OPJK

Red blossoms on pine, Stainless steel - misnamed, bloody, The knife has been caught.

In my haste to indulge in some quick eGullet this morning (while beseiged like a wall-less king in my office), I completely ignored the "CNDP" in the original post. In the word of Emily Littela, "Nevermind."

It was a second label for Chateau Certan-Giraud, which was purchased by Christian Moueix around four or five years ago. The name has since been changed to Hosanna. While Certan-Giraud was historically a producer of solid, respectable wines, with Moueix' purchase and adjustments, the expectations are raised even higher. The first new production under his control, from what I've read - unfortunately no direct experience yet, seems to bear this out with the Hosanna from 99, 00, and 01 all getting exceptional reviews (e.g., Parker scores ranging from 90 up to 96 for the 2001). The vineyard is in the Pomerol AC in Bordeaux, near Petrus, Certan-de-May, and Vieus-Chateau-Certan. Some of the recent changes have reduced the vineyard to the prime vines, covering about 10 acres and consisting of 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc. Production has been reduced to about 1,500 cases. THe prices have been rising accordingly and this is seen as one of the hot vineyards to watch in Pomerol.

In the New York Times magazine today, Jonathan Reynolds has an article showing how to make an Italian chestnut soup. NYTimes - Italian Thanksgiving

The only thing I can see is that I think there is no town named "Montrachet." I know of Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet, but I don't think there is a "brand-name" town of Montrachet. But then again, who needs a town to go to when you can drink that yummy stuff at home?

Catherine the Great Alfalfa Sprouts Apples Sugar Cubes

The consistent inability to get freshly boiled water caused me to stop ordering tea at the overwhelming majority of restaurants in the States. Years ago I would ask if the the restaurant had "real" boiling water, but it was often both futile and just a little condescending feeling. Fortunately, I like coffee. Unfortunately, tea would be a nice option in many circumstances. Having worked in restaurants that had no problem with providing proper tea service, it seems silly that this is such a common situation. Double espresso, please!

Dennis Koslowski: Nothing for me - I'll just be eating yours.

On of my own worst spills was in college. I had a pair of white corduroys (!) that I managed to get massively dirtied each time I wore them they lasted three wearings). The first time, I removed the stains by soaking in bleach. The second time, seeing the success of the first time, again, bleach did the trick. The third wearing was a day when the college dining service decided to have a barbecue. Hundreds of students sitting around outside on the grass, eating burgers, hot dogs, etc. A friend approached with her tray and, as she sat, spilled most of the contents of her tray onto my lap. She had two glasses of orange soda which spilled mainly onto my crotch and thighs. For whatever reason (I assume bleach was a factor), the soda immediately began to dissolve the material. I basically was left with virtually crotchless pants, orange-tinged boxers, and a red face. I made a bee-line through the crowd to my dorm.

I once had a boss who had a college roommate whose father was a senior guy at Brown Brothers Harriman (an old-school investment firm). His roommate's father invited these two young men to a small reception and dinner at the firm in honor of WWII hero Field Marshall Montgomery. My boss was tongue-tied, awe-struck, flabbergasted, and stymied to be in the presence of such a giant, in addition to being wowwed by the liveried-servant, wood-panelled, old boy setting of BBH. When it got to be time for dinner, my boss was seated next to Montgomery. One of the courses was pork chops. As my boss tried to cut his chop, in his nervousness he managed to flip it off his plate and onto his lap. Horrors! He didn't think anyone saw him do this and decided that the best course of action was to pretend it didn't happen, and leave the pork chop sitting on his lap until he could figure out a way to dispose of it. After a few moments, Montgomery leaned over and whispered into his ear, "No body noticed. Pick it up and put it back on your plate." My boss knew at that moment that he was clearly in the presence of genius.

1963 was a terrible year for Sauternes, with cold and damp conditions through much of the growing season and rot hitting most of the region. The general belief is that no growers escaped, but one rarely knows until the cork is pulled. I certainly don't know about Guiraud in particular. I would say make the best of it: have low expectations (and a back up bottle), make a feast, gather good friends, and give it a try. But there is no reason to wait any longer. It could be a great surprise!

I'm a big fan of the 2001 Chateau Pesquie Les Terrasses from the Cotes du Ventoux. With a case discount, it is about $9 per bottle. It's structured, has great texture, full-bodied, lots of dark fruit, a little spicy, a little earthy. I think it is remarkable for its price. I bought some thinking of it as an inexpensive, drink-now type wine, but I've put some down to see how it ages over the next several years, as I think it might improve. Also, I like the 2002 Excelsior Cabernet Sauvignon from South Africa. It has a big flavour, strong dark fruit, it's a bit alcohol, mild spice. At about $9 per bottle, it is a great, inexpensive, big wine (but I don't think it has the complexity to age well). For whites, Tiefenbrunner frequently has some very respectable Pinot Grigio that is available in the $8-11 range. Certainly much better than the Santa Margharita offering that sell at twice the price.

My wooden knife block has vertical slots for knife storage. I was advised when still young (and it has become second nature) to store my knives spine down to avoid dulling the blades when inserting or removing them. I'm not sure it makes much difference in the long run, but thought I'd share.

No one noticed while he was in the bathroom (we were sitting on a covered porch, he was inside). But he looked awful when he came back out. After we departed, he admitted his illness. He claimed to have cleaned up well and to have removed all evidence.

Two of my worst combine to make a spectacular three course meal: 1) My date and her two roommates were hosting a "grown-up" dinner party when I was in college. They each took different parts of the meal to make. One roommate grew up overseas with cooks all her life - she had never cooked anything for herself EVER. She made the salad in advance so as not to be in the way in the kitchen. When we sat down to eat, the salad was served first and it looked fine - iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, with bottles of dressing on the table. She had followed a recipe. As we ate, everyone looked around with lightly horrified looks on their faces. What was the disgusting taste in our mouths? We asked the perpetrator of the salad. She said she washed the lettuce, sliced the other stuff, and mixed it up. That's all. How did she wash the lettuce? With dish soap, of course! 2) Following an annual meeting of a small group of alumni from my college, the wife of the president would serve a home-cooked meal. I had learned to eat a meal before attending this meeting, as her food was generally inedible. There were usually a few undergrads that would be invited to this meal. In one particular year, we arranged for one freshman who had grown up in Florida to attend. The meal was served. It was a chicken and peanut dish - a mainstay of this meeting. The chicken was chicken breasts that had been cooked to a rubbery and tasteless consistency. The peanuts were clearly toasted in a skillet until hard, slightly brittle and nasty tasting. Dumped on top was what I think was unthinned chicken gravy goop from a can. It was hard to eat. When dessert was served, the president's wife announced that it was made in honor of the guest from Florida. It was an electric green key lime pie "made from a Jello recipe." It tasted medicinal. The funny part was watching this poor kid struggle to eat the enormous wedge that had been sliced for him. And how quickly a second serving was given to him since he "clearly loved the first slice." He threw-up in the bathroom about five minutes after he painfully swallowed the last of the second piece.

238 (and this after having given away about 200).

Thanks for such a great article.

You'll do well at the Boarding House (one of my favorites) and I second the Something Natural and 21 Federal recommendations. Other comments: Straight Wharf has been consistently excellent in my experiences there - also one of the best. The menu is creative and dynamic; they are tolerant of long, leisurely meals; the wine list is serious but a little expensive (by Nantucket standards - although I have had good experiences with asking the sommelier what's interesting - he frequently has a few bottles that are not on the list and are, generally, very well-priced. I find lunch at the Galley next to the Cliffside Beach Club to offer one of the more enjoyable experiences. The food is solid - not fabulous, and the prices are fine by Nantucket standards. However, on a day with decent weather, the combination of decent food, decent pricing, covered, outdoor seating, and basically dining on the beach can not be beat. Queequegs offers very good food, great prices, and has a very laid-back attitude. Definitely a great alternative to the "fancier" spots. Have fun!

My guess is Rocco is doing this to jump into the nationally-recognized celebrity chef category. While UP is awesome and critically acclaimed, I'm not sure it has reached the, uh, "Bam!" level across America. You figure that he gets tons of free publicity, his new restauarant is basically guaranteed a few months of patronage (if only for train-wreck viewing attractiveness), and he continually gets billed as one of the greatest chefs around. Flash forward two years: Rocco's red sauce joints scattered around America (upselling the Olive Garden crowd) and Union Pacific-esque serious restaurants in Vegas and LA.