Napaman

Espresso Corretto August, 2010

Rich desserts, cheese platters and decaffeinated coffee at the end of a big dinner are so… 2009.

Of all the ways to end a grande bouffe, the only item, which I have long been compelled to order, is a “fortified espresso.” The beverage is called “caffe corretto,” in Italy, where the concoction originated.

Red, White and Green June, 2010

Red, white, and green may be the colors of the national flags of Italy, Iran, Bulgaria, Hungary, Mexico and of Wales.

But “Red, White & Green” became the wine mantra I evolved to complement the food stories, which POF writers were asked to post for the June theme of “Green.” As in Green food. As in farm fresh, snappy vegetables, as in pesto, and the like.

A life story: My mother May, 2010

When my mother, Anne White, died in 1994, I wrote a eulogy for her funeral service. Not a standard eulogy, to be sure, but one that was still heartfelt and that captured her 74 years of life.

I praised my mother for the gifts she gave to me, and mentioned some peevish flaws to put balance, and real feeling, into her life story.

And even though I can’t put my hands on the speech I gave that day, I will never forget my concluding words, not even now, 16 years later:

Thou Shalt Serve Wine at the Proper Temperature April, 2010

From years of developing commercial beverages and foods, I have learned a few insider tricks which I apply to wine and wine service.

Years ago, for a large North American beverage manufacturer, I developed, for example, 135 formulae for soft-drinks. Everything from cola to the zippiest ginger ale ever made in this country.

When we took our drinks to market, we conducted massive consumer taste panels, asking consumers to compare them blind to the leading national brand equivalents. Here’s what I learned:

Thoughts from a Cheese Contrarian March, 2010

Since this nation appears to be lurching violently to the side of Christian rhetoric and reflexive dogma, I think I may need to “get with the program.”

Hence, I have compiled my thoughts about wine as they relate to cheese (this month’s core topic at Poetry of Food), issuing a Wine Commandment, which the flock may follow:

Thou shalt not serve cheese before dinner and when thou doesteth, thou shalt not serve heavily oaked wines.

Chocolate – it’s no longer just for breakfast! February, 2010

I just attended the San Francisco Fancy Food Show, an annual trade show, which attracts hundreds of gourmet food, beverage and snack manufacturers. The show is a launch pad for new products and is often a barometer of food trends that will be with us for the next year.

Do you have a Wine Mantra for 2010? January, 2010

The food mantra has taken on tones of Commandment-like proportions this past year. The basic one goes like this:

THOU SHALL EAT LOCALLY

THOUGH SHALL EAT SEASONALLY

THOU SHALT NOT EAT ANYTHING WITH A FACE

And so on.

I have long had my own series of Wine Mantras (maybe the plural should be mantrae?), which I am pleased to share with Poetry of Food readers. Learn them and repeat often as you head to your wine cellar - for these Mantras may help you become more appreciative of wine.

THOU SHALL CHANGE WINE TASTES SEASONALLY

Champagne and Chestnuts December, 2009

You know the holidays are just around the corner; stores are starting to play that proverbial chestnut, “The Christmas Song,” also known as “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire.”

As Nat King Cole’s version is probably the best, you might put on the track as you read this elegiac to one of my favorite seasonal foods – the chestnut.

I grew up in a home where chestnuts were revered. At this time of year, my mother and I spent more time preparing dishes for Thanksgiving and Christmas with them than we ever did at the table enjoying them.

Wine with Curried Goat? No Thank You! November, 2009

Poetry of Food has gone international this month, adding columnists around the globe, making our collective effort the first true mondial food dispatch in the, um, well, world.

Being the first of anything usually leads to conflict later as this is the nature of being first; for a long while, you make up your own rules. And then, when standards are set, rules made, and ossification of the enterprise takes over, conflict becomes inevitable.

Veni. Vidi. Truffuleati. September, 2009

In the course of 30 years of professionally reviewing restaurants, three of my best-ever meals were centered around white truffles, or mushrooms.

Imagine what that says about the power of the white truffle! Three top meals -- out of 10,950 possible moments of gastronomic Eureka! (365 x 30 years) -- revolved around the presence of earthy, tar-scented, white truffles.

What amplifies the memory of these meals perhaps is the place where they were eaten, as much as the primary ingredient.

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