Wednesday, January 02, 2008

New Year's Resolutions

It's that time again! New Year's Day! Hope everyone ate their black-eyed peas, made some cornbread, and planned lots of good things for 2008. Sure, we all have those "lose weight, work out more" resolutions, but what about your food and wine resolutions for the New Year? I'll share mine if you share yours!

** Take the Introductory Level Sommelier Course and Exam in Fall 2008: Thanks to the lobbying efforts of Arthur Black, rumor has it the Master Court of Sommeliers will hold an introductory course and exam in Indianapolis in fall 2008. The two-day seminar concludes with a written test on regions, winemaking techniques, varietals, and more. Cost will be around $500. While most of us have no plans to take all four levels, should be a great experience for laypeople and professionals alike.

** Have a dinner party for Open That Bottle Night: Don't forget to mark your calendars. Feb 23, the last Saturday in February, is Open That Bottle Night, the evening popularized by Wall Street Journal wine editors Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher. It's a great chance to get together, make a great meal, and finally open those mystery bottles that we think might be past their prime.

**Attend More Farmer's Markets: Continue to eliminate processed, convenience food from my diet. Eat more great local produce. And get to more local markets this year.

**Find a Great Bread Baker: Maybe this will be the year we finally lure a first class baker to Indianapolis to start a Goose-style neighborhood bakery.

**Interact with More of Our City's Amazing Food Professionals: If you think Indianapolis doesn't have some world class chefs and food knowledge, then you haven't been looking hard enough -- I've met three just in the past three weeks. We have some nationally known experts here doing amazing work -- from culinary education to cheesemaking to meat production to cheffing. Seek out, enjoy, and know it's getting better every day!

Drink More Great Wine: Life is too short to drink cheap plonk. Find something you like, learn about it, drink more, and love. Go to tastings, stick you nose in that glass, and let this be the year of the grape.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

For what it's worth, Rene's Bakery in Broad Ripple produces a number of breads that I would consider first-class. The shop itself is nothing like the Goose, but Rene does churn out excellent baguettes, whole grain loaves, brioche and other breads. The croissants, pastries and tarts are just gravy if you're into the patisserie side of things. And the shop is open on Sundays, which is hard to find around here.

Anonymous said...

Any word on the bakery slated to open in the City Market?

Anonymous said...

...a blurb in the Indy Star says it's called "The Downtown Baker"... set to open in January. At least it's not another freakin' dog bakery.

Anonymous said...

Oh, and the Indy Star has another blurb about John's Famous Stew coming to the Stutz - though it's to be called Bearcats.

braingirl said...

Yes, the Star first reported the John's Famous Stew thing (or I heard about) a couple of months ago. re: bakeries. I take anything down at City Market on a strictly wait-and-see basis.

Love Rene's but wish they a) did more bread and b) I love them for all their treats.

But good that they're open on Sunday.

J. Silverheels Gray said...

What's so bad about dog bakeries?

braingirl said...

Heh -- Cause only special pooches like you, Jackson, get to enjoy them!