Vacations, what are they good for?

 Cycling, Food & Wine, Life, Philosophy, Vacations  No Responses »
Oct 172011
 

There used to be a time when I enjoyed going on vacation, but now not so much.

I don’t know if it’s simply because of all the little things I hate about traveling, i.e. packing and unpacking, checking into and out of hotels, airport hassles etc. or simply the fact I don’t need to travel anywhere.

I already live in an area which has everything most people dream of in a vacation. I sure don’t need to drive very far, or fly to all corners of the world, to get away (my justification for our latest trip to Solvang/Santa Inez). I can go to Disneyland for that, and still sleep in my own bed at the end of the day.

Sure it’s enlightening to experience new places, but I’ve seen most of the US, and I’ve been to France, Italy and England. I lived in Okinawa for 18 months, and vacationed in the Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Fiji (twice), Tahiti, Hawaii, and the Caribbean. I’ve even been to New Zealand. I don’t need any more enlightening.

Plus, I’m not into culture. I’d just as soon watch a travelogue, or look at photos someone else has taken of the places I’ve never been. My real reason for going anywhere is to experience the food and wine of a region, but I can get all that right here in beautiful southern California, and in spades!

So why go through all the hassles of leaving home, worrying about how Morris and Chloe (our cats) are doing, or feeling down because I’m not out riding my bike?

The truth of the matter is I don’t. I just need to accept that realization.

I know hearing all that won’t please the travel industry very much, but why do I need to please them? [I never really considered them an industry anyways.] It should, however, keep the local restaurant’s happy, as I’ll be able to frequent them more often, as well as the wine industry, by keeping my wine cellar well stocked with lots of high quality wines.

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 Posted by Marc at 10:02 am

Are things really that bad?

 Food & Wine  4 Responses »
Sep 212011
 

Catal Restaurant in Downtown Disney (Anaheim, CA) just called to cancel a beer dinner they were having tomorrow night, for Oktoberfest, that Edie and I had reservations for. I was told only one other couple had made reservations.

Can you believe it? In a county of over 3 million people there weren’t 26 other people willing to pop for 50 bucks for a 5 course meal, including all the German beer you can drink, at a top notch Orange county restaurant. And there’s even free parking!

What is the world coming to? That’s never happened to me before. It just boggles my mind.

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 Posted by Marc at 4:46 pm  Tagged with: ,

All wined out!

 Food & Wine, Vacations  1 Response »
Aug 092011
 

Our trip to the annual Aureole Wine Weekend in Vegas has ended, and we’re back home recovering. It’s hard to believe a weekend of [over] eating and [over] indulging in wine, could be so tiring, but by the time Sunday afternoon rolled around, I was pretty much exhausted. I even cancelled reservations we had at LeCirque for Sunday evening, opting instead for hamburgers at Hubert Keller’s Burger Bar. They are very good burgers!

I have to admit, I didn’t think it was possible for Kevin (Aureole GM) and William (Master Sommelier) to top last years event, but they did. This was even despite my initial reservations because of the theme, white burgundy’s and Spanish wines, but I have now come away with a new appreciation for both, especially the Spanish wines.

Of course these were not your usual Spanish wines, primarily focusing on the wines from the Priorat region of spain, i.e. Carinena (Carignan), Garnacha (Grenache), Syrah, Cabernet Savignon, and Merlot, with of course wines from Rioja and Ribera del Duero.

Something which was different this year was many of the wines were supplied from Michael Mondavi’s Folio. The last 2 years wines were supplied from the Aureole cellar. I’m quite sure this helped to keep the cost down for Aureole, because I don’t know how Aureole can make a profit from this event considering the price they are charging.

But this event isn’t just about the wine. It’s also about the food, and Chef Vincent Pouessel out did himself again this year.


From the Veal Prime Rib with Sweatbreads, to the Mexican Ranchero Breakfast, Spanish Tapas for lunch, Paella on the Grill, Bouillabaisse (compliments of Christophe Tassan – Sommelier of MIX in Las Vegas), and of course the always to be remembered [Cheese and] Chocolate Fondue party (the last event) prepared by Megan Ramano, Aureole’s Executive Pastry Chef.

I can hardly wait for next year!

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 Posted by Marc at 2:42 pm  Tagged with: , ,

Anymore, the best advice may be no advice

 Food & Wine, General Health  2 Responses »
Aug 012011
 

Remember the advice about drinking 8 – 8 oz glasses of water a day? Well, studies have now shown that may not be such good advice, and could actually be harmful. The study also concluded drinking caffeinated beverages has no deleterious effects on hydration either.

I had read about caffeinated beverages not causing dehydration before (from a study commissioned by the Tea Advisory Panel in the UK), so that isn’t surprising, but the debunking of the myth about drinking 8 – 8 oz glasses of water is new news to me [despite it being old news to many others].

Under some circumstances, significant fluid intake — at least eight 8-ounce glasses — is advisable: for the treatment or prevention of kidney stones, for example, as well as under special circumstances, such as performing strenuous physical activity or enduring hot weather.

In those cases I’m guessing you may need to drink even more [and it doesn't even have to be water], but the best advice now appears to be

Drink when you are thirsty, not because you believe you need to.

And stop believing everything you’ve been told! Remember, everyone has an agenda, and it most likely isn’t to benefit you.

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 Posted by Marc at 3:14 pm  Tagged with: ,

Wine a little! I’ll feel better

 Food & Wine, Philosophy  2 Responses »
Jul 152011
 

It seems everyone is getting into the wine business nowadays. In Costco the other day, I noticed Jack Nicklaus now has a wine with his name on it.

GIMME A BREAK! There are already too many producers on the market, and it’s getting harder and harder to find the good ones. Why do we need to flood the market even more?

And while [a high] price is certainly no guarantee of quality, you can pretty much rest assured anything under $10 is not going to be very good. Between $10 and $20 dollars, you might get lucky and get the occasional good wine, but the pickin’s are slim. In general, if you’re not willing to spend at least $30 for a bottle of wine chances are you’re not going to be drinking a good wine.

Now I don’t mean to imply spending $30 or more will guarantee you a good wine, but at least you should have a 50-50 shot at it. And even better odds the higher the price. But in most cases, they’ll at least be palatable, which is more then I can say for the cheaper versions.

That all being said, I’m sure quite a few people will disagree with me. They often do, but I Continue reading »

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 Posted by Marc at 4:46 pm

Japanese green tea: Some facts to consider

 Food & Wine, My MCL  4 Responses »
Jun 232011
 

If you’re as devout a [green] tea drinker as myself, you’re no doubt concerned and somewhat conflicted about the news coming out of Japan. Specifically that up to 679 becquerels per kilogram of Cesium have been discovered in Shizuoka Prefecture, the largest green tea growing region (42%) in Japan. 500 becquerels per kilogram is the permitted max in Japan [and Europe].

I should note, the maximum allowable amount of Cesium is 1200 becquerels per kilogram in the United States.

In this case, I’m going to stick with the Japanese and European limits. First off, they have a lot more experience dealing with nuclear power, plus with the influence big business holds over our elected representatives, there’s no doubt in my mind where their loyalties lie.

There is, however, more to consider before jumping to conclusions or panicking should you have or accidentally purchase some of this tea.

The processing of green tea starts with picking, steaming, drying and rolling the green tea (removing nearly all the moisture) into what is known as Aracha, and is where the high levels of Cesium were reported. This process concentrates the levels of Cesium up to 5 times, but when the tea is infused (when you make tea), the concentration of Cesium is reduced by from 10 to 40 times (The two articles referenced previously gave two different numbers, one much greater than the other.)

So the question arises, and is a point of some contention between farmers and government officials, when should the levels of Cesium be measured? The farmers obviously wanted it measured in the fresh leaf, prior to becoming Aracha, but government officials disagreed, and won out, arguing people can ingest raw leaves (some of the leaves always manage to find a way out of the infuser), and some product is ground up, and used in ice cream, latte’s etc.

As for me, I’m not going to risk purchasing any green tea from Shizuoka Prefecture (as hard as that may be), which may some how escape proper inspection, and limit my purchases to areas west of Shizuoka i.e. Kinki, Chugoku, Shikoku and Kyushu areas of Japan.

No amount of Cesium is good (it has a 30 year half life), and if I’m going to err, it is going to be on the side of caution. And who knows for sure, a little Cesium may not be so bad for someone such as myself. I don’t think it can be much worse than infusing my body with any of the deadly chemicals, sometimes referred to as medicine [which is incorrect IMO] and currently used for the treatment of cancer.

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 Posted by Marc at 8:32 am  Tagged with: ,
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