Wednesday, September 28, 2005
off topic fun with words
I'd like to point out the unintentional humor in the
current yankees pitching rotation:
Small, Johnson, Moose, Wang, Chacon (pronounced
"shakin'"?)
That's the best since Toronto starter Bush was
followed by reliever League in a rout by the red sox
earlier this season.
current yankees pitching rotation:
Small, Johnson, Moose, Wang, Chacon (pronounced
"shakin'"?)
That's the best since Toronto starter Bush was
followed by reliever League in a rout by the red sox
earlier this season.
A Lesson on Terroir
Ever since I started paying attention to the finer points of wine and food, I've come across the notion of terroir and the endless arguments over its value. Simply defined, terroir is the impact of microclimate, soil, care and voodoo that makes growing things, particularly wine, taste a way that is different than the exact same thing grown a hundred miles, or a hundred yards away. The dispute is over how important this is though I don't see how. There are certainly ways of diminishing its effects in order to homogenize flavors and characteristics but when fruits and veggies are simply grown with minimal impact, the character of the environment will show for good or bad. It is what makes us prefer foods and drinks from certain places whether we're talking cheese, wine, coffee or beef. Last week, I got a lesson on terroir from a French wine producer who is a believer in the importance of place.
Gerard Bertrand is a winemaker in the Pays d'Oc, the part of France bordering Spain on the Mediterranean coast. He was at the tasting with his US importer/distributor to try to sell his wines to retail outlets and restaurants in the Boston area. His passion for the wine is clear; he practically grew up making wine, detouring briefly to play professional rugby but now is a full time wine guy. The tasting wasn't very crowded so I had a chance to linger with each wine and talk to him about them.
He releases wines under several labels but the ones that caughty my interest were the estate bottlings (all of the grapes came from specific vineyards) that came from three different sections of the Pays d'Oc: Minervois, Corbieres and Languedoc. Each was a similar blend of the typical grapes of the region: Syrah, Grenache, Carignan and occasionally, Mourvedre. The different estates in the different regions produced wines that reflected the differences in climates, elevation and soil. With him providing details, I was able to pick out the effect of sea breezes vs. mountain air, clay soil vs, gravel, low-lying valleys versus hillsides. All these things were there because he took care to preserve them. His reserve estate bottlings, which were produced in small batches from grapes grown in single parcels were even more impressive.
The terroir debate rages on in the wine world (see the film "Mondo Vino" for an argument against the universalization of flavor) but I was lucky enough to hear one man's argument for why his few acres in the south of France were so important the wine he makes. To him, the wine isn't made to suit a style or taste but it is a representation of the place it comes from. One can see this in more than just wine. Taste the difference in olives grown in different places or apples from a local orchard in October versus the shiny perfect ones from the supermarket. As an extreme example, look at the perfect form and flavor of hydroponically grown produce versus the stuff you might grow in your own yard. You'll notice both benefits and shortcomings to terroir inflected foods but the important thing is that things taste different in different places. Without it, there would be no joy in eating fresh, local corn in the summer, fresh caught fish or wine made in small batches by hand with minimal impact from production. Simply, life would be less exciting if everything we eat tasted the same day in and day out.
Gerard Bertrand is a winemaker in the Pays d'Oc, the part of France bordering Spain on the Mediterranean coast. He was at the tasting with his US importer/distributor to try to sell his wines to retail outlets and restaurants in the Boston area. His passion for the wine is clear; he practically grew up making wine, detouring briefly to play professional rugby but now is a full time wine guy. The tasting wasn't very crowded so I had a chance to linger with each wine and talk to him about them.
He releases wines under several labels but the ones that caughty my interest were the estate bottlings (all of the grapes came from specific vineyards) that came from three different sections of the Pays d'Oc: Minervois, Corbieres and Languedoc. Each was a similar blend of the typical grapes of the region: Syrah, Grenache, Carignan and occasionally, Mourvedre. The different estates in the different regions produced wines that reflected the differences in climates, elevation and soil. With him providing details, I was able to pick out the effect of sea breezes vs. mountain air, clay soil vs, gravel, low-lying valleys versus hillsides. All these things were there because he took care to preserve them. His reserve estate bottlings, which were produced in small batches from grapes grown in single parcels were even more impressive.
The terroir debate rages on in the wine world (see the film "Mondo Vino" for an argument against the universalization of flavor) but I was lucky enough to hear one man's argument for why his few acres in the south of France were so important the wine he makes. To him, the wine isn't made to suit a style or taste but it is a representation of the place it comes from. One can see this in more than just wine. Taste the difference in olives grown in different places or apples from a local orchard in October versus the shiny perfect ones from the supermarket. As an extreme example, look at the perfect form and flavor of hydroponically grown produce versus the stuff you might grow in your own yard. You'll notice both benefits and shortcomings to terroir inflected foods but the important thing is that things taste different in different places. Without it, there would be no joy in eating fresh, local corn in the summer, fresh caught fish or wine made in small batches by hand with minimal impact from production. Simply, life would be less exciting if everything we eat tasted the same day in and day out.
Last wednesday of Sept.
NYT: The Jewish high holidays are upon us; customers at my work are increasingly requesting kosher wine and the Times lead article is on Kugel. I had to first figure out what kugel was to understand the article. It is some sort of savory treat often served during the holidays, a sort of pudding?
Not much else going on today. A chef likes onions, the Minimalist makes singapore style shrimp and the humble simplicities of a pantry meal are celebrated. This time of year is also football season so it's time for the annual tailgate recipe article which certain readers of mine might find interesting...
The Pour focuses on Mt. Eden V'yards in California. Here, it is told, the essence of terroir in the french sense is clearly exhibited.
SF Chronicle: Can I spot a trend or what? Not top but near the top is an article on Kugel in this paper. Further down is another related article to one in the times...
The lead however, belongs to the Tadich Grill, one of SFs oldest and most revered restaurants. Not much else that's too exciting: a greek salad, honoring Autumn squash, John Waynes favorite casserole.
The wine section has turned this Easterners perspective on its head; the lead is on NY state wines. Now that they are available for direct shipment, Californians are taking notice. Interesting... Also, the tasting focus is on russian River Pinots. I like this region for its elegance and subtlety. Not quite the austerely beautiful burgundys or Oregon Pinots but far more restrained than many of the overheated central coast pinots. The wines are paired with a squab and onion compote salad. The bargain wine section brings me back to the Times article with the best tailgating wines. Be careful though, often glass bottles aren't allowed in tailgating areas. Finally, my favorite cocktail column brings us the Stanford. I always enjoy a well made Harvard at my local, perhaps this will become my drink of the future?
Not much else going on today. A chef likes onions, the Minimalist makes singapore style shrimp and the humble simplicities of a pantry meal are celebrated. This time of year is also football season so it's time for the annual tailgate recipe article which certain readers of mine might find interesting...
The Pour focuses on Mt. Eden V'yards in California. Here, it is told, the essence of terroir in the french sense is clearly exhibited.
SF Chronicle: Can I spot a trend or what? Not top but near the top is an article on Kugel in this paper. Further down is another related article to one in the times...
The lead however, belongs to the Tadich Grill, one of SFs oldest and most revered restaurants. Not much else that's too exciting: a greek salad, honoring Autumn squash, John Waynes favorite casserole.
The wine section has turned this Easterners perspective on its head; the lead is on NY state wines. Now that they are available for direct shipment, Californians are taking notice. Interesting... Also, the tasting focus is on russian River Pinots. I like this region for its elegance and subtlety. Not quite the austerely beautiful burgundys or Oregon Pinots but far more restrained than many of the overheated central coast pinots. The wines are paired with a squab and onion compote salad. The bargain wine section brings me back to the Times article with the best tailgating wines. Be careful though, often glass bottles aren't allowed in tailgating areas. Finally, my favorite cocktail column brings us the Stanford. I always enjoy a well made Harvard at my local, perhaps this will become my drink of the future?
Monday, September 26, 2005
Bolognese season is upon us
Yesterday on my day off, I made the cold weather season's first bolognese sauce. Given that Tuesday is my day off and practically no one elses, I have all sorts of time to do this without missing anything. I ate some, froze some and put a little bit in the fridge to eat later this week. Mmmm, mmmmm, mmmm.
I like cold weather food. It takes longer and makes a bigger mess than the grill but I love the concentrated flavors and heartiness of a good braise, stew or roast. Next time maybe I'll invite people over to share with me.
Here's my basic recipe if anyone cares. I made enough to enjoy now and put some away for quick defrost later on. I imagine that it would serve 5-6 people if served all at once. This is just the basic, feel free to improvise.
· Total 2.5 pounds mixed ground meats: veal, beef and pork seasoned with salt and pepper.
· A few ounces of pancetta, soppressata, guanciale or sausage, chopped coarsely into small bits. This adds a little fat and flavor to the meat.
· Brown the meats in a largish, thick-bottomed pot or dutch oven with half butter, half olive oil.
· While this is going on, finely chop a cup of either shallot or white onion and a few cloves of garlic, to your taste.
· Clean and peal a small-medium carrot and grate it finely. I like to grate it so it is absorbed into the sauce and lends a sweet flavor without texture. A sweet pepper finely chopped can fill this role as well.
· Once the meat is done, remove it to a bowl lined with paper towels to capture some, but not all of the grease. Drain off excess grease from the pot and add the onion, garlic, cook until the garlic starts to brown slightly.
· At this point you can add some herbs. I use whatever is fresh: rosemary, sage, maybe some oregano. This is also the time to add dry herbs if you’re using them: basil, oregano, maybe a bay leaf…
· Add a cup or so of dry wine. Bring to a boil and reduce slightly while scraping the brown frond off the bottom of the pot. I usually use a hearty Italian red like a barbera or chianti classico that I’ll end up drinking later with the meal. White would be fine if you have a bottle in the fridge for cookin’.
· Put the meat in the pot and stir together with the aromatics. Add two large cans, two pomi brand boxes or 4 small cans of tomatoes (have an extra small can on hand in case the proportion isn’t right). I use strained or pureed tomatoes as they bring everything together instantly but whole tomatoes, properly broken up and de-stemmed and seeded will work nicely. If sauce looks thin, add some tomato paste to thicken it up. Bring to a burping boil.
· Season with salt and pepper to taste and let simmer for a few hours stirring and sampling occasionally.
· A half hour before serving, add coarsely chopped basil, saving some for garnish.
· Top with grated cheese and serve with pasta. I like thick fettucine or pappardelle but shells or penne hold the chunky sauce well.
This will only get better with time. If you can make it in the morning, it will be great in the evening. Make enough to put some away in the fridge or freezer and it will be only get better.
Variations:
· In the past I’ve used just veal and just lamb. The veal comes out very delicate and requires more butter to cover the lack of fat. The lamb is nice and earthy and likes strong rosemary flavor. Bison would work well instead of beef. Wild boar is a common menu item but not practical for most of us at home.
· I had some dried porcini mushrooms lying around and added them after hydrating them in hot water (add the resulting broth with the wine) and chopping them up pretty finely. They add a nice earthy flavor and soft texture.
· There are versions that use a little cream to thicken the sauce though I avoid it because I don’t think it would keep as well.
I like cold weather food. It takes longer and makes a bigger mess than the grill but I love the concentrated flavors and heartiness of a good braise, stew or roast. Next time maybe I'll invite people over to share with me.
Here's my basic recipe if anyone cares. I made enough to enjoy now and put some away for quick defrost later on. I imagine that it would serve 5-6 people if served all at once. This is just the basic, feel free to improvise.
· Total 2.5 pounds mixed ground meats: veal, beef and pork seasoned with salt and pepper.
· A few ounces of pancetta, soppressata, guanciale or sausage, chopped coarsely into small bits. This adds a little fat and flavor to the meat.
· Brown the meats in a largish, thick-bottomed pot or dutch oven with half butter, half olive oil.
· While this is going on, finely chop a cup of either shallot or white onion and a few cloves of garlic, to your taste.
· Clean and peal a small-medium carrot and grate it finely. I like to grate it so it is absorbed into the sauce and lends a sweet flavor without texture. A sweet pepper finely chopped can fill this role as well.
· Once the meat is done, remove it to a bowl lined with paper towels to capture some, but not all of the grease. Drain off excess grease from the pot and add the onion, garlic, cook until the garlic starts to brown slightly.
· At this point you can add some herbs. I use whatever is fresh: rosemary, sage, maybe some oregano. This is also the time to add dry herbs if you’re using them: basil, oregano, maybe a bay leaf…
· Add a cup or so of dry wine. Bring to a boil and reduce slightly while scraping the brown frond off the bottom of the pot. I usually use a hearty Italian red like a barbera or chianti classico that I’ll end up drinking later with the meal. White would be fine if you have a bottle in the fridge for cookin’.
· Put the meat in the pot and stir together with the aromatics. Add two large cans, two pomi brand boxes or 4 small cans of tomatoes (have an extra small can on hand in case the proportion isn’t right). I use strained or pureed tomatoes as they bring everything together instantly but whole tomatoes, properly broken up and de-stemmed and seeded will work nicely. If sauce looks thin, add some tomato paste to thicken it up. Bring to a burping boil.
· Season with salt and pepper to taste and let simmer for a few hours stirring and sampling occasionally.
· A half hour before serving, add coarsely chopped basil, saving some for garnish.
· Top with grated cheese and serve with pasta. I like thick fettucine or pappardelle but shells or penne hold the chunky sauce well.
This will only get better with time. If you can make it in the morning, it will be great in the evening. Make enough to put some away in the fridge or freezer and it will be only get better.
Variations:
· In the past I’ve used just veal and just lamb. The veal comes out very delicate and requires more butter to cover the lack of fat. The lamb is nice and earthy and likes strong rosemary flavor. Bison would work well instead of beef. Wild boar is a common menu item but not practical for most of us at home.
· I had some dried porcini mushrooms lying around and added them after hydrating them in hot water (add the resulting broth with the wine) and chopping them up pretty finely. They add a nice earthy flavor and soft texture.
· There are versions that use a little cream to thicken the sauce though I avoid it because I don’t think it would keep as well.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Wednesday
Just the two today:
NYT: Have you heard about Times Select? The online version of NYT is now partially restricted to paying subscribers or home delivery recipients. This mostly affects the Op-Ed pages and archives and the food section is in the clear so don't worry. You still need to register with them but that is still free.
The section today has their occasional "Ales of the Times" column on beer. The focus is on Trappist and abbey style ales from Belgium. Mmmmm. Quick note: only beers from actual abbeys are allowed to be called "Trappist." Beers made in that style have to be called "abbey ale." The pairings column matches monk made cheeses with the beers. I hope they didn't take to long to come up with that one. In the "food stuff" section, there is mention of a couple of new wine shops in NYC that reminded me of where I work and am right now, at work.
Over on the food side, the issue of "hyphenated" chinese cuisine is discussed in the lead article and an accompanying piece highlights a couple of restaurants that do that sort of thing. The Fall Cook gets some pumpkins warmed up. Mr. Minimal goes bonkers with prepacked, peeled cloves of garlic. And finally, a report on the first signs of the recovery of New Orleans' culinary culture.
SF Chronicle: YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!! I frickin' love this paper. The lead is on local restaurants curing their own meats. The wonderful picture that accompanies features a beautiful plate of various cured meats being held by a chef with a tattoo of a butchers diagram of a pig. Did I ever mention that the restaurant I dream of owning would raise its own piggies and have an extensive curing room for all sorts of deliciousness?
Also in the section are articles on other, lesser food items. There's one on romano beans, another on easy breakys and brunches, a similar article on New Orleans chefs picking up the pieces and finally, a local milk shake joint. But you should just stick with the pig.
The wine section features sake. apparently, no one told them sake is a beer, not a wine. duh. Everyone knows that. The pairing is fried green tomato sandwiches, the cheese is Vermont Cheddar and the tastings are Cali. Pinto Grigios. Still. I obviously have yet to figure out when this section updates.
NYT: Have you heard about Times Select? The online version of NYT is now partially restricted to paying subscribers or home delivery recipients. This mostly affects the Op-Ed pages and archives and the food section is in the clear so don't worry. You still need to register with them but that is still free.
The section today has their occasional "Ales of the Times" column on beer. The focus is on Trappist and abbey style ales from Belgium. Mmmmm. Quick note: only beers from actual abbeys are allowed to be called "Trappist." Beers made in that style have to be called "abbey ale." The pairings column matches monk made cheeses with the beers. I hope they didn't take to long to come up with that one. In the "food stuff" section, there is mention of a couple of new wine shops in NYC that reminded me of where I work and am right now, at work.
Over on the food side, the issue of "hyphenated" chinese cuisine is discussed in the lead article and an accompanying piece highlights a couple of restaurants that do that sort of thing. The Fall Cook gets some pumpkins warmed up. Mr. Minimal goes bonkers with prepacked, peeled cloves of garlic. And finally, a report on the first signs of the recovery of New Orleans' culinary culture.
SF Chronicle: YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!! I frickin' love this paper. The lead is on local restaurants curing their own meats. The wonderful picture that accompanies features a beautiful plate of various cured meats being held by a chef with a tattoo of a butchers diagram of a pig. Did I ever mention that the restaurant I dream of owning would raise its own piggies and have an extensive curing room for all sorts of deliciousness?
Also in the section are articles on other, lesser food items. There's one on romano beans, another on easy breakys and brunches, a similar article on New Orleans chefs picking up the pieces and finally, a local milk shake joint. But you should just stick with the pig.
The wine section features sake. apparently, no one told them sake is a beer, not a wine. duh. Everyone knows that. The pairing is fried green tomato sandwiches, the cheese is Vermont Cheddar and the tastings are Cali. Pinto Grigios. Still. I obviously have yet to figure out when this section updates.
Thursday, September 15, 2005
what I'm reading
Hi,
Adam at VdV gave me "Emperor of Wine" to read. It is a profile of Robert Parkers rise to the top of the wine game and his impact on the way wine is made and criticized. It is surprisingly fascinating, at least to me. I'm only part way through but I'll let you know how it turns out (I think the butler did it).
I also recently finished "My First Crush" by Alison Kaplans mom Linda. She and her husband bought a winery in Oregon and moved out from Iowa back about ten years ago. She had very little wine knowledge at the time and the book chronicles her entrance into the industry and the many adventures they had along the way. It's a fun little read though it is probably targeted more to women who may find themselves perplexed by the wine world and want a non-technical introduction as it is informative to those with little wine knowledge beyond the basics. Sidebars provide in-depth information on production and tasting factors that are mentioned in the text.
Adam at VdV gave me "Emperor of Wine" to read. It is a profile of Robert Parkers rise to the top of the wine game and his impact on the way wine is made and criticized. It is surprisingly fascinating, at least to me. I'm only part way through but I'll let you know how it turns out (I think the butler did it).
I also recently finished "My First Crush" by Alison Kaplans mom Linda. She and her husband bought a winery in Oregon and moved out from Iowa back about ten years ago. She had very little wine knowledge at the time and the book chronicles her entrance into the industry and the many adventures they had along the way. It's a fun little read though it is probably targeted more to women who may find themselves perplexed by the wine world and want a non-technical introduction as it is informative to those with little wine knowledge beyond the basics. Sidebars provide in-depth information on production and tasting factors that are mentioned in the text.
A day late but here it is:
NYT: Not very much going on this week in food section land. The Times in particular is pretty slow and resembles the travel section. They lead with a piece on how great a job chefs are doing in Sydney and move right along to the efforts of restaurants in Iceland to woo American tourists. Other features cover the difficulty of raw food preparation (cooking?), a wine guy who gets a new job and a listing of available wine education programs in the city. Mr. Minimal makes it worthwhile by providing an excellent twist on grilled steak as a last hurrah for summer grilling.
SF Chronicle: This section too is a little light on content this week. The lead is a profile of a morroccan chef who likes tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. The next biggest piece is on the grand kitchen tool known as the melon baller. Someone else tells you how to roast salmon, frozen green beans are compared and that's about it.
The wine section picks up some slack with a nice piece on pairing wines with notoriously difficult foods to pair with. It does a good job but there comes a time when you should just forego wine and drink water or something else for a course. The focus column is on Cali. Pinots Gris and Grigio, the bargains are whites after labor day. The cheese is irish Gubban. The cocktail is still beertails.
I've got to figure out when they change the wine column because it is quite confusing if you go to the section after wednesday and there are some new things but not all.
Again, no guest column this week, I've got a few things on my to do list that need taking care of.
NYT: Not very much going on this week in food section land. The Times in particular is pretty slow and resembles the travel section. They lead with a piece on how great a job chefs are doing in Sydney and move right along to the efforts of restaurants in Iceland to woo American tourists. Other features cover the difficulty of raw food preparation (cooking?), a wine guy who gets a new job and a listing of available wine education programs in the city. Mr. Minimal makes it worthwhile by providing an excellent twist on grilled steak as a last hurrah for summer grilling.
SF Chronicle: This section too is a little light on content this week. The lead is a profile of a morroccan chef who likes tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. The next biggest piece is on the grand kitchen tool known as the melon baller. Someone else tells you how to roast salmon, frozen green beans are compared and that's about it.
The wine section picks up some slack with a nice piece on pairing wines with notoriously difficult foods to pair with. It does a good job but there comes a time when you should just forego wine and drink water or something else for a course. The focus column is on Cali. Pinots Gris and Grigio, the bargains are whites after labor day. The cheese is irish Gubban. The cocktail is still beertails.
I've got to figure out when they change the wine column because it is quite confusing if you go to the section after wednesday and there are some new things but not all.
Again, no guest column this week, I've got a few things on my to do list that need taking care of.
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
Wednesday
Oops, it's been a couple of weeks. My bad.
NYT: I'm going to break tradition and mention restaurant review and related articles here and talk about the main feature on the Times today. It is a preview of the NYC restaurant scene for the "Fall and beyond" which will undoubtedly have an impact on restaurants throughout the country. I'm not naive enough to consider NY to be the marker that chefs and restarateurs across the country abide by but you have to admit that there is certainly influence. Most of the other articles also discuss the industry so I'm stuck anyway. In one, we find a chef who took a healthier approach to his menu after suffering a heart attack. Another reports the effort to improve the quality of table location in some restaurants. A very interesting, though predictably liberal, article discusses how the faces in todays best restaurants are nearly as homogenously white as they were 50 years ago.
Wines of the Times taste a selection of Languedoc wines. The d'oc, in southern france, produces a whole lot of wine that varies in quality but is far more diverse and wallet friendly than the better known French appelations. Florence does the honor of pairing duck and cassoulet with these wines. Suddenly, I'm very much looking forward to cold weather cuisine. Speaking of which, the Minimalist makes a late summer salad. Get out those sweaters and put away the short shorts, it's almost time to start braising! On second thought, keep the short shorts out...
SF Chronicle: Sometimes you're tempted to think that this whole foodie thing is a product of recent generations who were exposed to better and tastier things as a result of greater income and exposure to the world. The Gate reminds us that the legacy is in fact long and full. The lead articles are about the food and beverage history of San Fran and its impact on the nations taste. Good stuff. Thankfully, as far as the running theme of this column goes, they feature a picture of a farm stand from the 40's.
Speaking of farmers markets, another article relates the prevalence of native European produce in Bay area markets. In addition, memories of an orchards bounty prep readers for the Fall.
The lead wine article highlights the wines made by Napa vintner Cathy Corison who eschews the Parker influenced high alcohol wines in favor of more drinkable, subtle wines. Good for her. She has my full support. The selection reviews are Sonoma AVA (an American attempt at appelations) Cabernet Sauvignons. They are paired with "Oklahoma beef wellington," a sort of meatloaf sandwich made as a single unit. The cheese is Toma Piemontese, a DOP cheese (again with appelations, sheesh!) from, uh, the Piedmont. The cocktail column is about beertails. Proceed with caution.
Lastly, an article discusses the losses to the American menu caused by the hurricane. If the way people eat is an idication of how we're doing then the recovery of New Orleans will be interesting to view in this regard. I was in New Orleans while in college and we spent as much time planning our next meal as anything else. We ate crawfish in a join that was little more than a shack, had jambalaya at Mothers, beignets from that place whose name I forget, po' boys from an anonymous neighborhood sandwich shop, browsed the market for cajun spices and hot sauces and even had 'gator burritos. It was a great experience and I send my most earnest best wishes to all those who lost so much.
I'm going to forego a guest spot this week. I've run out of major papers to use and spent a lot of time with the above. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know.
Thanks for reading.
NYT: I'm going to break tradition and mention restaurant review and related articles here and talk about the main feature on the Times today. It is a preview of the NYC restaurant scene for the "Fall and beyond" which will undoubtedly have an impact on restaurants throughout the country. I'm not naive enough to consider NY to be the marker that chefs and restarateurs across the country abide by but you have to admit that there is certainly influence. Most of the other articles also discuss the industry so I'm stuck anyway. In one, we find a chef who took a healthier approach to his menu after suffering a heart attack. Another reports the effort to improve the quality of table location in some restaurants. A very interesting, though predictably liberal, article discusses how the faces in todays best restaurants are nearly as homogenously white as they were 50 years ago.
Wines of the Times taste a selection of Languedoc wines. The d'oc, in southern france, produces a whole lot of wine that varies in quality but is far more diverse and wallet friendly than the better known French appelations. Florence does the honor of pairing duck and cassoulet with these wines. Suddenly, I'm very much looking forward to cold weather cuisine. Speaking of which, the Minimalist makes a late summer salad. Get out those sweaters and put away the short shorts, it's almost time to start braising! On second thought, keep the short shorts out...
SF Chronicle: Sometimes you're tempted to think that this whole foodie thing is a product of recent generations who were exposed to better and tastier things as a result of greater income and exposure to the world. The Gate reminds us that the legacy is in fact long and full. The lead articles are about the food and beverage history of San Fran and its impact on the nations taste. Good stuff. Thankfully, as far as the running theme of this column goes, they feature a picture of a farm stand from the 40's.
Speaking of farmers markets, another article relates the prevalence of native European produce in Bay area markets. In addition, memories of an orchards bounty prep readers for the Fall.
The lead wine article highlights the wines made by Napa vintner Cathy Corison who eschews the Parker influenced high alcohol wines in favor of more drinkable, subtle wines. Good for her. She has my full support. The selection reviews are Sonoma AVA (an American attempt at appelations) Cabernet Sauvignons. They are paired with "Oklahoma beef wellington," a sort of meatloaf sandwich made as a single unit. The cheese is Toma Piemontese, a DOP cheese (again with appelations, sheesh!) from, uh, the Piedmont. The cocktail column is about beertails. Proceed with caution.
Lastly, an article discusses the losses to the American menu caused by the hurricane. If the way people eat is an idication of how we're doing then the recovery of New Orleans will be interesting to view in this regard. I was in New Orleans while in college and we spent as much time planning our next meal as anything else. We ate crawfish in a join that was little more than a shack, had jambalaya at Mothers, beignets from that place whose name I forget, po' boys from an anonymous neighborhood sandwich shop, browsed the market for cajun spices and hot sauces and even had 'gator burritos. It was a great experience and I send my most earnest best wishes to all those who lost so much.
I'm going to forego a guest spot this week. I've run out of major papers to use and spent a lot of time with the above. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know.
Thanks for reading.
