Craig Camp

Mark - I am sure that it is near to impossible to sell not only Italian pinot grigio in your restaurant but Barolo and Barbaresco too. Because pinot grigio will not sell on your list is a reason not to stock it but not a reason to put down all pinot grigio. Like all wines - only a small percentage of the producers make great wines and most produce industrial swill.

Bucatini is certainly the traditional Roman pasta to use with this sauce. The hard core classic cooks in Rome do not use onion while others will only flavor the oil with onion and then discard the onion before adding the peperoncino. I am sure many just leave the onion in the dish. I am also sure it is often served on spaghetti - both in homes and restaurants. edited to remove error as noted by slkinsey - thanks

From Burgundy there is. Sorry Claude - I meant California!

Whoa - dem's fightin' words. You never heard of: Livio Felluga, Collio Castello de Spessa, Collio Russiz Superiore, Collio Cantina Produttori San Michele Appiano, St. Valentin, Alto Adige Schiopetto, Collio Villa Russiz, Collio Borgo San Daniele, Friuli Isonzo Viticoltori Caldaro, Soll, Alto Adige Alois Lageder, Benefizium Porer, Alto Adige Ferdinado e Aldo Polencic, Collio Isidoro Polencic, Collio Ronco del Gelso, Friuli Isonzo Pierpaolo Pecorari Bastinaich, Plus, Colli Orientali del Friuli Jermann, I.G.T. (Collio) Vie di Romans, Dessimis, Friuli Isonzo Each one is an exceptional wine that would qualify for consideration on any serious wine list.

A high-level editor suspected sabotage -- how else to explain why two Pinot Grigios recommended by The Chronicle's tasting panel were described in last week's Wine section as smelling of cat urine?

Cheap Pinot Noir may soon lose its oxymoron status. The "fickle grape" -- notoriously difficult to grow and vinify, yet beautifully plush and food-friendly in the hands of a good winemaker -- is facing one of the most serious oversupply situations of any California variety. The pinot noir glut in California is a real opportunity to improve the reputation of this varietal in the United States as most pinot noir is planted in vineyard locations that can never produce good wine. Hopefully it is these vineyards that will go. Is there really such a thing as good cheap pinot noir?

With a plain risotto I think the smoked cheese would work. They actually smoke quite a few cheeses in southern Italy. Anchovies! For those less courageous eaters: onions sliced VERY thin, roasted eggplant, sun dried tomatoes, fresh mozzerella with sliced ripe tomatoes -- In Italy they would not mix up the ingredients very much - but you are in a Free Cuisine Zone and can mix what you will.

I think the smoked mozzarella could work fine. How are you preparing the rice? For stand-up olives, and meats work find. An easy thing to do is to wrap grissini (bread sticks) with prosciutto. Pizzette are also good finger foods. Often instead of making individual pizzette we make a large rectangular pizza and cut it into small squares and served at room temp. For the sit down antipasti look in La Cucina Siciliana and check out the Frittata della Mama and the La Pizza di Cipolla di Bruna. Both are very tasty. If your question about the salad course is what wine I would say not to have a specific wine - just let people continue with the wine they had. To say the least the famous desserts of Sicilia can be rich and time consuming. A pudding in the book, Dolce al Cucchiaio, is very good and can be made in advance.

Burgundy growers - and their colleagues in other regions - are amazed to see vines flowering three weeks earlier than normal this year.

"response to ‘exorbitant’ grape prices in the Chianti Classico region and out of a desire to experiment with ‘different blends" To what to you attribute this change at Antinori? The desire to increase profit or the desire to experiment? For my take on DOCG and IGT please see the links below. Wine Camp: The DOCG Disaster Wine Camp: IGT Note in Good Taste

A. You have to read the label carefully and learn the difference. B. Assuming you mean the USA - Almost all of the above. Any of those combinations could happen except the last one. An importer and distributor (which can be one in the same) is a required middleman.

I tasted each of these wines several times over the last two days and wines like these make you wonder why we spend so much time talking about cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir and chardonnay. These wines literally dance on the palate with their wonderful acidity and purity of fruit. Muscadet Sevre et Maine, sur lie, Domaine de la Pepiere, 2001 This could be the finest Muscadet I have tasted. Brilliant pale gold. This wine is full of firm honey and mineral aromas that somehow succeeds in being lean and rich at the same time. There is a undercurrent of fresh bread dough that gives the green apple fruit and chalky aromas an extra dimension. Amazingly mouth-filling for such a firm, structured wine. The tart green apple flavors are enriched by a touch of honey richness followed by a firm mineral, sweet lemon and orange finish. Touraine, Clos Roche Blanche, Gamay, 2001, Organically grown Ecocert Certified C. Roussel et D. Barrouillet Brilliant ruby/purple. Fresh cherry/raspberry aromas with an underlying touch of spices. This lovely wine is absolutely alive on the palate. The fresh acidity makes the bright flavors of dark wild fruits - cherry and plum - just explode on your palate. The amazing blend of delicacy and lightness on the palate combined with the literally singing fruit flavors have to be tasted to be believed. An extraordinary wine that will challenge palates deadened by over-extracted wines laden with alcohol and tannin. Drinking this wine is like watching a ballet. Chinon, Les Granges, Domaine Bernard Baudry, 2001 Very brilliant and sparkling ruby with hints of purple. Fresh aromas of wild strawberries mixed with wild herbs - even a touch of lavender. These same essences continue on the palate. Strong bitter cherry flavors broaden into a kind of ripe yet dedicate ripe plum and edible flower flavors. The beautiful acidity refreshes and dances across your tongue. As soon as the long spicy fruit finish disappears you feel compelled to go back for another taste. Cabernet Franc at its best. I highly recommend all of these wines, but be warned these are elegant ballet dancers high up on their toes not massive power wines. Compliments to Louis/Dressner for bringing in such treasures.

That's always been my understanding. A ristretto is an espresso with less run time resulting in a shorter shot. It's stronger because the first part of the run is stronger than the last part. This is also my understanding. The bars in our town always serve you a ristretto unless you request otherwise.

The pasta should not be overdrained - try putting it back in the pot still dripping with water. You can also try grating the pecorino very finely.

This is called Cacio e Pepe and is a staple of the Roman diet. The trick to making it is to add just the right amount of the pasta water. It is simple and delicious. Don't forget pasta is not really a ancient dish in Italy. Edit: posted at the same time as slkinsey.

The exact birth is lost in time. That is how the silly American GI story came to be. It is likely a dish with such readily available ingredients evolved on farms throughout Lazio and central/southern Italy. Did the coal miners eat it? Certainly. Most of the historians I have read think it refers to the coal or charcoal like flecks of pepper. As the case of puttanesca, it is much more probable that the dish was invented first and then associated with a group later and renamed. Often the same sauce has more than one name in different regions. Very true, but I find most of the pecorino available in the US too salty so I usually stick to reggiano here. Absolutely - and it looks more like carbone! Pancetta affumicato is popular in Calabria an they often make this dish with it. The pancetta, like the Calabrians has spread all over Italy.

Now I'm no chemist but I am not sure that alcohol determins viscosity. I think that glycerol does. The Bordeaux 1st growths tend to have higher levels than others (at about 10g/l) while your typical good cru bourgeois will have 5 or 6. Of course, I could and prbably am wrong!! The viscosity of a wine is created by a combination of both by alcohol and glycerol. We were just talking about alcohol levels at the time.

Which and what kind of port? It makes a difference!

Alcohol determines the viscosity of the wine, but many of the wines with the 'biggest body' fall apart quite quickly.

Here are some figures from Napa Click Here $3? Sounds like they weren't using Reidel.

I will be honest and admit that I find it hard to like wines that sell for $100 a bottle that have such short track records. Insignia has at least been around for awhile. There are just so many top quality modern style reds around these days I see no reason to spend that kind of money as you just don't get enough of a pleasure increase to justify the extra bucks. You can find wines just as good if not better than these two from almost anywhere serious wines are made these days. A restaurant that is not finding these interesting wines and recommending them to their customers must be suspect in all levels of their operation. I would take the Insignia over Opus or Silver Oak. By the way I tasted a 2000 Kamen Cabernet Sauvignon for under $50 this week that I would much rather drink than any of these.

It is not a question of Silver Oak or Opus One being bad wines. They are decent wines. They are just incredibly bad values. In a restaurant they are offensively bad values. You would be hard pressed to find a $50 or $60 California Cabernet on a wine list that is not at least equal in quality or better. The problem with wines like this is they know how to make them exceedingly pleasant to drink and to never offend. To buy these wines is to waste money. They charge more for Silver Oak and Opus than they do for Montelena. Give me a break!

Let's just say they have 'expanded' production quite a bit and it shows in the wines. Silver Oak is the Santa Margherita of California Cab.

Argyle east of Clark and the immediate surrounding area. There are several little strip mall like places with small oriental grocery stores.