Bill Hunt's Profile
Do French people drink foreign wines?
I have only tasted Yellow Tail wines in the US, and certainly would not order any in London. I am not a fan, but then they may have some (that I have not tasted), that are worthy. I just do not know, and have not found such?
Sorry that I cannot help you there.
Hunt
Kim Crawford wine
That is a new producer to me. Will keep an eye open for it.
PG is one varietal, that I do try, but one, that I seldom enjoy.
The same can be said for Chilean wines. I keep looking, and trying, but have found but two (out of 100's, and maybe even 1000's) that I have enjoyed, and would buy again. I am talking entry-level Chilean wines, up to some very expensive, and esoteric ones. Most come to me from importers, or distributors, so they are free. Still, only two would ever grace my purchase list. I have two retailers, who are convinced that they will have the perfect Chilean wines for me, and fill my cart with free "samples." To date - well no dice on all but a very few.
When I do find, either a PG, or a Chilean wine, that I appreciate, I make note, and try to find again. I keep my mind open, and sample, but find that most are not worth my drinking, even with the "ideal" foods.
Just my personal way of thinking,
Hunt
Kim Crawford wine
I see that one, all over the place. It is a very popular "restaurant label," and shows up at many airline "clubs." I have tasted it, for maybe 20 years, and just wonder how it sells so much, and often for a significant price. I just do not "get it."
Personally, I want wines with some sort of character, and one, that returns something to me. That one is just wet, IMHO. Still, it sells a ton, so someone must love it, though I cannot imagine whey.
Hunt
Kim Crawford wine
Yes, I agree with you on the PG. I can find almost nothing to like with most, but then, there are some, that break the mold. I like the King Estate Reserve PG (only their "Reserve") with Pacific Salmon. There is a tiny Slovenian producer (about 300 cases per year), who also caught my attention. I could only score 3 bottles, and those are gone. This year's release was gone, before I could order from the distributor/importer, but such is life. For most, I just scratch my head, and wonder what others see in those wines.
Hunt
What would Emily Post do? [moved from New Orleans]
I agree. I am offended by something, almost every day. However, I just 'suck it up," and get on with my life.
In very general terms, I feel entitled to nothing. I worked hard, and earned many things. However, beyond that, I am entitled to nothing, and life might not always be to my liking.
Now, when it comes to either hotel, or airline loyalty, things do get very different, but those are subjects for another venue, beyond CH. I will not go there.
Thanks,
Hunt
Aluminium foil is apparently less environmentally friendly than plastic wrap.
Ah, I think that I missed the thrust of the thread. I thought that it was about using one vs the other. My toaster oven makes a wreck of "plastic wrap," so we use aluminum foil, and often re-use it a few times, but that can depend greatly.
While I would never wish to pollute, or harm the Earth, I see some, who adopt very silly, and actually counter-productive actions, thinking that they are "green."
Thank you for helping me get the meaning of this thread. I did not mean to stray off-course, but just misunderstood.
We use aluminum foil, plastic wrap and also plastic bags, to store our food. To keep the recycle bin partially empty, we will re-use each, though that will depend on the exact circumstances. Foil, that has been soiled with food, will not be re-used, but I have used a single piece maybe 3x, depending on what/how it was used (on). Same for plastic bags. When we use up the cheese in one, and will be opening a new package of the same cheese, we WILL reuse that bag. Some have been in use for maybe 5x, but not always.
Hunt
So WHY were we forced to sit at the table till the food was gone??
I love a fried egg with grits (Southern boy), but then also will "spice 'em up," with a bit of curry, and some fresh-ground pepper. Just having the egg would not be my "thing."
Hunt
Teaching children to behave at restaurants
Yes, but the thread is about children in restaurants - not the adults, who can also exhibit extremely boorish behavior.
Hunt
Chef Matt Taylor Leaves Noca
I do agree with you there. Italian is great, but we do have some very good variations available. We'll all just have to wait a bit.
While we loved Chef Curtiss, we did embrace Chef Taylor. We hope to do the same again.
Hunt
MSP 'hound's first trip to NOLA - help!
I agree on Cafe Du Monde. It IS a must-do, if one has not yet been, BUT, the "menu" is limited. It is a coffee shop, after all. Personally, I enjoy it much more, late at night, and especially if the fog rolls in. Most tourists queue up for early morning, or lunch, and disappear later on. We enjoy it, and it is meaningful to us, but most of our forays were around Midnight, when my wife got off her shift at Oschener's, just up river. Back then, the Jax brewery was busy brewing, and while I never like their beer, the aroma was good - plus then the fog!
It IS worth the effort, and is fun (sat with Tennessee Williams one night), but is not really a "breakfast" place, per se. Go, but do so, when the tourists are elsewhere.
Enjoy,
Hunt
Maui Food Adventure
For some nice dining, I recommend the following:
Merriman's Kaplua
Lahaina Grill
Gerrard's
I`o
Most of all, enjoy. While we never have family on Maui, we face similar in New Orleans, where the extended family is great, but sometimes I need a culinary break. "Event" food, tends to get old, after a bit.
Enjoy,
Hunt
Wine "mark ups" in restaurants
Eugene,
You make a great point. In many instances, the same could be said for many waters in restaurants. Not sure why the focus on wine, but it IS common.
Hunt
Kim Crawford wine
For me, and my palate, Pinot Gris/Grigio is not a favorite varietal. I think that its popularity has led to vast amounts of poor, to mediocre PG being sold. There are but few versions, that I have ever found enjoyable. There are a few versions out there, that are drinkable, but few, IMHO.
Hunt
Kim Crawford wine
The perceived acid (lemon, grapefruit, and maybe lime) is what I like in many SB's, as they work well with many lighter seafoods - "grapefruit" less, than lemon or lime, IMO.
When one adds the "grass," or "damp hay," things might get off a bit, but not always.
With NZ SB's, I usually find heavy grapefruit (not so food-friendly, as lemon, or lime), and "damp hay." That often relegates them to the "sipper" variety, where some Cal-SB's, Loire SB's and Bdx. SB's go better.
I find similar with Chardonnays, where a Chablis will often pair much better with certain seafood, than a heavily-oaked version, even if from only across the mountains. I love Montrachets with lobster in a creme sauce, but would not think of one with oysters - a Chablis would be a better choice in my book.
Hunt
Kim Crawford wine
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Most of my friends just refer to me as a "wino," but thank you for the kind words.
Hunt
Do French people drink foreign wines?
Out of curiosity, has he ever tried any US wines?
Where do you live?
Thank you,
Hunt
Do French people drink foreign wines?
Well, with but a very few exceptions, like Disney World's Victoria & Albert's in the Grand Floridian, I have never been very pleased with any Disney wine offerings, regardless of the country of origin. Have NEVER been to any Disney property, out of the US, so have no clue what they might serve in Paris, or Tokyo. With the California connection, I can see a marketing tie, but wonder how far they are able to take things. Were I the sommelier, and without corporate pressures from the "bean-counters," I would go with a Cal wine list, and make sure that each example was a really good wines. I would consider my wine list something of an "ambassador," for US and CAL wines.
Hunt
Do French people drink foreign wines?
Yeah, I had the same feeling, but just held out hope...
Hunt
Do French people drink foreign wines?
Hey, I usually pay $ 1.25 for my MD, but it does come in a brown paper bag, that I use to "insulate" it, as I sit on the corner of Camp and Julia, in NOLA, sipping - who needs a stinking Riedel!?!?!?
Hunt
PS - while we have done "slammer Chard" tastings in the US (once a pre-Summer activity, to find the cheap "house" Chard for the Summer), I have never done a Euro version of that. I am just so glad to see some mid, and upper-level FR wines, at prices that I can afford, that I never do the tests - I just drink some really good wines, at fair prices. Now, London is not quite the same, as it IS expensive, and the wines do show that. I just pretend that those little £'s are $'s, and enjoy. I let AMEX sort it out, a month later.
Hunt
Do French people drink foreign wines?
There is a reciprocity of economy when Importing/Exporting across an ocean, BUT when you see the costs of a certain FR wine in the US, for 30% more, than in FR, but a US wine at 200% more in the UK/Europe, you will get an idea of the tariffs charged. Yes, transportation costs are very similar, both ways, BUT tariffs are not.
One needs to track the same exact wines, in the US, and in the UK/Europe, to see the real differences. General FR wines in the US are not telling you the entire story.
Hunt
Do French people drink foreign wines?
Jason,
That "comparison," or lack thereof, concept is a good one, and I understand it.
I see things on both sides, where a US wine drinker, brought up on good Cal-Cab and Bdx-blend wines, might have to work a bit, to really appreciate a Bdx.
Same for a FR wine drinker, brought up on Bdx, and presented with some US versions.
Thing go double for PN vs Burgundy, and almost so for Cal-Chards vs white Burgs.
OTOH, Zins are Zins, and that is what I sneak past Customs for my friends.
I DO see the need, in some circles to type "Red Zinfandel," though probably not here. Still, I see that differentiation on some upper-middle and higher-end wine lists - just so that some of their clients are not shocked, should they order the wrong "Zinfandel." Heck, there was a long thread here, right in River City, where many argued that White Zinfandel belonged on all wine lists, and to not have it available was horrible.
Hunt
Chef Matt Taylor Leaves Noca
Interesting, and greatly appreciated.
Personally, while a big fan of Chef Curtiss, I enjoyed much of Chef Taylor's menu, but then I am from the Deep South, and many of his mentors were in New Orleans, my "City of light," and a culinary mecca in my estimation. For us (wife is a NOLA native, and many in her family are, or were, in the business), Chef Taylor's bent was very welcome. I am saddened to see him depart, and wish him all the best. I hope to see him emerge in another venue. I also thought that Chef Taylor and Eliot Wexler were on "the same page," from having spoken to both, but what a patron sees on the outside, may well be different that what is inside.
I do not know Chef Urciuoli, but await dining at NOCA, with him at the helm. I hope that he does not concentrate too heavily on just Italian dishes, but has more "tricks up his sleeve."
Thank you for the details. While saddened at the departure of Chefs Curtiss and Taylor, I hold out great hopes for Chef Urciuoli, and my beloved NOCA.
Hunt
Is understanding wine a talent, or can a novice oenophile learn?
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I encounter this quite often. I am blessed with a good memory of aromas (though other parts of my memory have become greatly suspect), and work very hard, to differentiate the various aromas. Others at my table seldom find all that I do, but a few do. Sometimes, telling a white peach from a nectarine might be a subtle difference. For me, I try be as specific, as is possible, and often rely on specific dishes, or encounters to "fill in the blanks." Now, in communal situations, there CAN be the power of suggestion, when taster A finds X, and next thing you know, so do tasters B, C and D, though taster E never finds those aromas. OTOH, I have had many discussions, where someone will say "peach," and then others will concentrate on that, "filling in the blanks," until the consensus is finally, "hot, free-stone Paonia peach cobbler, with a hint of cinnamon." Yeah, that was it!
I have never encountered a great wine, when I had a bad head cold.
Hunt
Is understanding wine a talent, or can a novice oenophile learn?
So, if I read you correctly, you are saying that one cannot appreciate wine, unless they have a full analysis of the liquid in the bottle, and a complete set of wine makers' notes?
As for the "buffalo," so long as one recognizes it as a buffalo (Cape, American Bison, etc.), I do not think that they need a degree in the biology of Syncerus caffer caffer, to know that they will probably not like what is in the glass.
I attend and host a lot of tastings, and wine events. Some for the trade, some for the general public and some for the International Wine & Food Society. Many have the wine maker(s) as guests, and I enjoy hearing their "chalk talks," but the vast majority of the attendees, even in those trade-tastings, do not, and only care if they enjoy the wine, or aspects of it.
Hunt
Is understanding wine a talent, or can a novice oenophile learn?
Yes. I interpreted it to be about one, wanting to learn about wine, but I do not think that one's appreciation of the wines, themselves, are enhanced by knowing about the minutia of the wine maker's art, or their science.
Not sure how a "15 year veteran of this profession" could call aromas "far fetched," as aromas are the vast majority of what gets from a wine, other than liquid on their tongue, and a few stimuli on the tongue, lips and palate.
I think that what you mean, and especially from your descriptions, is that the terminology used to describe those aromas will be highly personal. To that, I agree completely. Is that what you meant?
I also question - how does one taste "whole cluster?"
Thank you for the clarification.
Hunt
Aluminium foil is apparently less environmentally friendly than plastic wrap.
OK. But, can you put plastic wrap into the toaster oven?
Hunt
Kim Crawford wine
One of the common differences between SB's that are labeled "Fume," is the use of oak in the fermentation portion of the process, instead of SS., or glass-lined vessels. There CAN be slight differences between normal SB (usually SS. fermented, or maybe glass-lined vessels) and Fume, which *might* be fermented in oak. For some, it is just a word.
Hunt
