Thursday Sips & Nibbles

I am back again with a new edition of Thursday Sips & Nibbles, my regular column where I highlight some interesting, upcoming food & drink events.
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1) The Seaport Hotel & World Trade Center’s Action Kitchen is stirring things up with a brand new dinner and wine menu. Action Kitchen lets guests prepare and savor gourmet cuisine with guidance from Seaport Boston's award-winning culinary team, making this unique opportunity perfect for social and corporate events.

Some of the new collaborative cuisine options include Moroccan Fish Tagine made with potatoes, bell peppers, onions, chermoula and Basmati rice, as well as Marinated Seaport Honey Soy Skirt Steak, baby bok choy with coconut scallion rice cakes. Action Kitchen is also offering a new Wine Education package with a personalized 20-minute education experience led by the Seaport Hotel’s sommelier, Eric Loring, during each event when guests upgrade their wine. Learn the basics with Wine 101, taste across the globe with Old World vs. New World, or mix up your own classic summertime sip with the Sangria Station. Imagine your guests, 12-40 guests for a seated dinner and 60 guests for a reception style event, gathered in a gleaming gourmet kitchen with state-of-the-art equipment. Add music and lively conversation, and this is no ordinary family, friend or corporate gathering - it's the ultimate reception, cooking party or wine tasting in the ultimate kitchen.

Seaport is also announcing its new 'Cooking for the Community' initiative. For every group, company or organization that hosts a collaborative cooking event in Seaport's Action Kitchen, Seaport will donate $1 per person to their long-time partner, the Boston Rescue Mission. “We have worked with Seaport for many years, as they provide food to our organization when they have leftovers from a large event,” said Dennis Gaskell, Food Service Manager at the Boston Rescue Mission, “it’s a perfect partnership: a portion of the proceeds from events held in Seaport’s Action Kitchen benefit the Mission, which provides hearty meals to our hungry neighbors, emergency shelter to those living on the street and residential recovery programs for those who need a fresh start.”

2) The Wine Bottega in the North End is hosting some wine makers from the country of Georgia during the next two days. Tonight, from 6pm-8pm, they will host Gvantsa Abuladze of Baia's/Gvantsa's Wine and Mikheil Chonishvili of Chona's Marani. Tomorrow night, from 5:30pm-8:30pm, they will host Zurab Mgvdliashvili of Nikalas Marani and Beka Gotsadza of Gotsa.

Yesterday, I attending a Georgian wine tasting event and got to meet these wine makers and sample their wines and I was impressed. I've long been a fan of Georgian wines and I strongly encourage you to go to Wine Bottega, meet these winemakers and taste their compelling wines.

Gonzalez Byass La Copa Vermouth Extra Seco: From Sherry With Love

Copy of a newspaper advertisement from the Memphis Daily Appeal, September 18, 1869

It's time for more Vermouth! After yesterday's selections from California, we now turn our eyes to Spain, and more specifically to the famed Sherry region, a place very dear to my heart. A year ago, I reviewed the Gonzalez Byass La Copa Red Vermouth and I concluded that, "This is a Vermouth for Sherry lovers, wine lovers and cocktail lovers, earning my highest recommendation." For more information about Gonzalez Byass, please review my prior post.

"..the world renowned sherry house of Gonzalez Byass of Xeres, purveyors to King Alfonso, the enormous casks telling the fruitful story of the golden beads within."
Boston Daily Globe, December 19, 1883

"The most delicious of 'natural' sherries, free from all charge of 'brewedness,' free from all charge of over strength, with a taste as delicate as claret and as distinct as Burgundy, a tonic, a refresher, a stomachic, a cure of biliousness and gout, and most of the ills that flesh is heir to, is the so-called Tio Pepe."
The New York Times October 16, 1887

Besides their Red Vermouth, Gonzalez Byass also produces an Extra Seco Vermouth, and I recently received a media sample. This is an extra dry, white Vermouth that is produced from a selection of Tio Pepe Fino Sherries which have been aged for an average of three years in American oak. As you can see from the newspaper quote above, Tio Pepe has a long and illustrious history as a fine Sherry. The first Tio Pepe Fino was bottled in 1844, and it was also the first trademark in Spain. Tio Pepe is made from 100% Palomino, the primary grape used to produce Sherry.

"Immense quantities of vermouth are used in the United States. Vermouth is half of a Manhattan cocktail and nearly all of a vermouth cocktail. It is drunk clear sometimes, and enters as a flavoring into many mixed drinks."

--The Buffalo Commercial (NY), July 20, 1899

Gonzalez Byass used to produce Vermouth from 1896 to 1926, and their new versions are firmly based upon the old recipes. Thus, the Extra Seco Vermouth has strong historical roots. In addition, this Vermouth also possesses elements of terroir, a sense of place, as it is clearly a wine of the Sherry region. When you taste either of their two Vermouths, you can distinctly detect a Sherry aspect, and you feel a sense of southern Spain. This isn't Vermouth that can come from anywhere else. It is so specific to this wondrous region.

"According to the Spanish official list the total export of Sherry from Cadiz was, for the nine months ending the 30th September, 47,295 butts, against 39,503 in 1862. The principal shippers from Jerez were Gonzalez and Byass, 4,824; P. Domecq 2,891; M. Misa, 2,549; ..."
The Morning Post (London), October 15, 1863

The Gonzalez Byass La Copa Vermouth Extra Seco, which has a 17% ABV, was produced with numerous botanicals, including wormwood, savory, clove, and cinnamon. In addition, some red fruits were added "to achieve a long and persistent balsamic aftertaste." All you have to do is to smell this vermouth and it will remind you of a Fino Sherry. On the palate, it is bone dry, like a good Fino, with a compelling blend of flavors, including citrus and peach, herbal notes, and a hint of bitter. It is fresh and elegant, with a pleasant mouthfeel and a long, pleasing finish. It would be easy to drink this on its own, simply slightly chilled. However, it also is delicious over ice with some club soda, and would make an excellent addition to a cocktail, though I'd suggest you make it the star ingredient of the cocktail rather than in a supporting role.

I also re-tasted the Gonzalez Byass La Copa Red Vermouth and it was equally as good as it was last year. So, I should now reword one of my comments at the top of this article. "These are both Vermouths for Sherry lovers, wine lovers and cocktail lovers, earning my highest recommendations."

"American consuls at cities in the vermouth-producing regions have recently been asked to find out of what this liquor is composed....It is thought perfectly feasible to make vermouth in this country, and it was with an idea of helping such a project that the consuls made their report."
--The Buffalo Commercial (NY), July 20, 1899

T.W. Hollister Oso de Oro Vermouth: Worthy of Attention & Respect

"The French vermouth is a very different thing from the Italian, and much more popular. Within a few years the demand for the liquor has greatly increased, partly because the cocktail habit has steadily grown and vermouth enters into nearly all cocktails."
--The Morning Call (PA), June 6, 1890

In a number of respects, Vermouth is the Rodney Dangerfield of the wine world, not getting sufficient respect. Many people don't even realize that it's a wine, thinking it's only a minor ingredient in cocktails. That needs to change and Vermouth needs to be respected and loved for all that it can offer. With all of the new artisan Vermouths that are now being produced, there is so much to taste and enjoy.

As I've said before, "It's a wine with a fascinating history that extends back thousands of years...It can be delicious and complex, intriguing and diverse, and offers a template upon which a producer can put their individual stamp." Vermouth is a fortified and aromatized wine, which works well in cocktails but also can be enjoyed on its own, maybe with a ice cube or two. The intriguing complexity of some Vermouth makes it a compelling wine on its own. Fortunately, there are numerous producers taking Vermouth seriously, creating some unique and fascinating Vermouths, from a wide range of base wines and botanicals.

"Furthermore, the habit has grown of serving before a heavy dinner a glass of vermouth and bitters."
--The Morning Call (PA), June 6, 1890:

Back in 2010, I wrote an article about Carl Sutton, formerly of Sutton Cellars and who is now consulting on a number of endeavors. Back then, he had just come out with a Vermouth, and Boston was the second market, after San Francisco, for this new product. "Carl's vermouth was inspired in part by the Italian Amaro, a herbal liqueur. His vermouth contains 17 ingredients besides white wine, and he would only tell me that two of the ingredients were chamomille and dried orange peel." In addition, its creation was a lengthy and complicated process. "It took plenty of experimentation for Carl to get his vermouth as desired. The timing of the infusion was very important to the end flavor of the product. Eventually, he determined the best way was to first produce the wine, then fortify it and finally then do the infusion. It was difficult as there is little written about how to make vermouth, and producers keep their methods and processes secret."

I was impressed with his Vermouth, which possessed such a complex and enticing herbal flavor, and would commonly drink it with some club soda and ice. It was a refreshing summer drink and it was a bit sad when it was no longer available locally. However, Sutton has returned to the world of Vermouth and that is excellent news. With his clear passion for Vermouth, it's not surprising that he returned to it.

"Although Italy is the largest wine producing country in the world, the importation of Italian wines and cordials into the United States is comparatively limited. In the past ten years the increase in importation of wines and cordials from Italian ports has amounted to nearly 200 per cent. This gain, however, is not due to any increasing popularity of Italian wines among American consumers,.."
--The Sun (NY), December 30, 1895  

A new wine label, T.W. Hollister & Co., has recently launched in Santa Barbara, California, and possesses a strong historical connection. The company is led by Clinton Kyle Hollister, a descendant of William Welles Hollister, a rancher and entrepreneur who had a major impact on the development of the Santa Barbara region. One of their initial products is Vermouth, including both a Dry and Red Vermouth. It's certainly unique to find a new wine label which begins its production with Vermouth.

The creation of this Vermouth is due to a partnership of three men, including Clinton Kyle Hollister, and his childhood friend, Jesse Smith of Casitas Valley Farm. Jesse and Carl Sutton eventually bonded over Vermouth and Carl was brought on board for this project as well. They decided to produce French-style and Italian-style Vermouths, which they simply label as Dry and Red. It is also important to them that they use as many local botanicals as possible, including some that grow on the Hollister Ranch. They source their wormwood from Sonoma, as it is a milder version than many other American wormwoods. I received media samples of their two Vermouths, and they lived up to my expectations.

"The importation of vermouth , which were 84,000 gallons in 1891, 150,000 gallons in 1892, 186,000 gallons in 1893, and over 200,000 gallons in 1894, will, it is believed in the wholesale wine trade, exceed 225,000 gallons this year."
--The Sun (NY), December 30, 1895  

The T.W. Hollister Oso de Oro Dry Vermouth ($37) begins with a base of "quality white wine" and is macerated with a blend of 12 botanicals that include orange peel, wormwood, chamomile, rosehip, and hyssop. It has a 16% ABV and only 1000 bottles were produced of this batch. I felt the touch of Carl Sutton in this Vermouth, as it reminded me of his own White Vermouth that I used to enjoy so much. The Oso de Oro was dry and light, with an intriguing melange of herbs, bright fruit, and a touch of bitterness. Nice acidity, a lengthy finish, and such a pleasing taste on the palate. It went down so easy.

You can enjoy this Vermouth on its own, though I loved it mixed with some club soda and ice. It would also work well in a cocktail though I'd suggest making it the star of a cocktail rather than as a minor ingredient. I'm thinking about mixing it in a cocktail with a nice Fino or Manzanilla Sherry. The Oso de Oro Dry Vermouth is perfectly refreshing and has such a delicious taste. Highly recommended!

"Of late vermouth has come to be a necessary ingredient in nearly every cocktail compounded at an American bar."
--The Sun (NY), December 30, 1895 

The T.W. Hollister Oso de Oro Red Vermouth ($37) also begins with a base of "quality white wine" but is then macerated with a blend of 19 botanicals that include hummingbird sage, grapefruit peel, blood orange, vanilla bean, ginger root, and wormwood. Finally, they add some European caramel, sourced from a 5th generation family, to add texture, color and some sweetness. It has an 18% ABV and only 1000 bottles were produced of this batch.

This vermouth had a mild sweetness, well balanced with its acidity, and a complex and enticing blend of flavors, with bright red fruit notes, intriguing herbal notes, and more prominent bitter notes. It also possessed a lengthy and satisfying finish, a medium-body, and would also work well on its own or in a cocktail. I also enjoyed this red Vermouth with just some club soda and ice. It would work well in a cocktail, and it would be great with a starring role, though it would excel as a co-star too. Highly recommended.

At a price of $37, this may not be an easy buy for some, especially those who don't have much experience with Vermouth. However, you should consider the fact that they are produced in a very small quantity, and have been well-crafted. They are complex, intriguing and delicious, and I consider the price very fair for the quality of this Vermouth. This isn't the Vermouth you stow away in a cabinet and let gather dust before you need it for a cocktail. This is a Vermouth to savor on its own, to enjoy its fascinating blend of botanicals. Expand your palate!

Rant: Get Your Nose Out Of A Glass!

It's a photo that has become so overused that it has crossed over to the cliché. Sometimes it seems that everyone involved in the wine industry has taken such a photo, and many still use it as a primary photo for their websites or social media. I've certainly taken such a photo in the past. However, maybe now is the time to retire this photo, to try to find new ways to depict one's passion for wine.

I'm referring to those pictures where a wine person has their nose deep into a wine glass. They're everywhere! It's almost as if it is a prerequisite for someone in the wine industry, to take such a photo and show it to everyone. I've grown so tired of seeing this trite photo, wishing people would be more creative and come up with a different way of showing their love for wine. Wine writers can come up with hundreds of words to describe wine, so why do they get stuck on the same clichéd photo?

What does this photo actually represent? In some respects, it is indicative of one's wine knowledge, of someone who just doesn't drink their wine. They take the time to learn more about it, to assess its aromas before putting the wine to their lips. A photo of you drinking a glass of wine doesn't indicate that same level of knowledge. Anyone can just drink a glass of wine, but it's the people with some knowledge of wine who take the time to sniff the glass first.

However, it can also be seen as a sign of being a wine snob, someone who can't just enjoy a wine but must first dissect it. I've seen plenty of people make fun of wine professionals for swirling and sniffing their wine glass. So, when an everyday person sees such a photo, they don't always have a positive reaction to it. It can seem snooty to them.

Let's see more creativity in wine photos. Let us showcase different aspects of the wine world, and not just the same old one all the time. Get your nose out of a wine glass and show us something else, something interesting and new.

Thursday Sips & Nibbles

I am back again with a new edition of Thursday Sips & Nibbles, my regular column where I highlight some interesting, upcoming food & drink events.
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1) Bright flavors and colors embody the essence of RUKA, where Peruvian, Japanese and Chinese staples feed the culinary and cultural curiosities of gourmands and travelers alike who pass through Downtown Crossing. This summer, RUKA is incorporating New England’s freshest catches into its sushi offerings and taking over Lolita Cocina & Tequila Bars’ waterfront patio.

Summer Sushi Rolls: COJE Culinary Director Tom Berry has created four seasonal sushi rolls which will be featured all summer long on RUKA’s menu. A celebration of New England cuisine at its peak, Berry’s culinary passions are reflected in these lively mashups of Japanese ingredients with iconic New England fare.
--Clam Shack (Fried Ipswich clams, kimchee slaw + tartar sauce, avocado, lemon soy paper) $22
--Spicy Lobster (Grilled Portuguese chouriço, baby corn, sesame avocado, huancaína sauce) $21
--Garlic Shrimp (Grilled pineapple, avocado, crunchy garlic, hot sesame, lemon-soy butter) $17
--Sunflower (Summer fluke, marinated zucchini, avocado, zesty yuzu vinaigrette, sunflower seeds) $18

Patio Takeover: On Wednesday, July 10th from 4pm to 7pm RUKA will take over Lolita Cocina & Tequila Bar’s Fort Point patio. The sibling restaurant of Lolita and Yvonne’s is making its outdoor debut serving a curated selection of RUKA’s menu, including new summer sushi rolls, garlic and chicken fried rice, Asian-style tacos, and signature cocktails. A DJ will be spinning during this kickoff to summer patio party, COJE-style.

2) Learn the art of pastry with Grill 23 Executive Pastry Chef Valerie Nin. On Saturday, July 13, starting at 11am, guests are invited to participate in an intimate two-hour class where you'll learn how to make your own shortcake biscuit from start to finish, as well as summer fruit compote, jam and macerated berries. Then, guests will enjoy their creations with tea or coffee during a Q&A with Chef Val.

Guests will make their own dough and customize the cake flavor with a variety of ingredients, including citrus zest, poppy seeds, herbs and Earl Gray tea. After, Chef Val will teach the class how to make an array of shortcake toppings including macerated strawberries, peach compote and blueberry jam. Finally, guests are invited to enjoy their composed dessert with coffee, tea, espresso or a non-alcoholic beverage during a Q&A with Chef Val. Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase.

Tickets are $75 per person. For Reservations, go to https://www.eventbrite.com/e/summer-pastry-class-with-chef-valerie-nin-tickets-63125089843