The wine business is a crazy little world. I get people asking about it all the time and to be honest, other than the fact that we work in an insane business selling alcohol to people across the country and usually drinking too much ourselves, it is just like your job. Same stresses, same hilarity and at the end of the day if you don’t have good product then you’re not going to sell very much.
Our goal is to keep it simple and give people what they want. If you ever feel like leaving suggestions on what we do please don’t hesitate to post them here.
I love traveling and I love running across people who really “get it” when it comes to food, eating and drinking.
Last week I was introduced to the owner of the Belmont Butchery, Tanya Cauthen with her wine buyer Brad Hemp, as well as the saucisson master, Chris Mattera. This is a three year old butchery in Richmond, VA and if you are staying, live there or just passing through you must stop in and check out the joint, grab some meats and a bottle of wine. Their hospitality is unrivaled, the sausage and bacon is divine and they have a secret weapon behind the shop…an urban garden.
For city dwellers that think all farming is done out in the pastures far away from the bright lights think again. An urban farming renaissance is sweeping quietly through America, and the more I ask, the more I see this happening in all four corners of our beautiful country. I’m an optimist at heart and it fills me with great pleasure and pride to see Americans taking hold of backyards, abandoned lots, next door neighbors ratty tat overgrown lawns and converting these into sustainable urban gardens that are yielding delicious, high quality, sometimes organic produce year round.
This is exactly what Tanya and her boyfriend Henry Reidy did… (btw, who owns a fantastic bottle shop called Strawberry Street Vineyard)… they took over an abandoned lot behind the Butchery and are growing produce such as corn to herbs to heirloom tomatoes. It was the most delicious sandwich I’d eaten all week as we tasted wines in the store. Just smoked sausage, still warm and oozing deliciousness, wrapped in hand ripped baguette with a spread of brown seeded mustard, finished with backyard heirloom tomatoes, fresh buffalo mozzarella and shredded basil. I say put a fork in me, I’m done!
Congratulations Tanya on creating a truly memorable and unique butchery. Visit their site: http://belmontbutchery.com/ and stop in next time you’re in Richmond.
Spanish wines are in vogue for a very good reason. They are delicious, have amazing pedigree and often times blow the roof off with quality at entry level prices. I think that I’ve found a great spring time white. Don Sancho Londono, Cortijo Blanco (100% pure delicious viura), from Rioja. This little beauty is like the best Loire Valley sauvignon blanc that is crisp and terroir driven masterfully infused with subtle viognier aromatics without being cloying or heavy. Let me tell you a little bit about Viura as a grape variety.
Viura is sometimes called Macabeo in other non Riojan growing areas in Spain and since the 1950’s has been a balanced and beautiful blending grape offering structure and acidity to many white wines. Don Sancho Londono has approximately 900 acres of vines around the town of Hormilla and has the ability to grow vibrant and fresh Viura that is atypical of the classic, old school Riojan whites of the past that were oxidized and caramel colored.
I love drinking wines that match the weather and hopefully in your neck of the woods the sun has popped out and the flowers are blooming and you can sit on the porch and enjoy a delicious chilled bottle of your favorite white wine.
So I’m traveling and working in Alabama and am told that I must go to this restaurant, Chez Fon Fon. What the heck does Fon Fon mean? Well, nothing. It’s a made up name that chef owner Frank Stitt apparently liked. But let me tell you. I went there twice and not only was the decor classique French bistro, the service fantastic, but the food, the food, the food.
I will freely admit that I am thoroughly enamoured with classique European cuisine. Clear and clean dishes that have been cooked for centuries and you can’t really go wrong if your end goal is to satisfy the stomach and in the process your soul. I asked for recommendations on the menu and followed the advice and had one of the most delicious Coq au Vin. The time before last I ate a feast fit for a person much larger than I, but I couldn’t help myself. Fresh hard boiled eggs greet you from the bar, so snuggle up and grab a glass of rose and crack an egg to whet your appetite. Then ask for a classic escargot dish or brandade, you won’t be disappointed. When I order steak frites I am expecting not only a delicious piece of meat, but excellent execution on french fries. These are perfect, crispy, thinly cut and salted with fine grain sel de mer.
And when I asked about a cheese plate not only did we have a discussion on regional French cheeses but the bartendar handed me the cheese bible so I could have an encyclopedic expalantion that satisfied ever curiosity. Wonderful.
So next time family or business takes you to the South, take my advice and stop in at Fon Fon.
I recently stopped in at Laurent Gras’ new phenom restaurant L20. L-2-0 - As in Laurent and Water, seafood and sunshine, service and ambiance, savory and sweet, etc. What an amazing amount of detail in the food. A few days before we ate at L2O I had to make a small hand delivery of some very old and amazing madeiras. I stood at the back door of the kitchen. I was waiting for Mr Marello to arrive to receive the handsome parcel and I was able to watch the kitchen for a stretch. It was 3:30 in the afternoon and the normal hussle of a kitchen preparing themselves for dinner service is what you’d expect. This was a scene out of the deep entrails of the NY City’s three star Michelin kitchens a la Ducasse. Tight, humming, tense, no conversation, extremely serious countenances on each man and woman, and a fleet of people. This is why gastronomes go to restaurants like Per Se, La Bernadin, Alinea and Charlie Trotters. To experience what a squadron of intense cooks can and will prepare for you to delight, amaze and impress. If you fancy yourself an at home cook who raises the bar, ask to get a visit of a prominent kitchen, to be a fly on the wall, just to get a feel for the intensity and focus of a professional team.
I stood at the back door way and watched as a dozen people scurried about from task to task. There was zero wasted effort, no time for joviality, everyone was there to execute a particular task and prepare for a long evening of service. One of the line cooks was meticulously cleaning the back room where I stood, and essentially apologized for asking me to move the hell out of his way, because he didn’t have time to slow down and I was terribly in the way.
That’s a kitchen!
Suffice it to say that the seafood we had was some of the most flavorful and delightfully presented plates that I’ve seen in years. Of course L20 is expensive, so come prepared to be wowed, drop a brick of dough, and sit for the long haul to experience everything that Gras has in store for you. Oh ya, try the vintage Madeira…1908 Boal will rock your world, or 1875 Malvasia will spin your head (19th Century Wine!!!).
This blog is about traveling across the country. I see so many unique and hidden gems that have incredible people, amazing food, excellent wine, drinks, beers, cocktails that I felt it was important to write about them. Please feel free to share your travel stories and thoughts about the places in your backyard, or from the traveling road.