Back Talk Far North Dallas

Oceanaire cooking classes at the LUXE show home

If you’re anything like me, holiday entertaining is right up there with root canals and doing your taxes. But Oceanaire executive chef Chad Kelley promises he can make the process a little less overwhelming, really. He’ll be sharing easy-to-make recipes for hors d' oeuvres and cocktails during a cooking class Saturday, Dec. 6 at the LUXE Show home. If you want to sign up for classes, you can do so now online.

Wine review: Dufouleur Père & Fils Nuits St. Georges Premier Cru Les Saint Georges 2002

Regular readers know that I don’t put much stock in expensive wine. Even when it’s worthwhile, these wines often fail the 10 times test: Is a typical $100 wine 10 times better than a typical $10 wine?

This red Burgundy (what the French call pinot noir) is from a 400-year French wine family and it does pass the 10 times test. The 2002 vintage, meanwhile, is one of the best in Burgundy in decades. Even better, the wine is only about $30 (available at Goody Goody). This is classic red Burgundy, with zippy tannins and a pleasantly rustic feel and taste. It isn’t especially fruity, so if you drink a lot of New World pinot noir you may be disappointed. Try it anyway.

I drank most of a bottle of this on the porch, enjoying the pleasant fall weather we’ve had lately. The St. Georges will also pair with almost anything you can throw at it for Thanksgiving, and it has lots of aging potential. How often can you say that about a $30 wine?

Council subcommittee considers a smoking ban in bars, billiard halls

A city council subcommittee is considering expanding the city's current smoking ban from restaurants and workplaces to bars, billiard halls and within 15 feet of entrances to publicly accessible villages, according to the DMN. A majority of the six councilmen on the subcommittee seem to be leaning in favor of the proposal, according to the News story and more comments on its blog.

I have to admit that when the city council first decided to restrict smoking in restaurants and other public places a few years ago, I had my doubts: It seemed like a draconian measure, and it seemed likely to drive business out of Dallas. Today, though, I haven't seen a single study indicating that significant business was lost to the more smoking-friendly suburbs, and the air in most places I go these days is cleaner and clearer.

Wine review: Garnacha de Fuego 2007

I have never been a huge fan of this wine, mostly because it cost as little as $6 and $7 in other parts of the country, but costs $12 and even $15 in this area. Lately, though, the price in Dallas seems to have settled closer to $10. That makes this Spanish red a fine bargain.

Garnacha is a grape that produces very fruity wines with little in the way of tannins. This one has a lot of red fruit, but it's not especially heavy, which is a testament to Spanish wine making skills. The wine magazines adore this wine, and I've never quite been able to figure out why. One reason, probably, is that it's imported by Jorge Ordonez, who is one of the best at bringing Spanish wine into the U.S.

Drink this on its own, because it's light enough, or with pizza or similar casual food. It will also be more than adequate with Thanksgiving dinner (and don’t tell anyone, but the non-wine drinkers might even enjoy it chilled).

Technorati Tags: Spanish wine,red wine,garnacha,Jorge Ordonez,Garnacha de Fuego

Pie contest at North Haven Gardens

If you think you bake the best pie this side of Central Expressway, you've got about a week to start baking your confectionery masterpiece. The North Haven Gardens annual "Fall Harvest Pie Contest" is set for Nov. 15, but entries are being taken right now. If you'd like to sign up, you can do it here.

Wine review: Saint Clair Vicar's Choice Sauvignon Blanc 2006

New Zealand sauvignon blanc is so well made and so inexpensive that some wine drinkers are starting to take it for granted. If it doesn’t cost $10 and taste like $35, they get upset.

That’s their problem. I’m just happy to find wines like the Vicar’s Choice (about $13 at Central Market) –- balanced, with the fruit and acidity playing off each other the way they should, and with more than just the usual New Zealand grapefruit up front. Look for tropical flavors in the middle, and even a bit of a stony finish.

Drink this as an aperitif, or with the usual sauvignon blanc entrees. It wouldn’t be out of place with a cheese course featuring harder, nuttier cheeses, either.

 

Technorati Tags: sauvignon blanc,New Zealand wine,white wine,Saint Clair Vicar's choice

Democracy is so very sweet

Here's another election-day freebie. Ben & Jerry's is giving out free scoops of ice cream from 5-8 p.m. Lucky for us, the nearest participating Ben & Jerry's is located in Plano at 1501 Preston Road. 

It's holiday time at Krispy Kreme

I was buying donuts at a Krispy Kreme store Saturday, and while waiting for the box to be filled, what did I hear but holiday music wafting from the overhead speakers. They must have cranked up the holiday theme the second the clock struck Nov. 1; at least the sign on the door hyping the "holiday" collection of donuts indicated they wouldn't unveiled until Nov. 28. On one hand, it was pretty disconcerting to be already listening to holiday music, but on the other hand, given all of the bad news we've been absorbing for the past few months, maybe it's time to start thinking of something happier?

Mercy Wine Bar: Halloween special

Forget that trick-or-treating mess, we adults prefer our calories in the form of wine. And if you go in costume to Mercy on Halloween, you'll get a pretty sweet treat: 50% off your total bill (and yes, that includes all the wine you drink).

Wine review: Colonia las Liebres 2007

Argentina is best known for malbec, which it has turned into the country’s national grape. Wine drinkers associate malbec with Argentina in the same way that people associate shiraz with Australia. But that doesn’t mean the country’s winemakers don’t produce other interesting wines.

The las Liebres (about $10 at World Market) is made with an Italian variety called bonardo, and by Italians in Argentina, apparently. It’s certainly worth a taste. The wine is fruity and ripe, with lots of blackberry, very little in the way of tannins, and no oak. It’s a heftier, darker version of Beaujolais nouveau. Drink this with any tomato-based Italian dish, grilled sausages or barbecue.

One note about the vintage: The current release is 2007, but there is still some 2006 in the stores. The ‘06 is equally fine.