State of the Blog 2021

Blogging Year 13, here we go!

It's going to be a big year for my family.  Our daughter begins her senior year of high school tomorrow.  Momentous occasions will abound.  Big decisions shall be made.  A year from now, we'll know the answers to many questions.  Big questions.  Suddenly, everything feels like a huge deal.

Obviously, I think a lot these days about things I want to be sure we do before she heads off to college.  I also project forward to the empty nest experience for my wife and me.  A few years ago, I told my wife that I don't want to be the sort of couple who waits for the kids to leave to get to know each other again.  I don't think we are that couple but I want to enjoy being that couple now.  So, as I think about how to spend my hobby time over the coming year, I think of new - and old - interests we should explore together. 

For instance, maybe it's time to give wine another try.  Mind you, it's still her default alcoholic beverage choice whereas I am a beer man.  Wine, particularly red, makes me sleepy.  That's not always a terrible thing but it's not what I want every night.  I also haven't been overly impressed by the classes we've taken.  Perhaps they at least taught us enough to do more informed exploring on our own.  Surely, there are compromises to be worked out here.  I don't know if I'll blog about wine again but you never know.

For now, I'm going to stick with the same blogging schedule...

Mondays: comic books

Wednesdays: family adventures

Fridays: Star Trek

As stated in yesterday's post, I am going to switch from Star Wars back to Marvel in comic books.  However, my Marvel Unlimited subscription runs out in January and I am not currently planning to renew.  So, I will probably move to a twice weekly, Tuesday/Friday schedule when that happens.

Family adventures posts will likely continue to focus on food, especially cocktails.  I will continue with Bitters of the Month as long as locally-available supply and shelf space allow.

As for Trek, I'm planning to continue as I have, beginning with TNG Season 5 right soon.  Deep Space Nine premiered during the middle of NextGen's sixth season so we should be able to explore that one together before long, too.  It will be my second time through DS9 as we binged it as a family this past year.  Without a doubt, it's my favorite of the NextGen era series.

As always, if you enjoy reading The Squid half as much as I enjoy writing it, we're all doing fine.  Keep in touch.

Vermouth Battles: Tribuno vs. Martini & Rossi

Full disclosure: I went into this project assuming the vermouth was the least important ingredient in a Manhattan.  After all, most of the flavor comes from the whiskey and the bitters.  Even switching to a higher grade of cherries made more of a difference than I would have expected from a change in vermouth.

Long story short: I was wrong.

Let's back up a little.  What is vermouth and what is its function in my favorite cocktail?  Vermouth is a fortified, aromatized wine.  The fortification distinguishes vermouth from brandy which is distilled wine.  Vermouth came from Italy originally but, naturally, the French can never resist a good Italian food idea so they started making it, too.  Generally, the product comes in one of two forms: sweet and dry.  They are occasionally listed as Italian and French vermouth respectively or red and white vermouth respectively.  There are additional varieties but most of what you'll find in a liquor store sits under one of those two umbrellas.

A traditional cocktail is built upon three legs: base, sweetener and bitters.  While there are some drinks which use vermouth as the base liquor, it more typically serves as the sweetener.  Such is the case with the sweet vermouth in a Manhattan.

As noted in this post, I recently made a discovery about vermouth.  I'd long perceived a wheaty aftertaste in our Manhattans which I'd assumed derived from the barley-based whiskey.  But then I tasted the same in a completely different cocktail which didn't involve whiskey but did include sweet vermouth.  I wouldn't exactly describe the taste as a flaw but given the choice, I could do without it.  As such, trying out different vermouths became a more meaningful exercise.

Martini & Rossi has been our brand of choice for a while.  It was recommended by one author or another - I can't remember whom - and has served us just fine.  The company is based in Turin and has been producing vermouth since 1863.  Tribuno is our first challenger, an American product, originally from New York City, 1938.  Vermouth is relatively cheap so price is not a major consideration but for the record, Tribuno is the less expensive of the two.

The Manhattan Test

Without a doubt, the Martini & Rossi is the culprit in the aftertaste mystery.  It went away with the Tribuno.  Merely sniffing the bottles revealed a significant difference.  Tribuno smells and tastes simply more like, well, wine.  The resulting cocktail is fruitier and, at least to our palettes, better.

Winner and New Champion: Tribuno


Squid on the Vine

Azienda Vinicola I Pastini, Antico Locorotondo White Blend 2019
Starts sweet, finishes sour
A not quite ripe green apple
My rating: 8.0

Denavolo Catavela Malvasia di Candida Blend 2018
An orange wine
Smells of peach, tastes like apricot
Quite dry
Smells better than it tastes
My rating: 8.1

La Garagista Ci Confonde Pétillant Naturel Rosé Blend
Bubbles
Sour cherry
Floral nose
My rating: 8.1

Domaine d'E Croce (Yves Leccia) Ile de Beauté Biancu Gentile 2019
Delicate fruity nose, a hint of metal
Dry but with a kick at the end
My rating 8.5

Bitters of the Month: Peychaud's

Like Angostura, Peychaud's bitters is gentian-based.  However, Peychaud's has a distinctive anise flavor that sets it apart.  It's also sweeter than either Angostura or orange bitters.  My wife described it as herbal in flavor.  It's a pretty, dark pink in the glass as well.

Peychaud's bitters was invented by Antoine Amédée Peychaud, a Creole apothecary, in 1830.  Peychaud is also credited with inventing the Sazerac cocktail, the bitters being one of its key ingredients.  The product was historically produced in New Orleans, though the current parent company, Sazerac, is now headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.


Squid on the Vine

Cave Saint Cyr, Pet Nat Beujolais Gamay Rosé
Bubbly
Delicate nose
Apple
Light
My rating: 8.3

Corte Gardoni, Greoto Bianco di Custoza Garganega Blend 2019
Dry
A little sour
My rating: 8.0

Squid Mixes: A Whiskey Champion Emerges

Two untested rye whiskeys in our price range are on sale in Vermont liquor stores for June: Jack Daniels Tennessee Rye and Ezra Brooks Straight Rye.  We picked up a bottle of each setting up, for now, our final whiskey battles...


George Dickel vs. Jack Daniels Tennessee Rye

Jack Daniels was fruitier.

Winner: George Dickel


George Dickel vs. Ezra Brooks

This was a particularly important battle.  Brooks is definitely a lower-shelf brand than most of the others we've tested.  At full price for each, Brooks is $12 cheaper than Dickel.  Brooks is a perfectly nice whiskey, having already triumphed over Old Overholt, our original favorite (read here).  And $12 really is rather a lot.  So, even if Dickel should win, it's likely only going to be our "when it's on sale" choice while Brooks remains our staple.

George Dickel is smokier.

Winner: Ezra Brooks

Well, what do you know?

My wife was quite surprised to find that she preferred the Brooks in the blind test.  What's interesting is that she'd never described Dickel as smoky before and, in fact, wouldn't have considered the word a redeeming adjective for a whiskey.  Nonetheless, her choice was clear.

No complaints here.  The preference will save us money.  While I think the other brands might be nice for a change of pace once in a while, our rye of choice is both tasty and affordable.  Everybody wins!

Next up: Vermouth Battles


Squid on the Vine

Fondo Bozzole, Giano Lambrusco Mantovano
A bubbly red
Cherry nose
Cherry, bubblegum taste
My rating: 8.1

Squid Mixes: Trinidad Sour

 
A Trinidad Sour is an unusual cocktail for the fact that it uses the bitters as the base liquor.  Bitters are, after all, potently alcoholic: 44.7% in the case of Angostura.  However, the flavor is so intense that a little bit is usually plenty.  Invented by Giuseppe Gonzalez, bartender at Brooklyn's Clover Club at the time, the Trinidad Sour calls for a full 1.5 oz of Angostura bitters.  For reference, that's approximately 16 times what I typically put in a Manhattan and I love my bitters!  Even the Gin and Bitters from last week only uses a teaspoon.  For that matter, there are only 4 ounces in a standard bottle, usually enough to last a hobbyist years.  The recipe I found on Punch also includes orgeat syrup, lemon juice and rye whiskey.

"Wow!" was my wife's initial, wide-eyed reaction.  It's definitely interesting - a bit chewy in texture, I would say.  There's an awful lot of flavors going on.  The bitters are strong and the almond, lemon and rye aren't exactly shy either.  I don't know if I'd want one again.  A major aspect of this hobby is ingredient management and that's an awful lot of bitters to devote to one drink.  My wife, though?  She was impressed, so maybe.  If so, we might need to start buying Angostura two bottles at a time.


Squid on the Vine

Our most recent wine class was an Old Country-New Country comparison.  The four bottles up for examination: 

Vincent Mothe, Chablis Chardonnay 2017
Pale
Medium+ aroma, ripe pear.
Off-dry, a little sour.
My rating: 8.0

Presqu'ile Winery, Presqu'ile Vineyard Chardonnay 2018
My rating: 8.0

Bruno Colin, Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2016
Medium color, chubby legs
Delicate, buttery, cat pee aroma
Dry
My rating: 8.0

Failla, Floodgate Vineyard Pinot Noir 2018
Medium color, chubby legs
Less delicate aroma than the Burgundy
Dry
High acidity
My rating: 8.0

I'm ready for more surgical strikes with wine, to pursue the varieties I prefer: Alsatian rielsings an vinho verdes for the whites along with the spicier reds.

Squid Mixes: Eeyore's Requiem

 
Yes, it's named after the donkey in Winnie-the-Pooh.  The drink was created by Toby Maloney who describes Eeyore as "the most bitter character in literature."  My recipe - from David Lebovitz - combines Campari, dry vermouth, gin, Cynar, Frenet-Branca, orange bitters and orange twist.  That's a lot of bitter ingredients for one drink!

I would be interested to drink this one side-by-side with a Negroni (see here).  I'm not sure they're all that different in terms of flavor - the Eeyore essentially being a Negroni with more stuff in it (though switching out the sweet vermouth for dry).  My guess is the Eeyore might have some extra citrus hints but the Campari dominates both intensely bitter drinks.  At least to my mind, a drink involving three ingredients wins out over a similar one involving six, especially when two of the extras - the Cynar and the Frenet-Branca - are definitely on the more exotic side and thus less dynamic for use in other cocktails.


Squid on the Vine

Another wine class this week.  Last week, it was whites.  This week, reds...

Arnot-Roberts, El Dorado Gamay Noir 2018
Medium color, hits of yellow
Aroma: delicate side of medium; raspberries, jammy, vanilla, bubblegum
Drier than it smells
Medium+ acidity
Medium tannin
My rating: 8.2

Château Haut-Segottes, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Red Brdeaux Blend 2016
Deeper in color
Medium aroma: more earthy, wet leaves
Dry
Medium acidity
Medium+ tannin
My rating: 8.0

Benevelli Piero, Langhe Nebbiolo 2018
Delicate aroma: raspberry, strawberry, raisins, olive
Dry
High tannin
High acidityMy rating: 8.0

Another red, not part of the class...
Lezaun, Navarra Red Blend 2018
High tannin
My Rating: 8.0

Squid Mixes: Stinger

I got my stinger recipe from my good friend and fellow blogger, Nancy Mock.  Here's the article she wrote on the drink for Taste of Home.  It's a great piece, including a history of the drink and several pop culture references.

The cocktail combines brandy and white creme de menthe.  The result is quite minty, indeed.  Had me pondering thin mint cocktail possibilities.  There are such recipes online, of course, though I'd want to experiment on my own, probably using creme de cacao for the chocolate.  I don't know if we'll be having stingers again but it's always fun to play around with new flavor ideas.


Squid on the Vine

Our favorite wine shop is doing online classes.  This week's featured wines...

Chevalier Muscadet Clos de la Butte 2018 
Pale in color
Medium aroma - tart peach
Dry
My rating: 82

Failla Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2017
Darker, more gold in color
Delicate aroma - ripe pear
Dry
My rating: 81

Stein Weihwasser Riesling Feinherb 2018 
Light in color, though more gold than the Muscadet
Pineapple nose
Sweeter
My rating: 83

All three wines were more acidic than I would generally go for.  Our instructor really likes high acid wines.  Not so sure I do.  It was less of a problem, though, with the Riesling.  As she pointed out herself, the sweetness and the acid set each other off nicely.

Squid Mixes: Brandy Manhattan

 
My wife recently brought my attention to David Lebovitz's French Manhattan recipe.  While I expect we'll try it at some point, we didn't have all the ingredients on-hand (though our favorite liquor store is doing curbside service at this strange world moment).  I thought a Brandy Manhattan might be an acceptable alternative in the meantime.  I got my recipe from The New York Bartender's Guide: brandy and sweet vermouth in 4:1 ratio, a dash of Angostura bitters and a cherry garnish.

The result was nice.  Brandy is sweeter than whiskey.  That's a given.  In fact, one wonders at the need for vermouth at all.  Might dry vermouth be more interesting?  Dry Brandy Manhattan recipes do exist.  I don't think I could ever go all brandy all the time but it is nice for variety from time to time.  We'll certainly try the French Manhattan another time.


Squid on the Vine

Poderi Cellario, Langhe Dolcetto 2018
Dry
A little sour
Cat pee
My Rating: 8.0

Bisceglia, Terra di Vulcano Aglianico del Vulture 2016
My Rating: 8.0

Foral de Melgaço, Vinho Verde Old Vines Alvarinho 2018
Starts with a bright peach, then fades to a light apple
An exciting little wine
I generally like vinho verde and this one had some nice dimension
My Rating: 8.4

Squid Eats: Sweetwaters

via Sweetwaters

Burlington, Vermont was under a boil-water advisory from Saturday night through Monday morning.  As one might expect, this wreaked havoc upon the restaurant industry on Sunday.  Many places simply closed their doors for the day.  We, with three hours to kill between our daughter's call and her concert, struggled to find a place for lunch but Sweetwaters accommodated.

Sweetwaters, yet another American bistro with locally sourced ingredients, has been one of the mainstays on Church Street for many years, well preceding our time in Vermont, yet we'd never been before.  We haven't avoided it for any particular reason, just never got around to it. The water restriction had only minimal impact on the menu: no coffee, tea or sodas.  We both ordered lunch specials: I the fried chicken sandwich, she the grilled cheese with soup.  Both were nice, though apparently for my wife, the sandwich was better than the soup.  Service was friendly and professional.


Squid on the Vine

Clovis, Syrah Blend 2016
Rich, dry, spicy
Chocolatey nose
Our Valentine's Day dinner wine, pairing with the beautiful duck breast and potatoes my wife prepared.  Mmm... duck!
My wife decanted this one thinking that quite a lot of our wine club wines - as this one was - would have benefited from opening up a little.
My rating: 8.2

Squid Eats: Jules on the Green

via Jules on the Green

As you may have heard, we got a huge snowstorm in New England last Friday.  As such, by Saturday afternoon we were all pretty desperate to get out of the house.  Why not lunch?

I suppose Jules on the Green is fairly typical of newer restaurants these days: standard American fare with fusion elements, mostly Italian in this case; great beer list; locally-sourced ingredients; friendly but not over-bearing staff.  A couple elements I especially appreciate are the large windows in a relatively small space so you get plenty of sunlight - a particularly nice thing when you've been snowbound - and the fact that they serve breakfast all day if you want it.  I had the creme brulee French toast which sounded more exciting than it actually was but was still perfectly nice French toast, my go-to breakfast in diner-type establishments.

We've been a couple times now, the first for my birthday a couple years ago.  We'll certainly go again.  It's a little further away that our nearest comparable place but also nice for changing things up from time to time.


Squid on the Vine


Chateau Cadenette, Costières-de-Nîmes Grenache Blend, 2017
Rather bitter.
Sweeter nose and finish.
A bit of apple.
My rating: 7.8

Squid on the Vine: The Mixed Blessing of Sugar

Fratelli Levis, Piemonte Barbera
Floral nose
Berries
Starts sweet.  Finishes bitter.
Touch of spice
My rating: 8.3

Frederic Mallo, Rosacker Vieilles Vignes, Alsace Grand Cru Riesling, 2010
Peachy finish
Starts sweet, bitter, then sweet again.
Dark yellow
I have a sentimental attachment to this particular vineyard for reasons I won't go into here but it's possible my rating is slightly inflated by bias.  Even so, it is genuinely good.
My rating: 9.0

Stefan Meyer, Ein Liter Rhodt Red Blend
Berries
A little jammy but enough bitter to keep it honest
Finishes sweet, then bitter, then sweet.
My rating: 8.4

As I sort out my wine preferences (see here), I am finding one common element for both reds and whites: I like it sweet - not too much, mind you, but I definitely want it there.  I love fruit and a grape is a fruit.  I'm not looking for Welch's but I want to know I'm consuming a fruit.

With reds, the adjective I seek is "jammy," which implies a particular mouth feel along with the sugar, a pronounced sense of volume.  Too much sweetness, though, and it wouldn't taste like wine anymore, just juice with a kick.  For whites, Rieslings are definitely heading in the right direction.  The German offerings, however, tend to be too sweet.  The Alsatians like the example above, on the other hand, are just right.  The Stefan Meyer listed above could have done with a bit more spice (indication of alcohol content) but the sugar level was good.

Squid Mixes: The Bar Spoon

I have a new toy.

Contrary to what James Bond might have you believe, some cocktails should be stirred rather than shaken, including 007's own beloved vodka martinis and my own favored Manhattans.  The basic rule: if a drink involves fruit juices, you shake it.  If not, you stir it.  We have a fine stirring glass but, to this point, have made do with iced tea spoons which are not quite long enough for the job.

Bar spoons are long indeed.  The one I just got is 12 inches in length.  The more skillful bartenders I've watched set the tip of the spoon on the bottom of the glass, then swirl the stick.  The trick in stirring, you see, is to do so without chipping the ice.  The OXO SteeL Spinning Bar Spoon I've acquired has a swivel handle so one can simply set the back of the spoon against the side of the glass, then stir without having to change the grip.  Observe:

And here, with the ice and booze:

Ideally, one shouldn't touch the ice at all with the spoon.  That'll take some practice!


Squid on the Vine

Fratelli Antonio & Raimondo, Piemonte Dolcetto 2017
My Rating: 8.0
Cranberry
Astringent

Fratelli Levis, Piemonte Barbera 2018
My Rating: 8.3
Floral nose
Berries
Starts sweet, finishes bitter.
Touch of spice

Squid Mixes: The Right Balance and a Good Rye

via Dad's Hat

Thanksgiving is, of course, a grand harvest feast.  Alcoholic beverages are by no means necessary accompaniment but they're certainly enjoyable.  We went to visit English Prof for the holiday and, as luck would have it, she loves a good Manhattan almost as much as I do.  She also had a fine whiskey to try...

Dad's Hat hails from Bristol in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.  Their rye is their flagship product and a fine, flavorful liquor it is, too - great in a cocktail.  Alas, it is not available for sale back here in Vermont!  Vermont, you see, is a control state which in our case means the state has a wholesale monopoly over liquor.  If the state stores don't sell it, there are no other options.  It may be just as well.  Looking online, it would appear Dad's Hat is significantly more expensive than Old Overholt, our standby.  I suppose it is good to know that the difference in price could be worth it.

I feel I have settled on a good proportion for my Manhattans: 3:1 rye to vermouth.  That's the same as in The New York Bartender's Guide but I've upped the bitters to 3 dashes rather than 1.  Against the Dad's Hat, I could probably have gotten away with more but then I think one risks making it syrupy as it is in many restaurants.  I might have to go down to 2 with the Old Overholt.

It's definitely time to start experimenting with different whiskeys, though better to focus on ones easily acquired, I think.  I have my eye on George Dickel, which costs a bit more than Old Overholt, and Ezra Brooks, a new product to Vermont stores, which costs a bit less.  Stay tuned.


Squid on the Vine

Château Combel la Serre, Le Pur Friut du Causse Chors Malbec 2017
My Rating: 8.1
Starts sweet, then a little sour.

Free Run Cellars, Dry Gewürtztraminer 2017
My Rating: 8.5
Grape juicy
Starts bitter, finishes sweet.
We visited the winery in Michigan last summer.  That's right, Michigan.

Squid Mixes: Hunter Variations

 
Last week's Hunter's Cocktail was highly successful in that my wife asked for the same a few days later.  I'm always happy to take requests, though I had in mind a couple of variations.  One was out of necessity.  I only had rye enough for one drink so the second would have to be bourbon.  Also, I wanted to include Angostura bitters this time.

A rye, bourbon side-by-side comparison is always meaningful.  My wife definitely preferred the rye and chose that one as hers.  The bourbon felt bigger, more bitter perhaps.  I went with one dash of the bitters for each and didn't really taste it - might try two next time.  It might also be interesting to toy with the whiskey/brandy proportions so as to bring out more cherry flavor.  I don't mind the whiskey taking prominence but it might distinguish the drink more from others with a stronger cherry flavor.

Now the question: does altering the ingredients change the name of the drink?  In this case, I would say no.  Looking online, I found Hunter Cocktail recipes with bourbon and with bitters, though interestingly orange rather than Angostura - something else to bear in mind for next time.

It did make me wonder, though, is there a word for a bitter hunter, one who didn't come back with anything to show for his/her efforts?  I couldn't find such a term.  Does anyone know of one?


Squid on the Vine

La Masseria, Puglia Primitivo 2017
My rating: 8.2
Jammy nose
Opens sweet, then bitter.
Sweet aftertaste

Squid Eats: Hatchet

via Facebook

It is with mixed feelings that we visit Hatchet in Richmond.  It's a perfectly acceptable restaurant but several years ago, it took over the space of what had been our family go-to: Bridge Street Cafe.  Bridge Street closed five years ago and we've only been to the new place twice now.  Mind you, Hatchet is definitely an upgrade in terms of decor, food quality and so forth.  But it's also an upgrade in price, not the easy on the budget choice for after work its predecessor had been.

Then again, it's been five years and the new place is still there and doing well.  My wife and I went on a recent Friday evening.  We got oysters for an appetizer.  Then I had the Section 119 Fried Chicken Sandwich, Korean BBQ style.  As a side note, I love the increasing popularity of Korean food aesthetics.  Koreans have been restaurant owners in the United States for decades but usually serve Japanese food because it's more popular.  I love Korean food and it's good to see it coming into its own in the United States.

I can't tell what the Section 119 business is about.  US Code 119 is a meals and lodging law.  Section 119 is also a clothing store in New York.  I have no idea what it has to do with fried chicken sandwiches.  The sandwich itself was tasty but enormous.  I had to knife-and-fork it.  Why pretend it's a sandwich if you can't actually eat it with your hands?  The fresh potato chips were excellent.  Good beer list, too - pretty much a requirement in Vermont.  No excuse when so much of the local product is so good.  Great service.  They have managed to maintain the family atmosphere of the previous establishment.

We still miss Bridge Street, much as I still miss the long closed Danny's Spaghetti House in Silver Spring, Maryland from my childhood.  Hatchet is too expensive to replace it.  But it's nice every once in a while.

Squid on the Vine

Château Musar, Musar Jeune 2015
My rating: 9.5
Dark chocolate nose
Cranberry
Starts spicy, fades to bitter
Lingering cherry aftertaste
Astringent
My wine ideal is a Château Musar from many years ago, as described here.  My wife had made sfiha for dinner so pairing Lebanese wine with Lebanese food was only logical.  This 2015 was lovely: big, spicy, exciting.  9.5 is the highest rating I've given so far.  What would I need to push higher?  Maybe a little more jamminess.  Chilean Cabernets and Argentine Malbecs have served well in the past.  Perhaps I should get back to those.  In the meantime, yes, I'll take more of the Musar, please and thank you. 

Clos de la Cerisaie, Anjou Rouge Cabernet Franc 2018
My rating: 7.5
A little sour
Light, fruity nose
Astringent
Starts fruity, finishes bitter
A little spice
This was a wine club wine for November.  As my wife pointed out, the wines have mostly been fine but nothing so amazing that we were dying to go out and buy six more bottles.  That's fine, though it is nice to be wowed from time to time.  This Cabernet was actually a bit disappointing.  The sourness was odd.  Maybe too young and needed to open up a little?  I don't know.  My lowest rating so far.

Squid Eats: Sotto Enoteca

via Sotto Enoteca

 
I appreciate any restaurant that embraces the intimate feel of a quiet, back alley, European bistro.  Such is the case with Sotto Enoteca, technically a wine bar sharing a kitchen with Trattoria Delia.   Sotto Enoteca feels like the sort of place in Palermo you'd only hear about through word of mouth but once you get there, you realize everyone else is in on the secret, too.  Tables are scarce but service is friendly and sincere. 

The food's nice, too.  We started with a salad, then pork belly with Vermont-grown rice.  For the entree, we split a mussels pasta dish followed by an enormous and delicious tiramisu for dessert.  Obviously the wine list is impressive.

It was date night for us, something I'm hoping we'll do more often.  As our daughter gets older and more independent, I would like to invest some time in enjoying each other as a couple.  As I told my wife recently, I don't want to be the couple who waits until the kids are gone to get to know each other again.  I don't think we are that couple but I want to enjoy not being that couple now.  After dinner, we made a stop at the bookstore for a leisurely browse, then home. 


Squid on the Vine

Paul Nicolle, Chablis Vieilles Vignes Chardonnay, 2017
My rating: 8.0
Apple
A touch of bitter
Pale yellow
Our most recent wine class was about Chablis.  The shop, Dedalus in Burlington, was quite generous in the bottles they shared for the class, allowing us samples from vintages way out of our usual price range.  It was nice to be able to witness the differences though, at least for me, it wouldn't be enough to justify the cost.  Mind you, still fun to try them.  The Paul Nicolle was a Dedalus Thirst Club wine for us.

Château Jouclary, Cuvee Tradition Cabardès Red Blend, 2017
My rating: 8.5
Dark chocolate
Starts fruity, finishes bitter.
Medium purple
Our second Thirst Club wine for the month, a highly promising red.

La Spinetta, Il Rosé di Casanova Rosé Blend
My rating: 8.5
Apple nose
Watermelon bubblegum
Astringent
Dark yellow, almost amber
"You know it's a rosé, right?" My wife asked after I ordered it.  She knows I don't generally care for rosés.  They feel like an unreasonable compromise for me.  I guess I didn't realize it.  I just liked the description in the Sotto Enoteca menu.  I'd decided that I wanted to try one white and one red on the evening.  Rosé was not what I had in mind and, in truth, it wasn't especially pink.  Nice - bright, refreshing but with some dimension.  The menu suggested the watermelon hints.  I didn't pick it up until I thought of bubblegum - odd but pleasant.

Graci, Etna Rosso Nerello Macalese, 2017
My rating: 8.0
Recommended with the mussels
Smells sweeter than it tastes.
My red for the evening.  I had some buyer's remorse with this one.  It was okay but nothing earth-shattering.  Earlier, I'd had my eye on a different red - one described as "immense" which seemed a promising adjective - but I went with our waiter's recommendation.  He was right.  It did go nicely with the mussels.  I still wish I'd stuck with my original plan.

Squid Cooks: Pan-Cooked, Seasoned Burgers

I have been given Tuesdays.  My wife cooks dinner nearly every evening, mostly because she's better at it but also because she finds it relaxing after work, or so she claims.  But Tuesdays have become complicated.  Our daughter's clarinet lessons have been moved an hour later, so ideally we should eat before we leave.  The best solution for making that work: dad cooks.  I welcome the idea.  It's a fine opportunity to hone some of the quicker recipes I have already tried in Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything: The Basics and also implement the food choice thinking I've been doing in my weight loss efforts.

I asked my daughter if any of my recent efforts were especially appealing for her.  Burgers were her choice (see post here) so I tried not one but two of Bittman's suggested variations: pan-cooked and seasoned.  In all honesty, though, I took the pan option without thinking about it, simply being my more usual choice for hamburgers.  Next time, I might go back to the broiler, though with a shorter cooking time.  I like the crust on the outside but I also like the juicy middle - delicate balance.

As for seasoning, I tried two: oregano and basil.  I first had oregano in a burger at the St. Clair Broiler in St. Paul, Minnesota.  I lived in St. Paul for a year after college and the Broiler was a decent dinner option within walking distance of my apartment.  The place closed in 2017 after 61 years in business.  I haven't been to Minnesota in over 20 years but I've never forgotten those burgers.  I simply mix it in with the meat and onions before cooking.  We had some fresh oregano which I'd never cooked with before - worked just fine.  The basil was a new wrinkle, suggested by Bittman.  At my wife's urging, I added it fresh at the end rather than cooking it with the rest.   I wouldn't say it added much, at least not in competition with the oregano.  I think I might try curry powder next time.


Squid on the Vine

Domaine du Somail, Le Vin de Plume Minervois Red Blend, 2017
My Rating: 8.0
A little of the cat pee smell - yes, I know that sounds gross but it's actually a common description for a young wine.
Tart apple
Astringent
Sacramental finish
My wife presented it as one that might appeal to me in my quest for the idea (see here).  It certainly opened with promise but then didn't take me very far.  Good.  Not great.

Squid on the Vine

I didn't know much about wine before I met my wife, nearly 21 years ago now.  I enjoyed drinking wine, though I would have considered myself more of a beer drinker at the time.  Still would, in fact.  My wife knew a lot more as she did with nearly all things food.  She also enjoys it more than I do and if anything, her preference for grapes over barley and hops has increased over the years.  Wine certainly intrigues me - for its own sake, certainly, but also as a vehicle for knowing my wife better.  We have long intended to invest time in learning more about the fruit of the vine - together.  Recently, I have become a lot more purposeful in my own explorations. 

Mission #1 is learning more about what I like.  I know a lot about what I like in a beer: hoppy is good.  I have learned quite a lot recently about my cocktail preferences: a whiskey base is a good start.  With wine, I have some work to do, especially with whites and rosés.  In fact, I'm not sure how I feel about rosés at all, let alone which ones I like. 

via wine-searcher

With reds, I'm chasing an elusive ideal.  Many years ago, my wife introduced me to Château Musar, a Lebanese winery.  The flagship red is a blend including Cabernet Sauvignon grapes among others.  It was basically one of the most extraordinary substances I have ever ingested, warm, jammy and spicy all at once.  I have never tasted its like since though whenever I encounter a red that seems to be heading in the same direction, I get awfully excited.  Our red on Sunday night, for instance, a 2017 Domaine Bousquet Malbec from Argentina had the spiciness but not the jamminess - actually slightly bitter, interestingly. 

My preferences in white wine are nearly opposite.  While I love a big, full-bodied red, I like a clean, lighter white - pale in color, not too sweet, though not exactly dry either.  A white wine should pair nicely with raw oysters: refreshing, cleansing, not too strong.  Portuguese vinho verdes tend to catch my eye.

via Amazon

To help me in my own self-education, I have a book, Wine Folly by Madeline Puckette and Justin Hammack, and the Delectable phone app for recording my explorations.  We've already taken one class, on Chablis, at Dedalus, our favorite wine shop in Burlington and we're eager to take more.  As much as I can, I will share what I learn here.

State of the Blog 2019

It's been ten years since I first launched The Armchair Squid - a full decade of blogging.  Back then, I had visions of developing a presence as an amateur sportswriter.  I began with tennis, then soccer, eventually the Olympics, baseball and more.  I've explored a good many other hobbies in the time since and the experience has been most gratifying.  As always, my blogiversary is a time to take stock and adjust course.  I have in mind a few changes for the coming year, including the broadening of one topic and a return to another.

Food will continue to be the main focus of my Tuesday family adventure posts.  Cocktails will still be featured prominently, though my approach to that hobby has evolved a bit.  Rather than a broad survey of recipes, I'd like to concentrate on a few of our house favorites, mainly Manhattans, high balls and gin and tonics.  As those are the ones we enjoy most, I'd like to hone my own process, tinkering with proportions, ingredients and such.  I'd like to continue with mocktails, too, as it's a nice way to include our daughter in the fun.  I'll be looking at other food projects in addition, particularly the wine hobby I share with my wife and my current efforts to lose weight.

Bigger changes are coming to my Friday posts.  It's time to take a break from music and get back to... drum roll, please... Star Trek!  I can hardly believe it's been four years since my last Trek post.  First, I'll have reviews of the first four movies, then I'll be diving into The Next Generation.  Even with the long hiatus, I feel I've been building up to this for a long time and I'm excited.

Many thanks as always to all of you who stop by to read my humble musings.  Who knows if blogging will still be a thing in ten more years.  I hope you'll join me in finding out.

Wine: Thirst Wine Club

This is our first month as members of the Thirst Wine Club at Daedalus, a restaurant and wine shop in Burlington.  We get two featured wines each month as well as 10% off anything in the shop.  I don't know if it will be one red and one white each month but that's what we got this time.  With each, we get an info sheet including tasting notes and recommended recipes. 

The white is an Alsatian, Edelzwicker 2017 by Meyer Fonné.  Alsace is best known for its Rieslings and Gewurtztraminners, drier and more interesting than the German versions of the same.  An Edelzwicker is a blend of Pinot Blanc, Muscat, Chasselas and Riesling.  This one had a pleasant apple flavor.  My wife and I traveled to Alsace for a wine vacation many years ago - our last big pre-parenting adventure, actually.  Alsatians generally pair well with spicy food, including the paprika chicken my wife made that night.

The red is the Madiran Aydie l'Origine 2015, produced by Famille Laplace in Gascony.  Even while pouring it, my wife could tell from the scent, "This is going to be one of your wines."  I love a spicy red.  Years ago - again, pre-kid - we had an unforgettable Chateau Musar from Lebanon that set my mouth on fire, setting my standard for reds forever.  This Madiran wasn't quite so exciting as that but it was still awfully nice, a good match for the pizza chicken my wife prepared.  L'Origine is also a blend: 70% Tannat, 30% Cabernet Franc.