When asked what makes someone qualified to be a critic, he answered not just for himself but also tried to create a feeling of community even just within the critics in the web session.  “That should be the one thing we can all agree on here, is to have a passionate interest in the particular field you’ve chosen to be a critic.”  This already makes him stand out to the reader as someone who’s approachable.  His response to the question of whether education is more important than passion was also striking.  He says that he thinks that experience is gained by learning as much as you can and then learning more.  His style of reviewing starts to come into focus when he talks about how his mind goes to someone finally trying a hole in the wall restaurant after throwing away pre-conceived notions.  You can tell he likes to leave no stone unturned.

He seems humble despite his “mantle of critic” though.  He still thinks of it as an opinion.  This resonated because it shows that he acknowledges, like many of the other critics taking part in the forum, that his opinion is not the only one with merit.  You can also tell from something he says later that he might enjoy the informality that the online format allows.  He also says that he though he thinks user reviews are unreliable, the internet can be an invaluable resource for those writers who seek to better themselves and gain hands on experience.

Overall, I would say that Chuck Sudo is an open-minded reviewer who likes to do a thorough job.  After reading a recent article or two by him in The Chicagoist, it’s clear that he enjoys his craft but is a man of few words.  He gets what he needs to say said and doesn’t waste time with a lot of needless exposition.  A possible detriment to the reader is the lack of emotional connection.  One might get a sense that these are articles written by a news writer and not a critic.

Come for the months-old viral video, stay for the nauseatingly fawning copy that results when journalists who don’t usually write about sports decide to celebrate the local star athlete:

Chicagoist:

Derrick Rose’s emergence as both a basketball player and a man have been amazing to watch unfold. It’s rare for a Chicago sports franchise to witness the career trajectory of a transcendent player. To have lightning strike twice is something we should appreciate, especially when the second time is a homegrown player like the reigning NBA MVP, who still wears his Englewood roots with pride.

Which is what makes this video even all the more amazing and reminds us that Rose is still all of 22, with the attendant childlike wonderment and enthusiasm that comes with being that age. He may be shilling for Adidas and the Bulls here, but watching it, one gets the sense that he could be having just as much fun with the puppets if this weren’t a business trip.

Do you remember often feeling a sense of “childlike wonderment” at 22?

(Also, Derrick Rose is 23.)

From Chuck Sudo/Chicagoist

Serves 8-12

[Ed: Smoky and meaty, this was one satisfying gumbo. As he did last year, Chuck's sent along his recipe for chicken stock as well as the soup specs themselves. Sadly, some hoped-for cornbread failed to materialize, choosing instead to stick to the bottom of the pan. Luckily, crock-pot neighbors Andrea and Allison brought some as well. That recipe's over here.]

Ingredients

For the roux:

Preparation

In a large pan, cook the chicken and smoked sausage on high heat, remove and set aside. Add the rendered chicken fat to the pan until heated. Sift flour into pan and whisk until mixed with the chicken fat and foaming. reduce heat to medium and stir continously until the roux turns mahogany, about an hour. Add bell pepper, onion and okra and cook until soft, about one minute. Add to chicken stock and simmer about 45-60 minutes. Add chicken and smoked sausage and simmer an extra 15-25 minutes.

Makes 8 quarts

Ingredients

Preparation

Set up all ingredients except chicken carcass in a 12-quart stockpot and heat to a rolling boil on high heat, then reduce heat to simmer. Roast the chicken bones and skin for about an hour at 400 degrees F until browned and sweating. Remove from oven, allow to cool.

Strip the chicken carcass of any remaining meat and use for broth, soups, stews or gumbos. Add carcass to the stock, simmer for a minimum of 3 hours, skimming scum from top and removing any excess fat to render for a roux or recipes calling for oil/fat.

February 17, 2010: The night of no vegetarian soups.

I’d like to just take a moment to address the issue, which most of you were pretty gracious about, though a few were a little miffed.

Every week I try to ensure that there will be at least one vegetarian soup on the roster. But, as the cooks are volunteering their time and their ingredients, I don’t feel it’s right to tell them what to make. This is supposed to be fun and fulfilling for cooks and eaters in equal measure!

That said, this week was an anomaly. Two cooks dropped out at the last minute: one I knew was a vegetarian, the other I’m not sure about, but, regardless, I was scrambling to make sure we had enough of *anything* to eat this Wednesday. The vegetarian thing?  It fell through the cracks.

So I am very, very sorry if anyone came to Soup and Bread this week and was disappointed. We certainly don’t want anyone to go away hungry! But I do also feel that the unscripted, roll-the-dice-and-take-your-chances aspect of Soup and Bread menu planning is part of the deal. I mean, it’s free soup. Some weeks we wind with 6 vegetarian soups; other weeks (like this one) even the purest-looking stews have chicken stock hiding beneath their chickpea and lentil trappings. What’s a girl to do?

L-R: Tamiz, Chuck, Andrea, Luke, and Megan

Anyway — as I said, most people were gracious about this weird fluke. And the soup we did have was awesome. On with the recap!

On deck:

Tamiz Haiderali, chef and owner of Treat Restaurant, with a creammmmy goat cheese bisque.

Chicagoist food and drink editor Chuck Sudo, with smoky chicken and sausage gumbo. Sadly, his hoped-for cornbread decided to stick to the pan and stay home.  Sometimes food has a mind of its own.

Lost in the Supermarket‘s dynamic duo of Andrea Deibler and Allison Stout, with their own corn muffins and some seriously beefy chili (though, I thought they were bringing potato-leek soup?).

Writer, designer, and caterer Luke Joyner, who at one point told me he was cooking up some roasted garlic soup, instead whipped up one of our most x-treme soups ever, a dark, funky, turkey-and-stout soup served with pistachios, fresh raspberries, and chocolate chips.  Whoa. He also brought some homemade ciabatta.

And, holding down the end over there, registered dietician and Chicagoist writer Megan Tempest, with a protein-packed Moroccan chickpea and lentil stew. (Check out her nice writeup here.)

I should have recipes for this wild and woolly bunch of soups up soon — and breads too, I promise. I have a major backlog of recipes provided by busy baker Rae Hill that I still need to transcribe. (Did I mention that I’ve also been floored by this damn cold that’s going around?) But, that rockin’ Parmesan bread is first up, I swear.

This week Chef Kraus’s class generously provided 15 loaves (!), a mix of Normandy Apple, Sweet Rustic, and Country Wheat breads. This was a hearty supplement to the baguettes and ciabatta donated by our friends at La Farine Bakery. They don’t have a website, but Here’s a good overview of their outfit from LTH Forum’s happy_stomach, who’s spearheading plans for an all-LTH Soup and Bread night on March 24.

Celeste and Devon also came by with truffles and bacon pralines (!!) left over from Celeste’s Valentine’s Day sale and tasting last weekend at Juicy Wine Company. I couldn’t make it out of bed to attend, but she says there may be another one in the works for next month. We’ll keep you posted. Because, holy cr*p those truffles were good.

Also in the house, Erin Stephens, director of volunteers for Lakeview Pantry, on whose behalf we raised a whopping $551, setting another new Soup and Bread record.  Frankly, folks, it didn’t *seem* that crowded — I can only guess that even the disappointed vegetarians tossed a little somethin’ in the pot. Otherwise where’d all that cash come from? (Seriously, you people rule.)

And, that’s all for this week. Next week: so much vegetarian soup the carnivores will revolt. I promise. And I’ll post that schedule soon.

Graphic designer and caterer Luke Joyner

Chicagoist food and drink editor Chuck Sudo

Chicagoist food and drink writer Carrie Becker

Chicagoist food and drink writer Megan Tempest

and

Lost in the Supermarket‘s Allison Stout and Andrea Deibler

Donations from this week’s Soup and Bread benefit Lakeview Pantry. See you Wednesday!

ONE MORE COOK JUST ADDED: Tamiz Haiderali, chef/owner of Treat Restaurant.

Dark Lord Day…the name has ominous overtones and conjures up images of people summoning evil things from the nether-regions of the universe to serve their dastardly purposes…but it shouldn’t.

Say those three words to a beer geek and expect to hear a gasp, a smile, and possibly a couple of stories if they’ve managed to make it there.

I’ve been to the last 3 Dark Lord Days (DLD), and each one has increased my respect for both the Three Floyd’s Brewery as well as the beer community as a whole. For the largest part, beer festivals are set up as a pay-a-flat-fee-drink-till-you-fall-down event. There are likely scads queues lining up to umpteen brewers (some you’ve heard of, some you haven’t) so they can offer you a 1.5-2oz taste of their wares. Dark Lord Day is set up a little differently.

Dark Lord Day isn’t a beer festival in the usual sense. At the core, DLD is just the one calendar day a year that you could buy this sought after beer. Since its initial release in 2003, the word of mouth has spread and the devotion to the beer has increased so much that people will camp out overnight and wait in line to buy this beer. In order to make sure that the diehards that travel from around the country are accommodated, the gracious folks at Three Floyds have set up a festival around it. There are the requisite porta-johns, and food vendors. There is live music (generally of the Heavy Metal variety (Imperial Battle Snake was the band with the best name)). You can even buy beer from the Three Floyds brewery as well as visiting breweries (this year had Russian River and Stone on hand).

It’s a party and the people there are as friendly as they come (for the most part).

The Lush bus departed from the Halstedshop at 12 noon after a brunch of eggs, Founder’s Breakfast Stout, Metropolis Flywheel, and Bloody Marys. After a nostalgia inducing ride on a giant cheddar cheese yellow school bus, the Lush faithful arrived at the Three Floyds Brewery. This is where I get to ex-bound on the wonder that is Dark Lord Day and the generosity that exists in the beer community on days like this.

Before stepping of the bus, Chuck (an acquaintance of no more than 2 hours) offered me one of his two Golden Tickets. The same Golden Tickets that guarantee the purchase of the storied Dark Lord, yeah, he gave me one of those…why?..because I was a fellow beer geek. I got to buy an allotment of Dark Lord (which turned out to be 4 bottles).

(As an aside, I feel like the advent of the Golden Ticket actually increased the fellowship of the.)

I had come prepared.My backpack was stocked with 4 of the most rare beers that I personally had in my collection. And I, like the like the vast majority of the attendees, was ready to share. What I had with me is inconsequential, but if you’re curious what I brought and what I tasted as a result, please feel free to comment. I found some fellow beer nerds that I had been previously acquainted with and popped one open. I poured myself a taste and then offered some around. The atmosphere is such that if you have something to offer (usually something rare, or at least difficult to get in the area), then you’ll be met with souls in kind who are also looking to both share and partake of your beverage. So share and share alike we did.

The time came for me to get in line to buy Dark Lord in a transaction that could only be described as CASH ONLY. There was a temporary ATM set up that was blinking OUT OF ORDER. I checked my walled and it screamed at me, EMPTY! then it spontaneously folded into a frown and spit moths at me. (ok, not really, but I thought the dramatic effect might be entertaining). I was thwarted, I had no way to purchase the beer that I had journeyed for. I slowly walked over head down (you’ve seen Snoopy do his sad walk, it was like that) over to another group of souls, this time from Ohio (my native land). I’ve never met these fellows before, but I was about to make friends. I opened up another bottle of beer and before too long was chatting with these fellows from Columbus like we’d been old buddies. Before too long this exchange took place.

Dude from Columbus (DFC): Have you gotten your Dark Lord yet?

Me: Nah, I have the ticket in my pocket, but the ATM is out of cash and I didn’t bring any money because I’m dumb.

DFC: How much do you need?

Me: Sixty bucks.

DFC: Here (pulls out seventy dollars), go get your beer.

Me: (Jaw on floor). Seriously?!?!

DFC: Yeah, just go get your beer.

There was an exchange of addresses and I’m going to send him a box of beer to make up for this act of generosity, but seriously, in what alternate universe do we live in that a perfect stranger can walk up to you talk for a minute and a half and then you offer them $70 to go buy beer. It’s insanity, and a perfect example of the kind of camaraderie that exists in the beer community on days like this. He just wanted me to get the beer that I came there for.

While I’m showing you this through rose colored glasses, and there were horror stories of vandalism, public intoxication (and all the various idiocies that go with that), and even some blatant PDA going on those are bound to show up with a group of 2500+ people that are just there to drink beer and have fun. The main point of this post is to show the alternate universe that people exist in for this festival.

It’s great and if you make it, come prepared with rare beer and you’ll make friends everywhere.

bs

ROB SALITORE

BIO: Rob is a long time supporter of LUSH, actually one of our first customers!  Although he works mainly in construction, Rob’s latent talent is developing deep friendships and creating a growing appreciate for sharing moments, and sips, with amazing people.  He also has phenomenal connections in the beer and wine world.  On his ‘off’ time, Rob represents Linne Calodo wines in Chicago.    This is one cool guy.

INTERVIEW: Thanks for agreeing to be a part of the Lush Wine & Spirits blog. Please answer the following questions in whatever way you see fit. We want your voice, personality, and opinions to come through!

1)       What is the best thing you’ve drank in the last week? What about in the last year?

Best this week: a 2008 Pinot Noir rose from Maysara in Oregon.

Best this year: a 2005 Nemesis (rhone blend/syrah based) from Linne Calodo Cellars in Paso Robles, CA.

2)      What do you think is the most underrated grape varietal or region? Overrated?

Underrated varietals: white variety – Hondarribi Zuria, red variety Hondarribi Beltza. (Used to create the Basque wine –Txakoli in red (rare), white and rosado)

Underrated region: Basque Country, Spain (perfect for spring and summer drinking. Lower in alcohol, good acidity and a little frizzante).

3)       Who are your favorite food and wine writers?

Food Writers: Georgio Locatelli, an Italian chef in London, England. He is the proprietor of Locanda Locatelli. Carlo Petrini of Slow Food and Saveur Magazine.

Wine Writers: Donald and Petie Kladstrup authors of ‘Wine&War’ and ‘Champagne’. Oz Clarke from England, Eric Asimov of the New York Times and Alpana Singh with her blog ‘What would Alpana Drink’.

Beer Writers: The immortal Michael Jackson R.I.P, Charlie Papazian, Lew Bryson and Chuck Sudo is doing a great job of keeping people informed here locally on Chicagoist.com.

4)      What are your three favorite food cities?

(1.) Chicago, (2.) New York and (3.) San Francisco

5)       Top three restaurants you revisit all the time in Chicago?

(1.) Tufano’s Vernon Park Tap, (2.) La Sardine (3.) Moon Palace

6)      What is your most memorable dining or drinking experience?

EATING

Dining at a restaurant in restaurant in Terracina, Italy (west coast, near Naples) that had been kept open exclusively for our table. The local-born chef had gone to culinary school in Philadelphia, PA. He prepared freshly caught ‘rhombo’ fish and several other courses using the best local seafood and produce. Simply amazing !

Also, eating my first ‘real’ pizza in Gaeta, Italy (also near Naples).

DRINKING

Beer: (1.) Drinking ‘doppio molto’ beers at the bars is Gaeta, Italy. (2.) Drinking Bitburger and watching soccer at a bar in my grandmother’s home town Santa Catarina, Sicily, Italy. (3.) Pouring Goose Island beers on the corner of Willow & Marcey Streets during the first street festival outside the original brewpub.

Wine: (1.) Drinking cheap Montepulciano di Abruzzo out of carafes in Little Italy, NYC while smoking cigars and loving it so much that we were late to the rehearsal dinner upstate. (2.) First time visiting Linne Calodo Cellars in Paso Robles, California. Tasting with the owner/winemaker’s wife and sister (who have since become great friends) for several hours and buying a lot of wine at the end. (3.) Tasting great Brunello at the Castello Romitorio in Montalcino, Italy with an Italian pal and his mom. The gal who gave the tour gave it in English and my friend’s mom nodded along the whole time. She only spoke Italian. What a doll!

7)      Between wine, beer, and spirits – when do you reach for each? If you HAD to do without one, which would it be?

Wine – daily after work, with a meal, maybe a bit more on Saturday evening or Sunday afternoon. With friends and family always !

Beer – similar to wine, daily after work, Saturday or Sunday might see a visit to a far flung brewery or brewpub. We know a lot of brewmasters!

Spirits – usually after a larger meal. Some kind of a celebration. Not daily or even weekly usually. Sometimes with a good book.

If I HAD to do without one it would be spirits. Spirits are not as practical for my daily lifestyle as beer and wine are.

8)      What is the best thing about your job?

Assuming you mean representing Linne Calodo Cellars apart from my full time job as a construction guy I would definitely say enlightening people to the pleasures of ‘blended’ wines as apposed to single varietals. Very few of the great wines of the ‘old world’ are 100% of any one varietal and more and more ‘new world’ producers are figuring out what’s in their spice cabinet. By that I mean blending different grapes, sometimes from different sites, using different cooperages, etc. Showing those aspects to people is gratifying. Also, introducing people to another, lesser known wine region: Paso Robles, California (“is that near Napa?” – Ah, no.)

9)      If you had to describe yourself as a certain wine, what would it be? (i.e. Australian Shiraz – spicy, bold, and seductive. German Riesling – sometimes sweet (but hard to predict if it will be), elegant, and requiring of patience.)

What a loaded question ! I guess I will say American Zinfandel because it is kind of a bold and spicy wine. Nobody will identify me as a wallflower that is for sure. But it would be a zin with good acid and moderate alcohol so as to be good with food as I love to cook and entertain my friends. It would probably be a blended wine like the zin-rhone wines from my friends at Linne Calodo, ‘The Prisoner’ from Orin Swift or one of the many fine examples from Paul Draper at Ridge. The other varieties represent the fact that I am not one dimensional by any means. Kind of like an onion, peeling back the layers, etc. Above all it would have to be a reliable wine. One that wouldn’t let you down. Those zin based wines rarely disappoint.

10)   You’re on death row (sorry). What’s your final meal?

Simple roast chicken that has been rubbed with great olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs cooked on the grill or under the broiler.  Broccoli Rabe sautéed with garlic. Hand-made pasta of any sort. Good, crusty bread. And great red wine – preferably one made by a friend at a place I have visited many times.

BUT – I will take a baguette, a bottle of oil and the cheapest wine as long as my loved ones are with me. Sempre Famiglia !

rs

BIO: Chuck Sudo is a modern day renaissance man[-about-town]. A Chicago native and an early supporter of LUSH, he can also be found checking out brews at the area’s greatest bars, as well as hanging around Bridgeport with his pooch, Emmylou Harris. Fact: One time, former LUSH on Halsted manager Lance’s dog, Jip, once attempted to ‘romance’ Emmylou outside the Bridgeport Coffee Company. She was, uh, less than responsive. Chuck’s got his finger on the pulse of Chicago’s eating and drinking news, and can either be found writing for Chicagoist, his personal blog Bridgeport Seasoning, or roaming the city in spandex. He insists it’s for optimal bike riding but we think he just enjoys the stretchy. Always one step ahead of the next food trend and a fellow supporter of pork products, we’re proud to have him as a LUSH enthusiast, kindred spirit, and fellow South Sider.

Thanks for agreeing to be a part of the Lush Wine & Spirits blog. Please answer the following questions in whatever way you see fit. We want your voice, personality, and opinions to come through!

1) What is the best thing you’ve drunk in the last week? What about in the last year?
The answer for both of these is “the next drink.”

2) What do you think is the most underrated grape varietal or region? Overrated?
I don’t know about “underrated” or “overrated.” I think “underrepresented” and “oversaturated” are more apropos. For the former, I’ve never had a bad dessert wine from New York’s Finger Lakes region. The wines there have a good balance between residual sugar content and alcohol. There are too many oversaturated regions to mention. One that keeps on popping up recently is Paso Robles. There are too many wineries and vineyards producing average product from that region for its reputation.

3) Who are your favorite food and wine writers?
Besides myself? Humility aside, John T. Edge is the Gold Standard for me. I study his work for ways to improve my own while everyone else wants to have Anthony Bourdain’s babies. I think Michael Nagrant is on the cusp of some wonderful things thanks to his work on the Alinea cookbook. This city has too many good food writers to mention.

4) What are your three favorite food cities?
If I’m traveling, New York for its street food (why can’t we have carts or taco trucks? Our city council are a bunch of idiots!); Singapore for its own melting pot of cultures and its amazing street food culture; New Orleans because the restaurants and food culture there wasn’t washed away when the levees broke, and food is such an integral part of that city’s history. Honorable mentions go to Nashville for its plethora of meat-and-threes and the phenomenon known as “hot chicken”; Memphis for its BBQ; and Charleston for low country boil.

5) Top three restaurants you revisit all the time in Chicago?
Recently the Publican has made that list. It’s that damn good. I’ve been back to graham elliot a few times. In my neighborhood of Bridgeport, I tend to visit Gio’s Café & Deli once a week for takeout, and you should, too.

6) What is your most memorable dining or drinking experience?
You usually don’t remember the drinking experiences. Dining, however… I was in Ujung Pandang (Makassar), Indonesia (this was during my Navy days) with a couple shipmates racing around the city in bicycle taxis and drinking bomber bottles of Bintang beer when we came upon the commanding officer of my duty station and the captain of the merchant marine vessel on which we were stationed. They were heading to dinner and extended the invitation to us — an invitation that was probably offered as much to prevent an international incident as much as it was genuine. We raced those bike taxis through the critical mass of traffic to a dilapidated grocery store. Seriously, this place looked like the “after” photo from a bombing. “You can’t tell anyone else about this place,” the merchant captain told us. “I don’t want anyone else knowing about this.”

We entered the store and walked up a flight of stairs, where we were buzzed in to one of the most beautiful dining rooms I’ve ever had the pleasure of patronizing. The menu was a traditional Indonesian rijstafel, with some steakhouse fare thrown in for the non-ambitious diners in the party, musicians played local folk music and the wine flowed. That dinner must’ve lasted at least five hours, and we were the only ones in the room. Looking back, I think that was my first underground dinner

7) Between wine, beer, and spirits – when do you reach for each? If you HAD to do without one, which would it be?
I always reach for beer, and can’t think of a dinner where I can’t pair my food with it. If I’m in a mellow mood, that’s when I reach for wine. I tend to use spirits as an aperitif; bourbon preferred. Spirits are the one I could easily live without.

8) What is the best thing about your job?
You call this a job? This is an expensive hobby.

9) If you had to describe yourself as a certain wine, what would it be? (i.e. Australian Shiraz – spicy, bold, and seductive. German Riesling – sometimes sweet (but hard to predict if it will be), elegant, and requiring of patience.)
I’d be a Savatianó: forgiving and productive; resistant to disease; impressive–though not particularly refreshing.

10) You’re on death row (sorry). What’s your final meal?
I think the tour at Alinea (with wine pairings) would definitely buy me a few hours. If the warden said no, then I’d make things messy on the way out by binging on tacos al pastor from Tacos Erendira and 2 liters of Aranja Jarritos. Or I could just try to kill myself with the new burger offered at Goose Island Clybourn, made from Tallgrass beef and topped with duck “ham,” pork rilletes and a fried egg.

RACHEL DRIVER
General Manager LUSH Wine and Spirits

BIO:

Leading lady of LUSH Wine and Spirits, Rachel is thoroughly dedicated to being the ultimate wine geek. An integral component of the company since the inception, Rachel has made LUSH the fun, nerdy, enterprising place it is today. With a special place in her heart for dusty Italian reds, lush and stony Savennieres, and funky American microbrews, Rachel keeps the shelves of LUSH stocked with the best and brightest. Also a cultural anthropologist by training, a Ultimate Frisbee fanatic athlete, and eco-warrior, she is on a mission to research and taste all things fermented and share the love and knowledge with fellow wine lovers. As the GM of LUSH, Rachel is incessantly drinking wine, talking about drinking, encouraging others to drink, teaching about drinking, writing about drinking and eating adventures, drinking, tasting, researching, and talking about drinking. Beer and mixology are captivating subjects that Rachel likes to experiment with, but her true love is super weird, eclectic, traditional and yet innovative wines. Stop in to say ‘hi’ to her at LUSH on Roscoe, keep a look out for her spunky pup, Tucker, and anticipate a late summer debut at the newest, up and coming LUSH on Chicago Avenue.

This is gonna be long discussion, so sit down, grab a glass, and get comfy.

INTERVIEW:

Thanks for agreeing to be a part of the Lush Wine & Spirits blog. Please answer the following questions in whatever way you see fit. We want your voice, personality, and opinions to come through!

1) What is the best thing you’ve drank in the last week? What about in the last year?

Honestly, I did not drink enough this week. I plan to amend that tonight. In the meantime, I shared a bottle of 2006 COPAIN ‘James Berry Vineyard’ Roussanne with the ladies of Lush yesterday. Although it is fairly young, this wine has a lovely creamy, deeply perfumed, stone fruit thing going on, with a little bit of honeycomb and ginger…no, cinnamon! The racy acidity kept it from being too weighted, and the finish was super looonnngggg. Wild, intelligent winemakers in Paso Robles, like Wells Guthrie and Justin Smith, make such easy to drink, textured, interesting wines.

I should have tackled this interview before January, but now that I only have 2 months of 2009 drinking under my belt thus far, I’ll have to work with a more limited pool of wine. Hmm, I will go with a straight up tie. The 2001 Castellari Bergaglio ‘Pilin’ Gavi di Gavi…a crazy white wine with a bit of age and a portion of grapes blended in that were dried on straw mats for 40 days, as well as at least 2 years in oak and another 2 in bottle prior to release. The wine is deeply golden and smells of funky earth, white plum blossoms, almond, quince, with additional aromas of honeyed pear and lavender. On the palate, this wine is full, deep, complex, with apricot, lemon zest and quince, almond and honey, but also highly acidic and well balanced. Pilin is splendid, elegant, and amazing with food. I loved just smelling it and then taking little sips over and over again. Sensually textured and silky, delightfully complex, and utterly weird. Love it.

I also am madly in love with the 2006 Tenuta di Trinoro Franchetti Petite Verdot/Cesanese from the banks of Mount Etna. By no means should we have opened the bottle this soon, but, damn. Thank you so very much, Steven Alexander at Spiaggia, for lending a few bottles this way! Mr. Franchetti is a very imaginative and a brilliant winemaker, but he has only crafted 260 cases of this wine, and only a fraction of that made it to the United States! Franchetti was the first to bring the Bordeaux varietal Petite Verdot and the Latium varietal Cesanese d’Affile to the Guardiola vineyard of Mt. Etna, and has combined these two grapes for this eponymous wine. He only uses French oak and indigenous yeasts. Jancis Robinson tasted the 2006 Franchetti at the Contrade dell’Etna wine fair and described it as ‘extremely ripe and peppery and savoury and exciting.’ I found it to be incredibly intellectual…I had to let it just sit there in the large Burgundy goblet glass and stare at me for a while…kinda surly, this one. It smelled of dark earth and freshly cracked pepper. I didn’t dare taste if for a while, I just left it there all dark and brooding. Once I did muster the courage to approach the wine, it was remarkable lithe, smelling of red dust and smoky cinders, black raspberry and a touch of spicy oak. The wine tasted like purple velvet. Really. But, in wine terms, that means flavors of blackberry and wild mountain blueberries, chewy old leather, spice and dusty dirty earth. The most exciting component of this wine is the intriguing way it changes and shifts and is totally different each and every sip. Wow.

2) What do you think is the most underrated/overrated grape varietal or region?

Overrated: Don’t hate on me, please…but Pinot Noir. The best can be ethereal and amazing and wonderful. But the drama, the price hikes, and the mentality that everyone should make PN is ridiculous. Cabernet Sauvignon is a close second.

Underrated: Chenin Blanc. I consistently run into the bias against Chenin as heavy and sweet and uninteresting. But, this grape can be quite lovely and enchanting…dry, spiced, zippy. Full of perfumed intensity and poise, the Chenin of the Loire is a purest expression of the grape at its best…Joly, Baumard, and Huet craft the finest. Remarkably versatile, these wines actually lift up food partners and bring out deliciousness is every sip and bite!

3) Who are your favorite food and wine writers?

Locally, I love me some David Tamarkin of TimeOut…dude is hilarious, and Chuck Sudo from the Chicagoist is a rockin’ good time, as well. Jancis Robinson, of course. I am digging on Matt Kramer, our current ‘Lush Reads’ book club author. And, I am just setting in to reading more of Jay McInerney. Damn good writers. Lettie Teague is one tough broad, just the way I like ‘em. Hugh Johnson was rough to get into, but for an Englishman, he cracks my shit up. I like to read. Online, I am lurking on all sorts of food and beverage blogs, but in particular, I am always entertained by Mr. El Jefe of El Bloggo Torcido.

4) What are your three favorite food cities?

*Chicago. I really only started eating as an adult here.

*Siena, Italy.

*Barcelona, Spain.

5) Top three restaurants you revisit all the time in Chicago?

*Hot Doug’s. Granted, I’ve only been once but it rocked my world and I must go back…right now.

*Terragusto

*West Town Tavern

(Avec would be my fourth, and then Home Bistro…)

6) What is your most memorable dining or drinking experience?

Most unrepeatable drinking and dining experience is most definitely the comprehensive Sine Qua Non event on the Lush Halsted patio. The 2001 Straw Man was mind-blowing.

But, my most memorable eating and drinking happen at home in the kitchen, generally, and with my family and good friends. I like to play in the kitchen with baking and with ambitious cooking projects…and that lends to drinking lots of wine and experimenting with pairings, as well. Good times.

7) Between wine, beer, and spirits – when do you reach for each? If you HAD to do without one, which would it be?

My job is to drink whichever one I am handed. But, I am more suited to wine…I can drink more of it and in more variety at one time. I like small glasses of everything. You will often catch me working on 3 or more glasses at a time, taking small smells and sips. When my palate is exhausted, especially on Mondays after our tasting with industry folks, I generally grab a beer. I love maltiness…but I also like nuanced, complex, and edgy brews. In particular, the DogFish Head high abvs are easy to drink on a night when I just want one beer. I also very much appreciate Belgian beers…they do it right. As for spirits, I have discovered a love for rye whiskey. Pappy Van Winkle 13 year Rye Whiskey. And, with Ms. Jane as my tutor, I am delving into the more intricate, chemical aspects of mixology. We have outfitted our home with all sorts of cocktail ingredients and like to play. If I couldn’t drink one, I suppose that I would ditch spirits…and distill my wine.

8) What is the best thing about your job?

What, you don’t know by now?! Each day, my schedule is wildly different…this keeps me entertained and challenged. I am required, yes required, to taste up to 200 NEW wines, beers, and spirits each week. So, I get to keep on the up and up and on the edge of what is happening in wine and the ‘industry’ in Chicago. And, wine is such an intriguing subject…it is always changing and evolving. New technology, innovative tradition, better knowledge of farming, genetics, and chemical reactions, new and exciting producers…all sorts of crazy, eclectic, and fun people. But, I have to holler at the Einhorns for providing me with the opportunity to play and lead Lush to greater depths of deliciousness, and also shout out to my amazing staff of very talented little winos…they encourage me to come to work each day!

9) If you had to describe yourself as a certain wine, what would it be? (i.e. Australian Shiraz – spicy, bold, and seductive. German Riesling – sometimes sweet (but hard to predict if it will be), elegant, and requiring of patience.)

I suppose that Savennieres would be my personal choice…smells lovely, tastes of spice and honeyed pear, and ginger dusted almonds…a bit sassy and a touch sweet, but snappy and fresh on the finish. And, oh boy, do I age gracefully. Wink wink.

10)You’re on death row (sorry). What’s your final meal?

Well, this is an unfortunate situation. However, I would like to start with a rustic Italian bread and a fresh, green and spicy olive oil with sea salt and freshly cracked pink peppercorns. In my glass, Bergaglio ‘Pilin’ Gavi di Gavi 2001.

Next I would like a bowl of freshly steamed mussels with white wine, garlic, and butter. Champagne, please. In particular, Clos de Goisses 1991. In magnum, if possible. I am thirsty.

I would then like a trio of dishes from Schwa…the quail egg ravioli, the lamb brain, and oxtail fresh cut pasta. Certainly more components than that, and outrageously, sublimely delicious. I choose a bottle of the Didier Dagueneau ‘Silex’ 2005, or earlier. And, a glass of Dirler Pinot Noir Cepage Blanc. Yes, white Pinot Noir.

Braised escarole greens, brown butter and garlic, with cherry tomatoes and olive oil, and crispy pancetta. Melusine ‘Lyra’ Gruner Veltliner 2006.

Rack of lamb grilled with rosemary. Sean Thackery ‘Aquila’ Sangiovese 2002.

A grand assortment of cheeses and salty, fresh, green olives. Fichet Grand Cru Mersault 2005.

Denner Syrah 2004, alone. Silky and nummy.

Crème Brulee with Sauternes, Tokaji, and old Port.

I think that is enough…

INGREDIENTS

1 large carrot, coarsely chopped
2 or 3 stalks of celery, coarsely chopped, including leafy ends
2 small zucchini, coarsely chopped
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, sliced in half keeping the root end in tact and cleaned under running cold water
1 1/2 yellow onions, quartered (don’t bother to peel the skin off)
2 red bell peppers, quartered and seeded (I forgot to get them, so I used half a jar of roasted red peppers I happened to have)
1 head of garlic
2 or 3 shallots, halved (don’t bother to peel the skin off)
2 cup mushroom stems (caps reserved for another use) I used a mix of crimini and baby bella
leaves from 4 sprigs fresh marjoram
leaves from 4 springs fresh thyme
extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup or so dry white wine (for this I used Pabst Blue Ribbon)
12 cups water
1/2 cup crushed, canned tomatoes
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F.  Place the chopped carrot, celery, zucchini, leeks, yellow onions, red bell peppers, garlic, shallots, and mushroom stems on a rimmed baking sheet.  Scatter over the marjoram and thyme and then generously drizzle with olive oil.  Using your hands, toss to get everything coated.

Slide the baking sheet into the oven and roast for 45 minutes, turning the vegetables with a spatula every 15 minutes.  When the vegetables are finished roasting, transfer them to a deep pot.

Add in the 12 cups of water, the tomatoes, and bay leaf.  Cover and bring to a boil.  Meanwhile, place the baking sheet over two burners and heat over medium-high heat.  Pour in the white wine and using a whisk, deglaze the pan.

Pour the wine in with the vegetables and water.  Once the pot comes to a boil, remove the lid, reduce the heat, and simmer for 45 minutes.  Strain the stock using a colander set over a large bowl, pressing down on the vegetables to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.  If you like, you can strain again to make the stock very clear and remove the little bits and thyme, marjoram and any vegetable pulp, but it’s not necessary.  You can also fish out the garlic head and squeeze out the soft, sweet garlic inside and stir it into the broth for extra flavor.

Wow. I had predicted an abundance of bread for this week’s Soup and Bread. Little did I know the soup makers of Chicago would rise to meet the challenge.

We had not four, not five, but eight different soups this week. 

Let’s start at the beginning:

Daniel Shumski was the first to arrive, bearing long, thin loaves of chewy pain a la ancienne and a few fetching twists of crumbly pane Siciliano. Note helpful tasting notes. He’s sent along the recipes, and some much more attractive photos. Stand by for those.

Turtle meat being scarce around these parts, Chuck Sudo set chunks of sirloin, oxtail, and ground veal to simmer in a vegetable broth: the result? Mock turtle soup, aka “carnivore’s delight.” He’s also already shot me the specs, so that recipe should be up soon as well.

Fearless alderman Scott Waguespack  was too busy protesting the bullshit privatization of our parking meters to cook, and wisely outsourced his soup duties to his Iraqi neighbors Najim and Khawla Shuhayib. The ladies brought a pair of tasty traditional dishes: shorpa aadas, a vegetarian lentil soup, and marak bamra, meaty okra and chunks of lamb on the bone in a rich, spicy broth. Our correspondent Mike Sula was in the kitchen and took notes; he’s promised to send the recipes along shortly.

Next up was Hideout sound man Pierce Doerr with a delicate — and vegetarian — onion soup that was gone before it had a chance to pose for a portrait. But Pierce (overachiever that he is) also brought some delicious homemade bread. As you can see. Recipes for both should be forthcoming.

Wild card Joshua Westlund, a loyal Hideout patron who contacted me out of the blue, knocked it out of the park with his contribution: kale, chickpea, and merguez in a rich, smoky, complicated broth built on a base of slow-roasted chiles. Said one dude at the bar, “You could put hot dogs in this and it’d still be delicious.” This recipe is in hot demand, Joshua, so pony up.

Our neighbor Dan Blue has been promising since day one to make a seafood chowder and this week, to everyone’s great delight, he did just that. To make it even more of a neighborhood affair, the folks around the corner at Plitt Fish donated the crab, scallops, and pollock. That’s local eating, Goose Island-style.

Amy Lombardi still hasn’t sent me the recipe for her yummy split pea with ham, which she dished up way back in January. So when she called me Wednesday afternoon to say, “Hey — I’ve got some more ham to get rid of. Can I bring soup again?” I said, “Bring it on.” Now, we just have to wrestle the damn recipe out of her.

Last, but definitely not least, an emissary from Swim Cafe turned up around 6:30 with a steaming pot of ultracreamy potato-leek. Thanks, again, Swim. You guys are so the best.

Thanks to yet another snowstorm (why, oh why, does it always snow on Wednesday?) turnout was slow but steady. We raised $130 for the GCFD, but there was still a fair amount soup (not to mention bread) left over at the end of the evening. What to do? Lacking any Tupperware, I fretted over it a bit, and finally left the crocks going, with instructions to stash the leftovers in he walk-in, en crock, at the end of the night, to be dealt with on Thursday. 

This turned out to be a crafty plan on my part, as Thursday morning I got an email from Jessica, the late-night bartender. Subject header: “The jazz people ate all the soup!”

And finally, as if this Soup and Bread couldn’t have gotten any better, the day saw the return of an old friend. Welcome back, penguin. You have been missed.

So, I’ve been trying to get together with Whole Foods for more than a month to negotiate some end-of-the-day bread donations. I even know someone in the bakery. But for some reason it just didn’t come together — until this week when, after calling three times and getting trapped in the staticky hell of the Whole Foods phone system, whose hold music seems stuck in some endless Men at Work loop, I finally made contact.

Come by at 10, said the dude. We’ll hook you up.

Hooo boy. Did they ever.

I hauled two giant trash bags full of sourdough boules, pumpernickel rye, whole-grain-studded torpedos, flat disks of ciabatta, and SO MANY rolls around the corner to the Hideout last night, and — after giving a few away to random, hungry Devil in a Woodpilers and filling the car with loaves to freeze for weeks to come — stashed the rest upstairs in anticipation of what’s shaping up to be a breadfest this afternoon.

In addition to the bounty gleaned from WF we’ve got fresh bread promised from Fruit Slinger Daniel Shumski, and Pierce says he’s getting baking as well. Meanwhile, over on his blog, Chuck ponders  the possibility of cornbread.

So come by! The soup may run dry, but the bread basket could  well be bottomless.

When I’m not serving food, working another gig, cooking, watching crap reality tv, or wasting time playing video games, I’m usually found harassing people on various other blogs around the net. Its not something I’m proud of, but something I do anyway.

Anyway, when you’re a food editor for a Chicago blog, you better know what you’re talking about, and for the most part, this next blogger does. Chicagoist‘s Chuck Sudo has a personal blog I check up on from time to time, and out of respect I mostly leave it untouched. (Mostly because I’m such a jackass elsewhere)

Bridgeport Seasoning is a clearing house for a bunch of miscellany about the sadly neglected South Side that he collects living down where the streets have numbers attached to them. It also happens to be maffmatic’s neck of the woods too.

Chuck is less a food writer than he is a booze writer, but decent booze can make anything taste good. But the highest compliment I can give him is that his blog makes me want to move where I won’t get shit for my White Sox hat. What’s that? There’s no Cubs fans in Tokyo? Oh thank god…