Sneakeater Posted January 7 Author Share Posted January 7 It would have to be really good for me to walk to 5th and Carrol when I can virtually cross the street. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted January 7 Author Share Posted January 7 Next time I have to go to the cash machine . . . . Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AaronS Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 I haven’t bought anything yet but they have a much wider selection than mermaid’s garden. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted January 7 Author Share Posted January 7 Yeah, that's Mermaid Gardens's failing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted January 8 Author Share Posted January 8 Farinheira is another sausage originally invented by Portuguese Jewish Moranos to conceal their adherence to Jewish dietary laws from the Cristãos that has since moved into the Portuguese mainstream. This one's a cereal sausage; the lack of meat made it easy to make pork-free. Now, however, it's always made with pork fat, in a pork casing, with pork meat to the extent there's meat in it. It's very delicious. The thing is, what this sausage resembles more than anything else is Kishka. How the Jews thought they were going to fool the Christians into thinking they'd stopped following Kashrut and assimilated to Christian dietary practices by eating Kishka is lost to the mists of history. A popular current way to eat Farinheira in my future homeland is out of the casing, mixed with scrambled eggs, on toast. It's a tapa -- but this is another case where, if you make enough of it, you have a main dish. Especially if you have a huge portion of black-eyed peas on the side. There's a reason I like to say that my body is 85% Beaujolais. 2015 Domaine de Crétes Beaujolais "Cuvée des Varennes" Vielles Vignes Not even a village wine, yet what I'm going to fault it for is being "too much". Is there oak in this? It feels like it's trying to be more than "just" a Beaujolais -- when "just" a Beaujolais is about the most enjoyable thing there is in the wine world. Not bad, don't get me wrong. But I wish it were less ambitious. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 My first (knowing) consumption of Flannery's beef. This was a burger made from their January 2020 "adventurous" blend. I don't know exactly what's "adventurous" about chuck, chuck flap, and dry-aged ribeye. But that's what the blend was. It was very good. Unfortunately, I'm still getting the hang of this second stovetop grill I got,* so I overcooked the burger a bit. Not to Trumpian degrees, but a bit: medium well, I guess you'd call it. I could still tell this was very nice beef. Since the whole point was to taste the meat, I served it simply: smoked salt, cheddar, bread-and-butter pickles, ketchup, mustard, on a Martin's bun. Sweet potato fries on the side. I like Dolcetto with burgers. And, as will be explained below, I think I've figured out why. 2019 Anna Maria Abbona Dogliani "Sorí dij But" The best Dolcetto comes from Dogliani, and everyone agrees that Anna Maria Abbona (while she may not be my own personal toppermost favorite) is one of, say, the top 3 producers there. I certainly am always happy when her wine comes my way. This is Abbona's junior cuvée -- and, at least to my mind, it's another of the many examples of a producer's junior wine being the best. Her reserva, and, God forbid, her oaked Dolcettos are too prepossessing: they forget that Dolcetto is supposed to be fun (you might recall last night's Beaujolais). This bottle is just a great example of what we like Dolcetto for. Bitter to the core -- that this bitter wine came to be called "Dolcetto" is yet another example of how funny Italians are** -- with dark dark dark berry fruit and the nose of a cup of tea. (This wine is all tannin, no acid: one reason it's so good with burgers, as the hefty tannins love all that beef fat.) But the real reason Dolcetto seems so good with burgers, I realized tonight, is that it has a similar flavor profile to Coke (which is why it's also so good with pizza). That bitterness, with a touch of fruity sweetness around it. This is what I've been enjoying with burgers all my life. _________________________________________ * The comparison of this stovetop grill with my first one reinforces my perception that I like Staub more than Le Creuset. ** Actually, it's my understanding that this grape got to be called "The Little Sweet One" because it's so agreeable to grow compared with the other Piemonte grapes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Evelyn Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Oddly enough a lot of people dislike the "funk" of dry aging. And the pieces they use sometimes come from 50+ day aged steaks. Did you order some steaks too? 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
voyager Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 13 hours ago, Sneakeater said: .... I'm still getting the hang of this second stovetop grill I got,* Have you told us what stovetop grill you are using? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AaronS Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 admin post: please don’t use the word used to describe how well done you cooked your burger. he says he’s using a staub grill towards the end of the post. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 The round Staub one with the glass cover. (I don't think it's political to refer to a very famous person's professed predilection for well-done meat.) 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 6 hours ago, Evelyn said: Did you order some steaks too? You bet! Can't wait! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
voyager Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 13 minutes ago, Sneakeater said: You bet! Can't wait! Just MHO but we stove-top steaks in a cast iron pan, either “sear and flip/flop” or sear and finish in oven. I now use our ridged pans mostly for grilling vegetables. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 I want those grill lines! 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sneakeater Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 Pan-seared duck breast with mushroom pan sauce, over left-over umami rice with Erotic Beef drippings. Steamed cabbage on the side. Any moron can cook a duck breast. Luckily for me. 2012 Domaine du Pélican Arbois "Trois Cepages" As I don't have to tell you, Domaine du Pélican is what ensued when the Burgundy d'Angervilles took over Jacques Puffeney's vineyards in the Jura. The wines aren't as good as Puffeney's -- how could they be? he was the Pope -- but they're plenty good. These Jura "trois cepages" wines -- blends of Pinot Noir, Trousseau, and Poulsard -- are almost always great. This one is. It starts with some Pinot-like fruit, but then quickly gets Jura savory and acidic. To me, this is a mouth-watering, well nigh irresistible combination. Very grab-worthy. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
voyager Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 11 hours ago, Sneakeater said: Any moron can cook a duck breast. Luckily for me. Don't sell yourself short. I recall drumming my fingers on the table, nervously awaiting the duck breast being grilled by our host in France. No surprise when it was served brown throughout. Other than that, they were fine cooks. (I'll never forget our first time we were invited for dinner. The wife asked us, as she prepped a leg of lamb, "Do you eat sheeps?" ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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