Potential Gold

Paris For Pesach

Ciao Tutti,

Looks like I will finally spend time with some Jewish people like myself after all.  My father insists that I spend Passover in Paris with family there...and I have no plan on objecting (read the post about Venice to clear this up).

My semi-uncle has a few Morgan clothing stores there so I hope he knows where to eat...if not, I think my buddy Boaz from Israel (and eG) will be there, so we hopefuly will meet up.

After Paris I am off to Dublin, then Brussels, then Stockholm, then Frankfurt, the London, then New York, then LA!!!!!!!   Home sweet home after all!

If anyone knows where to eat well in any of the above listed cities, please comment.  Do consider that I will be backpacking, not elegantly dressed for the Crillon, etc.  (although it would be nice to ge there!).

Ciao,

Ore D.

Badia a Coltibuono Part I

Yes...that's a 1965 you see there in the middle...and yes...it was very tasty!!

Monday morning poor Alex had to awaken to a day of pork bladders and tying whereas I was getting ready to head over to Chianti and drink wine for two days…another perk for being such a damn good stagist!!

Marco picked me up, with Andrea already in the car and we were off.  The three of us would return to

Parma

two days later with a great deal of wine behind us, still in us, and the knowledge that some old vintages lent us never to disappear.

Our first stop, and really the only stop for Day 1 was Badia a Coltibuono located in Gaiole in Chianti.  On arrival, the windy uphill road could only really lead to pleasure as the hills were pure beauty.

The weather was perfect for these two days.  We were first greeted by two young but beautiful cows grazing in the pasture just in front of the abbey. 

Ristorante Italia

Anna, my chef’s mom here at Al Vedel, invited me to lunch on Sunday with her and her granddaughter.  Anna loves to eat well and the destination for the day was a one star Michelin restaurant named Ristorante Italia. 

In the province of Cremona lies a tiny historic town called Torre Picenardi.  This small town is home to an ancient castle, now owned by a businessman from Milan, and a very nice, baroque style church.

Without Anna as my guide I would never have found the restaurant from where we parked the car because there was absolutely no sign.

Importing...

The project at hand is importing... Damn, is this a confusing project at attacking/achieving.  The US government agenices and the internet don't mix very well and the information I see is all intermixed and intermingled.

I want to find info on importing laws for cured meats into the USA...this can be a nice way of paying some student loans, since no one who reads my blog has donated to my 'eating fund' that Pay Pal has generously posted a button to (Not Begging though!).

Could have been better, maybe.

I just got back from a quick trip to Venezia aka Venice. Sunday night, after the dinner service, I went along with the kitchen crew to the pub. Sunday night is really the only time we socialize together outside of the kitchen.

Last Sunday night was different. There are two French stagists in our kitchen now, not sure about the spelling but the names sound like Fannie and Amandine. To make it short, they wanted to go to Venice, and everyone in the bar, everyone (not just the us), thought it was a good idea for me to be their guide. At first thought, NO, and now that I am back, I still wish I didn’t go. For everyone in the kitchen – they all want me to get laid...

Enoteca Pinchiorri - Part II

The Continuation...

The next bottle of wine, our fifth, and not on our tasting, more a gift, was a bottle of Griotte-Chamber tin 2000, a Grand Cru from Domaine Ponsot.

I am not a true lover of the Pinot Noir but this Burgundy wine was great. It was soft and earthy yet the fruit tones were all present. A nice ‘gift’ from our Sommelier.

The fifth course was a quick taste for me. In an oversized bowl with just a tiny center laid a perfectly poached quail egg, sitting in a black truffle soup with a tiny piece of gold leaf as garnish.   

This plate was nice, the quail egg was perfectly poached with a runny yolk and the black truffle soup was just that. It was as if the chef put a few black truffles in a blender with a small amount of liquid and this black truffle milkshake was the result. Although at the end of the season, the soup was still rich and the perfume was pungent and strong.

The next wine up was the Castello del Rampolla 1995 vintage Sammarco. If you haven’t yet, you should!

Course six was a Braised Ox-Tail - the only plate that escaped the lens of my camera – so, no photo. Basically, it was the same bowl as the black truffle soup. Underneath a Black Pepper Tuille rested three forkfuls of perfectly braised tail meat. The braise was excellent and so was the rest of the dish – very nice.

The seventh wine, second to last on our tasting was the 1988 vintage Brunello di Montalcino Riserva – Poggio al Vento from Tenuta Col d’Orcia. That was an amazing wine!!!!!!!

The final savory course for the night was my favorite from the whole night. Pigeon was the theme here and it went like this…Roasted Pigeon Foot (Thigh, leg and toes) resting on the Seared Breast, Pigeon Liver enriched Reduction Sauce, Potato Tart and Toast with Red Jam.

Like I said, my favorite dish of the night, this plate was good! The pigeon was perfectly cooked, I picked up the leg with my hands and sucked all the meat, skin and sauce right off – it was amazing. The breast was perfect and so was the sauce. The toast was sweet and went will with the potato tart and the sauce. A truly yummy plate, how about seconds!?!

After the main course, the cheeses were brought out. There were three large cutting boards full of Tuscan-only cheeses.

My plate consisted of Crema di Capra, a very soft and liquidy goat’s cheese; Ambro; Stracchino Stagionato, another soft cheese that is normally eaten fresh as this was an aged version; Pecorino Buccia di Rospo, a sheep’s milk cheese; and finally, Toma della Valsassine. All were amazing but my favorites were the super soft Stracchino and Crema.

With dessert on its way, the sommelier brought over our dessert wine, just for a peak as it went right back into the iced water to continue its cooling down. We drank a bottle of Picolit made by Rocca Bernarda from the 1997 vintage. A very tasty wine made from a special grape, Picolit, which is a late harvest style. Very tasty and if available, get it!

Okay, the desserts basically all came out in a grand orchestra of a mess. First out was a plate consisting of a Chocolate Cream cube with Honey, Roasted Pear topped with Semi-Freddo, a Chocolate Tuille and an Orange Sauce.

The chocolate cube t asted much like a tootsie roll, the semifreddo was the most amazing semifreddo I have ever eaten, the orange sauce wasn’t very good and the chocolate tuille was great. The semifreddo, truly an exceptional experience here at Enoteca Pinchiorri.

Then, from all angles, plate after plate of more sweets was brought to us.

There was a sorbetto – two flavors, each in their own tuille as a base. We had roasted pineapple as one flavor, and mascarpone and goat cheese as another flavor. Both were great.

Then there was the Chocolate Cream with Irish Whisky which was presented as a foam – very tasty with a heavy coffee flavor, not much whisky though. On the same plate there was also a Triangle of soft Spiced Bread with Licorice, and a Pudding of Lavender and Jasmine with a garnish of Rhubarb. All these tastes were good, with the lavender and jasmine combo the ‘weirdest’ of them all. The small Chocolate Coffee Cups were nice, as well as the Tangerine Gelatins. Small chocolates followed and that was our meal.

Throughout the night, I had a great time. At first, I felt like a putz with the borrowed jacket, but after the first few glasses of wine, I mellowed out. The staff that took care of us for the five and a half hours we were there were great.

At one point I remember a young guy coming up with our Japanese server. Our server introduced him as Italy ’s youngest Sommelier and this sommelier tried speaking his ‘dirty’ English with us. It was a great time. Followed was a tour of the wine cellar, one of three I may add, and then back up to pay the bill.

The tasting menu we ordered, the grander of the two offered, was 225 euros per person. The wine tasting was 170 per person. Total – 395 euro per person – the most expensive meal to date for me!!!

With the wines, the sommelier offered the next wine, if we still had wine from the previous bottle, he asked if we would like the glass refilled, or if we would like both glasses for the same course. It was very friendly and relaxed – not as rigid as at Dal Pescatore, where I dined the week after!

Well, as usual, feel free to ask away!

Enoteca Pinchiorri - Part I

Enoteca Pinchiorri...Part I

We were a three-top and our third never showed up, but beside the point, we were off to a great night.  Walking through the freezing winter air, we found the well lit building which housed Enoteca Pinchiorri.  Once in, we were immediately greeted, our coats were taken and I was issued a jacket because I don’t own one here in Italy.  The jacket I borrowed wasn’t Armani, but it didn’t look too bad!

Our table was changed from three to two and we waited a few minutes in the lobby/waiting area.  Once ready, we were led up to a false balcony seating area.  Our table was one of three in our area.  It was us, another deuce and a six-top.  Our ‘room’ had one waiter and one sommelier in it at all time, and they were ours – always there. 

The waiter was a young Japanese guy who has been with EP for three years – I thought at first he must be staging from the EP in Japan, but no, he is an employee there like all the others – and never has worked at the EP in Japan.  The sommelier, originally from Rome, but Eric and I though from France, spent time in Spanish and French Michelin starred restaurants before relocating to Florence one month back.  He mentioned to us that there is no greater restaurant in the world for a sommelier to work – for him, he is at the best of the best, of the best!

The first thing from the staff was a glass of spumanti – from Antinori, poured from a magnum.  It was a great way to start the night.  Next out were the pink napkins.  The napkins were given to us from a plate, the server using the classic fork and spoon as his finger-extenders.

The amuse bouche, or entrée as mentioned here in Italia was a trio of tiny tastes.

Starting on the left was the Duck Mousse with Black Sesame Seeds, then the Fillo with Ricotta ‘Cannelloni’ and Sun Dried Tomatoes / Black Olive as garnish and finally the taste all the way to the right, a different Duck Mousse on Soft Spiced Bread.

All three tastes were good – nothing over the top on any, but good.

The next gift from the kitchen was a White Bean Soup with Pancetta Stuffed Ravioli.

The soup arrived at the table corked and the straw is what I used to suck the soup up.  The soup was good, a bit on the acidic (beans going bad) side but the three crispy fried ravioli were out of this world.  The pasta must have been the same for Torta Fritta because they were puffy and crisp and delicious.  A nice plate – and yes, I made a nice, loud, straw slurping sound when I was at the last few drops of the soup.  I will enjoy myself!

Our first wine from the wine tasting we chose was a 2002 vintage Bianco di Toscano Ancillo.  This wine is made from 100% Chardonnay grapes and was very nice.  It went well with the soup, cutting away the heaviness and cleaning the mouth for the next sip.

Another taste was brought out from the kitchen.  This plate featured a Grilled Scallop sitting on Puntarelle with a Salsa alla Banana, a Chocolate Tuille and a piece of great tasting Bottarga.

The bitter greens from the puntarelle went very well with the sweetness of the scallop.  The chocolate and banana combo are a classic, and turned slightly savory, they worked well.

Finally, our first course from the tasting menu had arrived, although, I don’t want to make it seem like we were in a hurry!  This black plate transferred the taste of Smoked Foie Gras with an Apple Jelly cube, Salt & Pepper and three droplets of Balsamico Tradizionale from the kitchen to our mouths, perfectly.

This smoked foie was a first for me, and I thought the extremely thin slice was on the skimpy side.  The smoke flavor was a bit excessive and the apple jelly was really there to call that over powering down.  The apple cube tasted of apple sauce – just apple sauce.  Then, you season the whole plate yourself, with however much salt or pepper you want.  There were only three drops of balsamico so that wasn’t an option; I smeared through the droplets on the first bite!  On the side, we were given a few pieces of pruned toast – toasted bread with a prune jam on it.  Very tasty, but I would have preferred a kick ass piece of brioche instead.

Our third wine, second on the tasting, was a Tenuta San Guido vintage 2000 Guido Alberto.  This wine took the prize for the most amazing nose from a wine.  The nose was so compact with smells of ripe red cherries, tobacco, leather – it was awesome.  The taste was good too, but not equal to the tease from the nose.  Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot dominate this Tuscan blend from the famous maker of Sassicaia.

As for breads – throughout the night, we were served our choice from these:

·        Parmigiano Crisps, Focaccia, Prune Toast, Chocolate Bread, Raisin Bread and Whole Grain Bread.

Our second course, a Crab with Mint and Red Pepper Foam Martini, Tempura Spiced Asparagus, was delicious.

The red pepper foam was very intense and well seasoned bug the foam itself, the power of the foam, was very weak.  By the time it got to the table, it was dying quickly and before the waiter even announced the dish, I went at the foam to try and see what I could get before it disappeared.  The crab was fantastic and so was the asparagus, with a pinch of paprika to season them.

The fish course was next.  This was a plate consisting of perfectly cooked Bass with a Puree of Celery Root, Deep Fried Mussels and a Mussel Foam with Saffron Oil.

The fish was great – perfectly cooked and just great.  The deep fried mussels were passed through some seasoned bread crumbs and fried, skewered with a piece of bone on the plate.  The mussel foam was great, well made and very tasty.  The celery root was also, very nicely done with a hint of sweet butter to richen it up.

Yes, if you were thinking it, all these courses were served with the Guido Alberto, and all plates went well with the red wine.

The fourth wine, third on the tasting was a bottle of I. Sodi di San Neccolo – Vintage 1997 – bottle number 12543 of Castellare – another truly amazing wine.

The pasta course was out next.  This plate, Doppio Ravioli with a Burrata Cheese filling and a Pheasant filling served with Amaretti Crumbs and Butter, Black Sesame Seeds.

The idea of the double ravioli is brilliant.  I have never seen this before and think this can open many, many doors to endless combos of tastes.  Basically, think of a rectangular piece of pasta dough.  Put one filling on the right end and on filling on the left end.  Fold the two ends towards the center – now you have two fillings, separated, but one piece of pasta.  Very cool!

This is the end of Part I.  Part II will be up shortly.  Thanks for reading...spread the Gold!

The (not)Philosopher

I was watching our dog, Gaja, eat from her bowl and the thought of hunger came to mind.  Gaja is a large dog.  She is nine years old, resembles a Golden Retriever in shape, but is about three times the size and is all black.  She is beautiful and very intelligent.

So, how does one know hunger with out ever really feeling it.  Sure, I didnt eat today, so I am hungry, but is that what true hunger feels like as well?  The way we see hunger differs from one person to another.  If I see someone skinny, bare boned, I feel bad, because to me, that is HUNGER.  But, I am not sure if because that extremely skinny boy or girl has never been trully full and satisfied, they are hungry.

You get used to what you know.  When ten grams of re-hydrated beans fills you up you may still look skinny, but are you hungry - not mal-nourished, but hungry??

Just a thought I had - sorry if I scared you!

WBW# 7

WBW #7 - Thanks to Spittoon for hosting this months event!

My first time at this, this WBW thing – and I hope it won’t be my last.  It is late, I must make salumi bright and early but I hope that won’t take too much away from the post (please mind the buzz!).

I live in Italy now and with help from some friends I chose a bottle of Teroldego as my WBW# 7 grape varietal.  Although not completely unheard of, this might be an available wine in some of the larger wine merchants in the US and elsewhere.  1998 was a great year for most wines in Italy, this bottle of Teroldego Granato 1998 – from Foradori was 26 Euro and was worth it.  The wine is 100% Teroldego and was very nice in the mouth; balanced and yummy – I am sure you can find the ‘proper’ lingo elsewhere!

Personally, I prefer more body and tannins but this was my first and it was very soft and velvety in the mouth – with a balanced taste although without food, maybe a bit on the acidic side.

Once again, the wine is 100% Teroldego.  The vines average about forty years old and the wine is aged a minimum of eighteen months in new oak before released.  This is a wine with a concentrated nose of ripe/mature smells.   This is a full bodied wine with a dry taste and a hint of cooked fruit.

I insisted it be the first of wines that we try this evening, so I can report at least some half way decent comments about the wine, as you can see, it wasn’t the only thing we drank.  Not pictured are the three bottles of sparkling stuff, a nice rose sparkler and a Sicilian 100% Chardonnay.  Most were magnums as the friends I am with have a thing for large format bottles – can’t blame them – they’re cool!

The next will be better, with more time to write.

Ore

Florence - The Market

Woke up with a slight hang over – normal after drinking the amount I did without enough acqua, and made my way over to the Florence central market for a meeting with Divina from eGullet. 

I found Eric on the way and after a few minutes; found Judy (Divina) at the corner pasticceria where we had some coffee and sweets that were great.  From the patisserie, my favorite was a little fritter from a rice batter – fried golden and covered in sugar – yummy.  We met Andy, the chef from Bridges at Rancho Santa Fe who was with Divina for the day as well, and decided to go into the market.

Once inside, we met Adam, another eGulleter and began our tour.  Judy knows EVERYONE in the market and everyone knows her.  It went like, “Buon giorno Judy…Buon giorno”… chicken man, beef guts man, cheese man, chicken sisters, vegetable man, sweets man, fish monger man, etc.  I didn’t take any photos of the market, in an attempt to go back one day, but the place was amazing.  I tasted a truffle honey that I regret not buying a small jar of. 

It was too early for me to have the famous tripe or boiled beef sandwich, but again, I will make my way back before I leave Italia.

We said good bye to Adam, on his way back home, and continued the tour.  After the market, Judy showed us a great enoteca nearby where we enjoyed this blood sausage as well as some wine.  Eric and Andy had a few more treats but I wasn’t up for it – my stomach at least!

We then went walking a bit and came to the Trattoria Mario which is open only for lunch.  This is a MUST GO if ever in Florence and I will definitely make my way back to Mario’s for lunch one day.  Osso Buco only is served on Saturdays.

We said goodbye to Judy and went in search of Chocolate and books.  Vestri is an artiginaly made product and we first started with a cup of hot chocolate – ingredients: Chocolate, Cocoa Powder, Sugar and Milk.  Mine had a touch of ginger and nutmeg in it.  Eric and Andy opted for peperoncino (spicy). 

In regards to books, I was in search of Ishmael and a book by La Berge on lucid dreaming - I left the shop with Ham on Rye by Bukowski (completed in less then one day), People Watching by Desmond Morris and From The Land of Green Ghosts by Pascal Khoo Thwe.  The later two I am still working on - the Bukowski, my first, was awesome.

After the chocolate and books I headed back to the hotel for some rest.  Enoteca Pinchiorri to follow!

Florence - The Welcome

Arriving around 19.30, it was a Friday night and the restaurants and enotecas in Firenze were all fighting for my business. After contact with Judy, the Divina, the decision was made to check out the Trattoria of Cibreo.

Cibreo, the original, is a fancier place with a long Florentine history. I was not looking for anything formal, just straight good food – and was lucky to find it there too! Eric and I enjoyed plates like:

Pate di Fegattini di Pollo; Insalata di Trippa; Passata di Pesce; Passata di Zucca; Cappello di Prete; Piedi di Vitello; Tortino di Pere; Tortino di Cioccolato; Cheesecake.

All the titles above are what I can remember now; this was not a dinner I wrote down, but much more for fun and being welcomed into Firenze. The Pate was creamy and smooth, perfectly made. The tripe was a cold salad with a ‘salsa verde’ dressing. Both passatas were great, the fish very clean and flavorful and the squash with a note of nutmeg – very elegant and rich.

The cappello di prete was a form of Zampone, served with an awesome tart of mostarda. The braised veal hooves were delicious. The hooves are de-boned and the meat and gelatinous tendons are separated and braised perfectly. When I received this plate, I asked if seconds were available because it came out on a 6” plate. The server assured me that this is the perfect portion size and after eating this rich plate, I would have to agree.

We opened with spumanti and drank a bottle of Avignonesi Grande Riserva either 98 or 99 – cant recall. I remember the wine being a bit warm but it was good.

The restaurant emptied out by the time we were on our mains. There were seven other tables and almost all were empty (it was about 23.30).

It was dessert time and I had my eye on a very tasty looking apple tart but when ordering, learned that it was pear – ok –so that is what I had. Eric had the chocolate cake and they gifted us a slice of the cheesecake. All three were brought out with a complimentary taste of Antinori’s Mufato for us to enjoy.

Overall, a great experience. Very good, homey, ‘rustic’ food with a few flares here and there. Everything was very tasty and properly done. The walk home was a freezing cold one.

At nights Florence was extremely cold, it wasn’t snowing but it easily could have with the low temps. We thought about going to a bar or club but we passed by a new concept we haven’t seen before. A large window for us to peek in from the street, we noticed one chef preparing food for the entire enoteca/restaurant.

The place is Cibo e Vino (I think) and from the looks, it was a hipper, newer place in Florence. It was late, they offered us no food, but we did enjoy a bottle of Umani Ronchi’s 25th Anniversary edition wine. I recall a ’99 vintage and I thought for the price, not a bad markup – 70 Euro. So that’s what we had.

I remember visiting the winery, Umani Ronchi, in Umbria, and that bottle was sold out – not available for sale – at the winery – so I had the chance and it was pretty good!

After the wine we kept walking in the cold, this time to the Duomo area where the hotels were. We found this boar on the way! Somehow, we ended up at JJ Cathedral, an American/English pub/bar in the center of Florence. It was a great time meeting many people and speaking English, like, ummm, like, ummm, like, ummm.

Actually, it was pretty bad but it was fun! After two beers, Pilsner Urquel, my head was spinning and it was time to go (alone). Lots of pretty girls but they all traveled in packs, like wolves, and weren’t very open to others.

No Prob – early morning market meeting for me the next day!

Un-Stable

It's been a few days...okay!!  Reason:  Work and work and even more so then work, it is the combination of the weather messing with my GPRS connection and me being able to get online.  The snow and TIM might not like eachother.

Yesterday was the Norcinis (Mario and Luciano) last day with us.  The DOP season is over and we finished the last of the February Culatello yesterday.  Although, yesterday 35 legs showed up, so Alex and I were happy.  We will be making about the same number, 35, a week on our own - much more hands on now since the masters have left the building - BUT - these Culatello won't be sold as DOP - I wouldn't want mine sold as DOP anyway - I'm not worthy (yet!!).

Still uploading pics from the weekend, Florence, and Enoteca Pinchiorri.  It will be a good report!

Ore