Stoneham Sun: Savory Tastes Cafe

My next column of "A Passionate Foodie" can be found in the August 29 issue of the Stoneham Sun newspaper as well as The Reading Advocate. Both are weekly free newspapers.

I write a weekly column that concentrates on reviews of local restaurants though it may also touch on a few other food and wine topics. This new column was published today and is available online as well. This column is a restaurant review of Savory Tastes Cafe in Reading, one of my favorite restaurant. You can also read an extended review of their recent Clambake dinner online.

If you have any questions or comments about my column, feel free to add them here. Next week, my column will recommend some local wine stores.

Dine with passion!

Georgie D's Place: Changes

I stopped by Georgie D's Place this evening for a quick dinner. Overall, it was another excellent meal. Though I noticed a couple subtle changes in a couple of the dishes.

We began with the Farmer's Sausage appetizer, something I have had there before. The gorgonzola cheese sauce was a bit thinner than previously, a slight change made by the Chef. The sauce was still quite delicious. The taste was really no different, it was simply not as heavy.

I then ordered the Chicken Marsala. The ham was different than before. Rather than small cubes of ham, this was more pieces of Prosciutto slices that might have been sauteed. This was a very nice change. It enhanced the dish and was a pleasant surprise.

We also ordered one of the specials, a haddock with a brandy brown butter shrimp sauce. This was a large, tender piece of haddock with a very tasty sauce.

It seems that the Chef is doing a little experimentation, trying to make his dishes even better. It certainly seems to be working so far.

Georgie D's Place
499 Main St.
Stoneham, MA
Phone: (781) 481-9300

Spain Vacation: Cellar Tours

If you love Spanish food and wine, what should you do? How about travel to Spain, to get the food and wine at its source? That is exactly what I will be doing.

In exactly one month, I will be traveling to Spain for a two-week vacation. This is a trip that I have been planning for about a year. I spent time researching, seeking the best trip that would cater to my food and wine desires. I needed to decide which regions of Spain to visit, what places I wished to see. I checked out several tour companies and one company stood out, Cellar Tours.

Cellar Tours offers luxury food and wine tours of Spain, Portugal and Italy. I read some very positive press about the company. For example, Forbes Travelers magazine recently listed its Ten Best Wine Vacations In The World and Cellar Tours ran three of the listed vacations. Cellar Tours had several sample itineraries for their Spanish tours and they certainly intrigued me. Plus, they were fully customizable. Cellar Tours would work to develop a personalized tour for you, to cater to your own preferences.

What impressed me most initially about Cellar Tours was their professionalism. They were quick to respond to all of my inquiries. They were always courteous and helpful. They made many suggestions and helped me devise a two-week trip that suited what I desired. I had initially inquired at a couple other companies but none of the others were as professional as Cellar Tours. One company was very lax in responding to my inquiries. So, Cellar Tours became my choice.

Now, I have been dealing with Cellar Tours for many months and that professionalism has never dimmed. I could not have asked more of any tour company. This has made me confident that my vacation will be exceptional.

I will visit several regions of Spain, starting in the city of Madrid and ending in Barcelona. I will visit about nine different wineries, in areas such as Rioja, Priorat and Penedes. I will dine at exceptional restaurants, including at least one Michelin three star in San Sebastian. I will visit the Boqueria market in Barcelona, dine on tapas, attend La Perla spa, and so much more. Though there is much planned, I will have plenty of free time as well to explore Spain.

The vacation will not be inexpensive. But it is a luxury vacation and you get what you pay for, a dream vacation. It includes high end hotels and restaurants. It includes a personal driver and guide when traveling to the various wineries. There are many other extras as well.

While I am away, I will take many photos and notes. My adventures will eventually end up here in my blog. I will review the wineries I visit, the wines I drink, the restaurants where I dine. You will feel like you have been in Spain too. I hope you will enjoy.

More on the 2004 Kanonkop Estate Wine Pinotage

Thanks to Peter May of The Pinotage Club for allowing me to post the above picture.

This is a photo of the back of the bottle of 2004 Kanonkop Estate Wine Pinotage in South Africa. If you look at my previous post on this wine, you can see a photo of the back of the bottle sold in the U.S. In comparing the two, you will note that the maturation graph is not included on the U.S. bottle.

Such a graph can be helpful in understanding which wines would benefit from cellaring, and how long they can be optimally stored. I know I still have difficulty determining the optimal times for storage of wines. I think such graphs could be beneficial on a number of wines.

Peter May did raise a good point though that such graphs could also turn off some buyers who won't want to wait to drink their wines.

2004 KanonKop Estate Wine Pinotage

I have long been a fan of the Pinotage varietal and consider it one of South Africa's great grapes. Yet it is a varietal that many people either love or hate. I think it gets a bad rap though and more people would like it if they had some of the better Pinotage wines that exist.

I recently purchased a few bottles of the 2004 Kanonkop Estate Wine Pinotage ($35). I have heard much about this wine, very positive press. But I was a bit concerned over whether I should drink it now, or let it sit in my cellar for some years. I had read an article over at The Pinotage Club discussing how many of Kanonkop Pinotages needed to age for ten years. So, I emailed Peter May at The Pinotage Club to ask him about the matter. Not only did he quickly respond to me, in a lengthy email, but he even tasted the wine again and wrote about his thoughts. His praise for the wine only made me even more eager to taste it.

The 2004 Kanonkop Estate Wine Pinotage is 100% Pinotage, made from vines that are up to 59 years old. The wine spends 16 months in new French oak and it has a 14.5% alcohol content. It is made in the Simonsberg area of Stellenbosch.

The wine is inky dark with a fruity nose, a smell of ripe berries. On the front palate, there were nice cherry and blackberry flavors that soon merged into a more smoky, bacon flavored finish. That merging was seamless, and the flavors just seemed to naturally change on the palate. It was a very smooth wine, with mild tannins. A lush mouth feel that definitely pleased me. And the more I drank, the more complex it seemed. Tinges of other flavors seemed to peek out, even a bit of chocolate. This wine certainly did not need to age to be an excellent wine.

Some Pinotages have a more earthy taste, which I don't mind but which turns others off. Yet I did not really find much earthiness here. This is the type of Pinotage that any wine lover should enjoy. It is just a superb wine, with a balanced complexity and luscious taste.

I paired the Pinotage with pasta and sausage. Yet it was a home-made venison sausage, very spicy, plus it was in a spicy Arrabiata sauce. With the taste of wild game, and the spiciness of the sauce and sausage, I thought this might be a good pairing. And it definitely worked. The Pinotage flavors melded perfectly with the food.

Overall, this was an excellent wine and a strong Drink & Buy recommendation. If you want some of the best of Pinotage, this is your wine. If you don't think you like Pinotage, then I challenge you to taste this wine and see what you think. I still have a couple bottles left, and will let them age a bit. Though I am going to seek out some more of this wine so I can drink some now as well.

Peter May was certainly right about this wine!