Category Archives: de rebus familiaribus

Orange Macabeo and inky Sumoll from Spain and Alice Feiring bids Texas adieu

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Above: My super good friend Joe Pat Clayton (right) was as geeked as me and Tracie P to taste natural Spanish wines last night with Alice Feiring (right).

Alice Feiring hit the Groover’s Paradise like a Texas tornado. The few days she spent her with us were filled with honkytonking, two-stepping, great parties and great friends and lovers of natural wine, and a superb fish dinner prepared by Chef Esteban Escobar paired with a flight of Spanish natural wines last night at Vino Vino (the best little wine bar in Texas).

The two wines that impressed me the most were the Laureano Serres 2009 Abeurador Macabeo (above, 100% Macabeo grown in clay soils, vinified with 2 days of skin contact, no added sulfite [note by importer José Pastor]) and the Els Jelipins 2004 Sumoll (Sumoll with a small amount of Garnacha, grown in clay and limestone soils, whole-cluster fermentation in open-topped barrels, no added sulfite).

The Macabeo was rich and unctuous, tannic and chewy in the mouth and unbelievably delicious.

The Jelipins 2004 Sumoll was mind-boggling good. Impenetrably inky and viscous on the palate, a stilnovo sonnet with alternating rhymes of earth and fruit.

Chef Esteban’s excellent cooking has been reaching new heights lately but last night he took it over the top (especially considering the Herculean effort necessary to create a wine dinner using only Kosher fish and vegetables).

Kim and SO Alfonso also came down from Dallas expressly for the event.

Above, from left: Alice, Lewis Dickson (Texas Hill Country natural winemaker), Tracie P, Jeff Courington (owner Vino Vino), and Russ Kane (author of Vintage Texas, the top Texas wine blog).

And so this morning we took Alice to the airport (she stayed with us, of course). It was a great visit and we were sad to see her go. She certainly made a profound impression on the Texans she met. And I’d like to think that they also impressed her with the Texas-sized welcome they gave her.

We’ll miss her but somehow I think she’ll back sooner than later. Once you’ve danced to the rhythms of Dale Watson at Ginny’s Little Longhorn Saloon, there’s no turning back…

Indisputably Natural in San Diego: Cornelissen, Dettori, López de Heredia

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N.B.: Jaynes Gastropub does allow corkage, for a reasonable fee, for wines not offered on their wine list.

Chrissa, her husband Dan, Rikkers, and I opened a memorable flight of indisputably Natural wines last night at Jaynes Gastropub in San Diego. I write “indisputably Natural” with a capital N because any mention of Natural wine these days seems to spark the ire of some of the more cranky among us here in the enoblogsphere. But there’s no doubt in my mind that the community of wine bloggers who have laid claim to this precious and widely coveted epithet would agree that the three wines in question fulfill the criteria prescribed by even the most rigorous enforcers of Natural wine doctrine and dogma.

Perhaps nowhere has more been written about the wines of Frank Cornelissen than at Saignee and, ubi major minor cessat, I will defer to Cory’s excellent blog for a treatment of Cornelissen and the cult that has taken shape around him.

The wines, raised on the slopes of Mt. Etna, are not easy to come by in this country and I was thrilled to finally get my hands on some. Together, we tasted the 2007 Munjebel Bianco (native yeast, skin contact, no SO2, no filtration). Munjebel is dialectal toponym for Mt. Etna, btw (akin the Sicilian Muncibeddu or the Italian Mongibello, meaning monte bello or beautiful mountain).

The synthetic cork bulged out slightly from the lip of the bottle’s neck and the shoulder was very high. I believe this was due to a second fermentation in the bottle and the wine had a slight spritz to it.

I don’t have time today to go into the epistemological implications of this wine, which I find fascinating (the wine and the implications). But I can report that I thoroughly enjoyed it (bright acidity, bright citrus fruit, balanced alcohol). I believe the wine has not yet stabilized (it had rested for about a week in my wine locker in San Diego before we opened it last night). I’m looking forward to opening the other bottles in my allocation: this wine is alive, IT’S ALIVE, as Dr. Frankenstein might say.

The 2006 Bianco by Dettori? This was simply one of the best wines I’ve ever had in my life. Not a great vintage for Dettori but sure to be a 20+ in its cellar life. Tannic and rich, bright bright acidity and a crunchy mouthfeel. It took some time for this wine to open up but it was purely sublime.

We also ordered the 1998 López de Heridia Tondonia Rosado from Jayne’s list. The oxidative wine was a perfect closer after the thought-provoking, intense whites (orange wines, really), and was a fantastic pairing for my schnitzel and spaetzle (recommended by Jayne). Anyone who visits Do Bianchi regularly knows just how much Tracie P and I love LdH — anytime, anywhere.

After dinner we went to a new club on El Cajon Blvd. to see Jon’s band the Fairmounts play their blend of 60s soul.

That’s A.J. Croce (yes, Jim Croce’s son!) on keyboards… how cool is that? They completely rocked the house…

Wrapping up this quick San Diego trip (to ship and deliver wine for my wine club 2Bianchi.com), I just had to share this photo of my awesome nephews Abner and Oscar (brother Micah and sister-in-law Marguerite’s children).

Abner is holding a photo of his great-great-grandparents, mama Judy’s grandparents. It’s so remarkable to think about how far we’ve come from Russia, Poland, and Austria. And how radically the world has changed since then.

Would they have ever imagined that their progeny would be drinking unyeasted wines from the slopes of Mt. Etna on the far-flung shores of California?

My baby loves her some cake

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Every marriage has “issues.” For some it’s money, for others it’s juggling careers… for Tracie P and me…

…it’s CAKE! Mainly, the fact that my baby loves her some cake. This year’s gorgeous birthday cake was created by the nice folks over at the Polkadots Cupcake Factory in Austin, Texas.

Tracie P’s birthday celebration came to a close last night with family and friends at one of our favorite habitats, Vino Vino. That’s Nat and Erin (from left), who just got married, and Uncle Terry.

Chef Esteban’s rocking the new fall menu items, like the delicious pot roast.

April and Aunt Holly also helped to assuage our cake issues last night.

Thanks to Polkadot Cupcake Factory, to our good friends at Vino Vino (who took such AWESOME care of us last night), and to everyone who came out to celebrate Tracie P’s birthday. And thanks to ya’ll for reading and sharing with me the joy and light that she brings into my life.

An unforgettable dinner at Robert del Grande’s RDG

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Next stop in our celebration of Tracie P’s birthday weekend (which, according to reports from overseas, is now considered a national holiday in the blogosphere), was one of those truly magical rooms, where my true love’s eyes seemed to sparkle from the moment the hostess said, “right this way, your table’s waiting.”

Cousins Joanne and Marty, Tracie P, and I were joined by Tracie P’s childhood friend Talina at Robert del Grande’s newish restaurant RDG in Houston. And de rigueur, we had to start off with what we all agreed is one of the best Margaritas any of us have ever had: equal parts Herradura Silver Tequila, Cointreau, and lime juice (half Persian lime, half Key lime).

Next came Gulf crab…

and beef nachos…

The seared avocado salad was purely brilliant…

Tortilla soup lifted our bright spirits even higher…

The wine list at RDG can be intimidating (and is designed for the high roller) but it also has some wonderful gems and reasonable price points, like this 2004 Deutz Blanc de Blancs. The nose on this wine was so yummy we didn’t even want to drink it! (We also had a bottle of Bobby and Lachlan’s 2008 Scarpetta Friuliano at a great price, btw.)

And the reason why RDG is worth every penny: the attention to detail and the caliber of service (3 staff members on our table) take the ineffably delicious food to yet another level of sensorial reward.

Tracie P and I will be heading out shortly for the last event in her birthday celebration. Aren’t you as glad as I am that she was born? :-)

A gorgeous dry Muscat to start Tracie P’s birthday weekend

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Tracie P and I started her birthday weekend off with cousins Joanne and Marty on the patio at the Backstreet Café in Houston, where our friend, sommelier Sean Beck, poured us this AWESOME 2008 dry Muscat from Weinbach (Alsace), a classic expression of the grape (which I was tasting for the first time).

So salty and such beautiful floral notes and so perfectly paired with the warm fall early evening on the patio…

Sean matched this excellent wine with a grilled portabello cap, topped with sautéed Gulf shrimp and cremini, from the restaurant’s current and very groovy “mushroom menu.”

Delicious…

Next up: right this way, your table’s waiting… dinner at the incredible RDG…

Happy birthday Tracie P! I love you so much!

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Time of Our Lives

for Tracie P on her birthday

time, my how the time flies by
when you’re living a life in love
and giving your love your life
in time

I’m certain I heard it once before
in an old song or movie score
lovers don’t feel the time
slip by

my dear, please know
as the years come and go
I’ll be here to show
how my love will only grow
’cause we’re in the time of our
lives, my love
our time, my love

rhymes, poets write words in time
rhythms play out in lines
for lovers to read supine
in time

my dear, please know
as the years come and go
I’ll be here to show
how my love will only grow
’cause we’re in the time of our
lives, my love
our time, my love

Lone Star beer never tasted so good (it’s not Melvin’s first rodeo)

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Last night after Tracie P and I got to Orange, Texas, we shared an ice-cold bottle of Lone Star beer from the six-pack that Melvin Croaker gave me back at Xmas to welcome me to Texas and to the folds of the Croaker and Branch families.

Lone Star beer never tasted better.

“It’s not Melvin’s first rodeo,” said Rev. B, fondly remembering how Melvin competed in professional bbq competitions at the Houston rodeo and elsewhere.

Rev. B will be speaking at the memorial service this morning.

We’ll miss you, Melvin… Rest in peace…

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It fills Tracie P and me with great sadness to share the news that good friend to the B family, one of the nicest folks I’ve ever met, Melvin Croaker, left this world last night to pass to another.

Rev. B wrote a heartfelt eulogy for Melvin here.

It was on Xmas eve of 2009 that Melvin gave me my cowboy hat and a six-pack of Lonestar beer to welcome me to Texas and to the fold of the Branch and Croaker extended families.

As Melvin’s illness progressed, he spent a lot of time at home looking at Facebook. And in a way that may have not been possible a few years ago, he and I got to know each other by “following” each other — commenting and “liking” each others notes and posts.

I’ve worn that hat proudly in the Texas Hill Country, picking grapes (above).

I’ve worn that hat proudly in California…

I wore that hat proudly in Italy, where I found out that a good cowboy hat comes in handy when you least expect it.

It was just the other day, posting from Sant’Angelo in Colle in Tuscany, that I wrote: “Wherever I lay my hat these days, I am reminded that Texas is my home (for MELVIN CROAKER).”

We’ll miss you very much, Melvin. Thanks, again, for my hat. I plan to put it to good use…

Tracie P’s pici

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In the wake of a comment on this blog by Tracie P (while I was in Tuscany) sharing her yen for some Tuscan pici (long noodles made with only flour and water), my good friend Federico aka Fred (export director for one of my favorite Montalcino wineries, Le Presi) appeared one day with two bags of dried pici by Panarese for me to take home.

Last night for dinner, Tracie P defrosted some of her excellent ragù and used it to dress a few nidi (nests) of the pici (also called pinci).

On the back of the label, the only ingredients listed are durum wheat flour and water. There’s something about pici, even when dried (and not freshly rolled out), that makes them ideal for meat sauces (or mushrooms). For all of their humility, the purity of the saltless flour and the texture of the noodles create a sublime pairing with the richness of the sauce. Simply delicious. We paired with a grapey, bretty, easygoing Valle Reale Montepulciano d’Abruzzo that was remarkably fresh and bouncy for an 06. A perfect Tuesday night dinner, catching up on the TV shows we missed (Tracie P sacrificed herself and did NOT watch the season finales of True Blood and Mad Men so that we could watch them together… THAT’S how much she loves me, she says).

How did I manage to get the pasta back without any breakage?

I used my cowboy hat, of course! I packed the bags of noodles on either side of the “crown” of the hat in my carry-on. It worked like a charm! That’s me, btw, above, outside the famous Osteria al Cappello in Udine, where hundreds of hats (cappelli) hang from the ceiling. (Photo by Joe Campanale.) The owner asked me if I’d give her my hat for her restaurant. “Un bel cappello,” she said. “A fine hat.”

“Naw,” I told her. “This hat will be riding home with the San Diego Kid back to Austin.” I’ll post more on the AMAZING MEAL I had at Osteria al Cappello in an upcoming post.

In the meantime, we’re sending lots of love to Pam and Melvin Croaker today. Melvin, you may remember, gave me my cowboy hat late last year.

Congratulations Marisa and Giorgio! The most beautiful couple!

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How and why I got here is a story too long to tell right now, a tale that stretches over more than two decades! What’s important is that Marisa and Giorgio, some of the nicest folks I know, were married yesterday at the Abbazia di Praglia at the foot of the Euganean Hills (near Padua).

The setting was the famous Benedictine abbey.

Guests were greeted by an amazing spread at a nearby agriturismo.

Risotto ai funghi e al tartufo nero, carnaroli cooked perfectly al dente.

Feast your eyes! One of the best catered events I’ve ever attended (seriously).

Congratulations Marisa and Giorgio! I’m so glad I could be there to celebrate your happy, happy union!

Our good friends Winnie and Amy were there too, in from New York!

Running out now to taste some dry Moscato in the Euganean Hills… stay tuned…