jparrott

What are your favorite Bourbon's? Makers is my go to bourbon at home, with some Bakers and Bookers thrown in for good measure when the budget allows. Clearly this is in your wheel house, and I would appreciate your recommendations.

Six good "starter" suggestions are described in this article from our own Fearless Leader (sadly, that Van Winkle Lot B price is very, very obsolete). I also sell quite a few that I like (full disclosure, blah, blah, blah), including Noah's Mill and Rowan's Creek, plus, of course, the Willett Single Barrel bottlings that we get to do from time to time (and of which, there is never enough). Those single barrel bottlings (with the coat-of-arms label) are not chill-filtered, and almost all are at full cask strength.

I also love Wild Turkey Rare Breed.

I general, bourbon does not have as many complex flavors as Scotch, and so water deadens it more. I advise folks to taste bourbons as close to full strength as their mouth can handle, and never to ice bourbon if the purpose is to taste it (ice dilutes the whiskey and chills it; chilling deadens all flavors but promotes tannins, which make the whiskey harder to appreciate).

Of course, they left out the bit where they strip out all of the intricacy (most bottlers call this "chill-filtering") and add a whole bunch of water without regard to perhaps giving the consumer an option of proofs.

Wheated bourbon is a sacred trust to whiskey enthusiasts. By only offering it as no-age-stated, stripped, and heavily watered (plus the roided-up, but still stripped and heavily watered, "Makers 46"), Makers Mark is violating that trust.

The space is pretty open, and the vibe is reasonably casual--it's in a suburban strip mall. I've only ever been on midweek nights, so don't know what the crowding/noise situation is.

Tom is the only one who "gets" fine dining - we can argue about his beverage knowledge, but he knows how to dine,

Maybe. But his editor decides what goes in the paper, and his editor has a blind spot vis-a-vis wine. It's pretty clear that Tom doesn't care to submit any copy about wine in his reviews, so perhaps our own Mr. McIntyre (who is more than qualified) should do it for him? Perhaps a 75-word sidebar? I would think 7.5% of a review would be the minimum appropriate amount to spend on wine, which is often, for avid TS readers that actually patronize fine dining spots regularly, more than 50% of the check.

Rue Dumaine is lovely. Quite a bit more casual than Peristyle, and definitely has an upwind battle to fight in Washington Township. But Annie and her team are fabulous, and the quality gets to the plate.

True Confessions of Cocktail Geeks

I stir with the handle of the barspoon.

This has been True Confessions of Cocktail Geeks.

(Eyes rolling in a non-emoticon way.) No, but at the bar, it seems one is more likely to focus either on wines by the glass, or on the mixed drinks, as he did in the review (and which he sometimes seems to prefer to wine).

Until we have a happy hour there. In which case the focus would be on all of the above. Knowing this crew (and knowing the happy hour specials at Fiola), I would say, verrrrry good focus.

Note also: Tom Brown makes more Aviations in this town than anyone else I've ever seen. And he stirs the drink instead of shaking in. I guess the idea is to play up as many of the aromatics as possible.

Not judging either way, just providing a data point.

The best Aviation riff evah is Tom Brown's--sub out the gin for manzanilla sherry.

Good review in the Post on Fiola:

http://www.washingto...tic-review.html

Words in the review: 1044

Words in the review about wine: 0

Tom Sietsema's editor: you're fired.

I love spirits. I love cocktails. You may have seen me selling spirits, in such places as (gasp!) Fiola. But give me a goddamn break. The wine list at Fiola is full of underappreciated little numbers, well kept, well presented, and (often) well-aligned with the food. Wine still makes up a large proportion of the average check for many/most diners there.

Zero words. I can't vouch for what Tom Sietsema submitted to his editor. But his editor has a pretty hackneyed view of what should go in The Washington Post.

And Andrew Shapiro, ex-mixmaster (and especially bittermaster) of Dino will be heading the bar program.

Before I ask my question, let me thank PF publicly for his guidance in buying meat in Paris (he staged at Hugo Desnoyer, which, while pricey, is an amazing butcher with incredible staff joie-de-vivre).

From what part of the animal(s) do you take those barded roasts, PF?

My only problem with the piece is the editing. The syntax is a bit rambly, and I don't think that a first-person-heavy style is appropriate for a food review. Beyond that, if the editor of the Grand Forks Herald thinks that spending XXX column-inches on a review of the Olive Garden is a useful use of his/her paper's resources, who am I to judge?

One thing I should have added about Galatoire's is that (unless things have changed) making a reservation will put you upstairs, while the walk-ins get to be in the action downstairs. Sitting downstairs, having a sazerac or three, and getting elegantly wasted over a three hour lunch is what Friday at Galatoire's is all about. Come early and get one of those downstairs spots for the full experience.

I usually get into the queue around 8am for Friday lunches. "Line-sitters" hired by law firms will already be there, but you should get in the first seating without too much trouble. A fellow will come out and start taking names about 10am. You still have to remain in the queue (but only one person per party). They open the doors and let you up in the bar at 11.

I don't think I've ever left a Friday lunch at Galatoire's earlier than 4pm. Sometimes later. Much later.

I may have to take back what I said. I was comparing Cochon to Butcher's sandwiches (and other "lunch" offerings) and just think it's apples to oranges, but your post made me think that at some point I was aware that Butcher does other dinner offerings. If that's the case and that's what you're referring to, I will temporarily rescind my statement until I have the chance to eat dinner at Butcher. Otherwise, I stand by my statement.

Naw, it's the same menu all day. There's a lot on there that's not sandwiches, but there aren't large plates like on the Cochon menu. The large plates are often where the clunkers are on the Cochon menu, however.

Wholeheartedly disagree. They're 2 totally different things. If you want a really fucking good sandwich, got to Butcher. If you want a pigtastic meal with great cocktails or wine, go to Cochon. They're both awesome in their own right, but if I only had time for one or the other and money or my appetite weren't factors, I would choose Cochon (and get a sandwich from Butcher for the plane ride home ).

Every time I've been to Cochon (5 or 6 times, and I continue to go, because I do like it), something's been off.

Every time I've been to Butcher, it hasn't. It's cheaper, the wine offerings are as well-chosen and are better priced (though not as numerous), the cocktails are executed better, and the vibe is spot on.

That said, this is a bit of an "angels dancing on the head of a pin" situation. I've eaten at both in the same day. More than once.

For such a brief visit, and in such a locale as New Orleans with its quite literally dizzying array of eatingdrinkingdancingmusicculture, I'd try to hit the big boys, as it were:

August or Galatoire's, very different restaurants, each exceptional in its own right, though I would say Galatoire's if you want to get a more, hmm... "historical" meal, a repast that demands your attention remain focused solely on southeastern Louisiana and its complicated, incestuous history; August is just Awesome, though decidedly more modern.

Zydeco at Rock N'Bowl

Cochon because, well, if youre on this board, youre either A: Industry or B: Lover of good food and libations (or both) and, in whichever camp you herald from, you simply must go if in NOLA, because Cochon is that.damn.good.

This post captures the essence of a three-day trip extremely well--except that, if one is faced with a choice between Cochon and Cochon Butcher, one must choose Cochon Butcher.

Not to flog the horse I rode in my previous response, but, Thursday nights in particular offer a few extra all-ages music options. Do consider them--New Orleans' music "scene" is so much more organic/natural than any other cities' in the USA. The Ogden is close to American Sector, Cochon, Cochon Butcher, A Mano, and Tamarind. Mid-City Lanes/Rock 'n' Bowl is close to Boucherie and Jacques-Imo's (and shows at R'n'B are usually late enough to allow for dining beforehand).

Not a ton of NOLA's music venues are <21-friendly, but a couple that are worth checking out on Thursday night are the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, which has music from 6pm most Thursdays, and Mid-City Lanes/Rock 'n' Bowl, which usually has swamp music of some sort on Thursdays, and is a bowling alley with decent bar food, including boudin balls.

The steak I had last night at Bern's (Kansas City Strip) was miles better than the one I had there in 2005. A half bottle of Leon Revol Cote-Rotie 1964 was singing. The bar staff were gracious and reasonably efficient, though they are hamstrung by the wine-by-the-glass service program, which makes it hard to time meals here.

I used to say, tongue-in-cheek, that the best night out in Tampa was a Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese and a night drinking at Bern's. On last night's evidence, it seems, one could once again consider eating there.

I went into Marcel's before the Repeal Day Ball and ordered boudin blanc as a main, by itself, however much it is. Gorgeous. What I love about Marcel's is if you give any indication that you are willing to be pampered, they do it. I've never experience better service anywhere in the USA where I'm not a friend of the house, and I've only ever eaten at the bar.

Mayport Village

I can report with some degree of certainty that the spanking fresh, never frozen, jumbo (I guess 12-16 ct), head-on, local shrimp available from Safe Harbour Seafood in Mayport Village, FL, are on a par with any of the shrimp I've cooked in South Louisiana.

And this, friends, is why I travel with a shrimp pot.

And now I'm sure people will jump all over me, and say "well, *I've* never said such-and-such," but it sure seems like a lot of foodies equate heat with a quality Asian experience. Who knows, maybe I'm creating a straw man and nobody has claimed such a thing after all.

My biggest complaint about "authentically hot" cooking is that it is too often not "authentically balanced"--that is to say, balanced in part with bitterness, rather than just sweetness and/or acid.

Peter Chang's brilliance is in his use of bitterness.

Also, a good source for buying local shrimp/other local fish/seafood would be excellent as well.

Bumpity. Got three weeks to kill, staying near the airport and working near Blount Island. Mayport shack-type place recommendations would be great, as would other beachy things, plus if there's anything new and exciting in town (I'll have a car).