Ahhh Yeah - It's been a great week George was all over the late night talk shows... Oh - I mean it's been a great week - selling a lot of wine and sake out there! HA. 
Just finished up reading andlistening to Julia Child's "My Life in France", splendid read and quite the inspiration. I just might move to Paris tomorrow. Seriously. Julia Child hadn't a clue how to cook until she was 34 and about to become a new bride. WOW.
Vin years ago - and then wondered what in the hell it was. About a week later I dug out Julia Child's recipe (vaguely remembered watching her cook it on PBS while in college) and went to work in the kitchen. Loved it! Fast forward about 10 years - my boyfriend and I have been talking about making Coq Au Vin for weeks now...would love to hear your suggestions for a Pinot Noir you've used before to marinate with and to pair with. This is the recipe we are using below. Bring it! Cooking chicken
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 ounces thick-cut bacon slices, cut crosswise into strips
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 large shallots, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
4 large fresh thyme sprigs
4 large fresh parsley sprigs
2 small bay leaves
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
For cooking chicken:
Using tongs, transfer chicken pieces from marinade to paper towels to drain; pat dry. Strain marinade; reserve vegetables and liquid separately.
Heat oil in heavy large pot (wide enough to hold chicken in single layer) over medium-high heat. Add bacon and sauté until crisp and brown. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to small bowl. Add chicken, skin side down, to drippings in pot. Sauté until brown, about 8 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to large bowl. Add vegetables reserved from marinade to pot. Sauté until brown, about 10 minutes. Mix in flour; stir 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in reserved marinade liquid. Bring to boil, whisking frequently. Cook until sauce thickens, whisking occasionally, about 2 minutes. Mix in shallots, garlic, herb sprigs, and bay leaves, then broth. Return chicken to pot, arranging skin side up in single layer. Bring to simmer; reduce heat to medium-low. Cover pot and simmer chicken 30 minutes. Using tongs, turn chicken over. Cover and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes longer.
Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms; sauté until tender, about 8 minutes. Transfer mushrooms to plate. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in same skillet. Add onions and sauté until beginning to brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer onions to plate alongside mushrooms; reserve skillet.
Using tongs, transfer chicken to plate. Strain sauce from pot into reserved skillet, pressing on solids in strainer to extract all sauce; discard solids. Bring sauce to simmer, scraping up browned bits. Return sauce to pot. Add onions to pot and bring to simmer over medium heat. Cover and cook until onions are almost tender, about 8 minutes. Add mushrooms and bacon. Simmer uncovered until onions are very tender and sauce is slightly reduced, about 12 minutes. Tilt pot and spoon off excess fat from top of sauce. Season sauce with salt and pepper. Return chicken to sauce. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool slightly. Chill uncovered until cold, then cover and keep chilled.) Rewarm over low heat.
Arrange chicken on large rimmed platter. Spoon sauce and vegetables over. Sprinkle with parsley. Cheers - Ali
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I don't know when I first heard this quote, it's run through my head at least a million times since. I do remember sitting bored in class on a sunny spring day at some point writing this over and over with a black ink pen. It rang in my head like lightening bolts while living in San Francisco. Just heard it again while combating the feeling of a very full work-load. These words have stuck with me like the massive curls spiraling out of my head - thankfully. TENACITY. - Ali
In a sunny valley of Sonoma County two winemakers have forged green building, renewable energy and biodynamic agriculture into a bountiful endeavor. Founded in 1998 by Christopher Medlock James and Ames Morison, the Medlock Ames Winery has come to full fruition beautifully with glowing wine reviews and an operation that is now 100% solar powered. The sustainable philosophy of this forward thinking vineyard is entwined in its structures and practices. The winery building, designed by George Riley of Sebastopol, incorporates passive solar design, natural daylighting and natural ventilation.
The owners chose a light colored roof to reduce the building’s cooling energy load. The corrugated roofing provides structural efficiency while allowing minimal support material. A concrete floor provides high thermal mass, helping to reduce temperature swings and cooling demand. The winemaking process housed within uses gravity flow, gentler on both energy usage and the wine itself. The fruit is raised by electric (solar powered) forklifts and follows a natural path to an underground cellar where the cooling system equipment is efficiently sheltered out of direct sunlight.
Around the vineyard sustainability grows everywhere. A series of six solar photovoltaic arrays produce 140,000 kWh annually powering 100% of the business, including vehicles. Of the 335 acres that is owned by Medlock Ames, only 56 acres are used for grape growing - the rest is left in its natural state.
Where viticulture takes root there are no pesticides or fertilizers used. Instead, natural materials fight pests and encourage healthy plants and soil. The solar arrays have even become part of the inviting natural landscape where, Morison notes, “Owls and hawks are often seen perching.” Other farm “employees” include sheep, geese and horses.
In addition to perfecting organic wines in sustainable style, Medlock Ames Winery encourages sustainability in the local community. They recently funded the school garden initiative at West Side School in Healdsburg to help children become skilled and interested in growing their own food. This outreach will expand to bring local school children to the vineyard to see organic and sustainable farming in practice.
Between the reds, the whites and the greenness its difficult to decide the winery’s greatest asset. One easy certainty is that at Medlock Ames everything is produced without compromise.
WOW ! Last night was great fun watching Tyson Cole vs. Morimoto compete on Iron Chef. The food was delicious, as well as the sake and wine pairing. 
Here's a way to enjoy Uchi: Chef Tyson Cole will take on Iron Chef Morimoto this Sunday, March 23, at 9pm, on the Food Network. 
What a weekend for sake2me in Austin Texas. This cool little naturally flavored sparkling junmai sake was all over SXSW. Mess with Texas Party at Waterloo Park, Vice Magazine - "THE Afterparty of SXSW" on Saturday night and a the CD release party of Shurman at Kenichi.
a huge display smack-dab in the middle of the seafood area. Ohhh Yeah!!
MESS WITH TEXAS 2 ANNOUNCES A FULL DAY OF FREE MUSIC AND COMEDY IN AUSTIN, TX AT WATERLOO PARK Mess With Texas, an annual party thrown in Austin, in the south by southwestern region of the US, at the same time as a certain other major music festival, has expanded in its second year to a massive, outdoor, FREE, ALL AGES event with three stages and an exclusive Austin performance from headliners The Breeders and NOFX and A-list comedians like Janeane Garofalo, MTV's Human Giant and Brian Posehn. The festivities go down on Saturday, March 15 from Noon to 10pm at Waterloo Park, which is in walking distance from 6th St. Last year, the inaugural Mess With Texas took place at Red 7 with David Cross serving as the curator and host. The event's organizers this year includetwenty-two year old Sean Carlson who books the Los Angeles based F*ck Yeah Fest, Adam Hobbs from LA-based music marketing and PR agency The 857 Collective, Austin's Transmission Entertainment,with booking assistance from Comedy Death Ray, Keith Morris of Circle Jerks & Black Flag and Henry Owings of Chunklet Magazine. 
of my life...
wonderful dinner at Del Frisco's downtown. A big thank you to everyone who joined us, what a delicious and fun night we had together. My wine of the night: 2005 Susana Balbo Brioso - elegant, refined and beautiful Bordeaux blend from Mendoza. 
expect it. So of course, like many of my conversations over a wine lunch, the topic turns to sports - well, right about the time I'm talking "center ice vs. the 50 yard line" with the fellas, Derek whips out his new tattoo - let's just say his love for wine isn't quite as deep as his love for the Dallas Cowboys. Classic.
Wood, a sommelier at Pappas gave us a tour of the wine cellar. Selections from 1900 to current releases filled the cellar. What a treat!! If I ever win the lotto- I'll know where to spend the big bucks on a few rare bottles in Dallas for sure.
before. So I ask "who's he play for?" He answers "he's Beck". I'm like "BECK? the BECK?" He says, "yes, the BECK". I've seen Beck live at least 6 times in my life. Love him! HOW COOL IS THAT? Well, it's weirdly random at least. Yeah - I found out a little scoop - but nothing too saucy.
5 Star Restaurants to Suburban Bar & Grills recently added the Ginjo Sake of Vine Connections to their lists. Also - just about every retailer in Texas has now stepped up and added multiple sake bottles to their retail sets.
You can read all about these incredible premium Sake on the TexaCali Wine Co. website or the importer's site - Vine Connections.Gold Medals
2005 Handley
2006 Handley Gewurztraminer
2005 Handley
2005 Handley Dry Creek Vineyard Char
2005 Handley
2006 Handley
www.handleycellars.com
I'm so pumped right now, truly glad I made the decision to attend this symposium. I read aloud to the group that Lettie Teague (Wine Editor at Food and Wine Magazine) probably wears pretty nightgowns - a bit of shock value and honest conscience thought flow during a writing exercise yesterday. Smart & Funny. 
I made it! The weather got in the way of what is usually a very easy flight to San Francisco from Dallas. I arrived at Meadowood at dusk - which was marvelous even in the rain and fog. This is quite possibly my favorite time of year in the California wine country - incredibly calm, quiet and the best thing - a ton of frogs are ribbiting to their hearts content well into the night. Such a cool noise - seriously.
I'm off to Napa today to attend the 2008 Professional Wine Writers Symposium - a much needed break for my "spreadsheeted out" brain right now. I'm very excited about learning from others this week and moving forward with a couple of books I have in the works. The past 3 years for TexaCali Wine Co. have just been amazing and wow - what a swift and dynamic start to 2008... organizing purchase orders, planning winemaker events, launching new products, meeting hundreds of new wine sales folks all over Texas and then there's managing a little late night dancing at my house - oh yeah! 
enjoyed best well into the night. Right now - the Asian Pear is my favorite. 
I spent last Tuesday resetting the sake section to make things a little easier when shopping at Spec's. 3 sections - one full section (as pictured) of ALL PREMIUM PURE SAKE. Junmai: Junmai is pure rice Sake. Nothing is used in its production except rice, water, yeast, and koji (that magical mold that converts the starch in the rice into fermentable sugars). Junmai is brewed WITHOUT any addition of distilled alcohol. Generally a bit heavier and fuller in flavor than other types of Sake, with slightly higher acidity. Goes well with a wide range of food. Must have seimaibuai of at least 70%, meaning the outer 30% of each rice grain has been polished away.
Tokubetsu Junmai: Tokubetsu means "special". Any Sake labeled Tokubetsu has been brewed in some special way. In some cases, this may mean a 60% or 50% seimaibuai, or it may mean the Sake was fermented at lower temperatures or made with very special Sake rice. Tokubetsu Junmai is generally a bit more fragrant and refined than regular Junmai.
Junmai Ginjo: Indicates a special and painstaking brewing process wherein fermentation proceeds at lower temperatures and for longer periods, and pressing is often done by hand. This extra effort produces a Sake that is layered and complex, light and fragrant. Must have a seimaibuai of at least 60%.
Junmai Daiginjo: Even a more painstaking brewing process than Ginjo, which results in Sake that is even lighter and more fragrant and fruity than a typical Ginjo. Must have a seimaibuai of at least 50%. Often, Daiginjo goes as far as a 35% seimaibuai (65% of the kernel polished away!).
Cheers - Ali
