IN THIS ISSUE
JAMES BOND'S MARTINI:
HIS TASTE IN FOOD AND DRINK
Part One By
John Mariani
NEW YORK CORNER
BLACKBARN
By John Mariani
CAPONE'S GOLD
Chapter 27
By John Mariani
NOTES
FROM THE WINE CELLAR
AUTUMN WINES
By John Mariani
❖❖❖
On this week's episode of my WVOX
Radio Show "Almost Golden," on Wed. October
6 at 11AM EST,I will be
interviewing NYC author Jay Neugebren of
his books, including The Diagnostic
Manual of Mishegas. Go to: WVOX.com.
The episode will also be archived at: almostgolden.
❖❖❖
JAMES BOND'S MARTINI:
HIS TASTE IN FOOD AND DRINK
Part One
By John Mariani
This month
the 25th James Bond movie, No Time
to Die, will debut (after a delay of a
year because ofCovid), with Daniel Craig back in the
Aston-Martin for what he says will be his last
outing. So it seems both timely and a good
deal of fun to look back over seven decades to
see just how much of a connoisseur, gourmet or
gourmand 007 really was, or if he was just
finicky or—crikey!—bought
off by the wine and spirits industry. Over the
ensuing months I’ll run through the books and
films to detail when and why Bond eats and
drinks what he does, in at least one occasion
exposing the ignorance of enemies who order
the wrong wine. “I
take a ridiculous pleasure in what I eat,” says
James Bond in the 1953 Ian Fleming book Casino
Royale. “It comes partly from being a
bachelor but mostly from a habit of taking a lot
of trouble over details.” 007’s tastes were very
specific when it came to his favorite drinks.
His knowledge of wine vintages, the best bourbon
and the correct temperature at which to drink
sake were all important details. Indeed, Bond’s
savoir faire and discriminating palate were
crucial to his allure as a worldly but never
effete masculine figure who says the perfect
woman for him would be “someone who can make
sauce béarnaise as well as love,” in Diamonds
Are Forever (1956). His favorite champagne was Taittinger
Blanc de Blancs 1945,which
he called a “fad of mine” in Casino
Royale, although he’s not against a little
Dom Pérignon, Veuve-Cliquot or Bollinger. In the
movies, Bond’s champagne houses are constantly
changing: in from Russia
with Love (1963) it’s Taittinger; in Live and
Let Die (1973) he orders Bollinger; and in
The Man
with the Golden Gun (1974) it’s
Moët-Chandon; in Moonraker (1979)
it’s
Bollinger again. Lest
one think Bond is fickle about his Champagnes in
the movies, it should be noted that several of
the Champagne houses either paid a promotional
fee or provided bubbly refreshment for the film
crew in order to get 007 to order the label. In the movie A View to a
Kill (1985) Bond prominently displays a
bottle of Stolichnaya to a beautiful spy he
holds in thrall inside an igloo in Northeast
Russia. Bond had an
enormous effect on the sale of vodka worldwide,
by virtue of his Martinis, famously “shaken not
stirred.” In the Casino
Royale novel, he stipulates “three
measures of Gordon’s gin, one of vodka, half a
measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until
it’s ice cold, then add a large slice of lemon
peel, got it?” He later named this odd
combination after the character Vesper. In later
books hedrops
the gin, preferring a mix of six parts vodka to
one of vermouth. His preferred vodka is one made
from grain rather than potatoes. He favors
Wolfschmidt in the books. Bond’s taste is not limited to champagne
and vodka martinis. When in Europe he may order
an Americano; in Rome he does as the Romans do,
ordering a Negroni. On assignment in Tokyo in You Only
Live Twice (1967), he lets his colleague
Tiger Tanaka lead him through the mysteries of
sake. And in Greece007
drinks ouzo as they do with an ice water chaser,
while in Turkey he has his first experience with
anise flavored raki.And in
American waters, with his CIA pal Felix Leiter,
more often than not Bond drinks bourbon,
specifying Old Granddad, especially when he
wants an Old Fashioned. Bond is
not much on Cognac, though he may order one in a
café in Paris, and never drinks port or Sherry.
In one instance, it seems uncharacteristic for
Bond to finish off a meal of caviar and
Champagne with a sweet vodka stinger, as he does
with Tiffany Case in Diamonds,a
mixture of that might well faze the mind of a
lesser man. Oddly enough, while Fleming larded his
thrillers with gourmet meals—though always
simple, not extravagant—Noël Coward said that he
dreaded being invited to Fleming’s house
Goldeneye in Jamaica because, Coward said, he
was "a filthy cook." In the movies, the writers
made food and drink leitmotifs that fans came to
expect, especially when Bond shows condescension
to his enemies’ choice of a wine, as he does
with Dr. No, who plans to torture Bond after
dinner. InBond
films, there always had to be a mention of the
famous Martini “shaken not stirred,” so it was
something of a shock to audiences when Daniel
Craig, in his first outing in Casino
Royale (2006), replies to a waiter who
asks him if he wants his Martini shaken not
stirred, Bond replies—wholly out of character
—“Do I look like I give a damn?” It has always seemed to me that Bond,
more than any other fictional character,
including a long list of gourmands that range
from Nero Wolfe to the Saint, played an enormous
part in causing men and women after 1960 to
appreciate, learn about and enjoy fine food and
wine—which was not lost on companies that got
the various Bond actors to hawk their products
in paid ads. Women found it alluring that Bond was not
a traditional hero who just knocked back whiskey
like Sam Spade (right) and Philip Marlowe at
every opportunity. Bond was handsome, impeccably
dressed, brave, witty and highly sophisticated,
and the female characters plied 007 with his
favorite foods and drinks. The
repartee, the cars, the guns and gimmicks and
the exotic locales have always been essential to
the appeal of a hero like no other, who, in
addition to his savoir faire, never gets drunk
and never flags in bed. That, and the fact that
in real years, Bond would now be close to a
hundred years old, doing so with a tin of caviar
and a bottle of Taittinger Champagne.
❖❖❖
NEW YORK
CORNER
BLACKBARN
19 East 26th Street
212-265-5959
By
John Mariani
I’ve been
following the career of chef John Doherty since
the late 1980s, throughout his long tenure as
executive chef overseeing all the food service
at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, where, at the
age 27, he had to serve as much a field
commander as a chef. Doherty left that storied
caravansary (now nothing but another deluxe
Park Avenue condo), and since 2016, with
partner and boyhood friend Tom Struzzieri, has
made Blackbarn into one
of the NoMad neighborhood’s major draws for
American cuisine with a wide net. (He’d run a
Blackbarn Café in Chelsea Market, but that
closed when Covid hit.) The restaurant’s hangar-sized interior
(formerly the elegant Italian ristorante SD26)
is
now built around rustic elements heavy in lumber,
centered by what looks like a barn in the early
stages of being erected. Hanging lights give it a
glow within walls and ceilings that are dark gray
or black. There’s a long bar room with an avid
cocktail hour crowd that leads to the main dining
space, with private dining rooms above and off to
the side. The open kitchen blazes with additional
light and a measured activity of cooks working the
fiery grill. When I first visited back in 2018, the
noise level of a full house was deafening; on my
return last month, with a room only about half
full, conversation was amiably easy to carry on. It’s worth noting that when Blackbarn Café
was open, the menu announced it was all about
“healthful eating,” with an emphasis on
vegetables. You won’t see that phrase on
Blackbarn’s menu, but anyone seeking whatever
“healthful eating” is will find it amply
represented in dishes like a charred corn and kale
salad with heirloom tomatoes, avocado, quinoa,
bacon lardons, baked ricotta and herbed butter
milk ($21), as well as marvelously rich wild
mushroom toast incorporatingrobiola,
taleggio and parmesan cheeses along with
watercress ($17). There is also a curried
cauliflower steak seasoned with cilantro, yogurt,
a summer salad, toasted pine nuts
and pears ($29). One of the best among the dishes
“to share” is the butternut squash ravioli (right)
with Swiss chard, toasted pumpkin seeds and bacon
lardons ($32). A true feinschmecker
can pounce on the appetizer of bone marrow (below)
with manila clams and lemon herbed crumbs ($18),
as well as on a lavish Mangalitsa charcuterie and
aged cheese platter with housemaid pickles, whole
grain mustard, honey comb, toasted and seasonal
fruit ($32). There is the inevitable olive oil-braised
octopus, here done with roasted pepper, hummus,
Fresno chilies, shaved fennel and preserved lemon
gremolata
($26). And in a city whose restaurants are awash
withpizzas,
Blackbarn does a delicious one using black mission
figs with spicy coppa,
arugula, caramelized onions and truffle oil ($21). There’s
a “slow cooked” section to really get your teeth
into, including luscious beef barbecued ribs with
a chipotle/orange rub, crispy shoestring fries
that are addictive and a cucumber salad ($42), and
a big hearty beer-braised Cheshire pork shank (below)
with broccoli di rabe, butterball potatoes,
sun-dried tomato, charred tomatillo relish and
chicharrones ($38). If you go the seafood route,
the crispy-skin striped bass with chanterelle
mushrooms, crispy pancetta, grilled zucchini and
creamy corn risotto ($42) is a terrific dish,
while among the wood-grilled items the duck breast
pastrami and sausage with local greens, cipollini,
Spanish torta
and a tangy black cherry gastrique with peppers
($42 ) is very unusual and very welcome. A side
order of truffles ricotta with Parmesan ($15) is
not something you should miss for the table. Doherty prides himself on finding the best
local ingredients, and the Union Square Market is
nearby, so a cheese selection
($18) is quite special, with options like Bent
River from Minnesota, Bailey Hazen blue from
Vermont, Bouche de Lucay from France and Fire
Florys Truckle from Iowa. The best fruits of
autumn go into desserts (all $13), like a panna
cotta with poached rhubarb, strawberries
and candied almonds. Two people can readily share
the rum butterscotch bread pudding with vanilla
ice cream and toffee sauce, and you may have a
fight on your hands when the plate of apple cider
donuts with caramel sauce hits the table. (A new
pastry chef is arriving momentarily to bulk up the
dessert menu.) The wine list hits on all categories,
prices are about average mark-up, and ask the
sommelier Andrija Tadejevic for his advice in your
price range and for your palate. I’m
happy to see Blackbarn reopened and gaining its
footage on a daily and nightly basis – brunch is
very popular, and the tavern menu is too. It is
all meant to be a very gregarious experience with
food that just about everybody can glom onto with
enormous pleasure and leave happy. John Doherty
has always been such a pro that his ability to
pass on what he knows and how to do it is daunting
and you can taste it in every dish.
❖❖❖
CAPONE’S
GOLD
By John Mariani
To read all chapters of
Capone's Gold beginning April 4, 2021 go
to thearchive
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
The phone rang in David’s kitchen
while he was making espresso for the two them. “Can you get that?” he asked. Katie picked up the phone and said hello. “Hello, my name is John Frascella.May I
please speak with David Greco?” Katie looked at David, put her hand over
the phone and whispered, “It’s that guy John
Frascella calling.”
"I'll take it on the
phone in my bedroom,” said David. Then into the
phone, “David Greco speaking.” Katie started recording the conversation
through the phone in the kitchen. “Oh, hey, Detective Greco, I’m so glad I
reached you. My name’s John Frascella, and I’m a
police officer here in Chicago.I
think you may know about me from your friend
Lieutenant Cunningham?” “Yes, he and I spoke about you.” “Well, he told me that you inquired about
why I was at Al Capone’s house taking pictures
at the same time your friend was there.” “Yeah, I did.” “And that he told you I’m a crime mob
history buff and was just out there taking
pictures for my own use, which is true. I did
know your friend was going to be there and
thought I might even be of some help if she
couldn’t get into the house.” “Yes,
he told me that,” said David, “and that you’d
been a cop in Philadelphia?” David didn’t want
to give too much away of what Cunningham had
told him, in case it had been confidential. “Well, first of all, give your friend—I’m
sorry what’s her name?” “Cavuto.” “Tell Miss Cavuto I’m really sorry if I
spooked her. I just had the afternoon off and
wanted to see the house.I’ve
only been on the force a few months.” “I’ll give her your apologies.” There
was a brief pause, then Frascella asked,
“Detective Greco—may I call you David?” “I’ve been off the force for two years,
so Mr. Greco will do.” “Okay.So, here’s the thing. I don’t know
everything Lieutenant Cunningham told you about
me, about how I’d try to get into the rackets
squad in Philly and how I was trying to get into
it here in Chicago.Fact
is, I got turned down both places because I used
to have some, well, some connections with the
Philly mobsters in the neighborhood where I grew
up." David stayed silent. Frascella kept
speaking. “Now, I’m telling you the absolute truth,
Mr. Greco, swear to God. I was never really part
of the mob, more a runner, y’know?I was
eighteen, nineteen years old, and the older I
got the more I realized two things: first, I had
no future as a wiseguy, and second, those were
very bad wiseguys.” “So you became a cop?” asked David. “Yessir, I became a cop.And
lemme tell you, funny thing is my former friends
in the mob actually congratulated me, saying as
long as I didn’t ruffle their feathers they’d
help me out with passing information and shit.
But, frankly, they never did.” “Well, I can readily understand why the
Philadelphia police didn’t want you on their
rackets squad.” “I know that now.But I
have to say I was very, very disappointed when I
got turned down here in Chicago. I’m a good beat
cop, but I could really be of help because I
know how things work inside the crime families.” “They must have had their reasons,” said
David. “Well, whatever they didn’t tell me I
don’t know.So, as sorry as I am to tell you this,
I’ve quit the Chicago police force.” David looked out of the bedroom at Katie
and wrinkled his eyebrows.Katie
raised her palms. David tried to sound disinterested. “Oh?” “I came to the conclusion—I’m
twenty-seven years old—that I wasn’t going to
rise much further than sergeant, when, like I
said, I wanted to work with the rackets squad.
So, I wasn’t much enjoying the work I was doing “And what do you intend to do now?” “Take a break, then maybe get my own
security firm. There’s a lot of call for that
everywhere.I’m not wedded to staying in Chicago.” David went quiet. “But
that’s not why I called, actually,” said
Frascella.“First off, I want you to know that I’ve
been an admirer of yours for years. You’re a
legend, you know.” David just said, “Well.”Frascella
went on. “You’re one of the reasons I wanted to
get into the rackets squad.I
mean, busting the wiseguys is one thing, but
scoring a really big capo, well, that’s why
you’re so famous. And you deserve it.” “Thanks.” “So, Lieutenant Cunningham told me you
were working with Miss Cavuto on locating where
Al Capone stashed his gold after the heist?” David looked at Katie and raised his
eyebrows. “Well, I’m sure you know there’s a
considerable reward,” he said, “and Miss Cavuto
is a very resourceful reporter. I’m just helping
her out.” “Well, I know this might be very off
base,” said Frascella, “but do you think there’s
any way, any way at all, I might help you on
this case?I mean, I’m sure you have way more
contacts than I do, but, y’know, you can never
have enough leads or too many guys beating the
bushes for clues.” “I appreciate your offer, Mr. Frascella,
but Miss Cavuto and I haven’t the money to pay
you, and there’s no assurance we’re going to
find the gold and get the reward.” “Oh, no, no, no,” protested Frascella. “I
wasn’t looking for payment.I’m
looking for experience. Y’know, working with a
legend like yourself.And,
like I said, I’m really into the history of the
mob.” Now Katie was rolling her eyes, mouthing
the words “bullshit artist.” David
chuckled and said, “Again, I appreciate the
offer, but at this juncture we really can’t take
anyone on. Besides you live in Chicago.” “I understand, but I do know a lot about
mob history, and I’ve done a little research of
my own on Capone’s gold.I
assume you already know that he tried to get as
much of it as possible out of the country.” Surprised, David looked straight at Katie
and replied, “That is something we’ve figured
on.” “And that some of it went to Italy?” Katie was shaking her head and David was
rubbing his temples. “Do you mind telling me how you know
that?” he asked. “Well, when I was in Philly and hanging
out with some of the oldtimers in the gang
there, they sometimes used to shoot the shit
about Capone’s gold, and though nobody knew for
sure, the assumption among most of them was that
it went to Italy before the war.” “And who’d he ship it to?” “I don’t know. I think the wiseguys
assumed it was to the Camorra, or even the
Mafia.” David was being careful not to let
Frascella sense he was telling them anything
new. “Yeah,” he said, “that occurred to us.”He
didn’t want to mention the connection to
Mussolini. “Well, hey, I understand you can’t hire
me or let me tag along with you two on your
research, but it would be an honor if I could
provide you with a tip on anything, a guy to
speak to in Italy, whatever.” David didn’t want to cut
Frascella off entirely, so he said,“Thanks.
Like you said, no lead’s too small.” “Well, if you are going over to Italy to
do some research, let me give you the name of a
mob guy I used to know in Philly who the feds
extradited. Once he got back, of course, he beat
the rap—drug dealing, mostly—but he decided to
live there permanently.Ithink
he’s now somewhere in his seventies.” “And why would this guy be of any help to
us, assuming we did go to Italy?” “Because he was always the one who said
he knew more about Capone’s gold than anyone
else. He wasn’t one of the real oldtimers; he
never met Capone personally, but he said he knew
guys who did. But you know how these guys
worked. They trusted nobody and believed what
they wanted to believe, and he said he was
pretty sure he knew where the gold was.” “And where was that?” “All he ever said was `somewhere around
Naples.’” “That doesn’t really help much,” said
David.“But
I tell you what, Mr. Frascella, if you want to
give me his name and info, and if we go to
Naples, I’ll contact him and see what he knows,
or thinks he knows. Of course, if he does know,
how come he never got hold of the gold himself?” “I dunno.Maybe he’s full of shit. But if you’re
going over there, I think he’s worth talking to,
maybe just to get a lead or discard a dead one.” “Fair enough. So what’s his name?”Katie
already had a pen and paper poised. “His
name is Frank Iacobello. They used to call him
`Frankie Switch’ ‘cause he never carried a gun,
only a switchblade.I’ll
give you his contact info.So you
think you’re going over soon?” David thought he should toss Frascella a
bone. “At this point we haven’t decided.Y’know,
expenses, time.” Frascella then sensed that Katie and
David were already making plans, so he said,
“Well, if you go, I hope you take a little time
to enjoy yourselves.I hear
the food is great in Naples.There’s
this little place called La Rosetta on the
Viccolo Ancona with fabulous seafood.” “Thanks, we’ll look it up. You been to
Naples yourself?” “No,” said Frascella, “but I’m dying to
go.” “Okay, well, then, I appreciate your call
and the info about Frank Iacobello. We’ll see
how it goes.” “That’s great, Mr. Greco. Again, I just
wanna say how much I admire your work.I wish
I could have had a chance to do the same thing.” David and Katie
put down their phones and stared at each other. “So, what do you think?” she asked. “I don’t know yet.On the
one hand he sounds sincere, and on the other he
sounds full of b.s. Cop’s itch.” “I agree with you,” said Katie. “He’s not
telling us everything he knows. Woman’s
intuition.” “Yeah, I’ve known guys like him in the
past. They get a nice shiny new badge, then when
they don’t grow up to be Dick Tracy, they get
disillusioned and drop out of the force, usually
around the time they’ve built up enough years to
get some sort of pension.Then
again, he threw us a lead, maybe a crumb, maybe
nothing at all.It’s worth checking this guy Frankie
Switch out.I’ll call a detective in Philly. He
doesn’t sound like he’d be any trouble. Probably
retired and likes to shoot his mouth off.” “Well,” said Katie, “it’s one more lead
we didn’t have twenty minutes ago. And you say
you have names of people over there we can get
in touch with, and maybe they know this guy
Iacobello?” “I hope so. Can’t hurt.” Then David put
his hands over his scalp and said, “I don’t
know.” “What?” “Something Frascella said bothers me. He
said he’d never been to Naples but then he
recommended a restaurant that sounded like he
knew it firsthand.” “Yeah, but he said he’d heard about it.” “No, he said he’d heard the food was good
in Naples.Then he recommended the restaurant.I
don’t know the streets of Naples all that well,
but I do recall that the Vicolo Ancona is a
narrow little alleyway off the beaten path.He
didn’t mention any others.It
sounded to me like he’d actually been there and
eaten at the restaurant.” “Why would he lie about that?If he
said he knew Naples well, he might have tried to
talk us into letting him show us around.” “That’s what I’d figure,” said David.
“But he didn’t.Well, I can give another call to Brian
Cunningham and see what he thinks. Meanwhile,
you go home, get a good night’s sleep, call a
travel agent, and I’ll see you tomorrow.” “Oh, tomorrow’s not good for me,” she
replied. “Why not? I was going to take you for
dinner after we got some work done.” “Well, that’s the thing, David. I’ve got
to get to the travel agent, do a bunch of stuff
that’s piled up, start to pack, then I have a
date tomorrow night.” David tried not to look too surprised.
“Really? A date?” “Yeah, y’know, a guy invites a woman out
to dinner.That’s a date.” “Who with?” “None of your business, Detective Greco.” “You serious about this guy?” “Listen,” said Katie, brushing off the
question, “I’m going to go home, take a hot
bath, and get a good night’s sleep, just like
you said.By
Thursday I’ll go over the travel plans with you.Maybe
we can leave Saturday.” All David could muster was, “Okay, sounds
good. See you at JFK on Saturday.” “Maybe Newark. The flights are sometimes
cheaper.” Katie knew she’d hurt David’s
feelings, but she thought he was getting just a
little too paternal for a guy who was only in
his late forties.
"All things
on earth point home in old October; sailors to sea, travellers to walls and
fences, hunters to field and hollow and the long
voice of the hounds, the lover to the love he has
forsaken." So said novelist Thomas Wolfe, who
might have added, “drinkers to robust wines.” Here
are several new to the market this fall that make
delectable sense.
Marques de Casa Concha Carménère
2019 ($24.99)—Peumo is a classic Chilean
vineyard, called “the birthplace of Carménère
wines” in Cachapoal Valley, which has been farmed
since 1981 by Domingo Marchi, agricultural manager
in the Rapel zone.The wine has excellent structure, deep
fruit and spends.12 months in French oak barrels.
Its acidity enhances the soft tannins. A fine wine
for lamb chops.
Trapiche
Broquel Selected Barrel Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
($15.99)—Year after year this wine from
Argentina’s Maipú, Luján de Cuyo and the Uco
Valley improves. The 2017 was outstanding, and
this is nearly as good.Aged in
20% new wood, the oak induces a pleasing roundness
and nuttiness to the dark fruit of this 100%Cab, so
it’s a brawny but not overpowering example. Drink
with T-bone steaks.
2018 Bouchaine Las
Brisas Vineyard Riesling ($38)—California
Rieslings are gaining stature, and Napa’s Las
Brisas Vineyard seems to be a showcase for the
varietal. The wine’s got a lovely aroma and the
fruit and acid are in good balance, so it is very
refreshing, without being cloyingly sweet or too
tangy. A delicious match for seafood of any kind
or with ripe cheeses.
2019 Ram’s Gate Estate
Pinot Blanc ($38)—Pinot Blanc rarely
rises above the level of being a nice white wine
without much to distinguish it, but Ram’s Gate’s is
sourced from three different blocks grown on the
estate vineyard, each planted to a different clone
(Bien Nacido, Étude and Beringer), which is highly unusual
for this grape. It’s a cool climate, so it doesn’t get
burnt by California sun, and the result is a Pinot
Blanc with dimensions. Drink with salmon or chicken.
Inama “Foscarino” Soave Classico 2019 ($28)—As with the
Ornellaia Sauvignon Blanc, I was amazed at the
complexity of this Soave, a varietal found more in
bulk wines and all-too-familiar labels as among the
blandest of Italian wines. This one comes from
40–60-year-old vines from vineyards on volcanic
Mount Foscarino in the Soave Classico area. It’s
100% Garganega, vinified in used barriques,
stainless steel and Austrian oak, which adds subtly
to the fabric and texture of the wine on the palate.
With Venetian dishes like polenta or squid ink
pasta, this is perfect.
Rombauer
Vineyards Napa Valley Merlot 2018($52.99)—About
25% of this wine was barrel fermented to provide a
richer and more textured pallet (for the palate!),
then basket pressed before being racked in French
oak barrels. Its combination is 83% Merlot, 13%
Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Petit Verdot, with a 14.8%
alcohol level, which is high but the equilibrium
keeps it from being a bruiser. Drink with any read
meats or stews.
OrnellaiaPoggio alle
Gazze dell’Ornellaia 2019 ($82)—Ornellaia is
famous for its flagship Bolgheri reds, including Le
Serre Nuove di Ornellaia, made from Merlot, Cabernet
Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, and
the 2019 is terrific. But I was equally, if not
more, impressed with this blend of Sauvignon Blanc,
Vermentino and Verdicchio made from small parcels
along the Tuscan coast. Winemaker Olga Fusari says,“The
extended harvest times proved favorable to the
aromatic expression of the wine, found in the
intense notes of citrus and exotic fruit accompanied
by the scent of freshly mowed grass and
asparagus.” Thankfully I didn’t notice any
asparagus in the wine, but here is a Sauvignon Blanc
with the same distinction as the best Trebbiano
Abruzzo. It has layers of fruit and complexity, best
served with a pasta like spaghetti alla vongole.
Blackbird Vineyards
Illustration Proprietary Red Wine 2017 ($139)—A Pomerol style of
Bordeaux, blended from 49% Merlot, 28% Cabernet
Sauvignon and 23% Cabernet Franc. The alcohol level
is also closer to Bordeaux at 14.1%, which makes
this an easy to drink wine and goes well with
everything from chicken and veal to beef and lamb.
But caveat emptor: It’s very expensive.
Secret de Famille
Bourgogne Côte d’Or Pinot Noir 2014 ($23)—From the label, one
might think this is just a pleasant family wine from
Burgundy, but for being just that it is revelatory
of how good the wines of the Côte d’Or can be, even
without much fanfare or great names behind them. At
this price one could readily drink it any time with
almost anything short of delicate fish, and with a
juicy hamburger or short ribs or mild cheeses, it is
a consistent winner.
Villa Maria Earth
Garden Sauvignon Blanc 2020 ($20)—Years ago New
Zealand wineries like Cloudy Bay made enormous hits
in the world market with sweet, punch-like Sauvignon
Blancs that didn’t taste all that much like
Sauvignon Blanc but was priced to sell. Now
evolution has shown that a smaller winery like Villa
Maria that is family owned can make a lovely,
charming Sauvignon Blanc with just the right green
notes are very light sweetness an excellent acid
that makes it a fine match for muscles, lobster, and
all shellfish.
❖❖❖
THE
LAST TIME ANYONE TRIED TO COOK PASTA WITH CHICKEN IN
TUSCANY. . .
"Tuscan Chicken Pasta:"Looking for a way
to use up leftover chicken? Add it to pasta. This
recipe will show you the glory of garlic. Slide the
top off the head to expose the cloves and rub them
with a little olive oil. Wrap the garlic in aluminum
foil and bake for about an hour. When done, the
cloves will squeeze right out and form a garlicky
paste."—Madeline Buiano, "30 Great Italian Recipes
That Will Never Go Out of Style" Daily Meal
❖❖❖
Any of John Mariani's
books below may be ordered from amazon.com.
The Hound in Heaven
(21st Century Lion Books) is a novella, and
for anyone who loves dogs, Christmas, romance,
inspiration, even the supernatural, I hope you'll find
this to be a treasured favorite. The story
concerns how, after a New England teacher, his wife and
their two daughters adopt a stray puppy found in their
barn in northern Maine, their lives seem full of promise.
But when tragedy strikes, their wonderful dog Lazarus and
the spirit of Christmas are the only things that may bring
his master back from the edge of despair.
“What a huge surprise turn this story took! I was
completely stunned! I truly enjoyed this book and its
message.” – Actress Ali MacGraw
“He had me at Page One. The amount of heart, human insight,
soul searching, and deft literary strength that John Mariani
pours into this airtight novella is vertigo-inducing.
Perhaps ‘wow’ would be the best comment.” – James
Dalessandro, author of Bohemian
Heart and 1906.
“John Mariani’s Hound in
Heaven starts with a well-painted portrayal of an
American family, along with the requisite dog. A surprise
event flips the action of the novel and captures us for a
voyage leading to a hopeful and heart-warming message. A
page turning, one sitting read, it’s the perfect antidote
for the winter and promotion of holiday celebration.” – Ann
Pearlman, author of The
Christmas Cookie Club and A Gift for my Sister.
“John Mariani’s concise, achingly beautiful novella pulls a
literary rabbit out of a hat – a mash-up of the cosmic and
the intimate, the tragic and the heart-warming – a Christmas
tale for all ages, and all faiths. Read it to your children,
read it to yourself… but read it. Early and often. Highly
recommended.” – Jay Bonansinga, New York Times bestselling
author of Pinkerton’s War,
The Sinking of The Eastland, and The Walking Dead: The Road To
Woodbury.
“Amazing things happen when you open your heart to an
animal. The Hound in
Heaven delivers a powerful story of healing that
is forged in the spiritual relationship between a man and
his best friend. The book brings a message of hope that can
enrich our images of family, love, and loss.” – Dr. Barbara
Royal, author of The
Royal Treatment.
Modesty forbids me to praise my own new book, but
let me proudly say that it is an extensive
revision of the 4th edition that appeared more
than a decade ago, before locavores, molecular
cuisine, modernist cuisine, the Food Network and
so much more, now included. Word origins have been
completely updated, as have per capita consumption
and production stats. Most important, for the
first time since publication in the 1980s, the
book includes more than 100 biographies of
Americans who have changed the way we cook, eat
and drink -- from Fannie Farmer and Julia Child to
Robert Mondavi and Thomas Keller.
"This book is amazing! It has entries for
everything from `abalone' to `zwieback,' plus more
than 500 recipes for classic American dishes and
drinks."--Devra First, The Boston Globe.
"Much needed in any kitchen library."--Bon Appetit.
Now in Paperback,
too--How Italian Food Conquered the
World (Palgrave Macmillan) has won top prize from the
Gourmand
World Cookbook Awards. It is
a rollicking history of the food culture of
Italy and its ravenous embrace in the 21st
century by the entire world. From ancient Rome
to la dolce
vita of post-war Italy, from Italian
immigrant cooks to celebrity chefs, from
pizzerias to high-class ristoranti,
this chronicle of a culinary diaspora is as
much about the world's changing tastes,
prejudices, and dietary fads as about
our obsessions with culinary fashion and
style.--John Mariani
"Eating Italian will
never be the same after reading
John Mariani's entertaining and
savory gastronomical history of
the cuisine of Italy and how it
won over appetites worldwide. . .
. This book is such a tasteful
narrative that it will literally
make you hungry for Italian food
and arouse your appetite for
gastronomical history."--Don
Oldenburg, USA Today.
"Italian
restaurants--some good, some glitzy--far
outnumber their French rivals. Many of
these establishments are zestfully described
in How Italian Food Conquered the World, an
entertaining and fact-filled chronicle by
food-and-wine correspondent John F.
Mariani."--Aram Bakshian Jr., Wall Street
Journal.
"Mariani
admirably dishes out the story of
Italy’s remarkable global ascent
to virtual culinary
hegemony....Like a chef gladly
divulging a cherished family
recipe, Mariani’s book reveals the
secret sauce about how Italy’s
cuisine put gusto in gusto!"--David
Lincoln Ross,
thedailybeast.com
"Equal parts
history, sociology, gastronomy, and just
plain fun, How Italian Food Conquered the
World tells the captivating and delicious
story of the (let's face it) everybody's
favorite cuisine with clarity, verve and
more than one surprise."--Colman Andrews,
editorial director of The Daily
Meal.com.
"A fantastic and fascinating
read, covering everything from the influence
of Venice's spice trade to the impact of
Italian immigrants in America and the
evolution of alta cucina. This book will
serve as a terrific resource to anyone
interested in the real story of Italian
food."--Mary Ann Esposito, host of PBS-TV's
Ciao
Italia.
"John Mariani has written the
definitive history of how Italians won their
way into our hearts, minds, and
stomachs. It's a story of pleasure over
pomp and taste over technique."--Danny Meyer,
owner of NYC restaurants Union Square
Cafe, The Modern, and Maialino.
❖❖❖
FEATURED
LINKS: I am happy to report
that the Virtual
Gourmet is linked to four excellent
travel sites:
I consider this the best and
savviest blog of its kind on the web. Potter is a
columnist for USA
Weekend, Diversion, Laptop and Luxury Spa Finder,
a contributing editor for Ski and a frequent contributor
to National
Geographic Traveler, ForbesTraveler.com
and Elle Decor.
"I’ve designed this site is for people who take
their travel seriously," says Potter. "For
travelers who want to learn about special places
but don’t necessarily want to pay through the nose for
the privilege of staying there. Because at the end
of the day, it’s not so much about five-star
places as five-star experiences."
Eating Las
Vegas JOHN CURTAS has been covering
the Las Vegas food and restaurant scene
since 1995. He is the co-author of EATING LAS
VEGAS – The 50 Essential Restaurants (as
well as the author of the Eating Las
Vegas web site: www.eatinglasvegas.
He can also be seen every Friday morning as
the “resident foodie” for Wake Up With the
Wagners on KSNV TV (NBC) Channel 3 in
Las Vegas.
MARIANI'S VIRTUAL GOURMET
NEWSLETTER is published weekly. Publisher: John Mariani. Editor: Walter Bagley. Contributing Writers: Christopher
Mariani, Misha Mariani, John A. Curtas, Gerry Dawes, Geoff Kalish.
Contributing
Photographer: Galina Dargery. Technical
Advisor: Gerry
McLoughlin.