docsconz

From "a CULT" to "occult"....interesting Seriously, it sounds like a great weekend. The balloon ride should be fantastic. Enjoy!

Soundsd like a lot of fun! Which zins and sparklers will you be serving? Any cheeses with them? We want to hear it all, the culinary voyeurs (and exhibitionists) that we are!

Excellent! I was wondering when you were going to chime in .

Lucy, that hurts! That looks incredibly awesome. I am, I think, justifiably proud of my area's farmer's markets, but that is simply incredible.

So far interested parties include: docsconz woodburner phaelon56 Lreda robert40 coughy sammy alacarte rich This provides an excellent starting point. How many of you might be interested in a Saturday evening dinner at one of the mentioned restaurants? Please include likely numbers for that event. I am not asking for any commitment right now, just a sense of the numbers.

At this point in time I would be leaning towards either Sunday August 8th, 15th or 22nd for the picnic. Any preferences? I would like to have a date nailed down by the end of April, especially if people are interested in getting together for a dinner the Saturday night before., since I would like to make some arrangements with a restaurant ASAP given that that is the busy night of the busy season. In addition deciding on a specific day now would be useful for anyone needing to make lodging arrangements.

I think a very rich, creamy cheese would fit the bill, perhaps a nice French triple-creme. If you do go blue, I would suggest a creamy gogonzola dolce or the Buffalo blue from England available from iGourmet.com. It is killer.

One of the problems with the format you are describing is that the "ratings" will be based on a taste isolated in time and context. We all know that the way a wine tastes and is perceived changes with time as the bottle is opened and the wine "breathes" in a glass or decanter. In addition, perception of a wine is most decidedly affected by the pairing with foods. This is a big problem for me with most rating systems. The wines tend to be tasted in isolation and scored based on that. Very few wines are actually drunk that way. Nevertheless, I still think you have a good idea, which means to say a potential improvement over current methods of disseminating relatively subjective wine-tasting information.

Bikky, the sommelier at Amma in NYC, is a master of pairing wines with Indian food. I had previously been under the impression that all I could drink was beer too, until he turned my head. He paired an Australian shiraz that turned out to be dynamite with a variety of well-spiced dishes. This was not an intuitive combo to me until I tried it. Check out this thread on Amma for a lot of discussion on wine pairings and Bikky's magic.

I think you have an intriguing idea that might use wine scores in a useful way. Certainly no one score for a wine is particularly useful, especially if it is someone else's, however, if sample size can be large enough, I can see where patterns may develop and have some validity. I don't think this will be easy to accomplish, but good luck.

I couldn't tell if he meant that May 1st would be the re-opening or that it would be May 1st at the earliest.

Fascinating. Thank you.

Outstanding. It took me a little bit to figure out the format, but once I did it was perfect for the subject - very enlightening. This is why I became a member of eGullet one year ago.

Please tell us more. Inquiring minds want to know.

I think I know where I want to take my in-laws next month when we go to see Cirque du Soleil. It looks basic enough for them and intriguing enough for me. I want to try their sauteed porcini and the veal chop.

I wish I coulda been there too! Awesome. I still want to see some close-ups of the bugs, though.

Lookin' goooooooood! The closest thing we have to that up here is a good old New England Clam Bake. That isn't too shabby, either I hope you got some nice close-ups of those bugs

This has been a fascinating thread that before now I have overlooked. Maitake mushrooms are becoming much more popular in the US. I can even get them in my supermarket! I recently had grilled Maitakes at the restaurant Hearth in NYC that were exquisite.

Brad, Welcome and thanks for sharing your interests and expertise. My interest in wine is much like yours, however, it is a very difficult thing to convey the soul of a wine with words. You do a nice job.

Jaybert, thanks for the suggestion. It looks good. I would think it would go well with pork too.

An $8 item may not be much to an individual check, but they can add up fast. I have to agree with Soba, based on what I have read here and my own recent experience at Jean-George, I am not too excited about visiting any of his restaurants right now.

Manchester is another good option as is Cambridge, NY. The Cambridge Hotel is a nice place and also has a good restaurant.

Other areas to consider would be Lake George, Glens Falls or even up at Friends Lake Inn in Chestertown. That would be approximately an hour's drive to the track, but is probably the nicest place to stay (and eat) in the area, including Saratoga. Glens Falls would be 15-30 minutes to the track with Lake George another 5-30 minutes from that, depending on where on the lake one is. There are a number of placesd to stay of varying prices and amenities, from campsites to Luxury Resorts. This would need to take place either the end of July or the first three weeks of August. We should probably decide on a date soon if enough people are interested who would need to secure lodging as that is the prime season and lodging goes fast. I initially said Saturday or Sunday. Lreda has nominated Sunday as the day of the week to shoot for. Any other thoughts or preferences at this point. I believe either day would be good as far as the track goes. My main suggestion would be to avoid Travers weekend as that gets insanely crowded. That tends to be toward the end of August. If we did it on a Sunday and there is enough interest I could probably also put together an eGullet dinner for either Saturday or Sunday evenings for anyone who would be in the area then. The restaurants I would propose would be Chez Sophie or Springwater Bistro in Saratoga or Friends Lake Inn in Chestertown (for Saturday). If people were interested in either of the Saratoga restaurants, arrangements should be made soon.

This is true unless one lives within daytrip-range. Saratoga is about 2.5 hours north of NYC, right up I87.

Any interest in an eGullet picnic at Saratoga Race Track this summer? I'm envisioning a Saturday or Sunday at the track with a potluck (or themed pot luck) eGullet picnic.