is forced by Ms. Mazzeo with insufficient historical material leaving a story filled with awkward conjecture. Perhaps because of a lack of foresight in keeping the papers of the Widow Clicquot or simply because running a business and raising a family left precious little time for diaries and social correspondence there is precious little in the way of personal details beyond sales records and a few impersonal letters to her chief salesman during his travels.

What does come through from the facts and figures is that Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin Clicquot was a brave and adventurous woman. The daughter of a wealthy textile merchant who married another Reims elite, another son of a textile merchant and wine distributor, she was destined for a comfortable provincial life until the Napoleonic Wars and the premature death of her husband interfered. Her aggressive expansion into Russia, running blockades, and out innovating her competitors showed a brilliant mind and an appetite for risk.

Bits of wine wisdom peppered throughout the book were not enough to propel the story along but included such interesting party knowledge as name for the wine cages (muselet) and the metal cork cap (capsulets) both invented by Adolphe Jacquesson in the 1840s. The fact that Dr. Jules Guyot “invented” the practice of growing grapes in rows to increase evenness in ripeness, prior to the widespread use of this practice they were grown in round clusters for support. And perhaps most interestingly and relevant that the widow Clicquot invented the riddling racks out of her kitchen table as a way to speed the disgorgement process whereby the yeast is cleared out of the wine and removed from the bottle. She was also on the forefront of our modern conception of branding by being among the first to use a signature color in sealing her bottles, adding labels, and marketing prestigious vintages.

While this book makes marginal gains in Champagne scholarship and will be a useful reference for future authors it fails in its primary task of informing and entertaining the reader. For this reason I cannot recommend cluttering your nightstand with The Widow Clicquot.

A Well Stocked Bar X

2009-02-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

"How solemn and beautiful is the thought that the earliest pioneer of civilization, the van-leader of civilization, is never the steamboat, never the railroad, never the newspaper, never the missionary - but always whisky!" ~ Mark Twain

To date in the Scotch sub-set of Well Stocked Bar posts we've covered Speyside, the Highlands, and most recently the Lowlands. This post is dedicated to Islay, a small island west of the Scottish mainland that has made a large contribution to the world of Scotch whiskies. These are also some of the most picturesque distilleries in Scotland, most being located on bays overlooking the cold sea.

Islay whisky is generally all the things Scotch can be in abundance: smoke, peat, and salt. The island once had 23 distilleries operating at the same time but the number of active distilleries is now down to eight, the newest of which, Kilchoman, opened in 2005 as the first new distillery on the island in 124 years. 2009 it will release its first whiskey having met the minimum legal ageing of 3 years in oak barrels. Kilchoman is preparing itself to be a definitive Islay whiskey as it's one of only six distilleries to carry out traditional floor maltings with barley grown at the distillery, something other distilleries don't do. Kilchoman single malt will also be bottled on Islay.

The oldest Islay distillery, Lagavulin, can trace its roots back to the 1740s. Lagavulin produces, at least to my palette, the second smokiest single malt available after Ardberg. The smoke comes from the process where the barley is smoked over a peat fire to stop the sprouting process, remove moisture, and impart flavor.

Other famous distilleries on Islay include: Laphroaig, Ardbeg (pictured above), Bowmore (pictured directly above), Caol Ila, Bruichladdich, and Bunnahabhain.

Lucky Numbers

2009-02-02T07:12:00.000-08:00

“To do a common thing, uncommonly well, brings success.”

Henry John Heinz

In preparation for a Super Bowl party last evening I made barbecue sauce on Saturday. As I lined up my ingredients I couldn't help but notice the prominence of numbers on two iconic American products. The first was Heinz ketchup; having lived in Pittsburgh not far from the home of Senator John Heinz and Mrs. Theresa Heinz (now Kerry), I am a devoted Heinz customer when purchasing bottled and canned products.

The number 57 is featured prominently on a number of Heinz products, most notably Heinz 57 Steak Sauce. The number comes from a slogan used by the company at the end of the 19th century boasting that the Heinz company had 57 Varieties, though in true advertising fashion the number was a bit less than accurate as the company had more than 60 products at the time the slogan was put into use. The number 57 was a combination of the number 5 which was Henry John Heinz's lucky number and the number 7 which was his wife's lucky number. Today the number is still in use on packaging, as the P.O. Box for the company's mail, and as the last four digits of their consumer hotline '5757'; though the slogan is long gone and the company now produces more than 6,000 products. The Heinz brand got its start making prepared horseradish and grew quite quickly thereafter.

The second number is the 'No. 7' on the Jack Daniels bottle. Lot's of legends exist regarding the significance of this number, though none is officially endorsed by the company. The most probable theories center around whisky competitions where the product was entrant number 7 or that it won 7 competitions.

Here's a recipe for my Lucky 7's Barbecue Sauce:

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Jack Daniels
1/4 cup Cointreau
1/2 cup chopped shallots
zest of one small orange, finely chopped
4 cloves finely chopped garlic
2 cups Heinz ketchup
1/3 cup cider vinegar
3 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup dark molasses
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce (1 1/2 tablespoons if using reduced sodium)
1/4 cup tomato paste
3/4 teaspoon Crystal hot sauce

Preparation:
Combine shallot, garlic, Jack Daniels, and Cointreau in a 3 quart saucepan. Sauté until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add orange zest for the last 3 minutes of sauteing. Add all remaining ingredients, bring to boil. Simmer uncovered until reduced and thickened, about 15 to 25 minutes.

I like find this sauce particularly well suited to chicken meatballs and wings as well as pork ribs.

Winding Down - Bedat & Co.

2009-01-30T04:42:00.000-08:00

This has been a tough week for lovers of good design. The shelter magazine with a young and somewhat urban bent, Domino, is folding as reported on several blogs and yesterday I saw that Bedat & Co., a Swiss watchmaker is likely winding down. The company was started by Simone Bedat and her son Christian in 1996. Both mother and son grew up in the Swiss watch industry, with Simone's last post as a partner in Raymond Weil prior to going out to found her namesake brand. After a bit of research the possible reasons for closure appear to be a bit more than the economic malaise. The Bedat's sold the company to Gucci in 2000 and departed in 2006. What had been a small, family run, niche producer was pushed into higher production and distribution. There are varying opinions about a lessening of quality under Gucci's management on which I cannot comment.

I have more than a passing interest as I purchased a Bedat No7 shortly after the company began distributing watches in the US. I chose my watch because of it's clean lines appropriate for wear with a suit, impeccable craftsmanship, and the fact that it was not produced by one of the biggies. I was particularly taken by the Bedat logo which is both a figure 8 and two opposing B's signifying the two Bedats. It appears on the face at the 8 o'clock position and also on the date display every 8th day of the month. I always make a point of wearing it on the 8th to see the logo number unique to these watches. Also the guilloche work on the faces of these watches is, in my opinion, much finer than any offered by Cartier the closest watch in appearance. The picture above is my well worn No7 a staple of my wardrobe.

Brown Paper Packages Tied up with Strings

2009-01-29T11:09:00.000-08:00

Don't you just love receiving a present? I particularly enjoy receiving such a gift by post, that way there's no awkwardness: am I opening it too quickly, did I spend enough time admiring the card, do I have spinach in my teeth...well, you get the picture. I hope I'm not the only one who experiences gift anxiety. I love giving gifts, but my heart starts to race when I know I'm expected to open gifts in front of an audience, clearly this is the result of either very good or very poor breeding; I'll leave you to come to your own conclusions. Alone with a box filled with promise sitting on the table, a utility knife in your hand, and your mind spinning with possibilities, there are few things better.

I've been out of commission the better part of a week with what I would love to say is a hangover from my Burns Night celebration, but is instead the result of a nasty bug that has left me achingly tired and mute for far too many days. The cures: Darjeeling tea with honey and lemon, warm water with a jigger of whiskey, honey and lemon, Luden's Honey Lemon Throat Drops, and a lovely gift to accelerate my metamorphosis back to a more gentile form of humanity.

As I've mentioned previously, I was the lucky winner of the anniversary prize given by Meg over at Pigtown-Design. Again, Meg was far too generous in giving a gift for her second blog birthday, but I digress. It was quite exciting finding it on the porch all wrapped in toile printed brown paper with chic address and return address labels.

Not to be outdone by the outer wrapping was the equally splendid interior wrapping.

And then the prize...a great blue willow patterned cup and saucer, which received nearly immediate use to hold the honey lemon concoction of the hour.

I promise to resume a more regular posting schedule now that my convalescence is coming to an end, along with my Netflix backlog.

Burns Night

2009-01-22T05:00:00.000-08:00

This Sunday, January 25th is 2009's Burns Night. What is a Burns Night you ask? Well first it is a dinner normally held on or near the poet Robert Burn's birthday. The first Burns Night suppers were held in Ayrshire (Scotland) at the end of the 18th century by his friends on the anniversary of his death, July 21, In Memoriam and they have been a regular occurrence ever since. This year is particularly significant as it marks the 250th anniversary of the birth of poet Robert Burns, Scotland's favorite son. For those of you who were not English Majors, Burns authored such immortal works as A Red Red Rose and Auld Lang Syne.

Burns Night has become a night of merriment, usually begun by raising your glasses high and saying The Selkirk Grace, the traditional opening toast of the Burns Supper.

Some hae meat and canna eat,
and some wad eat that want it,
but we hae meat and we can eat,
and sae the Lord be thankit.

The dinner also includes the serving of a large haggis with tatties (potatoes) and neeps (turnips). The hagis is presented to much fanfare and for Burns Night includes the recitation of the Address to a Haggis toast.

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o the puddin'-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy of a grace
As lang's my arm.

The groaning trencher there ye fill,
Your hurdies like a distant hill,
Your pin wad help to mend a mill
In time o need,
While thro your pores the dews distil
Like amber bead.

His knife see rustic Labour dight,
An cut you up wi ready slight,
Trenching your gushing entrails bright,
Like onie ditch;
And then, O what a glorious sight,
Warm-reekin, rich!

Then, horn for horn, they stretch an strive:
Deil tak the hindmost, on they drive,
Till a' their weel-swall'd kytes belyve
Are bent like drums;
The auld Guidman, maist like to rive,
'Bethankit' hums.

Is there that owre his French ragout,
Or olio that wad staw a sow,
Or fricassee wad mak her spew
Wi perfect sconner,
Looks down wi sneering, scornfu view
On sic a dinner?

Poor devil! see him owre his trash,
As feckless as a wither'd rash,
His spindle shank a guid whip-lash,
His nieve a nit:
Thro bloody flood or field to dash,
O how unfit!

But mark the Rustic, haggis-fed,
The trembling earth resounds his tread,
Clap in his walie nieve a blade,
He'll make it whissle;
An legs an arms, an heads will sned,
Like taps o thrissle.

Ye Pow'rs, wha mak mankind your care,
And dish them out their bill o fare,
Auld Scotland wants nae skinking ware
That jaups in luggies:
But, if ye wish her gratefu prayer,
Gie her a Haggis!

From there, other highlights in the itinerary include the Immortal Memory address, the Toast to the Lassies and the recitation of songs and poems, particularly the narrative poem Tam o’ Shanter.

Dessert is a bit more flexible than the rest of the evening, but should include a dram or two of Scotch. I'd propose a crowdie cream.

Ingredients:
1 Tbs. melted butter
4 to 5 Tbs. medium-size oats (reserve a small amount to use as a garnish)
1 cup heavy cream
2 Tbs. honey
1 Tbs. Scotch whisky
Approximately 1 cup raspberries
Sprig of mint for garnish

1) Lightly brown oats in a pan that has been coated with cooking spray or a little melted butter. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

2) Beat heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add honey and then whisky then fold in the toasted oats, reserving a few for garnish.

3) Layer in a tall glass, beginning with a small amount of raspberries, then whipped-cream mixture. Alternate layers of raspberries and cream, ending with a few berries. Garnish with toasted oats and a sprig of mint.

Finally, the dinner is concluded with a chorus of Auld Lang Syne. We should be well rehearsed after New Years Eve.

In Memoriam - Andrew Wyeth

2009-01-16T06:55:00.000-08:00

Andrew Wyeth's "Otherworld" (2002)

Artist Andrew Wyeth, one of America's greatest painters died early today, Friday, January 16th at his home in the Philadelphia suburb of Chadds Ford, he was 91.

This is a great loss for the art world as Wyeth has continued to produce beautiful, thoughtful, and often somber works for more than seven decades.

I was fortunate to see a touring retrospective of his work in 2006 when it came to the High Museum of Art in Atlanta. The painting above was my favorite in the exhibition filled with great paintings, though it was starkly atypical as the setting was not the rural landscape of the Brandywine Valley and Maine, Wyeth's two preferred settings for his art and his life.

What Washington Will be Drinking

2009-01-16T06:16:00.000-08:00

"No nation is drunken where wine is cheap, and none sober where the dearness of wine substitutes ardent spirits as the common beverage." ~ Thomas Jefferson

As details about the inauguration and the associated balls and banquets make their way out it's been fascinating to see the diplomacy required to make these selections, and maybe a gaffe or two.

DrVino.com is reporting that Barack Obama's first wines sipped at the inaugural congressional lunch at the Capitol, right after the swearing-in ceremony will include: 2007 Duckhorn Vineyards sauvignon blanc ($30 retail) and 2005 Goldeneye pinot noir ($55 suggested retail). Two hundred dignitaries will toast the new President with 15 magnums of Korbel Natural sparkling wine ($15 retail). Here's where a gaffe occurs as the wine is labeled “California Champagne,” a clear no-no as only wines made in the Champagne region of France should include the word champagne.

The Chicago Tribune has reported that Cooper's Hawk Blanc de Blanc sparkling wine ($13.99 retail) will be served for the official toast to the new first lady at the Illinois State Society's Illinois Inaugural Gala in Washington D.C. on Monday. The winery uses purchased grapes from across the United States including Washington, California, Illinois and Michigan to produce more than 125,000 gallons of wine a year, much of it served at their restaurants.

Other Inauguration Balls:

The Wine Curmudgeon reports that the Hollywood-focused Creative Coalition Ball is sponsored by Pepsi, so it's safe to assume a fair amount of the carbonated stuff, but there will be wine, reported to be from Barefoot ($6.99-$14.99 retail), one of the Gallo lines. Barefoot was selected because it donates money for beach and ocean environmental efforts.

Curmudgeon also noated that a Virginia wine, Barboursville Vineyards Cabernet Franc Reserve ($24.99 retail), will be served at the Inaugural Conservation Gala held on Jan. 19. The Gala is hosted by the International Conservation Caucus Foundation, a lobbying group focused on resource management practices.

The Inauguration Gala at the Russian Cultural Centre will be serving a variety of Russian wines in addition to the expected Vodka, though none were listed on their website.

The Bigger the Better

2009-01-15T04:52:00.000-08:00

"A bottle of wine begs to be shared; I have never met a miserly wine lover." ~ Clifton Fadiman

And might I add, some bottles beg more than others, like the ones pictured above.

I was visiting my favored wine merchant last weekend and spent a few minutes looking at the large format wines they had in stock. I was not looking at 1.5 liters of Little Penguin or the like but rather fantastic bottles from France, Italy, California, and Portugal in big bottles with commensurate price tags. I've always been fascinated by these large bottles and have been fortunate to be in the right place at the right time for the openings of a few Jeroboams and one Balthazar. These bottles as much as the wines themselves conveyed a great sense of celebration and importance and made for very memorable meals and occasions.

I was trying to provide a handy chart showing all the various sizes in a logical format, but was bested by Blogger's inability to play well with spreadsheets. So here, in a less than ideal format, please find Athenaeus' Guide to the intriguing, at least for me, world of the off-sized wine bottle. You'll probably notice that I use both spellings of Liter/Litre. This is done for a host of reasons, the most obvious of which is that the Litre spelling is typically European, where most of these bottle sizes originated.

The smallest wine bottles produced are called Mignonettes and come in various sizes, none larger than 0.025 liters or 3% of a bottle. These are used exclusively for samples and are not very common due to the disproportionately large cost of the container to the contents.

The smallest readily available wine bottles are Splits and contain 0.1875 liters or 1/4 of a standard bottle. These are almost exclusively used for sparkling wines including Champagne.

The Piccolo is a bit larger at 0.2 liters or just over a fourth of a bottle and gets its name from the Italian word for small. These bottles are also used for sparkling wines, and are often incorrectly referred to as Splits.

Chopine is the name given to 0.25 liter bottles which hold 1/3 of a bottle. This size is not very common.

The Half Bottle or Demi which holds, as the name implies, 1/2 of a bottle or 375 milliliters, has gained in popularity over the past few years as people have begun to pair wines with courses in restaurants and at home and in households (like mine) where we can't always agree on one wine for dinner. Wines produced in the Loire Valley have traditionally been the French wines most likely to be found in this size and are traditionally called Fillette.

The not so elegantly named 500 ml bottle is commonly used for dessert wines including Port, Tokai from Hungary, and Ice Wine.

The 750ml bottle is the world standard and has been since a world wide treaty signed in 1972 and begun with the 1973 vintages. It's a strange convergence of the English and Metric systems and represents approx. 1/5th of a gallon, or "a fifth" in common parlance for spirits, which had been the typical size bottle sold in the UK and the US up to that point. Many French wines up to this point were put in 750ml bottles but contained only 730ml of wine to allow for the cork. Champagne up to this point actually contained exactly 1/5th of a gallon per the US standard, showing its global popularity.

The 1 litre bottle is somewhat common in Europe for inexpensive table wines, but is seldom seen in the US.

Magnums are the most common of the large format bottles, and contain twice as much wine as the standard bottle (1.5L). These bottles are good for ageing wines as the ratio of air to wine is lower thus slowing the aging process. These are typically the largest bottles used by wineries for bottle ageing.

Bordeaux produces 2.25 litre bottles, the equivalent of three bottles, called Marie-Jeanne or Dame Jeane and are almost exclusively filled with red wine. US wineries are not permitted to bottle in this size. Bordeaux bottles are almost exclusively of the high "square shoulder" variety. It's thought that this shape was developed to allow the sediment to be trapped in the bottle during decanting. This bottle shape is common among Cabernet Sauvignon the world over as well as Sauternes and white Bordeaux varietals.

Three liter bottles are correctly called Jeroboams when the contents are from Burgundy, Champagne, or other parts of the world. Often New World wine makers will choose the less traditional, but easily understood term Double Magnums. These bottles are typically Burgundian in their shape with lower sloping shoulders. The name Jeroboam refers to Jeroboam II, a biblical king who reigned around the founding of Rome in 753BC.

In Bordeaux they also use Jeroboam to describe a bottle, but in their case it is 4.5 litres or the equivalent of 6 bottles. In my opinion the Jeroboam is the most confusing name due to the differing sizes by region.

The Imperial, Impériale is most typical of Bordeaux and contains 6 litres or 8 bottles.

Methuselah is the name given to 6 litre bottles in Burgundy. The name Methuselah comes from the grandfather of Noah and the oldest man mentioned in the Bible said to have lived to be 969 years old.

The Rehoboam is a 9 litre bottle, the equivalent of a case of wine, produced in Bordeaux for claret or in Champagne, though for Champagne this size is sometimes referred to as a double-Jeroboam. The name comes from the son of King Solomon and the King of Judah.

Salamanzar is the name used in Burgundy and Champagne for a bottle that holds 9 litres, like the Rehoboam. The name comes from an Assyrian monarch who ruled around 1250 BC. US wine producers are prohibited from bottling in 9 liter bottles regardless of what they would choose to call them.

Balthazar is the common name used in both Bordeaux and Burgundy for a 12 litre bottle the equivalent of 16 standard bottles. The name comes from one of the Three Wise Men, and reportedly means "King of Treasures" which seems appropriate for a bottle able to hold a case of wine.

Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchodonosor is the largest bottle "commonly" produced in Champagne, Bordeaux, and Burgundy. In all three regions these bottles contain 15 litres of wine, the equivalent of 20 750ml bottles. The name in its various spellings comes from the greatest King of the Assyrians.

Melchior is the name given to a bottle that contains 18 litres of wine, the equivalent of two cases. These bottles are occasionally produced in Burgundy and Champagne to mark special occasions and vintages. These bottles get their names, like Balthazar, from another of the Three Wise Men.

Solomon is the name given to bottles containing 20 litres of wine, or 27 standard bottles. These are rarely produced, and when they are they typically come from Champagne. The name comes from King Solomon.

25 Litre bottles of Champagne are called Sovereign, Soverign and are exceedingly rare. The name has also been used to describe any bottle greater than 25 Liters. Bottles of this size are typically filled with wines that were aged in standard bottles just before leaving the winery. These bottles can be opened using standard waiter style corkscrews. Though beware, pouring out of bottles this size is nearly impossible and an immediate decanting (into 33+ bottles or decanters) is recommended.

Bottles containing 27 liters are occasionally produced, typically by commission, and are called Primat. These bottles hold the equivalent of three cases of wine. The name comes from the Latin word for "leader" and means the best, the top, or the most prized. I've seen a Primat of Charles Krug Cabernet bottled specially for Morton's with a suggested retail price of $2,000 and a weight of over 100 pounds up for a charity auction.

Melchizedek was a Biblical King of Shalem whose name has been used for bottles containing 30 liters. These are rarely produced, and when they are they typically come from Bordeaux and Burgundy and rarely more than one from a winery in a given year.

Murgatoryd is the name given to bottles containing 50 liters of wine or the equivalent of 67 standard bottles. I've not been able to find much information on these bottles or the origin of the name, though it appears in England as early as the 14th century.

For the purpose of comparison a Barrel of wine contains 180 liters or 240 standard bottles, or the equivalent of 6 Melchizedeks or 3.6 Murgatoryds.

The largest bottle of wine ever produced was bottled in 2006 by a group of five Australian wineries and the wine was called Five Virtues. The bottle contains 290 liters (1.61 barrels) of Shiraz, is more than 6' 5" tall and weighs in at 1,300 pounds. The cork alone is reported to have cost $3,500 (perhaps as much as the Shiraz). This was done as a publicity stunt to sell numerous 750ml bottles of wine by the same name.

Prior to 2006 the largest bottle ever produced was commissioned by Morton's in 2004 for an anniversary celebration. The bottle was custom blown in Sazova, Czech Republic and contained 130 liters of Beringer Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. The 4' 6" tall bottle weighed 340 pounds and was auctioned by Sotheby's at one of it's wine sales with the $50,000 winning bid going to charity.

I Do Solemnly Swear

2009-01-14T06:35:00.000-08:00

"In this blessed land, there is always a better tomorrow... Let history say of us, "These were golden years-when the American Revolution was reborn, when freedom gained new life, when America reached for her best... Well, with heart and hand, let us stand as one today:...determined that our future shall be worthy of our past" ~ Ronald Reagan's Inaugural Address, 21st day of January 1985

The Wall Street Journal Online had a fantastic slideshow today of the Bible's used for Presidential Swearings' In over the years. It inspired me to pull together a few notable inaugural selections from the WSJ and the web at large. I also enjoyed the images showing how the ceremony has involved over the years including the addition of the First Lady standing with the President, something that didn't seem to occur during those early inaugurations.

George Washington took the Oath of Office as our nation's first President using a Bible borrowed from the St. John's Masonic Lodge. It was opened to Genesis 49:13, apparently hastily, as the passage was not particularly relevant to the occasion, though it does have a bit of a manifest destiny tone to it, "Zebulan shall dwell at the haven of the sea; and he shall be for an haven of ships; and his border shall be unto Zidon." (Image courtesy of the US Senate)

I was unable to find any details on the Bibles used by Adams or Jefferson, though it should be noted that the first Koran used for the swearing in of a member of the US House of Representatives in 2007 belonged to Thomas Jefferson. The House member was Keith Ellison, a Democrat, from Minnesota. (Image courtesy of New York Sun)

Abraham Lincoln used a Bible borrowed from the Clerk of the Supreme Court, again opened at random. For his second oath it was opened deliberately to Matthew 7:1, "Judge not, that ye be not judged." (Photo of Lincoln’s first inauguration is from Wikimedia Commons)

Herbert Hoover elected to use a family Bible turned to Proverbs 29:18, "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he." (Photo from eyeball-series.org)

Franklin D. Roosevelt used the same family Bible on all four occasions, always turned to I Corninthians 13, "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things..." (Photo from Flickr)

Truman can be noted for two deviations from what had been tradition to that point. First he swore on a closed Bible upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945 (image). In 1949 upon re-election he used the same Bible from 1945 as well as a copy of the Gutenberg Bible opened to the 10 Commandments, making him the first President to swear on two Bibles. (Photo from NVR.org)

Dwight Eisenhower again used two Bibles for his swearing in: one given to him by his mother upon his graduation from West Point, the other the Masonic Bible used by George Washington. (Photo from medaloffreedom.com)

President Johnson was sworn in onboard Air Force One following the assassination of President Kennedy. The Bible he used is not known. For his second oath he took it on a closed family Bible. (Photo from the LBJ Presidential Library)

President Nixon continued the tradition of using two Bibles for both ceremonies. Both were family Bibles, ostensibly one from each side of his family. His selection of Isaiah 2:4 was interesting given the time, "And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruningforks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." (Photo from Flickr)

Jimmy Carter borrowed a page from Dwight Eisenhower and used both a family Bible and the Washington Masonic Bible, this time turned to VI Micah 6:8, "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God." A very telling passage picked by this Sunday school teacher. (Photo courtesy of the National Archives)

George H.W. Bush stuck with the modern tradition of using two Bibles; again with a family Bible and the Washington Masonic Bible. The Masonic opened at random and the family Bible opened to Matthew 5, "...Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven..." (Photo from Wikipedia)

Bill Clinton used the same Bible given to him by his grandmother for both ceremonies, each time turned to a different passage. The photo is of the first inauguration with Chief Justin Rehnquist delivering the oath. (Photo from Wikipedia)

George W. Bush had planned to use two Bibles, like his father, but due to poor weather at the first inauguration he was unable to use the Washington Masonic Bible and instead used only the family Bible closed (photo). He continued this tradition at his second inauguration. (Photo from Whitehouse.gov)

And finally, Barack Obama, in a nod to Abraham Lincoln, plans to use the Bible he used, originally owned by William Thomas Carroll the then clerk of the Supreme Court. The details about whether the Bible will be opened or closed, or any particular passage have not been disclosed as of the time of this post. (Photo from WSJ)

Greenbrier Resort Struggling Despite Renovation

2009-01-12T11:18:00.000-08:00

The historic Greenbrier Resort is the highest profile luxury resort property to be hit by the economic slump. CSX, the railroad company, which owns the Greenbrier engaged Goldman Sachs to explore options for the resort which lost $35 million in 2008; one can only assume one of the options being considered is sale of this National Historic landmark property. CSX itself is facing problems after seeing freight volume drop precipitiously on its lines. The resort includes multiple golf courses, fine dining restaurants, 721 guest rooms and suites as well as 96 guest and estate houses, and a 40,000-square-foot spa.

In addition to the economy management has had to deal with a difficult situation with the union ostensibly regarding the most recent layoff of 650 staff and a forced furlough in 2007 and talk of cutting healthcare and retirement bennefits.

Detailed photo of the front facade, notice the blue ceiling of the porte-cochere. A great southern detail in a very Draper shade.

For the design minded the resort was perhaps Dorothy Draper's crowning achievement. Her designs, in place for decades, introduced an American audience to a layering of fabrics (particulary oversized florals and stripes), mix of colors (greens and pinks), garden elements, chinoisserie, and the forever glamorous black and white checkerboard marble floors. In 2007 Draper's protege Carlton Varney worked on a $50 million renovation of the hotel. Freshening the hotel while preserving the Draper style.

A guestroom showing the vibrant color palette and mixtures of patterns.

Along with the refreshed decor came a relaxation of rules that had been in place since the resort opened including the requirement that men dress for dinner, and changes in the fee structure including the elimination of the "Modified American Plan" their version of the all-inclusive dining package.

The reception hall with all the Dorothy Draper hallmarks, including the large scale black and white checkerboard marble floor.

One of the most desperate attempts to restore the fortunes of the resort came in November 2008, when the resort pushed a ballot initiative to let the resort add casino gambling. The intiative passed, but so far no slot machines in the lobby.

A hall with oversized floral draperies and a wonderfully elaborate pediment in the distance. For fun count the colors.

Occupancy at the hotel as of the time of this post is around 100 on any given evening leaving over 600 empty rooms.

The upside in all of this? Great deals, in a quick perusal of their website they're offering $400 resort credits, spa packages, and free nights to lure in guests.

Thank You

2009-01-12T09:32:00.000-08:00

"I awoke this morning with devout thanksgiving for my friends, the old and the new." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

A big thank you to Meg (and Connor) over at Pigtown-Design for selecting me for her Blog's 2nd Birthday give-away. In a gracious reversal of tradition she decided to GIVE away a present in honor of two great years of blogging.

I can't wait to see what's in the package.

Thanks again!

An Update on Two National Treasures

2009-01-08T05:23:00.000-08:00

"The American landscape has no foreground and the American mind no background."
Edith Wharton

Last year I posted about the financial troubles at both The Mount, Edith Wharton's historic mansion as well as the Mark Twain House. There's reason to be optimistic on both fronts.

The Mount in snow, from The Mount's website.

The Mount's website is reporting that they have received over $1.3 million in gifts and pledges from around the world. These gifts have given the administrators of The Mount the ability to work with their creditors to reduce their debt and continue to work to draw more visitors to The Mount by expanding their mission to not only focus Edith Wharton as author, decorator, and gardner, but also focus on the broader topic of literature. As an added bonus they've added some new photos of The Mount at various seasons and showing things not previously covered on their website like this photo of the stables.

The Mark Twain House was struggling last September with dropping donations and visitors, caused in part by high gas prices, and the weight of over $20 million in debt taken on to build a beautiful (and modern) new visitor's center. Due in large part to the media attention the State of Connecticut donated $50,000 followed by a $500,000 gift from the Annenberg Foundation in addition to numerous gifts from individuals.

The Mark Twain House celebrated Christmas with Victorian Decorations and themed activities. If I was a bit closer this year I would have loved to have made a visit.

Victorian Christmas Tree at The Mark Twain House, from The Hartford Current.

I wish both of these house museums the best and urge you to contribute to these or another small museum in your area as they're really struggling during these difficult financial times. It's important to preserve these homes and the collections therein for future generations.

A Well Stocked Bar IX

2009-01-06T13:17:00.001-08:00

"No married man is genuinely happy if he has to drink worse whisky than he used to drink when he was single." ~ H. L. Mencken

This post, part of a sub-series dedicated to Scotch Whisky, is dedicated to the distilleries of the Lowlands. This southernmost part of Scotland, along the border with England and as the name implies is relatively flat without the geographic challenges/advantages of other parts of the country. This region also includes Scotland's two largest cities Glasgow and Edinburgh, though neither is home to a whisky distillery. Auchentoshan is a short car ride outside of Glasgow and Glenkinchie is a quick trip outside of Edinburgh.

The character of Lowland Whisky is typically smooth and slightly more alcoholic on the palette as there are fewer tastes of salt, peat and smoke typical whiskies from the other regions. It is for this reason that the whiskies of the region are often referred to as The Lowland Ladies. It is the clean palette that to my mind makes this the Scotch whisky of summer and a fine aperitif year round.

There are only three Lowland distilleries still in production, they are Auchentoshan, Bladnoch, and Glenkinchie. For the connoisseur whiskies can still be found form the following Lowland distilleries even though they're no longer producing scotch whiskey: Ladyburn, Littlemill, Inverleven, and Rosebank.

Because there are only three bear with me as I devote a brief paragraph to each, a luxury not available to the previous regions.

Auchentoshan, established in 1823, is unique in that it is Scotland's only triple distilled single malt as opposed to the double distillation method used by all other distillers. This additional distillation produces a delicate, smooth and light single malt. It wasn't until 1974 with a change of ownership that Auchentoshan was available as a single malt, up until that point 100% of its product had been sold to blenders. Auchentoshan is named after 'corner of the field' in Gaelic.

The picture above shows the three pot stills currently in use at Auchentoshan. The shape of the stills are different from one distillery to another and even among the potstills at a single distillery. The unique shapes of the stills are one of the factors that define the taste of the malts produced. As mentioned Auchentoshan distills their whisky three times, once in each still. To the right of the photo you can see the "spirit safe" which receives the condensed spirit once it's been boiled in the stills. Each drop at Auchentoshan travels through this safe three times (for luck?).

Glenkinchie, nicknamed The Edinburgh Malt is located in the rolling farmland of East Lothian outside of Edinburgh. It takes its name from the glen (valley) of the Kinchie Burn which flows through the town. The Glenkinchie is slightly smokier and spicy than the other two Lowland malts and certainly worth a try.

Bladnoch, Scotland's southernmost distillery is nestled on the banks of the River Bladnoch in the town of Bladnoch, get the picture? It's product nicknamed, Spirit of the Lowlands has been produced, on and off, in this picturesque spot in Galloway since 1817. An interesting fact about this distillery is that the original still were sold to a Swedish company originally to make Whisky in the early 1900s. After ten years the product had failed to build a large enough fan base and was shut down and the three stills were sold. Two of them were purchased by Absolut and are still used to this day to produce some of their vodka. The third still is located in the Wine and Spirit Museum in Stockholm, Sweden.

Tasty Resolutions

2009-01-05T09:09:00.000-08:00

"Here's to the corkscrew - a useful key to unlock the storehouse of wit, the treasury of laughter, the front door of fellowship, and the gate of pleasant folly."

W.E.P. French (From the wine list of Commander's Palace, New Orleans)

Dottie Gaiter and John Brecher with the WSJ have come out with their 2009 wine resolutions for more enjoyable wine experiences in the new year. I thought the list was worth sharing as there are more than a few good suggestions to broaden just about everyone's wine IQ. Here's a link to a video with a few of their recommendations, and here's a summary of all 20 with a few of my own suggestions:

1) Try a Wine From a Different Country - India, Canada, Hungary, Turkey, Mexico, why not?

2) Go to a Wine Bar and Have a Flight of Wine - Try to stick to a solid theme, not just red or white, maybe Chardonay from different countries, Syrah vs. Shiraz, etc.

3) Order the Cheapest Wine on a Restaurant's Wine List - I have several friends in the industry and they continually chide me to do this, they say that it's the wine they usually drink at home. For the worst value on the list, do what I used to do when I first started ordering wine in restaurants, and order the second or third cheapest, it's sure to have the highest mark-up.

4) Open a Sparkler at Home for No Reason at All - Or loosely define what it is to be a "reason", like the fact that it's Thursday or you finally got your oil changed. Try Prosecco or Cava if you haven't.

5) Take Notes on a Fine Wine From Beginning to End - Or at least talk about it beyond the obligatory this is good (or not so good).

6) Have a Sauternes - Be careful with this one if you have a sweet tooth, you may develop cravings for the stuff. I'd recommend creme brulee or berries and cream with this. If you're a stict chocolatist (ie it's not dessert unless it's chocolate) open a bottle of Late Bottle Vintage port, it's delicious and surprisingly affordable.

7) Have a Blind Tasting - or attend one. My favorite wine merchant offers these several times during the year and it's always fun trying to guess which is the most expensive, or Spain vs. France.

8) Organize Your Labels - I've never been good at removing labels from bottles in the first place, but take pictures of wines you've just enjoyed, it makes you more likely to go searching out for them later.

9) Visit the Closest Winery to Your Home - If you live in Atlanta, I'm sorry (Chateu Elan is not good, at all).

10) Attend a Winemaker's Dinner at a Restaurant - This is definitely on my 2009 To Do List.

11) Have Fun With Stemware - Ever since the Riedel O glasses I've become a strict stemware traditionalist after suffering through warm white wines at entirely too many "trendy" restaurants who adopted these glasses. I'd suggest buying vintage or antique, or acquiring specialty glasses for a beverage you enjoy but in the "wrong" glass (port, grappa, scotch, absinthe).

12) Find a New Wine Store - preferably not a big box store

13) Try a Varietal You've Never Had From a U.S. Winery - I'm looking for a U.S. produced Torrontes at the moment.

14a) Either: Have 12 Different Bottles in the House at Once - I haven't had this few since college

14b) Or: Drink Up - I'm working on it, my 2009 resolution is to serve what I have at more dinner parties rather than going out to look for something new.

15) Go Crazy on a Wine Pairing for Dinner Some Night - I'd suggest having a back up bottle of Pinot Blanc in case the Malbec really isn't a good idea with trout.

16) Try an Older White - Sauternes and Champage are the obvious choices, but look for something different. Your best bets are probably old world: France, Germany, Austria, rather than new world wines which really aren't intended to age, though you might find a precious few that are more enjoyable than within a few years of their bottling.

17) Try a Type of Wine You Think You Don't Like - For me this would be Muscat or to a lesser degree Merlot. I'll give it another try with the dreaded Muscat.

18) Get a New Corkscrew - Unless you were fortunate and received one over the holidays, chances are yours doesn't work like it used to.

19) Serve a Dessert Wine to Guests - They may love it and you've created a new ritual. If not you've at least given it a try. I find the key is not to combine dessert wine with really heavy desserts, but instead fruit and nuts.

20) Shatter Your Price Limit - I'm not sure 2009 is the year to try this for most folks. What I would suggest is buy a bottle at a store for what you'd pay in a restaurant, $35, 50, 75... The mark-ups in restaurants are usually 100-200% so if you're like me you'll probably be spending a fair bit more on a bottle at retail than you normally would but getting a much better deal, think $70, 100, or 150.

Photo courtesy of Flickr.

High Times

2009-01-05T06:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we made our first of several likely visits to The High Museum of Art to see The First Emperor, China's Terracotta Army and the last day of the Medieval & Renaissance Treasures exhibits from the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The Terracotta Soldiers are the big draw for obvious reasons. It was a major coupe for The High Museum in Atlanta to land this exhibit, the largest of its kind outside of China (19 life-size figures) and various other artifacts held in the US. Time Magazine ranked this as the 4th best museum exhibit of 2008.

A quick history of the Terra Cotta Army: In 1974 Chinese farmers discovered the site while drilling a well. Subsequently, a massive archeological project has been undertaken that has resulted in the unearthing of an astounding, in both size and quality, collection of terracotta funerary objects including soldiers, chariots, horses, beurocrats, acrobats, strongmen, and musicians. This collection of objects was part of the grave of Qin Shi Huang, China's First Emperor and chief architect of the Chinese empire and date back to the 3rd century B.C.E. Due to a lack of technology to preserve the paint that covers most of these figures (the paint deteriorates from the moment it's exposed to air), the emperor's gravesite remains dovered while other sites are explored and the technology perfected. The 19 square mile site has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

A photo of the army excavation site.

A repaired figure on exhibit this one likley a beurocrat or court entertainer. Each figure is unique in it's facial expression, clothing, posture, etc., an amazing feat for something that was esentially mass produced in an assembly line of potters, scupltors, and painters.

We also visited the collection of items lent to the high from the Victoria and Albert Museum, including a Da Vinci notebook among the other fantastic items.

There was a collection of ivory items including a round "bucket" carved in minute detail with Biblical scenes (I was unable to find a photo) as well as a number of book covers made from ivory plates, see picture below, that adorned the outside of great books, primarily in monasteries.

It was a great afternoon at the museum, capped off by an excellent lunch at Table 1280 (see previous post).

Chicken Livers, Love 'em or Hate 'em?

2009-01-02T14:46:00.000-08:00

A picture of fried chicken livers.

Before going out to our New Year's Eve party we had dinner at Bistro VG. Dinner was, as it always is wonderful, even if service inevitably suffered a bit by the crush of people packed into the modest sized dining rooms.

For appetizers, along with our complimentary bubbly (proffered due to a 15 minute delay from our reserved seating time) we ordered calamari - good but not memorable, crab croquettes - the vanilla and saffron coleslaw was unique, and sauteed chicken livers (not pictured above, the lighting in the restaurant made photos completely impossible) with plum jelly and grilled bread.

My wife and the other women in attendance devoured the crab croquettes and nibbled at the calamari while the other gentleman and I devoured the chicken livers after making less than sincere offers to share, as we knew the ladies were not any more interested in eating the chicken livers than we were to share them.

I simply loved them. They had a perfect crust on the outside an a delightfully pate-like texture on the inside. My wife even suggested that I made a low moaning sound while eating the last one with a bit of bread and jelly (a sign that I truly enjoy what I'm eating).

I have another confession to make, this was the third time in two weeks that I'd ordered chicken livers out at a restaurant. I think I may be developing a problem.

What do you think? Do you love or loathe chicken livers, or even scarier for some the gizzards or hearts?

Green Queen

2009-01-01T07:00:00.000-08:00

A photo of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II next to one of her Bentley Limousines.

I must start with a simple admission, I love H.M. Queen Elizabeth II. I find her fascinating and an inspirational figure even while the majority of my generation finds her and the very notion of a monarchy wholly old-fashioned. It's the very old-fashioned-ness of the institution that I find so satisfying during times of great uncertainty and change.

That said the Monarchy has been attempting to reinvent itself for the better part of the last half-century. I think that most attempts have been largely ineffective bordering on silly. But one that I have whole-heartedly embraced is the greening of the monarchy pushed for in large part by Prince Charles, a long time environmentalist.

The latest news on the Monarchy's green initiative is that the Queen is having her two Bentley limousines re-fitted to run on bio-fuels, most likely produced on Her Majesty's estates. It should be noted that Prince Charles has done this with an assortment of automobiles including a vintage Aston Martin.

For Bentley's part they are planning a launch of what they are calling "eco-efficient" cars in 2012.

A Well Stocked Bar VIII

2008-12-31T08:30:00.000-08:00

"We borrowed golf from Scotland as we borrowed whiskey. Not because it is Scottish, but because it is good." ~ Horace Hutchinson

A picture of the Oban Distillery in the city center of the town of Oban.

If Speyside is the heart of Scotch Whisky then the Highlands are the head with great variety and complexity among the varied malts indicative of the relative vastness of the region. The southern boundary of the Highlands is generally defined as the imaginary line between Edinburgh in the East and Glasgow in the West (though a good portion of Speyside would be included using this broad definition). Highland whisky is generally powerful with a richness of flavor and more than a bit of smoke though generally less than can be found in the Island malts. Not unlike the Speyside malts the word ‘glen’ frequently appears in the names and means ‘valley’. There is really no central character that binds Highland malts except to say that they are generally expressive of their microclimates and the unique and varied heritage of their distilleries. Among them you can find some of the mildest and most powerful of all single malts.

Among the noted malt producers in the Highlands are: Aberfeldy, Ben Nevis, Blair Athol, Clynelish, Dalmore (a personal favorite), Dalwhinne, Edradour, Glen Garioch, Glengoyne, Glencadam, Glenmorangie, Glenturret, Glenugie, Glenury-Royal, Loch Lomond, Lochside, Oban, Pulteney, Royal Lochnagar, Teaninich, and Tullibardine.

It should be noted that Glenmorangie, a long produced highland malt is one of the only single malts not sold to blenders for use in blended malt whisky. This is not because it is not desirable in a blend, but quite the opposite, it is because it is simply too popular among the Scots where it is the top selling single malt. It is available and popular in the United States but has been overshadowed by other single malt distillers offering much larger and diverse product lines.

I'm Dreaming of...

2008-12-19T05:42:00.000-08:00

"At Christmas I no more desire a rose

Than wish a snow in May's new-fangled mirth;

But like of each thing that in season grows"

William Shakespeare, Love's Labour Lost

...a White Christmas, of course. The problem is here in Atlanta it's been quite warm. Those of you getting battered by snow and ice storms across the nation probably don't want to hear me complaining, but a white Christmas is one of the things I miss most from living in the north, and I do mean north: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska & Pennsylvania; it's clearly in my blood.

The picture above is from the neighborhood during our "snow storm" last January. It shut down the city, but I ran around sans coat taking pictures and took out my Audi Quattro that had never been snow tested after four years in my garage. It handled beautifully and with the snow flying I felt less stupid using the heated seats than I do when it's 50 degrees and my back is just a bit stiff.

If you're burried in snow right now take a picture or two and pull it out during the warmer months and really appreciate how beautiful it is without a snow shovel clasped in your icy fingers.

Dear Mrs. Claus

2008-12-18T13:16:00.000-08:00

Dear Mrs. Claus,

I'm not sure if it's appropriate for Santa to have his own list, but he's hoping that these few items find their way under the tree this year, as you can attest he's been on the nice list most of the year:

Santa loves getting a new and interesting coffee table book every year. This year he'd love to peruse this book while dreaming of a trip on the Royal Scotsman or the Venice-Simplon Orient Express. Santa's had a love of train travel ever since he took a cross country trip as a boy in a private cabin on the much less luxurious Amtrak (though they had cabin steward service and a nice dining car, but that was many years and a few government bail-outs ago). As an added bonus Santa might just convince himself to book the Venice to Istanbul trip he and Mrs. Claus have discussed on and off over the last few years.

Though the reviews are mixed this story captured my interest. This may further help convince Santa to take Mrs. Claus to Italy this year.

The Widow Cliquot sounds like she was a fascinating woman and the makings of a very interesting book. Mrs. Claus can tell all of her friends how enlightened Santa is reading biographies of powerful and interesting women.

Santa loves Simon Pierce glass and has a collection of their decanters, but does not yet have this one. Imagine how nice it would look filled with Grey Goose, that is, for good or bad, both purchased and consumed in bulk at the North Pole.

The Dalmore King Alexander III is a newer offering, falling near the top of their regular line and based on tasting notes and my previous experiences with Dalmore products sure to be a hit. As an added bonus it will warm Santa after a long night climbing down chimneys. Just think how much faster and more accurately Santa can finish his mise en place with freshly sharpened Henckels and Wustoffs.

Santa's favorite scent for the cooler months.

And last, but not least, a feathered friend to keep Santa company when Mrs. Claus is away from the North Pole for business or out with the elves for dinner. Santa's former little helper took his last sleigh ride earlier this year and is sorely and deeply missed.

XOXO,

Saint Nick

A Well Stocked Bar VII

2008-12-17T10:57:00.000-08:00

"Whisk(e)y is for drinking; water is for fighting over."
Attributed to Mark Twain

Photo of Strathisla Distillery dusted in snow.

Yesterday's post was dedicated to blended scotch whisky. This post begins a discussion on the various scotch producing regions and the varied single malts they produce.

Below is a map showing the commonly accepted scotch producing regions. Each distinct region produces varied malts but like wines each region has its own terroir influenced as much through the ingredients: water, malted barley, peat (burned to dry the barley), as the place where the barley is malted and the whisky ages in the barrel.

I think the logical starting point in the discussion of scotch regions is Speyside as it is the largest producer of single malts with 46 active producers, more than half of those in the whole of Scotland.

The region is defined by the river Spey which cuts through the area. Most distilleries were located to take advantage of a good source of clean water; in the Speyside region many distilleries use water straight from the river Spey and its tributaries. Geographically Speyside is part of the Highlands but for the purpose of classifying whisky is considered a separate region due to its size and the clear differences in the characters of Speyside as opposed to Highland whisky.

Within the Speyside region are five subregions: Elgin, Glenlivet, Upper Spey, Dufftown, and Rothes. Among these Glenlivet home to The Glenlivet is perhaps the most famous as The Glenlivet its most famous distillery produces the most popular single malt sold in the US market.

The defining characteristics of a Speyside malt are a degree of sweetness, a light to medium body, fruity, leafy and honeyed notes. Some whiskys also exhibit aromas of citrus and flowers like roses.

Following is a partial list of the Speyside distilleries, among them some of the most famous and long lived malts: Aberlour, An Cnoc, Ardmore, Aultmore, Balmenach, Balvenie, Benriach, Benromach, Cardhu, Cragganmore, Dailuaine, Dallas Dhu, Dufftown, Glen Elgin, Glendronach, Glendullan, Glenfarclas, Glenfiddich, Glen Grant, Glen Keith, Glenlivet, Glen Moray, The Glenrothes, Glentauchers, Inchgower, Knockando, Linkwood, The Macallan, Miltonduff, Mortlach, Speyburn, The Speyside, Strathisla, Tamnavulin Glenlivet, Tomintoul, and Tormore.

Among the list is my favorite single malt and distillery Strathisla (pictured above). It is believed to be the oldest distillery in the Highlands built in 1786. First called Milltown then Milton before being renamed Strathisla, the spirit they've produced has long been known as Strathisla. Chivas Brothers bought the distillery in 1950 after the previous owner, a Mr Pomery, was found guilty of tax evasion. The water source at Strathisla, 'Fons Bulliens' has long been highly regarded; Dominican monks used the same source to produce beer in the 12th century. Strathisla is also consistently ranked as the most beautiful distillery in Scotland, and I can personally attest to the quality of the distillery tour having been the first visitor of the seaons some years back and receiving a personal tour from a wonderful gentleman named Leslie who had been working in the whisky business for more than 40 years.

A Well Stocked Bar VI

2008-12-16T05:05:00.000-08:00

"Too much of anything is bad, but too much of good whiskey is barely enough."
Mark Twain

As the weather turns cooler many switch from the gin and vodka based drinks of summer to something a bit richer, smokier, warmer. For me it's time to pour a few fingers of Scotch or Bourbon. The last Well Stocked Bar post was dedicated to Bourbon, this is one is dedicated to it's older cousin Scotch, particularly blended Scotch. Future posts will be dedicated to the finer points of single malts.

Scotch has had a long history of regulation (most of it unwanted and imposed unilaterally by the English). Today's Scotch Whisky is regulated by the Scotch Whisky Order of 1990, but is currently under review for further regulation. The Whisky Order is fundamentally a definition of what it takes to be called Scotch whisky:

1. Must be distilled in Scotland from water and malted barley and fermented with yeast
2. Must be distilled to an alcoholic strength of less than 94.8% (189.6 proof)

3. Must be matured in Scotland in oak casks for no less than three years and a day

4. Must not contain any added substance other than water and caramel colouring

5. May not be bottled at less than 40% alcohol by volume

Blended Scotch is a mixture of single malt whisky and grain whisky, usually from multiple distilleries. These are the Scotch whiskies that became popular throughout the world at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, and include such brands as Dewar's White Label (the #1 selling Scotch in America), Cutty Sark, Chivas Regal, Johnny Walker, J&B, and Famous Grouse. One reason for their popularity is their consistent house style. Like a Champagne house, a Scotch Blender's job is to produce a consistent product from year to year. They accomplish this by combining single-malt whisky from multiple distilleries in various proportions to achieve a consistent taste and then add grain alcohol to lend a smoothness.

Blended Scotch whisky is a bar necessity for it can be drunk neat, with rocks, with water, with soda, and in a host of different cocktails. If you drink Scotch you probably started with a blend and have your favorite, if not pay attention to what your friends and family order to select the blend most preferred by your most frequent guests. If your budget and bar can accomodate more than one selection it's not a bad practice to have several different selections on hand.

For my bar the "house" is Dewar's 12, a smoother more elegant version of Dewar's White Label that benefits from a combination of single malts the youngest of which is 12 years old. (The age printed on a bottle of Scotch by law has to be the age of the youngest malt included, though the blend may contain malts much older). I also have bottles of Chivas Regal and Johnny Walker Black Label on hand as I have a number of friends who are fiercely loyal to these blends.

What's your blended scotch?

My favorite scotch cocktail is the Rob Roy, named after Robert Roy MacGregor, a Scottish folk hero also known as 'Red MacGregor'.

3 Parts Blended Scotch Whisky, I prefer Dewar's 12 or White Label

2-3 Parts Dry Vermouth (depending on taste)

2 Dashes Bitters, I use Angostura, but Orange Bitters are also nice

2 Dashes Simple Syrup (made by bringing to a boil than cooling equal parts water and sugar)

1 Cherry

Combine first 4 ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled half with ice. Shake vigorously for a few moments. Serve in a old fashioned or a highball depending on the crowd and garnish with a cherry.

Hungry at the Holidays

2008-12-15T08:07:00.000-08:00

"When a man's stomach is full it makes no difference whether he is rich or poor."
Euripides (BC 480-BC 406)

Picture of an amazing can sculputre from Canstruction Calgary

Like many I started with can drives as a child in elementary school competing against other classrooms to gather up the most food for the less fortunate (and to earn a pizza party, we were only 6). The habit stuck and over the years I have donated both cans and my time to help stock shelves and deliver food, and have always found it to be a rewarding experience.

As you've probably heard in the news media that donations are falling at the same time as needs are increasing. As many of us prepare for one feast after another this holiday season if we can just buy a few extra non-parishable food items and drop them off at a foodbank or at one of the many drop-off points that are set up this time of year we can help eliminate hunger.

To find a foodbank near you visit: Feeding America, formerly America's Second Harvest.

Luxury (in a Down Market)

2008-12-12T05:40:00.000-08:00

Now don't think me too weird for making this suggestion, but how about eating lobster this weekend?

I know it's the holiday season, the short-term economic outlook is bleak, but there's a great reason to indulge - the price. The price of lobster has dropped to a 25 year low, and if you fix them at home your luxe dinner for two of around $40 is much cheaper than anything remotely comparable in a restaurant. As an added bonus to assuade any guilt you might feel while dining like a Rockefeller, the lobster fisheries in the Northeast are in better shape than they have been in many decades, so it's a sustainable luxury.

For those of you so inclined, here is the most humane way to tackle the unpleasantness of butchering your own food:

First put the lobster(s) in the freezer for 15 minutes; this slows their metabolism.

Next put the lobster on its back and slice lengthwise through its soft underbelly. Because lobsters have a decentralized nervous system the tail may still move for a moment more, but the claws will go limp indicating the lobster is dead.

Killing a lobster this way, rather than dumping them in boiling water, has an added bonus, it makes for more tender, less rubbery, meat.

From here you can boil, steam, broil, or even grill your lobsters and eat the succulent meat with the classic drawn butter, or tackle something a bit more adventurous.

For a few recipe suggestions and more information on the current lobster glut check out this recent article from the New York Times.

Nog, the Real Stuff

2008-12-11T07:48:00.000-08:00

My wife is a devotee of the Egg Nog. To avoid the parade of cartons of the simply ok to completely horrid of the grocery store stuff I started making the good stuff twice a season, once for our annual holiday party, and once on Christmas Eve. This seems to satisfy her; along with last year's discovery of egg nog ice cream. I might try making some of this myself this year as well.

I must also confess that the Tom and Jerry is a family favorite on my father's side of the family. The history of the Tom and Jerry, the name commonly given to eggnog that includes brandy, comes from Pierce Egan, an author popular in the 1820s, wrote a book called "Life of London: or Days and Nights of Jerry Hawthorne and His Elegant Friend Corinthina Tom". To publicize his work Mr. Egan made up a variation of eggnog he called "Tom and Jerry". It added 1/2 oz of brandy to the basic recipe and forever named the beverage.

The traditional spirits to include are bourbon and, for the Tom and Jerry, brandy. I "discovered" that Jameson Irish Whisky is an excellent replacement for the bourbon when I ran out of bourbon making a pecan pie with a double on the rocks for me, and some of my guests actually preferred it.

Here's my favorite recipe for real nog:

12 eggs, separated
6 cups 2% milk
2 cups heavy/ thickened cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups Bourbon or Irish Whisky
1+ ½ cups sugar
¾ cup brandy or calvados
2 teaspoons freshly ground nutmeg

In a large bowl and using a mixer, cream the egg yolks with the sugar for approx 10 minutes (the mixture will become firm and the colour of butter).

Very slowly, add in the Bourbon/Whisky) and brandy - just a little at a time.

When Bourbon/Whisky and brandy have been added, allow the mixture to cool in the fridge (for up to 6 hours, depending on how long before your party you're making the eggnog).

30 minutes before you are ready to serve, stir the milk into the chilled yolk mixture along with 1+ ½ teaspoons freshly ground nutmeg.

In a separate bowl, beat the cream and vanilla extract with a mixer on high speed until the cream forms stiff peaks.

In yet another very clean bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.

Gently fold the egg white mixture into the egg yolk mixture then fold the cream into the egg mixture and topp with the remaining nutmeg (this final step can be done in a punch bowl if you're going to be serving this at a party).

Serves: 8 mugs or 12 punch glasses

Dining Like a Banker

2008-12-10T09:56:00.001-08:00

"I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies."

Thomas Jefferson

Please forgive the quote, it seemed timely even though it's only tangentially related to this post.

During a recent trip to Richmond, Virginia I had the pleasure of dining at Bank on the recommendation of the ever Elegant Chris and his generous friends. The restaurant (and club Vault) as the name suggests is located in a renovated turn of the century bank on Main Street in downtown Richmond. It's worth having a drink at Bank if only to enjoy the beautiful facade upon entry.

I dined with a few colleagues, who greedily consumed their food without offering so much as a taste, so my review will be based only on my meal.

I began with the pan roasted mussels with spicy tomatoes and garlic with herb toast points. I'm a sucker for mussels and their version was delicious and a bit hearty for the cooling weather.

For my entree I had the citrus glazed mahi mahi served over shitake risotto with a orangea nd grapefruit compote. The dish was more beautiful to look at than taste as I found the citrus fruit a strange pairing with the mushroom risotto. Either accompaniment would have enhanced the fish, but to combine both resulted in an inharmonious dish.

For dessert I had a variation on a flourless chocolate cake that was good, but not particularly memorable.

I shared several bottles of the Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc. I'm a fan of this wine as the acidity pairs beautifully with most foods particularly seafood and Asian cuisines. I always have a few bottles on hand for home cooking and for Thai or Vietnamese take-out.

On the whole it was an enjoyable evening, though the food was always just a bit off from what it could have been. There's little doubt that food is a secondary priority after the club, which appears to draw a large and diverse crowd.

Bank Wrap-Up

Atmosphere: 4 (modern touches in a neoclassical bank)
Drinks: 4 (a good wine list including reserve list, reasonable mark-ups)
Cuisine: 4 (a good assortment of menu items and specials, a bit more focused on seafood)
Sides: 2 (good sides strangely paired)
Desert: 4
Service: 4.5
Value: 4.5
Overall: 4.1

Note: Warrants another visit.

1005 E. Main St.

(804) 648-3070

M-F 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.

S&S 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.

A Cause Worth Toasting

2008-12-02T06:01:00.000-08:00

"What contemptible scoundrel stole the cork from my lunch?"

W.C. Fields ~ You Can’t Cheat an Honest Man (1939)

Picture of a cork oak forest in Portugal.

In the interest of blogger disclosure I need to start this post with a confession. I attempt to live a green lifestyle largely when it suits me. I use re-usable grocery bags, have converted most of my lighting to CFLs, have programmable thermostats, etc. But when it comes to always eating local and in season, driving a gas sipping automobile, and the "staycation", I just haven't been able to make the change.

One thing I thought I was doing to be green was to buy most of my white wines and red table wines with screw caps. I thought that these metal caps must surely be more environmentally friendly than the conventional cork that probably came from a different country than the wine and they're used only once then discarded, or in my case horded in tins under the bar for some yet to be determined craft.

Turns out that I'm wrong. According to an article in the Telegraph the reduced demand for real corks is having devestating consequences. Cork oak forests cover 6.7 million acres worldwide of marginally arable lands, but that are rich with biodiversity and support rare species such as Iberian lynx, the worlds most engangered cat, black storks and booted eagles. In Portugal for example 33% of the country is planted with cork oaks.

Over 70% of the cork harvested annually is used for wine stoppers, but with alternative closures gaining in popularity over the past decade cork demand is down, perhaps by as much as 20%. Cork oaks, which take 45 years to reach maturity, then nine years before a tree can be harvested again. Each tree produces enough cork in each harvest for an astonishing 4,000 wine bottles.

The two problems most wine producers have been attempting to avoid by switching to cork-alternative closures are first costs, real top quality wine corks are more expensive than the alternatives and second the potential of wines becoming "corked", where the wine develops a musty smell becomes undrinkable due to contamination with a chemical known as Trichloroanisol, have turned many consumers off natural corks.

From a purely aesthetic perspective nothing can replace the ritual of removing a real cork, inspecting it (please don't smell it), and even saving special corks from special bottles or special occassions. The next bottle you pick up at your corner store or wine merchant make sure it has a real cork, it's a small way to be green.

Close-up of a cork tree partially stripped of it's bark.

Cork harvested from a plantation air-drying before being cut into wine corks.

Fit for a President

2008-11-26T10:00:00.000-08:00

"I love to bring people into the oval office...and say, this is where I office."

George W. Bush, 43rd President of the United States

With all the pomp and circumstance of an upcoming presidential innauguration on the brain, and the beginning media chatter about an Oval Office redecoration I thought it would be interesting to look back at the history of the Oval Office. I had intended this post to be about the oval office carpets, but the history of the office and its furnishings were just too interesting to ignore. Consider this a history lesson disguised as a design post.

When a new family enters the White House a redecorating effort begins immediately. Transition books are prepared by the chief usher and list available furnishings from the more than 40,000 pieces in the White House collection. Funds for other improvements and additions to the White House come from several sources.

The historic State Floor, with its iconic Blue, Green and Red Rooms, as well as the spaces off the lower Ground Floor Corridor, are public rooms overseen by the Committee for the Preservation of the White House. Additionally Congress has appropriated $1.6 million a year for the repair and restoration of the White House.

The top two floors are the private living quarters. $100,000 of the Congressional appropriation is allocated to maintain the family quarters every four years. Presidents and their families have often paid for things themselves. In addition, the White House Historical Association, a nonprofit educational institution, provides money for preservation. Income comes from two sources, they are a $34 million White House Endowment Trust, which is used to refurbish White House public rooms and conserve collections, and a $6 million White House Acquisition Trust, which is used to acquire fine and decorative arts for the permanent collection.
Until the 1970s, presidents changed little of the decor in the nation's most powerful office.

A shot from above of the oval office during a meeting. It gives a great persepective of the office, and of the carpet. This carpet was designed in part by Laura Bush and was made by Edward Fields of New York at a cost of $61,000 and paid for by private donations.

In 2005 the hardwood floors in the whitehouse were replaced with these alternating American White Oak and Walnut boards. The design mimics a previous wood floor in the office.

The rug featured during the Clinton presidency was made by Scott Group in Grand Rapids, Mich., and given by an anonymous donor. The value of the rug was $38,000. I've had the pleasure of commissioning custom rugs from Scott Group and have visited their work shop (factory does not do it justice). They do most things by hand and have a dedicated staff of artisans who've worked for them for many years.

This pale blue rug with a presidential seal in the middle was made by Hokanson of Houston; the $28,550 cost was paid for by private donations. I think that while the pale blue is certainly calming, a valuable design feature for the office of the leader of the free world, it really lacks the richness and detail of many of the other carpets. It looks a bit too much like cheap wall to wall.

President George H. W. Bush used the same walnut partner's desk he had used when he was vice president.

Here's a picture of President Reagan behind the Resolute Desk on the phone. You can see his terra-cotta colored carpet, with presidential seal and starburst design, a more muted version of the current Bush carpet. The rug was manufactured by Starck Carpet of New York at a cost of $49,625 and paid for by an anonymous donor.

A view of the Oval Office during Jimmy Carter's term in office. He used the Resloute Desk and his office featured a pale yellow rug with the presidential seal and blue and white rosettes.

Gerald Ford kept the Nixon decor.

President Nixon preferred a bold blue and gold color pallette (see the Gerald Ford photo in Technocolor!). The rug, again featuring the Presidential seal and an outside border of stars was otherwise unadorned

A view of LBJ's office including the bank of televisions to watch all the major networks.

Here is a photo of the redecorated LBJ office featuring a pale blue carpet similar to one used during the Truman and Eisenhower administrations. The furniture, besides the rocker, has a very 1960s feel.

A picture of the Johnson Oval Office taken in 1964, temporarily using the final Kennedy rug and curtains. The desk is LBJ's and was built for him by the Senate cabinet shop during his long tenure there.

A photo of the new Kennedy Oval Office taken in 1963 while the couple was visiting Dallas. Sadly the president never made it back to the office and it was dismantled after the assassination, before Mrs. Kennedy returned and LBJ took occupancy.

Here is a picture behind the desk in the Oval Office. The footrest under the desk was meant to help with the President's chronic back pain. Also notice the ashtrays on stands at the ends of the sofas, things have certainly changed.

A picture of JFK along with John and Caroline. This was not long after he moved into the White Hous and the office still features the Truman/Eisenhower carpet.

Here's a look at the decor of the office during President Eisenhower's administration. He largely maintained the decor from Truman's tenancy. The carpet utilized sculpting for the seal and border, though this is barely visible in the pictures.

Here is President Truman's office. Unlike many of the President's he must have taken a lot of meetings around the desk judging from the abundance of seating.

Here is a picture of FDR and his secretary in the newly constructed Oval Office. His desk seemed to have more on it than many of the other President's and he opted not to have the two chairs flanking the desk facing the windows (a bit odd in my opinion anyway, though the large desks may make this more comforable in person than in the pictures). The valances mimic those traditionally found in the Original Oval Office during many President's terms in office.

Here is a photo of the old Oval Office following a Christmas Eve fire in 1929.

Here is a picture of the old Oval Office during the Coolidge Presidency. I like the bookcases on either side of the desk, it suggests a well read person sits behind this desk.

A photo of the original Oval Office in 1923. The black ribbon on the chair memorializes President Harding.

Thanksgiving Preparations

2008-11-25T07:07:00.000-08:00

"Thanksgiving is a typically American holiday . . . its essential, secular meaning is a celebration of successful production. It is a producers' holiday. The lavish meal is a symbol of the fact that abundant consumption is the result and reward of production."

Ayn Rand (1905-1982)

I love Thanksgiving, it's really my favorite holiday, probably because it's just so food-centric. The groceries were bought yesterday, the table is set, tonight the table will be set, the turkey will start brining, the homemade cranberry sauce will be melding, a few pie crusts will be rolled out and frozen (my favorite do ahead trick) and bourbon maple ice cream will be setting in the deep freeze. I've only hosted a handful of Thanksgivings myself, but have always been an active participant wherever I've been. I'm looking forward to having it at home this year with just a few family and friends at the table.

To avoid the version of a Rockwell Thanksgiving pictured above in favor of the more common image GET STARTED TODAY! Doing things in advance of the big day is key to making it a laid back day culminating in a wonderful meal even the host/hostess can be truly thankful for.

Buen Apetito - Il Mulino, Las Vegas

2008-11-24T06:34:00.000-08:00

I just got back from a trip to Las Vegas which was surprisingly enjoyable. Those who know me know that I'm not a fan of crowds, smoke, noise, gross excess...the very DNA of Sin City, but I must say that while there was all of that there were also bits of charm to be found.

My most enjoyable time was spent at Il Mulino in the Forum Shops at Caesars. This outpost of the famous restaurant in NYC was a bit of culinary perfection amid all the mediocre celebrity franchises.

My best friend, and conveniently enough, brother-in-law and I took a break from our wives and their parents to take a long lunch.

Upon entering Il Mulino at the top level of the mall next door to Tommy Bahama we found that we were transported to another place, forgetting that we were in a mall. The decor was elegant with a long bar and wine celllar flanking the entrance, tables covered in white linens impecably set with stemware, silver, and a single red rose in a simple vase. The lighting came from a great widow at the back of the restaurant with a view of the strip and a patio for dining al fresco and from a collection of gothic inspired chandaliers.

While we perused the menu we drank Peligrino and nibbled on delicious Parmiggiano Reggiano split out of a half wheel table side and fried zuccini with pepers.

We were tempted by an elaborate selection of special atinpasti, fish, pasta, and meat dishes to choose from in addition to the well edited menu of classics.

We ordered wine, the San Luigi Dolcetto di Dogliani, and two antipasti - the escargot with mushrooms and the buffalo mozzarella with proscutto and tomatoes.

Next came an amuse-Bouche of what they called bruschetta, but was really more of a panzanella as the bread was thoroughly soaked, and a single steamed mussel. The flavors were incredible, even if the preparation was a bit unorthodox.

While we were eating the bruschetta the bread basket arrived along with a plate of garlic bread. All the breads were excellent. At this point we were ready to order our pastas. I selected the lobster ravioli and my fried ordered the mushroom and black truffle ravioli.

Our antipasti arrived and were excellent. The escargot were as tender and flavorful as any I had ever eaten, and at an Italian restaurant no less, and the spicey tomoto sauce it was served with was sop-ably great. The winner though was the buffalo mozarella, it tasted of sweet cream and not salt and water like most, and had a soft but not squishy texture. I can honestly say it was the best mozarella either of us had ever eaten.

After a few minutes to enjoy more wine and conversation our pastas arrived. Two things struck us both the instant they arrived: 1) they were too large and 2) they were going to be world class. Upon first bite immediately followed by second bite we both nodded in agreement that we were not disappointed. We made our best efforts, but after 45 minutes or so of doing battle with the pasta I must confess that the pasta won, neither of us could finish.

We ordered an espresso and a coffee and turned down dessert only to be provided a complimentary dessert of berries with zabaglion and garnished with wafer rolls and a thin drizzle of caramel sauce. My expresso had a thick brown crema and a wonderful aroma.

We were also served glasses of limoncello served with a ladle out of a block of ice, this house recipe was excellent with no one element overpowering the bevearage as can often happen with too sweet, too alcoholic, or too bitter (from the pith of the lemon); I've never found too sour to be a problem.

Now we come to the most contentious issue in the reviews I've read of Il Mulino - the prices. Our bill was $300 before tip, and we felt that this was fair (it should be noted that the lunch and dinner prices are the same). The setting, the service, the food, and the beverage made this a fair value proposition. If you were inclined to save a few dollars on your meal an easy way would be to avoid the specials. Our appetizers were 150% of the cost of those on the menu and our pastas were approx. $50 each while those on the menu were in the $30s.

Our wine at $90 for a bottle was at the low end of the well edited list and was definitely NOT a bargain at 4x retail, though it was an excellent wine that paired well with all of our food. The mark-ups at the high end of the list were much closer to 2x retail making them the better value if you don't mind spending $200+ per bottle.

This was the best meal we had in Las Vegas and I definitely plan on going back, though I'm reluctant to recommend to those whose enjoyment of the meal may be dampened by the prices.

Shooting Match

2008-11-18T06:01:00.000-08:00

"The fascination of shooting as a sport depends almost wholly on whether you are at the right or wrong end of the gun." ~ P.G. Wodehouse (1881-1975)

The lodge at Blalock Lakes

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of spending a day out of the office at Blalock Lakes, a new hunting and equestrian community and club south of Atlanta. The weather was outstanding and competing against yourself and friends (old and new) on the sporting clay course was a great deal of fun. The facilities were exellent and the staff very friendly and helpful for a few of our first time shooters.

This type of outing has started to become more popular as the corporate golf outing has lost whatever draw it once had for all but the most dedicated golfer.

Here are a few pictures from our sporting day out in the woods. If you've never tried sporting clay shooting you're missing out. Give it a try and enjoy a bit of competition in the great outdoors.

The great room at the center of the lodge

A den with bar off to one side of the great room

A fire pit behind the lodge with a beautiful vew of the hills.

The rustic twig furniture on the back porch

The kitchen in the lodge

The practice range

One of the 12 stations on the course

I wish I could say I won, but using a borrowed gun my performance was only middle of the pack.

Note: No animals were hurt during this afternoon of shooting,

though a few shoulders were a bit sore.

A Well Stocked Bar V

2008-11-13T11:42:00.000-08:00

“I was brought up to believe that Scotch whisky would need a tax preference to survive in competition with Kentucky bourbon."
Hugo LaFayette Black, Supreme Court Justice 1937 to 1971

I selected this quote because it made me smile, not because I in any way agree. I feel about Scotch Whisky and Kentucky Bourbon as I imagine parents feel about their children. You love them both in something approximating equal quantities, but in very different ways based on their unique characteristics.

I’d like to focus this post on the selection of the “right” whiskey of the American variety for your bar.

A brief sidebar on whiskey vs whisky. The derivation of the word comes from Scottish Gaelic uisgebeatha and Irish usquebaugh, both meaning “water of life.” The word in its current form comes to America from colonial times; American and Irish whiskey uses this spelling while Scottish and Canadian whiskies retain the older form, "whisky."

The standard, and probably the first whiskey tasted by many of us, is the obligatory Jack Daniels. There is no shame in having a bottle of this on the bar, and in some circles it’s more than merely acceptable, it’s a badge of honor. I’ve toured the distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee and can assure you that they take the production of their product very seriously. If you and your guests would never consider imbibing whiskey without Coca Cola stick with good ‘ol Jack.

For those with more discriminating palettes and noses I might make a few suggestions. The first, though odd, has generally held true – purchase whiskeys whose names begin with the letter ‘B’. In order of my personal preference these are: Blantine’s, Booker’s, Basil Hayden, and Bulleit. The second is to avoid animals in the name or on the label (as is generally true for wine as well with a few notable exceptions); I am not generally a fan of: Buffalo Trace, the Wild Turkey line, or Eagle Rare. And finally read the labels, if they’re proud of the spirit they produce, and most are, they’ll tell you why it’s special whether it be single barrel, cask strength, a unique grain content, the barrel aging process, etc.

My personal preference, despite the aforementioned rules is 1792, with Blantine's a very close second by taste, but not by value.

For a bourbon tasting I would suggest ordering a glass neat with a cup of ice on the side at a good watering hole. Put 1-2 good sized cubes of ice in your glass and swirl it under your nose for a solid minute. If you are given a glass of terribly small, aerated ice, proceed to a nicer bar after downing the shot they just delivered. Once you’ve smelled, allowed a bit of the alcohol to evaporate (you broke some of the surface tension by adding the ice and by moving the spirit), and admired the color move on to the tasting. Take enough in your mouth to fully cover the front half of your palette. Let it sit there for a moment before allowing it to pass further back and down your throat. Take in a steady breath through a barely opened mouth and savor the finish. If you can pick out interesting flavors and aromas you have a worthwhile spirit, if not move on.

What are your favorite whisk(e)ys?

Slaandjivaa!

A Celebration

2008-11-05T06:07:00.001-08:00

"It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried." ~ Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

Today should be a day of celebration for all Americans. Whether your candidates won or lost we as Americans won as another election passed signaling the latest peaceful transfer of power. We should not take for granted that what we accomplish in voting booths in gymnasiums, libraries, and churches across America takes place with tanks and rifles in the streets of many nations.

Tales from the Crypt

2008-10-31T05:23:00.001-07:00

I know, it was a really horrible show in the 80s(?), but I thought that on Halloween the title was quite appropriate for this post dedicated to the beauty of the Cementario General in Santiago de Chile.

I'm a frequent cemetery visitor on vacation looking for the final resting places of local legends and perhaps even more so, just looking for a quiet place in the city to appreciate the unique beauty of grave markers and mausoleums. Cementario General can in some ways be likened to the more famous Recoletta Cemetery in Buenos Aires made even more famous as the final resting place of Eva Peron. Certainly at its best the statuary, mausoleums, and foliage are comparable; however, Recoletta is the domain of the very rich and important while Cementario General is the final resting place of over a million folks both rich and not so rich.

Here are a few pictures from a recent trip to Cementario General:

Anywhere but Chile this would be creepy as it looks an awful lot like a vulture, but it is a condor the national bird.

Two beautiful mausoleums on a high-end "street" in the cemetery. The wealthy like to be close to their own in life and in death.

A "new money" tree lined street. Cementario General is said to have more than 4,000 varieties of trees, including a number of orange trees (no one seemed to be interested in the free fruit).

Another Beautiful street, I'm always a fan of graves that include seating for the living. The very clean lines of the center mausoleum appealed to my minimalist side.

These mausoleums had a very 60s/70s style to them. Another common feature in the cemetery are these underground mausoleums with steps below grade. I'm not fond of the thought of walking down a flight of steps to a below-grade crypt to visit.

Angel statuary wasn't as common in Cementario General as it is in Recoletta though they had some beautiful seraphi.

Another that includes a clever planter.

This part of the cemetery was the "China Town" and included this amusing see no evil, hear no evil, say no evil statue. A good reminder to the living.

This grave was very touching. It now housed both the husband and wife. He outlived her for some time, I can imagine him standing in life looking at the memorial imagining their reunion.

This was perhaps the most touching memorial. Under a beautiful tree we both shed a tear when we rounded the corner and saw this lovely piece of sculpture.

Vocabulary

2008-10-30T05:13:00.000-07:00

Vocabulary is more than a part of your elementary school education or taking the SATs, it's the mark of a true lady or gentleman. It's rare that I run across a word I don't know, unless I go looking for one, but it's always fun to add a word that's inevitably more descriptive of something than the word I had previously used for it. So when I find a fun way to accumulate a few new words I like to share it. I heard about FreeRice.com on NPR some time ago. It started as a way for a father to help his children prepare for the SAT, then he decided to use his tool to help do some good in the world. That's where the name came from. For each vocabulary word you get right a 20 grains of rice are donated to hungry people throughout the world. I know you're thinking what's a few grains of rice really do, but it really adds up if enough people use the site. It's fun to rack up some rice and maybe learn a thing or two.

Here's what FreeRice.com has to say about their mission:

"FreeRice is a sister site of Poverty.com. Our partners are the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University and the United Nations World Food Program.

FreeRice has two goals:

Provide education to everyone for free.

Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

This is made possible by the generosity of the sponsors who advertise on this site.
Whether you are CEO of a large corporation or a street child in a poor country, improving your education can improve your life. It is a great investment in yourself.

Perhaps even greater is the investment your donated rice makes in hungry human beings, enabling them to function and be productive. Somewhere in the world, a person is eating rice that you helped provide. Thank you."

I find it's an enjoyable way to take a quick 2 minute break between tasks at work and feel good about it. Give FreeRice.com a try and do some good for yourself and for some very hungry people.

Investing

2008-10-25T13:43:00.000-07:00

Today I received an e-mail from Brooks Brothers. It was an add from the 1940s, which seems quite timely today.

It's always a good idea to buy truly quality things, for they are almost certain to last longer and remain more fashionable than their lesser quality substitutes.

In this regard I certainly endorse Brooks Brothers as a quality purveyor of both off the rack clothing and made to measure.

In Praise of Fat

2008-10-23T08:04:00.000-07:00

I was checking Salon.com a few days ago to see if they had posted any new food related articles and found one on Jennifer McLagan on her new book Fat: Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient, With Recipes. The article in the Q&A style, though not paricularly in depth, sparked my curiosity. Jennifer is a food stylist (one of those brilliant people who arranges food for the glossy photos in cookbooks and magazines), and from the looks of it a very good one, and the author of a previous book Bones: Recipes, History, and Lore.

It would seem from her bio and blog that her adoration for these foods lying somewhere between meat and offal comes from her love of French cooking enhanced by her frequent trips to Paris where she keeps a flat. Lest you think that Jennifer's love of fat is in any way personified in her physique here's her picture.

I ordered Fat and after a mouthwatering perusal of the recipes and pictures I can't wait to try out a recipe or two this weekend.

What's your opinion of fat? In looking for a witty quote to start this post, it was quite clear that fat hasn't been a word with a positive connotation for at least the last two hundred years.

Bring Home the Blossoms

2008-10-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

There are the obvious flower days: valentine's, birthdays, anniversarys, etc. But I think that a random Wednesday is superior when there is no expectation of flowers, only a weekday supper.

It's easy and inexpensive to pop into the Trader Joe's, Fresh Market, Whole Foods, or your favorite grocer and pick up a bunch, or two. I say two because in my experience most single bunches don't provide enough material for a full arrangement. The pictures above are <$25 from Fresh Market and put in vases we already have. The added bonus is that if you buy fresh, they'll be in full bloom over the weekend when you can enjoy them over a lazy breakfast or while you're fixing dinner.

Bring some home tonight.

Chilean Cuisine

2008-10-21T10:54:00.001-07:00

It's a blog not a meal, so why not start with dessert. My lunch after a long morning of siteseeing and lapis lazuli shopping. I think I earned it.

At the risk of offending 16 million or so people, the title of this post may be a bit of a misnomer, as Chile has very little in the way of a definitively Chilean cuisine. Much of the ingredients are grown in-country as they have a wonderful climate for growing produce, as well as a long coastline with cold waters that provide abundant and quite succulent seafood; that said, the way these foods are prepared can clearly be identified as Peruvian, Italian, or French.

If there is a Chilean cuisine at all, I would call it bland and avocado-centric. Avocado is to Chile as ketchup and parsley are to the US, they are abundant, nearly everpresent on the plate, and contribute little in the way of enhancing whatever they're covering. Now I must confess to having an Avacado allergy, so I'm perhaps a bit more sensitive to this, but they even serve mashed avocado as a breakfast condiment!

In spite of these comments I must say that we had many excellent meals in Chile, primarily at Santiago's finest restaurants. When traveling dining is of the utmost importance to us and cost is generally ignored. This luxury provided by two years of saving before each "major" vacation with only minor trips in the off years.

In order of preference (favorite first) here are the restaurants we visited: Cuerovaca, Puerto Fuy, Happening, El Cid (Sheraton Santiago), Mare Nostrum, and Astrid Y Gaston. There were a few others, but I don't even want to put their names in print lest it be considered a recommendation.

Parmesan clams at Mare Nostrum. We thought these a novel appetizer on our first night only to "discover" them on menu after menu. In any event they were delicious and the presentation was fun.

The "Peruvian Sampler" appetizer at Astrid Y Gaston. It was the only thing at the restaurant that we really enjoyed. This was a most expensive and least enjoyable restaurant. I think that by virtue of being a "chain" in the same sense as Emeril's is a chain in the US the food, restaurant, and staff lacked passion and excitement.

The lobster risotto at Puerto Fuy. It was simply beautiful and quite tasty.

The duck three ways at Puerto Fuy. Delicious! Duck seemed to appear on a disporportionate number of menus. I think it's a good protein choice as grazing animals like cows don't have a lot of habitable land in Chile unlike their neighbor to the East, Argentina.

An upside down shephard's pie at a restaurant near Pablo Neruda's Santiago home. It was quite good.

Sea bass (corvino) with shrimp mashed potatoes with quail eggs at the same restaurant as the shephard's pie. Good, if a bit strange.

Dinner at the top restaurants in Santiago with bubbly and pisco sours to start, a shared appetizer, two entrees, dessert, and a mid-priced bottle of wine averaged US$130 including a 10% gratiuty. As a value proposition this is probably 60% of the cost of a comparable meal in Atlanta, or 40% of the cost of the same meal in NYC, San Francisco, etc. The real values were to be found on the carte vino particularly if you have a taste for Carmenere.

A Cocktail for Fall

2008-10-20T04:47:00.000-07:00

Whether you're hosting a pumpkin carving, costume, or apple picking party this fall a seasonal house cocktail is in order. For my pumpkin carving party I'm going back to an old favorite, my version of the Stone Fence:

A "Punch" Version

2 parts Laird's Applejack

1 part good bourbon

6 parts apple cider (the real stuff)

Juice of 1/2 a lemmon

2 dashes bitters

A "Cocktail" Version

2 parts Laird's Applejack

1 part good bourbon

2 dashes bitters

Hard Cider as preferred

Garnish with lemon twist

If you're feeling particularly ambitous go pick your own apples and make the cider using your juicer or, at some orchards, they'll make it for you.

Home (Far) Away From Home

2008-10-16T10:24:00.000-07:00

"At the little town of Vevey, in Switzerland, there is a particularly comfortable hotel. There are, indeed, many hotels, for the entertainment of tourists is the business of the place, which, as many travelers will remember, is seated upon the edge of a remarkably blue lake--a lake that it behooves every tourist to visit. The shore of the lake presents an unbroken array of establishments of this order, of every category, from the "grand hotel" of the newest fashion, with a chalk-white front, a hundred balconies, and a dozen flags flying from its roof, to the little Swiss pension of an elder day, with its name inscribed in German-looking lettering upon a pink or yellow wall and an awkward summerhouse in the angle of the garden. One of the hotels at Vevey, however, is famous, even classical, being distinguished from many of its upstart neighbors by an air both of luxury and of maturity." Daisy Miller by Henry James

These lines begin the story of Daisy Miller by Henry James. I think it's quite appropriate that a great story start with a great description of a hotel, just as a great vacation should.

In this case it's the San Cristobal Tower (operated by Sheraton's Luxury Collection Brand). We selected this hotel for a variety of reasons, not the least of which was it's commanding view of the city, a distinct benefit of it's location at the foot of Cero San Cristobal across the Mapuche River from the majority of the city and the Providencia neighborhood. Here are a few photos of this excellent hotel with perhaps the most attentive staff I have ever had the privelege of meeting.

View of the hotel from the edge of the Mapuche river, the trees in the background are on San Cristobal Hill.
Here is a photo of the hotel lobby. The desk to the left of the image is one of three desks where check-in and check-out take place with a glass of Spumoso (Local Sparkling Wine).

A picture of our room, very traditional in a very sort of Ritz Carlton style, though a bit more spacious than the typical Ritz and with nice touches like operable windows and 110 outlets in the room and bathroom.

A picture of the bed after turn-down service. Loved the little chocolates, bottled water with crystal tumblers, and the slippers laid out on a little mat. I can be a bit germ phobic so the remote on the sheet didn't thrill me, but I can forgive this one questionable judgement call.
A spread of wine, pisco sours, cheeses, meats, nuts, fruit, and pasteries on the 21st floor where we frequently watched as the sun set casting beautiful shades of pink and orange on the snow capped Andes.

Historic Homes Struggling with the Economy

2008-10-12T13:17:00.000-07:00

"The lack of money is the root of all evil." ~ Mark Twain

CBS Sunday Morning had an excellent story this morning on the plight of house museums all over the country struggling with large debt and decreasing donations and visitors. I've posted in the past about The Mount (previous post), Edith Wharton's historic home which was again featured in this story along with several other notable homes.

In this post I wanted to call your attention to The Mark Twain House and Museum in Hartford, CT. Financial problems are nothing new for the home. Twain had to sell it in 1903 due in large part to his own financial problems.

The Mark Twain House and Museum was the home of Mark Twain (a.k.a. Samuel Langhorne Clemens) from 1874 to 1891 in Hartford, Connecticut, USA. The architecture of the 19-room house is Victorian Gothic. Twain wrote The Gilded Age, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Prince and the Pauper, Life on the Mississippi, Huckleberry Finn, A Tramp Abroad and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court all while living in the home.

Here's an abbreviated history of the house after the Clemens sold it from the homes' website:
The house was privately owned until 1929 when the "Mark Twain Memorial and Library Commission" was chartered to restore and manage the Twain House.

In 1955, the mortgage was paid in full and the trustees began a 20 year restoration of the house to its former glory during the Clemens 17–year residency.

The Mark Twain House was given a National Historic Landmark designation in 1963.
A visitor's center and museum adjacet to the hosue was completed in 2003 at great expense, and is largely responsible for the current financial problems facing the museum, though the Robert A.M. Stern designed museum looks like a great building in its own right. It also has the distinction of being the first LEED certified museum in the country.

Please consider making a donation to this historic home, or one closer to where you live as they need our help.

I'm back (from Chile)

2008-10-07T06:02:00.001-07:00

Pardon my extended absence, but the Mrs. and I just got back from a fantastic trip to Santiago, Chile. The country was specatular, the weather perfect, the people friendly, the wine stupendous, and the food, well nothing's perfect. Here are a few photos from our trip to inspire a trip south for the winter. Future posts with more cohesive themes upcoming.

A massive city of six million people is built in a long valley with the Andes to the West and the Chilean Coastal range to the East. This leads to a constant haze, particularly in the winter. Spring is just starting so the smog should be lessening soon.
The benefit of smog, if there is such a thing, is colorful sunsets. The sun set behind our hotel each night, but the light reflected off the snowy caps of the Andes was magnificent.

The old, this Church in Providencia, one of the 34 comunas (semi-autonomous districts within the city), represents some of the typical colonial architecture that can be seen throughout the older and more affluent parts of the city.
This skyscraper, also in Providencia, represents the new. There's a building boom going on in Santiago with new office towers (like this one), condo buildings, and infrastructure improvements everywhere. Santiago will soon be home to the tallest building in South America, it's currently up to the 26th of its 60+ floors.

Steak Night - Stoney River

2008-09-17T07:45:00.000-07:00

Last night the group convened for a extemporaneous Wednesday night Steak Night at Stoney River in Duluth, GA.

Drinks at the bar were well poured by an attentive staff. No snacks available, though many order appetizers and even full meals at the bar.

Once seated we were greeted immediately. The breadbasket arrived shortly thereafter filled with their delicious, miniature poppyseed rolls and honey butter. We went through the first heaping basket with ease, though the second basket was more of a challenge than we could meet.

We ordered their version of bleu cheese chips. They started with good quality homemade chips then topped them with a bechemel based bleu cheese sauce with a hint of nutmeg. Garnished with chives, this variation on this often overdone dish was excellent. (For the best bleu cheese chips in Atlanta visit Buckhead Diner where they don't skimp on the Maytag Bleu Cheese).

Then came our wine, at the recommendation of our waiter we ordered a bottle of the 2005 Franciscan Cabernet priced at $48, it was a 100% mark-up over retail, a much lower mark-up than many of their other bottles. The wine was good, though could have benefitted from a decanting. It improved as the evening went on. The waiter again made sure our glasses were always crimson and took the extra second to wipe the bottle with a black napkin, fold it neatly, and place the cork on top creating a bit of restaurant still life with every pouring.

My two compatriots ordered the lodge filet, a 10 oz steak, that is their best seller. Its price at $39 is quite fair particularly with the addition of the included starch of your choice. I had the 12 oz ribeye and found it quite succulent and perfectly cooked.

We skipped dessert on this trip due in large part to the sheer number of roles ingested, but enjoyed espressos and lingered over the last bit of our wine.

All in all Stoney River delivered a very enjoyable Steak Night at a relative bargain of <$80 per person including tax and gratuity.

Stoney River Wrap-up

Atmosphere: 4 (a bit loud, though still a comfortable place to settle in)
Drinks: 4 (a good wine list including reserve list, though mark-ups a bit high, our female member raved about the Belini Martini)
Meat: 4.5 (they use their "lodge" seasoning, good if a bit salty, but not for everyone)
Sides: 4 (one startch included with your entree)
Desert: 4.5 (order the Top Hat)
Service: 4.5 (a bit too attentive)
Value: 4.5
Overall: 4.3

Note: A good solid chain steakhouse in the burbs.

A National Treasure Facing Foreclosure

2008-09-16T11:20:00.000-07:00

Life is always a tightrope or a feather bed. Give me the tightrope. ~ Edith Wharton

I came across a story on Luxist about the fate of Edith Wharton's home The Mount back in March. The home was facing foreclosure and a future that likely involved it becoming private property no longer open to the public. The fact that this Historic Landmark might be yet another victim of the mortgage meltdown was quite frightening.

I immediately went to their website and pledged what I could and was told that they wouldn't ask for any of the donor's to send in their pledges unless they were able to raise enough commitments to restructure their debt and keep The Mount open to the public.

On August 15th I received a letter asking that I submit my pledge as they received over $1 million in donations. They're still working on suring up the future of this great house museum, but for 2008 at least they are open and it appears that if they can continue to raise funds this can be at least one happy foreclosure story. They're still hoping to reach their goal of $3 million by the end of October, so please do what you can to not only give a little but raise awareness.

Please visit The Mount website and make a donation.

Wharton, the author of Ethan Frome, The House of Mirth and The Age of Innocence, designed and built the house in 1902. She wrote over 40 books in 40 years, including authoritative works on architecture and gardens and was the first woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. The Mount is one of the five percent of National Historic Landmarks dedicated to women. It only gets around 30,000 visitors a year but is a lovely and significant reminder of a more gracious era.

Wharton designed The Mount, built in 1902, and put into practice many of the principles she espoused in The Decoration of Houses, including an enormous first floor gallery and a bedroom suite that accommodated her writing. As a Wharton fan, I’ve wanted to visit The Mount, especially as it has been substantially restored to Wharton’s original plans. Below are a few picture's from The Mount's website.

A Well Stocked Bar IV

2008-09-16T10:54:00.000-07:00

Money, like vodka, turns a person into an eccentric. ~ Anton Chekhov

It's now time to start discussing spirits. While it's not my favorite distilled spirit it is still the most versatile of all spirits and one which every bar should include - Vodka.

I could simply tell you to buy Grey Goose and leave it at that, as it is, at least to my palette, the most enjoyable of all vodkas. But instead I will tell you that when it comes to selecting spirits it's a rather personal decision. It can come down to taste, or price, or even how the bottle will look on your bar.

Before you select your "house" vodka I would suggest the next time you're out having a few beverages with friends that you order, over the course of the evening, several vodka tonics sans lime (this is a scientific experiment afterall) and determine which is your favorite. I would then suggest with this knowledge in hand that you go to your favorite liquor store and look at the oversized assortment of vodkas and compare the prices to your ratings. Where your palette and wallet overlap is probably the right selection. I have friends with very good palettes that argue that Vox and Absolut are far superior to my beloved Goose, they're wrong of course, but it shows how individual the selection of your preferred spirits can be.

If you and your guests primarily use vodka in very elaborate concoctions I might suggest the ever versatile, drinkable, and affordable Stolichnya. If you and your guests rarely drink vodka I would again go for the Stoli. If instead you favor something without four kinds of fruit juice and Pucker I would again steer you back to Grey Goose.

What's your house vodka?

Nashville Part II

2008-09-11T08:07:00.000-07:00

“The quality of food is in inverse proportion to a dining room's altitude, especially atop bank and hotel buildings (airplanes are an extreme example).” ~ Brian Miller (Food writer and former New York Times restaurant critic)

One of life's great pleasures is staying in a world-class hotel. An extension of this, for excellent hotel's in your own town and for those who would rather dispense with their wealth by other means, is spending copious amounts of time in the hotels' bars and sometimes restaurants (I can't wholeheartedly endorse all great restaurant's dining options). This was the inspiration for today's quote which I have, using the Scientific Method, repeatedly confirmed, for when views are the primary attraction the food certainly suffers. I should have given up on dining in the clouds a long time ago, but seem to tempt the fates once or twice a year only to lose again.

The hotel on which I wish to lavish praise is The Hermitage Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. I have previously written about the pleasures of The Oak Bar located beneath the hotel in what some might refer to as a basement. This my friend's is, as Mr. Miller suggests, an indication of the fine quality of the bar and adjacent restaurant.

I have now had the pleasure of staying at The Hermitage several times with increasing frequency and now have begun to be recognized by the staff, who have proven it is possible to exceed their already impeccable service by greeting you by name at almost every turn.

I took a few pictures of the room during my last stay to share as the hotel does not provide quite enough pictures to really satisfy.

A Well Stocked Bar III

2008-09-09T13:09:00.000-07:00

To date we have determined we need trays and ice buckets with generous scoops as the foundation for our bars. The next essential item is glassware. Rather than showing you pictures of glasses, I will instead implore you to buy good quality and in good quantities. In barware this means weighty and wide bottomed: old fashioneds, tumblers, and footed water/iced tea glasses devoid of color. In stemware it means light weight and well proportioned, again without color, and preferably with ground not rolled rims. If you insist on using your dishwasher for stemware go ahead and used rolled rims as they're more durable, but I assure you it's worth hand washing to drink out of a better glass.

Following are my recommendations for the average household, if you never entertain you can certainly scale back and if you're the consummate host by all means add in quantity of the essentials and then in variety.

Essentials:

12+ footed white wineglasses (for reasons of economy or space a good all around wineglass can work for both red and white, but it certainly increases the enjoyment to have both)

12+ footed red wineglasses

12+ footed water/iced tea glasses (make these dishwasher safe)

12+ tumblers or use your Riedel 'O' and similar glasses for this, but please don't use them for white wine

8+ old fashioneds

6+ champagne flutes, unless you're a bruncher in which case I'd have at least 12 on hand

Optional:

6+ brandy glasses (aka Snifter, the same word is also used for a small quantity of a distilled liquor)

6+ dessert wine glasses

6+ irish coffee glasses, a worthwhile purchase for some, you know who you are

12+ shot glasses, if you do shots, and I don't entirely recommend it, you might as well have a great number of glasses on hand, particularly of the souvenir variety

8+ margaritta glasses

8+ martini glasses, though just because you serve a beverage in this glass, despite the almost universal bastardization of the word, it does not make it a martini. More on this topic in a later post

I do not recommend, except for the most ardent ale connoseurs, investing money or storage space in beer mugs or pilsners as footed waters and good old fashioned pint glasses work for beer and myriad other beverages not the least of which is the bloody mary.

The quantities are merely suggestions, you know what you, your friends, and your family drink. Adjust accordingly. The suggestions of 8 or more are generally for "cocktail party" items while i find the items suggesting 6 are pulled out during the course of a "dinner party."

Nashville Part I

2008-09-09T04:53:00.000-07:00

My lack of posting last week was a reflection of a busy week spent in Nashville. The primary reason for the trip was ostensibly a meal. In my business, as I'm sure is the case in many fields, a large deal warrants a large meal with all the folks involved in the transaction.

We went to Jimmy Kelly's which has been a Nashville Dining Tradition since 1934. The restaurant is in a grand old Victorian home very near Vanderbilt's campus.

The bar was intimate with excellent service and ample televisions to satisy the football fan this time of year. There were a few public dining rooms of various sizes on the first floor and banquet rooms on the second.

We were seated in a good sized private room upstairs and were served by two excellent waiters who could very easily make the switch to stand-up comedy.

While reviewing the well edited menu and rather clipped winelist we were served the house specialty - corn cakes. These were thin, dense, pancakes akin to Hoe Cakes (recipe to follow), but Hoe Cakes beat them out in texture, flavor, and greasiness.

For appetizers we had fried oysters, onion rings, and crab cakes (formed into bite sized morsels at the recommendation of our waiter. These were all fried delights with the oysters being my favorite.

For salads we all bent to the pressure and ordered the house specialty "The Original Faucon Salad From My Granddad’s Good Friend, Mr. Faucon. Mixed Salty Bacon, Hard Boiled Eggs And Bleu Cheese Served On Our Iceberg Lettuce". This twist on the wedge was good if not great, the blue cheese dressing was a bit too thin and pungent at the same time.

For steaks, and everyone ordered a steak, we were across the board. I selected the standard cut of the Bleu Cheese Filet cooked to medium. I made this selection hoping that the ring of bacon surrounding the steak would be crispy, a concern I had with a medium rare order. Unfortunately the bacon was cooked but limp and the cheese had clearly been directly out of the refrigerator when packed around the steak resulting in a room temperature smear of cheese between the bacon and the steak. Several folks ordered the Bootlegger's Ribeye and seemed quite pleased with their selection. Untasted I would still recommend you head in that direction if dining at Jimmy Kelly's.

The only a la carte side selected was asparagus which still had sand in it. It should be noted that at the reasonable entree prices baked potatoes were included. These were old school wrapped in aluminum foil with a small pleated paper cup of sour cream on the side.

Only two desserts were ordered at the table: Death by Chocolate and Chocolate Decadence. I tasted the latter which was a very dense brownie covered in ice cream. I would probably recommend either the Blackberry Cobbler or Pecan Pie judging from the ones I saw coming out of the kitchen and the happy people in the downstairs dining room.

No after dinner drinks were ordered though quite a few ordered capuccinos and were disappointed to get milky coffee in the bottom of a too large coffee cup.

Jimmy Kelly's Wrap-up

Atmosphere: 4

Drinks: 3

Meat: 3.5

Sides: 3

Desert: 3

Service: 5

Value: 4.5

Overall: 3.7

Note: Still a better experience than Morton's Nashville.

Here's a recipe for Hoe Cakes from Paula Deen inspired by the trip to Jimmy Kelly's:

Ingredients:
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup self-rising cornmeal, or from a mix (recommended: Aunt Jemima's)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon sugar
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon water
1/4 cup vegetable oil or bacon grease
Oil, butter, or clarified margarine, for frying

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together, except for the frying oil, in a bowl until well combined. Heat the frying oil or butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Drop the batter into the hot skillet. Use about 2 tablespoons of batter per hoecake. Fry each hoecake until brown and crisp; turn each hoecake with a spatula, and then brown the other side. With a slotted spoon, remove each hoecake to drain on a paper towel-lined plate.

Chef's Note: Leftover batter will keep in refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Yield: 16 hoecakes (give or take)

Recipe and Photo courtesy Paula Deen

Omnivore's Hundred

2008-09-02T06:08:00.000-07:00

The Omnivore's Hundred is an eclectic and subjective list of 100 items that Andrew Wheeler, co-author of the British food blog Very Good Taste, thinks every omnivore should try at least once in his life. I found the list on Don’t Call Me Gringa, a blog I’ve been frequenting in anticipation of a trip to Santiago in a few weeks. Here are the instructions:

1. Copy this list into your blog, including these instructions.

2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten.

3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating (I didn’t have any items that I wouldn’t at least try).

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a big fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more (A must!)46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin – The only item on the list not really a food or beverage, it’s a “clay-like mineral”
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost or brunost
75. Roadkill – Not that I know of
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong - A smoked tea that should be easy to try.
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant – Not yet, I’ve done several two-stars
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse – I had it for the first time in a stew in a quaint restaurant in Bruege, Belgium, didn’t know until later what I had eaten. It was too good to apologize for.
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake – Rattlesnake, I’m not sure what other kinds of snakes are available for consumption in the US. I know in several countries, most notably China, snakes are added to liquor “to make men STRONG”.

If my math was right I've had 79 out of 100 of these gastronomic experiences. Not too bad, though looking at the list of things I haven’t yet had I need to spend some time in Asia. How does your list look?

A Well Stocked Bar II

2008-08-22T09:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's post was dedicated to the foundation of a bar, the trays on which you place your bottles, glasses, and other beverage related parephanalia. Today I'm going to focus on the one thing that I think most hosts and hostesses mess up in their bars - ice. It seems like such a simple thing but there's never enough of it thanks in part to the invention of the "ice bucket" a diminutive vessel appropriate for 2-4 people, but woefully insufficient for a real gathering, it's always floating in a pool of water, and the tongs, whoever invented ice tongs is a much more patient person than I will ever be.

My solutions: a large metal or glass bucket designed for chilling wine or Champagne, commonly referred to as a wine chiller, and a metal scoop. Here are a few images of items that should do the trick perfectly, and by all means fill the bucket with the arrival of the first guest and check back often.

This cut crystal number from William Sonoma Home is good for smaller gatherings and would certainly look beautiful on a traditional bar.

This double chiller from Simon Pearce is large, heavy, and a very pleasing shape. Simon Pearce hand makes great glass items. Many of their items make wonderful gifts.

this double chiller from William Sonoma in the right environs would look wonderful. There's a matching "ice bucket" but it's far too small for anyone with more than a handfull of friends.

Attractive stainless steel or sterling silver handled (most sterling scoops have stainless silver scoops for durability) scoops can be a bit harder to come by. Beverly Bremer has a huge selection in sterling, and probably has one in your silver pattern.

Whimsical stainless scoop.

One of the many sterling scoops from Beverly Bremer.

A Well Stocked Bar I

2008-08-21T11:25:00.001-07:00

I've been taking inventory of my bar and looking to fill in a few holes in the categories of glasses and fine spirits. As I take stock I thought I would share my thoughts on the makings of a well stocked bar.

Before you can pull together a collection of glasses, spirits, ice, garnishes, and the like you must decide on a location for a bar. For some of us our homes are equipped with bars, for others it's a spot in the kitchen, a sideboard in the dining room, or any other flat and generously sized surface.

After the location I believe the next building block for a suitable bar is a good sized tray, or trays. I prefer non-reactive metal as it's bound to catch the occasional drip or spill.

I think any one of these trays could serve this purpose depending on your decor:

From Pottery Barn

From William Sonoma Home

From William Sonoma

Or sterling is wonderful if the budget allows and the staff can keep up with the polishing. Here are some lovely trays from Beverly Bremer in Atlanta, the tray with black handles is a gorgeous George Jensen in the Acorn pattern:

Random Thoughts on Wine

2008-08-19T14:42:00.001-07:00

(Photo Credit: Oceanrudy/Flickr)

Wine is the drink of the gods, milk the drink of babies, tea the drink of women, and water the drink of beasts. John Stuart Blackie

I read this quote by a Scottsman and couldn't help but laugh. I haven't been able to ascertain the date of the quote, but clearly it's not contemporary. I think a modern man or woman could easilty take objection to every assertion: there are no gods, milk isn't good for babies, tea is for anyone who likes tea you sexist a#@ hole, and water's good for everyone, unless it comes in a plastic bottle. I'll take it for what it is and agree with no fewer than two of the assertions, which two will have to remain a mystery.

I read an interesting article on Slate today about the growing Chinese wine culture both drinking and also producing western-style wines. It's both exciting to see this evolution of the culture, democritization through wine, but it's also emblamatic of the overall globalization of food and beverage around the world leading to great expansions for popular products, but also an extinction of some less popular beverages in far off places. Like much of China's rapid growth it's likely that progress will once again come at a great cost to tradition.

I've fallen behind on posting wine reviews; here are a few of the bottles pulled out of the cellar recently:

#005 – Martin Coday – Albarino, 2006, Spain. Cork: plastic. Color: pale straw. Nose: citrus, peach, slightly metallic. Taste: Slow to open and a bit flabby at first with stone fruit, melon and citrus at the end. Finish: Slight minerality followed by a mouth coating buttered popcorn. Price: $14.00. Recommendation: An exotic choice for the oaked California Chardonnay crowd. Not counting myself one of these individuals this bottle will not again appear on our table. I couldn’t seem to find out about the fermentation process, but would swear that the wine underwent malolactic fermentation.

#006 – Hentley Farms Mallee Sands – Chardonay, 2006, South Australia. Cork: screw cap. Color: golden delicious apples. Nose: Oak, citrus, and minerals. Taste: Stonefruit, citrus, minerals. Finish: Pineapple fading to minerals, greasy mouth feel. Price: $14.00. Recommendation: Pass for all but the most devoted Chardonnay devotee.

Atlanta Corkage Fee Index

2008-08-19T06:43:00.000-07:00

As promised here's a starting point for the Atlanta Corkage Fee Reference Guide. If you have restaurants you'd like to see added, or have corrections please let me know. This is a work in progress and will be updated as required to keep the information current and include policies for additioanl restaurants.

At Last

2008-08-18T10:46:00.000-07:00

Steak night was a raving success. Here's why:

We woke a bit late Saturday morning, straightened up the house, then plopped down on the couch for some Netflix therapy - the 2nd disc of Season 2 30 Days. With the house looking great and a bit of relaxation we went upstairs to get ready. I donned my summer in Atlanta staples: cream linen trousers, linen shirt (this one blue), and loafers ready to hit the town. My lovely wife outdid me looking wonderful in black capris, a striking purple silk blouse, and black shrug.

Our dinner companion arrived and after a few minutes of chatting we headed to dinner with the clear intent of being sufficiently early to have a cocktail or two at the bar before dinner. Upon arriving at Bone's we checked in and found seats in the full but not overly crowded bar. The gentlemen had Grey Goose & Tonics while the lady had a glass of some American bubbly (no menu was available, so the wine will have to go unidentified).

When dining or entertaining one unexpected surprise (of the pleasant variety) can generally turn a good or great evening into something quite memorable. In this case it was the Silver Oak, or its lack. Apparently our companion left the bottle on the counter several days in advance to allow for any sediment to move to the bottom of the bottle (not likely, but always the excellent dinner and/or drinking companion he took no chances). While he was out on Friday night the bottle was, quite by mistake, opened by a woman in his home who shall remain nameless during a girls' night in. Needless to say he was quite perturbed, but a substitution was almost immediately offered up: Bodega Catena Zapata, Nicolas Catena Zapata 2004. Being a lover of Malbec and a fan of Catena Zapata I was quite excited about the substitution, as was my wife. Our companion seemed a bit dubious, but was heartened by our enthusiastic reactions.

Once seated at a good table in the cozy, if dated, dining room we were greated by a very friendly and informative waiter - Alexi, request him, he was excellent. When we told him we had brought our own wine he was excited with our choice and when asked to decant it he told us he was glad we had asked.

Our first course was a lobster and crab napolean. A simple affair of lump crab and lobster meat layered with triangles of puff pastry and sitting on a plate covered in a layer of a white wine cream sauce. A bit heavy to start a meal, but delicious none the less.

On to the meat. My companions stuck with tradition and ordered the filets - medium. I held to my own tradition and ordered something unique on the menu, in this case a mixed grill of beef filet, lamb chops, and pheasant sausage. All three meats were spectacular, but the pheasant sausage was the highlight. Even as I write this I can smell the fragrant spices and succulent meat.

The sides were mashed potatoes, french fries (off of the menu, and clearly designed for the kiddies, these were still quite good), and a macaroni and cheese made with white cheeses, bacon, and topped with fried onions. If you're excited about the mac and cheese reading this so was I, but alas we never got ours as the last of these were gone by the time our order was submitted.

Over our steaks we enjoyed great conversation and even better wine with excellent service from our waiter and his assitants.

We ordered desert and after dinner drinks: Balvenie 15yrs, Balvenie Double-Wood, and Fonseca 2001 Port for the drinks and a pecan pie (made by the same woman since the restaurant opened in 1979) and creme brulee for the sweets. We also had excellent espresso and capuccinos (incredible foam).

After all this it was time to go home for a few games of Sequence.

Bone's Wrap-up

Atmosphere: 4.5
Drinks: 5 + 1 ($10/bottle corkage fee)
Meat: 5
Sides: 4.5 (the mac and cheese sounded '5' worthy)
Desert: 4
Service: 5
Value: 4
Overall: 4.71

We'll be back to Bone's.

#004 – Nicolas Catena Zapata – Malbec, 2004, Argentina. Cork: natural. Color: Obsidian. Nose: Herbs, chocolate, jam. Taste: Jam, tobacco, berries, mint. Finish: Surprisingly subtle, with long smooth berry and herb flavors. Price: $120.00. Recommendation: Excellent, takes Malbec to an entirely different level, but at this price point there are better wines for the money. Literally pick up a bottle at the wine store - it’s impressive, big, heavy, very thick glass with deep punt.

Steak Night Approaches

2008-08-14T08:39:00.000-07:00

My computer has been a bit under the weather with hard drive problems which explains the lack of posts for the week. Dell assures that a new one will arrive tomorrow, then it's just a matter of moving EVERYTHING over. The mere thought has had me in search mode for upcoming pleasantries.

Steak Night: It's set for this Saturday at Bone's here in Atlanta. I'm getting really excited about cracking open the Silver Oak and perhaps even more the Turnbull. I will certainly share comments on both and should be able to declare a winner.

One deciding factor in the restaurant selection for this particular steak night was the restaurants' corkage policies as my companions and I have accumulated a few special bottles in anticipation of this upcoming celebratory Steak Night. Corkage policies vary all over Atlanta as I'm sure they do in all cities. They range from the very generous: Ruth's Chris Buckhead where they didn't charge anything to hostile: the Buckhead Life Restaurant Group (Chops, Panos & Pauls, Pricci's, etc.) where they don't allow outside wines, no excpetions. In all fairness the Buckhead Life restuarants have thoughtful lists with reasonable mark-ups, but sometimes you want to bring something not available on their list or a sentimental bottle. In the middle are restaurants like Kevin Rathbun's Steak at $20/bottle, Bone's at $10/bottle, and others going as high as $50. One frustration for those brave enough to try bringing their own bottle is that it's not easy to determine policies. They're generally not stated on the websites, or menus, or winelists. I'm gathering information now and will attempt to post a working list of corkage fees for restaurants in Atlanta in the near future and welcome others to join in and add other cities.

The wine columnists for the Wall Street Journal Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher have hit on this topic more than a few times and as I recall they have laid out a few basic rules for BYOB that seemed to be common sense for the well mannered diner. Following is my list, inspired by theirs: 1) Don't bring a bottle that's on the restaurant's list, 2) Don't bring something so inexpensive that it suggests you're only reason in bringing it was to save money, 3) Offer to share a taste of whatever you bring to the person pouring (waiter, wine steward, sommelier, etc.), 4) if you don't know the restaurant's policy call ahead to find out, and 5) tip the waitstaff as if you had purchased an average priced bottle from their list.

Does anyone have a corkage policy they would like to discuss? Posts are welcome.

The Finer Things

2008-08-11T07:21:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend we visited the High Museum of Art here in Atlanta. With new exhibits coming in September we needed to go and see the outgoing exhibits that we had thus far this summer neglected.

Houdon at the Louvre, while not my favorite of the series of Louvre exhibits coming to the High, was worth a trip. The collection was dominated by Houdon’s busts. As a renowned sculptor and preeminent bust artist of the Enlightenment, his work was made up of a who’s who of France and the new world: Voltaire, Napoleon, Franklin, Washington, politicians, actresses, and classical influences.

Not being that familiar with Houdon, it was great to see such a large collection of his work and compare it to the large collection of busts exhibited during the last Louvre exhibit held at the High. His gift for sculpture and for capturing the personalities and even the souls of his sitters for me at least had everything to do with their eyes. In classical sculpture the eyes were smooth and flat giving the appearance of almost blindness. Houdon was inventive in creating deep recesses to represent the iris and pupil allowing light and shadow to give the impression in marble, terra cotta, and plaster of real eyes looking back at you. Houdon’s other innovation was to sculpt children as children rather than the previous tradition of treating them as diminutive adults. The sculptures of his son and daughter were amazing, as was the sculpture of his wife complete with a slightly opened mouth showing highly realistic teeth.

After the exhibit and a few drinks at Tap, we went back to Table 1280 at the High for a light dinner. The food was excellent and, despite an empty restaurant on the Saturday before back-to school, the overall experience was quite enjoyable.

My take-away dish from the meal was an appetizer – figs in honey with ricotta. I think the dish would be better suited as a dessert and that’s how I intend to serve it.

The recipe as I imagine it (I will come back and correct if it’s different from what I anticipate):

2 dozen small ripe figs
8 Tbsp honey
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 ½ cups fresh ricotta
Mint and/or Toasted Hazelnuts to garnish

1) Clean and cut the small figs in half placing them in a plastic freezer bag.

2) Add 4 Tbsp of honey and lemon juice to the bag

3) Place in the refrigerator turning occasionally to coat, allow the figs to macerate for 3-4 hours

4) Mix 2 Tbsp of honey into the ricotta, form small quenelles using two spoons and place three on each plate in a star pattern leaving 2 inches of open space in the middle of the plate for the figs

5) Add the figs to the plates and drizzle remaining honey over figs and ricotta. Top with Mint and/or nuts.

Food & Wine

2008-08-08T09:43:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I was shopping at a farmer's market and couldn't resist buying a flat of beautiful fragrant strawberries. They were spectacular, nothing like the terrible out of season, shipped in from the other side of the world, strawberry look-a-likes peddled in grocery stores 12 months a year.

When I got home from the market I was inspired to make something light, but just a bit decadent. Since the Mrs. was out of town I was free to exclude chocolate from my selection criteria, as it is her opinion that dessert just isn't worth having unless it's choco-centric, and even plan around one of life's great pleasures, a glass of Sauternes.

After flipping through a few cookbooks including a new favorite, Tartine, I settled on a simple recipe from the William Sonoma Pie & Tart cookbook. The recipe was good, but not worth repeating here, but I hope that this inspires you to go out this weekend, buy some beautiful fruit during its proper season, and make the most of it by trying a new recipe and un-corking a special bottle.

#003 – Chateau Doisy-Vedrines – Sauternes, 2003, Barsac, France. Cork: natural. Color: honey gold. Nose: ripe apricots, honey, melon Taste: A bit simple for a wine of this pedigree. Honey, apricot, a slight bit of spice, candied lemon peel. Finish: Dull, sweet, fleeting. Price: $32.00. Recommendation: In spite of the 92 points Robert Parker gave it in 2005 I wouldn’t recommend it. Perhaps I let it go a bit long in the cellar, though Sauternes is one of the few white wines that truly benefit from ageing. As a side note, I opened a bottle of 2005 Chateau Violin (a play on one of the world’s original cult wines: Chateau d'Yquem, which easily exceeds $100 for a half-bottle) initially to go with my tart, but it was unfortunately corked.

Attention to Detail

2008-08-07T10:00:00.000-07:00

"Nothing is more pleasant than to see a pretty woman, her napkin well placed under her arms, one of her hands on the table, while the other carries to her mouth, the choice piece so elegantly carved."
Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

The last week or so I’ve begun, in earnest, to look for holiday gifts. I say in earnest, because it’s something I do all year, but as summer heat hits its crescendo, I find that thoughts of the cooler holidays help ease the pain of near triple-digit heat. One item on my list for the wife is a collection of high-quality, monogrammed, cloth cocktail napkins.

The idea has been in the back of my mind since I had drinks in the spring at the Oak Bar at the wonderful Hermitage Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. They have mastered the art of the elegant cocktail hour with wonderful snacks served in charming hotel-silver, three-compartment servers with tall central handle (desperately looking if anyone has run across one), a quality drinks menu at a time when so many are generic and cheesy, and the aforementioned cloth cocktail napkins.

I have found several choices for readily available napkins, but keep coming back to something bespoke. The maker I’m leaning towards is Leontine Linens as they have both a store and in-home consultation service here in Atlanta. I’m sure if they end up at our home we’ll be purchasing far more than cocktail napkins, so a trip to the store is probably the smarter option.

I’m leaning toward a single initial for our last name, though both of our first names begin with the same letter, so a three-letter palendromic monogram might be fun.

Here are pictures of a few monogrammed cocktail napkins to inspire.

Anticipation

2008-08-06T05:09:00.000-07:00

"On one occasion some one put a very little wine into a [glass], and said that it was sixteen years old. 'It is very small for its age,' said Gnathaena." Athenaeus, 200AD

Wines to be consumed at an upcoming steak night

Three of us are members of a very exclusive club, with a very simple name: Steak Club. The group formed out of habit and as these things tend to do it has taken on rules, schedules, and other traditions. The premise is quite simple, we gather at a different steakhouse each 3-5 weeks, order the house specialty for steak, or in the absence of a house specialty (already reducing the likely score) two order filets and I order something with a bit more flavor (ie fat). We sample unique appetizers or sides, though we always order mashed potatoes (seeing the word in print just made me think of Dan Quayle, I suppose it has to do with the upcoming vice presidential selections), another barometer of the quality of a chef. Then we finish with dessert, espresso and cappuccinos, and port. While we bask in the afterglow of overindulgence we rate the various dishes, service, ambiance, wine list, and value. I'll include some of our reviews in later posts, and will include reviews in real time as we continue our gustatory march through Atlanta.

The next steak night will take place in the next week or so and we're in the process of selecting the restaurant. This one is special because it is our second "deal night" where we celebrate the achievement of one of our members. The last one took place at the end of last year at Ruth's Chris and we brought wine. The restaurant garnered great marks for allowing us to bring two bottles of wine without a corkage fee (highly unusual). I brought a 2001 Silver Oak I received as a gift from a work associate and one of our other members brought a much older Italian wine (please forgive my not having the name, I'm going to have to look for it in my tasting notes) from the family cellar. There were great expectations for both wines, but primarily for the Italian wine. We were not surprised by the enjoyment we found in the Silver Oak, but were very disappointed by the other wine.

This time our Italian friend, determined not to be bested, and in an exhibit of great generosity has purchased a 2002 Nappa Valley Silver Oak for the occasion. I have done a bit of research talking to several wine merchants and have selected a 2004 Turnbull Cabernet. In rough numbers the Silver Oak Napa is around $100 and the Turnbull is $50. I've been assured by no less than two great merchants that I respect that the Turnbull should blow the Silver Oak out of the water. I'll be sure to let you know, if the Turnbull is even 80% as enjoyable as the Silver Oak the price difference should make it a must buy.

What's your go-to wine for special occassions?

One really good thing...

2008-08-05T04:53:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we had dinner with friends at Room at the new Twelve Hotel Downtown Atlanta. While the company was excellent, the food was just average. At a place billing itself as a steakhouse, the meats were stingy and under-seasoned. The one exception to this mediocrity was an appetizer - warm gougeres, bacon, swiss cheese, pickled onions & arugula. The dish was well composed with acid, salt, sweetness, rich, tender, and crunch. It was the perfect start to a meal.

We had friends over for drinks before heading out for dinner and the wife and I decided to try these at home. The starting point is a small puff shell; these versatile little wonders make frequent appearances around our home, but always as the basis for some easy make-ahead dessert. My go to recipe is a classic from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, here’s my modern format for this versatile recipe:

Makes 36 to 40 Small Puffs

Preheat oven to 425 degrees with two racks evenly spaced.

Ingredients for pâte à choux (versatile dough):
1 Cup water
6 Tbsp Salted Butter
1 Tsp sea-salt
1/8 Tsp white pepper
Pinch nutmeg (optional)
¾ Cup all-purpose flour
4 Large eggs

Ingredients for Pickled Onions:
One large white onion
1 Cup red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Ingredients for filling (may change to your taste):
¼ pound fine swiss cheese cut into thin slices approximately 1 inch square
½ pound very thickly cut bacon fried to your liking, though not too crisp
1 small package micro-green salad mix

Instructions for the Pickled Onion

1) Slice peeled onion in quarters

2) Slice quarters into ¼ wide strips

3) Place in an airtight container and cover with both vinegars

4) Place in refrigerator 2-8 hours before you intend to serve

Instructions for the Gougeres (Profiteroles filled with cheese)

1) Bring water to boil with the butter and seasonings and boil slowly until the butter has melted.

2) Remove pan from heat and immediately pour in all the flour at once. Beat vigorously with a wooden spoon for several seconds to blend thoroughly. Move pan back onto high heat for 1-2 minutes until mixture leaves the sides of the pan and the spoon forming a ball in the middle of the pan.

3) Remove the pan from heat and make a well in the center of the paste with the spoon. Immediately break an egg into the center of the well. Beat it into the paste for several seconds until it has been absorbed. Each time an egg is added the dough will break apart into pieces, but will pull back together with continued stirring. Continue with the rest of the eggs, beating them in one at a time. The third and fourth eggs will be absorbed more slowly. Beat for a moment more to be sure all is well blended and smooth.

4) While it’s still warm fill the bag with the dough. If using a plastic bag cut the corner at an angle approximately ¼ inch from the corner to create a ½ inch diameter hole.

5) Squeeze the paste onto the lined baking sheets, making circular mounds about 1 inch in diameter and ½ inch high. Space the mounds 2 inches apart.

6) With a wet finger flatten the tip of the dough formed by the pastry bag.

7) Set the baking sheets in the preheated, 425-degree oven, and bake for about 20 minutes.

8) The puffs are done when they’ve doubled in size turned a nice golden color. Remove from the oven and immediately pierce the puffs with the tip of a sharp knife to create a ½ inch slit in the side.

9) Put the puffs back in the turned-off oven with the door ajar for 10 more minutes. When they come out place them on wire racks to cool. They can stay out of the over for several hours this way. You can bake these off the day before you intend to use them and store them in a large container with plenty of room for air circulation. They will get a bit soft, but they will crisp up nicely with the second heating.

About thirty minutes before you intend to serve pre-heat your oven to 350-degrees.

1) Slice your gougeres in half leaving the top and bottom halves connected on one side

2) Insert from bottom to top: one piece of bacon, one piece of onion (may hang out slightly from the puff adding color), another piece of bacon, and a slice of cheese.

3) Leave the gougeres sitting “open” and place in the oven until the cheese has melted, approximately 10 minutes if puffs and bacon are at room temperature, less time if ingredients are warm, or slightly longer if ingredients are coming out of the fridge.

4) Once the gougeres come out of the oven add a few microgreens to each, close them up, and place them on a warm platter. Tip: Make in batches for an open house to ensure that everyone gets at least one warm gougere.

Serve these at your next cocktail party or open house and they’re sure to be a hit. To please a variety of tastes make more gougeres and fill with other fillings: mushrooms with a thick cream sauce, chicken salad (a must in the South), even pulled pork if you’re feeling like fusion cuisine.

Vino

2008-08-02T10:47:00.000-07:00

#001 – Amancaya – Cabernet-Malbec 2005, Argentina. Cork: natural. Color: deep purple. Nose: Fresh baked bread, cherries, faint herbs . Taste: Tobacco, oak, dirt, blackberry. Finish: Long, oak, mid fruit, and lingering tobacco. Price: $14.50. Recommendation: A no, if you receive as a gift decant for a more enjoyable experience.

#002 – Collalto Extra Dry – Prosecco NV, Italy. Cork: natural. Color: pale gold, green. Nose: Brioche, green apples, and grass. Taste: yeast, green apples, honeydew. Finish: Long, honey, sweet & sticky. Price: $19.00. Recommendation: Better proseccos for the money.

A food writer of sorts…

2008-07-30T05:49:00.000-07:00

“Wine?” she said with a glint of aggression. She reached into the refrigerator, the corkscrew already in her other hand. “It’s a Sancerre, but not as expensive as it tastes, by far.” She wrested the cork from its hole with a faintly savage twist of her wrist.

The Great Man, Kate Christensen

I’m reading through a large pile (actually two piles and a shelf) of books I’ve accumulated over the past year or so. Having just finished, Careless in Read, the latest tome by Elizabeth George, a herculean undertaking given her penchant for long , satisfying books filled with fully fleshed-out minor characters, I picked up the relatively diminutive The Great Man, by Kate Christensen less than half the size of the George.

I’ve known Kate (in a reader:author sense of the word) for a long time and have read all of her books to various degrees of satisfaction. This one is a quick read and quite witty. Why I mention any of this is that she has a consistent theme in her works of food, beverage, and dinner table conversation, though not so overt as to end up in the genre of food fiction. This is perhaps best illustrated in her 2005 work, The Epicure’s Lament. Her latest novel, for example, starts with Teddy St. Cloud, the widowed-mistress of a great painter, preparing a snack and then a meal for a would-be biographer of the painter. She notes almost immediately after meeting her interlocutor for the evening that, “It’s amazing how well you can live on very little money.” For Teddy living “very well” is a matter of eating well, drinking well, and surrounding herself with individuals as diverse and as stimulating as the food she puts on her table. As the book progresses we hear of her bartering for gourmet foods, growing her own obscure gourmet lettuce, and in my favorite example there is her obvious devotion to Sancerre. While one’s first thought is that a French wine can hardly be a bargain for a retired secretary; for Teddy it’s a matter of value not merely cost. There is perhaps no clearer expression, no more elegant incarnation, of Sauvignon Blanc, than Sancerre, something that Teddy clearly recognizes.

As another hot and humid summer weekend fast approaches, though perhaps not fast enough for some of us, I recommended picking up a copy of The Great Man and a few bottles of Sancerre to round out the experience. A personal favorite, and in honor of Teddy a great value at $15, is the Domaine Franck Millet. The last bottle I tasted was the 2005 and I found it charming, full of citrus, minerals, and the crisp acid that make it pair well with food.

Innaugural Post

2008-07-29T10:45:00.000-07:00

“Old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to read.” Athenaeus

Athenaeus, a Greek living in Egypt during the end of the 2nd and beginning of the 3rd century A.D. wrote about many things, chiefly among them food, under the pretense of recording the musings of 30 or more learned men (sorry ladies, it was a different time) at a single banquet held by a friend, book collector, and patron of the arts. This work known as Deipnosophistae is divided into 15 sections, and is filled with conversation on interesting topics focused on good citizens living the good life. The word deipnosophist, derived from deipnon, "dinner" + sophistas, "a clever or wise man", has come to mean either a gastronome/gourmet/epicurean/foodie or a gifted conversationalist. Quite simply it means the kind of dinner guest one wants at their table.

I hope that there are those among us who aspire to be this sort of learned, witty, jovial, conversive guest. This blog is devoted to the mastering the myriad skills needed to make it to the top of everyone's guest list and to ensure that similar ladies and gentlemen aspire to make it onto yours.