MASSERIA DEI VINI

        The two-month old Masseria dei Vini is a restaurant whose neighbors keep telling owners Giuseppe "Peppe" Iuele, Enzo Ruggiero and chef-partner Giuseppe Coladonato how glad they are finally to have a fine Italian restaurant because there’s nothing else like it in its neck of the woods, near Carnegie Hall. It’s true. The neighborhood has been devoid of an Italian restaurant of Masseria dei Vini’s caliber—only Patsy’s and Circo to the east and Lincoln Ristorante to the north are true competitors, just as the owners’ first restaurant, La Masseria, has only Barbetta and Orso as competition in the Theater District of the West 40s.
    What Iuele, Ruggiero and Coladonato did at La Masseria upon opening eleven years ago was to build a ristorante with staying power, based on excellent Italian cuisine with a Southern accent and on a commitment to highly cordial service, even when dealing with the fretting pre-theater crowd.  The moment you step through the door at their new place, you’ll find that same warmth of conviviality from the welcome and seating to the attention paid to your table throughout the evening.
    Masseria dei Vini is a very smart looking place, by interior designer Libby Langdon, far more than I expected from what was originally intended to be a casual wine bar (the name means “farmhouse of wines”). But, as Iuele explained to me, “Once we got near opening, we said why don’t we also do some pizzas, more pastas and main courses, and before we knew it, we had a full-fledged ristorante.”  The menu listings at both restaurants are quite similar, though the older La Masseria does not do crudi (raw fish) or pizzas, and its prices are somewhat higher pretty much across the board.
    The trick in Italian cookery is to intensify flavors that, without just the right amount of seasoning, might be bland or taste just like everyone else’s version.  Thus, at Masseria dei Vini, Chef Colodonato, who is from Bari, takes the idea of polpettine and instead of using meat he makes eggplant balls to be dipped into a vibrant tomato and basil sauce ($14.50).  But he also does do meatballs the same way ($17.50), so you have a delectable choice to make, or order both. Another turn on tradition are the panzerotti (“little fat bellies”) pumped up like a zeppole, with a golden-brown crust and a filling of oozing cheese and tomato ($14.50).
    The pizzas are expertly made in the Neapolitan style, with a slightly puffy, nicely scorched and bubbly crust. I loved the Calabrese-style version topped with mozzarella fior di latte with sausage, spicy-hot ‘nduja condiment, and tomato sauce ($19), which will feed four as an appetizer.
        Ravioli di Angelina ($19.50 for a full portion) is made not with ricotta but with caciotta cheese in a light Caprese tomato sauce, while orecchiette alla Barese with broccoli di rabe and sausage ($18.50) was perfectly cooked so that the ear-shaped pasta had the right texture to stand with the chewy vegetable and the crumbly sausage.  This careful attention to texture also distinguishes housemade squid ink spaghetti with baby clams in a white wine sauce ($21.50), and a triangular ravioli stuffed with shrimp and avocado in a shrimp-tomato sauce ($21.50).
    Bocconcini di pollo ($21.50) is a large platter of boneless chicken with mushrooms and shallots in a red wine reduction, while a pork chop comes with slices of black truffles at a very reasonable $29.50—a terrific dish.  For those who rave about the big $50 veal parm at Carbone in Greenwich Village, I invite you to try to finish the marvelous, crisp, full-flavored pounded veal chop with arugula and tomato salad at Masseria dei Vini at just $38.50.  And if you go for seafood, the oven-roasted orata ($28.50) absorbs just the right amount of flavor and piquancy from cherry tomato sauce, olives and capers.
     Desserts are traditional and well rendered, from a light Italian cheesecake to a torta Masseria scented with limoncello.
    Since Vini figures in the restaurant’s name, you can be assured of a stellar group of wines, many displayed on a lighted wall in the dining room.
    So the Carnegie Hall neighborhood has what it’s long lacked—a  first-rate, welcoming Italian restaurant that is likely to flourish for decades to come.

Masseria dei Vini is open for lunch and dinner daily.

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THE PASSING OF A GREAT RESTAURATEUR:
RICHARD BRENNAN DIES AT THE AGE OF 83

     One of New Orleans' grand ambassadors of cuisine and the good life died this week in his beloved hometown.  Richard "Dick" Brennan, along with his sister Ella and extended family, were largely responsible for restoring and refining the reputation of Creole food back in the 1970s, at a time when its traditions had become stultified and the city's restaurants beyond complacent.  At Commander's Palace, he was in the vanguard of those who believed the city's gastronomy lay in bringing in smart, energetic young chefs like Frank Brigtsen, Paul Prudhomme, Emeril Lagasse, Jamie Shannon and Tory McPhail with whom he could work to improve everything in the kitchen while he and his family brought a new spirit of hospitality to the dining room. 
    I knew Dick pretty well, but I could not write anything better about him than his children Dickie and Laurie have in this obituary they were kind enough to send me:

    This past Saturday evening, our father, Richard J. Brennan, Sr. (better  known as Dick) passed away after 83 years of living his life to the fullest. We couldn't be prouder to have called him Dad, and we'd like to  take a moment to share his story. It is definitely one that deserves to  be told.
    Our Dad was kind, gentle and giving. A mentor, visionary, leader and  statesman. He loved his family, staff, city, state and country. His  motto was "leave it better than you found it." He was the ultimate New  Orleanian and a true Irishman.  He was born on Third Street in the Irish Channel in November of 1931.
Dad was the second youngest of six children, in what would become a  family known for fine dining Creole in New Orleans. His life reads like  a storybook, in which good fortune, hard work and ingenuity led to many  successes.
    In high school at St. Aloysius, he was a star basketball  player. He was all-district and all-state for his high school career and  State MVP for three years (all except his freshman year). Coach Rupp  from the University of Kentucky recruited him for their championship  team. However, his mother fell ill prior to the start of school, so he  opted to stay close and attend college at Tulane University in New  Orleans. For his successes on the basketball court, he was inducted into the Tulane Hall of Fame in 1991.  During college he began dating mom, who would become his wife of nearly  sixty years, Lynne Trist Brennan. Dad completed two years of Law School before he enlisted in the Army.
      When he returned to New Orleans, he intended to finish Law school but his brother, Owen, and both parents passed away within a year of one another, he instead went to work at the family's restaurant, Brennan's  on Royal Street. With his siblings, he was instrumental in opening  Brennan's in Houston, Dallas and Atlanta, as well as Chez Francis in Metairie, Louisiana, Mr. B's Bistro and the Friendship House on the Gulf in Mississippi. In 1973 the Brennan's split their restaurant interests, and Dad along with his siblings John, Adelaide, Ella and Dottie took control of Commander's Palace in the Garden District 100-year-old landmark that the siblings were tasked with reviving. 
    Dad was passionate about New Orleans and America. He recognized the sheer bounty of our region, including ingredients and talent. Instead of European chefs, he hired from the area. Chef Paul Prudhomme and Dad collaborated on dishes that today have become synonymous with New Orleans cuisine.
    He walked to work each day from our home on Third St., and each day he passed a pecan tree. He wondered why almonds were used to coat fish and not pecans that were grown locally? From this simple question posed to Chef Prudhomme, pecan crusted fish was born.
    The same could be said about his taste in spirits. He featured California wine on the list at Commander's Palace years before this was commonplace. Dan Duckhorn from Duckhorn Wine said that Dad believed in him and his product and that he was the first to put it on a wine list. He was well known for saying "If you're going to drink whiskey, drink American, drink bourbon!" Growing up with this mantra, helped inspire the concept for our restaurant, Bourbon House.
When Dad and his siblings first bought Commander's, their goal was to bring guests in the door.
     Breakfast at Brennan's had been very popular and they wanted to create a similar environment filled with celebration for brunch. It was Dad who thought that two of New Orleans most valued cultural possessions-- food and Jazz--would make a fantastic marriage as "Jazz Brunch." On Saturday, my sister and I, along with our cousins headed downtown on the streetcar with paper flyers. We handed them out on Canal and throughout the Quarter. Not sure what to expect the next day for brunch he staffed a  little more than usual. The turnout beat all expectations, and the next weekend he called in reinforcements in the form of us, our cousins and our friends. That was the beginning of what today is celebrated around New Orleans and throughout the country--Jazz Brunch.
     Friend, Chef, and New Orleans restaurant owner Frank Brigtsen (right with Paul Prudhomme and Dick Brennan) recalled,  "I learned to sauté under the watchful eyes of Mr. Dick Brennan, who monitored every single plate that left the kitchen for Sunday Jazz Brunch at Commander's Palace. Not all of my omelets passed muster. `Can we do a little better than that?’ he would gently ask. His generous spirit, innate brilliance, and warm heart touched me throughout the  years, whether it was a touch of Pernod at his home on Fat Tuesday morning, his winning smile at a special event, or his gracious charm  when dining at Brigtsen's with his lovely wife Lynne. His mark is felt throughout the city of New Orleans, a testament to a life well lived. I  am grateful for his friendship."
    Passionate about all things New Orleans, and wanting to share his city's unique culture with visitors, he was instrumental in creating what today is the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau. He was also the first of his family to be President of the Louisiana Restaurant Association  and later served many terms on the National Restaurant Association's  board.  
    Hand in hand with his desire to share his love of New Orleans with visitors, he co-founded the Krewe of Bacchus with his nephew, Pip  Brennan. At the time Bacchus was founded, the norm for most Mardi Gras krewes was to invest the majority of member's dues into the social balls and related krewe activities. Dad and Pip ensured that the majority of the Krewe of Bacchus' dues would be used toward creating better floats and throws (beginning what is now commonplace of having dues include a bag of custom throws). This, in turn, meant a better Mardi Gras for visitors and locals along the parade route and helped improve the
world's best "free party!"
    Above all, Dad was a mentor--a mentor to us, his grandchildren, his chefs  and countless individuals who proudly donned their black and whites. In  an interview with Times Picayune, Emeril Lagasse once said, "You could  have no better mentors that Ella and Dick. They are absolutely the best. They are legends. They are masters of the restaurant business." As much as New Orleans and Dad are one in the same, so can be said for  him and hospitality. His restaurants were an extension of his home, a place where guests came for the complete experience; from food to  service, it was a place where everyone felt special. He leaves this legacy, along with so much more, through us and our restaurants, as well  as the several restaurants operated by his extended family--all of his  former employees.
He'll be deeply missed, but he leaves behind a legacy so profound that  his spirit will live on through the beautiful city he called home. It's  only natural to raise a glass and toast in his honor to a life well  lived.

Dick and his wife Lynn

MICHAEL MONDAVI WINES ARE A FAMILY AFFAIR 
By John Mariani

    One of the many tastings at the Charleston Wine + Food Festival (see above) was held by Michael Mondavi Family Winery and hosted by Michael’s son, Rob Jr.  Though the style of the winery’s labels may differ, the family commitment to quality over quantity is part of the lessons learned in the saga of the Mondavi family.  For those not familiar with the byzantine ins and outs of the Mondavi name in wine, here’s a thumbnail history.
    In 1943 Cesare Mondavi and his sons Robert and Peter bought the old Charles Krug winery in St. Helena, CA. Decades later a feud drove Robert from the family business and into opening his own Robert Mondavi Winery in 1966, which became one of the most innovative in America at the time, known for its Cabernet Sauvignons, Pinot Noirs, and Chardonnays.  In 1978 Robert entered into a business partnership with the owners of Bordeaux’s Château Mouton-Rothschild to make Opus One.
        Meanwhile, Peter Mondavi (who turned 100 this year) continued to make wines under the Krug label. Robert sold his namesake winery to Constellation Brands in 2004, then partnered with his son Tim and daughter Marcia to create Continuum Estates.  Robert died in 2008.         
          Robert’s other son, Michael, went on to create his own Michael Mondavi Family Winery (right), with his wife, Isabel, son Rob and daughter Dina (above),   and in 1999 produced a very high-end Cabernet named M, beginning with the 2005 vintage. Today the family produces four different labels, each overseen by an individual family member. These were the wines in the Charleston tasting.
    Isabel Mondavi Wines reflect her delight in hospitality, meaning the bottlings have an easy elegance without the blockbuster mentality of so many Napa Valley wines.  At the tasting her 2012 Carneros Chardonnay ($30) was shown (she also makes a Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir and Rosé), which exemplified that style by avoiding the over-oaked, caramel-flavored taste so many of her colleagues—and a lot of American wine drinkers--still prefer.  At 13.7% alcohol it has just enough California sun without overripe fruit. Its color is quite pale for a Napa Chardonnay but there is the clear taste of vanilla and a slightly sweet finish.
      The Emblem label is Rob and Dina’s baby, and represents the “passing of the torch” to the next generation of Mondavis. The Cabernet Sauvignon at the tasting was 2011 Oso ($60). A single-vineyard (above) bottling, it is a blend with Petit Verdot to round out the evident tannins in the wine, now beginning to loosen.  There’s a distinct oak component, a moderate alcohol level of 14.4%, and the wine currently is somewhat syrupy with dark cherry flavors, so I would definitely wait to see how the wine knots together in a few years.
    We also tasted 2012 Emblem Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($35), blended with Petit Verdot and Petite Syrah, which gives it plenty of forward fruitiness, as well as old-vines Zinfandel from the Lake Country.  The wine is therefore lush with spices, but with a snappy acid component, and a pleasant 13.9% alcohol that makes it easy to drink right now.
    Upon finding a particularly appealing and promising parcel of land high on Atlas Peak, southeast of Napa, Dina Mondavi exclaimed, "Dad, this place has animo,” which is Italian for spirit.  Her father thereupon planted just 15 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon vines in rocky, volcanic soil on slopes up to 1,350 feet, assuring the grapes a nice, long growing season that allows for later harvesting.  The 2010 Animo ($85) is very fruited, with a long finish, almost plummy at this stage, but at a moderate 14.3% alcohol that should help that overripe flavor ameliorate over time.
    Michael’s M ($200) comes from the same site, and, with Rob and winemaker Tony Coltrin, he very carefully picks the best grapes after 20 treks through the vineyard over a month, first hand harvesting at the higher elevations, then the lower ones. A post-fermentation maceration lasts 18-22 days, followed by 22 months in French oak barrels, then 12 months in bottle.    
      So taken was Michael with the quality of the fruit picked, he decided M would be 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, this at a time when almost all other Napa vintners now blend in other Bordeaux varietals like Merlot and Cabernet Franc.  M, therefore, evokes the big, massive Cabs of the 1970s, which could win awards but did so through power rather than finesse. Since then, viticulture has provided California vintners with better and better grapes and healthier clones, so that the intense tannins and inkiness of Cabs have in many cases, like M, given way to refinement and complexity. Indeed, Michael contends the most recent vintages can be enjoyed immediately or laid down for decades.  With fewer than 300 cases produced, it’s going to be difficult for fans of the label to wait that long, especially since the wine is on allocation. 

WHICH IS WHY THEY NEVER
DISCUSSED POLITICS OR RELIGION

In New Orleans, an argument in a parking lot between years-long friends 64-year-old Clarence Sturdivant and his 66-year-old neighbor Walter Merrick over which beer is better —Budweiser or Busch — escalated in a until Merrick said Sturdivant shot him with a shotgun and left.   Sturdivant insisted Merrick was actually the first person to pull a gun and he simply fired in self-defense. In the end, Sturdivant went to jail on "unrelated charges" and Merrick was issued a citation for aggravated assault.