Food

Another day? Another task with the Rebel Girl.

Today?

Stabilizing and clarifying. I mixed in the stabilizing chemicals.. and then the isinglass mixture. I am not quite sure, but I think that makes me feel about a surrey with a fringe on top!

I thought isinglass was a type of mica that was used as windows, but obviously I must be confused.

Ooops. no I am not! At least not entirely! Isinglass can refer to gelatin made from the bladders of fish like sturgeon.

Well! Slap my ass and call me Sally! I am entirely shocked to learn that I wasn’t completely confused. And apparently Mrs. Swanson, my elementary school music teacher didn’t screw me over in the knowledge department!

So apparently, my Rebel Girl is not a vegan wine. I am surprised that my wine wasn’t vegan, but then I have never made any before and I was aware that egg shells and egg whites were used for clarification. I have used those items when clarifying soup stock.

But wine? Well it seemed quintessentially vegetarian.. indeed, vegan! No way, it appears!

Ah, just another way that my Rebel Girl takes me by surprise.

As it should.

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By: Marguerite Barrett, Contributing Writer

Land of Nod Winery

East Canaan, CT

After a several month hiatus, I returned to the CT Wine Trail this summer. My original intent had been to use my home base in central CT as a jumping off point to leisurely explore the entire wine trail over the spring and summer, hitting one winery every other week or so. Unfortunately life intervened as it is wont to do, and it took the arrival of my friend Carol from Texas for a long weekend visit to kick-start my wine trail adventures again.

Carol and I spent a gorgeous Sunday afternoon in late August touring several of the wineries in the northwest corner of CT. For those of you unfamiliar with the area, these are the hills of Litchfield County, which begin in the foothills of the Berkshires (near the Massachusetts border) and wind down through Litchfield and Fairfield counties until you hit the Western end of Long Island Sound. The scenery is exquisite and you travel primarily along state roads through small towns and forests.

We began our tour at the Land of Nod winery, one of the newer additions to the CT Wine Trail. Land of Nod is located in East Canaan, CT – in the western CT Highlands, close to the Massachusetts border.

The farm and winery, which is owned by the Adam family, is a National Bicentennial Farm, which means the farm has been in the same family for at least 200 years. Land of Nod bottles red, white and fruit wines. The two reds we tasted, the Cabernet Franc and the Pinot Noir, were both nice table wines. The one white, the Bianca, was a stronger, more complex wine. However the fruit wines, the Raspberry and the Blueberry-Raspberry medley really knocked our socks off.

I am not usually a fan of fruit wines – I often find them too sweet even as dessert wines – however, I fell in love with both of these. Very mellow, sweet but not cloyingly so, both wines would be excellent as aperitifs, dessert wines, paired with light pasta or vegetable dishes or just for sipping. I was so excited by them, I even sent two bottles to Kevin for his birthday – and Kevin generally is less of a fan of fruit wines than I am, a fact of which I am well aware. But lo and behold I got a call a month later from Kevin saying he and Gretchen and finished both the Raspberry and the Blueberry-Raspberry Medley and enjoyed both! I have to say I did respond with an “I told you so!” (ed. Totally true. They were fruity, not cloying, dry even which was a particular surprise. We would certainly enjoy trying them again… hint, hint!)

As much as Carol and I enjoyed the wines, we enjoyed the winery and the tasting even more. We spent almost an hour at Land of Nod hanging out with Bill, the owner, and his son, leisurely sampling his wines and just hanging out and chatting about anything and everything. Carol and Bill traded pictures and stories of their dogs, and Carol also went home with hand-spun yarn from a local farm for a knitting project. Bill and his family are great hosts, the tasting room is comfortable and there’s a small patio area out front if you want to sit, sip and enjoy the scenery.

At the end of our tasting, Bill brought out their new Chocolate-Raspberry fruit wine. It was still being bottled and labeled so it wasn’t available for sale, but he gave us a tasting on the house. My first thought when he introduced it was “Chocolate wine – are you kidding me?” But once tasted, I was a fan. Like the other fruit wines, it is not too sweet, and the chocolate taste is rich without being overpowering. It is currently available for sale, and I’m planning on picking up several bottles to bring to Thanksgiving dinner with my cousins.

If you do get a chance to visit the CT Wine Trail, don’t be deterred by the fact that Land of Nod is up in the corner of the state. It is definitely worth a visit; the drive is gorgeous, and it’s really not that far from other wineries on the list. If you’re coming from the Hartford area, it’s a leisurely 60 minute drive up Route 44. If you’re coming from Fairfield/Litchfield counties, it’s a straight shot up Route 7 – one of the most beautiful areas of Connecticut. And if you can’t make it in person, I strongly recommend you order a couple of bottles of their fruit wines for tasting at home.

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(Editor’s note: This piece is being cross-blogged over at GastroNerds)

The current thinking in food and green living is eating locally. Locavores concentrate on eating foods that are grown within 100 miles of where you live. By doing this, we eliminate the possibilities of being effected by the kinds of food recalls that have been all too commonly lately. Why do you eliminate them? Well, all of our spinach wouldn’t come from ONE valley in California which might eliminate the chances of it ALL being contaminated by the same e-coli germs.

Another good point to this trend is that when your food is grown three hours away there is a higher chance of being at its peak freshness when it arrives at you table. Not to mention the decreased use of transportation and thus oil and gasoline. A substantial benefit when looking at the rising food costs in this country. So, yes! Eating locally is good for us all. But how close up do you want to see your food? We tested those ideas the other day when we ate locally here in the Hamptons.

Our Stops:

Mecox Bay Dairy: Ultimately we were not at the dairy at all but at the farmstand next to it. We purchased a piece of the cheddar which was a pale golden and the Mecox Sunrise, a gorgeous triple cream that seemed quite camembert-like. We drove next to the pasture and we looked at the cows, calves and heifers (Jersey’s known for producing a rich milk). They looked very peaceful within view of the million dollar homes.

Iacono Fresh Poultry: Off the beaten path in East Hampton, they have been selling fresh eggs and poultry for generations. And we were there for the poultry. As fresh as you can get it. What did we get? Two chickens about 7 lbs total that were presented to us in the old fashioned way. They were brought to us, carried by their feet with their heads still attached and their throats obviously cut. I have never been presented my chicken like this before. And I am sad to say that I failed to get my chooks on film before they were transformed.

After our approval, they were taken to the back and with a few swift cuts were transformed into the same kind of poultry that I have come to expect. I even went out back and looked over yard where the chickens, mostly Rhode Island Reds, geese and ducks are hanging out. When they see us coming, they come closer to the fence hoping that we will give them a treat. This means that they are not stressing about their approaching doom in the way that your most ardent 11 year old vegetarian would describe to you (and YES, I have been told about it). In fact, the only animals that appear to want to bolt are the two goats on the property. Figure that out if you will.

Wolffer Vineyards: A regular stop for us when we come out the Hamptons. Why? Well, we are in their wine club for one. We stopped here to pick up 2 Reserve Chardonnays, 2 Pinot Gris, 2 Roses and a Verjus. The nice thing for budding locavores to remember is that there is mostly likely wine being produced near you as well. Every state in the Union has at least one winery. And that includes Alaska and Hawaii. So it turns out that there is no excuse for not drinking locally too. The tasting room was nicely appointed so that you can buy a bottle and take it out to the patio that looks out over the vineyard and enjoy the wine right there. Unfortunately, we could not linger! We had cooking to do.

Our choice? Simpler the better was the decision. So we decided to roast the chickens on the grill. I made a rub of paprika, thyme, onion powder, salt and pepper and sprinkled some inside the rinsed out cavity of my two birds. Also inside went half a lemon. The remainder of the rub was massaged onto the skin of the bird with a bit of olive oil to help it crisp.

To accompany the chicken, I prepared a risotto. Using the local asparagus of the household and by that I mean canned which while revolting did mix right into the risotto and really underscored the flavor of the rice’s special ingredient, the Sunrise cheese. We cut off some of the rind, but the rest melted right into the mixture.

The chickens came of the grill. They were superb. Probably the best tasting birds that I have ever eaten. Juicy, crispy and flavorful all at the same time, it was delicious. With our meal we drank some of the Chardonnay and Pinot Gris which set off the tastes perfectly and more than stood up to the rich flavors. The risotto was perfect with the chicken. The cheese was slightly tangier than the normal mixture of cream and parmesan that I would have used. But it was richer and creamier as well. The asparagus? It was there. That is all that I can say about it. My in-laws have traditionally felt that having asparagus in the house all the time was a classy thing to do. But unfortunately, their reliance on canned tends to gross our generation out.

And speaking of generations, the younger crowd was not enthusiastic in their love of this local eating thing. Lillith refused to step out of the car at the chicken farm. And Imelda was a bit freaked out. This carried over to the cooking and eating of the chicken as well. Ultimately they could NOT resist tasting the chicken because the smell was too delicious. Lillith, herself, acknowledged this. But I have to admit that my attempt at a joking with her, suggesting that she join PETA (People Eating Tasty Animals) went over like a lead balloon. I guess she just felt a little guilty enjoying food that was LITERALLY running around this morning. Que sera.

I did assure her that the chicken would be used as much as possible. And that like Kosher and Halal butchers, I thanked the birds for their sacrifice. This seemed to help her. And she knows that I will keep my word. The carcasses have been saved. I will make my father-in-law chicken soup from them before I go. Maybe I will even use my mother-in-laws pressure cooker to do so. Cross your fingers that I don’t blow up the kitchen with it.

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Yum Nue and Tom Yum Kai! My favorites! The soup is hot and sour with chicken and vegetables… the salad is broiled skirt steak marinated after cooking in chili-garlic paste, nam pla (fish sauce), rice wine vinegar, lime juice and chopped coriander. I like to marinate the thinly sliced onions too…. So, tasty.

Not a traditional wine kind of dinner though. In college we ate these kinds of dinners with beer. Then again, we ate a lot of things with beer…

This time we tried pairing our Thai feast with fruity wines. One, a Liebfraumilch from the Sycamore Winery. It was drier than the Blue Nun of my childhood and contained fewer bizarre mental images (Why did they put that nun on a bike? I never did understand that…oh, and as an extra note, when did it STOP being a liebfraumilch?). It didn’t fight the food and actually added a nice balance. Our second choice (as we were feeling particularly mellow after such a satisfying home cooked meal) was a wine from the Savoie region of France (near the border with Italy) called Apremont which was produced by Pierre Boniface. It was also fruity, smelling of melons and pears which was perfect with the sharp curried flavor of the soup. I picked up this bottle at the Wine Discount Center for about $7.00 (if memory serves)

Kevin and I were satisfied with our choices, but would love to hear what You (there are people out there reading these things, right?) would choose to drink with this kind of meal. I won’t cook it for you… but I might just share my recipes…. Just ask!

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Spaghetti with a spicy marinara, salad and the Lois Grüner-Veltliner. It was light, crisp and fruity and stood up nicely to the spicy spaghetti sauce.

Were Austria and Italy always such friends?

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I would have considered them a good match but they went admirably well together… perhaps because my chili isn’t over laden with meat and the vegetables included rich oven roasted tomatoes…

My need for hot sauce might have over-powered the wine a bit, but I wouldn’t have enjoyed the meal so much without it.

I guess, I will keep experimenting with flavors to see what goes the best. Too bad every time I cook even the most basic of dishes, I vary the recipe…

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Kevin and I love to eat out.

Stop snickering those of us who know us… yes, it is obvious.

Usually though, we have trouble getting out of the neighborhood for lunch. As my daughters are getting older and able to stay in the house for a couple of hours without burning the place down or practicing their knife skills on each other. (knock on wood) We decided to take a chance.

July 12th we stopped for lunch at David Burke’s Primehouse. This restaurant has been the site of many a family dinner. Dinner that have been blog worthy (see Maman) because of both the food and the hospitality.

That week we enjoyed a special that they ran at the restaurant. They called it the 777 Luncheons. 7 Wines from 7 regions for $7. I was there for Spain day and loved it!

We started out with a Llopart Rose Brut Reserva Cava. It was light and full at the same time, rich with fruit. Then we moved on to a Do Ferreiro Albarino Rias Baixas, a white from Galicia that was dry and tasty but a trifle light for me during a meal. But I can imagine drinking it at a summer party.

Then came our favorite. The Bodegas Vizcarra Ramos “Roble” Ribera del Duero, it was full bodied and smooth and so tasty that we were very sorry to see the end of it. To balance this out was a fuller tempranillo in the more typical and macho style, the Rotllan Torra “Reserva” Priorat. The Vinas del Cenit was wonderful and tasty… a complete delight.

Over all the wine flight to Spain was amazing and better yet? All the proceeds went to charity, Common Threads. Their mission is is to educate children on the importance of nutrition, physical well-being and to to teach them to appreciate the world’s culture by experiencing their food.

The rumour is that David Burke will host another week of 777 lunches sometime in December. I can’t wait to see what they have planned then!

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