Saturday, December 25, 2010

Mana'ish


Mana'ish is the plural of Man'oushe in Arabic. It's the precursor to pizza or focaccia. A pita dough very yeasty, with zaatar on top baked in a very hot coal/brick oven. Variations include Syrian cheese, tomato and even a baked egg.

I usually buy pizza dough from the local pizzeria but decided to make my own with a mix of tipo 00 and bread flour and a package of yeast. I used my new toy; an Emile Henri pizza stone and preheated the convection oven to its highest setting 550f.

The results were pretty good, not on par with the best pita places in Jaffa, Acco, or Nazareth but perfectly acceptable. We ate them for breakfast with some freshly squeezed orange juice.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Burgers at the Kittle House

Probably the best burger in the area is now served in the tap room at the Kittle House. A Pat LaFrieda 8oz patty served with Cheddar, lettuce and tomato. It is a little on the small side but the meat is delicious, the preparation almost perfect and the accompanying fries would not have shamed any Belgian frites joint. Wash it down with one of the beers on their list - I usually have an ale, yesterday's was a Fuller's 1845 Celebration. I could think of worse ways to spend an evening.

Monday, December 20, 2010

2004 Chateau Pradeaux



A wine from Provence that drinks great in the winter, the Bandol from Pradeaux is one delicious nectar. Focused and full of personality the wine smells of Provence herbs like lavender and thyme and is a great accompaniment to grilled or roasted meats. Flavor is of darker fruit, the balance is impeccable. Gotta buy more!

Friday, December 17, 2010

Is there a better Cote de Beaunes than Michel Lafarge's ?



Or better yet, is there a better winemaker in Burgundy than Michel Lafarge? (sorry Messieurs Rousseau, Lignier, Barthod and others, I still love you guys but my heart belongs to Lafarge).

Just so simple and pure and vibrant and focused and flavorful. And from a year like 2004 no less!

Wednesday, December 15, 2010



I made the exact same face when I was on kitchen duty 30 years ago.

Pinots dinner, a few more thoughts

I thought I would hate the Sea Smoke, I thought it would be sweet and simple, manipulated, hot on the finish, it was anything but. The fruit was bright, the structure sound, there was complexity and the wine evolved all through the evening. I don't know if there was a sense of place in this wine, but the Chambolle tasted like a Gevrey to me so who am I to say?  That is probably the reason why I voted for the Groffier second and not first - it just didn't taste like a Chambolle Amoureuses, but it did taste a lot like a chewy Gevrey Chambertin.

The Kosta Browne was also delicious and layered. I don't mind fruit in my wine, I mind the lack of acidity, I mind alcoholic out of balance wine, I mind heavy handed oak treatment, I mind heat on the finish and I mind tiring, monolithic wines. These two wines were nothing like that but I would have thought they were before tasting them just based on others' descriptions. I stand corrected. I loved them both and would drink them anytime anywhere.

The Siduri and the St Innocent were also much better than I expected. I have had Williams Selyem many times before and knew it was a good balanced wine, the others were the real treat last night.

Bad tables at good restaurants

Went to Tarry Lodge again last week, probably for the last time.  While the food remains very good, I find myself asking for a better table every time I go and I just got tired of it.

I didn't know that, but I come in with the "face." You know which one, the one that says: I really am an idiot, I don't care if you seat me by the service table or the kitchen or the corridor, next to the group of ten stockbrokers screaming into their beer, I will order a bottle of wine and let you pour it constantly into my glass so that I finish it by the time I finish the salad and will have to order another one. I really don't mind the blasting a/c behind me or the speakers above my head.  I will still come back and gladly pay your inflated prices and 20% tip.

Well, enough of that, I like the pizza but nothing else over there is that extraordinary, so maybe after a movie in Portchester we'll stop at the bar and have a margherita and a glass of wine, but the aggravation of dining there is just not worth it anymore.

And please, I'll refill my glass myself, stay away.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Chappaqua Wine Club Pinots night

First dinner of the Chappaqua Wine Club featured Pinot Noir from the US and France at the Kittle House.  Nine attendants, great wines, excellent food and good banter.  Here are the details:

The Menu:
A salad of beets with pistachios (we asked to leave out the goat cheese and grapefruit as it would interfere with the wines)
Lobster and leeks stew
Consomme of duck and chestnuts
Steak tartare (yummy)
Loin of lamb with peas
Cheese platter
Chocolate peanut butter cake


Flight 1
2000 Robert Groffier Chambolle Musigny les Amoureuses Burgundy
My number two, group's wine of the night; great dark color, earthy nose, delicious fruit.  The wine is in a good place right now but it's not as elegant as most Amoureuses I've had.  Tasted chewy and a bit rustic but has great complexity. In a blind tasting, I would have easily mistaken it for a Gevrey Chambertin.


2004 Fourrier Gevrey Chambertin Combe Aux Moines Burgundy
Good vibrant color, quite tannic and closed, no green meanies at all, but nothing much is happening at this point.  Needs years.


2003 Williams-Selyem Rochioli Riverblock Sonoma Russian River, CA
My number three, beautiful wine, focused and bright. Balanced with gorgeous red fruits an a long finish.

Flight 2
2007 Saintsbury Carneros, CA
A solid wine that I would love to drink any time, nothing spectacular, though, a little lost in this company.

2007 Siduri Pinot Noir Sapphire Hill Sonoma Russian River, CA
Group's number three Darker color than I expected, layered and complex with a spicy finish according to some.


2006 Williams-Selyem Central Coastlands San Benito County, CA
Very nice, color and flavor reminiscent of it's older sibling, a little less complex and the finish is a bit diluted, still a delightful wine.

Flight 3
2005 Sea Smoke Ten Santa Rita Hills, CA
My number one, group's number two. A stunning effort, rich, complex, seamless, I was afraid it would be a tad monolithic but it keeps evolving and adding layers of complexity.  Amazing wine with a long finish.

2007 Kosta-Browne Keefer Ranch Sonoma Russian River, CA
Sweet on the entry and complex on the finish, exactly the opposite of what I thought it would be, a delicious wine with more minerals and herbs than candy.  Would have gotten into the top three on any other night.

2006 St. Innocent, Seven Springs Vineyard Willamette, OR
The most balanced of the New World wines. Beautiful vibrant color, focused flavors, good complexity,  a very good effort.

That last flight was amazing and we could have stopped there but there were two backups that we opened with the cheeses:

2003 Robert Groffier Chambolle Musigny les Amoureuses Burgundy
The earthiness is there but so is a ripeness uncommon in Burgundies in general and in Chambolle Amoureuses in particular. A metallic finish, in an unbalance package. I wasn't crazy about it.

2004 Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin "Les Cherbaudes" Burgundy
A strong bretty nose at first but it blows off quickly, I like it after the initial whiff but it's tannic and it needs time.  Still good focus and length.

A great time with new and old friends, snow on the ground as we're leaving the Kittle House, roads were tough, but hopefully everyone got home ok.