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Making Sense—Hearing Scents and Seeing Flavors
I’d never heard of him until after reading an article in the latest Gambero Rosso email. His name is Baldo Baldinini, and he’s one of the first master perfumers in Italy. By all accounts, Baldinini...
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Restaurant Nightmare No. 1
This fall I’ll be publishing a second book called “Strong Water: On Food, Wine, and Restaurants.” It’s a collection of essays written over the last ten-plus years, some of which previously appeared in...
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Moratus Vinum
If the Romans had written something about the topic of this post, it would have been called moratus vinum—delayed wine drinking. It’s a phenomenon that’s best illustrated with a story from the distant...
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Same As It Ever Was
“And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shackAnd you may find yourself in another part of the worldAnd you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobileAnd you may find yourself in a...
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Restaurant Nightmare No. 2
This post is taken from my new book which will be published this fall. It’s called “Strong Water: On Food, Wine, and Restaurants.” It’s a collection of essays written over the last ten-plus years. One...
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It’s All About the Middle
The mid-palate in a wine is what can make it complex, interesting, and desirable to drink. In wine speak, the mid-palate is what one experiences after the initial taste and before the finish. The...
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The Perils of Showering on the Road
This post is chapter from my new book which will be published this fall. It’s called “Strong Water: On Food, Wine, and Restaurants.” It’s a collection of essays written over the last ten-plus years....
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The Evolution of a Palate
This post is another chapter from my new book, “Strong Water: On Food, Wine, and Restaurants.” It’s a collection of essays written over the last ten-plus years that will be published this fall. One of...
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Coming to My Senses
It was Christmas dinner in 1981. At the time, I was a grad student at the University of Michigan studying classical trumpet. That first year Carla and I elected not to go home to New Mexico for the...
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Eggs
This post is another chapter from my new book, Strong Water: Tales of a Master Sommelier’s Life in Food, Wine, and Restaurants. It’s a collection of essays written over the last ten-plus years that...
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Terroir redefined
This post is another chapter from my new book, Strong Water: Tales of a Master Sommelier’s Life in Food, Wine, and Restaurants. It’s a collection of essays written over the last ten-plus years that...
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Quello perfetto (the perfect one)
Stanley Tucci was a guest on The Late Show recently with Stephen Colbert. Tucci was his usual dazzling urbanite self. Colbert, in trying to be the Perle Mesta of talk show hosts (look it up),...
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Cover Reveal — “Strong Water: Tales of a Master Sommelier’s Life in Food,...
Drum Roll, Please… Behold the cover of my new book “Strong Water: Tales of a Master Sommelier’s Life in Food, Wine, and Restaurants.” I’m pleased to announce that the “Strong Water” will be released...
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A return to the golden arches
I didn’t have much of a choice. Actually, given the location of my event that day in Chicago’s West Loop, I had no other option for early morning sustenance aside from the lowest common food...
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Vinous interruptus
This post is another chapter from my new book Strong Water: Tales of a Master Sommelier’s Life in Food and Wine. One of the sections of the book is about stories from my days as a sommelier. This one...
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My doppio at Café Sant Eustachio
The experience was like boarding a plane in China or riding the 30 Stockton on Muni in San Francisco. Both require the tenacity of a Blue Heeler, complete disrespect for social distancing, and the use...
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