The 13th Anniversary of The Passionate Foodie!

Pop the Bubbly as it's time to celebrate!

Tomorrow, The Passionate Foodie blog celebrates its Thirteenth Anniversary, a significant milestone. During all those years, I've seen many other blogs come and go, but I've chosen to continue my writing. With over 4700 posts, I'm very proud of all I've written and have accomplished, and I look forward to continuing to write, continuing to share and spread my deep passion for food & drink.

I've actually been writing about food and drink for 14 1/2 years, as I wrote for another blog, Real World Winers (since defunct), for 1 1/2 years before I started The Passionate Foodie.

During the past 13 years of The Passionate Foodie, I've learned so much about food & drinks, exploring a wide variety of topics, essentially anything I can eat or drink. I never wanted to limit my writing to a specific cuisine, type of drink, or other specialty. I want the freedom to explore whatever perks my interest and I know I'll never run out of subject matter. Every time I learn something new, I realize how much more there is to learn. That is one of my favorite aspects and it helps that I'm a voracious reader and love to research new topics.

My blog has provided me a myriad of wonderful opportunities and experiences, creating a vast storehouse of fantastic memories. I've sampled so much excellent and exciting food and drink, in this country and others. I've gotten to travel to some amazing destinations, including Canada, Croatia, France (Bordeaux and Champagne), Spain (Sherry region), Italy (Tuscany & Collio), Portugal (Douro region), Argentina and Chile. In the United States, I've visited a number of states, including California, Oregon, Washington, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maryland, Virginia, and more.

Last fall, I visited Croatia for the first time and had such a wonderful time, filled with great food and drink, gorgeous scenery, fascinating history, and fine people. I've written about 27 articles about Croatia, and am sure there will be more to come. It's such a compelling destination and I highly recommend you consider it as a possible future travel destination. Plus, you should buy some Croatian wines and experience their quality and taste.

I've met so many interesting people, which has enhanced my experiences as I've long said that food and drink when shared is even better. Some of those people have become very close friends, and I think those friendships will last for many years to come. It has been fascinating to meet numerous wine makers, distillers, brewers, wine & liquor store owners, importers, distributors, restaurant owners, chefs, and much more. From each, I've learned something new, which has helped my writing and understanding.

During these thirteen years, what began as a hobby transformed into my profession. I'm now a freelance writer, having been published in a number of magazines and newspapers. I've recently started writing a column for Sampan, a bilingual Chinese-English newspaper in New England. I'm also a Sake educator and consultant, working for a variety of clients, from restaurants to distributors, conducting Sake classes, tastings, dinners and more. Plus, I work part time at a local wine store, gaining an insight into wine consumers.

In addition, I write fiction, and have published three novels and a book of short stories. The fiction is mostly part of the Tipsy Sensei series, about a Sake expert in Boston who learns that the supernatural creatures of Japanese folklore are real. In addition, this past year, I've publishing a crime novella, The Lion's Diamonds. I was also a contributor to a comprehensive whiskey guide, The New Single Malt Whiskey.

It has been my pleasure to try to showcase and promote under-appreciated and/or lesser known wines, spirits and other drinks, such as Sake, Sherry, Franciacorta, Croatian Wines, Greek Wines, Georgian Wines, Uruguayan Wines, Portuguese Wines, Mezcal, Baijiu and more. I've championed many of these underdogs, all which are worthy beverages deserving of much more attention by consumers as well as other writers. We all need to expand our palates and seek out the liquid wonders that can be found all around the world.

Within the last year, I've spent lots of time researching and writing numerous historical articles about food and drink, and I'm especially proud of these articles, many breaking new ground in our understanding of certain topics. Some of these articles include:

• The three-part Water Doughnuts: Some Bagel History and More on the Origin of the Everything Bagel
• Expanded/revised versions of A History of Sake Brewing in the U.S., Historical Tidbits About Sake in the U.S., A History of Sake Brewing in Brazil, and Early History of Sake Brewing in British Colombia
• The two-part Historical Tidbits About Baijiu, The World's Most Popular Spirit 
• What's Traditional Shepherd's Pie: A Historical Look
• Expanded/revised version of Moonshine? A History of Sotol in the U.S.
• Origins of Manhattan Clam Chowder
• A seven-part series on The First Restaurants In Boston's Chinatown
• A seven-part series on The First Chinese Restaurants Outside Boston
• A three-part series on The First Chinese Restaurants in Connecticut
• Blob Joints: A History of Dim Sum in the U.S.
• Origins Of The Chop Suey Sandwich: A New England Invention?
• What's A Chop Suey Sundae?
• Origins Of The St. Paul Sandwich: A Missouri Invention?
• Origins of Crab Rangoon
• Expanded/revised version of The Origins of American Chop Suey

I believe my writing has improved over all these years but some of my earliest articles still stand the test of time. I hope to continue writing articles that make me proud, articles that my readers find interesting and enlightening. And I want to keep challenging myself, to write better and better articles each year.

I owe many thanks to all of my readers, as it is their support and encouragement which has helped motivate me to continue writing year after year. I also owe thanks to my family and friends who have been so supportive for all these years. In addition, I am grateful to everyone in the food and drink community, from chefs to wine makers, who have helped contribute, in a myriad of ways, to my blog.  Life is about connections, about the relationships we make, and they all contribute to what we do.

If I didn't thoroughly enjoy what I've been doing, then it would have ended years ago. I find it fulfilling and satisfying, and hope that my passion for food, drink and writing never dims. I look forward to celebrating my 14th anniversary next year, and I hope my readers keep reading me year after year.

It's time to celebrate!