Margaret Pilgrim

re Muscats, those from Rivesaltes are nice, and we second Bux's mention of the Navarra wines, particularly the Dulce de Moscatel from Ochoa. Yesterday we opened a delightful little muscat from a tiny California winery: "Zibbibo", muscat of Alesandria, from Nevada City Winery, 4% residual sugar, around $20 the half bottle. (This, by the way, is a lovely little winery that I like a lot.) I am currently kicking my self that I only bought 2 bottles when we were there. Among non muscat, Coteaux du Layon Beaulieu "Les Rouannieres", and Bonnezeaux "Les Melleresses" are both excellent, as well as the simple but good Jurancon Doux.

My husband was in business for 25 years, providing a unique range of products to highly specialized buyers. His clientele were international, as the reputation of his business spread. For many of those 25 years, he kept posted beside his desk an editorial, clipped from a trade journal, entitled "The Customer You Can't Afford". As the title suggests, the article proposed that at a certain point the demands of a customer fall outside the perimeter of the offerings of your business, and that custumer is best encouraged to trade elsewhere. Over time, my husband gave this encouragement to not a few clueless would-be customers who demanded or expected more of his time and emotional attention than was tenable. The irony is that these high-maintenance shoppers were baffled that they weren't considered valued clients, while those he considered friends never asked for special service but always received it.

Ron, I loved a comment I read on a usenet wine group. A man said, and I probably paraphrase, "I can't say that my Lagiuole corkscrew opens a bottle any easier than other corkscrew, but I get a thrill everytime I take it out of the drawer and feel it in my hand." I can't think of a better rationale for owning anything!

Bux, close but no cigar, although yours may well work as well. The one I have is marked "Pulltaps", which just caused me to do a google search and behold: http://www.pulltap.com

QUOTE (Margaret Pilgrim @ Aug 25 2002, 03:44 PM) Bux, from what I understand/remember, lifesized biblical creche figures were very much a part of a Provencal Christmas until their exhibition was outlawed by the Reign of Terror after 1789. Bux answered, "From what I understand, you were too young to remember much." You've got it backwards. I'm so old that 1789 is crystal clear; yesterday is the blur.

Dstone, unfortunately I am technically compromised, so don't do pictures without a lot of outside help. We paid 13 euros for an anodized finished product. The most expensive model was 40 euros, and was exactly the same but "felt a little better in the hand". To describe it again, it is essentially the old-fashioned and classic waiter's corkscrew, the kind they sell for around 5 bucks at wineries or wine shops. Whereas that original style corkscrew has a single set of leverage prongs, this one has a kind of hinge affair and a second set that smoothly kicks in when you have reached the end of the leverage action of the first set. You just move the second set up to the lip of the bottle. Any better? Uh, I don't think so. Sorry.

Forgive me if this has already been discussed, but I wonder if many of us have experimented with the new(ish) waiter-style corkscrew with two fulcrums. We saw them first through a closed shop window, then went on a search for them. Before we found them at retail, we saw them being used in several restaurants. They are exactly like the classic waiter-style screw (foil-knife, screw and fulcrum), but have a second fulcrum that kicks in just as you have reached the place on the cork where the lever usually quits being effective. We tracked them down in the wine accoutrement department in the basement of BHV, ranging in price from 13 euros to 40 euros, depending only on finish. We brought one home, and although I (thought I) was completely happy with the waiter's corkscrew, this one is amazing: one gentle pull, the second lever kicks in and, zoop, the cork is out without a whisper! Pros never did it so smoothly.

Have you tried used book stores, such as Green Apple Books in San Francisco? http://www.greenapplebooks.com/, or if you live in this area, I am sure that Cookin', the well-publicized re-cycled cookware store in SF has a copy of Vol.II. (She categorically refuses to ship or mail goods.)

Bux, from what I understand/remember, lifesized biblical creche figures were very much a part of a Provencal Christmas until their exhibition was outlawed by the Reign of Terror after 1789. The Provencals, resourceful as always, simply reduced the size of their scenes, dressed the inhabitants as their friends and neighbors, i.e., representing all the local vocations, and continued their tradition while breathing new life into it. The Marseille Foire aux Santonniers takes place in December, but I don't know exactly when.

Bouland wrote, "If you read French, then there are many others that I can recommend." I would add that if you are studying French, and since you already have a handle on "how to cook", reading a cookbook in French is a great way to improve both your language and cooking skills at the same time. I have found that it is considerably easier to read a foreign language book in a subject about which you already have knowledge or understanding of terms. Exhibiting enormous hubris, I just returned from France with a copy of "Bras", which of course is worth its price just for the pictures even if I never faithfully complete one of his recipes.

My husband asked the manager of an Applebee's this question, and was told that the term "riblet" is a word made up by Applebee's marketing guys, that there is no commercial cut called a riblet, nor is the cut commercially available under another name and that the cut is actually from the brisket. All I know is that my carriage trade butcher shudders at the concept, and I can't get the Chinese butchers to understand what I'm talking about.

Enchanted by its storefront, we wandered into Legrande Fille & Fils (1, rue de la Banque, 2e, Paris) last week. I was looking for chataigne liqueur and, besides finding it, discovered a distinguished epicerie, spirits and wine shop. The store meanders through the depth of the building and exits into the Gallerie Vivienne. The fancy-food stock is varied and well chosen while the wines include many from small and unusual vintners. Tasting is encouraged. The service was generous, informative and interested in our future as well as immediate needs. This most hospitable shop will be a regular destination for us.

Thanks for the heads-up for Duarte's olalliberry (works for me ) pie. I just skimmed this issue. Berry pie is such a favorite in our house that we usually have it at Thanksgiving dinner in place of pumpkin! And Pane e Vino has been an Italian favorite of ours for ?20? years. Nothing flashy, but always excellent food and service.

While I have never thought of using it in a dining room, my husband always carries a miniature tape recorder which we find invaluable on our walks to and from restaurants. He has spent many too many mornings/afternoons trying to find the wonderful little shop I noticed on one of our evening walks. Now, when one of us finds an interesting shop or library or hotel, he simply "tells his little friend" the address, nearest intersection and name of shop, so that in daylight we can find it without retracing 20 blocks! Used subtly, this would be one interesting solution to the note-taking problem.

I don't get the negative connotation re butter and cream in either the pro or home kitchen (re Culinary Duplicity thread). I use butter and cream whenever I think they will add to the flavor or texture of a dish. I've spent the greater part of my (substantial!) years saying "No" to various foods, and have found that in the long haul, it is quantity and not specific foods that are the culprits. My cooking philosophy is to maximize the essential natural flavor of what I'm cooking, and I agree that overuse of fats can dilute this. But assuming that the cook is staying within this perimeter, I have no problem with dishes rich in butter or cream. We cook everything "fresh" and "from scratch", serve reduction+butter sauces several times a week, and buy heavy cream by the quart with no guilt.

Cabrales, I would hazard a guess that your "Tetsuit" is in fact "Tchin-Tchin" that I mentioned in my original post. It is located on rue Montorgueil in 1e, betweem the church of St. Eustache and rue Etienne Marcel. They are indeed very helpful and always interested in requests for unusual wines as well as delighted to recommend bottles from their stock of non-mainstream vintners. (While I love the French language, I have learned that it is 100 times easier to establish the phonetics of a written word than it is to arrive at the written word from the spoken. I always carry a small card case and pen so that I can have people write down their recommendations or directions. Most of the time I find that I would never have come up with the actual spelling in a million years!)

First, I agree completely with Priscilla, in that I use tofu for its own qualities, rather than ask it to mascarade as what it is not. We usually marinate it and saute it: Combine some red wine, a little soy, some olive oil, minced shallot and garlic (or, if you must, onion and garlic powder), a crumbled bay leaf, fresh basil, herbs de provence or fresh thyme and a kiss of rosemary), a tiny bit of basalmic, cracked black pepper. Cut the tofu into serving sized pieces (for us, 2"x2"x1/2" pieces). Marinate in the sauce for up to several days. Saute in a small amount of olive oil, and accompany with some dressed greens for lunch or a light supper. I ate semi-vegetarian for more than 10 years, but never tried to substitute tofu or its cousins for meat. There are too many fabulous ethnic non-red-meat dishes to do so, and too many ways to use tofu or soy products that don't prostitute its qualities.

Cabralles wrote, "Restaurants evolve, perish, sometimes stagnate, sometimes reinvigorate themselves; sous chefs or sometimes executive chefs move on. Like many things in life, moments at restaurants that one values are to be "captured" as available." Eloquently true, and perhaps an essential tenet of successful travel. Every joyous experience should be treated as if it were a singular one.

Steve P, what and where is the Chez Henri you mention as being within 15 minutes of Balzar? Thanks.

Peaches in red wine are classic: cover peeled peach slices with red wine, sprinkle lightly brown sugar; let sit for an hour before serving. (We sometimes use this as a vegetable in summer.) I love a lot of the interesting concepts already posted in this thread. Many thanks for such creative ideas.

We are straying far from Robert's original "paradox" reference, but I will subscribe to the red wine, green tea, black tea, and sushi restorative powers. At least ONE of these has to account for my superlative chemistry statistics.

Cabrales said, "Margaret -- If you are comfortable discussing it, does your husband sometimes peel grapes for you?" Yes, as a gesture. I appreciate his thought, but not the particularly the product. We settle by his turning a blind eye to my airline ticket purchases.

Robert, we are still having problems verifying your premise. I have no doubt that it may be true. However, on our only visit since the conversion to the euro, we have both been somewhat surprised that we haven't experienced the franc-to-euro creep. There are several instances where we notice that, in fact, we could, if we wanted to, leave less than we usually do for room service, housekeeping and concierge services. However, we feel that moving up to the next logical increment is an inexpensive investment in our equity in a hotel that we both enjoy. We have visited this subject before, and I do have to ask if you think that this inflation is happening particularly at the upper levels of spending since we haven't seen it in our sphere. We have been, in fact, frequently surprised that we are paying so little for simple market purchases. (I will add my peculiar way of converting francs to dollars for the last few years: I would take the figure in francs, add 1/3, move decimal two places left. e.g.: 500 francs plus 150 francs = 650 francs, becomes $6.50. My husband could never figure out my logic, but it worked for me. ;-) )

I frequently lunch with (1 or 2) ladies who may easily order several bottles of wine. I will partake if we are lunching in town, but if I am driving to a suburb, I will order double iced espressos. I have never been served a diluted drink, and in fact have several times left the table, late afternoon, considerably more wired than they!

Cabrales and Helena, green grapes are really a curious thing. You can have life long favorites, and still have to sample these same in order to find a suitable purchase. They are also very subjective: my husband and I will choose completely different grapes. I, personally, prefer jumbo black grapes, seeds or without. And, yes, Cabrales, who is doing the peeling makes all the difference. I will sometimes peel 13 or 14 for my husband; that is my limit. He is spoiled enough as it is. In the meantime, I may just go away with Toby with lots of raspberries and heavy cream. No, just a thought.