Alex

I love Pinot Noir with salmon. In fact, for the Heartland gathering's Friday night dinner next week we've paired an Argyle Pinot Noir with the entrée of salmon in phyllo with a saffron sauce. John W.'s cassoulet probably is not beyond your skills. But if you'd like to simplify a bit, serve the roasted or grilled salmon on a bed of lentils that have been dressed with a bacon vinaigrette: Chop some bacon and cook until crisp, adding some chopped shallots toward the end. Drain off most of the fat. Combine the bacon and shallots with xvoo, a good sherry or red wine vinegar, some mustard, and thyme. Let the lentils absorb the dressing for a bit before serving. The lamb sounds perfect. Tomorrow night I'm planning to make filet mignon with a morel sauce and drink the last of my 1988 Hôspice de Nuits or, if it's corked, an Eyrie Vineyards PN. For cheese, I'd serve only the greatest of the Burgundy cheeses and one of the great cheeses of the world (in my opinion, of course), Epoisses.

We're looking forward to feeding all sorts of good food to you and your young companion at the upcoming Heartland Gathering party/dinner.

I haven't had lots of experience with high-end Calchard, although the Grgich Hills I had a while back stands out as a clear favorite. Recently we picked up on closeout several bottles of Sebastiani Dutton Ranch that were mighty tasty.

Wow. That looks really good. It certainly is. I made a big batch several days ago. It's good reheated or even right out of the fridge.

True, but in a double-blind test, and assuming no true difference between the treated and untreated wines, if subjects express a preference they theoretically should split 50-50 between the two. You then do your statistical analysis accordingly.

There are plenty of items that sell, and sell big, that have absolutely no empirical foundation at all except for the placebo effect and cognitive dissonance. This is the point of all my previous posts. I hope this means that you've engaged an lab to do double-blind testing. Just curious: Do you have a Plan B if the results don't bear out your claims? I thought that's why you're paying those big bucks to your PR/Marketing firm.

OK by me. If everyone else is ok with my being the organizer I can post or PM a suggested procedure. Craig, could you PM me with the names of those who'd like to be a part of this?

Sure, why not? Science and fun, hand in hand.

Dennis, a blind test does not mean that you blindfold people. (You didn't put a smilie by that statement so I assume you weren't making a joke. Please ignore the next sentence if you were.) I realize that you're a salesman, not a scientist, but it might be good for you to be familiar with that and similar terms if you're going to be fielding questions about your product. You still didn't say if there is a report in print. When you say "...we figure over 2,000 people have tried it" I'm led to believe that there isn't, and that your taste tests would not stand up to scientific scrutiny. If indeed more than 99% of your tasters thought the clip improved the wine, all the more reason to do some well-controlled studies. Sorry if I seem so picky, but I strongly believe that rigorous scientific inquiry is the only way to provide evidence to support (or not support) the claims you make for the product.

Mashed, with bourbon (flamed 1st), maple syrup, and a little cream. Mmm.

And in another 7 months you could do a babyfoodblog: "Well, it was milk again for me today. You'd think she'd at least throw in some chocolate pudding or strained peaches, or even one of those petrified cookie things...."

I moved from NYC to the Heartland about 30 years ago. Since then I have known the joys of Vernor's, Stroh's, elephant ears, fresh morels, and other indigenous delights. But to this day I have steered clear of corn dogs. (Resistance is futile; the corn dog will be assimilated.) Must resist...must resist.... For a time when I was young I would eat only lamb chops and English muffins. Does that qualify as a strange craving or just a strange kid?

A friend calls them "little green balls of death." I definitely will have to try roasting them. Thanks, Soba. My favorite method up to this point is to boil them in salted water until they're almost done, then sauté in butter or bacon fat until browned, adding dill weed at the very end. I first had the de-leafed version several years ago at Spiaggia, as an accompaniment for a piece of sea bass resting in a bit of seafood broth.

Dennis, the web site voice-over mentioned something about the clip being tested on a pretty large group of people. Is a report available, either on the Internet or for a fee? I'm quite serious about doing an extended blind taste test and posting the results here. And yes, if I find that the clip does indeed produce a significant improvement I'd have no problem sending you the $$ and continuing to use it. This, btw, from someone who used to live just down the road from you on the Island, and, who in his move westward, shifted allegiance from the Yankees to the Mets (I was at Shea for the '69 Series) to the Tigers and now to the Cubs. (I'm pulling for a Yanks-Cubs Series. I'd love to see Sammy call his shot at the Stadium. ) I don't think that even Steinbrenner would have the chutzpah to move the Yankees out of The Bronx.

Small salad: spinach dressed with a Caesar-ish vinaigrette and truffle oil, topped with julienned roasted beets and sautéed mushrooms, and bacon (adapted from a Larousse Gastronomique recipe) Tuna steaks with basil pesto Butternut squash, corn, spinach, onion, and...bacon! (Epicurious/Bon Appétit recipe -- Thanks, MatthewB) 2001 Mommessin Mâcon Villages

I'm thinking about what might be available at the market: potatoes (regular and sweet), winter squash, kale and/or swiss chard, the last of the tomatoes, peppers, and peaches (if we're lucky), apples, pears, ..... I suspect we'll have enough to eat, especially if we can supplement from Russo's, Erika's, Kingma's, etc. As I mentioned earlier, I can make my award-winning butternut squash soup plus a dessert, or anything else we may need. I'll be posting soon about our options for Saturday activities (other than shopping and cooking ). The only decision that's shouldn't be left until that day is the hayride because a reservation is advised. I'll post more details about this as well.

I know that I'm one of those "soft-headed" scientists (psychologist) responding to a "hard" scientist, but sometimes a person's perception is what's relevant. If well-controlled studies show that subjects perceive the treated wine as significantly different from (or not different from) the untreated, that's what matters, at least up to a point. Past that point, I grant that these differences can't be quantified in any statistically meaningful way. ("Very little," "some," etc. would be interesting to obtain but provide no testable data.) That's also why I don't like the practice of scoring wines, a la Wine Spectator. I'm willing to maintain an open-minded skepticism and not say "bull" (well, maybe "wee bull" ) until I see some reasonable evidence one way or the other. I prefer the James Randi approach of challenging outrageous-sounding claims via scientific inquiry. (Although I admit that if Dennis weren't sending me the clip on spec I certainly wouldn't spend $50 for one.) I emphatically agree that Dennis's "Sometimes science can't be explained but it also can't be denied!" is disingenuous and misleading. The (very annoying) voice-over on their web site implied that the clip had been scientifically tested, yet I saw no data or link to any published study.

Thanks, Matt. I'm headed outside to start practicing right now. :splat:

This is not a good way to test the device because you are changing three variables together -- pouring it first, tasting it first, and using the clip. If you don't use the wine clip, you might also notice a difference between the two glasses -- one will have had a bit longer to breathe, be at a slightly different temperature etc. You should flip a coin to decide whether to use the wine clip first, and flip another coin to decide which one to taste. Not that it really matters .... I agree; this is not a good test. Find two identical bottles of wine. Have the associate use the clip on one and not on the other. Pour a glass of each. Drink, wait, pour another glass...do whatever you want, as long as you do the same thing to both glasses and don't know which glass came from the clipped bottle. Take notes. Repeat with four or five bottles. That's the way to test the clip. Bruce Of course, one's ability to discern small differences will decrease as the amount consumed increases. Seriously, though, taste buds do lose flavor sensitivity with repeated exposure over a short time. It's advisable to drink some water and rest a couple of minutes between tastings. It also would be interesting to do the comparison when the wine is drunk just after you consume some food -- cheese, for example. If this test were being done for publication, you would have the associate mark either the treated or untreated glass -- you wouldn't know which one -- then leave the room so as not to give you any subtle non-verbal clues. Which brings me to a thought I had when I was falling asleep last night. (Yes, eGullet is with me constantly.) If several eG'ers do blind (or double-blind) taste testings, essentially we -- instead of a testing lab -- are doing Dennis's work for him, at the cost to him of only a few Wine Clips. (It's not publishable, but it's still evidence of a sort.) This I don't mind per se. (I'll be drinking the wine anyway, so sure, I'll check out the product. ) However -- and I'm not familiar with all of eGullet's policies, but I suspect that this is true (Fat Guy?...) -- we need to be careful that eGullet is not referenced on his web site, in promo materials, etc.

The idea of a magnetic field being able to improve wine, brandy, etc. has been circulating for a long time. I was told of this nearly 30 years ago. So, of course, I had to check this out. A friend and I did a blind taste test of a cheap California red (the only kind we drank back then ), probably Gallo Hearty Burgundy. I rotated the filled glass as I held a strong refrigerator magnet to it. We turned our backs and another friend chose the tasting order. I was able to notice a small but consistent smoothing out of the treated wine, but the effect wore off after a while. I have not tried this experiment since. I was turned off by the exaggeration and hype (and poor editing) on the web site: "You'll instantly experience a smoother, less tanic (sic) taste and enhanced bouquet similar to that of wines which are aged for years in professional cellars." Puh-leeze. I admire Dennis's willingness to put this item to the test, though, and so I will e-mail him with my address. I do know how to set up well-controlled double-blind studies, so we'll see.... (BTW, Dennis, those hover-over page changes make it really, really difficult to navigate the site. I also find JavaScript pop-ups pretty annoying.)

Leg or butt. Or pork loin.

Welcom to eGullet, lafonda! Great to have another GRapidian here. As guajolote said, we'll be getting together for a party/dinner on Saturday, starting somewhere around 4 or 5 p.m. It would be great if you could make it. There'll also be some sort of yet-to-be-determined activity or activities during the day, most likely including a hayride (weather permitting). Please feel free to keep posting or to send me a PM (personal message) if you have any questions.

Onions, garlic, shallots, etc. lose flavor if chopped too far ahead of time (e.g., before you leave for work), ditto most herbs. Tomato concasse probably is ok but should be stored tightly covered at room temp, not in the fridge. My work involves a lot of intense mental activity (psychotherapy). Even if I'm tired when I get home, once I overcome my inertia I really enjoy prepping and cooking. Like Suzanne said, it helps me to wind down. And, unlike most therapy, I get to see positive results after only one hour! And, as you mentioned, most of my after-work cooking involves minimal prep, maybe 10-15 min. at the most. (Edited for additional content.)

Too bad. We'll make a toast (the wine version, not the bread one) for you.

How about kangaroo? (Seriously.) Recently, for an appetizer, I had some very rare kangaroo tenderloin with arugula and truffle oil (there might have been shaved parm-reg, but I can't remember) that was wonderful. The tenderloin is mild but the other ingredients would help it stand up to the Shiraz.