jparrott

The only readily available French Marc in the DC area is the Joseph Cartron Marc de Bourgogne "Tres Vieux" (I think that's the designation; although to my knowledge there is no meaning to it). Is anyone familiar with this bottling? I love marc and would love to be able to keep a couple around the house, but I can't spring for DRC.

Hey, we finally have wine on the shelf! (Ugh...this business gives a whole new meaning to "lead time")...

You know, I thought dry-aging ribs made them shrink... But my wife (who had to miss this evening's session) is a very happy girl tonight. And tomorrow night. And breakfast the next day. And lunch. Oh, and you best get your bottle of Vajra Nebbiolo before I drink it all.

Naw. Not enough hype.

Toss, and serve in a Highball with an Emulsion of lime and ginger: Hipnotiq, Yellow raspberries, and Pear Eau-de-vie

Shrimp po-boys from Praline Connection on Frenchmen...oh wait, that only works for Krewe du Vieux. What a perfect weekend to come to New Orleans; one parade with a killer after-party, and still plenty of hotel rooms and restaurant tables available.

Corkage is unlawful in a licensed establishment in VA, unless the party bringing their own is separated from the area where licensed beverages are being served. That said, the list at RTS is awesome and quite reasonable.

Old Ebbitt was great, until we got rousted out to make room for snipers aimed at VanMan .

Turns out I can hit a (free) network from Old Ebbitt Grill. I'm here right now. Time for an oyster tasting!

How's the stemware?

Going to be tough to have cocktails at RTS. Only beer and wine. Have that bottle of bubbly with your clam chowder and scallops.

I like single malts because of their distinction, like an Armagnac. I like vatted malts because of the blender's craft, like Cognac. I love the Caol Ila un-chillfiltered. I'm multi-boozal.

Dave: You'd love the Compass Box Eleuthera then. I believe the blend is 60% 12 yr old Caol Ila and 40% Clynelish (forget the age). Great, great blend. Attractive packaging too.

Have any of you ITB types ever had an problems with the authorities when transporting partially-consumed samples from account to account? They're open containers, we don't usually put them in the trunk, etc. Or do we "get away with it" because they're samples?

I sometimes make a manhattan-type thing with a drizzle of Campari in addition (or instead of) the bitters. Adds a certain savouriness. What to call it? A Little Italy? An Arthur Avenue?

Slavin's on Glebe Rd. at I-395.

Indeed. I popped in about 9:30 last night and got seated. I'm glad I don't live closer than 30 miles, or I'd do it way, way, way too often.

Schneider's of Capitol Hill, a DC retailer that, among other things, specializes in interesting liquor close-outs, has acquired a couple of interesting lots for offer. (Note: I have no connection w/Schneider's, other than that I have tasted through the offering and made my purchases). First, some Armagnacs from Castarede, a second-tier producer, but still some nice stuff: Armagnac XO: Bright, quite rancio, medium bodied and very pure. $20 Armagnac 1950: Very fruity compared to the others, but still with good earthy/sandalwood undertones. $60 Armagnac 1939: Stunning bridge of rancio and fruity styles, very complex and spicy and well worth the tariff. $70 Armagnac 1924: A bit closed, dark wood and prune but not particularly noteworthy. $80 Also, a couple of Irish Whiskies aged in Bourbon barrels. Clontarf Single Malt: Nice for the style, with the grapefruit pithy barleyness and touch of sugar. Very nice at the price. $16 Clontarf Reserve: A bit muddled and oaky, the cask overshadowing the malt. But may appeal to bourbon lovers and oakier scotch lovers. Also $16, IIRC. So I've now blown my liquor budget for awhile, but there's some good stuff here for the geeks out there. (And if this belongs on the DC board, feel free to move.)

I had a nasty scratchy throat one afternoon as I trudged into DC's Equinox restaurant between meetings. I told Mounir of my plight, and he mixed a shaken cocktail of Cuarenta y Tres, wild strawberry liqueur from Italy, and a bit of limoncello. Viscous, not too sweet, not too alcoholic. Damn near perfect.

Potomac is a real gem for lovers of the obscure--arak (for those of us who have gotten hooked at Zaytniya), Van Winkle Reserve Rye, Herbsaint (for Sazeracs), and much more. And Steve is a real mensch.

Umm...non sequitur?

My liver seems exanimate next to Rocks's.

So I dropped in at Restaurant Eve in Alexandria, VA last evening to drop off a sample of one of our wines and have a Manhattan. It's early, the bar's about half full, but Todd Thrasher, the estimable GM/somm/mixmaster, is bustling, passing out thimble-filled flutes to staff and regulars. Ken the bartender hands me his. "59 Salon," he says. Sherried and salty, but still elegant, lively, and well-bubbled, with dry lemon and raw almond. Beautiful, from a pristine bottle. Another glass appears. "1925 Lafite." This one's a bit the worse for wear, but still an intriguing loamy nose of cigar and earth, with the last vestiges of eighty-year-old red cherry fruit from this unrenowned vintage. A bit of history. And another. "We don't know the vintage, it's one of 1925, 1926, 1935, 1936." It's Beaune-Greves from Bouchard, a Hospices bottling. Still chunky and round, with dark cherry fruit and sweet earth, with the classic Greves gravel. 1935 is considered the best of those four vintages, so that's my guess. And all because I wanted to drop off a sample. (And I ran into DonRocks and morela a night after running into mnebergall at the same place, without even knowing it )

Jumps the shark? we can only hope

Had a large at Pho 75 in Rosslyn this morning. Does anyone else think their bowls have too much meat? It just seems out of balance.