Sake News

Kanpai! Here is another short list of some of the interesting Sake articles that have been published lately. It is great to see more and more coverage for Sake, though I recommend that anyone seeking to publish a Sake article check it at least a few times for accuracy. A few basic errors continue showing up in introductory Sake articles, and those errors would be easy to eliminate if you had a knowledgeable Sake person check your facts. Let us also hope that we see more than just introductory Sake articles in the future. Sake has many depths and all those varied facets make great material for articles.

1) Wine in kegs is a new trend but what about Sake? SakéOne, a Sake brewery in Oregon, has recently launched a Sake in a keg, using their Momokawa Organic Junmai Ginjo. This Sake uses certified organic Calrose rice that has been polished down to 60%. The keg, holding 19.5 liters, features the Nitro Keg system, which uses 75% nitrogen and 25% carbon dioxide to maintain freshness and the Sake's flavor profile. The Momokawa Organic Junmai Ginjo Saké is now on tap at restaurants in Oregon, California, Washington, Illinois, Nevada and New York.

I think this is an excellent idea, and a great way to keep Sake fresh at a bar or restaurant. Having Sake on tap should be a compelling selling point, and a great way to introduce people to Sake. Bars and restaurants can sell the Sake on its own, or integrate it into their cocktail programs. With the trend of wine in kegs, Sake can hop on that wagon and spread to a wider audience. Kudos to SakeOne for moving forward in this direction.

2) Sake brewed in Scotland? Well, the Japanese emulated Scotland and now creates some of the best whiskey in the world. Can Scotland replicate this success, but in the realm of Sake? One Scottish brewery wants to give it a try. Both the Daily Record and The Scotsman reported on the plans of the Arran Brewery, a beer brewery located on the isle of Arran. The brewery purchased land in Dreghorn where they plan to construct a Sake brewery. They have already been brewing a tiny amount of Sake but now want to take it to a commercial scale. This would probably be the second Sake brewery in Europe, the first being Nogne in Norway.

Curiously, Arran plans to export most of their Sake to Japan, partially thinking that the popularity of Scotch whiskey in Japan will extend to Scottish Sake too. As Sake consumption in Japan has been decreasing over the years, maybe it isn't the best market for Scottish Sake. Sure, there would be the novelty of the Sake at first, but could it hope to compete with all of the domestically produced Sake? That seems doubtful. Arran Brewery might be better served trying to primarily sell to the European market, or even the U.S. market. They could then export a smaller portion to Japan and see how well it does there before committing a larger portion of their production.

3) With summer coming, a fresh pitcher of Sangria sounds good but what about some Sake Sangria?   Over at Rocket News 24. they have a simple recipe for creating Sake Sangria and it is made from only Sake and fruit. It is more like an infused Sake as you let the fruit sit in the Sake for a day. The article even mentions how to make a Sake Smoothie with the alcohol soaked fruit. Why not give it a try?

Rant: The Crime Of Transporting Wine

You've probably broken some Massachusetts wine laws and didn't even realize it. And even if you were aware of those laws, you probably have ignored them. It is not as if the police typically enforce those laws, though the possibility exists and recent examples of police action in Vermont may not bode well for those of us in Massachusetts.

The law in Vermont states that you cannot transport into the state more than 6 gallons of wine, the equivalent of about 30 bottles of wine. In December 2013, during a traffic stop, the Vermont State Police arrested a man for violation of this transportation law. The driver had purchased the wine in New Hampshire and was taking it to New York. Though the exact amount of alcohol was not mentioned, it was noted it totaled over $44,000. Then, in March 2014, the State Police stopped another driver who was transporting 33 gallons of wine he purchased in New Hampshire. The police confiscated 27 gallons of the wine and charged him with Illegal Vinous Beverage Importation. Though such arrests are rare, having two such arrests in a short time period is worrisome. Does it indicate a new trend to enforce the law?

This could happen in Massachusetts too. Under MA General Laws Chapter 138, Section 2, it states: "No person shall manufacture, with intent to sell, sell or expose or keep for sale, store, transport, import or export alcoholic beverages or alcohol, except as authorized by this chapter;..." So, if you travel to a New Hampshire liquor store, buy a single bottle of wine and bring it back to Massachusetts, you have broken the law. One bottle, one case, or two cases, it is all the same. And according to Rick Gerrish, the director of marketing for the New Hampshire Liquor Commission, more than 50% of their sales are to out of state buyers, including about 28% from Massachusetts. That is a lot of law breakers.

To legally transport wine from New Hampshire, you need to apply for a special permit: Application for a Special Permit to Import Household Effects/Gifts Into Massachusetts. You will also have to pay a small fee for your alcohol, such as 55 cents per gallon of still wine and 70 cents per gallon of sparkling wine. Spirits cost the most, at $4.05 per gallon. How many people though avail themselves of this special permit? In 2009, only 168 special permits were issued and in 2013, the number had barely changed, to 169. These permits cover not just wine transported from New Hampshire, but also wine from any other state. Bringing wine home with you from a vacation? That is probably illegal too unless you possess one of these special permits. Have any of my readers ever obtained one of these permits?

Even transporting wine within Massachusetts can cause problems with the law. According to MA General Laws Chapter 138, Section 22, "Any person may, but only for his own use and that of his family and guests, transport alcoholic beverages or alcohol, without any license or permit, but not exceeding in amount, at any one time, twenty gallons of malt beverages, three gallons of any other alcoholic beverage, or one gallon of alcohol, or their measured equivalent;..." This means that if you transport more than 15 bottles of wine in your car, you would be in violation. So if you buy two cases of wine at your local store, you legally are not allowed to transport it to your home without a special permit. Isn't that crazy?

These laws are rarely enforced so why even have them? Why have these Swords of Damocles hanging over the heads of wine lovers? They are relics of Prohibition and the time to change these laws is now. Unfortunately, it is doubtful anything will be done by our legislators in this regard. House Bill 294 is still languishing, awaiting a vote, and the length of time it has taken to even get to that point has been far too long. However, the more consumers speak up, the better. They need to contact their legislators, to demand action. Let us work together to change these relic laws and enable wine lovers to get whatever wine they desire.

Thursday Sips & Nibbles

I am back again with a new edition of Thursday Sips & Nibbles, my regular column where I highlight some interesting wine and food items that are upcoming. **********************************************************
1) From May 13 to June 11, The MET Restaurant Group will host its Ninth Annual Soft Shell Crab Festival serving the delicious crustacean 30 ways in 30 days. Hailing from Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay, soft shell crabs have tantalized the taste buds of seafood lovers across the globe. The MET has explored a variety of flavors and techniques that reveal the best of this culinary creature and will offer a special soft shell crab dish each night from mid-May to mid-June.

Guests will enjoy some very crustacean creations including Soft Shell Monte Cristo, Corn meal Crusted Crab with corn silk, favas and pea tendrils, Tempura Fried Crab with soy peanut sauce and cucumber noodles, and Chili Crab Pizza topped with fried crab, sweet chili and arugula. For the purist, soft shell crabs will also be available meuniére style daily.

For more information on MET Back Bay, please visit www.metbackbay.com

2) AKA Bistro, one of my favorite suburban restaurants, has unfortunately been closed since December because of a flood. They now hope to open by the end of April, and that opening will bring some changes. They will change their menu concept, having both Japanese and French dishes on the same, one-page menu. The Japanese fare will include more than just sashimi dishes. There will also be a new look to their bar, a quieter & cooler dining room, and a streamlined open kitchen. I eagerly look forward to their reopening.

3) Friends of Boston’s Homeless, in celebration of decades of success in providing solutions to homelessness in Boston, announces the 27th annual Beyond Shelter benefit gala. Hosted by John Rosenthal, founder of Friends of Boston’s Homeless, alongside emcees Jonathan Soroff of The Improper Bostonian and Rita Cary of 92.5 The River, the event will feature gourmet tastings by the Boston area’s top chefs with live music by Los 4 and the Berklee Bob Marley Ensemble.

Over 25 restaurants will participate this year, including Ashmont Grill, Eastern Standard, Flour Bakery + Café, The Fireplace, Hamersley’s Bistro, Gather, Fenmore Grill, Legal Sea Foods, Steel & Rye, Sweet Basil, Tavolo, Tresca, and Union Bar & Grille. Woodstock Inn Brewery and J. Lohr will serve as the evening’s beer and wine sponsors. The annual gala will also feature a raffle and live auction with items including Red Sox and New England Patriots autographed sports memorabilia, VIP concert tickets, fine art, jewelry, and luxury city weekend getaway packages.

Event proceeds will directly benefit Friends of Boston’s Homeless programs to end homelessness by helping individuals gain independence through Housing First, adult education, employment, life skills development, and access to permanent affordable housing.

Focusing this year on Friends’ Housing First Start-Up Fund, this fund provides long-term homeless individuals with permanent supportive housing, so they are no longer living on the streets or in shelters. Not just a humane solution to street homelessness, “Housing First” saves our Commonwealth significantly in emergency, medical, and public safety costs, roughly $10,000/person, in fact. In just three years, this initiative has helped to place over 350 chronically homeless individuals in dignified, permanent housing, over 90% of whom have maintained their housing and have not returned to the streets or shelters.

WHEN: Thursday, April 10, 7pm-10pm
WHERE: House of Blues Boston, 15 Lansdowne Street
TICKETS: $125 // General Admission
For further information and to purchase tickets, visit www.fobh.org

4) A group of Boston's top chefs are teaming up to help raise money for the families of Lt. Edward Walsh and Firefighter Michael Kennedy. The event, called United for Boston's Own, is scheduled for Monday, April 14. Chefs donating time, energy and resources include Ken Oringer, Ming Tsai, Jay Hajj, Michael Schlow, Mike Smith, Ting Yen, Jamie Bissonnette, Michael Scelfo and Monica Glass.

"At times like this, I'm honored, along with others in the restaurant community, to rally together and support these families," says Ken Oringer, owner of Clio, Toro, Coppa and Uni. "It hopefully will help ease some of the journey that stills lays ahead of them."

"Food is a great way to bring people together," says Ming Tsai, owner of Blue Ginger and Blue Dragon. "The fact that we are able to use this event to bring attention and support to this important initiative is very rewarding."

United for Boston's Own will consist of a nine-course seated dinner, each one specifically prepared by one of the Chefs. It will be held at Mike's City Diner at 1714 Washington Street, Boston.

Only 60 seats are available and will be sold at $500 each. One hundred percent (100%) of the proceeds are going to the Walsh-Kennedy Memorial Fund.

Tickets are being handled by Eventbrite and can be purchased at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/united-for-bostons-own-tickets-11155906617

How To Cook Seafood, Vol.1

"In the hands of an able cook, fish can become an inexhaustible source of perpetual delight."
---Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

Are there reasons why you don't cook more seafood at home?
Do you have difficulty, or feel intimidated, preparing seafood at home?
Do you know how to best cook fish and shellfish?

As I have previously said, on repeated occasions, Americans don't eat enough seafood. You should eat seafood at least twice a week, garnering its significant health benefits. A significant reason why people don't eat enough seafood is that many are not comfortable cooking seafood at home. They feel intimidated, and don't want to potentially ruin an expensive piece of fish. I have found that even some of my more food-oriented friends still are not confident cooking seafood. So how do we change that? How do we give people more confidence in preparing seafood at home?

In my coverage of the Seafood Expo North America, I wrote a post, How To Cook Seafood, which included advice from chefs for home cooks on preparing seafood. I was inspired to continue in this vein, to provide home cooks with more seafood cooking advice. Thus, I have created a new series on my blog, How To Cook Seafood, which will consist of advice and recipes from local chefs. The advice will be geared for home cooks, simple suggestions and recipes that most anyone can do at home. My hope is that it will spur on more people to cook seafood at home.

If any local chef is interested in participating in this series, please contact me.

Now onto the first three chefs in this first volume of this series, all with some grilling advice which is a great preview as the weather starts to get warmer.

Chef Marc Orfaly, the Executive Chef at The Beehive, advises:

"When cooking at home, especially fish, I try to keep things as simple as possible. Summer time is a no brainer, the great outdoors means firing up the big grill. I prefer charcoal, but gas is always cleaner and some what easier.

"I recommend using a hearty or thickly cut steak, fish such as swordfish, salmon, striped bass or tuna. Always remember to clean the grates of the grill and swab with an oil dipped towel (this will prevent sticking). Fish like salmon or bass, I like to cook and start skin side down (lightly oil the skin side first) and then finish on the flesh side. Other fishm like halibut, tuna and swordfish, can be cooked at equal times on either sides.

"Accompaniments for grilled items could be beautiful grilled vegetables, any type of salsa, or as simple as a piece of lemon. The quality of the fish should always be the star of the show.

"Cooking indoors I find can be a bit more challenging for the home cook. Two great techniques are either broiling or poaching stove top. Ideal fish for broiling are sole, haddock, pollock or cod. Place fish on a cookie sheet tray and season with dry white wine, sale & pepper, lemon, pat of butter, or just EVOO. When the fish is almost done, top with seasoned bread crumbs if desired.

"A good way to poach stove top is simply with a shallow sauté pan of water seasoned with salt, a touch of lemon juice and/or dry white wine. Fish such as tuna or salmon can be poached over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Good side dishes are sautéed spinach or peas."

Chef Andy DiPace, the Executive Chef of Sky Restaurant, recommends:

"When I order fish, I call my fish order in every morning to find out what just came in and what looks good. This helps us get the best possible and freshest fish. You can do the same thing when you are at the market. Ask the fishmonger what’s fresh and what just came in. Do a visual inspection of the fish. Looking for nice bright color, nothing that is opaque, shiny (shiny can mean slimy) and avoid frozen or color added fish. Ask if it farm raised (although it’s not bad, wild caught is always better). Ask if you can feel the fish. Avoid mushy fish, fish that doesn't bounce back if pressed, and nothing that feels slimy.

"Depending on what you’re cooking, say swordfish, we have a grilled swordfish on our menu, topped with a lemon caper butter. Depending on what you’re doing to it you want different sizes. 8 oz, or ½ pound is a good number to base on per person. Since we are grilling we don’t want it to be too thick or too thin. To thick and it will take too long and burn, to thin it will easily over cook and become dry. So about 1 inch thick is perfect.

"Ok, now for preparing and grilling. Just a simple marinade is fine. Oil, salt, pepper, chopped parsley and thyme. Don’t soak the fish. This can lead to flare ups later on. Using a gas grill can cause a butane kind of flavor and charcoal a burnt flavor, which we want to avoid. Now make sure the grill is hot to avoid the fish sticking. Shake off excess oil and place on rack. If you do get flames, a spray bottle with water can help eliminate this. To impress your friends, turn 90 degrees to make diamond marks. Swordfish you want to cook all the way through. It takes about ten minutes on each side until it is done. There are a couple ways to check if it’s done. One, temp it, 140 degrees and its done, pull it off a little before this, it will keep cooking when it’s pulled off. This way you avoid over cooking it. Two, you can check by touching it. If it feels squishy needs more time. And three just cheat and check the middle with your tongs. Looking for all white not grey."

Chef Greg Weinstock, the Executive Chef at Salvatore's in Boston

"Being a chef means spending the majority of my time in a kitchen. I don’t do a lot of cooking at home, but when I do I try to keep it as simple as possible. I don’t want to spend my valuable time off cleaning another kitchen. During the warmer months, I really enjoy using my grill, cooking outside doesn't feel like work. An ice cold beer in hand, some good music and conversation, and I’m in my happy place. I love grilling fish and then topping it with a homemade salsa, quick and easy. One of my favorite preparations is topping striped bass with a twist on salsa verde, the classic Italian sauce. During the summer months when the stripers are running, there is nothing better than fresh caught Cape Cod striper. The following recipe is super easy and can be made using a multitude of other seafood varieties.

Cilantro Salsa Verde
You can make this ahead of time and refrigerate, it will keep for a few days in the refrigerator.

Ingredients:
1 bunch of cilantro chopped (stems and leaves)
2 oz scallions sliced very thin (greens and whites)
1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
½ cup of lime juice
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
Salt & Pepper to taste

Method:
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and season with salt and pepper; if it is a little too acidic you can add a touch of honey or agave nectar to sweeten it
Set aside to use later

Grilled Striped Bass
"I like to use a charcoal grill, the wood imparts a nice flavor into the fish or meat. If you don’t have a charcoal grill, a gas grill will work suitably as well.

"Before grilling the fish, I brush it with vegetable oil. I don’t use extra virgin for this as extra virgin olive oil has a lower flashpoint and will flare up on the grill causing the fish to taste like gasoline. After brushing I season liberally with Kosher Salt and ground black pepper.

"I like to sear the fish on high heat and then finish it with low, indirect heat. I place the majority of the coals on one side of the grill and after they are ready will start my fish, flesh side first over these. After I get a nice sear I move it to the side with very little coals to finish, this way you are ensured a nice moist center without a burnt exterior. I suggest investing in a fish spatula; you can find these inexpensively online at sites like Amazon, or in stores such as Williams and Sonoma. These spatulas have a thinner more flexible metal than traditional bbq spatulas and make it easier to turn the fish on the grill. The light oil the fish was brushed with will help to keep it from sticking to the grill as well.

"Be careful not to overcook the fish. You want to pull it off the grill when the center is slightly warmer than human body temperature. Chefs test this by taking a thin metal skewer and placing it into the center of the fish and then holding it to our lips. The lip is better to test with because it is more sensitive to heat. When it is slightly warmer than your lips, remove the fish from the grill and let it rest. The fish is still cooking during this resting period and the flesh is reabsorbing all the moisture that the heat of the grill has removed.

"After 5-7 minutes of rest, top with the salsa verde and serve."

The Great Purple Debate

On Facebook, Dave Andelman, of The Phantom Gourmet, is outspoken and controversial. He has also been generally unwilling to debate his points of view there, banning numerous individuals who have voiced an opinion different than his own. I am one of those persons that he banned on Facebook, because I dared argue with him. Though I left it alone for a time, I eventually decided to pursue it, to confront him once again.

Through a series of email exchanges, which began rather heated, we actually came to a consensus of sorts. In a positive step at the end, Dave agreed to participate in a public debate with me, concentrating on the issue of food trucks. Dave's opposition to food trucks is well known, and he feels very confident that he can back up his assertions. I am equally as confident that I can defeat Dave on this issue.

Though all of the details have not yet been settled, some matters have already been set. In deference to Dave, the location of the debate will be the Kowloon Restaurant. There will be a limited amount of tickets available to the public for this debate, though the price has not yet been set. The ticket price though will include a Chinese buffet, with all-you-can-eat chicken wings, and a portion of the proceeds will go to fighting sexism in the restaurant industry, a charity dear to Dave's heart.

The debate will be decided by three judges and Dave and I each get to select one judge, and then must agree on the choice of the third judge. I have not yet chosen my judge, though I have a few people on my list I will be asking soon, including a couple local food writers. As for our agreed judge, we are hoping to get the former Mayor Thomas Menino to participate. Dave has already chosen Ernie Boch, Jr. to be his judge.

The event will likely take place sometime near the end of May, and I will update my readers as soon as the details are confirmed.

Of course any debate requires some stakes, and we have agreed upon conditions to occur should either of us lose the debate. If I lose, I have agreed to make a substantial donation to Andelman's Restaurant & Business Alliance. If Dave loses, then the Phantom Gourmet must sponsor a special Food Truck event for all of their phans.

I look forward to this great, purple debate!