jayt90

The Costco Connection magazine has just appeared in my local warehouse, and has a story, page 55 I think, on our Costco a go go event last June. The event seems to have the support of egullet brass (Steven and Marlene) and may go ahead again next year. The egullet adddress is there, so a number of new people may join, or join in.

The most exclusive offerings of older wines from LCBO has to be the twice yearly Classics Catalogue (mail order). I'm not sure how you could negotiate a Classics purchase from Rochester, although the LCBO could hold the order at a Fort Erie or Niagara Falls store for pick up. The largest LCBO stores, such as Queen's Quay, Summerhill, or Bayview Village, will usually have older, expensive bottles from France and Germany that can't be moved elsewhere.

It's over? News to me! The U.S. is getting back into Japan, but I haven't heard that the U.S.- Canada beef trade restriction has eased up, in either direction...

Let's hope we can stir up some interest here in discussing current LCBO wine offerings. The corporation is huge and muti-tentacled, and most of us need some help in making adequate purchases. Currently I have been buying from the lower shelf of the 2003 Bordeaux Futures offer. I was amazed to find that one of my choices, Chateau Cap de Faugeres ($24), rated well by Parker, was at first denied to me, then re-offered yesterday by phone message. I guess I'll have to pounce on it today, or it may be gone. Or maybe French wines of a certain quality are in oversupply (even in futures) because of U.S. politics...

Some burgundy's have it, most don't. I haven't encountered it in new world pinot noir, but they may certainly attain that level. Reminds me of well aged, fermented cow manure at a dairy farm. The scent is intriguing, and interesting enough to encourage further investigation...

Fresh Tarragon Fresh Thyme Fresh Basil Cream/Butter/Evoo/S&P/shallots Duck fat/Goose fat/S&P/garlic

Reading thru the recipes, it looks like charcoal on one side of the Weber is better than two piles. Does anyone wrap the butt in foil after the colur is set, to preserve moisture?

Yeah, but my swirling, or swilling is far better than my sword dancing!

The Scotch business? Or the entertainment biz...

I wouldn't mind getting three or four French copper pans, tin lining, for saute, and broiling. I have three but the lining is thin and hard to replace.

I haven't seen a flat steel, can you describe it or suggest a website for it?

Martha was generally talking down to us

For about 5 years I have used Japanese and American whetstones on a variety of knives, but mainly Sabatier carbon, and a stainless cleaver by Sekizo. I would finish with an old Henckels steel. It would take a long time to refurnish an edge this way, and I tended to put it off. I would use the steel, or try various fast fixes, such as ceramic hones or rollers. Nothing was very satistfactory, and when I went thru the tutorial here, it was more of the same: 1000x stone plus the steel, and go at slowly for 15 minutes. Recently I revisted the Lee Valley catalog, and purchased some of their newer item, such as the 600-1200x diamond stone, and a diamond steel, 600x. And now, finally, I can get a quick reshaping of a dull blade, and ginish with their $10 Sabatier steel. I can even take the folding diamond honer to friends' kitchens and reshape a crude knife if need be. I feel like I am finally getting somewhere, satisfying my impatience as wel as OCD!

No kidding? I always thought I was a retard. Find a thin spine knife, like Sabatier in the used market. Some Japanese laminated knives are thin, others thick.

Favourite: A well made souffle, right out of the oven; chocolate, cheddar, Grand Marnier, Gruyere, it doesn't matter, it's worth the wait. Least favourites: A bag potatoes with one or two bad ones; Fresh pork from a young male who was cut too late, after the male smell went throught the flesh; Salt cod permeating the hallway of an aprtment building; White-fleshed fish in a tray in a supermarket far too long on a Sunday.

"Needless to say I disagree with his closing argument that we shouldn't "rise up" until the sushi police actually start raiding Hiro, Kaja et al. First of all, we already have risen! Secondly, it seems to me that that's a little late." A ministry spokeperson stated on CBC-1 last week that there would be a three month education period, starting Sept. 1, when they would be visiting sushi establishments. Seminars in the kitchen? Or out front for all of us unwashed eel eaters?

Are you getting off the tourist highway along the lake? There are fruit farms selling to the public in Arkona, Forest, and Strathroy. When I travel the secondary roads, such as Hwy. 21, or 79, there are always veg. stands with corn, tomatoes, potatoes, onions, eggs, and even herbs on the road, where you leave your money on the honour system. (Do they have that in P.Q.?) If you venture to farmer's markets in London or Stratford, there will be a wide variety of fresh cheese, sausage, baked goods, etc.

Most parasites in raw fish, used for sushi or sashimi, have no effect on humans. But there is the possibility of tapeworm, and it has been a small problem in Japan. The worm can grow to great lengths in the human digestive system, and steal enough nutrient to make the body thin. It can be treated easily by a doctor, and you won't get it from a cooked fish. I thought trichinosis was and old problem, not often seen in current generations of swine. My father, a vet, always claimed it was potentially present in beef, at lower incidences.

Alton Brown did a show about searing a steak and finishing in the oven. If you see it, you'll know that it will work perfectly with the London broil. Alton uses a cast iron pan, heated for several minutes (almost smoking) before searing. A $15-$20.00 Wagner pan used this way will be way better than the Geo. Foreman, or any stainless teflon pan.

I used to have a superb chili recipe, culled from an old Esquire, ca. 1969. Lost it through too many moves and a basement flood, but I still remember what made it good: Chunks of chuck or front quarter beef were browned with onions garlic, trinity etc. and then several types of dried and plumped chopped chilis were added: ancho, persilla, chipotle, and a couple of others. The important part was ancho, very pungent, and not too much of anything super hot. I had to go to Sanborns, a Mexican store with a New York branch, to find the dried chilis. Then it was simmered in beer until ready. Tomatoes and beans were optional, and very good additions, I thought, as I would consume some of the beer while waiting; six packs of Scheaffer's were as little as a dollar in my student days.

If you want to maintain your nice blades nicely, there is no better place for whetstones, diamond steels, and ceramic toners, than Lee Valley Tools.