Porchai

In Wakefield, the hottest Thai restaurant is probably The Duck Walk. But it is not the only Thai restaurant. There is also Porchai, located only a short distance from The Duck Walk. I thought I would go for dinner and see how it measure up.

Porchai is a much smaller restaurant, with three small dining rooms on three different levels. It is more plainly decorated and does not have a bar. In fact, it does not have a liquor license. But, you can bring your own wine or beer and there is no corkage fee. That is a definite plus.

Their menu is fairly lengthy with a nice variety of available dishes. There are appetizers, soups, salads, noodle dishes, fried rice dishes, and many different entrees. Prices seem very reasonable (and usually much cheaper than Duck Walk). Entrees range from $10-$13 and their signature dishes range from $13-19. All very affordable. They have most of the usual Thai dishes as well as many more unique dishes. They even have a list of 19 lunch specials, all for $6-$7.

I started with an appetizer of Pot Stickers ($6), which were pan-fried chicken dumplings. You get four large dumplings. They were cooked just right, not being overly cooked. And they tasted very good. They were actually one of the better pot stickers that I have ever had. A nice start to my dinner.

I then ordered the Massaman Curry with Chicken ($11). This is one of my favorite Thai dishes and a good way to compare Porchai to other Thai restaurants. I received a large dish of food. There was plenty of chicken, thin pieces of cutlet, and pieces of sweet potato. The dish also has onions and peanuts. The sauce was very good, with a nice coconut flavor giving it a bit of a sweet flavor. You get either white or brown rice with this dish and I chose the rice. The only minor complaint is that some of the peanuts seemed to have been overcooked and had small almost burn marks on them. Overall though, this was a very good dish and I would order it again.

So, Porchai made a good impression on me. If you want a more affordable Thai meal, you should try Porchai. I am very interested in returning to try some of their Duck dishes such as the Siamese Ruby Duck.

Porchai
19 Centre St.
Wakefield, MA
Phone: (781) 213-9933

Want $1 For An Empty Wine Bottle?

Start saving your empty wine bottles as they are worth money. A mere can will only get you a nickel but an empty wine bottle can get you $1.

The Vineyard has a new program, lasting until August 30, where you can bring them your empty wine bottles and get $1 in merchandise credit for each bottle. You can bring as many as 120 bottles per day. You can then spend your credits up through September 15. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me and I will start saving my wine bottles.

Plus, you will be helping the environment. The Vineyard will recycle the bottles or find an appropriate "re-use" for the bottles. This is an excellent recycling program where everyone involved will benefit.

I think this is a great deal and would love to see other wine stores running similar programs.

The Vineyard
554 Turnpike St. (Rt. 114)
North Andover, MA

New Spirited Gourmet Store

The Spirited Gourmet wine store in Winchester is one of my recommended wine stores. This fall, they are going to expand and open a second store in the Cushing Square section of Belmont.

Their announcement included the following: "Previously a "dry" town, Belmont approved retail licenses after Elena presented our store concept to the town at their town meeting last Fall. On Monday evening we pitched our store against three other applicants and were granted an all liquor license by unanimous vote. We greatly appreciate everyone who wrote to Belmont in support of our application as well as our incredible customer base that has allowed us to present an award-winning store."

So, this is good news for Belmont and anyone in that area.

Amphora-Fermented Wines

Wines & Vines has a fascinating article concerning a California winery, Del Dotto Vineyards, that has started to use terra cotta-lined amphorae to ferment some of their wines. This is a practice that stems back to the ancient days of winemaking. But, there may only be one other wine maker in the world that uses such clay vessels, Friuli's Josko Gravner.

The first release, possibly in September, will be a 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon which will also be bottled in clay magnums. It should retail for around $100.

Supposedly wines fermented in this manner have an earthier taste, something very different from what many are used to in their wines.

This certainly sounds very interesting and I am curious how the wines would taste. It reminds me somewhat of Sean Thackrey who uses many medieval winemaking methods at his own winery. And I very much enjoy his wines.

But, Del Dotto Vineyards, at least based on this article, seems a bit more concerned with making money. He talks about how this is a great marketing opportunity. I would rather see a man passionate about winemaking, who is experimenting, rather than someone simply seeking a new gimmick.

Maybe this will lead to other wineries trying clay vessel fermentation. I will have to look more into the wines of Josko Gravner.

2005 Turchi Syrah

The Core Wine Co. is located in Santa Barbara County in the Cayuma Valley. Their Alta Mesa Vineyards are about 3200 meters in elevation and are planted primarily with Mourvedre, Grenache and Syrah. They make several different wines including Hard Core, Core and Turchi Syrah. The wines are small production wines and have been receiving many positive reviews. I recently purchased a few of their wines and have begun tasting them.

I have started with their 2005 Turchi Syrah ($20), their lowest end wine. Their goal with this wine was to make a reasonably priced wine that would pair well with many different foods. The wine is a blend of 83% Syrah, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Malbec. It is supposed to be inspired by northern Rhone wines. Only 1800 cases were made.

This is a dark colored wine with a fruity aroma. On the palate, you get the full flavor of blackberries and blueberries with a touch of spice. It is a smooth wine with mild tannins. It has a medium length finish with some pepper on the end. It has some complexity though is not overly so. It is more of an everyday drinking wine. The wine paired well with a bacon cheeseburger calzone. I did like this wine and felt it was different from the typical Australian Shiraz. It was a nice change and I would recommend this as a Drink & Buy.

I look forward to trying the Core and Hardcore.

I should note as well that Core Wine Co. considers wine bloggers to have a lot of positive impact on their sales, behind only the impact of Robert Parker.