Wine Wednesday -- One Ounce Pours

For those of you who read a few food blogs, you'll know that many of them post on wine topics on Wednesdays (called surprisingly enough Wine Wednesday, ha ha.) So, since it's Wednesday, here are a few small pours in honor of the nobel vino.

The Bison Business: OK, so it's not wine, but Marion Burros touts her NY Times piece on bison at Diner's Journal. Lots of local butchers sell a lot of Indiana bison on advice of cardiologists. If you like steak, but have cholesterol issues, you might give the noble buffalo a try. I know Kinkaid's carries it most days and if Joe Lazzara doesn't have it, he can get it. (Joe can get anything.) What wine to drink with your buffalo steak? I'd recommend a nice, rich Zinfandel, I think.

Stale Wine for Sale? With the proliferation of wine bars and large wine-by-the-glass lists, have you ever sent a glass back? I have -- and I think more people should since there's just no way a bar or restaurant with a sizable by-the-glass list can keep an opened bottle fresh. Sure, they pump them out or use nitrous systems, but even then, it's not fool-proof. I think Bauer (and his commenters) make an excellent point. Wine makers take the rap for bad wine (when it's really an oxidized glass) and some bars rake in the cash with customers who don't know any better. Join the revolution. Send back wine-by-the-glass that's past its prime. (And speaking of stale, yes, I know this post is *weeks* old. Luckily, it didn't oxidize as fast as that two-day old grocery store pinot noir they're selling you for $10.)

State Fair Wine Judging: In case you're wandering around the state fair this week or weekend, stop in a take a gander at the wines judged for the Indy International Wine Competition. (They're locked up in a case in the same building that features the flower show and the honey ice cream.) It's difficult to tell by their display how the categories and rankings fell, but you'll see the grand champion for both the international and Indiana wines. No surprise that Oliver did well. Jeff at the Good Grape has an interesting post on the competition and judging criteria.

Want: The Wine Pouch with a Handle! Really, what more can be said except for Thank You, South Africa! Wine, in a pouch, portable, with a spigot. It's like a giant Capris Sun juice pouch for grown ups (minus the annoying straw)! And as long as the wine is good and preserved well, I'll drink it out of almost anything. Really, how great would this be for coolers, boating, and picnics (think Symphony on the Prairie!) All I want to know is how long until Nolan and Bill can get us some! (Via Dr. Vino.)

Cipriani Groups' Liquor License Revoked? And also via the good Doctor, some reports tell us the New York state alcoholic beverage board may go after the famous restaurant group's liquor license. Screw Cipriani Soho, I'm worried about the Rainbow Room! (From the Herald Trib)

All Around the Blogosphere (or Day of Miscellaney)

Lots going on in the food blog world outside Indianapolis. Here are a few posts and issues of interest to local foodies (or, hey, just me) as we usher in a beautiful summer!

And Make it Snappy: Over at Frank Bruni's blog (Diner's Journal at the NY Times) Marian Burros has a lovely tribute to one of my favorite summer vegetables -- asparagus. Ms. Burros and I see eye-to-eye on cooking this odd looking summer treat which is *just barely*. In my steamer, it needs less than 1 minute to turn bright green and have a crunchy, sweet quality that screams fresh. Perfectly cooked asparagus makes you remember why it's OK to eat it with your fingers. Yum!

Defending the Midwestern Palate: I meant to post about this at the time but was looking for a suitable local tie-in. It never came up, but I know enough people here enjoy ethnic and cutting edge cuisines to appreciate Michael Bauer's post (from his Between Meals blog at SF Gate) and comments. Is there a "midwestern" palate? Whether or not Bauer believes it exists, I'd wager some local chefs believe it. I've often heard local chefs can't serve food as they'd like as they either have to limit spice or unusual ingredients. However, in tasting and judging for competitions like Dine magazine's "Best of", I've also noticed that many chefs aren't afraid of spice and flavor (although they don't always get it right) while others have no idea of the concept. (I was so depressed after we tasted so many bland chicken salads, I didn't even want to post about it.)

Do chefs in Indianapolis feel limited by what dishes they can create based on the spices, flavors, and ingredients their diners will eat? Is there a difference between cooking for your clientele (what sells) versus what your more educated customers believe really tastes good (palate?) Do even our best chefs (like Oakley, Brown, Hardesty, and Benko) have to place limitations on themselves? Is there a midwestern palate?

Ranking Ice Cream Makers: OK, *if* I was going to get another kitchen gadget (and believe me, I don't need one) it would be an ice cream maker! I've had a hankering for a long time to be able to whip up housemade sorbets and trendy ice creams to add an even more elaborate and geeky touch to desserts and dinner parties. But lately, I confess to having peeked at a couple just to get a feeling for how price, size, and capacity are related. (They're not all your mother's wooden tub with the electric motor requiring tons of ice and ice cream salt anymore, thank goodness.) And wouldn't you know it, Slate has beaten me to it with a handy review of 7 models from the low-end Rival Treat Shop ($25 at Target) to the $600 Musso. My choice? The $50 Cuisineart seems like a nice middle-of-the-road solution. You know, *if* I were to decide I could make room for one more appliance. Well, I do have a birthday coming up. (Hint, hint)

Evil or Useful? The Reign of Food Blogs: Adam at Amateur Gourmet has a book coming and early press is focusing on the phenomenon of food blogs and how restaurants react to them. ABC News has the latest article on where food blogs fit increasingly in more prominent roles. Bloggers quoted in the article make some great points (which we've often discussed here): Foodies make their own choices about the critics or bloggers they listen to. If they think you know something they'll listen. If they think you're full of it, they won't. Every blogger is a customer. A food blogger just happens to be a customer with a wider reach and an ability to share their experience. Of course, if you have customers who have a negative experience who *don't* have a blog, don't fool yourself for a second. They're still sharing it with friends.

As for Mario Batali's anti-food blog approach? It's not surprising given Batali's attitude in Bil Buford's book Heat. At one point as Buford interviewed Batali, Mario was stressed due to an upcoming review and negative word of mouth. The word of mouth he was so angry about? A regular (a writer and occasional food journalist) who had had a bad meal/experience and was telling people about it. "This is what happens with regulars," says Joe, Mario's business partner. "They all self-destruct. They expect too much. They forget it's a business. You can never make them happy. All regulars crash and burn." Buford goes on to describe how angry Joe was.

I am still mystified by this attitude (although I know at least one local chef who seems to share it.) Is Mario so driven by the formal review process and so controlling of Babbo's image that he is upset when a *regular* talks about a bad meal? He, dude, it was a *bad meal*. Any customer you have has a right to talk about it. Your regular has even more perspective on the situation. If it was bad enough that he felt compelled to share it, it must have been awful. (All regulars have occasionally off experiences and let them go in the big scheme of things.) I can only imaging how nuts Mario would go over a justifiably bad blog review like the one Adam gave to Le Cirque.

As a chef and owner, either you care about doing great work and serving your customers or you don't. Blogs just give more of your customers a voice. Via Kate at Accidential Hedonist (and her rebuttal.)

A Moment of Silence: Let's all observe a moment of silence today over our breakfast cereal for Pamela Low, the creator of the Cap'n Crunch cereal who died last week. Whether you love the distinctive taste or the unique scrape-the-top-of-your-mouth-off texture, Cap'n Crunch is one of the best of the sugary morning kids creations. Thank Low, who also worked on the flavors for Mounds and Almond Joy. (No word on whether she was responsible for the horrid crunchberries.)

New Books Coming: Ruhlman has a run down on quite a few new food and cooking books coming this summer. The only one I see missing is the new cookbook just out from Clotilde at Chocolate and Zucchini. If beautiful food and food writing is your thing, you'll like this one. And for a completely different take on one of the most difficult culinary schools in the country? Try this: The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter, and Tears at the World's Most Famous Cooking School . Maybe all those writers training up there now are starting to hit the market. (Accomplished CIA chefs across the country find themselves oddly twitching in their kitchens not knowing why.)

Baja Fresh and Taneko

Waiting for Izakaya: Michael Bauer at the SF Chron has a great post today about izakaya, the popular Japanese small plates/sake bar trend that has never taken off in the US. To this day there are only a a few izakaya-style eateries in the SF Bay area. However, he notes as I have before, the new and successful start up of an izakaya restaurant chain, Taneko Japanese Tavern. Taneko, brought to us by the same folks as PF Changs, has had by all reports a successful launch in Scottsdale. You know I'm not fan of chains unless they're doing something that no one else can. But I'm hoping we get a Teneko here. (We were an early and strong market for PF Chang's so I'm sure we have to be on their list.) I'd eagerly await an independent taking on this same concept, too, but I have a feeling this is one a well-funded chain can be better. Look for me to be as excited as many of you are about Barcelonas Tapas.


Baja Fresh Closes: Ahh, the circle of chain restaurant life. The Star notes that Baja Fresh Mexican Grill has closed its Fishers location on 96th St. last week The company's PR department said the decision "was based on a a variety of business factors..." Apparently, the Greenwood restaurant is closed as well reports Indyness. (I had thought there were more than two locations of this chain in town, but with all the Chipotle's cropping up lately, who can tell.) Via IndyNess.


Hoosier Beer Geeks @ Barley Island this Thursday: Hey, kids, if you've ever wanted to meet the Hoosier Beer Geeks, they'll be sitting down to tap some new brews at Barley Island Brewery this Thursday, April 12 at 8:00 p.m. Head geek Chris contacted brewer owner Jeff Eaton and he gave us a preview and will do a brewery tour for any interested parties. (And hopefully we'll get a chance to chat with brew master Jon Lang.) From Jeff:

The timing is good since we are launching 2 beers in bottles in April. Our Flat Top Wheat Ale just shipped yesterday to our distributor. Next Thursday we may have our seasonal Sheet Metal Blonde (Belgian Wit) ready, if not in bottles then maybe on tap.

For beer geeks like your group, we have Barrel-Aged BarFly IPA on the handpull right now. We also have the fall/winter seasonals still available - Brass Knuckles Oatmeal Stout, Bourbon Barrel-Aged Stout and Black Majic Java Stout.

Sounds delicious! See you all there!

Hibernating and Reading the Internets

Brrrr. It's too cold to go out and eat! While you're at home making the last pot roast of the season, here are a few interesting items from around the food and wine world:

Mark Your Calendar for Midwest Cabernet Experience: Yes, my favorite wine event of the year is coming on Friday, May 4. Only there's one huge snag. In moving this enormous Cabernet tasting and sale to a Friday night, they've forgotten to look at *which* Friday night. Not only is it Kentucky Derby weekend, but it also conflicts with Indianapolis Opera's final event of the season, Timothy Noble singing Falstaff. I hate it when event planners do this to us! If you can attend, then get your tickets at Kahn's (usually $75). No grocery store wines at this event. Look for all collector cabs and better.

Duckhorn Looses their Wine Maker: Sure, the winery is for sale and according to Zinquisition, it's one of the worst kept secrets in the wine world. But more importantly, they've lost their wine maker, Mark Beringer. He's landed at Zinfandel Lane managing the operation for Rutherford Studios.

Don't Change a Thing: While I was a latecomer to wine mega-warehouse Sam's in Chicago (thank my wine enabler), I'm a convert now. So, news that they've sold raises some concern. The buyer? A private equity group for a stake of 80%. However, founder Sam Rosen's grandson will be in charge. The idea? Expand the concept with new stores throughout Illinois. Now that could be change I can live with. (From winecanine.com)

Forbes Names Top 10 Tastemakers: Via Michael Bauer at the SF Chron, here's the list from Forbes for their top 10 most influential chefs in the US. While there are some big names on the list (Keller, Puck, Batali) there are also a few names known by foodies (Colicchio and Goin) as well some young up-and-commers who die-hards will know from kitchens they've been in around the country such as Johnny Iuzzini, Daniel Boulud's long time pastry chef at Restaurant Boulud in NYC.

The chefs are:

Eric Ziebold of CityZen in Washington, D.C.
Dan Barber of Blue Hill in New York
Johnny Iuzzini, pastry chef of Jean-Georges in New York
Wolfgang Puck of Spago, et al., in Los Angeles
Tom Colicchio of Craft in New York
Joel Robuchon, who has L'Atelier in New York and Las Vegas
Grant Achatz of Alinea in Chicago
Mario Batali of Babbo, etc., in New York
Suzanne Goin of Lacques in Los Angeles
Thomas Keller of Per Se in New York and French Laundry in Yountville.

And last but not least, Food Porn: Two words, people: Bacon Popcorn. Via Slashfood.

Tipping for Takeout

I pick up takeout from my favorite Indian restaurant all the time, and don't usually tip. I've often wondered if it was a huge insult, but my concern is mitigated because I often eat in and tip well when I'm there. But the question arises: should you tip on take-out orders? And how do you tip on lunch buffets? When you get your take out order is it correct? What service did they provide? Michael Bauer at Between Meals has a reader question and answer on this very issue. (He doesn't tip for take out either.)

New Food Blogs

If you follow the New York or San Francisco food scenes at all, you'll appreciate these new blogs. Following the trend of journalists, magazines, and editors creating blogs, here are a few you might find fun to read.

NY Times Food Critic's blog, Diner's Journal. Frank Bruni gives us small tidbits on the New York scene. (For a great look at how the NY Times' critic actually work, make sure you pick up Ruth Reichl's Garlic and Sapphires about her tenure as food critic at the New York Times.) Bruni's blog is pretty interesting including his notes on how long it took (and how hard he had to try) to get reservations at Keller's Per Se.

New York Magazine's blog, Grub Street is the newest entry in the NY food scene.

Not the newest entry, but certainly one of the best, SF Chronicle food critic Michael Bauer's Between Meals is another great blog from the staff in San Francisco via SF Gate.