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imo only...... the general wine-swilling public (of which i count myself) drink at least some brands of bulk merlot because: 1. it's fruity. you don't have to pucker up your mouth to get rid of the tannin, you don't have to ponder when it'll be ready to drink, you don't sit back and begin a soliloquy on the virtures of the glass. it's a $10 bottle of columbia crest! which brings me to..... 2. it's cheap. at least, relatively cheap. i'm not rich, and can't afford to buy a couple cases of petrus or duckhorn. i still remember the days when i was drinking los vascos merlot, santa rita cab, and long flat red as an everyday drinker. i've got a pretty well-paying gig, but i can't afford a $50 bottle (or an $x50 bottle) of wine every night. the general wine-swilling public can't, either. 3. it's available. at virtually every restaurant, liquor store, wine shop (at least, the major brands like columbia crest et al are). i don't have time to run down to sam's wines here in chicago every week to search. besides, i have an excellent wine shop here in my town, and prefer to do business with them. but, for the general wine-swilling public, the availability of the major brands is a distinct advantage, because they don't have to search 'em out. 4. it's consistent. yeah, it's usually one-dimensional. nope it won't give you chills the way a wonderful aged bordeaux or burgundy will. but, no matter where you are, no matter what year it is, you can pretty much depend on finding a drinkable bottle somewhere. some of this thread got me thinking about my visit to cannes last year. i ate 4 nights in the same cafe in the city. 3 of the nights, i was with collegues. we bought bordeaux off the menu, drank it like 'real' wine people in 'real' wine glasses, swirling and sniffing. it struck me that the locals were drinking local wines out of water glasses. it also seemed as they were enjoying their meal, and their wine (which was probably 1/3 of the cost of ours, and as i recall, made from gamay, not cab or merlot) as much as we were. this is kinda like the thread on 'moral eating' on another forum. if people wanna drink bulk merlot, and they like it, then more power to 'em! fwiw, matt

last night: grilled strip steaks, marinated for about an hour in: garlic rosemary marjoram thyme dark soy worcestershire s&p all ground to a paste in my newly-delivered thai mortar/pestle and smeared over the steaks. boxed spaghetti with homemade pesto sauce, ground from the basil we grow at home, garlic, evoo, and parmesan (no pine nuts....didn't have 'em this time) in my newly-delivered thai m/p. fresh-picked salad greens from a planter box on our deck, with a vinegrette made just before serving in my (you guessed it! ) newly-delivered thai m/p. damn, that thing works great! bottle of clos de carneros (carneros creek's second, or one of 'em).....ok, but at 18 bucks, i can find better grape for the buck. matt

got 'em in several spots all over the house, and i'm too lazy to count 'em exactly, but about 100. amateur here, too!

sorry.....but..... carry-out sushi from my favorite north burb chicago restaurant for me ( bbq eel, shrimp tempura roll, spicy scallop roll). chicken teriyaki (lotsa citrus, not lotsa sugar) for wife/son, after son's baseball game. oh, yeah, we won!

morels. i remember going to find 'em with my dad on my aunt's farm. we'd fill up 2 or 3 of the old brown paper grocery bags, bring them home, and that would be dinner for the next 2 nights.....egg wash and cracker crumbs, with lemon on top. sheesh, we were POOR and were eating $100 of mushrooms a night! corn. being from iowa, i have a real hard time with transported corn, which loses so much sugar content so quickly. we can get some good corn here in the chicago area.....picked same day, and that comes close, but only for about 3 weeks a year. asparagus. just planted some 2 years ago, and this was the first year it really came up. there's no substitute to cutting the spears, bringing them to the grill, evoo, s&p, lemon juice.......WOW! vine tomatos from the garden. again, no substitute, even from the farmstands.

i travel a lot, and therefore 'dine' (it's a relative term......and sometimes WAY too elegant to describe eating alone at 10 pm in an empty hotel restaurant) out a lot. i, too, was raised in the 15% 'world', have watched the norm rise to 18%. i believe my company's policy is 15%, and i believe the policy states 'before taxes'. frankly scarlett, i don't give a damn (ok, i should also admit to not being inclined to carry a calculator with me to every meal, much like some of my annoying friends who figure out EXACTLY what they should pay for, AND the tip they're willing to pony up for......but i digress......and i don't eat with these people any more, either, come to think of it!). if a server's good to me, makes sure i'm taken care of, isn't too nagging, etc., i usually tip 'high' - over 20% (i'll also admit to tossing bartenders $20 or more over the top of a tip when they've been exceptional, but that's another story! ) and up to 33%. sometimes, the server can make my night, whether it's when i'm on business or with my family or friends. they're right there when you need them, never there when you don't, always ready with the right comment or joke or question.......these servers enhance the experience. if the service sucks, the server's rude, or the combination of server/chef is lousy, i'm down at 10%. while i've never really stiffed a server, i've come close. to me, it's a 'gratuity', not a 'birthright'. fwiw! matt

pretty much same as jimmyyo's: low-moisture mozz, fontina, provolone, asiago - all fresh-grated into the oven, then parmesan as the pizza 'sets' (w/ some evoo on the crust, too!). matt

fifi, i'm almost afraid to post this, 'cause i ain't all that sophisticated when it comes to smoking. never done a shoulder or brisket, but i'm gonna try after my son's baseball season is over. with that in mind, i (gasp) went out an bought a cheap char-grill, (gasp again) electric smoker. i wanted to get some experience with smoking, and really wanted the brinkmann with the box, but when i thought about it, i realized that i could get some experience first with the electric, then move up later. 60 bucks at home depot, some assembly required (if i can do it, anyone can), made DAMN good ribs sunday. i'd think it'd be perfect for an apartment. you'll need an inside-oven thermo, though, 'cause the top thermo only has 'warm', 'ideal', and 'hot' settings.....while i ain't all that sophisticated, i'm smart enough to know i should be pretty close to accurate on the temp. (please don't laugh at my ignorance too much!) matt

uh oh. 1 flour, 1 cup oil for 6 cups stock? you mean i should've MEASURED? oops. thanks (everyone!), matt

i'm coming WAY late to this one, and i have a hard time believing i read all 8 pages of this (excellent) discussion. i found it somewhat similar to conversations i've heard in my own 'profession' (technology), where the teachers, writers, rank amateurs, talented amateurs, pros, and outsiders all have their own views. so, i'm not surprised that the discussion got somewhat 'personal'......people here have expressed their views in the only way possible for them: based upon their own set of experiences and knowledge. and, between groups, there's always a certain amount of arrogance and snobbishness. the talented amateurs always point out the failings of the pros; the pros talk as if those without their experiences have no right to an opinion, and so on. in the grand scheme of things culinary, i fall somewhere between 'rank amateur' and 'talented amateur', probably closer to the former than the latter. i say that because i cook by feel and taste, not by an underlying foundation of knowledge or vast arsenal of recipes. i know some of the basics, though not nearly all. i can do some of them well.....i can make bread and pasta by hand from memory. i've never made 'real' demi-glace. i can prep quickly and professionally, though almost certainly not as quickly as a 'real' pro. i can't tell you from memory what a mornay sauce would go beautifully with. i can do a mean 6-hour smoked rubbed rack of ribs, but BUY bbq sauce to go with them. taking courses is (to me) about acquiring a set of knowledge and skills. which courses or schools you're admitted to should be predicated upon a set of entrance criteria (one of shaw's points, with which i agree totally). what you DO with that knowledge and skillset is totally up to you (which is where my agreement with shaw's posts on his experiences in law school diverges). if you meet the entrance criteria, and you have the motivation and desire to complete the coursework, it's complete nonsense for anyone to judge your motives (so it seems to me) or tell you that a question you ask is 'stupid', 'self-serving', or anything of the sort. one doesn't take a course with the main goal of being named mr. or ms. congeniality, or 'most popular' at the end of the semester. if the 'wrong' people are taking the course, it's a problem with course design, not the students. prob'ly another argument, though. so, at the highest level of abstraction, i'm with the amateurs. the argument about what would happen to juliard or harvard or or or if a bunch of 'ok' students went there is somewhat nonsensical; their entrance criteria would make this nearly impossible, and certainly the coursework would weed the 'ok' people out. if a rank amateur wants to go to the cia, they meet entrance criteria, they meet financial criteria, and they have the motivation (whatever that motivation is), then i don't believe anyone has the right to tell them they can't, or to belittle their choice. this brings one to another of shaw's excellent points: there are a number of associate-level programs in most large cities that treat cooking as a vocation. from what i'm hearing on this thread, none of the folks who don't plan to actually work in the field are attending them; they're going to lcb and the cia and and and and. 'named' schools. having an economics degree, i understand the concept of 'utility', which really equates to the value one sees in any sort of good or service. how much 'better' are the classes at lcb or the cia than those at the institutions shaw talks about? (this is not a rhetorical question - i don't know the answer, but perhaps there are opinions out there.) if the skill sets acquired are roughly similar, would it not be of greater 'value' to attend one of these lower-cost options than spend the big bucks to go to lcb? or, is the value in being able to say to friends and family.......'learned this one in that year i spent at lcb', or 'i learned this from chef abc, who was my instructor at the cia'? i don't mean to demean here; only to point out that some of the resentment i hear from the pros on this site seems to be targeted at the rich folk going to 'name' schools. finally, i strongly agree with the posters who've said that it's not what school you attend first and foremost, it's what you DO with the knowledge - how you APPLY it - that will make you successful in this world. i've met folks from ivy league schools who couldn't reason their way out of a traffic jam (they have, as we used to say back home, lotsa book learnin', but no common sense), and i've met folks from the same schools who are among the absolute, most brilliant and successful people i've known. applied knowledge, motivation, and attitude determine success, in my experience. education's just one of the inputs. from my own standpoint, though, i'd never want to pursue a full-fledged culinary program. i also don't want just demonstration. i need something in-between that will allow me to be hands-on. that's not a 3-hour class, but it ain't a 2-year program, either. that's just my personal choice. good discussion! matt

the gumbo itself. i'm assuming, just 'cause i know the other ingredients that go in, and how each tastes, that it's the roux. could be wrong, i suppose, but the taste is almost rancid. matt

rachel, ups ground for $7.95, and i went for the 8". the one i've got right now is small (prob'ly 4"), and smooth.....almost like one of those old drugstore things. kinda the standard model sold in cookware stores, i guess. i've been looking around for one like this for a couple years, since i use the m/p to make almost all of my marinades and rubs.....and especially during the summer (grilling season) i use a LOT of those! on another note - pertinent to this thread - i got my order from chefshop.com yesterday......olio verde, chili/garlic sauce, dark soy......all great. but, for some reason, my 17-year-old daughter couldn't understand the excitement i felt when i grabbed that can of salt-packed anchovies! go figure ....... matt

i love gumbo. whenever i'm in new orleans, i'm in heaven. when i see it on a menu in a cajun restaurant, i almost always order it. whenever i try to make it, it sucks! i'm pretty sure this sad state of affairs comes down to my inability to make a good roux. what can be so hard, you ask? all the cajun cookbooks and recipies i've read go something like this: put flour and fat into a pan and cook it until it's brown....or black.....or blonde. now, i'm not the most-manually-dextrous of cooks, but even I can do that! or can i? every time i use a roux for a gumbo, it comes out bitter and nasty. i've used bacon fat and olive oil and vegetable oil. still comes out bitter and nasty. i've tried prudhomme's high heat technique, and long and slow (two-beer, as i've heard emeril call it) cooking. yup, bitter and nasty. i suppose it could also be the combination and proportion of the 'trinity', as well, so any suggestions there would be great, too. this seems to be so simple, but perhaps is one of those things that seems easy, yet takes a lot of time to master. can anyone suggest to me what i might be doing wrong? thanks! matt

just ordered it! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!! matt

never tried the recipe, but it sounds yummy! couple thoughts: first, the amount of liquid you add at the beginning may make the sauce 'watery'; if you add a cup of red and a cup of port, and reduce by half, you've still got a cup of liquid, which could be 'watery', and you'd need to add a whole lot of butter to thicken. or, to get the 'right' amount of liquid remaining for the butter to thicken, you'd have to over-reduce. if you're at a half cup of each, then you're left with a half-cup, which can be thickened with a couple tablespoons of butter. i like the idea of arrow root......doesn't add any cloudiness, and will indeed give a nice sheen to the sauce without altering flavor. how soon are you adding the grapes, and is their liquid 'contributing' to the sauce itself? if you're peeling the grapes (hard work, but i've seen it done), or halving the grapes, and cooking them a long time, then you'll add water to the sauce from the grapes. finally, the type of port you're using, or the mix of port and red wine, could change the thickness. while port is indeed a 'heavier' fortified wine, different ports have different 'thicknesses' (couldn't spell viscos....viscous....ah, what the heck!). my guess is that you're using 'vintage character' port, not the 'good' stuff (vintage or lbv), and not tawny (10yo, 20yo, etc.), but i'm not sure. you might mess about a bit with the brand of port you're using, or the type, or the mix between red wine and port. or, you might muck about with the reduction time for each (add the red wine first, reduce by 1/2, add the port, reduce the remainder by 1/2, add the grapes?), though that may already be part of the recipe. don't know if you've tried this already, or if any of the ideas help, but i thought i'd try! matt

forgot one of my all-time favorites.... b's and g's (bisquits and sausage gravy, spurred by the 'bisquick' post!) matt

country white trash or city white trash? i'm familiar with the former, havin' been one a them. these here bring back memories....... fried quail with pan gravy. i'd suggest squirrel, but...um....that could get you arrested at this time of year! scalloped potatos fried green tomatos cucmber and onion pickles (sweet or sour or sweet and sour!) chicken casserole (leftover chicken stretched a second day with hard-boiled eggs, mushroom soup, celery, and cracker crumbs). you can have some fun with the ingredients, just make sure the top's cracker crumbs. corn bread green bean casserole (the one with the mushroom soup, too!) head cheese. yummy! fried whole catfish hard-boild egg sandwiches, or fried egg sandwiches saltine crackers and milk (a favorite sunday dinner for my family) something stuffed in celery as an appetizer (here, you can get creative!) i was gonna suggest oscar mayer sandwich spread, but i'm not sure they even make that any more! swiss steak (take a look at the 'round steak' thread) with brown gravy all childhood memories from a white trash upbringin'! no wonder i'm warped...... have fun! matt

stone, having once worked in a customer service organization, it's my experience that there's typically an escalation process that one could go through here, depending on just how much you'd like to play with these guys.....or continue the venting process until you get your entire 80 bucks worth. so, how about: To whom it may concern, I have had an ongoing email discussion with one of your representatives, targeted at giving you feedback on the overall quality of your products. To date, I am not satisfied, either with your product or with the quality of your customer service organization. Since I know that it's normal for customer service organizations to have a process to escalate very dissatisfied cutomers, I'd like to volunteer to participate in yours. So, please have a management-level representative (preferably, one with satisfactory literacy levels that exceed those of the customer service representatives) respond to my original email. Here it is: like i said, it all depends on how much you feel like playing. i sent a similar letter to my friends at a large net-based computer company. after i volunteered to participate in their escalation process, they ignored my further emails. i will NEVER EVER buy another of their products, both because the original computer i bought sucked, and because they weren't willing to make it 'right'. anyway, this was a fun thread to read, even if it were only to laugh the low-budget c/s folks! matt

agree with stone on the cautions for your driveway.....you need heat for a LLLOOOONNNGGGGG time to do this right, and if you don't have the source well above the driveway, you have a melted hole in the blacktop! depending on where you're located, there may be mobile roasting 'wagons' you can rent for a day or two, complete with delivery/pickup of the wagon. i'm originally from iowa, where we actually DID 'put the pig in the ground and had the beer on ice' in a farmer's back 40, but about half the pig roasts i went to used one of the commercial wagons. i now live in the chicago area, and one of my neighbors just had a roast last year; he rented the wagon. your local true value may be of some help, as could be one of the local rental stores. good luck......pig roasts are heaven on earth! matt

friday: filets on the grill salad w/ homemade vinagrette parslied new potatos 1999 hess estate cab saturday (post son's ballgames): burgers on the grill (w/ onion/garlic powders, cayenne and worsterchire) potato salad (used the leftover new potatos from night b4) 2000 sarget (gruad larose's second, and i know, i know, a zin would've been 'better', but had to try this) sunday: ribs, rubbed/marinated overnight, smoked for 6 hours on my new low-tech electric smoker salad with vinagrette baked beans 1997 rabbit ridge aventura (again, not the 'prime' match, but i needed to try this one, too!) matt

no meat, or leftover meat/fish/shrimp/etc from the night before. cold, day-old rice, ginger, garlic, scallion, shredded omelet, maybe celery or jalepeno (if i feel like it). veggies/aromatics into the pan first, cooked for about a minute (i like 'em crunchy, and they're chopped down to rice-size), add the rice, dump on the soy, add some hot sauce (the one with the chicken on the squeeze bottle....can't remember the name), add scallion and sesame oil off-heat. my favorite after-workout meal! 10 minutes tops, including prep time. matt

interesting how descriptors and preferences may seem at odds, huh? i was surprised to see your conclusion as well, jim, given how you'd described the wine. it sounds an awful lot like one of my drink-now fruit bombs (t vines), which i don't believe will get much better, either. then again.......it's pretty yummy now, for my taste anyway. on another syrah topic: has anyone had the d'arenberg 'the dead arm' '98? i splurged a year or so ago and picked up 3 of the single vintage labels, the dead arm being one of them. i'd be interested to hear opinions of the wine in general, and some thoughts about maturity. thanks! matt

joanne, one of these days, we'll actually get a dean and delucca out here in the sticks (chicago). i've heard that they are a lot of fun. i'll do some looking for gourmet garage to see if they're in the 'e' world yet. to those who recommended chefshop......just went there yesterday and bought some stuff. THANKS! matt

can a newbie join in? last night: tacos. yeah, i know, but we were somewhat time-constrained, due to my son's and my baseball/softball schedules. he plays travel ball; i still play twice a week, even at my advanced age! monday night: boneless pork chops (thick), marinated in herbs from our own boxes (thyme, sage, rosemary, chives, marjoram), oo, lemon juice/zest, cabernet vinegar, soy, garlic, garlic, garlic (did i mention garlic?), sherry; then grilled. did my usual trick of straining out the herbs from the marinade and spread them on top of the chops after i turned 'em (thin layer, so they cook the raw pork juice out and turn slightly crusty). boxed linguine (didn't have time to make my own, which is my son's favorite) with fresh tomato sauce (garlic, onion, psd tomatos, basil and marjoram from our boxes). bottle of cline ancient vines zin to wash it down. yummy! tonight: hot dogs. boy's got a ball game. ick! matt

dartagnan.com for mushrooms and duck products especially, but i just ordered quail the last time i shopped there, and they were excellent! murrayscheese.com for just about anything cheesy. murray's is a cheese shop in manhattan (even though i'm in chicago!) with an excellent selection, including a great description of each cheese they're selling. they're also pretty good about substituting like-taste cheese if they're out of your order. both times i've ordered they've done that for me, with excellent results. deananddeluca.com for spices, and i order oils and vinegars from there as well. anyone know where to find a VERY large mortar/pestle online (similar to jamie oliver's)? matt