Licking My Wounds...

Wow, had an absolutely BRUTAL night at poker last night... In Tourney 1, lost two straight hands in which I was a 93% favorite (other person had three outs out of 44 remaining cards). Then did my magical running-into-pocket-Aces-with-pocket-Jacks trick, always a fun -- and abrupt -- ride. So in serious licking-the-wounds mode this morning, and hence am daydreaming about a special upcoming dinner at the French Laundry in Yountville. Apparently French Laundry wonder chef Tom Keller is hooking up with a friend to each produce 10 alternating courses, or a 20-course meal in all. Wow, wouldn't that be something!

You want details? Sure? The dinner will take place December 9th at the French Laundry. For reservations, call 312-867-0110.

Oh, yeah: this little baby will only set you back $1,500 per person (though wine, tax, and tip are included).

A boy can dream, yes?

Calistoga Inn

Ahhhh, yes, the food and wine business can be BRUTAL at times. I mean, absolutely BRUTAL. Check this out. My friends and I at the Wine Country Inn are already busy preparing for several holiday get-togethers (including the Ode to the Olive celebration in November and a return guest reunion in January and February). Dinners are involved, and because it'll be the holidays, we want to splurge a bit, so that means musical entertainment of the soothing and cool type. So yours truly had -- and I mean had -- to go check out a certain guitar player last week who was playing at the Calistoga Inn.

O.k., so I get there at about six p.m. ... and learn that he doesn't start until 6:30 p.m. I had already ordered a glass of wine (come on!), so I couldn't sit there drinking on an empty stomach, right? So dinner became, as they say, involved. And that meant six oysters on the half-shell with a delicious Moscatel-shallot vinaigrette (Moscatel is primarily a Spanish wine made from the Muscat grape), and then a wonderful risotto with -- check this out -- field mushrooms. If there's a more enticing two-word combination in the English language than field mushrooms, I don't know what it is.

Anyway, the meal was fantastic, and the outdoor patio with lights and music simply spectacular. (Come to think of it, I never did make it inside the Inn, which apparently was built in 1882, and now has a brewery on site, too.) Anyway, check out the Calistoga Inn sometime. Sit on the outdoor patio. Enjoy a delicious meal.

And oh, yes -- listen the music.

Viva la French!

With French food on my mind regarding my recent conversations with Chez Pierre, it only seemed appropriate that J and I would lunch last week at Bistro Jeanty, a classic French bistro in Yountville, in the Napa Valley.

One word: Wow! Bistro Jeanty has a great 'atmosphere', with full bar and several small rooms, which create the feeling of intimacy. The menu is to die for, with all kinds of goodies like moules "brule doigts" (wood oven roasted mussles with grey salt and olive oil), quail and porcini risotto, a selection of cheeses, and poulet au citron (stewed lemon chicken with garlic cloves and roasted artichokes). Me? I went old-school (I know, I know--surprise, surprise): to start, I had their Crême de tomate en croute (tomato soup in puff pastry) which was fabulous: light, yet with concentrated tomato flavor, then coq au vin (chicken, mushrooms, bacon, and red wine stew) and a side of buttered egg noodles. Ahhhhh, I can't think of three more resplendent words in the English language than "buttered egg noodles." (Note: they must be in that exact order.) J'aime cette nourriture!

Anyway, you cannot go wrong with Bistro Jeanty from everything to a cocktail at the bar, to a light lunch, to an incroyable dinner. Enjoy!

Bistro Jeanty

6510 Washington Street

Yountville, CA 94599

tel: 707-944-0103

bistrojeanty.com

New Wine Web Site

I'm excited to announce that my friends at Nord Estate Wines in Yountville, in the Napa Valley, have just launched a new web site: http://www.nordvineyards.com/. I think it's a great reflection on their three core businesses, which are: vineyard management, wine making, and vineyard ownership. In fact, it's the Nord's family love of the land that I think sets them apart among all Napa Valley wineries. The Nord's are first and foremost vineyard folks. They get their boots dirty and have their hands on the vines. This translates directly into their winemaking, where they focus on producing the most superior fruit possible and then "touching" the fruit as little as possible during the winemaking process.

And best of all, they've been practising sustainable vineyard management practices for more than thirty years and are recognized throughout the Napa Valley and the State of California as leaders in this movement.

Anyway, check out their new web site, and by all means, check out their great wines: drinkable, affordable, and with something else most other Napa Valley wineries lack -- a sense of fun.

Tours and tastings by appointment.

Contact Julie Nord for information: 707-945-1094

Homage to the Goddess

Just a quick note to let you know that next week kicks off the two-month long series of food and wine events that make up the 15th annual Napa Valley Mustard Festival. There are all kinds of fun events, from the formal to the downright fun. For a complete schedule and ticket information (if necessary), visit their web site.

For those interested in a Mustard Festival goodie, copies of this year's Mustard Festival poster, entitled Mustard Goddess, signed by artist Jess Miller are available at Studio on Main in downtown St. Helena for $49.95. The mustard festival posters make a great gift and/or decoraction for your home. Enjoy!

Also, fyi, Every Meal A Feast will now keep an Events Calendar which lists food and wine events in Sonoma County and the Napa Valley. Be sure to check our Events Calendar regularly for selective food and wine adventures -- and potential misadventures - throughout Sonoma and Napa.

Napa Valley Everyday: Part 3

I've been talking online with my new blogger buddy, Cece Marie (alldolledup), who expressed an interest in visiting Wine Country with her husband again soon. Cece Marie: now is a great time to visit. Why? The crowds are absent, so it's easy to get around; the winery staff's have the time to actually talk to you; and it's easy to eat lunch (no waiting) or dinner (reservations when you want). So yes, by all means, I definitely recommend Wine Country in this "off season."

With this in mind, I thought it best to add today the third and final installment of my "Napa Valley Everyday" theme -- three great lunch places located on the 8-10 mile stretch of Highway 29 running from downtown St. Helena to Calistoga. Previously, I wrote about Buster's Southern Barbecue and Bakery (read my post; visit Buster's) and Silverado Brewing Company (read my post; visit Silverado). Now, it's time to tackle the "big T" -- Taylor's.

Since 1949, Taylor's Automatic Refresher has been a St. Helena main drag mainstay for great burgers, shakes, and fries. It's good wholesome "comfort food"...with, of course (!) a wine country twist -- high-quality products (love their buns!), healthier alternatives (salads, chicken, fish tacos, etc.), and a selection of more than 15 Napa Valley wines by the glass, half-bottle, or bottles.

Now, as great as their menu is, I have to admit, when I go to Taylor's (once a month -- I'm addicted, what can I say) I always order the SAME THING: the Blue Cheese Burger and the Sweet Potato Fries.

Now, if there are two sweeter combinations in the world than "hamburger" and "blue cheese", I certainly don't know what they are. The Taylor's BCB is a gooey, messy, salty, runny plethora of tastes and textures. And if you do find yourself at Taylor's, YOU HAVE TO GET AN ORDER OF SWEET POTATO FRIES. These orange-ish devils are sweet on the inside and with just that right amount of salt, and best of all, they aren't greasy like so many regular potato french fries can be.

Anyway, there are of course fabulous restaurants throughout the Napa Valley. But there are some great "everyday" places too, and Taylor's tops that list. Enjoy.

Taylor's Automatic Refresher

933 Main Street, St. Helena

10:30 - 8:30 everyday

Calistoga Cool

Recently I wrote about the trendy Upper Fourth bar in Santa Rosa's Old Courthouse Square. I love Upper Fourth's stylish decor and focus on high-end drinks and appetizers.

Now, there's a relatively new place in Calistoga with a very similar up-scale, trendy, and chic (or, what I call "Calistoga Cool") vibe: BarVino.

BarVino is located right on Calistoga's main street. It's a small place with the bar the main emphasis (in the middle) and tables around. I love the cool decor and, especially, the 10-speaker sound system. Nice!

While Upper Fourth tends to focus on high-end well drinks, BarVino is all about, of course, food and wine. Executive Chef Dominic Orsini has a small but enticing list of pastas and entrees, including: pumpkin risotto, Spanish bouillabaisse, and steak Florentine. I've been in several times and am now hooked on the Vino Fries--delicious spuds with Sicilian spiced sea salt and chianti ketchup.

The wine list, of course, rocks, with a rock star-like listing of high-quality Napa Valley wineries featured. My personal favorite to date? Mmmmmm... I'll save that for my next post. (Sorry!)

Anyway, check out BarVino in downtown Calistoga as quick as you can.

1457 Lincoln Avenue, Calistoga

http://www.bar-vino.com/

P.S. And if you happen to be in when a tall brunette is bar tending/hosting, DON'T bet her a glass of wine that she can, serving a volleyball, knock a glass off the end of the counter at 30 paces. That's Aja, and she's Sonoma State U vb player, and well, let's just say that anything having to do with a round white ball that she can kick our a** and leave it at.

Hidden Napa Valley Wine Bar

O.K., so I was little harsh in my treatment of Tra Vigne restaurant in my Shin-Kicking the Hostess post on November 5. But let me add this tidbit if you want to hang out where many of the coolest Napa Valley food and wine insider's hang out (and trust me, this tidbit is authentic, given to me by one of the BEST of the Napa Valley food and wine insider's); check out this: in the courtyard leading to the entrance of Tra Vigne is also a small wine bar called Cantinetta. It has a huge selection of wines-by-the-glass and some simple lunch-type fare made at, of course, Tra Vigne. While the food menu is short, it all looks good to me, especially the salume fatta en casa (house-cured meats with olives and toasted almonds), the salumi sandwich (house-made mortadella and salami with provolone cheese) and, of course, the tiramisu (with ladyfingers, mascarpone and marsala wine).

So here's today's EMAF food and wine suggestion: skip Tra Vigna and instead hang out at Cantinetta. It's cozy with a great atmosphere, awesome Napa Valley wine, some authentic Italian fare...and it's got the No. 1 EMAF requirement: character.

See you at the bar.

Shin-Kicking the Hostess

I'm an optimistic kind of guy, and EMAF is meant to highlight the fun and special in life when it comes to food and wine. But sometimes I can whine too, right?

Case in point: Recently, my good friend JS and I had a special business/pleasure lunch meeting at the trendy Napa Valley restaurant Tra Vigne (which means "among the vines"), located just south of downtown St. Helena. Again, I'm a positive guy, but I also have very high expectations, especially about a Napa Valley restaurant...at lunch in October...which just happens to be the height of the tourist season. (In other words, if you're a restaurant and you aren't on your A++ game in October, well...fuhgetaboutit.)

First, we were greeted by The Hostess with the Mostest. Now, I think you've run into this creature too. The Hostess with the Mostest is almost always: a female in her early twenties; attractive and yes, great curves (hey--if I didn't look, I'd be dead, right?); and has absolutely NO personality. Twice I tried to engage the Hostess with little comments, just to build a rapport, find out if she was human. Both times I got the same plastered-on smile, nod of the head, and glazed look from the eyes. I almost -- almost -- kicked her in the shins to see if she was, in fact, a real humanoid and not a robot.

So the robot, er hostess, leads us into the restaurant to our table...and we're almost overcome with this terrible sewer-ish smell. WTF? right. The hostess, of course, makes NO mention of this (she obviously can't smell), merely gives us our menus and plods off.

So I'm thirsty, right? So I take a drink of water that's on the table...and almost spit it out! Why? It has that terrible peppery/dishwatery taste from obviously being run through a dishwater. Please. It's the NAPA VALLEY. You have a FAMOUS restaurant. Can't you please provide water that's drinkable?

Anyway, the food itself was actually very good (I had the pizza con fichi e gorgonzola) though our waiter acted throughout the entire meal like he was the brother of the robot, er hostess. (Would it kill you to pretend that you might see us again, I mean, hey, we're not tourists--we're locals).

I was disappointed with Tra Vigne. You might not be. But if you do go, don't expect to actually connect with anyone there other than, perhaps, the unseen chef.

Napa Valley Everyday: Part 2

Man, how time flies! Back in July (see my post of July 4: Napa Valley Everyday: Part 1), I began the first of a three-part series on "Napa Valley Everyday" restaurants--small, off-the-beaten path places I love for lunches while in the northern part of the Napa Valley, on Highway 29 stretching from St. Helena north to Calistoga. Now, finally, it's time to move to Part 2: Buster's Southern Barbecue and Bakery.

Buster's is located at the main stoplight in Calistoga, at Highway 29 and Lincoln Avenue. It's a low-slung building with neon signs and, best of all, an outdoor barbecue pit. I love to drive by in the early morning on my way to a meeting and see brisket and chicken and pork smoking on the grill...and just knowing that I'm going to be hitting there at lunchtime.

Sandwiches basically fall into four categories: tri-tip, pork, chicken, and hot links. I love to get a chicken sandwich slathered in their awesome bar-b-que sauce (I go for mild; and fyi, yes, hot means HOT) with a couple of sides, usually chili beans and cole slaw. And of course I wash everything down with a Black Diamond Amber Ale. Ahhhhhh. Buster's also serves homemade desserts, including cookies, muffins, and my favorite: sweet potato pie.

It doesn't get much better than this:

Ahhhhh:

Buster's is great home-made food made with care by real people (yes, there really is a Buster--I see him all the time). Anyway, check it out sometime.

State of the Grape: Part 2

The 2007 Sonoma County grape harvest and 2007 Napa Valley grape harvest are in full-swing right now. Workers are tromping through vineyards throughout the night (to pick the grapes in the moonlit coolness); trucks are busily--and noisily--plodding across back roads, main roads, and highways. Winemakers and other winery workers are busy crushing. All in all, it's an exciting time, full of the promise--and the flavor--of things to come.

Recently, I had the opportunity to visit my friends at Nord Estate Wines to witness their bottling. This process usually takes place in August, primarily to empty the tanks and barrels to make free space to take in the new grapes which will be coming in in September and October. The "mobile bottling" is a fun--and fast!--experience. Here's how it works:

1. empty bottles enter a convey belt at the back of the mobile bottling truck



2. each bottle is shot with air, to blow out dust and other unwanted particles

3. each bottle is shot full of Nitrogen, to push out the air (oxygen, of course, damages wine)

4. each bottle is over-filled with wine


5. the extra wine is pulled out, and the bottle sealed with nitrogen

6. the cork is placed inside each bottle

7. a foil cap is placed on top of each bottle (pretty much the only by-hand step)

8. a machine seals the foil cap

9. the label is placed on each bottle

10. the bottles return to the back of the truck, where they are placed into cases

The bottling company can do up to 2,000 cases a day. Like I said, it's a fun process to watch...and an exciting one, knowing that all that great Napa Valley and Sonoma County wine is that much closer to being enjoyed by all!

P.S. For "State of the Grape: Part 1", see my post of August 14, 2007.

State of the Grape: Part 1

Whew, am only now coming down off my sugar high following the Gravenstein Apple Fair this past Saturday (and have finally slept after two days, too; I neglected to mention that with my apple cobbler I also bought an iced coffee--which came in a 32-ounce cup that took both my hands to lift to drink). There's SO much going on the Every World A Feast blog world right now that it's hard to get my mind around things. First, COMING SOON, a SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT regarding the FIRST EVER Every Meal A Feast "Gathering" in which YOU TOO can participate. Plus this Friday, I leave for VEGAS BABY with my good friend JS, and in the spirit of my buddy Jay's recent blow-by-blow account of his across-country "cannonball run", I plan to post frequent updates regarding my Vegas food & drink escapades. Trust me, this will be something NOT TO BE MISSED, so if you have any weekend plans, you might just want to cancel or postpone them to stay in close contact to the Internet. More soon about Vegas, but let me just say now that Vegas to me is ALWAYS a cannonball-type run where the real question becomes not did I have fun or even did I win any money, but did I SURVIVE???

With all this talk of late about apples, I thought now I'd turn to grapes. I talked yesterday with my good friend Todd Anderson, who's the owner and head winemaker at Conn Valley Vineyards in the Napa Valley, to get the Every Meal A Feast inside scoop on this year's pending grape harvest. Here's a verbatim interview with Todd (with my mental comments in parenthesis):

Me: Hey.

Todd: Hey.

Me: How's it going?

Todd: Good. (This is warm-up guy-talk.)

Me: Tell me about the grapes.

Todd: This year they're hanging to the left.

Me: Really? Is that a good thing? (Is he pulling my leg?)

Todd: No, you idiot. I'm just kidding. (He WAS pulling my leg, the bastard!)

Me: Oh, O.K. So when you are going to pick those suckers?

Todd: I don't know. In all seriousness, it depends on what Mother Nature does in the next couple-three weeks. We monitor things in the vineyard very closely this time of year.

Me: Monitor sugar levels, right?

Todd: Yeah, plus some other factors, like color. And a lot of times we make our final determination of when to pick based on taste.

Me: Really?

Todd: Yeah. After growing grapes for 25 years, you get an idea of what the grapes are supposed to taste like at harvest.

Me: That's very cool.

Todd: Yeah. It's all about getting great fruit. The better the fruit, the better the wines.

Me: O.K., thanks. Say, do you have that five bucks you owe me?

Todd: See me next week, O.K.? I gotta go do a vineyard walk-through.

Me: (&^%$##%^)

Here are some grapes-on-the-vines pics; enjoy.

My Cup Runneth Over

The world can be a depressing place. Wars rage. Prices rise. Ice caps melt.

I, on the other hand, was born an optimist. I can always find something positive to enjoy, even savor. Take now, for example. It's the beautiful summertime with open-toed shoes and swimming and backyard barbecues. My beloved Cleveland Indians are only a game or two out of first place in the AL Central. The last poker tournament I played in, I won. I could go on. While others see the glass as half-empty, I'm definitely a half-full kind of person.

Sometimes though, by grace and mystery, my cup not only fills completely, it overflows. Like the other night. Picture this setting: I'm deep within the bowels of Howell Mountain, off the Silverado Trail in the Napa Valley...having dinner prepared by a classically trained chef (a graduate of the Ecole Ritz Escoffier at the Hotel Ritz in Paris)...while drinking wines prepared by the chef's husband, who's a classically trained (in Germany, no less) winemaker...while overlooking their Ghost Winery. Not only is G. with me, but so too are my good friends G. and R., and my friend K. and her husband C. And the chef and winemaker eat with us. It just doesn't get much better than that!

Let me introduce Richard and Leslie Mansfield. Leslie is the classically trained chef and has written 10+ cookbooks. Richard presides over Mansfield Winery, which produces ultra-premium wines. Together they host (on a referral basis only---it is their home) private dinners where they not only prepare the food and provide the wine, but dine with the guests.

For our meal, Leslie, who collects vintage menus, prepared a vintage menu for dinner. It reads like a what's-what of an incredible meal. Crostini with fig-olive tapenade; escargot from the Ritz; rack of spring lamb; mint orzo; apricot parfaits with late harvest Sauvignon Blanc toffee. With each course, Richard matched an appropriate (and, to me, perfect) Mansfield Winery wine. In short, it was the type of meal that one has maybe once every ten years. Maybe. Incredible, incredible, incredible.

My specific likes and thoughts? I've only had escargot once before in my life, and was a little hesitant this time, but it was wonderful: hearty yet not chewy (and, as Richard said, it's basically a distribution system for butter and garlic). The hit of the night was probably the orzo, the rice-like pasta with the bright summery mint. While I enjoyed all the wines, my favorite remains The Mansfield Winery's Umpqua Valley (OR) Riesling--clear, with amazing feel and, to me, clean without the heavy sugars so many rieslings have to me. We ate and drank and laughed. And there were no mishaps, either. C. kept his pants on (long story). G. and K. successfully passed through the metal detector on the way out so no vintage silverware went missing. And R. and G. invited us, on the spur of the moment, to another party the following evening.

As enjoyable as the food and wine were though, perhaps the highlight of the evening was simply the laughter among us all. To dine well and to do so with special friends...now THAT makes a meal truly a feast. The evening made me think about those special times and special moments in our lives. When our cups runneth over, what spills out isn't wasted, it isn't lost; those spilled nutrients, that spilled-over life, I like to think, fertilizes the world around us, leading to more great meals, fun times, and deeper connections with the special people in our lives.

Napa Valley Everyday: Part 1

About twice a week, I find myself driving a 9- or 10-mile strip on Highway 29 in the Napa Valley stretching from just south of the town of St. Helena north, to the town of Calistoga. Along this path are three of my favorite lunch stops, which I call "Napa Valley Everday": Buster's Barbecue & Bakery, Taylor's Refresher, and the topic of today's post, The Silverado Brewing Company.

SBC is located in an old stone building which used to be Freemark Abby Cellars. I love the interior: stone walls, dimmish-lighting, the beautiful polished-smooth bar. To the right of the bar area is the dining room, and to the left, behind a huge glass wall, are the tall stainless steel vats. It's a lot of fun to sit at the bar, have a great made-right-there beer, and watch the beermakers lug their hoses and what-not from vat to vat.

My favorite sandwich there: the pulled pork. It's a delicious salty-sweet treat. The pork, from the veritable Niman Ranch, is slow-roasted, and melts in your mouth. It comes with one of my favorite sides: the orange, not-as-greasy-as-regular-fries sweet potato fries. I order an Oatmeal Stout to accompany the sandwich: black and layered yet light enough to drink with lunch.

Their web site isn't much to look at, but check em out sometime: http://www.silveradobrewingcompany.com/.

The Night My Poker Buddies Drank VERY Well

Once a month, I hook up with eight or nine guys to play some Texas Holdem poker. It's a fun time: we start about six p.m. and end around one or two a.m. In between is pizza, beer or wine, and, usually, a lot of laughs (although when Jimmy Z. draws out on the &^%$# river AGAIN, you just want to slit your wrist). Anyway, right before our last game, I had bought some wine from a new winery which I've recently discovered in Napa Valley, Conn Valley Vineyards. Their specialty is Bordeaux-style reds. Now, CVV has an inexpensive everyday wine called Prologue. They also have a high-end red blend called Eloge (which means "praiseworthy", and is 65% cabernet sauvignon, 25% cab franc, 5% merlot, and 5% petite verdot). At our last poker game, I somehow got those mixed up in my mind: I MEANT to take to the guys a bottle of the (inexpensive) Prologue. What I REALLY TOOK was a bottle of the high-end Eloge ($75/bottle retail). Needless to say, the wine was a huge hit. Garris, Jim D., and others---including myself---all raved about it. It wasn't until the next morning when I realized (to my horror!) that my generally beer-swilling/pizza-eating poker buddies had been drinking the good stuff. Oh, well. Such is life. I guess I can't complain too much, because I've won off them enough to buy plenty of bottles of Eloge. If you love big reds that are drinkable now, check out Conn Valley Vineyards: http://www.connvalleyvineyards.com/

P.S. If Jimmy Z. posts any sort of comment about my cork-extraction abilities, I just want to go on record as saying that I can pop em out with the best of them...when given the proper tool.

Where to stay in Napa Valley

Here's an insider's Napa Valley tip: the place to stay is The Wine Country Inn, which is just north of St. Helena. The rooms are fantastic, the grounds like a mini-garden of Eden, plus, they have an awesome breakfast each morning. "Chef Guy" usually makes an egg dish (my favorite is "death by cheese") and homemade muffins and cookies, there's a make-your-own waffle station, plus the Inn makes its own special-double-secret recipe granola. Check it out: http://www.winecountryinn.com/

How do you taste a $500 per bottle wine?

Very carefully!

Or at least I did the other day during one of the highlights of my food and wine experiences to date. Not only did I get to taste a wine that's $500 a bottle, I got to hang out with the winemaker. I mean, come on: It doesn't get much better than that!

Here's the story. Todd Anderson has been making fabulous Bordeaux-style wines at Conn Valley Vineyards in the heart of the Napa Valley for more than 20 years. Around 2000, he started a second, ultra- ultra-premium winery: Ghost Horse Vineyards. Ghost Horse wines are made only with 100% Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon fruit from Todd's personal vineyard. As well, he painstakingly handcrafts each release, making extremely small---and extremely exceptional---batches of each vintage. The results? What he calls "head-cracking" wines. Yes, they have the big price tag, but once you figure in the private grape source and the extremely small lots, the wine prices make sense. So, what'd I think? Beyond belief. I'm never had a wine bouquet hit my nostrils with the glass still seven or eight inches from my nose! Not only are the Ghost Horse wines real "fruit bombs", they taste as what I can only describe as "heady"---your head starts to spin, they're so good. Full-flavored, perfectly balanced acid, no heavy tannins--to me the Ghost Horse Cab tasted of deep fruit/cherry/black cherry, with a hint of chocolate. As well, the wines have incredible "weight"--a great mouth feel, fat and full yet with no negative after-tastes.

Todd's also a fun person to hang out with. He readily shares his extensive knowledge about winemaking collected over 20+ years in the business. Hanging out in the cave drinking a $500/bottle of wine... while chatting up the winemaker... in the heart of Napa Valley.... Yes. Yes, yes, and yes.

Tours are extremely limited, but you can get a "taste" of Todd's world at his ultra-cool Ghost Horse web site: http://www.ghosthorseworld.com/

Tom Keller and me

While strolling about downtown Yountville yesterday, I wandered past 6640 Washington Street--site of The French Laundry restaurant. Have you heard of it?

JUST KIDDING. Thomas Keller's The French Laundry, of course, is one of the most celebrated and respected restaurants in the Napa Valley, if not California, if not the U.S.---and yes, if not the world. The waiting list for reservations is 2+ months; prix fix $240 per person, plus wine and tip. While I've never eaten there, I WILL one day...and just to be in the moment, and help make-real my goal, I wandered a few doors down to his Bouchon Bakery. Ah, what sights! What smells! What temptations! When exposed to a multitude of treasures such as this, I usually do one of two things: pick the wildest, most unusual item to sample, or simply go old-school, and pick a classic. In this case, I went classic: a light, flakey, buttery pain chocolate. In a word: delicious. It takes a creative and imaginative mind to make unique and outstanding food or wine. It also takes a true soul to make the simple things, well, perfectly. And there yesterday in Yountville, in the shadow of The French Laundy, I had what may well be a perfect pain chocolate.

P.S. I know, I know: I'm teasing you regarding the Nord dinner, and Robert Parker's attendance. (See my posts "...and nervous" and "The Greatest Sentence Ever".) The tale will be told shortly, I promise. In the meantime, isn't the anticipation...delicious???? www.frenchlaundry.com