KatieLoeb

I like to take: Marinated in a zip-lock "protein of choice" cubes for wooden skewers/kebabs. Sometimes its beef, sometimes chicken, sometimes lamb. Occasionally I do swordfish. Big containers of dipping things like hummus, baba ghanoush and pita bread that can be grilled to order Good stuff to make over-the-fire omelets for breakfast. My personal best while camping once was a shitake mushroom and brie omelet that came out startlingly good for not having a real stove. Good sausages for grilling. Homemade trail mix with lots of dried fruit and nuts, shredded coconut, etc.

This may be true, Tommy. But the fact remains that once you learn what to look for, (in typical Germanic pedantic fashion) there is FAR more information on a German wine label than any other. You can tell a lot more about what's inside the bottle without having to open it than you can with wine from anywhere else in the world.

I will usually add a beaten egg mixed with a little water to the ground turley, also to keep it from drying out and to help it stick together better. Any type of barbeque sauce, hot sauce, etc. that you like will help flavor what is generally rather tasteless meat in burger form. Lots of chopped fresh herbs and/or vegetables in tiny dice is always a good addition too.

Right - because as the alcohol content rises, it's doing so by "consuming" the sugar during fermentation. The literal translations from the German "ripeness at harvest" classifications are somewhat helpful: Kabinett – part of the main (First) harvest, higher RS than halbtrocken and alcohol usually under 8% Spatlese - harvested at least a week after the main harvest, again usually higher RS and alcohol than Kabinett wines. Auslese - harvested by hand as individual bunches based on ripeness, some sweet enough to be dessert wines Beerenauslesse (BA) - Beeren = Berry. So this is individual berries/grapes picked by hand for ripeness. Trockenbeerenauslese (TBA) - Dried (Trocken), Individual Grapes (Beeren) Harvested by hand based on ripeness (Auslese) made from dried (raisinated, hanging on the vines until long after the first harvest), botrytised grapes, picked by hand, very sweet. Eiswein - hugely concentrated, usually very sweet, grapes are harvested and crushed while frozen. It was my understanding that this catergory was last in the "time-from-first-harvest" heirarchy because it implied that the grapes had been touched by frost. So were talking like October/early November here. However, the meaning and clasification my have changed from the original meaning nowadays if they are simply freezing the berries manually, so to speak. Does anyone wish to correct me/give us the true answer?

Further research has indicated that the tell-tale Baid-Aid aroma is from Brettanomyces yeast infection in the wine. My experience with it was limited to a certain Cotes du Rhone we had purchased for by-the-glass sale at one of the restaurants I order for. So apparently it isn't the particular wine, but the particular yeast that causes this aroma. Further info is available (HERE) Live and learn...

Cotes du Rhone smells like Band Aids sometimes. That's possibly what it was.

Joan: So glad you enjoyed yourselves. I spoke with your waiter on Monday and he said it seemed you'd enjoyed yourselves quite a bit, so I was pleased to hear that. The tasting menu you had sounds fabulous! Usually they don't do the tasting menu on Saturday evenings because of volume considerations, etc., but since you had called ahead and were seated early in the evening they were happy to accomodate. I'm glad you enjoyed everything. The Cremant D'Alsace (the sparkling wine) is one of my favorite aperitifs, soI'm delighted it got your meal off to a good start! Thanks for the nice report!

Trailer Trash Cassoulet Beenie Weenie Casserole with a Fried chicken leg on top. Canned baked beans, sliced hot dogs and KFC! Doesn't get any trashier (or easier) than that!

Stone: Those are rather impressive statistics, but let's not forget how crazy the cost of living in SF is. That obviously includes the cost of eating and drinking out. That same salary in another large urban area like say, Atlanta or Las Vegas or Philadelphia goes a whole lot further. It's a shame. I've often thought of moving to San Francisco because there is such a great restaurant and wine industry there. Lots of jobs compared to where I am now (Philly), but unfortunately I couldn't afford a studio apartment there for what I'd get for selling my three bedroom house here! Big bummer !

I think Syrah/Shiraz often smells (and slightly tastes) like a big pile of raw ground meat. Definitely an accurate descriptor for that. Was that what you were tasting, Tommy? I think the dirty articles of clothing/lingerie descriptions are where I draw the line on whether I'm interested in tasting the wine in question

I'm basically with Herb on this. If you'd like to go chowing/imbibing pre or post baseball game, by all means drop a line. Always looking for worthy partners in crime... There's a ton of fun places we could drag you to for lowbrow eats. Dive bars are a specialty as well. Of course if you're feeling like really civilized eats, a small amount of advance notice will allow reservations to be had almost anywhere. I've either worked there in the past, work there now, or probably know someone who does. Too many years in the same small town will do that to you...

Woo-hoo! I knew I could count on you hard cores for a road trip to some good eatin'! YAY! I'll be putting this on my calendar as soon as the date is announced!

The Absolut Vanilia smells more like Creme Brulee than like "fake" vanilla, like the Stoli Vanilla does. I like it quite a bit more than the Stolichnaya Vanil vodka. However, the Absolut Mandarin smells and has an aftertaste of baby aspirin! Yech!

Hi all: I'm posting a link here Jersey Getogether so we can stay abreast of the plans for this shindig. Could be a lot of fun. I know Andrew is game to go play, any other takers?

Some of my personal favorites include: Horseblanket Sweat Barnyard ("...it's a good honest smell - like MANURE" ) Fungal Mowed Lawn Citrus Pith or "Pithy" Wet Gravel Flagstone Chalky (like Milk of Magnesia - YUM!) Musky Dirty Hot tub (to describe corked aromas) I love "wet dog" as a descriptor. I can't remember what it was I tasted, but that was definitely what popped into my head

This happens to me too! I shall have to make an effort to run to the 'puter (at home or at work) and post next time it does.

Yes it's too bloody hot! And I'm drinking a frozen guava Margarita to keep cool!

Simon: Stop bitching about the bad martinis and finally make it to Philadelphia. I shall find you a decently mixed cocktail, even if I must do it myself!

If you all are serious about this pig shindig then please keep the thread referenced on the PA board as well. I would most certainly drive several hours for the pleasure of trying Fink's funky roast pig, as well as the opportunity to meet some more eGulleteers. I'd even bring a carload of Philly folk with me! If this happened somewhere in the Central Jersey environs then we could all try and make it there - the NY, NJ and PA crowds! What fun! Please keep us informed.

There is a very fine tea shop here in Philadelphia called House of Tea (Click Here) that is walking distance from my home. They sell every variety of loose teas and there is one called Four Red Fruits that I particularly like as an iced beverage in the summertime, slightly sweetened with honey. It's reminiscent of many berries and delightful on a hot day. The Earl Grey with Violets also makes a delicious iced tea. The store is run by the original owner's daughter now that he has passed. It is a real treasure. My restaurant (Striped Bass) purchases teas from House of Tea, as do many other fine restaurants. But the most fun is to go in there and just ask to sniff the contents of the various tins and bring home a new flavor to try from time to time.

I went to college in Philadelphia and adored both Frog and the Commissary; I bought all their calendars and the cookbook, and still look back to them years later for recipes. The Commissary's signature carrot cake is still one of my most-demanded desserts, as is the sour cream walnut apple pie from the Fish Market. Neil The Commissary Carrot Cake is the VERY BEST recipe for carrot cake ever, period. I have a much stained and rumpled xerox copy of that recipe somewhere at home and I only make it for truly worthy occasions. Fabulous stuff though. There is also a recipe for Apple-Cranberry Sour Cream Walnut Streusel pie that I absolutely adore from Frog cookbook as well. I worked for Frog Commissary Catering for awhile and their food was always top notch. I also miss their restaurant from back in it's heyday, and it's a shame that no one has really been able to fill that niche in the city ever since. Le Bus was close, but not as "daring" in their recipe preparations.

He has impeccable and expensive taste in clothing, but I'll see if I can get in a good word for you before his wardrobe hits the upscale consignment shops. I opened my front door this morning to find my much maligned proprietor staring up at me from the front stoop. Quite disconcerting. The article is a combination of spin, spin control, and "will-they-or-won't-they-be-forced-to-shutter-the-restaurants" speculation. Whatever. Until someone tells me I don't have to show up for work, I will assume that we will remain open for business as usual. Nothing has changed from my perspective at all, although I am somewhat sheltered and behind the scenes so my contact with the "public" and the customers is minimal at best. I don't have to put up with the bad jokes and bullshit the servers and bartenders do. Although I do still get ribbed by my friends as evidenced here...

Sara: Pho Xe Lua in Chinatown isn't that far off the beaten track for you, is it? Although, I'm sure you're right that another cheap ethnic eatery near campus would clean up. For me, as I've mentioned before, I want real GREEK food! More and better Thai food, and some Eastern European restaurants would be nice too.

=Mark: So - how'd it go???? I was really going to try stop by, but was home sick all weekend .

Ms. Robinson: Thank you for taking the time to do this Q & A with us. What advice do you have for women wanting to get ahead in what is often a very French dominated and (hence?) somewhat misogynistic career path?