Carolyn Tillie

I think you have hit the nail on the head: EARLY DRINKING REDS. We are producing a Cab that could easily be cellared for forty or fifty years -- and there is no industry information yet establishing that screwcaps would be a viable method of closure for reds that need lying down.

Lame. But it may just be me...

Totally agree on the tour! When I lived in that neighborhood, I would 'stop in' just to get the free bag of beans, but moreso, to see if they were doing some of the really cool stuff like chocolate work or taffy. This is one of the companies that makes those Christmas Tree taffies (you know, with the tree pictured inside a white field, with red stripes on the outside). They show you how they start with dozens of pound of taffy and the design is made with candy that measures more than a foot in diameter -- it is very slowly rolled down and extruded into bite-size pieces but has to be hand done, which is very, very impressive.

If you must register for stemware, register for Reidel and Spiegelau. However, these two amazing products frequently show up as to-die-for deals on Amazon (sometimes upwards of 70% and 80% off!) three and four times a year. We here online are the first to spread the word when these deals come about and you could save your friends tons of money if you are patient enough to wait and buy these yourself when the deals occur. Just a thought...

drooooollllll Great pics!

There is also Harris Ranch. I'm fortunate -- I can get both Harris Ranch and Niman Ranch without having to mail order. I have been given Omaha steaks in the past and agree, good -- but not great. I hear great things about Lobels, but I think I'm spoiled in that I can go and buy great dry-aged beef without having to pay for postage.

I was highly impressed that they actually went all the way and made jelly beans that really did taste like all of those things instead of just pretending. The Booger really did taste like a booger (if memory serves ) !!! Of course, they made me want to be sick everywhere, but surely thats the point. Pretty avant-garde for a mass-produced candy. Surely Adria would approve. The REALLY scary thought is what the R&D Department had to go through to develop these <ahem> flavors.

Has anyone tried the Harry Potter Jelly Bellies? Absolutely scary that there are ACTUAL flavors like Earthworm, Dirt, Earwax, Black Pepper, Sardine, Booger, and Grass. Disgusting.

no haven't didn't even know about it!!! Where is his house? Lisa you can come to my dinner party too. I've been collecting Gorey for 30+ years...

They've been here for a while...

The 'stuff' mixed into this ice cream is done in front of you on a chilled slab. You look at a buffet of mix-ins that include chopped cookies, candy bars, sprinkles, and other flavors. You choose your base flavor and with two giant paddles, the gunk is literally spackled about on the cold marble before being scooped into said cup or cone. It is pretty grotesque, IMHO.

A good friend of mine works for a Japanese company here in the states and had to go on her first business trip a few weeks ago. She knows I'm a sumo fan and diligently tried to find some sumo chotchkies for me (apparently sumo stuff is kinda hard to find). But the real treat was this little box she bought. She could see the pictures on the box were various food items, but it was not until we opened it that we realized I received an entire set-up for Hot Pot! It had four portions, with four styles of food for each portion, a bowl of soup, an accompanying spoon, chopsticks, and a rest. And the whole set measures about 2 inches across! So, searching the box, we discover the company's website: Weird Miniature Food Site. After plunking around (by clicking the first house on the left), I found some amazing pictures. Seems you can buy miniature grocery store items, fast food set-ups, and even European dishes like fondue, paella, squab, or charcroute! But it is the miniature Japanese meals that have me completely entranced. My friend has instructions to help me try and complete my set, but I'm curious if those of you living in the country have seen them? I also got two miniature okonomiyaki which I thought of making into earrings, except they tend to look like cow patties... I can take pictures of mine and the box it came in, if interested. But perhaps someone could translate the site and tell me how I can buy more! Domo... Edited to add -- the one I got is from this set - the bottom left-hand, four-sectioned pot.

Well, the only forests that are around here are the Petrified Forests and you can't kill those rabbits. The disease of discussion probably does include all wild rabbits, hence the need to purchase farm-raised critters for cooking.

The "cork problems" are varied. For starters, there is TCA (cork taint) which realistically occurs in 4 to 5% of all wine produced. The Australian Grapegrower & Winemakers May 1999 analysis indicated, There are a ton of synthetic cork producers out there trying to promote their product. I know the man who helped develop the NeoCork and, interestingly, he is able to sell his product better in Germany than here in America. In speaking with our winemaker about cork issues, she explained to me that synthetic corks are fine for wines that are made to be drunk young - Sauvignon Blanc or less high-quality reds (I struggle with the concept of cheaper). This is because synthetic corks don't expand enough over the duration of a wine's aging and more oxygen can seep in. At GunBun, they use synthetic corks on their Bearitage blends (basically, their cheapest wine), but real corks on the rest of their offerings. You wouldn't want oxygen to seep into a red that needs to lay down for ten or twenty years and synthetic corks simply don't have a track record yet for that type of aging. Pat, the owner, chimed in and explained to me that when screw-top closures become more of the industry standard, it would be the best route to take. Right now, we utilize a mobile bottling unit which only utilizes corks. Does that help?

That's right... this from the man with FUR on his head! We Californians don't own hats like that, don'tchaknow...

I love it! I need one of those....

Do you mean Slavko's in San Pedro? Gads, yes! I'll fix that...

I think he bought a brand that had an easily-removable spout... Can't tell you much beyond that, though.

Man-o-man, do I ever have the PERFECT solution for you. Similar to your Plastic Bottle solution, only one step better: I learned this from a man I was great friends with. He used to do major amounts of sailing on his boat (by major, I mean weeks and weeks at a time). But he had the same problem with storage that you have with glass. His solution is brilliant. He would buy a box of crappy wine and empty it out. He would then carefully wash out the bag with very hot water. Then we would decant five bottles of his favorite wine (I believe is was a FAY Stag's Leap) and refill the bag. It wasn't perfect, but it was a far sight better because the bag would deflate along with the wine, so there was surprisingly little oxydation (which you would get with your plastic bottles). What'cha think?

Crepes from Creme de la Crepe in Hermosa. Slavko's Fried Chicken and Potatoes in San Pedro. Versailles Roast Pork (it was fast food for me, because I could walk in, buy it to go, and be on my way in two minutes flat!) Fat Burger's Onion Rings (damn, I miss those!) Edited to fix the fact that I screwed up a city...

This is only slightly related to the show, but here is word of a Rocco sighting -- in Napa no less! This weekend is the infamous Napa Auction (which consistently raises $5 Million every year...). Inasmuch, a lot of wineries are having private parties and events which you can buy into. I just read about this one: Too funny, huh?

Interesting thread... This last weekend, I celebrated my 40th by dining out all weekend long. At each place, a comment was made about the celebration. The place I expected *something* provided nothing. The place I expected nothing, added a candle to the dessert along with a salution on the plate, and they comped the corkage fee. (Bear in mind, we weren't Jonesing for freebies - we were just rapturous at the weekend-long indulgence in food.) From the Birthday thread, here was my mini food blog:

All this reminds me -- a good friend of mine made a four-month road trip of "The Rim of America." He literally drove as close to the edge of the country as was possible in a 1950-something MGA, eating and breaking down often. He had a book deal on the trip but it fell through. While doing it, though, he would e-mail his adventures and culinary finds on the way. I cherish those e-mails and oft-wished I could have road along.

Southern California/Baja. Think about it, you can eat absolutely ANY cuisine, go to the beach, see amazing museums (from the Getty in LA to the Norton Simon in Pasadena to Balboa Park in San Diego). I would say 3 days in Los Angeles, 2 days in San Diego, and 2 days in Baja. In LA you could do the touristy things that include seafood at Gladstones in Malibu, but Melrose and Hollywood. The BEST Japanese food outside of Tokyo is in Gardena. Then drive down the coast... Orange County has some lovely hidden hamlets. If you head to Laguna Beach, you can hit the Sawdust Festival (depending on your timeline). Then on to San Diego - drive down the coast, through Encinitas and Del Mar. A night in the Gaslamp district for great food and late-night jazz is great fun. Lastly, head down past TJ and into Rosarito beach for the best Fish Tacos in the world. Laze on the beach and drink margaritas. I think I should win....

BTW, I'd like to formally welcome Bluebean to eGullet! We hope you keep coming back for more.... Cheers!