Next time someone asks you for a restaurant recommendation, have them fill out the following mad lib:
I’d like to dine out with my (noun) this (day of the week), and am having trouble finding the perfect spot. I always prefer a restaurant that (everybody/nobody) knows about. I (don’t want to/don’t mind to) wait in line; what really matters is the (food/service/value/ambiance).
I’m envisioning a restaurant where we can drink a (craft cocktail/pitcher of beer/foreign soft drink) while (reading/listening to a server recite/trying to translate) the menu. I’m (adverb) devoted to local, seasonal cooking, and I (verb) if the chef kills his own (noun) or forages her own mushrooms.
I don’t eat (kind of food) or (kind of food), but I’m not picky. I love (type of cuisine). My favorite restaurant experience was in (city), where I ate at (name of restaurant). That place is so (adjective)!
I (enjoy/could do without) a leisurely, multi-course meal. I’m thinking my budget is about (price). Do you think that’s doable? I just don’t want (greatest restaurant fear).
That was written by Hanna Raskin of Seattle Weekly in response to constantly being asked about what restaurant should someone go to. I may start having to have Mrs. Iron Chef fill this out when she tells me she doesn’t care about where we go out, but actually does. You can read the full article here.
The aftermath of perfection as viewed from my seat.
I wrote recently about missing out on seeing Derek Lowe’s no hitter in 2002. I actually wrote that piece over a month ago, before April 21st happened. What is so special about April 21st? It happens to be the day the Philip Humber of the Chicago White Sox threw the 21st perfect game in MLB history against the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field. It was a day game, so the person who has the tickets in the seats next to mine only needed one of her tickets and asked me if I knew anyone who wanted the other one. My wife’s sister, a big Mariners fan, was interested and joined us – and I am sure that it was something that she won’t regret, ever.
In the 400 or so baseball games I have witnessed, I have seen several no-hitters get broken up with 2 outs in the 8th inning and two get broken up in the ninth. Sitting through a no-hitter, let alone a perfect game, is tough since it could end with one bad bounce, especially if the pitcher throwing the no-no is on the opposing team. I have seen triple plays, 3 home run games, players hitting for the cycle, Ichiro setting the single season hit record, and Rafael Palmeiro’s 3000th hit but never a 9 inning no hitter.
My rule is this – if there is a no-hitter at the start of the 8th inning, you start rooting for that pitcher, regardless of who he plays for, which is exactly what I did on April 21st. It was pretty obvious looking at the scoreboard that Humber had not given up a hit, but I am not sure how many of the 22,000 fans at the game realized that he had not given up anything. He was cruising; his pitch count was in the low 70’s going into the 8th inning and he really looked dominating. The Mariners, not exactly sporting a lineup that would remind anyone of Murder’s Row, sent Smoak, Seager and Montero up to bat in the 8th. Humber retired the side on 11 pitches. You could almost cut the tension with a knife.
I believe the Mariners did something in the top of the 9th (I can’t prove it) that I thought was a little unsportsmanlike – with Steve Delabar on the mound, they seemed to take a huge amount of time between pitches. Like I said, I can’t prove it, but it seemed that way and I wonder if Wedge was trying to leave Humber on the bench longer to get into his head. It actually almost worked.
Humber came out in the 9th and looked shaky – he went 3-0 on Michael Saunders before striking him out. At this point, my stomach was in knots. Most people were pulling for Humber at this point, and you would hate to see him lose the perfect game because his control deserted him all of a sudden. He looked better on Jaso, getting him to fly out on 3 pitches. That left Brendan Ryan as the only thing between Humber and a perfect game. It was an ugly at bat, one that made me hold my breath on every pitch. Humber got ahead of Ryan 1-2. Just one more strike. If I was Ryan, I would have been swinging at anything close, just because I wouldn’t want to be the last out in a perfect game. The next 2 pitches missed badly and all of a sudden, we are sitting with a full count, 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th inning. No pressure on Humber there. Ryan fouled the next pitch off. The tension was incredible. Then Humber threw an ugly breaking ball in the dirt that Ryan checked his swing on. The home plate umpire ruled he went around (from my vantage point behind home plate, it looked like he checked the swing) and the ball went past AJ Pierzynski to the backstop. At this point I am yelling “throw it to first”. Pierzynski is not exactly a fast man but fortunately for Humber, Ryan took 2 steps toward first and then turned back to argue with the umpire. Had he run, he would have easily beaten the throw to first, breaking up the perfect game and leaving the no hitter intact with Chone Figgins on deck. I firmly believe that if Figgins had come up, the baseball gods would have conspired to end Humber’s no hit bid.
So instead of a potentially heartbreaking situation, or at least one of the most bizarre ways that a perfect game would have been broken up, we got to witness perfection, even if it may have been questionably so.
There is an interesting item in the Seattle Times about the Cottage Food Act of Washington that will allow people to sell small quantities of “low risk” foods without having to rent a commercial kitchen to produce the food.
Some information on the act:
The draft rule stipulates which foods may be produced — among them breads, cakes, cookies, granola, nuts, jams and jellies.
It also requires annual inspections by the Department of Agriculture, which will ensure that surfaces and floors are smooth and easy to clean and that pets and children under 6 years old are kept out of the kitchen while food is prepared.
The home kitchens do not need the stainless countertops or three sinks required of commercial kitchens. And home cooks cannot sell by mail order or over the Internet. They are limited to selling products directly to consumers — from their homes, for example, or at farmers markets.
The new law also limits the revenue someone can make from a home kitchen to $15,000 a year.
I am actually pretty shocked that the state considers jams and jellies a low risk food. Anything that is canned or preserved and not done correctly is actually at pretty high risk for botulism, which makes salmonella look like a mild cold in comparison.
These kitchens will also be inspected by the local health departments like any other food business and the owners will be required to not only have a business license, but also a food workers permit, like any other bakery or restaurant. I can’t wait to see how many of these kitchens actually fail their inspections in Seattle, whose inspectors are known to be a bit hard assed.
I have to admit, I thought it was a bad idea until I read the actual proposal, so I am fine with it. Now we just need to convince Coltrane to start baking bread more than one loaf at a time…
By “interactive”, I don’t mean the food itself. I mean the guy standing in the drive-through window.
I’ll back up.
I went for fast food this morning to help absorb last night’s beverages. The guy working the window clearly had little desire to be at work at 5:30am, but overall he was professional enough, even though it was obvious he didn’t give a crap. It was a low-key, low-work transaction. For both of us.
Contrast that with the guy who manned the position a few months ago. He was an assistant manager, and he was overbearingly chipper, customer service oriented, and relentlessly upselling. It got to the point where I wouldn’t go for early morning fast food, just because I didn’t want to deal with him at that hour.
It occurred to me as I drove away that I was actually happier with the somewhat sour dude at the window, and that I was more likely to return as a customer just because I could relax.
How much is too much customer service? I know for me, at 5:30am I just want my server to shut up and shovel food my way. Is that so wrong?
That tweet is from Sean Ahmed, who was listening to a Dodgers broadcast a few days ago. I can only assume that Vin Scully was either trying to remember the last time something happened that was similar to what he was seeing in the game he was broadcasting or was telling a story and couldn’t remember the exact details. I have said it before, Scully is far and away the best announcer in baseball and I have to agree 100% with Ahmed’s statement – Mr. Scully, please continue what you were saying.
Now for part 2 of the Vintage beer tasting. When last we left our heroes they had just made it through 4 vintage Belgian beers…
While Belgian beers are interesting and tend to age well, the really good stuff for aging are dark beers. Darker beers tend to cover a wider range of the taste spectrum and lend themselves to the addition of additive flavors (spices, herbs, oak aging) that the Belgians do not. So without further delay, I give you the darks:
2007 Anchor Christmas Ale
This beer is best described as a liquid Christmas tree almost every year it is brewed and the 4+ years of aging on this beer were no exception. Pouring up dark and frothy, with lots of malt on the nose and hints of evergreen. The initial taste yielded notes of sweet cinnamon and nutmeg with more evergreen fragrance rather than taste. It was like having a spice cookie sitting next to the Christmas tree around the holidays. The finish was long with some resin and evergreen but mostly just a fading spice character that was pleasant. A sweet and spicy beer with Christmas tree notes that got better with age as it tamed the evergreen from being the predominant player to being a supporting cast member. A great beer on a chilly winter day.
4 Tannenbaums out of 5.
2009 Alaskan Baltic Porter
I originally bought 6 bottles of this beer when it was released, it was drinking extremely well when it was young and I drank 4 of the 6 bottles. Sadly, this particular Baltic porter recipe was retired with the 2009 batch.
An inky black pour with notes of roasted malt, vanilla and oak on the nose. The palate provided a wonderful booziness from the vanilla and a restrained sweetness from the brown sugar with a hint of cherry teasing your palate, making you wonder if it is really there. The finish yields slight hints of oak and vanilla, fading quickly into a milk chocolate covered cherry that lingers for a while. This was probably the only beer we tasted where the taste profile did not change as the beer warmed. Personally, I thought this was the best beer of the group, one of the 10 best beers I have ever had, and I am really sad that I don’t have anymore. This is one that I would fly to Juneau for and beg and plead with the brewer to either make again or tell me where they are hiding their stash.
5 Cossacks out of 5 (I would have given this beer a 6 out of 5 if my rating score allowed)
!!!!! ALERT!!!!!– I just checked the Alaskan Beer website and they are bringing the recipe back in September 2012. Seriously, when this comes out, buy a case of it and lay at least 6 bottles down.
2007 Dogfish Head World Wide Stout
The highest alcohol beer in the tasting, coming in at a whopping 20% on the 2007 vintage. This beer pours like a black hole – no light will escape its inky depths. Slight hints of oak on the nose with plenty of malt and booziness, smells more like a subtile malt whiskey than a beer. Surprisingly sweet on the palate with chocolate and brandy notes on the front fading into milk chocolate sweetness on the long finish, providing a slight alcohol burn, just to remind you this beer has some legs to it. The brewer recommends serving at 50-55 degrees, and the chocolate and brandy notes are joined with more pronounced vanilla flavors as the beer warms. I really think this beer could go for another 5 years easily and still be great. There are at least 2 more bottles of this vintage in the Iron Chef cellar with bottles from 2008-2012. One of these days there will be a vertical tasting on the WW Stout, until then…
First off, a fun animated look at Doc Ellis’ “chemically altered” no-hitter. Thanks to M for the link.
Next, we have a guy who gets *very* upset on day one of the Diablo 3 launch. So upset, that he tries to jam his collectors item Soulstone into his head at the end. Almost 700,000 views in 3 days! The language is NSFW.
I’m not buying D3. It has DRM, which for me is a nonstarter. And you have to be connected at all times to Blizzard’s server to play — if you get disconnected, tough nuts, you’re redoing the content. Part of the reason for the “online only” is because they’re doing a real-money auction house and keeping a significant part of the sale price. (Like 30% in some instances from what I’ve heard.) In theory the “online only” will allow them to avoid dupes (which would make all in-game items worthless from a money standpoint, can’t have that). Of course, I’m not one of those people, so to my mind they completely missed the mark. The best part of D2 was hooking a couple (or more) computers together and playing with friends. Not. An. Option. The other “best part” was the random loot drops. Every kill had the potential to be “Christmas”. The auction house (the “gold-you-get-from-drops” one, not the “real money” one) has made it so that players can use in-game gold to buy better gear than they might find as drops, completely negating that aspect of the gameplay. Keeping my money, thanks.
Finally, a bonus animal picture!
Female in the foreground. Male in the background. I like the composition. It also pretty well nailed her "don't mess with me" face. She gets that way sometimes. He's keeping a healthy distance.
Recently, Coltrane, Annie S. and I got together with a group of friends and had a rather unique beer tasting, one that involved a number of vintage beers. With the exception of one of these beers, it was a one shot deal: I had only one bottle of everything that we tasted from the particular vintage.
Cellaring beer is not like cellaring wine, even under the best circumstances you don’t really have a great idea how long a beer is going to last; will it get better with age? Will it even be drinkable? At least with wine, there is some indication from a reviewer or wine maker that a bottle will be best consumed in x years. I have never seen that in a beer review so I made a best guess based on my experiences with these beers.
Interestingly, beer bottles can also get that weird "leaning tall buildings" perspective issue. I'm sure it wasn't because *I* was leaning after all those beers. (Coltrane)
The cast for the evening (in order of appearance):
2006 Ommegang Three Philosophers
2010 Ommegang Three Philosophers
Batch 68256 Boulevard Brewing Sixth Glass (I believe this was a 2008 vintage)
2007 Panil Barrque
2007 Anchor Christmas Ale
2009 Alaska Baltic Porter
2007 Dogfish Head World Wide Stout
There were a couple of backup beers in case none of the bottles that I opened were undrinkable. Fortunately, all of the beers were at least drinkable and some were outstanding, making me sad that I may never get to consume that particular beer/vintage again.
Since I took pretty extensive notes on each of these beers, I am able to provide a review for each and hopefully make a few beer drinkers jealous in the process. The reviews will be presented in 2 parts, the Belgian Style beers (which oddly none of them are actually from Belgium) and the dark beers.
Without further delay, I present to you the Vintage Beer Tasting (Part 1).
Ommegang Three Philosophers
Three Philosophers in general is a Belgian quad brewed in Cooperstown, NY with 2% added cherry beer from Duvel in Belgium.
2006 Ommegang Three Philosophers Cave Aged Beer
This beer was stored for a year in bottles after brewing in Howe Caverns, a cave system near the brewery at a constant 50 degrees and I picked up a single bottle from the brewery when I was there in 2008. The nose presents with aromas of malt and subtle cherries. Initial sips indicate a touch of wood (I don’t believe this beer was ever aged in oak though), giving way to sweet cherries and sugar fading with a slight sweetness on the back of the palate. As it warmed, the malt and cherry became more pronounced and the finish became reminiscent of drinking a fine sherry or Madeira; flavors that were completely unexpected and left me wanting another bottle of this beer. This beer was phenomenal and may have been the best beer in the tasting and was certainly a favorite among the tasters.
5 Monks out of 5.
2010 Ommegang Three Philosophers
What a difference 4 years of aging made. The 2010 was restrained compared to the 2006, with some malt on the nose and no indication of cherries. Greater carbonation than the 2006, with the initial taste yielding great maltiness and sweetness with just a hint of tart cherries. The finish was overwhelming with alcohol and sugar but that gave way to a more classic Belgian finish of nutmeg and bananas as the beer warmed to 55 degrees, but the cherry was almost non-existent in the beer. It probably could have stood another couple of years of aging, and, if I could do it again, I would pour the 2010 before the 2006. It was good, but disappointing compared to the 2006.
3 Friars out of 5.
Overall, my experience with Ommegang Three Philosophers is age at least 3-4 years before you drink it. It is worth it.
Boulevard Brewing Sixth Glass Batch 68256
Another Belgian style quad, this one out of Kansas City, and I believe a 2008 vintage. The nose is very malt forward and smelled slightly astringent to me right after I opened it, which lead me to wonder if the beer might have gone bad (it hadn’t). Overly sweet with lots of malt, to the point of being overpowering. Some fruitiness on the finish, but it would fade and then return. The malt becomes a little more balanced as the beer warms, but is still very prominent and we started to get a hint of a sherry like finish when the beer warmed to about 55 degrees. I like the beer when it is fresh, but I am not sure if I liked the aged variety of this beer. One taster made the comment that this beer was trying to be the 2006 Ommegang, but it wasn’t successful at it. With Sixth Glass, I would not recommend laying it down.
3 Gregorian Chants out of 5
On a side note with this beer – it actually paired well with the chili the Coltrane and Annie served; it brought out hints of banana and spice that I did not find just drinking the beer on its own.
Panil Barrque 2007
This beer is an Italian Saison aged in oak barrels.
The nose had hints of oak and vanilla with some light smoke. Sweet pickles and sauerkraut on the initial taste fade into a sour oak finish that lingers with hints of stone fruit (cherry possibly?). Reminded me more of a homemade wine – grapey and slightly sour as it warmed. This beer was definitely not a crowd favorite but the sourness is much more restrained in the aged version than the fresh version. It aged well and was probably a little past it best drinking, but I wouldn’t mind laying down another bottle for 3 years or so and giving it another shot. The only drawback, this beer runs $25 for a 750 ml bottle, so I think you are better off with taking that money and buying a nice wine. If the bottle was less expensive, it would have scored higher.
From SI.com. A story about Seahawks’ first-round draft pick and pass-rush specialist Bruce Irvin.
6'-3", 248 lbs and he runs a 4.46 second 40-yard dash. What's not to like??
Reading it, I don’t think it’s really a surprise that most of the “experts” felt that the Seahawks drafted him with too high a pick. Who really knows, though — Aaron Curry was supposed to be a “can’t miss” prospect at the time…
The St Louis Rams apparently have one of the more bizarre leases I have seen, as a result, they are “in negotiations” with the city of St Louis to renovate the Edward Jones Dome. The city is proposing $124 million in improvements and the Rams are asking for…wait for it…$700 million in improvements, or what amounts to a new stadium.
The Jones Dome is less than 20 years old, not an old building by any means, but old by greedy millionaire sports owner’s standards. The Rams have a 30 year lease for the stadium, but can break it because of the following:
The 30-year lease signed when the Rams arrived in St. Louis from Los Angeles prior to the 1995 season requires that the dome remain among the top eight of the 31 NFL stadiums or the team can break the lease at certain junctures, the next being after the 2014 season. Owner Stan Kroenke has been non-committal about the team’s future if the dome isn’t improved.
I love the use of the “give us what we want or we will leave” gambit. The stadium opened in 1995, was completely publicly funded and won’t be paid off until 2025. The construction costs were $280 million, but with improvements made over the years and interest on the bonds, the stadium will end up costing the taxpayers around $720 million dollars.
The Rams want a retractable roof, among other things, which would require the stadium and adjoining convention center to be closed for 3 years. Additionally, the Rams want the entire thing funded by public money. The estimate is that will cost $500 in revenue. Based on that, the cost of the stadium would be somewhere around $2 billion dollars when all is said and done. Somehow I think that the city, county and state would all be better off if they told the Rams to take a hike and spent their money elsewhere rather than give a bunch of really rich people a place to socialize on 10 Sundays a year.
FlatbreadGarden 