An Affordable White Burgundy Recommendation

Pouilly-Vinzelles

Pictured above is a white from the Maconnais. This middle of the road chardonnay drinks like its more famous neighbor, Pouilly-Fuisse, at a reasonable price. I picked up a case of this 2005 Pouilly-Vinzelles for 12.99 a bottle (before case discount). This wine normally retails in the sixteen to twenty-two dollar range, usually right around eighteen. I recommend locals hit the store before it’s all gone. I think there may only be a few bottles left. If you want to give it a shot, I picked this up at the Whole Foods on Cedar Rd in Cleveland Heights.

It’s ready to drink now and won’t really benefit from cellaring. As you can read on the lable, Louis Latour is the Negocient-Eleveur. This designation means either that Latour has contracts with specific growers or buys wine that has only begun to ferment, and refines/elevates it. This Pouilly-Vinzelles was bottled at the other end of the Burgundy region in Beaune.

Remember why I liked that Chilean sauv blanc so much (a few posts ago)? The lack of aging in oak allowed the terroir to shine through. With this wine one can expect much the same. While unoaked chardonnays are not always put through malolactic fermentation, Latour has for this wine. The result is a rather soft, medium bodied wine, easily accessible. It’s got nuttiness and a bit of honey with, as one might expect, enough acidity to make a great food wine.

a votre sante

Palatability Revisited - a dinner at Taste

infamous cheesecake?

...

On Saturday, April 11th, the evening before my last hurrah at Fire (Sunday Brunch), I went to dinner at Taste. This lively spot graces Lee Rd just two blocks from my home. It opened last autumn, yet it has taken me this long to get there. And for shame: I know the chef. Anthony Vicente, a Parisian transplant, interviewed with me for a position in my kitchen several years ago. I would have hired him in a heartbeat, but our hourly rate did not satisfy his requirements for compensation. We ended up working side-by-side for a short spell. I actually trained him for all of one (maybe two?) nights on the pantry station at Fire, before I switched to my favored Sundays only schedule. He patiently tolerated my extremely rusty French and endured some razzing as the new guy with a funny accent from the line cooks and sous chefs. For about half a year now (I believe) he’s been the chef at this new establishment.

I turns out that we have some food ideas in common. Ideas about small portions and flavor combinations that push our preconceived, socially constructed palates. Most of the food is innocuous enough in this regard. I opted for the prix fixe menu, and let Anthony send out whatever he wanted. What I ate was flavorful, well seasoned and presented nicely, if simply.
He started me off with Red Mullet. It was topped with black olive tapenade, set on a quenelle of sweet potato and surrounded by yellow curry, lightly foamed, a great combination. The fish was fine, properly cooked. The sweet potato-yellow curry combination (not a stretch by any means) was really delightful. My main criticism here (likely unshared by locals) is: too big! Cut back to less than two ounces of sweet potato. Also, I would have enjoyed an herbaceous counterpoint. Bring on the lemon balm or anise hyssop, brother! This was one of my favorite courses, which is why I have included it in this post.

What peaked my interest, gastronomically speaking, came in the form of dessert. Anthony sent out a cheesecake made with red bell pepper puree. The server who brought the dessert to the table referred to it as “the infamous cheesecake”. Uh, training anyone? Now, I’m a mellow kind of guy when I’m not in a kitchen, so the irksomeness of this declaration faded quickly. But, come on people, support your chef! Don’t make suggestive critique of the food (or leading commentary) in this form. Anyway, server’s blunder aside, I liked it. It’s actually pretty simple, two dimensional at best. Still, it satisfied my palates desire for savory flavors in dessert. Why are we so wary of using traditionally savory flavors in this way? I won’t revisit that discussion so much as to say, do try it. You might like it. After the meal, since I’m interested in these things, I asked the host (and Anthony) about sales and the future of the cheesecake (or others similar) on the menu. It remains undecided. Public reception of the dessert seems to fall into a love it or hate it dichotomy. Oh well. I’m in the middle ground again with decided leaning toward the love-it camp. I strongly encourage the powers at Taste to let Anthony free reign for a minimum of another six months. At the very least, it will allow me to eat some more food that challenges the status quo. My specific suggestions for this dessert: ditch the fried basil leaf. Basil might make a great garnish in another form. Fried, it has little flavor. Also, trim the portion size. I once overheard Trotter direct his pastry chef, Della, to make smaller portions. He said "put what you think would be the right amount...then cut it in half!"

quick update

hello friends

...

I've had a little more than a week at the new job. It's going very well; meaning, I like the family, I like the challenges, I look forward to the many meals and channelling my creativity. Every once in a while, I'll try to take some food pictures. So, this quick post is just to say, "All is well!"

...

Lots of bloggers, with pages more elaborately garnished than mine, include a "what I've been reading" gadget. It's nice really (I enjoy it on other pages), but it's not for me. The times when I feel a link is important, I'll insert a hyperlink into the text (scroll through old posts for many examples, most of these are for reference). However, every once in an while, when I read something that I want to share, I'll put the link into a post (not a side bar) with an explanation.

...

A post or two ago, I extolled the virtues of a Chilean sauv blanc. Sauvignon Blanc has become my favorite white (at least, for the time being). Of sauv blancs, I particularly like Sancerre. So, it is of special interest that I read this, which is not only about Sancerre, but references the region of which I wrote. With this post, I'll create a new, temporary, honorary award: good buy wine of the month. It's goes to the afore-posted Cono Sur Vision Sauvignon Blanc for being everything one might expect from a Sancerre, yet at 11.99. Try it, love it. And if you do try it, please let me know what you think.

...

A votre sante.