Take a hike!

...on the American Whiskey Trail.

I have a thing for rocks

I don't know if it has to do with being born in Maine, or growing up with a creek in the backyard, or summers at Bantam Lake, but I've got a thing for rocks. In various little corners and niches in my apartment, you can find rocks. They're in many shapes and sizes, but each one attracted my attention long enough for me to grab it and bring it home. This fascination with stones seems to run in my family. Aunts, Grandparents, and cousins seem to all have rocks laying about.
When my birthday came and my mother, recently transplanted to Maine, asked me what I wanted, I said, "a rock from the Maine seashore."
Little did I know she'd find one...



Maine rocks and wine-toppers. You can't go wrong.
Of course I have no idea where she found this or how to get more.

EDIT: Mom reads the blog! www.funkyrockdesigns.com

NYC trade tasting

So Joe Dressner has a trade-only tasting event coming up in April in NYC. Of the many winemakers present will be Pierre Breton from Catherine et Pierre Breton (biodynamic!) and Thierry Puzelat from Clos du Tue-Boeuf (In Cot We Trust). These are two producers who produce MUST BUY wines and therefore this event is a must see for the ecW crew. Anybody got any friends in the trade in NYC???

There's an IKEA in New Haven, y'know

...and I'm sure that's news to you.
Besides telling you about their Svalka glassware almost a year ago, I've been mentioning to people their SODA decanter. It's easily broken (I've killed 3 of 'em) but at $15, easily replaced.



Justinsomnia mentions it, too. In the same blog he mentions a $5 bottle of wine from Target. Yowsa! I'm so glad you can't sell wine at Target in CT.

No Reservations

Admit it, your guilty pleasure is Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations. It's okay, it's mine, too. Local yokel, Matt Ford, is trying to get the show to come to New Haven...
The video won't embed, so watch it here. There's a quick glimpse, though no mention, of ecWino haunt 116 Crown.

Cachaca

Never one to turn down a free cocktail, I had the distinct pleasure of trying a Caipirinha, Brazil's National Cocktail. Mine was made with Ypioca "Silver" Cachaca ($$), 1/2 lime, quartered and muddled, and 2 teaspoons of cane sugar. Quite tasty, and many more will be consumed as the weather gets better. Wikipedia has the how-to and the where-from. Drinkhacker.com has a nice bit on the Ypioca, which is pretty much the Cachaca.

skappo i biodinamico

Tonight, Mo suggested Skappo (59 Crown St.). It worked out quite well, because as I was perusing the wine list, Arianna Occhipinti jumped out at me. Well, not literally, of course -- I don't think I'd be able to handle that (especially not with Mo present). They're serving the Arianna Occhipinti Frappato 2005 for a measly $55. I've talked about her wines before, and the fact that I found this bottle out, within 1 mile of my home, ensures repeat business for the gang at Skappo.
Oh yeah, they have food, too. Think tapas, but Italian -- real Italian. This is the type of place you'd find in a small village in Tuscany, with long communal tables, and Mom as the enterprising chef who comes out to greet each table. Plenty of veggies, but vegans should say, "no cheese" to everything as pretty much all dishes involve shaved parmesano-reggiano cheese.
The food was great, and the wine list is quite good, even if limited by the Italian only -- bonus points for keeping bottle prices below standard markup.