KatieLoeb

Another vote for the Muir Glen organic sauce. Good stuff from the Whole Paycheck. I've never had a problem putting leftover sauce in small plastic containers with lids and freezing it. However, more often than not it just turns into a penicillin experiment in the back of the fridge and scares the bejesus out of me a few months later...

Save the Schramsberg Demi for dessert during the Superbowl. The Eagles victory will be quite sweet as well... GO EAGLES! From Philly, Katie hey katie- just what will the eagles be doing - serving as waitstaff go pats They'll be home crying into their Gatorade...

Save the Schramsberg Demi for dessert during the Superbowl. The Eagles victory will be quite sweet as well... GO EAGLES! From Philly, Katie Sorry, Katie... Better luck next year.... As for the Pats, don't know how we'll do in warm weather... But looks like I get to open up some more sparklers in 2 weeks! Trish: Thanks for your sympathy. There's a funereal pall cast over the entire city. But what can you expect when you hand the game over. Like a true Philadelphia fan, I'm booing my own side with everyone else. Good luck to the Pats. And definitely pop those bad boy sparklers long before half time

Herb: 1) Lack of a consistent rating system. First Bells, now stars. Are they the same? Where is this explained. A reader would have to be clairvoyant to understand whether/where this restaurant fits into the ever shifting hierarchy, with ever shifting scoring criteria. 2) There's been a quite noticeable dearth of BYOB restaurants reviewed by LaBan at all. Why isn't he comparing this one to the others, or is it simply that there are no other previously BYOB's to compare this to? If so, then isn't there a burden to explain that this restaurant is or isn't being compared to "full service" establishments? That's an important distinction in terms of service required by the customer, 3) The noise level being a main criteria of the review. LaBan introduced the decibel meter to his reviewing system. It's the equivalent of the defense attorney "opening the door" on previously unintroduced or excluded evidence. Jas. says there's a mention of the noise level - it doesn't appear on the web version of the article. It's a criteria that's certainly been used in the past to lower a restaurant's overall score with Mr. LaBan, yet there's no mention of this in the body of the article even though Django is way above his acceptable noise limit. Any other restaurant that was reviewed previously and hammered about their noise level deserves at minimum, an apology and rightfully, a return visit where the noise isn't calculted into the final score. You can't just change the "rules" in the middle of the game. Please don't misunderstand me. I LIKE Django and wish them the best of success. It's LaBan's inconsistency that I find disturbing. I think Robert Parker's wine scores are nonsense, but at least he's consistently full of shit in the same way...

Jas. Thanks! I was starting to think it was just me. Why give one BYO restaurant FOUR freakin' stars, when you've barely given any of the others in town the time of day? Although he's never stated it out loud (and that's most of the problem), it certainly seems that there used to be a "glass ceiling" of three stars for Mr. LaBan above which no humble non-"fine dining" establishment could hope to rise. I think an explanation of the yardstick being used (and being used consistently), would be in order. The explanation of the stars/bells (hey - what happened to the BELLS???) system as it presently stands is entirely inadequate. And entirely unfair.

Andrew: Whether I'm hypersensitive to noise or you don't notice isn't really the issue. A decibel meter is an appropriate measure of a concert venue or the sound inside a railroad tunnel. If you're going to apply it to restaurants at all, appropriately or not, then you have to apply it to ALL of them. This whole review just smacks of sucking up and gratuitous overpraise, and even the tone of it is completely different than any other review I've ever seen from Mr. LaBan. If I didn't know better, I'd think someone else wrote it! (Pod person restaurant critic phoning it in perhaps?) But they couldn't use his name, could they? Mr. LaBan introduced the decibel meter to the restaurant review. If he's ditching it, then he owes a repeat visit and a new review to every establishment that suffered the slings and arrows of his professional opinion as a result.

Herb: There's an opening in October 2005. Better put it on your calendar. If we all thought it was impossible to get a reservation before, we might as well fuhgeddaboudit now. The food at Django is wonderful, and bolstered by Mr. LaBan's virtually pornographic prose describing it, anyone would feel foolish not falling to the ground and convulsing in joy after a meal there. I've been there about 3 or 4 times. I thought it was wonderful, incredibly charming and thanked my lucky stars that it was BYOB. The cheese plate blows the doors off anyone else, in terms of selection, value (it's a steal at $11) and the loving descriptions of the providence of each and every cheese ("this came from a cow named Elsie in Colorado who only eats sweet grass on the southern most facing slope of her pasture...") from the Hostess with the Mostest, Aimee. Does it deserve 4 stars? Only if Mr. LaBan were being consistent across the board. Tell me if it's just me, but I've always sensed a real reluctance on Craig LaBan's part to allow restaurants that weren't "FOUR STAR FINE DINING ESTABLISHMENTS" and all that is implied with that categorization like white linens, suited waitstaff, fine crystal and other tabletop accessories, into that exclusive club. If you're going to compare restaurants that are VASTLY different and NOT give the fourth star to anyone that doesn't meet the above stated criteria, simply because, well, they just aren't LaCroix or Le Bec Fin, then you have to remain consistent. If you are allowing everyone onto the same playing field, then I think that Tacconelli's deserves 4 stars as well. As does the Mayfair Diner. It ain't white tablecloth dining, but it's the best of it's kind in the city, and can compete with similar establishments in other cities as well. I just don't see the same standards being applied in this review. One obvious criteria that comes to mind in this particular instance, is the noise level. Mr. LaBan apparently carries a decibel meter with him and proudly lists those findings as well as taking points off for excessive noise in many of his previous reviews. Unless these reviews were conducted during a time that a convention of mutes or monks having taken vows of silence were in town, he was NOT in the same restaurant I visited. Django has to be one of the loudest restaurants in the city. The quaint charm of that "cozy" room is precisely what makes that the case. Is the decibel level even mentioned?? Don't get me wrong, I really like the place, but again, I see gross inconsistency with the standards being applied to this one small restaurant versus the dozens of other places that have reaped the rewards of a favorable LaBan review or the ones that have suffered irreparable damage to their businesses with a poor review. I wonder if Mr. LaBan is running low on time and rather than doing a roundup of the many BYO's available here, decided to simply sing the praises of the one that everyone seems to like the best.

Simple. The captain is told by the maitre d' who the host is. The menus are presented and the host is asked if he/she would like the wine list. The host is then the one who either accepts the list or delegates. My list, though fairly large, is pretty straightforward: the first half is white wine, the second half is red wine. I am also a maniac about keeping the list up to date. I print pages almost daily to reflect new products, out of stocks and vintgage/price changes, so that most common ritual I find in virtually every restaurant I dine in, that of the waiter returning to tell me my choice is not available almost never happens in my establishment. If the wine is on the list, I have it. Most people never notice this small fact, but to me, it is very important. Mark: If I were to have the good fortune of being a regular at your establishment, I would most certainly notice that fact. I'm equally anal retentive about wine lists and after dinner spirit lists. There are occasional complaints that the menu paper is expensive or whatever, but my attitude is it's more expensive to piss customers off or to have product taking up valuable and precious storage space while the product that isn't on the list yet gathers dust.

WIth all due repect to our Northern neighbors - Amen. These suckers are EVERYWHERE, even in the middle of the city in any open space they can find. Humongous gaggles of hundreds of birds apiece. They're nasty creatures and they leave bird crap everywhere. And I'm bloody sick of them using my car for target practice

I make fresh horseradish every Passover, only I do it in the food processor (first shred, the chop) instead of a grinder. The effect is the same. In fact, I've taken to wearing ski goggles while preparing it. Taking the top off the processor is akin to setting off a tear gas bomb in the kitchen. I've had my cats sit up on their haunches, take a sniff skyward and BOLT up the stairs like banshees when I'm playing with the Evil Root. But if it doesn't make you cry it ain't worth a damn, I say! Yeah, food should hurt sometimes. Try doing Red Savina habaneros in the blender. Just a hint: A touch of vinegar in the mix intensifies the atmospheric sneezles. Warm it up, and it's even more fun. Do it in a crowded kitchen, and go for distance! Erik: You are a strange and demented man. I think I like that about you... Atmospheric sneezles??? Now there's a turn of phrase! I have heated up dried ancho chiles in a dry pan to toast them a bit and then covered and poached them in sherry vinegar. That'll clear the kitchen pretty quick too! And make you cough like you've been in a neurotoxic gas attack.

I make fresh horseradish every Passover, only I do it in the food processor (first shred, the chop) instead of a grinder. The effect is the same. In fact, I've taken to wearing ski goggles while preparing it. Taking the top off the processor is akin to setting off a tear gas bomb in the kitchen. I've had my cats sit up on their haunches, take a sniff skyward and BOLT up the stairs like banshees when I'm playing with the Evil Root. But if it doesn't make you cry it ain't worth a damn, I say!

To confuse things even further, you might have to ask for Grauburgunder. Well, sometimes it's also called Ruländer. It's Gräuburgunder when it's dry, like (most) Italian Pinot Grigio and Alsace or Oregon Pinot Gris so it's the only pseudonym I mentioned. You're quite correct, but the Ruländer name implies the same grape but a sweet wine. I can't imagine what this tastes like but I'd love to find out.

Kudos to Sam and Mark for explaining this all quite well. My additions to this would be that most restaurants (that aren't the late great Windows on the World RIP) do not have limitless storage space for products, no less for products kept in the appropriate conditions. What's purchased is dependent upon the Beverage Director's best idea of what goes with the food and what will please the customers, contrasted with what is a good value for both the restaurant and the customers. You have to be very choosy about what you are offering up, and certain items are going to fall by the wayside. Also, how much time do you have to devote to wine education, and is it more important to educate your customers or the staff? What limited time I have goes toward educating the staff. They're my eyes and ears out on the floor and giving them the appropriate tools to sell is what I consider to be a big part of my responsibility. They, in turn, can then use the tasting notes I provide for the wines as a basis to interact with the guests. The cool stories I know about a particular winemaker or a particular wine that the staff can relate are a great way for me to educate the guests with one degree of separation. Providing "tastes" of by the glass wines accomplishes the same purpose. Cusina is quite correct with the correlation of the size and scope of the Beverage program being directly proportional to the wine knowledge under the roof. As it should be.

To confuse things even further, you might have to ask for Grauburgunder.

Save the Schramsberg Demi for dessert during the Superbowl. The Eagles victory will be quite sweet as well... GO EAGLES! From Philly, Katie

My sincere thanks for the compliment. I'm humbled. I guess I was trying to make up for becoming too busy at work to complete the eGCI course on Pairing Food and Wine I'd offered to instruct last fall. Some day I hope to have enough "spare time" (what's that? ) to fulfill that promise at greater length. My diatribe can be found HERE And I'd like to apologize to everyone for my testiness in my last few posts last night. I was having a bout of insomnia and it was very late. I was testy and Mark handed me the ammunition set myself off. I'll ty to be better... And I'd actually be very curious to hear Mark's reply about the wine list protocol at Citronelle. How 'bout it, Mark?

Since this is a food site and we're friends, this is entirely appropriate... I just knew someone was going to bust my shit about that, but I was SO pissed off when I lost the first version that I just had to say something. I should have taken that out after the fact, but now I'm going to leave it so everyone can see how you mock me...

So Mark. Don't mince words. Tell us how you really feel... No really, I understand this completely. If one more bubble-headed amateur twit asks me for a glass of White Zinfandel (Do you see White Zinfandel on the list in your hand?? Can you read???!!!???) I'm getting the automatic, not the shotgun!

First let me take the gun away from my temple because I'd typed up a lengthy and brilliant response to you and LOST it by accidentally closing the window. So I'll start again and give you the condensed version since I must go to sleep soon... The most basic chemistry of pairing food and wine has two tenets. Salt counteracts Acid (salt and acid are at opposite ends of the Ph scale) and Fat (particularly animal fat like on meat or in butter) counteracts the harshness of Tannin in red wines. Think of the "classic" wine and food pairings. Oysters and Chablis (the real stuff from France - not that shit in jugs from California!). Chablis is screechingly sour on its own but with a briny oyster - perfection! A big tannic Cabernet or Bordeaux is astringent and makes your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth on its own, but after a big bite of a juicy steak it's wonderful. You can test this theory by using a method I use in staff training. Lick the hollow between your thumb and forefinger and sprinkle a bit of salt there as if you were about to do a shot of tequila. Have a sip of a high acid white wine (Chablis is a good example for this) so you know the flavor on its own. Now lick off the salt and have another sip of the wine. Suddenly the acid level has been tamed, the wine seems rounder and less angular and you can actually taste the FRUIT and not just the acid. The wine is, quite simply, a lot more pleasant. Do the same thing with a tannic red wine and a piece of buttered bread or a juicy slice of roast beef. Sensory experiments such as this really make certain concepts "stick" very well. Salt counteracts Acid. Fat lessens the harshness of Tannin on red wine. This is the "Wine Pairing 101" lesson. "Wine Pairing 102". Next you have to take into account the seasonings in the food, including the sauce, spices used in preparation and any strongly flavored garnishes (crumbled Gorgonzola on a salad? There isn't a lot of it, but boy does it influence the flavor of that dish) there might be. It's quite easy to make sweeping generalizations like "I like white wine with chicken", but would you serve the same wine with a roast chicken that you would with a Cajun Spiced Blackened chicken breast? How about a Chicken Scallopine with a Lemon-Caper sauce? Would you expect the same wine to compliment (or NOT) each of these dishes in an identical manner? Of course not. Then there's the other stuff like the alcohol level in the wine (correlates directly to the wine's "body") and whether or not there was barrel influence in the wine's vinification and the associated "oaky" (and other) flavors that it imparts to the wine. It gets complicated pretty quickly. But as you learn more about what wines and foods you enjoy, those subtleties and variables become clearer, nd how those variables interact with one another becomes clearer. And one day, as if by magic, you'll find yourself tasting a wine and you'll think "Wow - this Pinot Noir has lovely scents and flavors that remind me of the forest floor or mushrooms. Sheesh - I bet this would be delicious with a dish that has wild mushrooms or truffles in the sauce." It's a l-o-n-g course of study my friend, but the lifetime of "Lab Work" ahead of you is the best part! If you are in a restaurant and truly unsure of what to order, by all means ask for help. That's what the Sommelier, Wine Steward or even the waiter with the most trained palate is for. You will be avoiding those embarrassing tableside moments for everyone concerned. You are quite correct in saying that it's very bad form to send back a bottle simply because it's not to your liking. If you're perhaps having a light or seafood appetizer and then a red meat entree, ask for recommendations for wine by the glass. You can switch mid stream this way. This is my usual approach because hey, life's too short and it's that many more opportunities to try something new My no-fail rule for pairing wine and food is a variant of "When in Rome.." You can't ever go wrong by drinking what the locals drink with the same dish. That's why goat cheese and Sancerre are delicious together. Both the food and the wine is produced by many of the same farmers in the Loire Valley. It's why Chianti really makes Tuscan cuisine jump off the plate. It's why a bracing Rueda from Spain is the most sublime thing you'll ever taste with simply prepared and impeccably fresh shellfish. The Spaniards that live on the sea coast and eat LOTS of seafood have known that for centuries. Sauternes and Foie Gras you ask? Actually the Bordelaise usually drink Monbazillac with their Foie Gras because they'd rather make the money and export the good stuff! If you are truly serious about pursuing this new interest, I'd strongly suggest taking some wine tasting classes. You can check this site Local Wine Events for wine classes and tastings in your area. See if there's a chapter of Wine Brats HERE in your area. Check the Food section of your local newspaper. What you take away from those classes will add to the pleasure level in your life in exponential measure. You won't ever regret it, and I can state that with complete confidence. In the end, of course this is all a matter of personal taste. I've had clients that positively insisted on drinking Opus One wtih their oysters . Personally I find that to be a waste of wine and of the oysters as well. I think the tannins make the oysters taste "metallic", for lack of a better phrase, and completely obliterates the delicate and subtle flavor of the oysters. But they're paying the check. And so are you. In the end the best wine to have with dinner is the one you like best.

I'll third the nomination. Madame Chairperson, may we bring the assembly to order and conclude the votes?

Marlene's butter tarts rock. I loved them at the pig pickin. Big phat Philly dittos on Marlene's butter tart squares, also sampled and much enjoyed at the Pig Pickin'. That recipe should be in the eGullet Recipe archive if it isn't already. My Turkey-Black Bean-Chorizo Chili has won me two chili cook-offs. I did put that recipe in the archives. Also my Moroccan Charoset for Passover is always a big hit and is similarly in the archives. The other thing everyone loves is my gravlax. I have to find my recipe with the exact proportions so I can submit it to Rabbi Ribeye's Gravlax Challenge.

Foris Vineyards also makes a delicious Oregon Pinot Noir that is very restrained (compared to CA Pinot Noirs, anyhow), yet juicy and delicious for under $20. A bit more Burgundian in style than the California stuff. Less Pinot Noir flavored Jolly Rancher - more subtlety and elegance. Makes sense as the Oregon climate is likelier closer to that of Burgundy than almost any of the areas in CA where the varietal is grown. Also probably why the cooler microclimate CA Pinots (e.g. Carneros) are commanding higher prices. The grape just doesn't like the heat.

Word on the Castle Rock. It's was my Pinot Noir by the glass at Striped Bass for ages and still is at Rouge. You can't find better juice from that area for the price. Anywhere. If you can find any Vignoble Guillaume Pinot Noir, snap it up. The Guillaume folks are actually far better known as viticulturists/eonologists and basically run a huge nursery selling the clonal vines they develop all over the world. Their work is far reaching and of great importance to the wine world. If you ripped up all the Guillaume clones in Champagne, for example, yields would fall by 80%! The little bit of wine they make is meant to showcase their main product, the vines for sale, and is unbelievably priced at around $10-13 depending upon where you live. Their Chardonnay is delicious as well. It'll be a new by the glass pour here at Rouge in about two weeks.

You talking about me or the tomatoes? Holly! How could you think such a thing of little 'ol me?? When I insult folks it's much more direct and far less passive-aggressive...

I nominate the North Star Farms asian pears from Chester County! Man those suckers are good... If not, I'm totally with Holly on the tomato thing. I love Jersey tomatoes. The bigger, lumpier and uglier the better!