Sechs Deutsch Winzer Gehen in eine Kneipe
German is a very simple language I’ve been told, however it’s still a mystery to me. So you’ll have to forgive the title of this very rare Saturday FLB post. If Google Translate has set me on the right path it says, Six German Winemakers Walk into a Bar. But really it could say anything.
For some reason I blindly trust Google far more than I probably should.
Here’s the exciting news, the bar they are walking into is the Charles F. Lucas Confectionery and Wine Bar in Troy. And they aren’t just there to hang out. They are there to conduct a tasting of their wines which represent several of the country’s different wine growing regions.
There are three reasons why this event is getting me to break my prohibition against Saturday posts. One is that learning about German wines is something that everyone in New York State should want to do (since our climate is more Germanic than Mediterranean). Two is that the event is coming up shortly, Monday evening to be precise. Three is that Vic at the wine bar has generously offered me two tickets, one of which I’m willing to share with a lucky reader.
If you want to win, you have to move fast.
First Photo Friday
Let’s call this a February retrospective.
I mentioned a while back that there might be some changes on the blog as I tried to better manage my time. Part of that plan included the occasional use of more pictures. Well, as February comes to a close, I look back and realize how much I never shared with you all.
Usually the pictures simply serve as reference points for me. More of visual note-taking than actual photography. Still, I’m going to share these today in the hopes that some might prove to be either helpful, inspring, or illuminating.
My hopes are probably way too high for snapshots. We’ll just have to see how it goes.
H-O-R-S-E
I eat animals. Not that much. But I enjoy sampling as many different types of animals as I can. Part of that has to do with being an adventurous eater. Another part has to do with a strong belief in the benefits of a varied diet.
Take comfort in the fact that when I come over to your house I’m not eyeing your pets and imagining them on a plate. Unless of course you keep chickens or geese. Because those are some delicious birds.
Meat comes from animals we hire other people to kill on our behalf for the benefit of our sustenance and pleasure. It’s grisly stuff. I think a pig has as much right to live as a horse. And it’s one of the reasons why I believe it’s important to give those doomed animals the best life possible before their final day.
It’s about respect.
Do you want to know what doesn’t have respect for the sanctity of life? A labyrinthine global supply chain that produces effectively flavorless frozen meat patties that can be cobbled together from bits of a thousand carcasses. Now we find out that some of the beef patties produced in this manner are secretly adulterated with horsemeat? I wish I could say that I was shocked or even mildly surprised.
Okay. Show of hands. Who here thinks there’s no way our ground beef in the U.S. is affected?
The Bestestes – Weekly Mag Edition
The Troy Record Reader’s Choice poll is completed. Yesterday was the deadline for the Capital Region Living Magazine entires. But there is still one more notable survey of the Capital Region’s culinary preferences and idiosyncrasies before the Times Union releases their questionnaire sometime around the end of March or early April.
Yes, that’s Metroland. And their online poll closes on March 1. So you’ve got a couple of days to git ‘er done.
You know these things are getting easier and easier for me to fill out. There’s a strategy at play too. Part of it is to share the love. For example I love both Parivar and All Good Bakers. So Parivar get’s the nod for Best Indian/Pakistani and AGB makes the list for Best Vegetarian. Plus there is still room for great places like Crisan and The Placid Baker. I also try to distribute the picks across the region, although I’ll admit the list is Albany-centric.
The one thing I’m really surprised by in this Metroland survey is the combined Vietnamese/Thai category. Seriously. They have so so so many categories that grouping these two cuisines together is really inexcusable. Still, they do a better job at separating out different ethnic cuisines than the Times Union, which has to date been embarrassingly ignorant of geopolitical boundaries in their annual report.
So, if you would like to vote in the Metroland poll, but maybe need some ideas for a few of the many many categories; or if you are just curious what I have picked as The Best things and places based on their categories, please read on.
The Bottle That Got Opened
Can I tell you how much I love the Internet?
We all have heroes. I recall one New York Giants summer training camp at SUNY Albany. For some reason I was walking across campus and the football players had just crossed from the field to the locker room. The door closed behind them. In their wake were a handful of star struck fans.
One father was pointing to the sidewalk in front of the locker room doors explaining in solemn tones to his young son that Eli Manning stepped “right here.” Apparently to him it was hallowed ground.
Me, I couldn’t pick Eli Manning out of a lineup, and even the names on the backs of the jerseys wouldn’t help me know which player was a big deal. But Jeffrey Steingarten or Chris Kimball I’d know in a heartbeat.
I was thrilled to learn that Dorothy Gaiter had read my blog once. But now she’s not only reading, but providing my readers with personal wine recommendations? I’m bursting out of my skin. So, how could I not take the final step of Open That Bottle Night XIV, the holiday that she created.
You’ll never guess what bottle I opened.
Macarons in Peril
Eaters don’t often get a chance like this one. Most times when a beloved business is struggling, their financial difficulties are kept under wraps until one day the doors are just closed. And often times people are left standing around saying, “I always meant to go there and try it out” or “I wish I had known so I could have made one last visit.”
I’m sad to report that TC Bakery is in such a fix, but all hope is not yet lost.
This is the small French bakery that’s been operating out of The Chocolate Gecko making a wide variety of delicious French macarons, my favorite being the chocolate caramel. But they also created a praline based on their own vanilla sugar and duchilly hazelnuts. It’s one of my favorite sweet treats, besting the chocolate covered hazelnuts I brought back from a patisserie in Paris. Many of the treats made at TC Bakery aren’t just “good for Albany” but they would be great anywhere.
Losing this culinary gem in Albany would really be a blow to the overall quality of food in the area. And their problems don’t stem from mismanagement or a lack of sales. No, as their recent campaign on indigogo states, “we are soon losing our current kitchen” and they are facing unexpectedly high relocation costs.
What follows is so more information, plus details on how you can help out.
Dirty Dangerous Places
Home sweet home. After several days in the Ocean State I return to the Capital Region to tell the tale. Traveling without a spouse and with two small children is about just as much fun as it sounds. There are things one cannot do on such a kid centric trip, like dinner at The Dorrance, but that is not to say the trip was without its charms.
The kids had a great time with gramma. They have come back with 35 meatballs, two boxes of hamantashen, and a lot of art supplies. I picked up three different sheep’s milk cheeses from Sardinia, because apparently that’s what I do these days. It will be a great use for my new cheese bags.
Probably the worst experience they had was when I dragged the family to an Ethiopian restaurant. I loved it. The kids and gramma waited impatiently for me to finish the meal, so they could go for some pizza. Ugh. I feel like I’ve failed as a father. My kids love beans. They love split peas and lentils. They love eating with their hands. This should have be a slam dunk. But no.
However the big takeaway from this visit was more personal, as my favorite food moment happened as I was leaving town.
Patents, Pesticides, Profits and Plants
My father is a lawyer. And I’m a Jew who occasionally studies Torah. So, while I may not be licensed to practice law anywhere in the world, or give legal advice, I think I can at least offer some compelling commentary on a case just recently presented to the Supreme Court.
Bowman v. Monsanto.
If you clicked on yesterday’s mystery link of the day, you already got the headline from The New York Times that read, “Supreme Court Appears to Defend Patent on Soybean”. They were also one of the few media outlets to write about a key detail in this case. A detail which makes the large corporate giant Monsanto seem less like a bad guy and more like a wronged party.
Yeah, given how much I dislike Monsanto, GMOs and suing farmers over saving seeds, I’m surprised to be writing that myself. However, it’s an important distinction to remember should Monsanto be victorious in this dispute.
I’m just pissed that it was this case involving GMOs that went before the Supreme Court.
AskTP – February Break
Don’t blame me. I’m on vacation. The kids are out of school so I plopped them in the car and drove them out to Providence. We needed more meatballs anyway. Today they enjoyed some of the housemade frankfurters at Chez Pascal (while I was more moderate and had the pulled barbecue chicken sandwich). Afterwards it was all I could do to not buy the whole store at Stock culinary goods, but I did get a set of cheese bags made by the same folks who supply The Cheese Traveler with his very special paper.
But blogging continues. Mostly because I’m a creature of habit. Also if I didn’t answer the growing stockpile of unanswered questions today, they would ultimately grow into such a beast it would take multiple days to fell. Remember, if a question is asked with a question mark in the comments of this blog, it is a certainty that eventually an answer will be received.
You may have noticed that Mrs. Fussy isn’t along on this escapade. I guess some people with jobs still have to work. That means you are getting full-strength unedited fussy, which has its pros and cons. She can’t tell me to behave. But she’s also not here to make sure my spelling is perfect, my grammar is correct, and my commas are in all the right places. Consider yourself forewarned.
Now without further ado, onto the questions.
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