A Visit to Williamsburg in Brooklyn

February 21, 2016 by Tricia Carbone

Ernie and I went up to Brooklyn, NY, to visit our son a few weeks ago. It was a busy weekend, but quite a lot of fun. He showed us “His Brooklyn”, as opposed to the Brooklyn that Ernie remembers from when he was a kid. We spent our time in Williamsburg, which is a very young, energetic place with a lot of great bars, restaurants, and boutique hotels.

Our son took us to two restaurants that he and his girlfriend really enjoy. The first night it was Oregano’s. This is a busy little Italian restaurant that uses extremely fresh ingredients to create their menu. We were very fortunate to have a seat right in the window - which was great because we could look out at the freezing night but stay nice and toasty warm inside. Our wine - a 2013 Sicilian Nero d’Avola called Scurati Terre Siciliane by Azienda Agricola Ceuso. A really nice wine - full-bodied, great tannins, perfect for the cold night. In fact, it was so nice, we had a second bottle! The four of us had a variety of dishes from great appetizer specials to pasta to beef to pizza, and the wine was perfect with each. Nice place - we’d like to go back.

Our Sicilian wine and the lovely setting at our table by the window of Oregano.

The next night, we opted for a French evening, Juliette Restaurant. This place is much larger than Oregano's, and since it was a Saturday night, extremely busy. Again we had a variety of foods, this time with mussels marinière, grilled halibut, grilled hanger steak, and beef short rib stew. We decided on a 2014 Le Colombier Vacqueyras by Les Vignobles Mourre. This wine was 80% Grenache and 20% Mourvèdre. Again, a very nice wine - it went very well with the beef dishes, and the two seafood eaters enjoyed it with their food.

The variety of dishes at Juliette Restaurant.

All in all, a great time. We really enjoyed the weekend, we bonded with our son again, and we got in some great sightseeing of the surroundings. We’re looking forward to our next visit!

Catching up on Cooking Classes - January

February 06, 2016 by Tricia Carbone

January’s cooking class at Amici Miei - which was fortunately held BEFORE the blizzard, not during! This was a great menu, and filled with a number of delicious - and pretty easy-to-make - dishes.

Menu for January's cooking class at Amici Miei

We started off with a really clever idea - a winter salad in an edible “bowl”. Chef Davide finely ground together polenta and parmesan cheese, and then he carefully heated a layer of the cornmeal in a pan (much like one would with a crepe). When the polenta/cheese mixture turned a golden brown with a bit of bubbling at the edges, he flipped it out of the pan onto an inverted bowl. As the heated mixture cooled, it formed just a bit further around the bowl to create a bowl shape. Voilà - fill the “bowl” with lovely winter salad ingredients such as radicchio, sliced apple, crushed walnuts, and endive, drizzle a bit of balsamic, and you have a beautiful, edible dish. Really simple, but elegant!

Heating the polenta and parmesan mixture like a crepe.

The art of drizzling balsamic vinegar on a salad.

Next up - the Ragú Genovese. This sauce was actually named because a number of Genovese chefs lived in Naples, and they put their spin on the ragú sauce - ergo, “Genovese” ragú. The helpers sliced up beef short ribs, onions, carrots, and celery. Into a pot went all the ingredients, along with a bit of olive oil and white wine (not red). Basically, that would just simmer for the next several house. The onions dissolve, and the meat spreads its juices through the entire sauce. The sauce would be served over artisanal rigatoni or ziti.

So that the sauce can go simmer for a few hours.

While the sauce was cooking, Chef Davide and his helpers started on the main dish. He cut up lamb into cubes, then wrapped the cubes with finely-sliced pancetta. The meat is cooked in a baking pan in the oven along with sage, rosemary, and bay leaf for seasoning, with some white wine and beef broth added. While that was cooking, Chef chopped up parsley and bread crumb. It was quite fun - he showed us how he could use two knives simultaneously to chop the parsley - and it was so fast, I could not catch the movements on the camera! The bread crumb and parsley were mixed together along with chopped garlic. When the meat was cooked, Chef sprinkled the meat with the bread crumb mixture and then toasted both. In another pan, he heated the juices from the meat along with marsala wine and some corn starch (for thickening). To serve, he put the lamb with the toasted bread crumb on a plate, then drizzled the lamb sauce over it all.

With some broth and wine, then off to the oven.

And toss the parsley with the bread crumbs.

Ernie is enjoying watching the cooking - and anticipating when it will be time to eat! Waiter Arturo is also having a good time!

And then, dessert. Chef Davide ground up chestnuts in a food processor, then added in powdered sugar, mascarpone cheese, vanilla, and amaretto liquor. Separate, he melted semisweet chocolate chips with butter. The two mixtures were then blended together into a very creamy mixture. Chef’s helpers then piped the chocolate chestnut mixture into glasses, and then topped them with crumbled amaretto cookies. Those of us watching were starving at this point, ready to have some lunch.

Chopped chestnuts, powdered sugar, and vanilla...

And top with crushed amaretto cookies. Wow!

The first course of the winter salad was served, along with a 2014 Kaltern Pino Grigio from the Alto Adige region of Italy. The wine was beautifully crisp yet full-bodied, which went very well with the apples and walnuts in the salad and the crunchy polenta/parmesan “bowl”. The wine had hints of nuttiness and honey, so the combination was great. We all got quiet as we dove into the food - a great start!

Winter salad in the polenta-parmesan "bowls".

The Kaltern Pinot Grigio went perfectly!

Next up was the pasta. Roberto paired the Genovese Ragú with a 2013 Masciarelli Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. The ragú was meaty with the short rib, and many of us added parmigiano-reggiano over the top to complete the dish. And in combination with the slightly early Montepulciano - very nice! The wine tasted of dark berries (like blackberries) and a hint of leather - almost a bit of chocolate in the finish. A great combination for winter, and really simple.

A simple, yet delightful, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo.

And then the secondi - the lamb. This, Roberto paired with a 2011 Emperors Nero d’Avola from Sicily. This wine was full-bodied, with the flavors of dark berries and spices. The rich flavor of the lamb and the sauce along with the wine was delightful and a great combination. Everyone really enjoyed the main course.

Beautifully cooked lamb with parsley/breadcrumb topping. And the wine was great...

The 2011 Nero d'Avola was a great match.

Dessert - yummy! The chocolate, creamy chestnut was just gorgeous, and there were just enough granules of the chestnuts to give a wonderful texture. The amaretto cookies on top were crunchy and augmented the hint of amaretto in the dessert. I decided to pair the dessert with a glass of tawny port - and the combination was wonderful. (I love chocolate and port - it’s great!)

The gorgeous chestnut, amaretto, and mascarpone dessert - with a glass of tawny port. Heaven!

And once again, everyone had a great time, going home with recipes and a determination to make some of the dishes. And, in fact, we did! When it was clear that the blizzard would hit Baltimore, we grabbed the last short ribs from Whole Foods along with onions and the other ingredients, and we made the Genovese Ragú. It was so good - and we ate while we watched the storm howl outside, not able to see the buildings right across the street. Thank you, Chef Davide, for a great set of recipes!

Our rendition of Genovese Ragú during the blizzard. We didn't cut the carrots as small as Chef Davide, so they stayed visible.

And an alternative to the Montepulciano. Since it was cold, we went for the Villa Fulvia Amarone. That was also a wonderful combination, perfect for a blizzard!

Catching up on Cooking Classes - December

January 24, 2016 by Tricia Carbone

Cooking class at Amici Miei Ristorante - one of our favorite things to do! We missed several classes in the fall, so we were thrilled to be able to hit both December and January classes. Chef Davide and co-owner Roberto put together a couple hits for everyone who attended.

December was a Happy holiday dinner! We were pleased that one of Ernie’s colleagues and her husband were able to join the cooking class. And they got an opportunity to cook!

Chef Davide started off by preparing the stuffing for a turkey breast. Ground pork with bread crumb, an egg, nutmeg, and carrots all mixed together into a something the consistency of a pork meatloaf. That mixture was put into a sliced turkey breast, then Chef wrapped the whole thing in bacon and added a stalk of rosemary. (And no, you just cannot live without bacon!) After tying the turkey, it was put into the oven, and we were on to the next item on the cooking agenda - lasagna cupcakes!

Working on the intricate art of tying stuffed turkey. It is definitely not easy!

Lasagna cupcakes are actually a very clever idea - make individual cupcakes that are actually little lasagnas. Chef put a piece of lasagna noodles in the bottom of a cupcake holder, then filled that by layering in bolognese sauce, béchamel sauce, and a little parmigiana cheese. He put the “cupcakes” into the oven, allowing the draped pieces of the noodles to get nice and browned.

Lining a cupcake holder with a lasagna noodle.

Filling the cup with bolognese, béchamel, and parmesan cheese.

Next up was a porcini sauce that would be the base for sea scallops saltimbocca (in other words, scallops wrapped in prosciutto). The porcini cream sauce is really easy - cook the porcinis along with shallots and some seasoning, add some cream and heat that as well. Then, blend everything in a blender to make the creamy sauce. The scallops and a sage leaf are wrapped in prosciutto and seared. Scallops go onto the porcini cream sauce, and voila - one has a great appetizer! As I said, easy!

Look at these magnificent porcini mushrooms!

Assembling the scallop saltimbocca with the porcini cream sauce.

And then, dessert - Meringue and Marron Glacee cup. Usually Chef prepares dessert first, but today was different (since the dessert didn’t need to sit in the refrigerator for hours). Chef and his helpers whipped up egg whites and sugar to create the meringue. After these are baked (at a really low temperature), Chef and his helpers crumbled up the meringue. The marrons (chestnuts, for those of you who don’t speak Italian) are cut into pieces. And then whipping cream, vanilla and sugar are beaten together to create whipped cream. And then they filled cups with the chestnuts, shipped cream and meringue. A couple layers of each, then dust with cocoa power. Pretty simple, and the cups looked great!

Layering the chestnuts, meringue, and whipped cream.

Time to eat! We started with a 2014 Angeline Reserve Chardonnay from Monterey County, California. It was not a heavy Chardonnay, but lightly oaky with great fruit flavors. With the Sea Scallop Saltimbocca and the deliciously earthy porcini cream sauce, it was a wonderful match. The chardonnay had a nice acidity that countered the creamy porcini, and yet neither the porcini or the wine overpowered the scallops. The sage added a beautiful herbal note with the salty prosciutto. Ernie and I agreed that we had to add this appetizer to our Christmas Eve Feast of Seven Fish (which we did!). Off to a good start.

Earthy, herbal Scallop Saltimbocca with a wonderful Angeline Chardonnay.

Next course was the Lasagna cupcake. For this course, Roberto chose a 2012 Grifone Sangiovese di Romagna from the Emilia-Romagna region in Italy. The wine is very nice - earthy, medium-bodied. With the meaty bolognese sauce in the lasagna and the wonderful pasta and rich béchamel, the wine was definitely a hit. Everyone loved the cupcakes - a perfect serving size and a great presentation. We definitely want to try this sometime soon.

A little lasagne just for one - a perfect size. And so wonderful with the Grifone!

And then the main course. Roberto chose a 2011 Cabernet Franc called Vigne del Malina from the Venezia Giulia region. Since the turkey was stuffed with the pork stuffing and wrapped in bacon, it had a wonderful robust flavor with the saltiness of the bacon and the herbs in the stuffing. The wine was lovely, with a great scent of wild berries and black pepper - a full-bodied wine with herbs and spices and a bit of a hint of rhubarb. This was a really nice combination - and great to try, since determining what wine to serve with turkey can be a challenge at times.

The Vigne del Malina 2011. Look at the gorgeous purple color in the glass!

Stuffed turkey breast with the Cabernet Franc.

Finally the Meringue and Marron Glacee cup. Wow, a feast in itself. The chestnuts were beautifully chewy, matching with the crunchy meringue pieces and the whipped cream. We all savored the Glacee cup, talking about the upcoming holiday season and determining who was going to try out various ones of the recipes. A great time for everyone, and a great way to start the holiday season.

And the final wonderful course - dessert. Look at the chunks of meringue with the chestnuts and whipped cream. Wow!

Getting Ready for a Snowy Weekend

January 23, 2016 by Tricia Carbone

It’s currently pouring snow outside, so I figured I would make a couple updates. Nothing like a blizzard to give you time to do fun things.

We stocked up on food, but when it started snowing, we really needed some comfort food. We have a favorite place in Little Italy that we go to for comfort food - Joe Benny’s Focacceria. This is a great little place to get the best meatballs and the best focaccia that we’ve come across. Joe’s family comes from Sicily, so he knows how to make great food.

We were definitely in need of comfort food. A bad day (I had jury duty, ugh), we were supposed to go to NYC on the train (which was canceled due to weather), and then the blizzard hit. So we walked over to the Focacceria. Joe was open - a friendly face and a big smile and hello, which was wonderful. Sort of like "Cheers", but with an Italian flair and heart! A bottle of Planeta 2009 Burmese to start, which is a mix of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Big, bold, and just what we needed to warm our souls. A couple toasts to our bad day, and things started getting a little better. I had the Sicilian Stack, which is a tower of roasted eggplant on a slice of tomato with prosciutto, burrata mozzarella, basil and balsamic - yummy! Ernie had a Sicilian salad with lots of tomatoes, yellow and red peppers, basil and cucumbers with a light olive oil and basil. Again, yummy!

A bold combination of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

And then the focaccia! Mine had fennel sausage (with a little bit of heat), burrata mozzarella, and tomato sauce. Ernie’s had Joe’s fabulous meatballs with burrata mozzarella and peppers along with tomato sauce. Both were perfect with the Burdese wine. We savored our food, and we also got a chance to chat with a bunch of neighbors in Little Italy. And then dessert - cream puffs covered with either a cheesecake cream or a chocolate hazelnut cream. Oh my! A perfect way to end a rather crummy day and prepare for the snow. Then best of all, we walked home, snow blowing around us, just those few blocks.

Bringing home the two halves of the focaccias. These are going to be good for lunch!

Nothing like a good bottle of wine to go with great, simple food and great company. Just what we needed! Enjoy the snow!

Oh my - that's a lot of snow, with more anticipated!

Ducks trying to keep their heads out of the blowing snow.

Enjoying Wines in Europe - Part 2

January 07, 2016 by Tricia Carbone

For the past several years, without fail, I have ended up being in Europe on Ernie’s birthday. When it looked like it was going to happen again this year, I told him that he needed to spend his “significant birthday” with me in Europe. In the last posting, I mentioned connecting with him in Belgium, then flying down to Porto San Giorgio just in time for a birthday dinner just ahead of midnight on his birthday.

It was really different spending time in Italy this vacation, since this is the first time that we were there more as residents than as tourists (although the locals probably still called us Crazy Americans!). We rented a condo from our very dear friends, so we had a kitchen, living room, and so on. So for the first time, we went out on a daily basis to the market to get fresh fruit for breakfast, we cooked dinner, and so on. The shop keepers got to know us, both at the market and also at one of the wine stores. And we got to know the lovely town of Porto San Giorgio and some of the surrounding area of Le Marche. We had a fun experience at the Spaccio Alimentare Pamafrutta, which is a lovely shop with cured meats, various Italian packaged gifts, and - oh yes - wine! (Unfortunately, no web page - try looking on Facebook for them.) We found several wines that we wanted to purchase to send home - but while the shopkeeper wanted to sell us the wine, no one would help us ship it home! Horrors! They were fabulous folks - they took Ernie around town trying one mail spot after another, but no success. Apparently there is just not a lot of demand to send a case of wine from Italy to the US that area. So we ended up having them select their two most “important” wines from Le Marche, and we bought them with the intent of drinking them before we left Porto San Giorgio. They were so gracious and so helpful - we plan to go there when we return!

We also made friends with the folks in the market, both the butcher and also the folks selling fruits and vegetables. Ernie was in heaven - he could have Italian cured meats, figs, and cheeses that we cannot find here for breakfast! It was delightful to open the patio doors in the kitchen and have the morning breezes come through while eating. And then down for a cappuccino at Caffé Novecento. One night, we purchased a couple steaks, some local bread, and salad makings and cooked dinner. This dinner was beautifully accompanied by one of the wines we had purchased from Spaccio Alimentare Pamafrutta - a 2010 Kurni from Azienda Agricola Oasi Deli Angeli. This is a very low production wine, so we were quite fortunate that the folks recommended it. The wine is made from the Montepulciano grape, but it was definitely fuller-bodied than a typical Montepulciano. The Kurni was very dark purple, and it tasted of dark fruits with a beautiful silky finish. What a lovely wine to go with our simply-grilled steaks!

A gorgeous 2010 Kurni, recommended by our friends at Spaccio Alimentare Pamafrutta.

Grilled steak, a simple salad, and bread with our Kurni.

Another wine that we purchased from Pamafrutta was a 2009 Il Pollenza from Conte Brachetti Peretti. We took this one with us to a fantastic night out in the town of Cupra Marittima at the Ristorante Pepe Nero. What a great location, and what a wonderful restaurant! (Again, no webpage - look up the great reviews on Trip Advisor.) Pepe Nero focuses on the food, so they have a limited house wine selection - ergo, BYOB. We knew we had a winner when the owner took one look at the bottle, then had a delightful time decanting the wine into the largest decanter I’ve ever seen! The Ristorante is in an old castle up on a cliff, and the space is decorated just beautifully. We had a seven-course dinner, with veal appetizers, eggplant appetizers, beef bourguignon (Italian style), pasta with a bolognese sauce, pork with vegetables, and dessert. It was amazing, all accompanied by the Il Pollenza. This wine is a big, bold wine made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. We let it breathe for around 45 minutes, and that gave it an intense, fruity taste with notes of spices and herbs. It had lovely tannins, and it made for a very elegant evening. Pepe Nero's owner shared a glass with us, which is only to be expected - and a great compliment to the wine!

I have never seen such a large decanter for one of my wines! Definitely suited the il Pollenza.

Veal carpaccio and an eggplant mousse with our wine.

Beef bourguignon served on a portobello mushroom.

The owner, our gracious host. — The owner, our gracious host.

Another of the restaurants recommended to us by our friend was Damiani e Rossi, which is right on the beach. This was our first introduction to the local langoustines - which are ginormous! So sweet and delicious, once you divest them of their somewhat prickly shells. The waitress was extremely helpful, giving us suggestions for wineries to visit in the Le Marche area. We chose a 2014 Milia Offida Passerina wine from Azienda Agricola Cameli Irene. Passerina grapes are native to Le Marche, and this wine was very characteristic of the DOCG. It was very fragrant, reminiscent of green apples, yet the taste also had almost a honey in the background. Passerina wines go very well with seafood, which is not a surprise because of the amount of seafood available on the Le Marche coast. For dinner, we had a dorado stacked with a lemony risotto and grilled vegetables - just perfect with the wine. We managed to visit Damiani e Rossi right before the chef and several of the staff were headed up to Milan for an Eataly showcase - they were going to be with other restaurants from Le Marche highlighting the food and wine from that region.

Damiani e Rossi, on the beach in Porto San Giorgio.

Beautiful presentation of dorado fish with lemon risotto.

Another restaurant that we visited was Trattoria La Rocca, which was right next door to our friends at Spaccio Alimentare Pamafrutta. They also had a lot of seafood and were just as helpful and friendly as others in Porto San Giorgio. (Really, we have yet to find an unfriendly Italian. Maybe the key is to like good food and wine and be open to new experiences?) The first time we visited Trattoria La Rocca, we had another very characteristic wine of Le Marche, a Verdicchio. This one was Tardivo Ma Non Tardo 2011, from Azienda Santa Barbara. The DOC is located outside the town of Jesi, so the particular DOC is called Verdicchio dei Castello di Jesi. This wine has tastes of tropical fruits and spices, and it is very rich with a lovely finish. A great match with the clams, langoustines, and other fish.

The second time we visited Trattoria La Rocca, we tried a 2014 Le Caniette Offida Passerina Lucrezia. Paired with either clams with chickpeas, or Linguine con vongole bianco, the wine was perfect. The fruit in the wine matched the wonderfully fresh seafood so well. And then the great service from our waitress, who was very good about trying to explain something on the menu that we didn’t understand. She didn’t speak much English, and our Italian leaves a lot to be desired, but sign language and a bit of Spanish thrown in just added to the fun. We enjoyed Trattoria La Rocca, and we look forward to our next visit!

Our very helpful waitress at Trattoria La Rocca.

Sadly, our week in Porto San Giorgio ended, so off we went to that incredible city, Roma. “All roads lead to Rome”, and that certainly was true in our case. We took an autostrada from the east coast right through the mountains that run down the center of Italy to get to the west side. And I do mean through the mountains - they have built the most incredible tunnels I have ever seen. The longest was 24 kilometers, and when you get to the end of it, you are at L’Aquila. Unfortunately, L’Aquila was hit by the large earthquake only a few years ago, so many of the buildings are still under renovation. I have to give credit to the Italians - I would be terrified to be in that tunnel if there was an earthquake, but obviously, the tunnel did fine. Kudos!

We arrived in Rome and had a great time wandering the city for a day. We were extremely fortunate to happen on a wine bar while we were waiting for a restaurant reservation (we were starving from all the walking). So we went in to have a glass of wine and a few munchies and chat with the lovely young lady manning the wine bar, Jessica. Lo and behold, it was not just a wine bar, it was also a wine store - and even better - a Michelin-rated restaurant. So we made a reservation for the following evening to enjoy the full experience.

Some of the incredible array of wines at Enoteca al Parlamento.

Enoteca al Parlamento and the related Achilli Ristorante are incredible. The wine list is actually a tour through the Enoteca to choose a wine. And the store has prices ranging from a number of thousand of Euros down to 10-15 Euros, depending on your wallet and your whims. We had a great time both nights looking at the old Burgundies and Bordeaux, in addition to the assortment of Italian wines that were unfamiliar to us.

Getting ready for a great meal with our waiter, Alessandro.

Our dinner started with our waiter, Alessandro, serving us a glass of a rosé Franciacorta sparkling wine. Very delightful, lots of extremely tiny bubbles, great yeasty flavor, and that exquisite pink shade. We had an assortment of breads and also a lovely appetizer of beef on a bit of onion and pureed cannellini beans with a goat cheese. Wow, with the Franciacorta, it was amazing. Then we switched to a 1997 Gaja Pieve Santa Restituta Brunello di Montalcino Rennina. 1997 is one of the standout years for Italian wines because the weather was absolutely perfect for growing. And this wine lived up to the reputation, particularly since it was a Gaja (and I think they always produce great wines). This wine had a wonderfully full body, which we like, but it had silky, polished tannins and a nice dark fruit like currants or black cherries. There were also spicy notes of cinnamon, plus hints of wild herbs. The wine was a wonderful compliment to the tasting menu that the Chef produced: ravioli with mushrooms with a cream sauce but also crumbles of cinnamon, beets, and cheese; pork served over bok choy with a sauce reminiscent of veal sauce; a beef medallion with porcini mushroom over broccolini. Our dinner ended with an assortments of chocolates and a cup of espresso. What a meal!

A gorgeous appetizer - named something like "Not Your Mother's Carbonara".

A variation on ravioli stuffed with mushrooms - but even better!

And of course, since it was a wine store, we had to purchase some of the unusual wines (for us) that we had never seen. A bottle of Grappa di Barolo for a very good friend, a bottle of the Franciacorta rosé sparkling wine, a very special “orange wine” called Radikon that I had read of, a Basilicata Aglianico, a Sicilian wine, and one from Lazio (where Rome is located). And they were kind enough to throw in a bottle of Prosecco to boot! As we open these, I will make a full report!

Our treasured purchases to be brought home.

This was a great way to end our visit to Italy and wrap up Ernie’s birthday celebration. Lots of new friends made, new experiences with our “living” in an Italian apartment, and many notes on things we want to do again or make sure we hit the next time. People asked us, "Did you relax, did you have fun?" Absolutely! With every walk we took, every meal we had, every halting discussion between English and Italian, every sip we tried - we had a blast! Arrividerci in Italia, Fino all prossima volta! (Goodbye to Italy, until next time!)

Ernie's thank-you gift to our friends - his drawings of the towers of Porto San Giorgio.

Enjoying Wines in Europe - Part 1

January 02, 2016 by Tricia Carbone

For Ernie’s significant birthday this year, I convinced him to meet me in Europe since I was headed there for meetings. We connected in Brussels, enjoying a couple days in the city before heading down to Mons for a conference. Mons is a beautiful little town on a hill that is exquisitely lit at night.

While there, the hotel recommended La Table du Boucher restaurant, which was wonderful. Per its translated name (the butcher’s table), the restaurant focuses on meat. They also have wonderful cheeses and other delicious food. Since we were dining a la Française, we went with a Cornas wine, a 2011 Domaine Durand Eric et Joel. It was a beautiful wine - bold with some black pepper on the palate, and perfect for the two beef dishes that we ordered. Ernie ended dinner with an assortment of brie cheeses, along with an interesting local beer. A delightful dinner - I hope I have reason to return to this restaurant!

Enjoying a 2011 Cornas at La Table du Boucher in Mons, Belgium.

Beautiful veal and steak dinners with the wine.

Brie cheeses with a Belgian dessert beer.

The next day, we had a fun treat. While walking through The Hague with my colleague, we had wandered into a wine shop (gee, I wonder why?). The shopkeeper was very excited about a new set of wines he had acquired - from Armenia! According to his story, the winemaker had discovered old vineyards in the mountains pf Mount Ararat near where Noah's Ark is supposed to be. They decided to make wines that were native to Armenia from these old vineyards, rather than plant more common varietals. I was intrigued, so I bought a bottle of Zorah Wines’ 2012 Karasì. (Now, when Ernie tells the story, he says that if I had bought 6 bottles, I could have gotten a free ride on the Ark!)

Rather than take the bottle on our flight the next day, we acquired three glasses from the hotel and uncorked the bottle. The wine is made from the Areni Noir grape, which is local to Armenia. It was full bodied, a bit on the tannic side, but really interesting. It would probably age well - this was a 2012, so another few years most likely would have softened the tannins. It was fun to drink, and my colleague and Ernie and I laughed about my willingness to pick up a completely unknown bottle to try. Ernie was disappointed that he hadn't brought along his recipe for Armenian meatballs - it might have made a great combination! An interesting note: I did research the wine - there is a really fun wine blog you should read if you are interested. In fact, the Zorah vineyards were indeed found among the archaeological ruins of a monastery, and they had survived there, hidden, from the various political regimes that controlled that region for several hundred years. Kudos to the Zorah folks - I wish them success in their future ventures for keeping the winemaking tradition and the native Armenian grapes alive in this area.

We flew to Italy the next day, which was Ernie’s birthday. Unfortunately, the flight was delayed, so we didn’t arrive at our destination (Porto San Giorgio on the Adriatic coast) until around 10:30 PM. However, it was his birthday, we hadn’t had anything to eat, so we went out to find an open restaurant. Fortunately Porto San Giorgio is a beach town, and there were a large number of people out and about. We went to the Pizzeria Ristorante Altamarea Di D’Angelo Claudio (or Altamarea, for short) right across the street from the beach. It was 80 degrees out, with a lovely breeze, so we ate outside. What a great meal! Pizza with cheese, sausage, and mushrooms; a seafood salad for Ernie; and a garden salad with shrimp for me. Since our friend, Chef Davide, had recommended the winery, we tried the Ciù Ciù Passerina Evoè 2014. It was perfect with our pizza and seafood salads - bright, fresh, and citrusy to complement the lemon-based dressings on the salads. And to top it off, the Altamarea provided a pitcher of Limoncello - yummy. A very happy birthday celebration for Ernie.

A great introduction to Le Marche wines - Ciù Ciù's Passerina Evoè 2014.

A wonderful sausage, mushroom, and cheese pizza - yummy!

Seafood salad and an Insalata Mista with shrimp.

Complimentary Limoncello, complete with plastic cups!

Enjoying Texas Wines

January 01, 2016 by Tricia Carbone

When one thinks of wines in the USA, one normally thinks of California, Washington, Oregon, and New York. Or Virginia, or even New Mexico for sparkling wine (but that's another post). The last place some people might think of for wine is the Lone Star State. We had the good fortunate to visit very good friends who live in the hill country of Texas. Since they know that we enjoy wine and good food, they took the two of us "winos" out for a tour of several vineyards in the Texas hill country.

We drove out to Fredericksburg, which is really a lovely town. Fortunately it was a beautiful day, not too hot (since Texas can be known for exceptionally hot days). Our first stop was a winery with an intriguing name - Fat Ass Winery. The name comes from a rather humorous story, which does indeed involve a fat donkey! The winemakers have produced a small set of wines, a couple of which are more traditional, dry whites or reds, and then also several sweet wines. I enjoyed their dry white wine, which is a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. Their house wine is the Country Peach that they created. I look forward to returning their in the future and seeing how they have evolved - they were a lot of fun to talk with.

We then walked to the Fredericksburg Winery (http://www.fbgwinery.com), which is much more established and quite a bit larger. Fredericksburg Winery has a wide selection of their creations, from dry whites to dessert ports, and several have won awards. They had a good tempranillo and a couple different red blends that I enjoyed. Also notable was their port. It was a nice overview of the varietals that Texas can produce.

After lunch, we drove out to Becker Vineyards. Becker has a great location outside of Fredericksburg, and their tasting room is lovely. I particularly enjoyed their Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, the Tempranillo Reserve, and the Malbec Reserve. With the hot temperatures in Texas, varietals such as tempranillo and malbec grow quite well. Becker creates very nice wines - we had a very good time talking with the folks and trying the wines.

Our last stop was Pedernales Cellars. Pedernales Cellars is located closer to the town of Pedernales (pronounced Pur-din-al-es by the locals), although not far from Fredericksburg. Perdenales also had a very nice selection of wines. I especially enjoyed their Viognier Reserve and their variations involving tempranillo.

In all, it was a great way to get introduced to the wines of Texas. If you happen to visit San Antonio or Austin (or anywhere in that general location), do try out some of the vineyards of the Texas Hill Country. Apparently there are equally good wineries in west Texas as well - that's a destination we'll have to try at some point. In the meantime, drink up, y'all, and enjoy!

California with Famiglia and New Friends

December 19, 2015 by Tricia Carbone

We recently had the chance to connect with several of Ernie’s cousins out in San Diego. There were four of us from the East Coast (us, plus Laura and Steve from NJ) and three from the West Coast (sisters Nancy and Celia and Nan’s daughter, JoMarie). As is the case when the Carbone clan gets together, there was a lot of hilarious storytelling of various events from the past, and lots of eating as only New York City-raised Italian Americans can put on. What a great time.

We stayed at the Four Seasons in Carlsbad. The Season Restaurant there has a great treat - groups can have a family-style dinner at their Chefs Table. We all gathered for a great feast - salads, risotto, chicken - yum! A special treat was Polenta by the Yard: the waiters lay out a swath of paper down the middle of the 9-foot-long table, then the Chef pours polenta down the length of the paper. We each were able to scoop up the polenta, then top with lovely toppings such as meat sauce, roasted eggplant, pesto sauce, shredded beef, parmesan cheese, and so on. It was so inventive, and great fun! Each course came with wine, so we had a wonderful time indulging in all the treats!

Menu from the Chefs Table at Seasons Restaurant

Cousins and Chef flanked by the two "Coca Colas", Steve and me

The next day, we traveled out to Ramona to meet some new friends, Cary and Nancy. Cary’s dad, Richard, is a buddy of ours from the Amici Miei cooking classes. Richard has long talked about Cary’s vineyards and wine making, plus he had shared some of Cary’s wines at one of our parties. So I shamelessly begged Richard for Cary’s contact information. They were gracious to accept seven of us, so out we went.

What a wonderful day! There were the seven from our party, Cary and Nancy, Nancy’s mom, and also two of their friends. We all met at Cary’s home, which is gorgeous. First up - a tour of the vineyards. The grapes had recently been picked, so the wine was being made in high-tech vats in several out-buildings. It was so interesting to hear how Cary had taught himself, with the help of a mentor, to make wine.

Two Nancy's and JoMarie discussing the vineyards

Then we went on a trip over to the Oasis Camel Dairy farm, as the owners are friends of Nancy and Cary. We had such a good time, talking about the exotic birds they have and then seeing all the camels. It was quite an adventure that we definitely don’t have in the Baltimore area!

Then back to Cary and Nancy’s. After all, it had been at least three hours since we had eaten, and they were sure that we were famished! As with all good Italian hosts, they pulled out the stops with the food. Nancy is an excellent cook - paired with Cary’s fabulous wines. Cary opened several different years of his bottles. It was fascinating to hear what decisions he had made about storing on oak or in a steel container, how long in the barrels, and so on. Each bottle had such a distinct personality. We argued happily about whether we liked one better than another - but there wasn’t one that we wanted to throw out!

I think I'll just stay here and find a new career helping Cary!

It was wonderful. And best of all was sitting on their back deck and looking out at the valley, the vineyards, and talking about anything and everything. It was as if we had known these folks all our lives - just a perfect day. The sun started to set, and we reluctantly pulled ourselves into the cars to head back to Carlsbad. A perfect day that we will all hold close, with new friends we want to see again.

The group doing what we do best - eating and drinking!

Cheers, Cary and Nancy! Good luck with the 2015 bottling and the 2016 growing season!

To Lou

December 19, 2015 by Tricia Carbone

I have mentioned in previous posts that part of the beauty of wine is not just the amazing concoction that people create and we like to consume, but that there are so many events where wine plays a key part and makes an occasion. Billy Joel wrote a song about it:

“A bottle of white, a bottle of red / Perhaps a bottle of rosé instead / We'll get a table near the street / In our old familiar place / You and I-face to face

A bottle of red, a bottle of white / It all depends upon your appetite / I’ll meet you any time you want / In our Italian Restaurant”

(From “Scenes From a Italian Restaurant” by Billy Joel)

We have many scenes that are very dear to us revolving around Ernie’s cousin, Louis. Lou was a great guy - born and raised in New Jersey, lived in the same house that he was born in. He has a lovely Irish wife, Re, and a daughter that is very similar to him - Eileen. Being that Ernie is an only child, and Louis’ sister passed away many years ago, Ernie and Lou were pretty much “brothers”, in spirit if not in fact.

Ernie has many memories of Lou as they were both growing up. The NJ house was the gathering point for the holidays, and the basement had a bar where all family members would gather. Lots of wine consumed, along with their Grandma's famous melt-in-your-mouth candies and zeppolas. Lou's Dad would make Brandy Alexander eggnog as well. Ernie's parents took the boys on vacation to a dude ranch in upstate NY - lots of stories from those adventures.

As adults, our two families did many things together over the years. We vacationed to South Carolina - Ernie and Lou were dubbed “Dumb and Dumber” at that point because the two of them caught, by accident, a 9-foot alligator (that we gave the name Leroy) while fishing. That incident required consumption of a fair amount of wine to try to wipe that memory! We celebrated anniversaries and birthdays in NJ or in DC, and we vacationed in Puerto Vallarta and Virginia Beach. Louis and Ernie built an arbor in Lou’s back yard, and Re planted a grape vine.

We visited many restaurants over the years, and Ernie and Re cooked many meals together - which were always consumed with good wine. There was one infamous New Year’s weekend where we did nothing but eat - walking (and eating/drinking) our way through Manhattan, and then cooking up a storm for New Year’s Eve - which required consumption of more wine (champagne, of course!). (By the way, we all went on a diet after that weekend!) Lou and Re also came down faithfully for our annual “Embassy” parties, to which we would invite Ernie’s military colleagues. Over the years, the group evolved and changed, and all the military folks who came and went got to know Lou and Re as well as us. Lots of oysters and filet mignon, of course consumed with white and red wine as well as champagne.

A favorite restaurant in New Jersey was Cafe Bello - again, lots of great food consumed, as well as good bottles of wine, since it was a good and a reliable place to go. And, of course, our Amici Miei friends all know Lou, Re and Eileen because of the number of times that the group of us went there.

Lou’s favorite go-to wine was Valpolicella. Nothing terribly expensive, but he loved the fullness and the taste. Re is more of a Pinot Grigio fan - so you can always find those in the NJ refrigerator (along with champagne for various occasions). The only time that changed was when Lou’s beloved Re got very ill a few years ago. We were all very afraid that Re wasn’t going to make it, so Lou decided to put aside something that he loved until Re recovered. Fortunately, the doctors provided excellent care, and Re pulled through. After she was fully recuperated, we had a number of bottles of wine to celebrate her recovery, and the wine returned to the house.

When our daughter, Krissy, got married, Lou gave one of the readings. He was very worried about that reading, as he had lost his hearing. However, he did a wonderful job, and Krissy had “Uncle Louis” as part of her wedding. Again, more toasts and memories made at the wedding.

Lou died this year after a rather short bout of cancer. It was very sudden and unexpected, which is often the case with cancer. After his funeral, we had wine to celebrate Lou’s life. Which takes me back to my starting point. Wine is consumed hopefully during more good times than bad, but it makes any ordinary day an event. Every time that I open a Valpolicella, I will think of Louis. That will go along with the toast to “Wisconsin cheese” (a very funny misunderstanding that is an inside joke), the story of Lou and Ernie catching Leroy, and the celebration we will have whenever we see Re and Eileen.

“A bottle of red, a bottle of white / Whatever kind of mood you're in tonight / I'll meet you anytime you want / In our Italian Restaurant.”

Cin, Cin, Lou, a toast to you. We’ll see you someday in our Italian Restaurant.

A Really Nice Dessert Wine!

March 10, 2015 by Tricia Carbone

I have become a fan of various types of dessert wines, particularly Sauternes, Port, Madeira, and Vin Santo. When Ernie and I go to an Italian restaurant, we like to get a glass of Vin Santo, then dip biscotti into the sweet wine as a dessert. Yummy!

Knowing our fondness for dessert wine (and dessert), a friend brought us a really special bottle of Vin Santo - the Castelli del Grevepesa 1998 Clemente VII Vin Santo del Chianti Classico Riserva. That's quite a name for a beautiful bottle of wine! The scent was dried fruits and honey, and the taste was really rich. Great dried apricot, toasted almond, a hint of chestnut. It would have been wonderful with pignoli, and it definitely was wonderful with the pistachio and cranberry biscotti!

We enjoyed our biscotti and wine over several nights, savoring each sip. I highly recommend this wine if you want to try something really special. A toast to our friends who introduced us to Clemente VII!

A great find - Clemente VII Vin Santo del Chianti Classico.

A Loire Wine for Fish

March 01, 2015 by Tricia Carbone

We are discovering lots of wonderful little restaurants here in Baltimore. Several weeks ago, we walked over to Fells Point, which is a fun neighborhood. The Thames Street Oyster House is a place where you can get great food and some good wines.

Ernie and I had stopped into the restaurant just for a snack back in October, so we thought it would be fun to have a complete dinner. We started with raw oysters - after all, it does have OYSTER in its name! They have a super selection of oysters. We tend to like oysters that are not terribly salty and that are somewhat sweet. So we decided on Battle Creek oysters from Virginia, Delaware Bay oysters from New Jersey, and Gemme oysters from California. We also ordered fried Long Island Sound oysters with a remoulade sauce.

An assortment of raw oysters and the fried oysters along with a Muscadet.

To go with this, I ordered the wine that, way back in France's history, one of the King Louie's had ordered up to go with raw oysters - a Muscadet from the western end of the Loire Valley. We ordered a 2013 Domaine de la Quilla Muscadet to go with our meal. Like all Muscadets, this one was very fresh, lightly acidic, and a slightly citrusy flavor. King Louie had it right - it is the perfect accompaniment to raw oysters - and, in fact, all types of fish.

After indulging in the oysters, we moved on to the main courses. I ordered Arctic Char pan seared and served over gnocchi with apple-smoked bacon, butternut squash, and mushrooms in a light creamy butter sauce. Ernie ordered grilled swordfish served with cheese ravioli (very delicate) and a butter sauce with chives. Both dishes were fabulous - and the Muscadet went extremely well with both. Fantastic!

The Arctic Char with gnocchi, butternut squash, and mushrooms.

The grilled swordfish with raviolis and the buttery chive sauce.

And because we were having such a good time, we decided to order Florence Miller's Cinnamon Cake with ice cream for dessert, along with a glass of Tawny Port for me and a glass of Ruby Port for Ernie. As always, it is fun to have two different versions of the same type of wine side-by-side. The Tawny Port was much richer, a bit lighter orange in color, and that lovely burnt orangy taste, whereas the Ruby Port was darker red and a bit more harsh in its flavor since it had not had the aging of the Tawny. Both went well with the dessert. All in all, a wonderful evening - we'll definitely have to get back to the Oyster House!

The Ruby Port on the left and the Tawny Port on the right.

More Wine Tasting Fun

March 01, 2015 by Tricia Carbone

We look forward to going to wine tastings, especially when the wine is paired with really good food. And so the monthly wine tastings at Amici Miei are a highlight. Nick Materese from Siema Wines did his usual great job, bringing lots of fun wines to try out.

As in previous events, Nick started the evening with a bonus wine, which is always a delight. This was a 2011 Bedell Sparkling Rosé. This wine is actually from the most eastern part of Long Island, so it is quite accessible here in the US. 2011 was the first year that Bedell made a sparkling rosé, and they have done a nice job. The wine was delightfully fruity with flavors of strawberries and pink grapefruit. And the light sparkles served to get the evening off to a good start.

The 2011 Bedell Sparkling Rosé from Long Island, NY - a great bonus wine!

The first wine on the tasting menu was from a vineyard we have enjoyed in the past - a 2013 Kaltern "K" Rosso. Kilter Vineyards are very far north in the Italian Dolomites in Alto Adige. This particular wine is made of grapes that are definitely native to that German/Austrian/Italian region - 85% Schiava and 15% Lagrein. Schiava grapes are known as Trollinger in Germany, and they tend to be a bit lighter, tasting of strawberry with a good amount of acidity. Lagrein is a more tannic grape, distantly related to Syrah. Therefore, it has some black pepper notes along with being juicy and a bit spicy. In the "K" Rosso, the combination of the two grapes is a light, fruity wine with nice tannins and the hint of black pepper. Chef Davide paired this with roasted duck breast with a pomegranate sauce. The fruit in the sauce was a great combination with the wine, and duck is always wonderful with light red wines.

The 2013 Kaltern "K" Rosso from the Veneto region.

The second wine was a 2011 Zonta Merlot from the Veneto region. Zonta likes to experiment with "French grapes" such as Merlot. The vineyards are located north of Vicenza, Italy, between Lake Garda and the Adriatic. Therefore, while they are further north, they have more of a temperate climate due to the effects of the two bodies of water. Nick told us that 2011 turned out to be very good for Zonta, as Italy had a warmer summer than usual. However, this region had winds that the rest of Italy did not have, so the grapes were kept cooler and had the full opportunity to ripen. The resulting wine is full-bodied, lovely, velvety tannins, very dark (like plums and currants), and also hints of leather and earthiness. This was paired with a puff pastry basket filled with Crucolo cheese fondue. The sharp, creamy cheese in the pastry matched the dark, earthy wine just perfectly. Definitely a winner!

Third wine on the list was a 2013 Bricco del Conte Barbera del Monferrato from Castello di Uviglie vineyards. Located in the Piemonte region of Italy, Castello di Uviglie was established in 1491, and they have been making wine since then - imagine, since before Columbus sailed to America! The company prides itself in following old traditions, so everything is done by hand. This wine is deep and dark, with earthy, olive notes. It was paired with shell pasta filled with biased pork rib ragu. OK, just yummy! I could have eaten and drank this pairing all night!

The 2013 Bricco del Conte Barbera del Monferrato.

Next up, a Tuscan Chianti, the 2011 Terre di Lamole Chianti Classico from I Fabbri. This is a family-owned winery, and they make only two types of wine, the Chianti Classico and the Chianti Classico Riserva. Chianti has come a very long way from its stereotypical "wine in a straw bottle" image of days past. This Chianti was ruby red, sour cherry flavors with great earthy spices (think of the rosemary and lavenders that are grown in that area), and the scent is gorgeous with the cherrys and violets. Chef Davide paired this with grilled lamb steak - you cannot ask for anything more Tuscan. Again, another winner.

The new Chiantis - a 2011 I Fabbri Terra di Lamole Chianti Classico.

And finally, a sweet wine from Sicily, the Cantine Intorcia Zibibbo. Zibibbo is actually Moscato di Alessandria. The grapes are dried in the sun on straw mats before they are made into the wine, creating a lovely lightly-sweet wine tasting of orange peel, citrus, and fig. This wine is actually fairly dry, which made it a great combination with the chocolate almond cake that Chef Davide served with it. Nick told us that this wine is actually extremely good with Torrone nougat candy.

A great way to end the evening - Cantine Intorcia's Zibibbo from Sicily.

And once again, a wonderful night came to an end. All attendees departed with comfortably full tummies and very happy tastebuds. This is a great way to tour Italy if one cannot actually fly over there. We'll definitely have to make plans to try some of these places in person! Until then, we'll settle for Nick's travelogue and Chef Davide's great cooking! Ciao!

Two Excellent Dinners in a Very Special Weekend

February 28, 2015 by Tricia Carbone

It is a great thing to be married to someone who loves to cook. And Ernie says it is a great thing to be married to someone who loves and has an understanding of wine. A match made in heaven, to be sure (or close to heaven, anyway)!

We made plans to cook up a storm one weekend in early February. We pulled out "Lidia's Italy" cookbook, which is a fabulous resource. Definitely buy it, and also check out Lidia's videos online or on Hulu. The first day was Sausage with Fennel and Olives. It turns out to be a really easy recipe. Ernie sautéed the chopped fennel with white wine, browned the sausage, and then finished the dish with green olives. To accompany, I chose a 2008 Poderi Luigi Einaudi Vigna Tecc Dogliani. This wine is actually made from Dolcetto grapes, grown around the town of Dogliani in the Piemonte region of Italy. The wine has a great taste of black fruit and blueberries, along with velvety tannins. There are minerals in the scent, along with the black fruit. The combination of the wine with the sausage and fennel was great - the olives added a bit of salt, the caramelized fennel was a bit sweet, and the sausage pulled it all together. Just lovely.

And just as we finished dinner, we got the phone call we had been expecting - our daughter was giving birth to our first grandchild! We finished cleaning up, then rushed off to the hospital to check that our granddaughter had the correct number (and distribution) of fingers and toes, and that the new mom and dad were doing fine!

2008 Poderi Luigi Einaudi Vigna Tecc Dogliani - it went wonderfully with the dish.

The next day, after visiting the new parents and our adorable and most intelligent granddaughter again (no bias here!), we created another of Lidia's recipes, Beef in Barolo. This is a favorite of ours, especially on cold days. After a piece of beef chuck is browned, it is braised along with carrots, onions, porcini mushrooms, and fennel and lots of herbs in a couple bottles of Barolo (some even goes in the pot - old joke!). Again, a really easy recipe - the hardest part is smelling the increasing aromas and getting hungrier while waiting for the braising process to finish.

Beef in Barolo along with braised vegetables and porcini mushrooms.

Served with garlic bread to soak up the sauce.

We served this dish alongside spinach and garlic bread (to soak up the lovely juices) and accompanied with a Tuscan wine - a 2010 Baracchi Smeriglio made from 100% Sangiovese. (One might ask - why didn't we have a Barolo with a Beef in Barolo recipe? Good question - I just decided to match it with something different!) This is a lovely wine, a very characteristic Sangiovese. The color is a beautiful ruby, the scent is fruity, and it has great black fruit taste along with medium tannins. The beef and the porcinis matched quite well with the wine. BTW, a colleague of mine tells me that Signore Baracchi has a gorgeous estate and hotel accompanying the vineyard - he and his wife had an amazingly romantic weekend there when he was stationed in Italy. Signore Baracchi raises falcons - so each wine is named after one of his falcons. The site is in Italian, but definitely check it out - Il Falconiere. We purchased this wine from Siema Wines after one of the wine tastings at Amici Miei - our favorite distributor, Nick Materese, stayed at the hotel, met Signore Baracchi, and Nick also has a number of fun stories about the various wines that they produce.

The 2010 Baracchi Smeriglio Sangiovese - the perfect wine with which to toast our new granddaughter! — The 2010 Baracchi Smeriglio Sangiovese - the perfect wine with which to toast our new granddaughter!

A toast to the new addition to our family, "Baby G" - Cin! Cin! And a toast to the new parents, our lovely daughter and son-in-law. What a special weekend to remember always!

Dinner With Friends

February 28, 2015 by Tricia Carbone

We decided to throw a dinner party for our friends, Roberto, Chef Davide, and Ivan, from Amici Miei along with their families, since they have always been so wonderful to us when we visit the restaurant. Since they are Italian and serve that country's food in their restaurant, we decided to try something different - French food and wine! We selected a pairing for them that we have enjoyed - bouillabaisse along with the wine that is made for it, Bandol.

We begin with appetizers - Ernie's specialty, Clams Oreganata and Oysters Rockefeller. As usual, these were a hit. To go along with them, we served up a treat that had been a gift from a friend here in Little Italy, a 2012 Basalto Chardonnay Insolia Sicilia. The wine had been brought back with care from Sicily, and it was delightful! The wine was very fresh and citrusy, with hints of the sea (since the vineyard is near the Sicilian coastline). With the clams and the oysters, it made a great combination. Our Little Italy friend is hoping to bring this wine to the attention of more people - we can definitely see why. Our guests enjoyed the wine very much.

Clams Oreganata (left) and Oysters Rockefeller (right).

And then on to the bouillabaisse. One of the keys to this dish is having a piece of toasted French bread in the bottom of the bowl along with rouille - which is a garlic mayonnaise of sorts. I had a little trouble making the rouille - it was too wet. So Davide was very sweet and showed me how to make the rouille so that it actually spread like a mayonnaise. A smear of rouille on the toasted bread, then the bouillabaisse was poured over top. Ernie used lobster, mussels, shrimp, cod, and grouper - yummy!

The toasted bread with the rouille smeared on top...

...and the bouillabaisse soup poured over the toast.

I have developed a love for Bandol since we first tried it. Bandol is grown in the south of France near Toulon, and it is actually blend of primarily Mourvèdre grapes (at least 50%) mixed with Grenache, Cinsault, and Syrah in varying amounts. Bandol wines can be white (blanc), red (rouge) or rosé. For our dinner, we had both a 2012 and a 2011 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rouge La Migoua.

The three wines we enjoyed. The Basalto is not sold in the USA at this time, but we hope that someone will begin to import it!

It is always fun to try two vintages of the same wine to see the differences. The 2011 was delightful - blackberries, currants, spice, and hints of herbs like rosemary with a smooth, fine tannin finish. The 2012 was also excellent - similar taste, yet a bit more distinctive tannins and a bit tighter and "chewier" than the 2011. Our guests had never tried a Bandol, so they loved being able to taste the differences and also see how well the wine went with the bouillabaisse.

For dessert, we introduced our Italian friends to Seven-Layer cookies from our favorite Piedigrotta Bakery here in Little Italy. Seven-Layer cookies originated in southern Italy, so most of them had never tried the cookies (since Davide and Roberto are from northern Italy and Sardinia). The kids especially enjoyed the cookies. All in all, an enjoyable evening with good friends - lots of food, wine, and camaraderie. Which is what makes life enjoyable, is it not?

Christmas Eve Traditions

January 25, 2015 by Tricia Carbone

Christmas Eve at our house is definitely a tradition. Ernie introduced me to the Feast of the Seven Fishes when we got married. It is an Italian tradition, although we are amused at the number of Italians who have not heard of it. Ernie's mom taught him to make Clams Oreganata and shrimp scampi; she would also make a salad with cod. Over the years we have expanded the list to ensure we always have seven different fish. It did get challenging at time, especially when we had only four of us eating, and then when we had people who were not the fish aficionados that we are.

Getting started with Oysters Rockefeller.

This year we had Matt, Krissy, Joey our son-in-law, and Joey's dad. And, of course, Matt's dog, Mr. Cooper, and Krissy and Joe's dog, Romeo. Quite a christening of our condo! We found a great place to get fish - Faidley's in Lexington Market. The menu: clams oreganata (of course), Oysters Rockefeller, crab balls (made by Mrs. Faidley, which are incredible), shrimp and lobster done scampi style over orzo, and then swordfish, cod, and Chilean Sea Bass. Eight fish this year - Ernie always over-achieves!

Munching on Clams Oreganata and Oysters Rockefeller.

We started with a sparking wine, a Lovisolo sparking rosé. We paired that with the crab balls, Clams Oreganata and Oysters Rockefeller, and also with spanakopita and miniature wrapped hot dogs for the non-fish eaters. The rosé has a bit of a grapefruit flavor, and it was wonderful with the shellfish, especially with the oysters. Ernie’s recipe includes sambuca in the filling, so it is a bit sweet. Additionally, Ernie broke out his single malt Scotch, the Glenfiddich 30-year old Scotch. Neither Joey or his dad had ever had single malt Scotch, so this was an adventure for two of the four gentlemen (Krissy and I did not partake!). Ernie tends to like Scotch from the Highlands of Scotland rather than the coast. While peaty and beautifully smooth, the scotch is not "medicinal" in its flavors and aromas!

The Lovisolo sparkling rosé made a great pairing with the shellfish.

One of Ernie's favorite 30-year old Scotches.

Then to the main course. Ernie baked the Chilean Sea Bass and the cod with a ginger plum sauce that we love from Balducci's which has always been a hit. He also baked some of the cod in a simple olive oil with Italian seasoning and lemon. He covered the swordfish in a tarragon vinegar and olive oil sauce seasoned with mustard and garlic and then baked it - the swordfish is terrific (we have also done this on the grill)! And the shrimp and lobster in a scampi style sauce, which is also traditional for us. And then we added several filet mignons, again for the non-fish eaters (although the two dogs would have loved to help eat those). With the fish, we had a 2012 Vernaccia di San Gimignano from Fratelli Vagnoni. This was a classic Vernaccia - beautiful mineral scents with white flowers and fruit and then the taste of apples, peaches, and flowers. And so crisp - it was a perfect match for the various fish dishes.

Dinner with the Vernaccia di San Gimignano.

The swordfish, cod, and shrimp/lobster scampi.

All in all, we held up the yearly tradition. Lots of food - probably too much - and great company. Our family has expanded, and we await yet another expansion with the birth of Krissy’s and Joey’s first child. And then off to everyone’s respective beds to dream of Christmas wishes, sugar plums, and Santa Claus

And a filet mignon for the non-fish eaters.

Buone Feste, 2014

December 30, 2014 by Tricia Carbone

Greetings to our family and friends, and Buone Feste (Happy Holidays) from our new home in Little Italy, Baltimore!

We started 2014 with a wedding - Krissy married Joe on the 11th of January. It was a great event - we were so thrilled to have so many cousins and friends travel in from all over the US to join us. Everyone had a great time, and we couldn’t be luckier to have our new son-in-law. Fortunately, they got off to Hawaii on their honeymoon before all the “polar vortexes” hit the East Coast!

The new couple with us and cousins Lou, Re, and Eileen.

And the "Carbone clan" - cousins from the original seven Carbone brothers and sisters who came to the US. — And the "Carbone clan" - cousins from the original seven Carbone brothers and sisters who came to the US.

In February, Trish decided to start planning for a future career or hobby - she began a website called “Bring More Wine”. She and Ernie try to document special bottles of wine - with or without meals - to share her passion in oenology and viticulture. Check it out!

Matt moved to Brooklyn in March along with Mr. Cooper. He is having a great time being in the big city, and his business is doing great by being closer to renowned architects. We are thrilled for him. We also got together with a bunch of alumni friends from Ernie's Stevens Institute, including Ray and Dorothy and also Ron and his friend Deb. We had the pleasure of seeing Ray and Dorothy's granddaughter, Maggie Rose, perform at the Bethesda Blues and Jazz Supper Club.

Our friend Dorothy and her granddaughter, Maggie Rose. We enjoyed her performance very much - an excellent singer and songwriter!

In April, we visited cousins Mike and Carmen in Sanibel Island. After being cold for so long with the polar vortexes, it was wonderful to be able to sit in the sunshine and thaw out for a few days.

In May we went down to the Pentagon to cheer on the Rolling Thunder participants. What an amazing spectacle - and how sobering to think of all the Service people who have given their lives for our great nation.

In June, Krissy and Joe moved into their new home. They also informed us on Father’s Day that we are going to be grandparents sometime in early 2015. That was very exciting. We also visited our friends, Jon and Carole, out in Delaware in June.

Cousins Diana, Brett, and Ron in Philadelphia's Little Italy.

In July, we attended a cousin's wedding in Philadelphia (Justin and Jessica). That gave us the opportunity to see a bunch of Ernie’s cousins again, plus see a bit of Philadelphia. We had a great time, including walking to Philadelphia's Little Italy and soaking up the atmosphere.

Cousins Celia, Nancy, and Ron at the wedding.

That same month, we took the huge step of putting our Potomac house on the market after twenty years of living there. We found a super condo in Little Italy in Baltimore, so thus started the move. In August, we officially moved most of our furniture, leaving some in the house and also putting a bunch of things in storage. It is hard to downsize! The Embassy is temporarily in a “secure location” - when we move to a more permanent location, we will re-open the Embassy! Meanwhile, we enjoyed getting to know our new neighborhood, including going to the free Friday night movies (to include Moonstruck!) in the Little Italy parking lot.

The Embassy of Seborga is temporarily moved to a "secure location".

Beginning to move things into our new condo.

September was fun in our new home - we had our first guests with friends Angela and Ivan, and also cousins Laura and Steve. Baltimore celebrated the 200th anniversary of the writing of the “Star Spangled Banner” with the Star Spangled Spectacular. We visited a bunch of the sailing ships and Navy ships that pulled into town along with friends Davide and Karla and their adorable twins, Aurora and Gianluca. And what a great location to live in to view fireworks - just carry chairs over to the harbor, watch the fireworks, and then walk back home. No parking necessary!

Fireworks at Baltimore's Star Spangled Spectacular - only walking distance from our new home!

After being on the market for four months, the Potomac house finally sold in November. We cleaned out the last of the furniture, giving most of it away to various friends. We have a lot of wonderful memories from that home that we will keep forever. For now, Ernie commutes to DC on the train, which is turning out to be a very easy commute. Trish drops him off at the BWI Rail station, as she is only a few miles from her job location at that point. We also had friends Jon and Carole join us for a weekend of Little Italy fun in November.

We bid farewell to the house in the Potomac.

And now it’s December, and we are experiencing our first Little Italy Christmas. We have started taking Italian lessons from the school associated with St. Leo’s (the local Catholic Church), and we are making friends with the local restaurant owners, bakery owners, and other people in the neighborhood. The area is decorated, the bells are ringing, and Matt is home for the holidays, along with Mr. Cooper. Krissy and Joe and Joe’s dad (Joe Sr.) spent Christmas Eve with us for the annual Feast of Seven Fishes - along with their dog, Romeo. We are looking forward to the birth of Giuliana Rose sometime in January or early February.

...and Snoopy Santa motors through the neighborhood.

We helped Santa decorate Little Italy's Christmas Tree.

We wish everyone a Buon Natale and Felice Anno Nuovo. Please keep in touch. We would love to see you if you are in town. Hugs to all, Trish and Ernie!

After all these years, Ernie still thinks he can fool Santa into thinking he should be on the "good" list!

December Cooking Class

December 28, 2014 by Tricia Carbone

As everyone experiences, it gets really busy around the holidays. However, Ernie and I always make time for Chef Davide's cooking class at Amici Miei. We love to attend this monthly event for a number of reasons - great food (complete with the recipes), excellent wine, and wonderful camaraderie from the attendees. Ernie gets inspired to add more dishes to his repertoire, and I love to try the new wines that Roberto chooses to go along with the foods.

Anticipation - the menu for this month's cooking class.

This month, Chef Davide shared some special holiday recipes from the Piemonte, which is his home region of Italy. Lots of special recipes, and not terribly difficult (as you will see at the end). And, of course, lots of joking and teasing amongst those of us who were watching the cooking. Jim and his lovely wife, Karen, were the helpers this particular Saturday.

Jim, Chef Davide, Karen, and Chef's helper Denis prep the Bonet.

As usual, cooking started with the last dish since dessert needs to bake and then cool for sufficient time. The Bonet is a chocolate amaretto flan. The name means "hat", since that is the last thing you put on before you leave someone's home. Since dessert is the last thing you eat, ergo the name Bonet. A hot caramel mix goes in the bottom of the flan molds to create a base for the flan. The flan mixture contains eggs, chocolate, and crushed amaretto cookies for texture, which is then combined with hot milk. The flan is then poured over the hardened caramel, and it is then baked in a double bath.

Chef pouring the flan mixture into the caramel-coated molds.

Next longest to prepare was the Chicken Marengo. This particular chicken recipe was created by the town of Marengo in Piemonte on the 14th of June in 1800. Napoleon had just defeated armies in the area and he wanted to celebrate, so he ordered up a special dinner. This chicken recipe was what the town created for him.

Prepping the cremini mushrooms, onions, and herbs for the Chicken Marengo.

This dish is actually fairly simple to put together. The chicken was browned to give a lovely golden color. Then cremini mushrooms, onions, and herbs such as garlic, thyme, oregano, and parsley were browned. The chicken and the vegetables were then braised with plum tomatoes in a combination of white wine and chicken stock. At the very end of the cooking, crayfish tails were added to give more of a festive touch. Chef and his helpers chopped and browned and then combined, then off to the ovens went the chicken.

Karen in charge of browning the chicken.

Chef pouring stock over the chicken for braising.

As a special touch in honor of the holidays, Chef decided to share recipes for five Piemontese antipasti. He told us that typically people can share up to 20 or more antipasti ahead of a special celebration such as the holidays; however, since we were also having other wonderful food, he would stay with five for this dinner. First to be prepared - the veal for Vitello Tonnato. A lovely piece of veal was browned on the stove along with diced vegetables, and herbs. After browning, the veal was baked.

Homemade mayonnaise was prepared for both the Tonnato sauce and also for the Insalata Russo. To flavor the Tonnato sauce, Chef added tuna, white wine, capers, and anchovies for the characteristic flavor.

Creating mayonnaise for both the Vitello Tonnato and Insalata Russa.

The homemade mayonnaise was also used in the Insalata Russo. This salad actually gets its name from a French chef who was working in a Russian hotel. Lots of fresh vegetables were combined along with boiled potatoes to create the Insalata. The homemade mayonnaise was added to this to hold it all together.

Veggies and potatoes for Insalata Russa.

Chef prepared a Bagna Cauda sauce to go along with red peppers that he had roasted previously. While the sauce was simmering, Chef showed all of us the beef tongue, which he had cooked earlier. He would then serve this sliced very thinly with a flavorful salsa verde, made of parsley, garlic, anchovies, ketchup (yes, ketchup), olive oil and bread soaked in red wine vinegar.

The last appetizer was veal tartar, or Carne Cruda in Italian. Chef took pieces of extremely lean veal and ground them up, then mixed the ground veal with seasonings, olive oil, and truffle oil. When served, he would top this with shaved parmesan cheese and garnish.

Two beautiful pieces of veal to be ground into tartar...

...and the finished product being mixed with seasonings.

And finally the last dish, the Panissa Vercellese, which is a kind of risotto. The Piemontese add their touch to this dish through the addition of cotechino sausage and borlotti beans. The sausage adds a beautiful smokiness and saltiness that compliments the risotto and the borlotti beans. In contrast to traditional risotto, this dish is made with red wine rather than white, which gives more of a rusty color to the dish.

Borlotti beans for the Panissa Vercellese.

Stirring the Panissa Vercellese with cotechino sausage.

Cooking complete, we sat down to eat. While we awaited the first course, we had a delightful surprise. Jim and Karen had brought in a very large bottle of Pol Roger, which is their favorite champagne. Gorgeous fine bubbles, lovely yeasty scent, and beautiful peachy fruits. Cheers to Jim and Karen and to everyone joining the class - we were off to a great start.

A holiday toast, courtesy of Jim and Karen.

Roberto chose a wine from an area west of Lake Garda to go with the appetizers, Provenza's 2013 Classico Groppello Garda. It is made from the native Gropello grape, which is unique to that area around Lake Garda. Gropello is a lighter wine, bright, few tannins, and tasting of mulberry and berries from the forest. The flavors of the wine were bold enough to go along with the strong flavors of the beef tongue and the saltiness of the anchovies in both the Bagna Cauda sauce (on the roasted peppers) and the Tonnato sauce on the Vitello, yet not overpower the beautiful Insalata Russa. Great combinations, and all the appetizers were very "interesting". Some people couldn't quite get past the thought of the tongue - I am proud to say that I did eat all the appetizers. The salsa verde with the beef tongue helped me mentally - it actually was all quite good. (No surprise, actually, Chef Davide is an excellent chef!!)

The five completed appetizers: Vitello Tonnato (top), Beef tongue with Salsa Verde (right), Veal Tartar with parmigiana (bottom), Peppers and Bagna Cauda (left), and Insalata Russa (middle).

The next wine Roberto chose was from the same general area, west of Lake Garda. The 2011 Provenza Maiolo Giomè Rosso is a Bordeaux blend, Cabernet Saugivnon and Merlot. This was a much bolder wine than the first, velvety tannins and dark fruit flavors. The wine went perfectly with the smoky flavors of the Panissa created by the cotechino sausage. Everyone loved this pairing!

Provenza's Giomè, also from the Garda area.

And then the secondi - the Chicken Marengo. Roberto chose a 2012 Rocche Costamagna Barbera d'Alba to accompany the chicken. The Barbera has more acidity and is a bold wine with cherry flavors, and that went very well with the combination of the tomatoes the the hint of sweetness from the crayfish tails in the Chicken Marengo. And in true Piemontese style, Chef served the dish with a fried egg and garlic bread, which is exactly how the dish was served to Napoleon! We all enjoyed this dish very much - yummy!

A lovely Barbera d'Alba to go with the Chicken Marengo.

The very traditional serving of Chicken Marengo - complete with a fried egg and toasted garlic bread.

And the topper for the afternoon, the Bonet. The flan was delicious, the slight caramel crunchiness on the top, the amaretti cookies ground inside, and then the decoration of the amaretto cookie also on top. It was a lovely presentation, and it tasted even better. A great way to end the December cooking class and get the holiday season underway.

We couldn't wait to start devouring the Bonet, topped with an amaretto cookie.

And to follow up, we now jump to Christmas Day. Ernie and I wanted something a bit special, but not too heavy since we would have had the Feast of Seven Fishes the night before (see the other entry!). So we decided to try the Chicken Marengo for our Christmas Day dinner. And yes, it was indeed as simple as it had looked when Chef Davide prepared it. Instead of adding the fried egg, we poured the sauce over a bit of pasta, and then put a whole shrimp with the dish (we couldn't find crayfish!).

Ernie's and my rendition of Chicken Marengo on Christmas Day.

To stay in the style that Chef and Roberto had suggested, we paired our chicken with a beautiful Monferrato Rosso 2000, made by the phenomenal La Spinetta. An incredible bottle of wine, with the slightly rusty color, velvety tannins, higher acidity, and bold flavors to complement the chicken.

A perfect special bottle for the holiday meal - La Spinetta's Monferrato Rosso 2000.

Cheers to all my readers, and cheers to the fantastic Amici Miei staff, who have provided us so many fantastic meals over the years. May you enjoy many wonderful meals and toast with your perfect bottles of wine. Cin! Cin!

Great Wine Memories of 2014

December 27, 2014 by Tricia Carbone

I always have the best intentions to write a blog once a week, or at least every couple of weeks. Unfortunately, other things (like life) get in the way, so my best intentions go awry. However, I was going through photos from 2014, and I found ones of bottles that we had enjoyed along with various dinners or restaurants. So, I figured, why not have a composite of memorable wines and dinners from the year? And here we go:

May - Ernie has been to Brussels, Belgium, a number of times, and I finally made it there in 2013. So we had seen Et Voila a number of times when we drove along MacArthur Boulevard in Georgetown, and we finally decided to stop. What great food! Very traditional Belgium food, including Ernie's favorite "Mussels in Brussels" and pommes frites. We had this lovely dinner along with a very nice white Rhone wine, a David Reynaud Crozes Hermitage 2011. The crisp, fruity wine and the mussels (we both like them in a white garlic broth) were a great combination. Highly recommend this restaurant.

July - We traveled to Philadelphia for a relative's wedding. We had not been to Philadelphia in quite a while, so we were looking forward to seeing cousins and also for trying some of the great restaurants that friends had told us about. We spent a fabulous evening at Tinto, which is owned and run by Jose Garces. What great Basque food! Lots of different tapas to try, complemented by recommended wine pairings. Our server, Kristin, was fabulous. We selected a number of different foods, and we got to have five different Basque wines. The first was an Ametza Arabako 2011 Petit Grain Muscat from Txakolina to go along with cheeses and olives. The next was the Castellroig Ull de Llebre 2010 from Penedes. This was paired with the charcuterie we had selected. Third up - a 'Temple' Bodegas Rejadora 2009 Tinto de Toro. This went very nicely with the diver scallops and the crispy serrano and the prawns. The fourth wine - San Jorge 'Roble' Tinto Fino 2012 from Ribera del Duero. Beautifully bold, great tannins, gorgeous scent. We had this with the lamb and the duck, a very nice combination. And finally, with dessert, a Bodegas El Maestro Pedro Ximenez Sherry from Jerez de la Frontera. A lovely way to end the evening - and we definitely need to go back to Philadelphia and have another dinner there!

The menu with our marked tapas at Tinto in Philadelphia.

August - When we finally moved into our new place, we celebrated with a somewhat simple but delicious meal - Linguini con le Vongole, or linguine with clams. In fact, Ernie made the dinner so perfectly, we had it again in September. We got the opportunity to pull out two different whites to try with the clams. The first dinner we paired a Cantine Cipressi Falanghina Terre Deli Osci 2012. This is a great wine to go with seafood, since the grapes are grown near the Italian coast - fruity citrus and pleasantly full-bodied to go with the clam sauce (Ernie adds anchovy paste to give a bit of richness to the sauce). The second time we had the clams, we had the Podere Guiggiolo Toscana 2011, which is a combination of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Incrocio Manzoni grapes. The creaminess of the chardonnay and the grassiness of the sauvignon blanc complemented the clam sauce in a totally different way than the Falanghina - but just as deliciously. Two excellent Carbone meals!

The 2012 Falanghina we enjoyed with the Linguini con le Vongole - first time...

...and the 2011 Podere del Giuggiolo from the second dinner.

September - Business took me back to Brussels, so I ended up missing Ernie's birthday by sitting on a plane. While in Brussels, I went to dinner with the local company folks at Belga Queen, which is a beautiful restaurant in an old bank building right near the center of Brussels. Belgium is not famous for its wine, and I am not a beer drinker; therefore, I cannot regale you with tales of what I understand are super Belgium beers. However, I did indulge in a fabulous dessert, which involved three different kinds of chocolate paired up with three different ages of Gran Marnier. Unfortunately, I do not know the name of this creation, as I did not write it down. The youngest Gran Marnier was a bit strong with the alcohol flavor, whereas the 75-year old Gran Marnier was beautifully smooth and the characteristic orange flavor. And the three pairings were great. When I go back, I have to find this again!

Three ages of Gran Marnier, youngest on the left and oldest on the right.

October - This was a busy month with various people's birthdays. We had another great Carbone meal, courtesy of Ernie, who tried out Baltimore's Parts and Labor butchery. They had an incredible set of bone-in ribeye steaks, so we decided to grill some in our Wolf oven (we love the appliances in our place!). Ernie seasoned them "Tuscan style" with some olive oil, salt and pepper, and some rosemary for seasoning. Really simple, and absolutely delicious. I pulled out a bottle of wine we had purchased in Paso Robles, CA, a few years ago, a Four Vines Anarchy 2008. This is a big, bold wine with almost equal amounts of Zinfandel, Mourvedre, and Syrah. The wine had a combination of the big jamminess of the Zinfandel, the peppery Syrah, and a smoothness from the Mourvedre. A great combination with the fantastic ribeyes.

The raw ribeyes from Parts and Labor - an inch and a half thick.

Ribeye steaks with butternut squash and broccoli.

For my birthday, we went out to the Black Olive to celebrate. (Yes, it is very unfair that we went out for my birthday but I was on a plane for Ernie's birthday...) This is a really nice Greek restaurant in a Fells Point neighborhood. The fish is wonderfully fresh, and customers choose their fish from a case of all the fresh fish. They also have wonderful lamb. Since Ernie had the rack of lamb, I chose the 2008 Manousakis Nostos from Crete. This wine is made from Syrah, Mourvedre, Grenache Rouge, and Roussane grapes (for blending). The finished wine is a beautiful ruby and purple color, a scent of very black fruits, and great leathery taste with the black fruit. A lovely wine - and it went great with Ernie's lamb and my St. Peter's fish in parchment. To complete the meal, we (of course) had baklava, which was a perfect ending.

A wine from Crete to complement our Greek meal.

We also celebrated our friend's birthday, Ivan. Since it was on a Tuesday, we went to Cinghiale for 1/2 price wine night. They have great pastas and other food, so we each chose our celebratory meal. And to accompany, we chose an Aglianico del Vulture, a 2009 Il Sigillo from Cantine del Notaio in Basilicata. This was a big, bold wine with lots of tannins and really dark fruit flavors. We let it breathe for a while to get the fabulous flavors. Some salumi misti and cheeses, and then the pasta - it was wonderful. Definitely a wine I want to find again.

An Aglianico del Vulture - beautifully bold.

November - We had a lot of activities in October and November, so we missed our son-in-law's birthday. So to make it up to him, we met Joe and Krissy in Annapolis at Lewnes Steak House. This is a favorite restaurant for Joe, since he loves beef (well done!). Lewnes has a great selection of different cuts of beef, in addition to seafood, so we all had a great time. They also have a very good wine list, so we chose one that we don't typically have - a Portuguese wine. This one was a 2009 Prazo de Roriz from the Duoro region of Portugal. The wine is made up of uniquely Portuguese grapes - Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Francisca, Touriga Nacional, and Touringa Franca, along with a few others. This was a full-bodied wine, great tannins, lots of fruit - perfect with the various cuts of beef that we each ordered. A very happy birthday celebration for Joe, even through it was late!

A very nice Portuguese wine made from more than five native grapes.

December - We have been trying to get to various restaurants around our new area in Baltimore, since there are so many! We had tried Bond Street Social for a late lunch in September, so we tried it again for dinner. It was a very cold night, so we were fortunate to get a table right next to their fireplace. We tried a couple of their very unique appetizers - Cream of Crab Soup Dumplings (the soup is baked right into the dumplings!) and the Crab Cakes with fried green tomatoes and tomato relish. Yummy! And for dinner, Ernie chose the Herb Crusted Salmon with citrus lump crab salad, and I chose the Panéed Scallops with citrus risotto and grilled mango salsa. To go with the great food, we chose a wine from a vineyard we had visited a number of years ago in Napa Valley, a 2012 Darioush Chardonnay. What a great pairing! The wine was very full-bodied with oaky scents, buttery taste and the beautiful fruit flavors. The wine went great with the food. By the way, if you find yourself out in Napa Valley, do stop by the Darioush Winery - it has great architecture and also wonderful wines!

We have great memories of the Darioush winery in Napa Valley.

Our son, Matt, came recently to stay with us through the holiday season. When he arrived, we walked over to Cinghiale - after all, it was 1/2 price wine night again! (This is a great deal - definitely check it out!) Matt and I both ordered the Maccheroni alla Chitarra with Cinghiale Bolognese (Chitarra Macaroni with Wild Boar Bolognese sauce) and pecorino. Ernie ordered the Casunsei, which is sausage-filled tortellini with a butter-sage sauce. We decided to try a 2009 Donna Olimpia Millepassi from Bolgheri, which is made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, and Merlot. The wine is named for the Roman ruins that traverse the property - the ancient Roman road that crosses the estate. The wine is definitely a keeper - garnet red with traces of violet, scents of blackberries and blueberries, and baking spices along with the fruit in the taste. I was disappointed that we didn't find a reason to order a second bottle! A great way to start the holiday, and I have to find this wine in a wine store.

And to end this entry, I want to end the way we finished so many meals through the years. We love Limoncello, which is a liquor made from lemons from the Amalfi Coast. We have loved Limoncello since we had it at Positano Ristorante in Bethesda, at Amici Miei, a homemade version in Tuscany (that's a story!), and on the coast in Amalfi and on Capri. We found a bottle of Pallini Limoncello at a Montgomery Liquor Store - and it was fabulous. A very bright yellow with traces of green, a gorgeous lemon taste, and an almost syrupy consistency. It is always a wonderful way to end a meal and toast the companion with whom you are sharing the meal. And so we toast you - here's to all the great meals and wines of 2014, and we are looking forward to new ones in 2015!

By the way, if you have suggestions, comments, or ideas for new stories that you'd like to share, please feel free to contact me. I would love to hear your thoughts. In the meantime, Auguro a tutti voi Buone Feste! (I wish all of you Happy Holidays!)

Another Great Wine Tasting

December 26, 2014 by Tricia Carbone

Working for a living is a necessity, to pay bills and ensure that one can eat and have some fun. And a benefit of working is that we can join the Amici Miei and Siema Wine folks (Roberto, Chef Davide, and Nick Matarese) once a month for their wine tasting.

December's set of wine was a very interesting mix of regions and flavors. We started in Val d'Aosta, high up in the Alps. Refrain is a lovely sparkling (Vin Mousseux) Pinot Bianco made by Domaine de Refrain. Due to the Germanic influences nearby, this particular vintage has Müeller Thurgau, Moscato, and Prix Blanc grapes. Müeller Thurgau is a German grape that Doctor Thurgau developed as an alternative to Riesling (and when one is talented enough to create a new grape, one can name it after themselves!). This particular grape does not have the ripping acidity that Riesling has, so it makes a great basis for this particular wine. The Vin Mousseux is a bit sweet with a lovely, refreshing sparkle. A bonus about this wine is that it is produced with absolutely no pesticides - bugs just don't survive at 4000 meters! Therefore, no need for pesticides.

A great sparkling wine to start the evening.

Chef Davide paired this wine with a robiola cheese and asparagus crostini. The creamy cheese and slight bite of the asparagus went beautifully with the sparkle in the wine. We all toasted each other and the upcoming holiday season - a great start to the evening.

Next up was a Sicilian wine, the Alcesti 2013 Isola Bianco. In contrast to the first wine, this wine was produced from grapes growing three kilometers from the Mediterranean coast. In fact, the grapes have salt on their skins while they are growing, which gives the wine a more "salivating" taste. The two grapes are native to Sicily - Catarratto and Grecanico. According to Nick, Catarratto gets very ripe, to the point where the vintners have to be careful not to have too much sweetness in the grape, otherwise when fermentation occurs, the wine will have a high percentage of alcohol. Everyone really liked this wine, along with its very unique food pairing of a tuna and ricotta fritter. The fruitiness of the wine went perfectly with the slightly salty tuna and creamy ricotta. As I wrote in my notes, "Wow!"

The third wine was the Pan Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Vino di Bosco 2011. This was a delightful everyday wine, very dry with lavender scents and soft tannins. It is made of 85% Montepulciano grapes and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon. Chef Davide paired this with a turkey meatball in a red sauce. I have to say, if you want a nice wine to go with a red sauce, try this one - it was great together!

Wine number four was from Calabria, the Vigna Garrone 2004 from Odoari. This was a very nice red wine, a winner of Italy's Tre Biccheri award. It is made of five grapes, 80% Gaglioppo, 10% Nerello Cappuccino (both are native Calabrian grapes), and then Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot for the remaining 10%. Nick described the vineyards for these grapes - very rustic, growing in the Alberello (little tree) style with the vines growing over walls. The wine is very earthy and spicy, just delightful. And when paired with Chef Davide's braised beef short ribs, just perfect!

The final wine of the evening was the 2006 Solare from Tuscany, made by Capannelle. This vineyard is owned by James Sherwood, of the Orient Express fame (note his initials embossed in the bottom of the bottle below!). This wine is a mixture of 80% Sangiovese and 20% Malvasia Nera. It is grown in Gaioli in Chianti, which means that the wine could be classified as a Chianti wine. It has a gorgeous scent of blue and white flowers, and has a characteristic Chianti flavor. Paired with an aged pecorino toscano cheese, one could imagine sitting in a Chianti vineyard, looking out at the Italian cypress trees across the rolling hills. What a great image, and what a lovely wine.

The Solare, complete with James Sherwood's initials at the bottom of the bottle.

And thus ended the last Amici Miei tasting for 2014. Of course, most of us stayed right where we were to enjoy a full bottle of wine along with a bit more dinner and, of course, the camaraderie. What a great way to end a work evening!

We Close a Chapter - and Open a New Door

November 26, 2014 by Tricia Carbone

There are certain events that indicate that you have closed a chapter of your life and moved into a new one. Job changes (unless one changes jobs frequently), marriages, births, and so on. We actually have celebrated a marriage this year (of our daughter) and are about to celebrate a birth (of our first grandchild). In this case, however, we moved from our home of twenty years into a smaller condo, and we sold our home.

We loved our big home - Ernie's parents lived with us there for a while before they passed away, the kids were able to move in with us for a period to finish high school, we had huge parties in the "Seborgan Embassy" for the military folks with whom Ernie worked, lots of Christmases, Thanksgivings, birthdays, Snowmagedden, and so on. We have a lot of memories made in that home.

As luck would have it, we managed to time our entry onto the home sale market extremely badly. According to our wonderful real estate agent, Traudel Lange of Washington Fine Properties, the spring sales had been fantastic. So we anticipated that our house would sell in no time flat, what with all the improvements we had done over the years. Ernie likes to say that apparently aliens found out when we put the house on the market, as they then took great efforts to transport any potential buyers off to other planets! Yup, summer and fall in the housing market was pretty much down.

However, Traudel persevered, along with her trusty teammate, Justin Franco. They advertised, they held open houses, they talked up our house any chance they could get. We probably didn't help much - we decided to go ahead and move into our new digs right in the middle of this time period, thus creating a fairly empty house for Traudel to try to move. And her perseverance (and patience) won the day - we finally got an offer, suffered through all the negotiations and inspections (again with Traudel and Justin handling all the items needing to be fixed), and then got to closing.

To celebrate the closing Traudel took us to lunch in Bethesda, which was delightful (and very much appreciated). Then after visiting with friends and stopping for supplies at a favorite Italian store, we decided to have our own celebration in our new home.

We started with a toast - a beautiful sparkling rosé of pinot noir. We sipped on that while we cooked pompano fish with herbs and tomatoes in a bit of olive oil. A great start to a celebratory dinner.

For dinner, we opened a bottle that we had purchased from Chelsea Wine Vault in New York for a special occasion - a 2011 Condrieu La Doriane. What a fabulous wine - so rich, but with that characteristic Viognier taste of honeysuckle, white peach, and other flowers. Interestingly, the scent had traces of petrol (like a Riesling) with glazed fruit along with the honeysuckle.

Along with the pompano fish, we had lobster ravioli with a sherry cream sauce. The Condrieu was a wonderful partner with the herbed fish and the rich lobster ravioli.

And because it was a celebration, we had a decadent, chocolate dessert from Whole Foods. To compliment the chocolate, we each had a glass of Sandeman's Character Amontillado Sherry. Truly a great finish - both to the chapter we've closed as well as to dinner. And a new beginning in the fun city of Baltimore!

Chocolate cake and pistachios with Amontillado.