Parental Eating

With my parents in town for a few days this past week I went on the High Holly Fat Kid Experience. Most of my eating and perspectives on food have much, if not everything, to do with the 'rents. They have long exposed me to an inherent concept of tasting, discerning, discriminating. And while my mom and I have near opposite levels of hunger - her typical day in Boston was Pete's coffee, splitting a pastry with my dad; a late lunch of tea and probably nothing else; and a conclusion of an actual dinner - they are great to be along for the ride with.

The opening salvo upon arrival was

•  Publik House in Brookline

I always recommend the mac 'n' cheese; thought technically they sever it up with Orecchiette pasta- or little ears. Make sure to add in the truffled cream for pure decadence. The scooped shape of the pasta holds the sauce much better, and the plate is served artery clogging high. Also worth a taste was the meat loaf, but avoid the sausages: they were dry and bland. Publik House scores high for its massive beer selection with some 30 plus drafts on rotation. The general theme of the place is of a Belgian slant, so many of the taps are either of that style or origin. Go early, its a crowd favorite, and the place gets way more busy than they can handle.

We followed this up with lunch the next day at

• Ana's Taqueria on Beacon Street

It is pretty hard to satiate a Mexican craving in Boston. The major chains just don't cut the salsa (haha, I'm sorry). But Ana's is actually a very good place. I would love to see them warm the tortillas on the grill for a slightly crunchy texture like they do on the West Coast, but that's really the only draw back. I tend to go for the super burrito with carnitas and plenty of salsa verde (though I have to admit in my old age, I can't handle the heat of their verde as much as I could in my youth). The simplicity of the menu highlights the focused and developed nature of the food itself: just a few items in a few combination, but all of them are well executed and delicious.

Our single brunch forey was to

• Bon Savor in Jamaica Plain

In part to mom's general lack of interest in early eating, we only had one real breakfast dinning, but Bon Savor is high on my list of local brunch spots. Its very small, so seating can sometimes require a wait, but compared to either of the overly-popular and not-very-impressive Center Street Cafe or Sorrellas, I would actually recommend Bon Savor, and am personally willing to wait to be seated. The food is either French-American or Latin-American, but thus far I have never strayed from French Benedict (eggs Benedict on crepes), the croquet madam (a ham and cheese sandwich under poached eggs and hollandaise sauce), or the Combo which comes with eggs Benedict, a glass of wine or champaign, a French-press of coffee and a croissant. The portions are decidedly UnAmerican (read: small) which is why I can sometimes get away with all the food of the Combo, but really shouldn't. Someday I need to get around to trying their dinner menu, but for now its just a breakfast joint.

After trotting around M.I.T. campus we had a short stopover at

• Diesel Cafe in Davis Square Somerville

There are popular places and there are places that are victims of their own success. Diesel Cafe is a lovely place with funky, urban decorations. But the level of action here is out of control. We made the egregious mistake of trying to sit three people in the late afternoon. At that point we had to all but fight for seating. Initially settling for a table for two and having me stand, I managed to swoop in on booth that was clearing. While I waiting for my drink at the counter, my parents were left defending the other half of the booth from people sharking for space. This is clearly an early morning local, or else relegated to to-go orders the rest of the day. Dad and I split a tuna salad sandwich, which was really good. Well seasoned and on lovely fresh bread, it was the perfect snack for the middle of the day.

Our next dinner stop was a new place for me

• Lineage on Harvard Street in Brookline

Waaaay too much was eaten that night. We started out with an amazing Vermont Cheddar fondue along with a beat salad with crème fraiche. It was surprising to see some of the beats which weren't the traditional dark red and mushy, but rather the color and texture of tomatoes. I stuffed my self silly with an amazing burger with blue cheese and caramelized onions and delicious French fries. Elegant despite its regular simplicity, every detail from the bun to the meat was top notch. Dad had a fabulous dish of gnocchi with a simple sauce and greens. But they were some of the best that I've tasted in years. The wine list did leave a little to be desired due to the price level of most bottles. There were few available for less $40, and the first bottle ordered was sold out. Our second choice was superb, and well enjoyed.

Monday took us back to

• Ten Tables in Jamaica Plain

It has been almost two years since I've been to this increasingly popular local. To give a perspective on how notorious it is: I went to an interview in Marlborough, almost an hour away in the burbs, and when I mentioned to the receptionist that I live in JP, she asked about Ten Tables. Seriously, I used to work a couple of towns over in Northborough and that place has two gun shops that literally share a wall. How many guns shops can one tiny little hick town support? Where was I? Oh yeah, Ten Tables has a phenomenal reputation. But it is 100% well deserved. They got their name because they used to only have 10 tables for customers. When my parents were last in town, and when we last ate there, we managed to get two reservations in a week due to a massive snow storm sending the weather-phobic Bostonians into hiding. Now the have opened a second location, and as of last month, expanded the JP location slightly. The menu remains focused on local and seasonal fair, with a changing list of items based on availability. We started with the Greek Salad, which, admittedly is one of my favorite takes on salad in general. From the light dressing to the French Feta it was just amazing. Three of the four at the table had the house made Pappardelle pasta with lamb ragu, and we loved it. The wine list is a great compliment, a particular frustration of mine is how often restaurants focus on high cost - either through raising the price factor or just offering more expensive bottles - and don't have a decent starting range. But TT has included a nice range of modest bottles, including some from Portugal; which has the benefit of being a lesser know producer and thus more inexpensive, but often fantastic range of products. Dessert for me was a meyer lemon tart: a nice lightness to end things on, but absolutely lovely.

Earning a double entry is

• Finale "Deserteri" in Harvard Square 

We went there first for a lunch snack. My parents split a salad and I tucked into an egg salad sandwich. Both were good, but not exceptional. We got a sample of a chocolate mousse on the side which was very nice, especially since I think it was of the sugar-fee variety. The concept of the place is comparable to San Diego's Extraordinary Desserts, but while ED is focused on cakes, Finale is more pastries. Lunch was OK, trying to be high quality but slightly expensive and not amazing.

We moved on to dinner at

• The Elephant Walk in Brookline

A rather unique restaurant experience, the menu is a blend of French and Cambodian cuisine. There are essentially 4 categories: Traditional French, Traditional Cambodian, New French and New Cambodian. Where, clearly, some dishes are classics from their respective nations, and some are creations. We split an order of the Rouleaux, or spring rolls, which were very good and very different. I especially enjoyed my dish, Amok Royal, a medley of sea food in a sort of savory custard. I like the way the restaurant offers a selection of types of food, especially since I know people are not as thrilled at exploration.

Dessert returned us to

• Finally in Brookline

Now focusing on their forte, I was much more impressed with splitting the Magnanimous Melt. This was a chocolate cake with a hot, gooey center accompanied by gelato. They had chocolate, coffee and vanilla, but really, the dish would have been just fine with vanilla on its own. The centerpiece, the cake is chocolaty enough that more chocolate on the side just blurred flavors in to the background. Its a good place, and there are lots of fun things on the menu, including a chocolate fondue. But I have to admit I think I'm a bit more impressed over all with Extraordinary Desserts in San Diego. They just execute everything at a higher level.

Our final meal consisted of lunch at

• City Feed and Supply in Jamaica Plain

I know that there is something of a mixed reputation for City Feed within the neighborhood - most of the employees are, or were, tragically hipsters who lacked a sertin element of customer service at times (like the guy who seems too shy to take your food orders) - but from the groceries to the sandwiches, I've always found the service to be decent or even good, and the food to be great. Its a very small place and the selections are again geared towards local producers and sustainable goods. I've never tried any of their prepared goods in the cases by the check out stand personally, but they are local companies and seem like they might be worth the risk eventually. I tend to go straight for the sandwiches and coffee drinks. These have always delivered very well for me. Mom went with the Fresh Mozzarella, Dad for a locally made pasty and I for the ham and cheese. Dad was underwhelmed, but Mom and I throughly enjoyed our selections.

I think now that they have gone home I'm going to have to start listening to Ryan and get running again. In any case, its back to salads and fruits until the guild wares off...

I just threw up in my mouth.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iX8Hzxu7C1g&feature=PlayList&p=1B35A1082ADF8EC4&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=9

Hash House

On my return to San Diego, I told J that we had to go to Hash House A Go Go. Considering the place was on Man V. Food I think you'll get the idea about the portions. File it under: Only In America.

From San Diego Summer 2009

As an aside, being on the East Coast now I've almost forgotten about life in a perpetual drought. I might be ingrained to turn off the water when I brush my teeth, but I had forgotten about having to request it at a meal.

From San Diego Summer 2009

In any case, I had promised J food as big as your head. Submitted for evidence: a pancake bigger than A's head. Boom.

From San Diego Summer 2009

What follows constitutes a before section of my crab cake Benedict and R' chick hash:

From San Diego Summer 2009

From San Diego Summer 2009

It pretty much an open challenge to the patrons to finish anything that you order. Frankly, I don't think anyone should do so on their own. No naturally, by the time we left, everyone had leftovers. The question is if it looks like you even ate anything.

M put a dent in his...

From San Diego Summer 2009

And G almost championed his waffle (though he arguably had the most reasonable portion)...

From San Diego Summer 2009

But A had nearly two further meals worth of pancake left over.

From San Diego Summer 2009

R's could have been untouched.

From San Diego Summer 2009

J's had enough for her to eat for three more days.

From San Diego Summer 2009

While I was left with a little...

From San Diego Summer 2009

M decided that he need to attack the fruit.

From San Diego Summer 2009

Lightning Brewery

Apparently there a growing craft brewery network in North San Diego. So Tagen to J and I to a very small operation out of Powey called Lightning Brewery.

From San Diego Summer 2009

To say that it is a small operation is an understatement. First of all they only produce a tiny amount of beer annually, I don't remember the number but it wasn't much. Secondly, the physical operation is really tiny. Working out of a modest office building provides only the most limited space. The top photo here is really all there is aside from a couple of front offices.

From San Diego Summer 2009

But what they have to offer is good quality small scale beer (all though they don't get very high marks from the beer geeks on BA). I brought home a Thunderweizen Ale for our grill since I felt it would do well with the food and the weather. It got rave reviews from both mom and dad.

Tastings are free twice a week on Fridays and Saturdays and worth checking out. But the current set up was off putting for me. Without Tagen to march in and get things going I would have likely loitered around front for a while. There little indication of where the tasting took place compared to the small empty office.

From San Diego Summer 2009

The people were friendly, most of the people giving us samples weren't even employees, and I got the feeling that little separated Tagen in his company shirt from the guys helping us. The oddest part was trying to talk to one of the older guys; when I told him I was visiting from Boston he replied, "that's too bad, they don't have any good beer out there." ... joke. Right?

"This isn't a bbq, its a fancy grill"

Since I was home and showing J around and all that, I decided that my big brother and I should have a little shindig to mark the occasion. When it was all said and done J commented how she was used to "putting some [frozen] hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill, throwing a bag of chips and people and calling it a day."

But Mom just don't go out like that. Instead we got a Costco cornucopia: chicken breast, sausages a case of beer backed up by bean salad, coleslaw, home made hummus, bread, veggies and do-it-your-self ice cream cones. Boom.

We started off by marinating chicken breasts in a secret sauce (read: we didn't know what it was), added kosher salt, pepper, minced onion, garlic, olive oil, white whine and rosemary.

From San Diego Summer 2009

Meanwhile we parboiled Italian sausages in beer with a little bay leaf to ready them.

From San Diego Summer 2009

Aaah the rosemary; not only was it part on the chicken we also opted to smoke it on the food as well. Thanks to an abundance in my parents backyard we filled an empty tin can with fresh sprigs and placed the can in the coals to smoke during cooking.

From San Diego Summer 2009

If you look carefully you can just make out the green of the rosemary among the coals.

From San Diego Summer 2009

All in all, I think it was a smashing success. I recommend trying the fresh herbs in your grill if you have the means and the appropriate weather.

California Update: California Burrito

My goal was to get it, and get it I did. The California burrito with the works: carne asada, french fires, salsa, cheese, sour cream and guacamole. Say it in the Kool-Aid man voice: Oh yeah!

Take J into Pacific Beach, aka the den of vileness, we wandered into the northern edge of Mission Beach and spied a typical Mexican place: La Playa Taco Shop.

From San Diego Summer 2009

All thought "authentic" seem dubious to me - much like how a Londoner said to avoid anything with "ye olde" on it - the trappins were all correct. Small. Simple. Proper menu. Besides a small inside and a few table outside, like most taco stands, this was nominally a quick eat or take away location.

From San Diego Summer 2009

From San Diego Summer 2009

I was pleased to see that they had red and green sauces on hand in plentiful squeeze bottles.

From San Diego Summer 2009

When the coveted item arrived it was just as I wanted it: warm and just a little crunchy on the outside.

From San Diego Summer 2009

I don't care how hideous this looks to you, it is heaven wrapped in a grilled tortilla.

From San Diego Summer 2009

The meat was lean and juicy, the fries crispy on the outside but soft and tender within. The cheese was melted but not coming apart. Enough juices flowed through to keep the whole thing supple without becoming a total mess. High marks.

The only negative for me was that I loved it so much I could have eaten about 30%-40% more.

New Season

And with my first pint of Sam Octoberfest last night, it is officially fall in New England. Plus, you know, the weather's changed too.

Nostalgia

I'm not going to lie, one of the things that I'm particularly looking forward to when I go home to San Diego next week is this:

From Global Food

Mmmm... That's a carne asada burrito with french fries. I get mine with all the fixings: salsa fresca, cheese, sour cream and salsa verde on the side. Plus, its got the coveted Wet Coast style tortilla wrapping.

A friend pointed out that in Boston all burritos have been steamed, which gives them a softer shell. Back home they warm the tortillas on the flat grill which adds a bit of crunch and flake to the outside.

The Cali is a standard menu option at almost any of the innumerate Mexican places, but it isn't always commonly known. Case in point, back in the dark days of working at a high school in east county, my boss offered to pick me something up from a near by stand. When I requested a Cali burrito she squawked, "WHAT!? Are you trying to get award for being weird?"

Turns out she thought that such an eponymous food would have to feature some overly healthy concoction of bean sprouts, avocado, tofu and lettuce as a wrap. Not only was she dismayed that it was on the menu, but that the place didn't bat an eye at her ordering it.

As of late, I've been asking people what they think would be included and they are often stymied when they learn of its contents. I suspect I'll be tucking into one from either, Buenos Dias, the place near my parents' house or Colimas, on University.

Chocolate Bar

So a while back I took J to Cafe Fleuri, aka the Chocolate bar, for her birthday. Which, all in all, wasn't as easy as it should have been. First off, they book up fast and a week wasn't enough time to get a reservation. Second of all, its in the Langham in downtown Boston, meaning its in public transportation purgatory. Though, to be fair, it really wasn't all that hard to get to.

From Global Food

J had heard about the place and was really excited. I had my reservations. Namely, I don't think much of buffets. To me they are quintessentially quantity-over-quality: nothing is really great tasting, this look nice but just can't deliver flavor in the way that they might if they reduced from hundreds of items to simply dozens. Whatever. I'm picky and I'm not ashamed.

From Death By Chocolate

They describe the meal as an "all-you-can-enjoy buffet, which comprises a delicious assortment of more than 125 chocolate desserts, including chocolate mousses, specialty cakes, made-to-order chocolate crêpes, homemade ice cream, fresh baked cookies, milk chocolate passion fruit tarts, miniature s'more cups, cotton candy, delicate truffles, our signature chocolate break pudding and more." Well. Dessert is usually the best part of any meal, so it does have that going for it. But, my macro level focus *ahem* skipping of details, glazed over the indication that all that is served is dessert. Which for J was more than fine, but after all that chocolate, sugar and sweets I was dying for something savory. A couple of eggs, maybe some sausage. Not to be found.

From Death By Chocolate

While I was hardly starting, I was in no way full either. There really is a finite amount of desserts that I can eat on an empty stomach. And this was far too much. I can't say that I had ever been so done with chocolate until that moment. I'm reminded of the old trick to get a kid to stop smoking by forcing them to smoke a whole bunch and gross them out. That was kind of the effect on me. Just too much. There were other food options, like a rather tasty sounding lamb burger, but given I had already paid for my own meal and J's I didn't feel like shelling out another $20 just get a change up.

From Death By Chocolate

In the end, I think J was very happy with the meal: chocolate to one's own content. I felt that much of it filled my prediction. Most of it was good, but not great. Some was even boring and not worthy of finishing. I felt a bit guilty as I went back for my third or fourth plate. Kind of like eating bland birthday cake, I couldn't help wonder if it was worth the calories.

From Death By Chocolate

The themes and images were often well done with inventive plaiting and amusing plays on classics: see the "s'more in a spoon" in the first image. But it couldn't quite get beyond the fact that to meet the needs of such volume corners are cut. Plus, after all that type II inducement my tongue felt like it had been sandblasted. I shudder to think of my blood sugar level after that. The flavors became numbed in the blur of similarity.

From Death By Chocolate

For some, this would be an absolute ideal. Clearly, this is the place to bring a small group of tween girls. A birthday party of 5 showed up with someone's mom. You would have thought there were free Jonas Brother backstage passes hidden in the food the way these girl shoved their way through the throng of tourists. Beware the chocolate cravings of a gang of pre-teens. They have no remorse.

From Death By Chocolate

Bring Your Own

Found on Blanchards Twitter page:

GoBYO is a website that lists local restaurants by their corkage fees. Most impressively, you can search by no fee.

Off the to-do list: White Port

One of the souvenirs I got my self in Portugal was a small bottle of white port.

From Global Food

After having the classic Twany port several times, I was interested in trying something a little more unusual. Tawny is a very sweet wine, almost syrupy both in thickness and in taste. So at some place in Lisbon I grabbed a little bottle to sample the variety and promptly never got around to drinking it on the trip. When I got back, it went straight away into the cabinet with the expectation to open at... some point. Eventually, the white port earned a spot spot on my to-do list. While I was waiting to drink it, I wanted to be able to share it with as well.

Thanks to Nancy and her wine and cheese party last night I finally managed to crack it open.

From Global Food

Far lighter and much thinner, it had very little aroma with a lovely golden hue. The taste was best captured by Sam when he said, "It tastes like white port," in that it has a similar flavor to any other port, just much lighter. The sweetness is dialed back considerably, and the mouth feel isn't thick like jam, but much closer to a standard white.

While we finished off the evening with the white port, its considered more of an apéritif, and the bottle recommends trying it with soda or tonic.I enjoyed it; its a bit more versatile than a true dessert wine, which can be too much for some people. Still, I have to express a preference for Tawny. I just like sweet wines.

Cheese... you can grill

I'm a cheese fan. There. I said it. Its really not that shocking, but still. Most people I know at least like cheese. Some of us love it. While I might not be all that knowledgeable about the subject I like learning more. Trying new varieties. Pushing the boundary a little.

In perusing Harvest Market and City Feed (thank you sooooo much for updating your site, by the way) for salad cheese I have seen an item which proclaims its self to be "grilling cheese." The concept is a bit odd, and I was honestly wary of how to manage it, so I have routinely eyed the package, even picked it up now and again, but always moved on from it. Not today. I don't know why, but I was moved. Perhaps by the spirit of adventure. Perhaps by hunger. Maybe it was just the idea of GRILLING CHEESE but I made took home a package.

From Global Food

Once home I was a little panicked. Really? Grill? Just grill it? Maybe I could just crumble it and treat it like feta. I stared at it for a bit, nibbled on a sample and was underwhelmed. It had a chewy texture with a bit of squeak. A bit bland. Nothing special. And so I went to the never wrong Wiki for guidance. Ok... its called halloumi, yadda yadda yadda, Cyprus, yadda yadda yadda, fried until golden brown, higher-than-normal melting point. Yeah. That's enough.

Into the pan as thin slices it went with a little olive oil and garlic. Within a minute they were turning golden brown, and after a flip they went on to a mesclun salad.

From Global Food

Now the cheese was crunchy on the outside while remaining tender and soft within. Hot but not scalding the flavor came alive. I was compelled to share and interrupted my roommate to force to try some.

From Global Food

The company site suggests moistening with water and covering in flower before cooking, along with several other means of preparation. Totally unexpected product with amazing possibilities.

Edit: Added photos.

Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie

For an interesting food related show check out the PBS broadcast, Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie, which can also be found on Hulu.

Montreal: Je me souviens... La nourriture

So with an offer from Abby to have a very inexpensive stay in Montreal in the center of city, we packed up for a weekend getaway. The trip north from Boston would nominally take only about 4 hours or so, but with our stomachs in mind we planned a few detours in Vermont. Most importantly, tours of Cabot Cheese creamery, Ben & Jerry's factory; a Lake Champlain store and Cold Hollow Cider Mill.

The most challenging part of the trip was getting to our first stop, Cabot. Far removed from our highway, and and over abundance of faith in GPS lead us along an unmaintained dirt road in the back woods of Vermont. Cue banjo music. The tour was a flat out bust. A short informational video set the scene, which in my opinion is the equivalent of a movie voice over: its lazy. The tour itself was a 5 minute jaunt down a hallway... and then we were just told to head back. The tasting room held a nice verity of product selection, but still it was rather unimpressive. Not a bad stop if you're driving through, but not at all worth the trip on its own.

A short trek over to Ben & Jerry's was a little better, but not much. The corporate campus is actually a lovely, and large site. Sort of a park and almost recreation center, it would be a perfect location for a picnic and family time. The plant is much like the Sam Adams plant here in Boston, more for tours and show than real production. A short corporate video again took just as long as the tour, here a one room production line. But, we again got samples, and followed up free ice cream with an order of ice cream. Fat kids for life.

After the inevitable wait at the befuddlement of the Québécois guard dealing with a guy living in Boston who drives a California plated car, we found our selves closing in on Canada's second largest city. The drive took us past sprawling farms and rural communities which slowly gave way to small suburbs. The most bizarre element of which was the sighting of Boston Pizza. You read that correctly. Apparently its some kind of chain "sports bar/ casual family pizza restaurant" according to their about us page. We Bostonians were as confused as the border guard was.

After the inevitable confusion of navigating our way through a strange new city, we arrived late and hungry and at least an hour a head of half of our party. So we were led to my single regret of the weekend: no documentation, written or photo, of dinner (with some investigation I suspect its called Steve's Pizza). On the corner was a simple restaurant featuring burgers and pizza. On the advise of a contact we wandered in off the busy, Friday night street to what was a clean, but unspectacular looking short order. I often feel that the places which invest the least in appearances, the ones that are the most unassuming are in fact the most spectacular locations.

Tempted by the allure of the mysterious, and exotic poutine I opted for a combo meal of a hamburger, the cheese fries and a beer. The beer order was followed with only: "white or red," and opting for red I was delighted to find a rather lively, flavorful and high quality brew. As for the meal, the burger alone was spectacular, but hardly the most monumental aspect. While the patty was a bit on the small side, it was nonetheless expertly seasoned and grilled to perfection. An absolute delight, bar none.

But the poutine... well, it stole the show. I was honestly wary of the gravy. Gravy is far too often a grim and unpalatable goo. This was light and bound up with the cheese curds beautifully. The curds themselves were similar in texture and flavor to good mozzarella but with a little of the squeak that I understand good curds are supposed to have.

While we were staying, somewhat ironically, in the Portuguese section of town the French influence over our cuisine was ever present and unmistakable. Naturally there were nutella crepes...

From Global Food

From Global Food

But also there were delicate omelets

From Global Food

Croque-monsieurs

From Global Food

And this thing, which I inhaled so fast i was barely able to actually get a photo of it.

From Global Food

I think they called it a rarebit or something like that, but it had cheddar cheese, ham, bread, french mustard and a poached egg.

But alas, all good things come to an end, and come Monday we headed back south towards home. After another odd conversation with a boarder guard - this one about housing prices - we were quickly back into Vermont. Seeking out a breakfast stop we pulled over in a random town only to find a quaint dinner. With almost no hope of being able to reproduce the location or name of the place, I still must attest to the hearty delights that we found within. Simple and filling food was being served up in the home and restaurant of the owners who appear to seat most people at the bar and mix refills of coffee with banter and winks. Thickly cut corn beef hash found its way before me. Much to my delight it wasn't greasy or bland mush, but rather firm and well done comfort food presented in an uncomplicated and honest way. Amid the comings and goings of locals on a first name bases with the owner and his family, we completed our trip only a few miles away from the big city we had just left, but it felt a world away. Amid trees and rolling hills, was a hidden gem of eatery and a rather appropriate sense of completion to our eating tour of the Northeast.

Portugal: Wine Overview

Portugal was not a beer trip. In fact, I think this was my only beer on the trip:

From Global Food

After all, its hard to compete with the wine since its A: so cheep

From Global Food

B:So good; and C: Has so much variety.

As for A, that price is a little misleading. The standard price we paid for most bottles was in the 5 to 10 euros range, which still meant that it was more affordable to get a whole bottle than a single drink at most night clubs. At those prices, why just get one bottle?

From Global Food

With item B... you can either take my word for it, or go exploring your local wine store. I'm fortunate enough to live in Boston, which has a substantial Portuguese population. The other day I wandered into a random wine store in Cambridge, which has a significant Portuguese/Brazilian section, and found a diverse and plentiful selection of Iberian imports.

The variety is in fact as assorted and interesting as any major wine producing nation. Amongst others, there are, of course, whites...

From Global Food

... reds...

From Global Food

... roses...

From Global Food

... ports...

From Global Food

... and what is known as Vino Verde, or "green wine."

From Global Food

This is not an indication to the color, as you would find with Croatian black wines, but rather to age. Verdes are very young, immature wines. Accordingly, they are fresh, light and have an almost airy quality to them. They are ideal for drinking during hot summer days since they are so refreshing and simple.

At my behest we managed to pack in three winery tours during our time in and around Evora, the capital of the Alentejo region. Our first stop was the relatively modest, family run Roquevale. The next day we visited the massive CARMIM coop...

From Global Food

...and the overly touristy Herdade do Esporão.

Our first shock the presence of boxed wine. Yes. Wine, in a box. Every place seems to produce it due to a large domestic demand for it. Boxes make appearances in several liter sizes, and even juice box versions.

From Global Food

I just don't know.

The tours afforded us the opportunity to not only appreciate the relatively recent modernization of the Portuguese wine industry since Salazar. Up through the 1970s the main fermentation took place not in metal vats as seen today, but rather in massive terracotta jars (which I seem to have lost the photo of). The EU seems to have allowed a massive step up in both the level of sophistication as well the volume. Wineries, including bottling and distribution sections, are now state of the art. Vestiges of the low tech remain at many facilities for tourist photo ops and specialty souvenirs.

Apart from the official channels, the most unusual wine was an unfiltered table wine we had at a local restaurant/store around the corner in Lisbon. First of all, this was the difiniative "locals" place. In my previous entry I mentioned a lack of menus, well this was the place. No chalkboard, just verbal descriptions. Which, given our lack of Portuguese skills, was kind of amusing. But aside from being the attraction that night - five American's walk into a working class family restaurant and have no idea what they are doing, yuk, yuk, yuk - the place was very welcoming and friendly. After a fashion, the waitress brought out the following bottle:

From Global Food

Obviously, this is going to be good.

Putting aside questions about age and anti-freeze, we poured our selves some, which looked as like this:

From Global Food

What can I say? It wasn't the most amazing thing I've ever tasted, somewhat watery, unsurprisingly gritty but good.

And then there was the revelation. It's made with water from Fátima. As in, Our Lady of Fátima. Wow. I've never known a wine to be creepy before. But there it is.

So... if you're looking for a takeaway message, check out Portuguese wines: they are inexpensive enough to warrant experimenting with on their own. Supporting that, they are unique and delicious.