Author Archive for agavin – Page 68

Eastern Promises – Pope’s Tavern

Aug27

Restaurant: Pope’s Tavern at the Oxford Inn

Location: 504 S. Morris St, Oxford, Maryland 21654. 410-226-5220

Date: May 25, 2014

Cuisine: American

Rating: Solid modern Bistro

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Oxford only has 4-5 restaurants (we ate at 3 of them in our short visit) and Pope’s Tavern is almost certainly the best.


It’s located inside the historic Oxford Inn (nearly every building in Oxford is historic).


With cool tin ceilings.



The menu.


A fried rice ball with chipotle sauce.


1997 Remoissenet Père et Fils Romanée St. Vivant. 87 points. While this was a properly mature wine with characteristic RSV terrior, our bottle was mildly corked. Not the undrinkable level of cork, but enough to be annoying.


Lobster bisque. Rich and as it should be.


House salad. Baby greens, champagne mustard vinaigrette, parmesan crisp.


Beet Carpaccio. Greens, blood orange, cider vinaigrette.


Cheese pizza.


Special artichoke ravioli.


Special crab cake on succotash. A pretty awesome crab cake.

Pope’s Tavern has a nice kitchen. It’s not the lightest fare, but it is darn tasty.

For more Washington dining reviews click here.

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  5. Eastern Promises – Azeen’s Afghani
By: agavin
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Untimed Free!

Aug25

The Kindle E-Book versions of Untimed will be FREE Monday, August 25 and Tuesday the 26th! Take the plunge, hey, it won’t cost you a cent.

Free on Amazon!

Tweet, share, like, follow, blog and grab a copy of my book. The trailer can be found here.

About Untimed

Charlie’s the kind of boy that no one notices. Hell, his own mother can’t remember his name. So when a mysterious clockwork man tries to kill him in modern day Philadelphia, and they tumble through a hole into 1725 London, Charlie realizes even the laws of time don’t take him seriously. Still, this isn’t all bad. Who needs school when you can learn about history first hand, like from Ben Franklin himself. And there’s this girl… Yvaine… another time traveler. All good. Except for the rules: boys only travel into the past and girls only into the future. And the baggage: Yvaine’s got a baby boy and more than her share of ex-boyfriends. Still, even if they screw up history — like accidentally let the founding father be killed — they can just time travel and fix it, right? But the future they return to is nothing like Charlie remembers. To set things right, he and his scrappy new girlfriend will have to race across the centuries, battling murderous machines from the future, jealous lovers, reluctant parents, and time itself.

“A masterful storyteller, Gavin builds a solid plot with believable characters.” — Kirkus
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“Adventure, chemistry… and roller coaster plot are sure to appeal.” — Publishers Weekly
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“Like science class in Las Vegas!” — FantasyLiterature.com

Buy Sample Characters Reviews Reviewer Info

01-GhostHouse

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By: agavin
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Big and Bold on the Beach

Aug22

I was lucky enough to be invited again to a absolutely fabulous wine dinner hosted by Eric Cotsen at his lovely Malibu pad. A number of us Hedonists attended. Eric has these diners regularly and they feature an awesome setting, great company, wonderful food, and amazing wines provided by both him and the guests. All the wines are served blind (more or less).


You can see the ocean is right there! Like under the house.


Eric has these crazy high tech nitrogen dispensers that preserve (and aerate) the wines. He even has sets of glasses with etched number and letter combos so you can pair to the wines. Tonight there were two white wines in here as the set of 6 reds he opened had bottles too big to fit. The whites turned out to be Corton Charlemagne’s, but I forgot to get photos.


From my cellar: 2004 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 95. Perhaps the most backward and reserved wine to this point as the nose reveals only hints of white flower and green fruit aromas that are framed in a subtle touch of pain grillé but the flavors explode on the palate as there is a chewy texture to them yet there is ample minerality present, particularly for Bâtard. This too is blessed with abundant dry extract and a finish that won’t quit but for all of the size and weight, this is impeccably balanced. This has that “wow” factor and in terms of style, it’s almost like a muscular Chevalier.

agavin: drinking really nicely, with a ton of acid (which I love).

Eric hires various private chefs for his dinner series. We start with some appetizers, including this cheese plate.

A kind of tomato soup, but perhaps more akin to a salsa.


Blue cheese, mushroom, balsamic pizza. This is similar in style to some of the pizzas I make myself, and quite delicious.


A more vegetable pizza. Good, but not as much my thing as the blue cheese one.


A tuna tomato olive pizza. Good too, and as we shall see constructed from extra ingredients from dinner.


Fish cake sliders.

The wine (below) is all served up front blind in numbered socks. I’m a bit ambivalent on this format. On the plus side, there are tremendous wines, and the blind format equalizes them all. Negatively, there are just so many (20+) and unless one took out a notepad and recorded notes and even which numbers one tried (there are repeats too like black 1 and blue 1) it’s hard to even remember if you tried a wine and half impossible to remember what it tasted like by the time they are revealed an hour or so later.


1998 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 94. The 1998 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is a candidate for wine of the vintage. It continues to gain weight, and is better each time I retaste it. Its opaque purple color is accompanied by gorgeous aromas of graphite, vanilla, black currant liqueur, and minerals. This rich, full-bodied Cabernet offers sweet tannin, a layered texture, and a finish that lasts for 45-50 seconds. It is a splendid accomplishment in a difficult vintage. Anticipated maturity: now-2017.


2000 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 93. The 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select was performing even better this year than it was last year. While not as weighty and ageworthy as some of the more hallowed vintages, it is a seriously endowed wine. Deep ruby/purple to the rim, with a gorgeous nose of creme de cassis, licorice, graphite, spice, and cedar, it is more forward than most vintages, but full-bodied, concentrated, and beautifully seductive. Drink it over the next 15 or so years.


2001 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 100. I should not be surprised that the 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select merited a perfect rating since I rated it 99 eight years ago. I also gave the 2002 Hillside Select a perfect rating. Kudos to Doug and John Shafer for creating two perfect wines in back to back vintages. The 2001 is a big wine (14.9% natural alcohol), but the alcohol is buried beneath an avalanche of creme de cassis, wood smoke, toast, licorice and spring flower characteristics. Super full-bodied with fabulous fruit purity, a broad, expansive mouthfeel, lots of glycerin and a huge upside, this 2001 is still an infant at age ten, but it is approachable as well as compelling to smell and taste. It has at least another three decades of aging potential ahead of it and is one of the great young, legendary classics from Napa Valley. It was a privilege to taste. There are approximately 2,000 cases of this cuvee which comes from Shafer’s hillside vineyards in the Stags Leap area and is aged 32 months in 100% new French oak.


2004 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 98+. The Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select has been one of Napa’s true first-growths since the early 1990s. The 2004 exhibits a dense opaque purple color along with spectacular, almost surreal levels of fruit that are never heavy, overripe or flawed. Its beautiful notes of creme de cassis, licorice and subtle oak (this cuvee spends 32 months in 100% new French barrels), skyscraper-like texture and extraordinarily long finish are all superb. This is a great wine from a great family who has done everything necessary to produce a world-class wine that can compete with any wine made from the Cabernet Sauvignon grape. You can’t say enough positives about the Shafers. Drink this 2004 Hillside Select over the next 20-25 years, although it could be even more stupendous in 40-50 years.


2006 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 96. The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select, which was just released, is a stunningly rich effort displaying notes of licorice, cassis, camphor and subtle toast along with a full-bodied, powerful texture and richness. Very pure with surprisingly sweet tannins for a 2006, it’s long finish lasts over 40 seconds. It should drink well for 25+ years.


2007 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 98+. The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select has the potential to be a perfect wine in 5 to 6 years. Although it has shut down since I tasted it last year, it is unquestionably Shafer’s finest Hillside Select since the 2001 and 2002. It needs 2-3 years of bottle age and should keep for 35+ years. This selection is made from the Eisele clone of Cabernet Sauvignon planted in a choice 50-acre parcel. It takes concentration, graciousness and complexity to its highest level in Napa Valley. An inky/blue/purple color is followed by sweet aromas of blueberries, blackberries, charcoal and subtle toast. The wine possesses fabulous concentration, a seamless/flawless personality, a textbook integration of alcohol, wood, tannin and acidity, an almost endless finish and a voluptuous texture. Exhibiting more tannin and structure than it did last year, this is a colossal wine that will still be going strong in 2050.


1983 La Mission Haut Brion. Parker 90. This was the first vintage made under the administration of Jean Delmas. The most notable and dramatic change made at La Mission-Haut-Brion since 1983 became a more refined, polished, sophisticated style without the pure mass of older vintages, but also without the excesses of tannin and volatile acidity that sometimes plagued ancient vintages. The 1983, a very good vintage in the southern Medoc and Graves, is a relatively lightweight La Mission (particularly compared to the 1982) that is fully mature. Complex notes of smoked herbs, cigar tobacco, black currants, sweet cherries, damp earth and spice box jump from the glass of this dark garnet-colored wine. Medium-bodied with silky tannins, well-integrated, low acidity and abundant perfume, this fully mature 1983 should be consumed over the next decade.


1989 Latour. Parker 89. An evolved dark ruby color reveals amber at the edge. The nose offers aromas of caramel, coffee, ripe black cherry and currant fruit, cedar, and spice box. Although medium-bodied, with low acidity, the wine lacks richness in the mid-palate, and is surprisingly abrupt in the finish. It is a very fine, delicious Latour, but it is hard to believe it will attain the weight and flavor dimensions its producers suggest. Anticipated maturity: now-2020.

agavin: this was a contentious wine. I liked it, so did many others. Some hated it.


1995 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. Parker 96. What sumptuous pleasures await those who purchase either the 1996 or 1995 Pichon-Lalande. It is hard to choose a favorite, although the 1995 is a smoother, more immediately sexy and accessible wine. It is an exquisite example of Pichon-Lalande with the Merlot component giving the wine a coffee/chocolatey/cherry component to go along with the Cabernet Sauvignon’s and Cabernet Franc’s complex blackberry/cassis fruit. The wine possesses an opaque black/ruby/purple color, and sexy, flamboyant aromatics of pain grille, black fruits, and cedar. Exquisite on the palate, this full-bodied, layered, multidimensional wine should prove to be one of the vintage’s most extraordinary success stories. Anticipated maturity: 2001-2020.

agavin: Blind, I instantly knew this was a Paulliac. It couldn’t have been anything else.


1981 Ridge Cabernet York Creek. Another contentious old wine. I thought it tasted like… well… mature cab.


2007 Colgin IX Syrah Estate. Parker 95. There are 475 cases of the 2007 IX Syrah Estate, which offers up flowery, roasted meat, balsamic, tar, and blackberry characteristics in a full-bodied format. The wine reveals sweet tannin, and layers of fruit, including a note of lavender that emerges as the wine sits in the glass. It should drink well for a decade.


2007 William Cole Cabernet Sauvignon Cuvée Claire. 94 points. Remarkably soft for it’s age, as if it already had 15 years of bottle age. Drank like a silky, mature Margaux from a ripe vintage, but with Napa’s fruit forward stamp. An excellent food wine. I only wish it had a longer finish.


2003 Hartwell Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Misté Hill. 92 points. Very nice deep purple/red, hardly showing any signs of age yet. Big nose with lots of cabernet fruit coming through. In the mouth this one is very, very dry. The tannins are nicely integrated, though I’m sure my wife would consider them somewhat overpowering at this point. Lots of herbal stuff going on here, and I’m thinking a lot of anise and eucalyptus dominating with the black fruits coming through the back. This wine is really very nicely rounded, but it needs a fatty food to cut through those tannins.


2008 Morlet Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Coeur de Vallee. Parker 98. The inky/purple-tinged 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Coeur de Vallee is a 250-case blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon and 24% Cabernet Franc. It offers up complex notes of unsmoked high class cigar tobacco, creme de cassis, subtle barbecue smoke, licorice and pen ink. Full-bodied with outstanding texture, purity and length, this awesome Cabernet Sauvignon can be enjoyed over the next 25-30 years.


1994 Penfolds Grange. Parker 91. This is the first vintage where Grange went to a bottle with laser-etched identification numbers to preclude the possibility of fraudulent bottles. The wine, a blend of 89% Shiraz and 11% Cabernet Sauvignon, shows some toasty oak mixed with notes of root vegetables, damp earth, blackberry liqueur, prune, and licorice. The wine is dense, full-bodied, not terribly complex in the mouth, but layered and rich. I would not be surprised to see the rating on this wine improve as this youthful Grange continues to evolve. Anticipated maturity: 2004-2020.


2001 Pride Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. Parker 98-99. Remarkably, the 2001 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon may be even better. Staggeringly pure notes of creme de cassis, violets, licorice and graphite soar from the glass of this inky/purple-colored wine. Composed of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Petit Verdot, and tasting like it is 2-3 years old, it is a stunningly pure, rich, full-bodied, prodigious example of high elevation mountain Cabernet Sauvignon that will not reach full maturity for another 5-7 years, and should age beautifully for another two decades or more. It is a magical wine to smell, taste and contemplate.


1980 Bertani Amarone della Valpolicella Classico. 93 points. amber brown in color. chemical on the nose.


2007 Domaine de Marcoux Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes. Parker 98. The 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes is still an infant in terms of development. Composed of 98% Grenache from 100- to 110-year-old vines, and made from incredibly tiny yields, it boasts a dense ruby/purple color followed by a sweet kiss of kirsch liqueur, incense, camphor, truffles, and lavender. The wine hits the palate with sensational richness, a full-bodied, multilayered texture, awesome purity, and remarkable freshness as well as vibrancy. The tannins are velvety, the acids provide uplift and delineation to the wine’s enormous richness and depth, and the finish lasts nearly a minute. This 2007 is still very young and unevolved, so 2-4 years of cellaring is recommended. It should age for 25 or more years.

agavin: very young and very pure. I wouldn’t have guessed it was a CNDP, it tasted more like a 09 Bordeaux. The balance was perfect though.


From my cellar: 1998 Henri Bonneau Chateauneuf du Pape Reserve des Celestins. Parker 98-100. The glorious 1998 Chateauneuf du Pape Reserve des Celestins has finally finished its alcoholic fermentation, tipping the scales at a whopping 16%, much like the surreal 1990 Reserve des Celestins. The deep ruby/purple-colored 1998 exhibits a glorious nose of brandy-macerated black cherries, aged beef, smoke, licorice, pepper, lavender, and sweet figs. Enormous in the mouth, yet remarkably light on its feet, its unctuous texture oozes fruit, glycerin, and extract. There is not a hard edge in this silky-textured, voluminous, majestic Chateauneuf du Pape, the likes of which seem to be incapable of being duplicated anywhere else in this appellation, or the world. This is a singular wine of great intensity and power with multiple dimensions. Liquid Viagra meets Rabelais! Anticipated maturity: 2008-2035.

agavin: I opened this hours before and it was still a brooding monster at the start of the dinner, but lots and lots of enormous fruit. Really lovely with a lot of complexity, but then again, I buy what I like.


2001 Tua Rita Redigaffi Vino da Tavola. Parker 96. The 2001 Redigaffi, an exceptionally deep ruby with an exotic nose of chocolate covered cherries and plum jam along with additional notes of coconut and roasted coffee, has the tell-tale super richness and density of perfectly ripe Merlot, lush, enveloping, plush, and concentrated. Drink: 2005-2020.

agavin: monster Italian merlot


We ate outside around this giant table. It’s surprisingly warm with that fire in the middle.


A slightly bitter salad much to my taste, with, unusually, cilantro.


Broccoli rabe, which I also like a lot.


These sweet potatoes (or butternut squash?) were great, with cinnamon and a good kick.


Seared tuna with tomatoes (like the pizza above).


Sliced steak. Simple, but a nice cut and went very well with the heavy reds.


2005 Rieussec. Parker 96. A bit sweet with very little acidity. Pleasant enough.


1988 De Suduiraut. Parker 88. The 1988 reveals a textbook, light gold color with a slight greenish hue. Although it does not display the weight of the 1990 or 1989, it has better acidity, high alcohol, and considerable sweetness. It is somewhat disjointed, needing time to knit together. It is impressive if its components are evaluated separately, but it is less noteworthy when reviewed from an overall perspective. There is bitterness as well as fiery alcohol in the finish.
The wine does not offer much delineation, so cellaring should prove beneficial as it does have admirable levels of extract. Suduiraut can make powerful, rich wines that are often rustic and excessively alcoholic and hot when young. I am told they become more civilized with age, and certainly older, classic Suduiraut vintages have proven that to be true. I feel this estate’s propensity to produce a luxury cuvee (Cuvee Madame) in vintages such as 1989 tends to have a negative impact on the regular cuvee.

agavin: parker didn’t love it, but there was a ton of 1988’s typical acid, which I very much enjoyed.


Berries and clotted cream. Yum!


Our host. He’s such the wine stud that he did not one but two giant food/wine events in the day, having flown up to Napa and back for a huge 100 point wine lunch!


Jesus, savior of Labradors. Notice the blanket, clearly this is a regular spot.

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By: agavin
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Revenge is Best Served Cold

Aug20

uk-orig-best-served-coldTitle: Best Served Cold

Author: Joe Abercrombie

Genre: Epic Fantasy

Length: 640 pages

Read: July 21-31, 2014

Summary: fun revenge fantasy

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Best Served Cold is a stand alone fantasy set in the same world as his more ambitious First Law trilogy. None of the main characters or plot from that larger work appear in this novel, but a whole host of minor characters do, often in much expanded roles and the overall style and tone are very similar.

First a note about that. This is very adult fantasy with its share of graphic sex and a whole lot of gritty violence. In fact, one of the great pleasures of Abercrombie is his strength at describing combat. He loves both sieges (all four of his books I’ve read feature them), duels, and melees. He has a particular knack for blow by blow combat — literarily. He doesn’t spare you the crunch of bone, the spray of blood, but makes it seem very accurate and visceral. His protagonists take a beating — again literally — and come out worse for the wear (if sometimes swift recovering). Each battle has its clever turns and reversals. The only thing you can expect is a bit of the unexpected.

This is also fantasy without a ton of life saving, healing, resurrecting magic. What magic there is is mostly used for disguise, or more often as more amped up lethal methods of slayage. All this makes the stakes fairly high.

Abercrombie is also a very good prose smith. He has a particular style, full of stylistic word repeats, witty turns, and a sort of darkly comic tone. Don’t get me wrong, these are pretty serious books, but the tone is a bit ironic. His characters are extremely interesting, highly flawed, sometimes self aware, and often quite amusing. Best Served Cold‘s prose is just ever so less slick than  the First Law, and somehow its tone just a tiny bit less sarcastic. Then again, maybe it’s just the absence of Glokta, a character from the longer books who really is exquisitely crafted (and darkly funny).

Like the bigger work, there are multiple POV characters. The story is told in rapidly shifting tight first person. Some of the characters are more likeable than others, but all are pretty fun to read. The opening chapters are very effective in particular with Monza, a female mercenary captain, who in the first few pages is betrayed and horribly maimed. Abercrombie loves a good crippling and swiftly builds sympathy for her this way — but then he throws it mostly to the side by avoiding her POV for quite some time. The story still focuses on her, but its told by others. This felt like a significant lost opportunity.

There are also a lot of reoccurring themes and even “types” of characters. Shivers, along with Monza the most important character, shares a great deal in common with Logen Ninefingers. Say one thing of Joe Abercrombie, say he’s consistent.

Overall, a fabulous fantasy action book with very human characters, but just a hair less great than the First Law trilogy. Also, while the novel is quite stand alone, it does explain/reveal elements of the world already explained/revealed in the earlier books, and certain major plot motivations could seem extremely mysterious to those reading it first.

For more book reviews, click here.

Best_Served_Cold_by_Joe_Abercrombie_Interior_Number_Two

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By: agavin
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Factory Kitchen – Fabulous

Aug18

Restaurant: Factory Kitchen [1, 2]

Location: 1300 Factory Pl, Los Angeles, CA 90013. (213) 996-6000

Date: August 12, 2014

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Wow! Best Italian in LA?

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My friend Liz organized this amazing dinner. Chef Angelo Auriana was the lead chef at Valentino from the mid 80s until 2003, and particularly in the 90s there really was no better Italian in LA. After a stint up in Northern California he is back with a new more casual place Downtown. Liz, as usual, really worked to fine tune the food and wine together for this amazing meal.


1995 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut. IWC 95. Light yellow. Rich and powerful, with leesy pear and white truffle aromas accented by gentle notes of white pepper and cinnamon. Extremely powerful Krug, with rich orchard fruit flavors, a velvety texture and warm, rich, inviting notes of brioche and creme brulee Finishes with intense pear and peach flavors and lingering notes of smoke, iodine and toffee. One of the most concentrated Champagnes I tried this year.

agavin: very fresh


focaccina calda di recco al formaggio. funghi, crescenza, foraged mushrooms, ligurian olive oil, parsley and, added specially for us, tons of black truffle!

agavin: some serious “pizza” goodness!


1983 Louis Roederer Champagne Cristal Brut. JK 93. (Cristal) which was very fresh and delicate, light on its feet with a lot of seltzer, citrus peel, minerals and a pungent kick. Fresh, very smooth, elegant, but not what I remember when I had it recently out of magnum, the 1983 Cristal was lighter out of bottle but still had some extra acidity.

agavin: pretty oxidized


Seared albacore, with a bit of pepper and olive oil.


1989 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut Collection. 96 points. One of those wines you taste and think, “Man, I am so lucky.” Intriguing apricot-honey color. Smells waxy and honeyed, with orange marmalade, clover honey, dried flowers, bruised apples. The palate loaded with gobs of apricot, brandied pear and blood orange. Crisp acid keeps it lean and balanced, and the aged notes of mixed nuts, rose tea, truffle oil and dried mushrooms. Throughout, this wine maintains an oceanic aura, with seashells and mineral water. So complex, this wine’s finish is obscenely long. One of the most intellectually stimulating Champagnes I’ve ever had.

agavin: one of the best champagnes I’ve had. Tastes like a great white burg.


Chickpea fries with fried vegetables.

agavin: soft, light, delicious fry.


pancotto. duck egg, red potato vellutata, sautéed greens, semolina bread crostone, speck.

agavin: when you get all the elements together really a fabulous breakfasty bite.


2010 Domaine Patrick Baudouin Anjou Les Saulaies. 90 points. Gazoline, honey, woodboard. Mouth very straight, linear, mineral, with big bitterness. Light new oak at the end. Discret aromas of limetree, and verveina.

agavin: by itself, this is an odd wine. Good, but strong and unusual for a white. But Liz carefully paired it with the pesto below and together they were amazing!


mandilli di seta. handkerchief pasta, ligurian almond basil pesto.

agavin: I can not say enough good things about this pasta. The texture was amazing. It’s soft and all folded over. The pesto is hyperblended to a very fine texture as well, and it tastes so Ligurian. Here you can see some “genuine” examples, and this one tonight was as good as any I’ve ever had in Liguria (I’ve spent about a week there). The chef can’t get the right pine-nuts so he uses blanched almonds instead. It works.


2010 Chêne Bleu Aliot. 90 points. 65% roussanne 30% Grenache blanc and 5% marsanne. Fresh white peach, honey, spicy and limestone. Distinctive cool climate impression. Very nice wine that will well complement seafood dishes.

agavin: served blind, I guessed it was a young roussanne. Also punchy by themselves, but Liz has a method to her madness.


She really wanted some Botarga. It’s not usually on the menu, but the chef dug up some genuine Sardinian tuna roe and made:


Botarga pasta. First of all, the texture on these big pasta rolls was incredible, with a nice bite. Then it had that pure fishy botarga flavor, but without anything off putting. Then, somehow the wine worked it all out into a special kind of magic.


1995 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes. Burghound 91. An almost syrah-like nose that stops just short of being overripe with dense and intense black fruit plus an odd herbaceous burnt orange peel aroma. The flavors are remarkably supple yet offer good density and richness with finishing tannins that are both firm and prominent. This is quite long and overall, the wine is bold and impressive but not my particular style as it lacks a bit of nuance and grace and the tannins are almost rustic.

agavin: young. This got better and better in the glass, but could have used hours!


1993 Domaine Robert Arnoux / Arnoux-Lachaux Romanée St. Vivant. Burghound 93. Sweet, elegant, pure and extremely sexy, spicy black fruit aromas that are now displaying relatively strong secondary development as well as a background hint of oak introduce round, delicious, textured, intense and deep flavors underpinned by silky tannins and outstanding length. This is a somewhat atypical ’93 as it’s really quite forward and not at all backward. For my taste, this could be drunk now with pleasure and there is little if any additional upside to be had. Simply beautiful juice. Consistent notes save for one bottle that seemed to lack the same purity of the prior bottles, particularly on the nose.

agavin: drinking amazing right now. Huge Vosne-Romanee nose, lots of RSV spice.


casonzei – veal, pork, sausage filled pasta, cured pork, butter, pancetta.

agavin: This also is a stunningly authentic pasta. It normally comes with a butter and sage sauce, but Liz (correctly) thought the sage wouldn’t work with the Burgundy and switched it out for sweat pancetta. There is a wonderful rice quality to the handmade pasta and the butter / parm sauce. You get pasta like this in the North, near Mantua and Verona. Sweet and buttery at the same time. Wonderful.


1990 Domaine Bartet Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques. Burhound 91. Somewhat surprisingly, even in the smaller format bottle this remains relatively fresh and while there are obvious secondary aromas present, there is no sous bois to the complex and earthy nose. The delineated, ripe and still solidly intense flavors deliver plenty of richness and a lovely mineral quality on the long and sappy backend. In sum, this is beautiful juice that is drinking perfectly now.

agavin: This is really Bruno Clair’s wine. Delicious.


1993 Louis Jadot Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. Burghound 92. In stark contrast to the Chambertin, this is wonderfully expressive and complex with abundant earth and spice notes followed by big, structured, still sappy if slightly austere flavors that offer excellent density and plenty of character. Impressively scaled and finishes with striking length. A clear step up from the Chambertin.

agavin: I love Jadot Beze, and 1993 is a great year, but this was drinking a little oddly tonight. Still enjoyable though.


1964 Thorin Chambolle-Musigny. 93 points. It’s just straight up amazing that a 50 year old village wine is drinking at all, but this beauty also offered a lot of fruit and just a lovely old burg experience.


quaglia – pan roasted California semi boneless quail, polenta, guanciale, witch finger grape.

agavin: Probably the best quail I can remember. Cooked a little medium rare with a lovely reduction.


1961 Franco Fiorina Barolo. 92 points. Tea color with rose petal aromas. Subtle overall flavors with faint red fruit and lots of earth. Very classic with moderate intensity.

agavin: nothing over the hill about this!


costata di bovino – prime beef rib chop, roasted bone marrow, onion~nebbiolo sauce.

agavin: certainly works with barolo!


Our chef, Angelo Auriana, who spent half the diner chatting with us.


From my cellar: 1989 Aldo Conterno Barolo Riserva Granbussia. Parker 97. Conterno’s 1989 Barolo Riserva Granbussia is darker in color and fresher than the 1990. Sweet mentholated, balsamic aromatics meld gracefully into an expressive, layered core of dark fruit. The 1989 is a big, expansive Granbussia that takes time to reveal its qualities in full, but it is a remarkable wine for the integrity of its fruit, the finesse of its tannins and its sumptuous overall balance. It remains a benchmark wine for Conterno and the appellation. Curiously, two bottles I tasted at the estate were more forward than several I have had in the US recently. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2024.

agavin: a staggeringly rich Barolo, if sill young. Deep grapey qualities and all that Barolo tar and roses.


Beef. I don’t remember which cut exactly, but just straight up and delicious.


1990 Domaine des Baumard Quarts de Chaume. 93 points. While the palate of the baumard was fantstic with its nectarine/orange driven notes, there was that telltale Loire desert quality to the nose, that stemmy/wooly nature you get in Huet as well. I think this lends it unique character and an ability to pair with a wider array of foods/cheeses, but some find it offputting. The wine though, drinks phenomenal and will only continue to get better.


cannoli – ricotta filling, pistachios, orange marmalade.

agavin: Liz claims this is the best cannoli she’s had. I’ll go so far to say it’s the best I’ve had in LA. And it was REALLY good with perfect crunch, soft ricotta, citrus. But it didn’t have that cinnamon / nutmeg bit I love, or the candied citrus quality you’ll often find in Sicily. Still, very very good. These ones from the Philadelphia Italian market are also fabulous if you can’t make it to Sicily.


2001 Müller-Catoir Gimmeldinger Schlössel Rieslaner Beerenauslese. IWC 92. Apricot and persimmon, sage and mint in the nose. On the palate this has a very smoky cast, with forceful pungency and some of the same icy heat as the corresponding Auslese. Plum paste, citrus marmalade and almond paste. Scheurebe-like mintiness and smoky, salty residues cling to the fruit in the finish.

agavin: I really loved this sticky


crostata – black mission figs, almond cream, mascarpone mousse, honey amaretto.

agavin: This was amazing, and it’s not even my kind of dessert. The sugary / flakey quality of the tart was perfect — and the cream!

All in all, an absolutely amazing meal. Every dish was amazing, and this is hands down the best, most authentically Italian, pasta I’ve had in LA — and I’m a pasta fiend. Many of the pasta dishes were better than the standard in Italy and as good as some of the best I’ve had there. And I’ve had a lot. Our wines were phenomenal too, and the pairings perfect as Liz is a nut about this. Really, it shows how both can elevate each other if properly orchestrated.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

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Amazing Akbar

Aug15

Restaurant: Akbar [1, 2, 3, 4]

Location: 3115 W Washington Blvd, Marina del Rey, CA 90292. (310) 574-0666

Date: August 11, 2014

Cuisine: Indian

Rating: Bold and balanced flavors

ANY CHARACTER HERE

It’s time for my Hedonist group to return to LA’s best Indian restaurant, Akbar (Marina Del Rey branch). Too many Indian places focus on low cost buffets of very over cooked food, but Akbar cooks everything to order — even baking their own Naan when you place the order. They are more focused on the cuisine of the Punjab (Northern India), with very good curries and kormas. You can get anything from extremely mild to blow the top of your head off. Once I had the “pepper lamb” on 5 (max heat) and my scalp sweat for hours.

Because my beloved Santa Monica branch has closed 🙁 we went to the original Marina Del Rey location. The food is just as good, but it’s a tad further (for me).


Chef Avi commands the kitchen.

The Menu can be found here, although the chef designed our feast directly.


2007 Bellavista Franciacorta Gran Cuvée Brut Rosé. 89 points. A light fruity champagne style wine from North Italy.


The chutney’s and pickles. The green one is mint, the yellow-ish coconut, the one with corn spicy-pickled vegetables (yum! and oh, so gut burning) and the back corner a tangy one.


2008 Williams Selyem Blanc de Noir Drake Estate Vineyard. 91 points. Clear with white tiny bubbles. Tight lime and flowers on the nose. Secondary tangerine and yeast. Lite body and hyper-focused on the palate. Devine, bright citrus fruit. Superb yeast integration…soft textures without the cloying baked notes. Loads of floral action on the back. Super structured. Long finish.


Chicken Kati Roll. Roti stuffed with highly spiced diced chicken, onions, and tomatoes. I love this dish, which contains a contrast between the tangy spiced meat and the sweet mango sauce.


Vina Somoza Godello Neno Godello Sobre Lias. Very interesting spanish white.


2012 Wolfgang Puck Chardonnay Master Lot Reserve. Didn’t try. I’m a white Burg whore.


Buffalo seekh kabab. Tender and lean.


2012 Weingut Robert Weil Kiedricher Gräfenberg Riesling Trocken. Nice dry riesling.


2006 Dönnhoff Schloßböckelheimer Felsenberg Riesling Felsentürmchen Spätlese. 92 points. Lovely mineral, tart grapefruit, petrol nose; tasty, ripe lime, green fruit, mineral palate; medium finish.


Shrimp Pakora. Like coconut shrimp — but not quite.


2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Ferrington Vineyard. Burghound 89. Noticeable but not dominant wood frames ripe cherry and black raspberry aromas that introduce sweet, round and slightly sweet flavors that finish with moderate acid bite. I suspect that this will come around and harmonize with a year or so in bottle and as such, my score offers the benefit of the doubt.

agavin: too much oak!


Tandoori grilled fresh Banzino. Inside, the fish was “stuffed” with some curry. Lots of flavor and very moist!


2008 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Noir Pierre Léon. Burghound 91. A perfumed and spicy nose of black cherry and plum marries seamlessly into rich, focused and attractively supple flavors that possess both good detail and solid mid-palate concentration, all wrapped in a firm and built to age finish. This balanced effort still displays a bit of wood on the finish but the concentration is such that it should eventually absorb all of the oak. Also worth considering as this is lovely.


“Good old” Chicken Tikka. Tender morsels of chicken.


From my cellar: 1998 M. Chapoutier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Barbe Rac. Parker 94-6. Chapoutier’s 1998 Barbe Rac is close to full maturity. It exhibits an abundance of Provencal herbs intermixed with new saddle leather, kirsch, framboise, and spice box. The intoxicatingly heady, complex aromatics are followed by a full-bodied, lush, succulent style of wine with a relatively high alcohol/glycerin content and loads of fruit. This wine is drinking terrifically well after going through an awkward stage about two to three years ago.


1998 Chateau Beaucastel Chateauneuf du Pape. Parker 92-95. That may explain the open-knit, complex notes of tree bark, black cherries, licorice, seaweed, pepper, and floral notes in the 1998 Beaucastel. The wine is medium to full-bodied, has nice, sweet tannins, and is surprisingly open and approachable. This wine has reached the beginning of its plateau of maturity, where it should last for at least a decade or more.


Lamb on the grill.


Tandoori Lamb Chops. Really flavorful.


Mango Chutney.


Some of the curries in pre-heated form.

And a bunch of them being worked up.


1996 Smith-Haut-Lafitte. Parker 90. The 1996 Smith-Haut-Lafitte is the quintessentially elegant Bordeaux. With a dark ruby/purple color, it displays a beautiful presentation of blackberry and cassis fruit nicely dosed with subtle new oak. On the attack, the wine is sweet and pure, with striking symmetry, and a compellingly balanced mid-palate and finish. Although not as big as some blockbusters from this vintage, it is extremely complex (both aromatically and flavor-wise), and impressive for its restraint, subtlety, and impeccable balance.

agavin: too structured right now


Chana Masala. Chick peas.


1995 Sociando-Mallet. Parker 90. This accessible, yet tannic example of Sociando-Mallet possesses a deep ruby/purple color, and excellent aromatics consisting of jammy black cherries, blackberries, and cassis, as well as subtle notes of minerals, earth, and new oak. This is a deep, long, muscular, tannic wine that is structurally similar to the 1996. Patience will be required from purchasers of this high class wine.

agavin: since I’m used to drinking the likes of 89 Lynch and 85 Margaux, this third rate Bordeauxs are just so-so to my palette.


Saag Paneer. Farm cheese with spinach.


2003 Turley Wine Cellars Petite Syrah Estate. Parker 91-93. The 2003 Petite Syrah Turley Estate (200 cases; 14.2% alcohol) is a soft, civilized Petite Syrah, a varietal known for producing massive, backward, almost brutally concentrated and tannic wines that need at least a decade to become drinkable. This 2003 is a surprisingly elegant, opulent example with wonderful concentration in addition to atypical accessibility.

agavin: pretty decent actually


Prepping the giant venison kofta with curry.


Venison kofta curry. Tamarind, tomato, onion flavored. Really delicious.


2000 Joseph Phelps Insignia Proprietary Red Wine. Parker 90. The 2000 is a mid-weight, elegant effort with lots of black currant, violet, earth and forest floor characteristics. Medium-bodied with excellent ripeness and sweet tannins, it is one of the more successful wines I have tasted from this vintage. The wine is close to full maturity and should keep for another 10-12 years.


Chicken Tikka Masala. The best I’ve ever had. Deliciously rich and flavorful.


2002 D’Arenberg The Dead Arm Shiraz. Parker 93. After re-tasting the 2002 The Dead Arm Shiraz, I believe my initial rating is correct. It still plays it close to the vest, exhibiting loads of cassis, asphalt, smoke, and barbecue spice-like aromas along with full-bodied flavors. While well-made and impressive, it remains backward and restrained, and does not appear to be up to the quality of either the 2003 or the great 2001.

agavin: not bad with the spice


Coco lamb. This is one of my favorite lamb curries. It’s very rich and usually quite hot.


2007 Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain. Parker 97. The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is unlike any wine I have ever tasted from Dunn. Layer after layer of flavor saturates the palate in this opulent, full-throttle Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2007 possesses dazzling textural richness, depth and sheer intensity. Purists may prefer more structured vintages, but for a producer known for such slow maturing wines, the 2007 is a huge pleasure to taste today. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2037.

agavin: pretty good, despite being crazy young. Actually more than pretty good.


Dal aka lentils. Beware the consequences!


2006 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Russian River Valley. Burghound 87. A high-toned raspberry and cranberry fruit nose that also displays subtle spice and menthol hints introduces round, supple and easy to like flavors up until the finish that is overtly warm if attractively sappy. Be sure to keep this cool because the warmth really comes up if the temperature rises even slightly.


Mushroom Pillau.


1998 Chateau Saint Jean Cinq Cepages Proprietary Red Wine. Parker 89-91. Made in a light style, the medium-bodied 1998 Cinq Cepages (75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, 6% Malbec, 2% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit-Verdot) exhibits a sweet nose of toast, earth, cedar, licorice, black cherries, and chocolate. There is excellent concentration, but because of the vintage conditions, this wine does not possess much volume, breadth of flavor, or intensity. Drink it during its first 10-12 years of life.


Freshly made naan.


1993 Yalumba Sémillon Botrytis Family Reserve. Pretty good sticky.


Galub Jamun. Fried cheese balls in syrup. When I was younger I thought these were basically donut balls, as that’s what they taste like. It’s also worth mentioning that we named a character in Way of the Warrior after this dessert.


2003 La Tour Blanche. Parker 92-96. Ex-chateau bottle tasted blind in Sauternes. The La Tour Blanche ‘03 offers yellow flowers, melted candle wax and honey on the nose with Muscat-like aromas developing in the glass. The palate is well-balanced on the entry with lemon curd and honey notes, though it needs just a little more acidity to give it tension and freshness. The finish is quite linear, springs no surprises, and just drifts a little when you seek more tautness and race. Still, this is a pleasurable, if not profound La Tour Blanche.

agavin: loved it


Rice pudding. I love rice pudding, but I like a particular consistency (relatively thick). For whatever reason, tonight’s rice pudding was more to my taste than the Santa Monica locations. Quite nice and refreshing in fact.


The chaos!

Akbar has long been my favorite LA Indian, and this meal was probably my best yet there. The balance of items was great — and very plentiful — and the flavors incredibly bright and spot on. The brothers Kapoor (below) are also wonderful hosts. All in all an exceedingly fun evening.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

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By: agavin
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Warlords of Draenor Cinematic

Aug14

Blizard released the Warlords (WOW expansion 5!) cinematic today:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLzhlsEFcVQ]

Actually pretty cool. Oddly, and as usual, even after having played since launch, I don’t totally understand the details of the “lore” and even who all the players are. Guldan, Thrall, Hellscream sure. But who is that Burning Legion dude with the Illidan wings? It’s funny how much effort you’d have to make in order to actually understand the lore. I know all the factions and just roll with it. Now the gameplay, that I understand. Although I hesitate to actually play again, as it’s such a time suck. But usually my resolve breaks.

WOW Endgame series: Vanilla, Burning Crusade, Lich King, Cataclysm, and Pandaria.
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Food as Art – Shiki Sushi

Aug13

Restaurant: Shiki Beverly Hills [1, 2]

Location: 410 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210. 310-888-0036

Date: August 6, 2014

Cuisine: Japanese

Rating: Some of the best sushi I’ve had in a while!

_

Shiki Beverly Hills recently replaced Enoteco Drago in the primo Canon Dr space right in the heart of Beverly Hills. It features extremely Japanese seasonal ingredient focused kaiseki and sushi. The space is elegant and modern, really not that different than it was as Drago.


Chef Shigenori Fujimoto was at Matsuhisa from 94-04 and brings with him both a traditionalist and “new style” sushi vibe. My friend Liz, who has impeccable taste, arranged a very traditional menu for us and organized.


1988 Louis Roederer Champagne Cristal Brut. 92 points. Like many older Cristal bottles, there was a bit of oxidation going on. But a very nice underlying champagne. Its always great to drink 88, and Cristal, even better when its 88 and Cristal!


Seasonal Pike Eel on a “mousse” of tofu, avocado, dashi and the like. This is one of those fabulous dishes that is intensely Japanese, with subtle dashi flavor.


Seared red snapper with various peppers. A little bit of heat to this, but deliciously bright.


Seared scallop and fresh white peach salad. Extremely fresh and tasty.


Check out the peach underneath, the fruit had been scooped out and made into the above balls.


1985 Bollinger Champagne La Grande Année. 95 points. Golden colour, yeasty nose. Bead almost gone, but still some fizz. Beautiful fully developed fruit, long finish. A great vintage champagne still drinking at its peak. Outstanding wine. Fresher than the 88.


Octopus and Uni — really two dishes plated together.


Grilled octopus with chili. As tender and good as octopus gets.


Uni pasta with wasabi and nori. The paste wasn’t just straight uni but had been brined. The nori was a special Japanese variety. Really, spread on the seaweed with a little wasabi this was stunningly delightful. I could have eaten 10x as much.


From my cellar: 2001 Domaine Ramonet Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 95. Incredibly beautiful and elegant aromas of white flower and citrus softly introduce steely, gorgeously pure and delineated medium full flavors that seem as though they’re chiseled directly from solid rock. This is much more mineral driven than the typical Bâtard, and blind I would have mistaken it for a classically styled Chevalier. There is plenty of punch and racy supporting acidity plus simply knockout length. Of all these impressive attributes though, it’s the stunning purity and overall harmony of expression that make this one of the wines of the vintage. Interestingly, this is not a dramatic wine in terms of sheer size and weight but the focus and sneaky length make this a wine that is impossible not to be struck by its intensity. In short, this is one of the best examples of young Bâtard that I have ever had and one that will age for at least a decade. Don’t miss it!


Halibut sashimi with black truffle and motomara tomato. I usually don’t like truffle on my sushi, but this was fabulous. Even the tomato was good (it was marinated, which makes them palatable to my taste).


1996 Louis Jadot Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot. Burghound 98. As with the 750 ml, the purity, elegance and sheer beauty of this wine is frankly difficult to adequately describe as words just don’t seem up to the task. There is nuance after nuance among the brilliantly delineated aromas of white flowers, citrus, wet stone and rose blossoms that perfectly complement the focused and laser-precise medium full flavors that are like rolling liquid rocks around in the mouth. There is a barely contained intensity and one can sense the slow build from the mid-palate to the explosive finish that goes on and on. While no where near ready, this is so good that it’s still a wonderful experience to drink and it’s comforting to know for those that own it that it’s still on its way up. In short, this is a brilliant wine, indeed a text book example and quite simply the finest Jadot Demoiselles I have ever had the pleasure to drink and one that will last for decades in this format.


Conch steamed in its own shell. I’ve had this dish in Japan, and here, but this was probably one of the best versions. The conch was very tender. You drink the juices/soup afterward.


Pike eel soup. One of those lovely mild Japanese soups.


2004 Morey-Blanc Corton-Charlemagne. Burghound 93. A reserved, indeed backward spicy green apple and white pear nose complements delineated but very rich flavors that display moderate wood on the big and weighty if not necessarily super dense finish that packs a serious punch and intensity. The length here is really impressive and the balance is such that this should age for 15 to possibly 20 years.


Maguro. Lovely big eye tuna.


o’o-toro. Absolutely perfect piece of premium tuna belly.


Shinko. Young gizzard shad.


Golden eye snapper.


Anago. Conger eel. Served without the eel sauce, instead with yuzu and salt. Fabulous.


Ebi. Shrimp.


Engawa. Seared Flounder fin, with yuzu and salt. Awesome.


Santa Barbara Uni. Yum!


Aji. Japanese jack mackerel.


Hotate. Japanese scallop.


Ama-ebi. Sweet shrimp.


The heads return, this time grilled. Sucking out the guts was a treat.


Seared halibut?


Ikura. Salmon eggs. Sweet.


Yellowtail belly. With a bit of stronger sauce.


Saba. Chub mackerel.


Awabi. Abalone. Very tender.


A chef with an albacore!


1995 Louis Jadot Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. IWC 94. Red-ruby color. Knockout nose combines rose petal, raspberry, mulberry, iodine, cardamom, tobacco and iris. Great sweetness on the palate; offers as much volume as the mouth can hold. Builds and builds. Really exhilarating delineation and depth of flavor. Tannins are substantial but ripe. A superb example of this great grand cru.


Wagyu beef with mushrooms and asparagus. Melts in the mouth.


Plum and shiso handroll. Incredibly traditional and with a sour “minty” taste. Very refreshing.


Ice cream with starch “mochi” on the side and fresh figs and other fruit.

Wow. LA has lots of great Japanese, and I have good sushi all the time, but this was particularly awesome. Really the sushi itself was as good as it gets. Very traditional style too, which is my favorite. I love the acid washed Nozawa style too, but hand sauced traditional like this is my favorite. We had fabulous — and correctly paired — wines too, not to mention just three of us at the sushi bar and great company. All and all worth the hangover.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

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By: agavin
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Hedonists at King Hua

Aug11

King Hua is such good dimsum that the Hedonists had to hit it up for a mega brunch extravaganza…

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Guardians of the Galaxy

Aug08

Guardians-of-the-Galaxy-poster-21Title: Guardians of the Galaxy

Cast: Chris Pratt (Actor), Zoe Saldana (Actor), James Gunn (Director)

Genre: Science Fiction

Watched:  August 7, 2013

Summary: Basically good fun

_

Months ago, when I saw the trailer for this film, I said to myself, “that will either be really cool or totally suck.” Fairly amazingly, it’s basically the former. I’m not even exactly sure why this is a good film. It certainly isn’t a great one. I mean by comic-book film standards, it’s better than 95% and perhaps at about the same level as Hellboy (which was another surprise hit — and similarly from a comic I’d never heard of). Although the tone is absolutely nothing like Guillermo del Toro creepy “masterpiece.”

Fundamentally, Guardians is like an amped up, light-hearted, post-modern version of a standalone Han Solo novel. This is a crazy elaborate galactic civilization that is well… completely and totally improbable. It makes Star Wars look realistic. But the tone is so whimsical that we know from the first instant (hell, from the poster), that Guardians doesn’t take itself seriously. Woe if it did. This is a comic (and I mean both Marvel comic and funny comic) action film. But the characters are fun, the action intense, the world building lighthearted but detailed, and the whole romp pure escapism.

There is some attempt to give the main characters a bit of depth and a dash of pathos. For the most part, it works (at the level necessary).  Hell, even Groot has more depth than the likes of Thor. The villains are not as successful. I’m never a big fan of the whole multiple big boss villain scenario, but Marvel loves it (see Avengers). Thanos probably shouldn’t exist and  Ronan is laughably… comic. He just stands around between whoop-ass. Who, or what is he? Why does he wear black glitter? And how the hell did he get any followers?

There is also a bizarre who’s who of cameos or at least peculiar and for the most part comic casting: Benicio Del Toro’s oddball “Collector”? John C Reilly as a space cop? When you see John C Reilly, it’s hard to take anything too seriously.

But the dialog is snappy and fun, and the main actors pretty on point. Personally I liked the CGI guys best. Rocket (the Raccoon) is hilarious.

It’s not even worth nitpicking all the little plot holes. And, yeah, all the main characters (good or bad) are a little too good at what they do and the bulk of people (like the Nova “Empire” kinda lame). But the film is just good popcorn munching fun. So if you like galactic romps, this sure beats watching a battered video of Ice Pirates at 4am.

For more Film reviews, click here.

Rocket-Raccoon-in-Guardians-of-the-Galaxy-international-trailer

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Words of Radiance

Aug06

17332218Title: Words of Radiance [1, 2]

Author: Brandon Sanderson

Genre: High Fantasy

Size: 1088 pages!

Read: 6/30-7/8 2014

Summary: Great followup

_

After a 3+ year hiatus, I return to Brandon Sanderon’s epic fantasy world. And if any new fantasy can be considered epic, it’s certainly this one. Planned at 10 books the first two are each over 1,000 pages! But don’t let that scare you off. For fantasy lovers this is some serious entertainment.

As I mentioned in my review of the first volume, that book possessed some (minor) structural problems partially addressed in this excellent followup. Two point of view characters (Kaladin and Shallan) dominate the narrative, and while last time the ratio was about 70/30 it’s now closer to 50/50. This improvement feels more balanced. Both stories are gripping and don’t let up — during those parts I didn’t want to put the book down even for a minute. There is a small percentage of the story told from the POV of other major players. While not quite as good, these at least remained in the same theatre of action. Unfortunately a few “interludes” with one-off stories from people all over the world remain. These stand outside the main narrative flow and are a tad annoying. As an editor I probably would have cut/shortened most — but they aren’t too long.

I loved these books, but be aware this is no Game of Thrones with a fairly realistic world. It’s alien. Full of strange creatures, terms, politics, magics and a dizzying and complex mythology that is as mysterious to the characters as to us. Therein lies one of Sanderson’s many strengths as he doles out the answers to the mysteries at a satisfying rate without giving away the whole kit and caboodle. The writing itself is clear, confident, and polished. Not literary exactly, but quite first rate. And for a book with such a byzantine plot and titanic length, highly engaging and fast paced. There is a good amount of action and it’s very well described. The powers of the Shardbearers and Surgebinders are pretty epic and you can really imagine them whirling through the air in complex battles. During the most exciting parts (usually near the end of the various “books” that break up the long story) the various narratives converge and alternate back and forth more rapidly in a tense and well engineered way.

All and all, I’m not sure these books are for everyone as they are imaginative to an extreme, but if you like made up worlds this is one of the best. It’s highly complex, well designed, elegantly plotted, well told, and just a darn fine fantasy read. Few writers have the imaginative scope required to create such an exotic beast. The Stormlight Archive harkens back to Eddings, Jordan during their glory days — but somehow much more modern.

For more book reviews, click here.

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Chili Crab Craze – Starry Kitchen

Aug04

Restaurant: Starry Kitchen

Location: 943 N Broadway, Los Angeles, Ca, 90012. 213-814-1123

Date: July 31, 2014

Cuisine: Singaporean

Rating: Great fun

_

Tonight the Hedonists take over Starry Kitchen, a strange sort of vaguely Singaporean / Pan Asian pop up that has gained notoriety in recent years. This was one of these zoo style events with 25 people, a giant table, and around 30+ wines! I don’t think I even photographed them all as it was too chaotic. I have tried to organize them into coherent flights below, but it was anything but at the actual event. Just a free for all. However, there was so much wine that it wasn’t a problem getting any particular bottle. Most took a while to run out. Plus this sort of cuisine goes best (really only) with whites, particularly slightly sweet ones (like Riesling). But this never stops the fans of giant reds — they drink them regardless. Cava. 2002 Delamotte Champagne Blanc de Blancs Millésimé. Burghound 91. A relatively high-toned nose of green apple, baker’s yeast, floral and citrus peel hints precedes the distinctly effervescent, even slightly foamy flavors that possess good depth on the bone dry finish. This is clearly still on its way up as the focused finish is still compact and while this is certainly refreshing and there is enough depth present to make for an interesting drink, it will be better in due course. In sum, there is good development potential and will especially please those who prefer very dry vintage Champagne. 1998 Pierre Péters Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut Millésimé. IWC 91. Light gold color. Intensely smoky on the nose, with rich nutty and floral aromas of molasses cookie and gingerbread along with a wild fresh herb quality and a whiff of blood orange. The spicy character repeats on the palate, which shows ripe citrus, mineral and apple flavors. Finishes complex and long, with excellent concentration and impressive focus. Tofu balls with puffed rice and sriracha aioli. Interesting outer crunch with inner softness. I’ve no idea what the green is about. 2011 Arkenstone Sauvignon Blanc. 93 points web. 1998 E. Guigal Condrieu La Doriane. IWC 92. Spicy aromas of peach syrup, citrus skin and menthol. Rich, sweet and lush, with superb depth of flavor and extract. Seems both livelier and more structured than the normale, not to mention longer on the back end. Lots of gras here. agavin: grapefruit peel! 2006 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Spätlese. 96 points. Peach and pineapple with grapefruit and slate. Plenty of ripeness as opposite to outright sweetness on the palate and it retains a feeling of being light on its feet. There is also a sweet and sour element going on which I liked. At a stage in between youth and having development but still enjoyable now. 2003 Joh. Jos. Prüm Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Spätlese. 92 points. There was definitely spritz present, and lots of it. The nose was not giving much. My husband smelled petroleum right away. I thought the nose was strange, but agreed with him that it was petroleum. Then, very slight aromas of honey, peaches, baked dough, and floral came through underneath. On the palate, the wine was rather sweet with taste of honey & fruits. Rather one dimensional, lacks in complexity. Medium finish. This wine is made to pair with food IMHO. I find it more pleasurable to drink this wine with food than without because of the sweetness, and it especially pairs great with spicy dishes. 2002 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Auslese. IWC 90. Smoke and brown spice notes on the nose, mingled with strawberry jam. Delicate and airy in the mouth, yet superbly rich in spice and inner-mouth florality. Salty, spicy and not particularly sweet in its long, wafting finish. 1996 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Gris Rangen de Thann Clos St. Urbain. 91 points. Golden color. Exotic fruit aromas. Velvety texture. Fullbodied and big. Some residual sugar. A lovely, balanced and well drinking wine. Shrimp and pork chili oil wonton. Shredded potatoes. Spicy, and clearly a variant of the schezuan “numb taste wonton.” Not nearly as hot though. 2010 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre. Burghound 93. A wonderfully elegant and highly expressive nose consists of white flower, oyster shell and iodine aromas that are very much in keeping with the powerful yet refined broad-scaled flavors that possess both excellent volume and concentration, all wrapped in an explosive and gorgeously long finish. The combination of punch and civility is most beguiling. 2002 Louis Jadot Corton-Charlemagne Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot. Burghound 93. It’s interesting but this is much more feminine and rounder in style than the Le Charlemagne with its distinctly masculine character. This is not as powerful but it’s more elegant with precise, delineated and pure flavors that also enjoy ample amounts of dry extract and awe-inspiring length. agavin: A little premoxed, but drinking nicely. 2012 Gilbert Picq Chablis 1er Cru Vosgros. Burghound 90-92. A beautifully well-layered nose features notes of mineral reduction, green fruit and ocean breeze nuances. There is impressive scale to the concentrated and powerful medium weight flavors that are both intense saline and mineral-inflected on the mouth coating and lingering finish. As is usually the case this is less refined than the Vaucoupin but there’s better underlying material. agavin: drinking really flat right now 2009 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon. Burghound 91. This is notably riper than the Blagny and the nose plays right on the edge of a certain exoticism as the mostly yellow orchard fruit aromas hint at the presence of mango and papaya. The very rich, round and mouth coating flavors exude plenty of dry extract that buffers the moderately firm acid spine on the lightly mineral-driven and persistent finish. Overall this is really quite pretty and about the only nit is the presence of the barest hint of finishing bitterness that my score assumes will dissipate with a few years of bottle age. agavin: drinking great. Some reduction (which I like). Chinese mustard greens with pancetta. As good as greens get — because bacon makes everything better. 2000 Les Cailloux (Lucien et André Brunel) Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Centenaire. Parker 96. The heady 2000 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Centenaire is more evolved than either the 2001 or 1998. Extremely full-bodied, with low acidity, and a knock-out bouquet of blackberry and cherry jam intermixed with licorice, pepper, and dried Provencal herbs, this sexy, voluptuous, enormously concentrated 2000 possesses a huge, silky, seamless finish. Drink this irresistible effort now and over the next 12-15 years. 2008 François Villard St. Joseph Reflet. 90 points. Fantastic nose. Big pepper with lots of violets and herbs. Lovely balanced even palate. Perfect finishing tannin. Lengthy. Just a terrific wine all around. Pork belly fried rice. Really, how could you go wrong with this? From my cellar: 1993 Domaine Robert Arnoux / Arnoux-Lachaux Echezeaux. Burghound 91. Black spicy fruit trimmed by a deft touch of oak leads to substantially scaled, rich, intense flavors of impressive depth and the elegant breed of a fine Echézeaux is obvious, especially on the exceptionally long finish. I very much like this as it’s both beautifully balanced and offers solid concentration and cellar potential. agavin: tasted much better than the nose. Maybe a tiny bit of brett, but drinking well. 2002 Kistler Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast. 89 points. Drinking decently. Muted cherry and strawberry, slight bricking. 2011 La Bastide Blanche Bandol. 85 points. Dark red color. Tobacco, dirt, black cherry, meat on nose. On palate, full body but nice acidity provides balance. Cherry, sour cherry, garrigue on palate. Medium+ finish. Malaysian chicken curry. A very nice medium hot curry. Chicken fell right off the bone. And it went great on top of the fried rice. 2007 Domaine Grand Veneur Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes. Parker 98+. The newest special cuvee (introduced in 2006) is the 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes (50% Grenache, 40% Mourvedre, and 10% Syrah). Made from 50- to 100+-year-old vines and aged 18 months in small oak barrels, it is potentially one of the longest lived wines of the vintage. This exquisite, dense purple-colored effort reveals intense but restrained notes of cassis, kirsch, lavender, licorice, and graphite. A wine of great intensity as well as remarkable finesse and elegance, is a full-bodied Chateauneuf that will require plenty of patience. Give it 3-4 years of bottle age, and drink it over the following 25-30. 2009 Bibi Graetz Testamatta. Parker 90. The 2009 Testamatta possesses remarkable depth and power along with tons of textural elegance. There is plenty of Sangiovese character in the dusty red cherries, flowers, licorice and tobacco. The wine’s color and forward bouquet suggest it is on a relatively fast path of evolution. Saffron fish wraps. In there is a interesting mixture of pickles, saffron coated fish, onions, and white rice noodles. Here is the wrap stuff. And the final product. 2010 Fontodi Flaccianello della Pieve Vino da Tavola. Parker 97+. Now to a superstar of Italian enology: The 2010 Flaccianello della Pieve will take your breath away. This is a seriously beautiful Sangiovese-based wine with the kind of intensity and aromatic purity you only experience every 1,000 wines or so. There’s a lot to say here. First, the wine’s beautiful appearance shows dark garnet colors with highlights of ruby and purple gemstone. The bouquet delivers a steady and seductive evolution with dark cherry, chocolate, spice, tobacco and sweet almond all seamlessly balanced one against the other. Its texture and inner fabric is rich, velvety and firm. There’s a brilliant spot of acidity that hits you at the back of the mouth and helps the wine from feeling too heavy or dense. In fact, outstanding elegance is what ultimately sets it apart. The temptation to drink it now is huge, but those still young tannins definitely need a few more years to unwind. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2035. Rice, egg, ground hamburger. Mixed up, it actually has a burger like vibe because of the meat and the pickles. But very tasty. 2006 Gemstone Proprietary Red Wine. Parker 93. The superb 2006 Gemstone Proprietary Red  (an 890-case blend of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Petit Verdot) is from the cooler Oakville / Yountville sector of Napa. It exhibits a dense ruby/purple color as well as a beautiful bouquet of subtle new oak interwoven with black currants, smoke, licorice, and a hint of spring flowers. The wine is full-bodied, with excellent density, admirable balance, and fine purity, a hallmark of this estate. It should drink nicely for two decades. Pork belly clay pot. 2002 Pax Syrah Lauterbach Hill. IWC 92. Saturated ruby. Cooler, high-pitched aromas of black raspberry, blackberry, cassis and mint. Juicy and lively; less lush than the Vine Hill bottling as the wine is more dominated by its firm tannic spine (this was vinified with a high percentage of whole clusters.) Densely packed but tightly wound, with lively notes of licorice and minerals. Whereas most of the Pax 2002s offer considerable immediate appeal, this wine really needs two or three years of cellaring. Garlic noodles. And we really do mean GARLIC. There could not have been more garlic flavor. 2008 Cayuse Grenache God Only Knows Armada Vineyard. Parker 94. Baron’s 2008 Grenache Armada Vineyard God Only Knows displays delectable scents and luscious palate presence of lightly-cooked strawberry and plum laced with nut oils and shadowed by plum and herb distillates. Seamlessly polished, almost velvety and glycerol-rich as well as sweetly ripe, this, nonetheless, projects a torrent of primary fruit juiciness along with levity and energy. Saliva-inducing salinity along with piquant fruit pit, and iodine accents add riveting counterpoint to a finish of prodigious length that manages to simultaneously sooth and stimulate. I would expect this to reward attention for at least another decade. 1993 Opus One Proprietary Red Wine. parker 93. Deep garnet-brick colour. Fragrant aromas of dried cranberries, prunes, cinnamon and cumin giving way to subtler earthy notes of leather and tar. A lot of discernable fruit remains on the palate framed by crisp acidity and a medium level of grainy tannins. Very long, layered finish. Drink now to 2018. Tasted April 2009. And the main event: Chili crab. The crab is drowned in the chili sauce, which has much of the meat. Those balls are fried bread puffs. They each weigh about 1/3 of a pound (not kidding). Heavy stuff but perfect for dipping. I haven’t had Chili Crab too many times, but this was very close to what I had in Singapore. The crab itself was much smaller here (there we had these huge Sri Lankan crabs). Also amazing on the fried rice (not the most attractive, but tastes great). 2009 Rieussec. Parker 97. The team at Chateau Rieussec have conjured a stellar wine in 2009. There is a little reduction at first that fortunately blows away, revealing thickly layered scents of honey, Danish pastry and quince that appear to gain vigor with every passing sip. The palate is stunning: very viscous in the mouth with tangy grapefruit, honey and white peach. It is still primal, but the acidity is perfectly judged and there is a life-affirming sense of precision and tension towards the finish. Exceptional. Drink now-2045. Churros. A bit oily, and again, mysteriously green. Another awesome evening. Good food, if a little eclectic, and a zoo of enjoyable (if not entirely food friendly) wines. But just great company and hence a whole lot of fun.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

Picking at the crab

Rarrrr!

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By: agavin
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Sauvages at Oliverio

Aug01

Restaurant: Oliverio [1, 2, 3]

Location: 9400 W Olympic Blvd. Beverly Hills, CA 90212. (310) 407-7791

Date: July 25, 2014

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Awesome Food & Wine

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The Sauvages are a group of serious Friday afternoon wine drinkers. Today’s event brings us to the Avalon Hotel’s poolside Italian: Oliverio for a special custom Barolo lunch.


The atmosphere is tres LA and top notch.


Opening up with a couple whites. This Italian was tasty, but I didn’t know it.


Marcassin Chardonnay Marcassin Vineyard. I didn’t catch the vintage, but it was a 100 point Parker wine. This is a pretty decent new world Chard, still, I don’t understand the ratings. It’s flabby, lacking the acidic backbone that makes a great white Burgundy so delicious. Instead you are just hit by straightforward richness.


1988 Fiorano (Boncompagni Ludovisi) Sémillon Vino da Tavola. A totally unusual, delicious, ancient bottle of Semillon from Italy.


Our custom Barolo menu.


Bread.

1997 Azienda Bricco Rocche (Ceretto) Barolo Prapò. IWC 90. Medium red-orange. Spicy aromas of redcurrant, clove, dried flowers and tobacco. Juicy, bright and delineated, with noteworthy shape and structure. Quite spicy at the core. Substantial firm tannins are very nicely buffered. Finishes with excellent persistence.


1998 Angelo Gaja Costa Russi. Parker 92. The dark ruby/purple-colored, supple-texture 1998 Costa Russi possesses sweet, jammy raspberry and cherry fruit, medium to full body, gorgeous glycerin, low acidity, and a lightly tannic finish. Although large-sized, it has good finesse as well as beautifully pure fruit.


1997 Roberto Voerzio Barolo Cerequio. Parker 92. The paradoxical 1997 Barolo Cerequio possesses exquisite purity as well as an open-knit bouquet, but restrained, tannic, forceful, backward flavors. Dense and rich, with the vintage’s thickness well-displayed.


1997 Cordero di Montezemolo Barolo Monfalletto. Parker 90-96. A well-respected La Morra producer, Codero’s 1997 Barolo Monfalletto is a soft, structured offering with muscular, earthy, licorice, and black cherry aromas as well as flavors. With airing, notes of chocolate, truffles, meat, and pepper emerge. Muscular and rustic, but substantial and rich on the palate, it requires several years of cellaring.


Mediterranean Seppia. Carmelized onion, fresh liver, black figs. An interesting combo that totally worked. The sweetness of the fig worked with the liver (probably actually foie gras) and the Seppia had a wonderful chew.


1996 Luciano Sandrone Barolo Cannubi Boschis. Parker 96. The 1996, one of the estate’s best, takes things to another level.  It shows an outrageous, well-delineated nose of fresh roses, minerals and menthol followed waves of dark fruit and licorice flavors that are just beginning to show the signs of early maturity, with exceptional freshness, length, and harmony.  This opens beautifully in the glass, taking on an almost Burgundian elegance.  A wine to marvel over.  It is hard to resist this now, but it will be even better in another 3-5 years, and age gracefully for another decade, and probably more.  96+ points/drink after 2008.


1997 Luciano Sandrone Barolo Cannubi Boschis. Parker 96. The 1997 is rich and alcoholic on the nose, displaying aromas of very sweet fruit with a slightly evolved character.  It is super-rich and concentrated on the palate, offering intense sweet fruit and mineral flavors, but with notable balance for the vintage, closing with a final lingering note of sweetness.  This is drinking well now and should last at least another ten years.


1996 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Falletto. Parker 94-96. The saturated ruby/purple-colored 1996 Barolo Falletto exhibits an extraordinary nose of smoke, earth, white truffles, black fruits, licorice, and floral scents. Extremely massive, with layers of concentration, high tannin, a muscular personality, and a 40+ second finish, this classic, young Barolo will require patience. Why can’t I turn my body clock back twenty years?


1997 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Falletto. Parker 93. Giacosa’s 1997 Barolo Falletto de Serralunga is an exquisite Barolo offering superb notes of tar, earth, truffles, licorice, minerals, and cherry/raspberry fruit. There is plenty of acidity as well as high tannin, but concentrated, chewy flavors. The wine is tight, dense, impressive, and surprisingly structured for a 1997.


Roasted Quail. Venetian style chicken liver, oyster mushrooms. The quail was delightful, as were the mushrooms. This liver was a bit stronger, more like my mom’s traditional liver and onions.


1998 Domenico Clerico Barolo Ciabot Mentin Ginestra. Parker 93. Domenico Clerico’s 1998 Barolo Ciabot Mentin Ginestra is one of the most full-throttle wines of the vintage. Still deeply-colored, this authoritative wine possesses tons of mineral-infused dark fruit intermingled with French oak and menthol. This remains one of the most tannic and firm wines of the vintage. My impression is that the fruit will fade before the tannins melt away. Still, this is a beautiful wine Barolo to enjoy over the next few years, although it is not a wine for the timid.


1997 Massolino Barolo Vigna Rionda. Parker 90. The sexy, layered, evolved 1997 Barolo Vigna Rionda was obviously produced from extremely ripe fruit as evidenced by the dark garnet/amber color, and sweet perfume of smoke, caramel, toffee, and espresso infused with black cherries, plums, and prunes. This multilayered, full-bodied offering exhibits a seamless personality with no hard edges.


1999 Massolino Barolo Riserva Vigna Rionda. Parker 93. The 1999 Barolo Vigna Rionda has always been somewhat of an enigma. It is a big, structured Vigna Rionda with vibrant fruit, great length and powerful tannins. One of the casks was new in this vintage and the wine has always has a gloss of new oak, but over the years the oak has begun integrate and the wine has developed beautifully. I may have initially underestimated this wine.


From my cellar: 1996 Aldo Conterno Barolo Colonnello. Parker 90-93. The 1996 Barolo Colonnello is aromatic, offering scents of melted asphalt, cedar, tobacco, spice box, and assorted red and black fruits. Following a soft entry, the immense richness, fleshy, full-bodied power of this wine became apparent. The finish offers considerable tannic clout and power.

agavin: Sadly, this bottle was kinda turned, and particularly odd as I bought it from Aldo Conterno personally in 2000 and had it well cellared. It wasn’t totally gone, and the nose was fabulous, but the color was mostly brick and the fruit faded. We didn’t serve it.


Conchiglioni al forno. Stuffed with veal trippe, white bean sauce, pecorino cheese. A fabulous pasta. Nicely al dente, with a wonderful cheesy tomato sauce inside. I guess the trippe just added a touch of richness, as I didn’t detect the noxious texture.


2000 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino. Parker 97. Conterno’s 2000 Barolo Riserva Monfortino gives an impression of accessibility only because it is so open relative to some of the surrounding vintages of this great, legendary Barolo. The 2000 has tons of fruit backed up with considerable tannic heft. With time in the glass sweet, balsamic notes make an appearance, but this is one of the few 2000s that needs considerable cellaring to show all of its cards.


2000 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Cannubi (San Lorenzo) / Ravera. Parker 89-91. 2000 Barolo Cannubi (San Lorenzo)/ Ravera (from barrel)—A blend of 60% Cannubi (San Lorenzo sub-plot) and 40% Ravera fruit. Dark ruby in color, the Cannubi (San Lorenzo) /Ravera is delicate, perfumed and aromatic, with lots of cherry and spice flavors, although still very closed on the palate. The Brunate/LeCoste is the masculine wine, the Cannubi (SanLorezo)/Ravera the feminine wine.


2000 Angelo Gaja Sperss. Parker 94. From Magnum. Gaja’s 2000 Sperss is wonderfully open and radiant. Layers of dark fruit, grilled herbs, cassis and smoke saturate the palate in this powerful, stunningly beautiful Sperss. Gorgeous inner perfume and a long, intense finish round things out in style.


Australian Wagyu Tagliata. Parmigiano fondue, caviar, chanterelle mushrooms. A fabulous little bite of beef!


Dolce. Raspberry & apple crepes. This had an intense berry character, almost cherry like. Really ripe and tasty.



Overall, this was another knock out meal. The food was fantastic, even if we had no pasta! and was well paired with the might Baroli. Oliverio, its staff, and chef, took fantastic care of us.

LA dining reviews click here.


After we snuck down the street to a member’s house, where he generously opened a number of great bottles.


1996 Pride Mountain Vineyards Reserve Claret. Parker 95. The 1996 Reserve Claret is a blend of 63% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Petite Verdot (230 cases), it is a gorgeously balanced, super-concentrated yet hauntingly symmetrical wine with copious quantities of black fruits, spicy new oak, minerals, licorice, and roasted herbs. Full-bodied, with a cherry liqueur-like richness to its fruit, this wine has loads of glycerin, fabulous extract, and no hard edges. The velvety finish lasts for 40+ seconds. This is a spectacular wine that must be tasted to be believed.


1995 Clinet. Parker 96. Another extraordinary wine made in a backward vin de garde style, the 1995 Clinet represents the essence of Pomerol. The blackberry, cassis liqueur-like fruit of this wine is awesome. The color is saturated black/purple, and the wine extremely full-bodied and powerful with layers of glycerin-imbued fruit, massive richness, plenty of licorice, blackberry, and cassis flavors, full body, and a thick, unctuous texture. This is a dense, impressive offering from administrator Jean-Michel Arcaute.


1996 Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain. Parker 96. The 1996 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain possesses a black/blue/purple color, and a texture of unctuosity and thickness. Greatness is suggested by a wonderfully sweet mid-section, gorgeous purity, and this humongous wine’s overall symmetry. It also possesses sumptuous layers of concentration, remarkably sweet tannin, low acidity, and a 40+ second finish.

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By: agavin
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Saddle Peak Again?!?

Jul30

Restaurant: Saddle Peak Lodge [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Location: 419 Cold Canyon Rd, Calabasas, CA 91302 (818) 222-3888

Date: July 23, 2014

Cuisine: Modern American

Rating: Great ambiance and terrific game oriented food.

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Ever year, both in the summer and winter, we Hedonists return to Saddle Peak Lodge. It’s pretty much the perfect venue for both a winter or summer food and wine blast, with gorgeous lodge patio, game driven food, and awesome wine service. For those of you who don’t know, Hedonist events have amazing wines (each diner brings at least one bottle).


Saddle Peak Ranch used to be a game lodge back in the early part of the 20th century. The rich and famous used to come up and hunt Malibu’s finest, such as this poor fellow. Now the deer are just served up on the menu.


It’s located in the middle of gorgeous Malibu Canyon.


Which on a lovely summer night is pretty incredible.


Our table out on the patio.



The current menu.


NV Billecart-Salmon Rose in Magnum. Parker 90. The NV Brut Rose emerges from the glass with the essence of freshly cut flowers, berries and minerals in a mid-weight, gracious style. It shows gorgeous inner perfume, along with persistent notes of chalkiness that frame the long, sublime finish. Year in, year out, this estate’s NV Brut Rose is one of the most consistently outstanding wines in the region.


Salt and butter.


Yummy Pretzel bread.


2000 Yves Boyer-Martenot Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. Burghound 92. Very classy with still finer aromas of intense green apple and ripe pear and flavors that are crystalline in their minerality and detail. The focus here is really impressive and though this does not offer the Genevrières’ flavor authority or slicing acidity, it is superbly refined with outstanding persistence and perhaps the best overall balance to this point. Another impressive Boyer Perrières.


Corn and tarragon soup.


2007 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Bougros Cote de Bouguerots. Burghound 94. A somewhat riper but more reticent nose features the barest hint of wood spice that marries well with the explosive green and yellow fruit aromas and fresh, full, powerful, beautifully delineated flavors underpinned by a driving minerality and stunning length. Given the superb balance and firm acid spine, this should age effortlessly for at least 15 years, perhaps longer. In sum, this is a strikingly elegant, classy and altogether refined effort with flat out marvelous complexity with buckets of classic Chablis character. A stunner of a wine.


A bit of salmon on blini with creme fraiche and caviar.


From my cellar: 1994 Domaine Jean Gros Richebourg. agavin 93 points. Straight up Richebourg nose. Mature, but still full of fruit, fruit. Lots of rich sour cherry syrup. The finish was a little unbalanced at first, but after an hour or so settled out. Very fine pinot.


Fava bean agnolotti with wild ramps and lemon cream. Very delicate and lovely.


1986 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection. Parker 94. In the blind tasting, I first thought this was a Spanish wine given the intense, pain grillee, toasty oak, and vanilla aromas. After ten minutes some of the oak dissipated, allowing the wine’s flamboyant blackcurrant fruit to emerge. Full-bodied, exceptionally concentrated, with a seamless, velvety texture, and a marvelously long, opulent finish, this 1986 Cabernet tastes like a jar of jam on the palate, with great purity and staying power. Although it appears to be fully mature, it will last for another 10-15 years. This impressive, sweet, creamy, exotic, and flamboyant wine merits the praise it has received.

agavin: to our taste, getting a little funky.


Yukon potato gnocchi glazed with perigord truffle butter and parmigiana-reggiano. Soft and mellow.


1982 Cos d’Estournel. Parker 95. This 1982 is still displaying a beautiful deep ruby/purple hue as well as a stunning set of aromatics consisting of blue and black fruits, loamy earth, flowers, licorice, and spice box. The wine is medium to full-bodied with sweet tannins, a medium to full-bodied mouthfeel, and a silky finish. It appears to have hit full maturity, but it can easily be held in a cold cellar for another 10+ years.


Special oysters with a combined topping of lemon granite, mignonette, and some other tasty stuff.


From my cellar: 1989 Pichon-Longueville Baron. Parker 95. Both the 1989 and 1990 vintages exhibit opaque, dense purple colors that suggest massive wines of considerable extraction and richness. The dense, full-bodied 1989 is brilliantly made with huge, smoky, chocolatey, cassis aromas intermingled with scents of toasty oak. Well-layered, with a sweet inner-core of fruit, this awesomely endowed, backward, tannic, prodigious 1989 needs another 5-6 years of cellaring; it should last for three decades or more. It is unquestionably a great Pichon-Longueville-Baron.


Belgian endive salad with roasted pink lady apples, St. Agur blue cheese, shallots, candied pecans, watercress, and white balsamic vinaigrette.


1993 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 88. The great glories of this house are its Cote Roties, of which there are now five separate offerings. The 1993s, which have just come on the marketplace, are from a troublesome vintage for everyone in Cote Rotie, rivaling 1984 in difficulty. Nevertheless, the single-vineyard wines have turned out well. As for the single vineyard wines, they are all excellent in 1993, but more herbaceous and clearly marked by the green pepper smells of slightly underripe Syrah. The most tannic of the three famous single vineyards is the 1993 Cote Rotie La Landonne. It is amazingly powerful and rich for the vintage, and reveals more fruit and intensity than it did prior to bottling. It exhibits a saturated ruby color, and copious amounts of pepper, tar, olives, licorice, and black cherry fruit in the nose. It remains the most muscular and structured of the three wines, and has managed to avoid the hollowness and vegetal character that plague so many 1993 northern Rhones. This Cote Rotie should age gracefully for a decade or more.


Cesar salad with garlic croutons and Parmigiano-Reggiano.


1998 Penfolds Grange. Parker 98-99. Very deep garnet in color, the 1998 Penfolds Grange has shut itself away into a closed stage at this time, offering a subdued core of blackberry preserves and blackcurrant cordial with nuances of smoked bacon, black olives, sandalwood and sweaty leather. The full bodied, taut, muscular palate is firmly structured with chewy tannins and enlivening acidity, finishing long and savory.


Roasted Scarborough Farms beet salad, watercress, mustard, pickled cherries, Humboldt Fog goat cheese, pistachio granola.


2001 Domaine de la Mordoree Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee de la Reine des Bois. Parker 100! Tasted on four separate occasions, and awarded a perfect score on three of those, the 2001 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee de la Reine des Bois even surpasses the extraordinary Reine des Bois produced in 2000, 1999, and 1998 … and that’s saying something! An inky/purple color is followed by a heady perfume of graphite, blackberries, kirsch, licorice, truffles, and charcoal. This full-bodied effort displays endless concentration in its pure, dense, generous flavors. It is broadly flavored, with beautifully integrated acidity, tannin, and alcohol. A blend of 78% Grenache, 10% Mourvedre, and small quantities of Cinsault, Counoise, Syrah, and Vaccarese, it is made from 60-year old vines, and aged both in cask and neutral foudres from what are obviously very low yields. Sadly, just over 1,000 cases were produced. This classic Chateauneuf du Pape requires 3-5 years of cellaring; it will last for two decades. A modern day legend, it is an example of what progressive winemaking can achieve without abandoning the traditions of the appellation.


Scarborough Farms heirloom tomatoes, Maine crab, pickled watermelon, garlic chips, basil vinaigrette.


2003 Harlan Estate Proprietary Red Wine. Parker 98+. One of the most backward yet promising wines of the vintage is the 2003 Harlan Estate. Its dense opaque plum/purple color is accompanied by a sumptuous bouquet of graphite, camphor, creme de cassis, smoky barbecue wood and a hint of forest floor. Similar flavors hit the mouth with full-bodied splendor, a multidimensional mouthfeel and texture, and the sensational finish lasts more than 45 seconds. Some tannins are still present, and this wine seems much younger than expected at ten years of age, so give it 4-5 more years of bottle age and consume it over the following 20-25 years.


Ahi tuna sashimi with cucumber, watermelon radish, avocado, pea greens, sugar snap peas, green apple, and white soy sauce.


Special albacore with soy sauce.


1997 Greenock Creek Shiraz Roennfeldt Road. Parker 98. The nearly perfect 1997 Shiraz Roennfeldt Road boasts a dense opaque purple color in addition to celestial aromas of blackberry liqueur, melted road tar, truffles, and earth. It is full-bodied, with massive layers of fruit and glycerin that cascade over the palate in a seamless, beautifully balanced fashion, and a 55-second finish. This enormous wine is fabulously young with its entire future ahead of it. It should hit its peak in 3-4 years, and last for two decades.


Special pork belly with watermelon. Very sweet and delicious.


English pea toast with burrata and candied citrus.


2003 Clarendon Hills Astralis (Shiraz). Parker 99. It’s hard to believe the 2003 Syrah Astralis Vineyard could be better, but it offers riveting richness, intensity, purity, and equilibrium. Structurally, it is similar to the Piggott Range, revealing abundant amounts of sweet, ripe tannin, and huge extract, richness, and depth. Meant for true connoisseurs who are willing to forget it for 5-8 years, it represents what Roman Bratasiuk and Clarendon Hills do so well … show respect for the great traditions of France, but recognize the extraordinary raw materials that emerge from old vines planted in McLaren Vale. This fabulous wine offers both power and elegance, and showcases the extraordinary talent of Roman Bratasiuk.


Idaho rainbow trout pan-roasted in lemon, garlic, and red onion, served with grilled eggplant and squash, salt-roasted carrots, fire-roasted red bell pepper and fingerling potatoes.


Pan-roasted wild king salmon with roasted baby beets, shaved fennel, glazed cauliflower, purple kale, cherry tomatoes, buerre blanc, and puffed salmon skin.


New Zealand elk tenderloin with caramelized figs, sauteed arugula, Nueske bacon, green garlic panisse, spring onion sauce, and fig jam.


1998 Clarendon Hills Astralis (Shiraz). Parker 98. A sensational wine, the 1998 Syrah Astralis is a candidate for perfection. It boasts an inky/purple color as well as a big, complex, sweet perfume of charcoal, spring flowers, blackberry liqueur, roasted meats, and damp, forest floor-like notes. Enormously endowed, with good acid, backstrapping tannin levels, fabulous concentration, and a layered mouthfeel, it is beginning to throw off some of its closed, impenetrable personality. A long-termer, it needs another 5-7 years to fully open, and should last for 2-3 decades thereafter.


Seared New Zealand lamb rack with braised eggplant, golden raisons, grilled leeks, pine puts, curied cauliflower, piquillo yogurt, and pomegranate reduction.


Roasted New Zealand venison ch0ps with creamed morel mushrooms, lemon-scented white asparagus, sauteed English peas, and pinot reduction.


2003 Colgin IX Syrah Estate. Parker 95. Aubert demonstrates a superb know-how with Syrah. These wines are macerated for 35-45 days, and given frequent pump-overs as well as punch-downs. They are aged completely in French oak. Colgin’s 2003 IX Syrah Estate (330 cases) has added considerable complexity and weight since I tasted it last year, becoming very Burgundian in its huge aromatics and opulent, full-bodied power. Aromas of road tar, ground pepper, espresso roast, blackberries, and an exotic floral character emerge from this beauty. Enjoy it over the next 7-8 years.


Wild Game Trio.


New Zealand elk tenderloin.


A more short-rib like game meat.


Some kind of tenderloin.


Sweet potato fries.



1987 Massandra South Coast Kagor. This unusual light sweet red from the Crimea was very tasty with dessert.


Caramelized Pink Lady apple beignets with caramel.


Stoplman vineyards olive oil cake with Harry’s berries, tangerine agrumato, buttermilk sherbet, Meyer lemon curd.


Chocolate coffee pot de crème with espresso crème, chocolate-covered coffee beans, and almond coffee dust.


Banana huckleberry croissant bread pudding with white chocolate ice cream.


Chocolate raspberry fun.


Trio of house-made sorbets. Strawberry, raspberry, coconut.


Our server tonight — we sure kept him busy.

This was a total blow out event. The food was impeccable and the service warm. We had so much wine we left them a little overwhelmed, but that’s par for the course. Plus we had a really great mix of people and some of the most awesome wines. The vibe outside on the lovely warm Malibu evening was perfect too.

A note on the wines. As usual, I found myself massively preferring all the old world wines despite the ratings gap. To my palette, Parker has like a +5 point bonus that he grants to massive, young, over-extracted wines — but many people love them.

Click here for more LA restaurant reviews,
Or for Hedonist extravaganzas.

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By: agavin
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Amazon Wins Again

Jul28

Well, I’ve once again made my books Amazon exclusive. I last did this in 2012 (before Untimed even came out). Now, not only is there Kindle Select with its ability to run free day promotions, and the Kindle Lending Library where you can get paid if people borrow your book on Prime, but there is the new Kindle Unlimited program.

It’s this last, since it’s so new, that seems worth trying out. Generally, jumping early on a new Amazon thing has been fairly advantageous (it sure was with the Kindle free days). The new program allows me to list my book in a library that new subscribers (paying $9.99 a month) can download for “free” (as Matt Groening once said: “at no perceivable extra charge” — one having paid $9.99 a month). They pay out of that same weird fixed amount that has typically been $2 a buy (fine on a $2.99 book).

I personally wouldn’t want to read that way as my time to read, the small cost of books, and the desire to read exactly what I want makes the tradeoff poor. And I’m a big Netflix fan, but TV/Movie watching is far, far different than reading, as the cost per hour is so much higher and the increment smaller. I don’t want to pay for a season to check out a few episodes, as that is often $20 for 1-2 hours (and I’d know if I like it quickly). Whereas ebooks are generally $2-10 and they take 10-20 hours to read. Still, many people may like the service.

Besides, I don’t sell much on iTunes or Kobo, and not too much on B&N. We’ll see how it all works out.

amazon-com-logo_989

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By: agavin
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Endless Republique

Jul25

Restaurant: Republique [1, 2, 3, 4]

Location: 624 S La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036. (310) 362-6115

Date: June 18, 2014

Cuisine: Modern Bistro French

Rating: Nice (loud) space, tasty hip food, great service

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Republique is certainly one of LA’s most anticipated recent openings. Taking over the gorgeous old Campanile space, this replacement is helmed by Walter Manzke and Margarita Manzke (of Church & State and Milo & Olive).

Some it seems more and more of my wine dinners are ending up here (probably in no small part due to their first rate wine program). Tonight brings my regular Hedonist group out on the town, this time organized by Larry (Yarom usually does the honors).


The building is an interesting fusion of pre-war factory…


The main interior is nearly church-like. It’s been all opened up and looks great, but it’s big, tall, and covered in hard surfaces. That means loud!

Tonight our dinner was in the private room upstairs, but our appetizers began on a little table in the midst of this chaos. I understand the desire to provide a change of venue, but given the pandemonium downstairs, squeezing a cocktail hour for twelve into the narrow entrance to the restaurant is a bit of a stretch.


Cattier Champagne Brut Premier Cru Chigny-lès-Roses.


Oysters on the half-shell. What can you say about these? They were very fresh.


And the sauces were traditional and good.


2004 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. Parker 96. It’s fascinating to taste the 2004 Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne after the 2002, something I have been able to do on a few occasions. The 2004 is all about minerality, precision and tension. It doesn’t have the sheer richness or power of the 2002, but it makes up for that with its crystalline purity and sheer energy. Bright hints of lemon oil, white flowers and crushed rocks are layered into the pointed, vibrant finish.

Eggs on Toast. santa barbara uni, soft-scrambled eggs.

The eggs substantially cut the briny quality of the uni. Although this dish looks the same as the previous times I’ve had it, they seem to have improved it. The toast is thinner (it was a problem biting through it before) and the ratios seem adjusted in favor of the uni which helps the balance.


Our menu for tonight. We kept changing the wines on them and they kept reprinting the menu in realtime. It was impressive. I should also note that every wine had its own glass and they were all stickered with the wine and vintage! Really excellent wine service.


2004 Domaine Michel Niellon Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 94. Discreet notes of pain grillé, fennel, dried flowers and apricot aromas introduce rich, full and imposingly powerful full-bodied flavors that are mouth coating, palate staining and hugely long. Like many examples of Bâtard in 2004, this is more elegant than it usually is and while it can’t match the supremely refined Chevalier in this regard, it comes much closer than it usually does. A knockout and worth a special search.


2005 Domaine Michel Niellon Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 94. A very deft touch of wood frames the understated and backward nose of white flower and pear aromas that lead to mineral-infused and stunningly intense and precise medium full flavors that culminate in a hugely long yet focused and explosive finish. As one would expect, this scintillates with minerality and this liquid stone quality defines the character of this wine from start to finish. In a word, harmonious. Note that patience will be required.


2007 Domaine Michel Niellon Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 95. This is a study in elegance as the positively stunning nose displays breathtaking purity of expression with incredibly complex and airy white flower and ripe green fruit aromas that precede beautifully balanced, harmonious and chiseled, indeed even crystalline middle weight flavors that possess outstanding length and knockout depth. This is class in a glass with terrific vibrancy and the palate staining finish is almost painfully intense and about the only nit is a trace of warmth though this is as much due to the superb transparency as the actual level of alcohol. If you can find it, buy it.


2007 Etienne Sauzet Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 96. As with the Bâtard, there is a discreet hint of post-bottling SO2 that is just noticeable – decant. A classic, and radiant, Chevalier nose offers perhaps the purest fruit in the range with a mix of upper and middle register acacia blossom and fresh lemon aromas that are seductively enveloping before sliding seamlessly into strikingly detailed, stony and almost Chablis-like flavors carrying a similar sense of salinity and this is like rolling tiny pebbles around in the mouth, all wrapped in a palate-etching finish of spectacular length. This is breath-taking stuff and the focus and linearity are superb. This should age well for years. Textbook Chevalier.


2010 Louis Jadot Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot. Burghound 95. A gorgeously elegant if highly restrained nose of citrus, acacia blossom and pungent wet stone aromas trimmed in just enough wood to notice is stunning. Not surprisingly, the medium-bodied flavors are much finer than those of the Bâtard or Corton-Charlemagne though not quite as big or powerful. The strikingly intense, lingering and impeccably well-balanced finish radiates minerality and the overall sense of harmony is flat out superb. A knockout, even by the incredible standards of this wine.


Live Santa Barbara Spot Prawn. Chanterelle mushrooms. This was a simple dish, but the sweet freshness of the prawn, the rich buttery sauce, and the almost uni-like mushrooms blended perfectly. Really rather excellent.

It also paired fabulously with all our great Chardonnay. However, we had  wine to food ratio problem at the start of the meal as these first courses were light, and separated by a lot of time while we had an enormous lineup of 5 white Burgundies per course!


2004 Bouchard Père et Fils Corton-Charlemagne. Burghound 93. I have not had this since cask and the bottle in question had a tattered label though no apparent seepage. As such, it’s difficult to know whether this bottle was indeed representative as it seemed relatively supple and forward, indeed more or less ready to drink. To be sure, there was no obvious secondary nuances in evidence and still good freshness to the rich, intense and vibrant flavors brimming with minerality on the impressively long finish.


2004 Domaine Jean-Marc Morey Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 92. A riper nose that is an interesting combination of citrus, peach, peach and slightly exotic aromas that precede rich, full and powerful flavors that are presently quite focused on the linear and reserved finish. This will need a few years in bottle to really settle down and harmonize as it’s on the awkward side today.


2006 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 96. This too is relatively restrained with a pretty but reluctant white flower and spice box nose that slides gracefully into fresh, super intense and tautly muscled full-bodied flavors brimming with dry extract that confers a distinctly textured quality onto the powerful and chewy finish. This is a big Bâtard yet for all its size and weight, everything is harnessed and focused as the length just goes on and on with no sense of top heaviness. One of the more impressive examples of Bâtard that I have ever seen because it rarely ascends to territory normally reserved for the likes of Montrachet and Chevalier or the occasional Charlemagne.


1988 Jacques Prieur Montrachet. 93 points. Initial notes of oxidation faded and developed into a wonderful mature powerhouse.


Dover Sole a la meuniere. Classic, but executed as well as any example of this ever has been. The sole was cooked perfectly and the sauce was a truly yummy butter fest. Which begged for:


Baguette with butter from Normandy. This is serious milk fat! Many at our table voted it the best “course” of the evening!


From my cellar: 1970 Domaine Drouhin-Laroze Bonnes Mares. 94 points. While not perfect, a gorgeous dried roses nose, led to a round body of berry-like fruit, and a lovely meaty tertiary finish.


2002 Louis Jadot Bonnes Mares. Burghound 94. Always one of Jadot’s best wines and the ’02 is no exception with a deft touch of oak highlighting the remarkably elegant, intense, rich and forward red and black fruit nose that is decidedly less austere than usual merging seamlessly into full-bodied, robust, well structured flavors that feature impressive depth and this finishes with absolutely knockout length. There is a subtle touch of oak on the finish but the underlying material is so good that it shouldn’t be an issue with a few more years of bottle age. In short, this is extremely impressive but will require ample patience.


2008 Rhys Pinot Noir Santa Cruz Mountains. 93 points. Served blind. This was as good, and as Burgundian, as any New World pinot I’ve had. It almost seemed like a Vosne Romanee 1re cru. And it was young.


Australian Black Winter Truffle Risotto. Acquerello Carnaroli. A pretty classic soft butter take on truffle risotto. Mild but delicious.


1996 Faiveley Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. Burghound 86. Earthy, intense and serious aromas lead to somewhat lean and tough flavors underpinned by solidly structured, only moderately ripe tannins framed by a touch more acidity than the fat can completely buffer. In short, while this is not technically flawed, it is disappointing by the usually high standards of a Faiveley grand cru.


1998 Domaine Robert Groffier Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. Burghound 92. Unlike a number of Groffier wines of this era, the nose is not dominated by char or excessively toasty oak and the now maturing fruit is allowed to show through freely. While there are hints of secondary fruit development, the nose remains largely fresh and bright with touches of Gevrey style earth and animale notes that are picked up by the delicious, round and relatively forward medium-bodied flavors that offer excellent complexity and fine if not truly exceptional length. This is not an especially big Bèze but it is balanced and is aging beautifully. More importantly, the tannins do not dominate the finish and with air.


Liberty Duck. Torte au gibier. Duck breast on the right, on the left a pastry filled with French Country Pate (scrambled duck innards). Gross as it seems this treat was utterly divine. Just so meaty and good. Also a great red Burgundy pairing for what it’s worth.


1982 Leoville-Las Cases. Parker 95-100. I have had perfect bottles of this cuvee, but, perplexingly, the bottles from my cellar tend to be broodingly backward and require plenty of coaxing. This huge wine is, in many ways, just as massive as Leoville Barton, but it possesses a greater degree of elegance as well as unreal concentration. Classic lead pencil, cassis, kirsch, cedar, and spice characteristics are abundant in both the nose and full-bodied flavors. The tannins are still there, and, at least from my cellar, this 1982 does not appear to have changed much in the last 10-12 years.


2006 Sine Qua Non Raven Series (Syrah). Parker 96-99. The 2006 Raven Series Syrah, a blend of 93% Syrah, 5% Grenache, and 2% Viognier that spends just under two years in French oak. Offering a dense purple color, gorgeous fruit, and a sweet perfume of graphite, blackberries, blueberries, charcoal, licorice, tar, and new oak, it is a dense, full-bodied, well-endowed, beautifully layered, pure Syrah that should drink well for 10-15 years.

agavin: I must say as enjoyable as these big New World’s get.


45-day dry-aged prime ‘steak frites.” Ha. More like Wagyu than normal steak this was a great piece of meat. But even better was:


The frites. About as good as fries ever get.


With Bernnaise too, although they were better straight up or in the steak jus.


1961 Château Climens. 93 points. Deep amber color. pineapple and caramel. some acidity on the finish. still very much alive.


Somehow I never get a real dessert here at Republique (and they look great). Instead we had this simple chunk of blue cheese. Nothing wrong with that, I adore blue cheese, but I also could have done with something sweet.


Michael Z felt the need for MORE WINE, so we got this young pup off the list.

2011 Domaine Marquis d’Angerville Volnay 1er Cru. Burghound 89-91. Here the nose is more deeply pitched with an attractive layering effect to the dark berry fruit aromas that enjoy added breadth from the presence of plum, violet and soft earth nuances. There is the same fine sense of underlying tension and detail to the medium-bodied flavors that possess a silky mouth feel before culminating in an overtly mineral-driven, dusty, linear and persistent finish. If this slightly muscular effort can add a bit more depth in bottle it should merit the upper end of my projected range.

agavin: surprisingly fresh and drinkable at the moment. Lots of berry.


Our Sommelier for evening, Taylor Parsons. As I mentioned before he and his team managed the wine assault flawlessly. Individual labeled glasses for every wine! They got the flights poured out rapidly. We did not want for wine!


Chef Walkter Manzke took a break from the kitchen madness for a quick visit.

Overall, Republique is a first rate place. It updates the classic French fare in a way that is contemporary without being ultra modern. And the whole everything here is so painfully (and I don’t mean in a bad way) contemporary. It just couldn’t be more “in” with the current dining trends. Not that I actually have a problem with that — in fact, my only problems with the restaurant was the volume (almost too loud for conversation) and a seeming total lack of large square or circular tables (I eat out in large groups and hate long skinny tables for more than 6). Most importantly, not only are these fresh takes on the classics, but the cooking is really on point. Even only being three months old this kitchen is executing very well.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

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By: agavin
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Mosaic of Food – Byzantine Cuisine

Jul23

Once a year, the Getty Villa, Los Angeles’ leading (and only?) antiquities museum puts on an event celebrating historical food culture. For me, these are at a nexus of my interests, being (surprise!) such a foodie as well as a history buff.


This year’s event showcases the food of Byzantium. Sadly, most Americans are barley aware of this empire that (off and on) ruled half the western world for 1100 years, and is in itself the 3rd of 4 phases of the 2,500 year old Roman Empire (combining Republican, Roman Imperial, Byzantine, and Ottoman phases). But that’s history. What about the food?

Food scholar Andrew Dalby has a new book on the topic, Tastes of Byzantium, and before the meal he spoke for an hour on the topic. Essentially, Byzantine food is a mid point between the complex sweet / salty / herbed Roman cuisine and modern Greek and Turkish (i.e. Mediterranean) food. A few years ago I went to a similar event on Roman food too where he talked.


The dinner is located in the central courtyard of the lovely Getty Villa main building, a reconstruction based on the famous Villa di Papyri near Naples.

And the meal was accompanied by lovely Byzantine secular music, of which you can hear a sample.



The special menu.


This pomegranate juice was delicious. I had about 5 glasses (sugar rush!). I suspect, however, that the original historical variant was probably less sweet, or even if sweetened, wouldn’t have been with one of our modern easy dissolving versions (they probably used simple syrup). It might have been honey in the old days, which is very different.

Paropsides

Appetizers include figs, walnuts, and these incredibly delicious marinated green olives stuffed with honey, vinegar, and thyme.


Kalamata olives. Having just recently returned from Greece (and Kalamata), I can say that Kalamata olives are the best black olives I’ve ever had.


Multigrain bread with olive oil from Costa Navarino.


Grilled Eggplant with shaved bottarga and lemon vincotto. Coriander, parsley, oregano, and olive oil. The sweet, salty, herby notes here are distinctly Roman — but they are also representative of elements of both modern Greek food and of certain Italian dishes, particularly in rural areas.


Our wine selections are modern Greek. This white was typically quafiable and a good pairing.

Prodeipnio

Scallop and Caviar. Seafood foam of cream and egg whites, fish sauce, dill, fennel, minted pea puree, and crispy shallot.

This was a nice dish. Somehow it felt modern. I have to assume that even if the basic dish is ancient, the plating is highly modern. Individual plating entered Western Europe from Russia in the early 19th century, so I’m betting that Byzantine food was served (even at the Imperial level) from an elaborate central arrangement on the table. Still the tastes may be fairly authentic. Byzantine food apparently continued in the Greek and Roman tradition of liberal use of Garum, only loosing this important condiment with the Ottoman Conquest (1453). Garum is a salty/fishy sauce made from  fermented fish innards that was used to add salt and umami to dishes for at least 2,000 years.

 

 


This Greek red reminded me of an Aglianico.

Deipnon


Cumin and Fennel rubbed lamb chop and loin. Oinogaros (fish sauce, dill, coriander, thyme, red wine, honey, costus). Garnished with pickled cabbage and leeks.

Pallekaria. Chickpeas, black-eyed beans, and fava beans with fresh parsley, dill, onion, and lemon.

This was a fabulous dish, and very interesting. The lamb was very tasty with a nice herby note (I have to assume they toned down the fish component of the Oinogaros for the modern palette). The salad was very unusual and lovely. It had a vinegary, herby quality and seemed to settle the stomach.

Epidorpio


Rice pudding with whipped cream and honey. Sugared almonds, cherries, and candied citron.

I don’t know how authentic this one was, but it was a fabulous rice pudding (of which I’m a fan). The nuts and candied fruit added both texture and sweetness, plus a sort of Sicilian vibe that was vaguely reminiscent of a good cannoli. This is probably not unrealistic as Sicilian cuisine is one of the more traditional Italian zones and had many of the same influences as medieval Greece (Greek, Roman, Crusader, Arab).

All in all, this was a very interesting evening. Not necessarily as hedonistic as many of my dinners, but both tasty and highly intellectually interesting. The authentic past is lost, an elusive reality that shimmers all about us, but remains only in glimpses. I thoroughly enjoy the opportunity to bring even a part of it into blurry focus.

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By: agavin
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Eastern Promises – Crabs of Yesteryear

Jul21

Restaurant: The Masthead

Location: 104 West Pier Street. Oxford, MD 21654. ph: 410-226-5171

Date: May 25, 2014

Cuisine: American Seafood

Rating: Great view and great crabs

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In the late 70s and early 80s our family ate routinely (on summer weekends) at one of the three restaurants in Oxford Maryland known as “Pier Street” (after its address).


This crab oriented seafood establishment features primarily outside dining on the water and in those days crab men would bring up bushels of live blue crabs to the attached dock where they were transferred immediately to the boilers for conversion into “hardshells.”


The name has changed, but the outside dining remains virtually unchanged, featuring long picnic tables, a great view, and a lovely breeze.


The current menu.


Maryland vegetable crab soup. Not quite as good as at Hollys, but still good.


Chicken salad.


House salad with fried cornbread. lol.


Softshell sandwich. A deep fried blue crab on a bun!


Fish and chips.


A dozen blue crab hardshells. These are spiced with “old bay” and steamed. As this is still May, the crabs are tiny and expensive, but they are delicious!


The Masthead isn’t and never was a fancy establishment.


Tools for crab eating: mallets, more old bay, vinegar.


And this is where the crabs (and other shellfish) are steamed. I seem to remember the boilers were much bigger in the “old days.”


Tasty feller.


The pier ain’t what it used to be either. Some storm wiped it out and they never replaced it.

The Masthead might not be fine dining, but it does have great ambiance and still features some of the freshest versions of one of the world’s greatest crab!

For more Washington dining reviews click here.


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  5. Sometimes You Want to Get Crabs
By: agavin
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The Republic of Thieves

Jul19

2890090Title: The Republic of Thieves

Author: Scott Lynch

Genre: Epic Fantasy

Length: 609 pages

Read: June 23-30, 2014

Summary: a bit weaker

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Most of the good things about books 1 and 2 of the Gentleman Bastards are also true of The Republic of Thieves. The latest installment serves up good fun, great characters, and all that. Lynch again moves the setting, this time to the city of the Magi, Locke’s bitter enemies from book 1. It brings into the foreground Locke’s mysterious and absent former lover/rival. Again the story is told both in the present and in flashback.

The two timelines don’t fit together entirely harmoniously. The present focuses on a contest/rivalry between Locke and Sabetha (his former lover) while the backstory details their childhood relationship and a long episode where the Gentleman Bastards crime gang played Elizabethan Actors for a summer. Partly, this addition feels gratuitous, like the pirate episode in Red Seas Under Red Skies, and certainly it exists because Lynch read a lot about this period and wanted to include it. It’s also (IMHO) the best part of the novel. We get to see a few of our favorite dead bastards alive and well (the twins) and (briefly) Chains. Plus, it’s just a fun romp and a bit of a caper.

And that’s sort of the problem with the main story. The back and forth with Sabetha was great, but the “caper” wasn’t really a caper. Both rivals are chosen by the Magi to run two sides of a strange election process — which is entirely trumped up and serves as a human proxy for the nearly all-powerful Magi. It just never felt very real, urgent or exciting.

Still,  it’s an enjoyable book, and if you enjoyed the other two, read it. But The Republic of Thieves is a notch below its predecessors, perhaps 4 stars instead of 5.

But the epilogue was interesting!

For more book reviews, click here.

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  2. Yar Maties – Pirate Fantasy!
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By: agavin
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Yar Maties – Pirate Fantasy!

Jul17

887877Title: Red Seas Under Red Skies

Author: Scott Lynch

Genre: Epic Fantasy

Length: 786 pages

Read: June 5-22, 2014

Summary: Possibly best of the series

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The first book in this series, The Lies of Locke Lamora, was one of the better novels I read last year. Red Seas picks up right after and avoids Sophomore Slump by switching up the scenario and the location fairly substantially. Our heroes have left their Venice-like hometown of Camorr and venture off to a new city (Tal Verrar) and a new (and even more elaborate) scam with even bigger stakes.

The first third of the novel is Oceans Eleven in the Renaissance, and it’s real good fun. The world is enormously detailed and Scott Lynch is very sharp with the dialog. He has come into his own in this second book, as it’s wittier than ever. There is a very slight overwriting to the style, but you get used to it quickly and the huge novel flies along. The dynamic between Locke and his partner/friend Jean is fabulous and they are very well drawn characters.

This is aided enormously by a series of flashbacks. In the first novel, which also crossed two timelines, it was a little confusing which was which. This time around, Lynch has clearly labeled the flashback chapters. Because the novel begins essentially in the middle of the current heist, these are used to fill in the setup and the complex relationship between the two men. Walking a delicate line, Lynch has to maintain his suspense by NOT telling us how exactly the heist is actually going to work. We are tolled out bits and pieces until the very end.

Then about a third of the way in we take a hard tack to starboard and enter a high seas pirate tale. The entire middle act is shipboard and has less to do (directly) with the heist of the . At first I was like woah, but hell, I like pirates and this was good fun. Somewhere in Lynch’s brain there exists a different novel, about half the length, without the whole pirate part. You can tell this was self indulgent, that he really researched period nautical life and wanted to really use it. From a structural sense, the pirate thing isn’t even necessary, but because this world and its characters are so rich, and it was so fun, I think it’s a net win.

Hell the whole act of reading a fantasy novel is escapist, who cares if it’s too long as it’s a great read — which Red Seas absolutely and definitely is. A pure pleasure and a work of delightful fantasy. Plus, so strong are it’s characters, that it actually has a good bit to say on the nature of friendship.

Oh, and if you really like pirate fantasy two other favorites of mine over the years are On Stranger Tides and Wyvern.

For more book reviews, click here.

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Related posts:

  1. Serene Republic of Quippy Thievies
  2. The Alchemist – Fantasy Snack
  3. Very Best Fantasy
  4. The Name of the Wind
  5. The Lost Gate
By: agavin
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