Because the diverse parts of human nature need to be nourished in different ways.
You are currently browsing the Food and Wine category.
Joseph Phelps Vineyards
St. Helena, Napa Valley
2007 Sauvignon Blanc
Price: about $32
This lovely Sauvignon Blanc has enticing floral and fruit aromas that lead to appealing lime, melon, and citrus flavors complicated by hints of vanilla and spice. a rich texture, and a lingering, creamy finish. While this luscious wine would certainly amplify the pleasures of any meal featuring salmon, it possesses more than enough of the inherently crisp, palate-cleansing character traditionally found in Sauvignon Blanc to go equally well with seasoned poultry dishes.
Joseph Phelps Vineyards
Napa Valley
2005 Insignia
Price: about $200
A masterful blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Petite Verdot from estate-owned vineyards in five agricultural districts, Joseph Phelps Vineyards 2005 Insignia has immensely attractive aromas of cherry, spice, anise, and vanilla-oak that lead to layered complexities of flavor, including black cherry, plum, and currant that are accompanied by perfectly integrated notes of spice and oak. All of these well-balanced riches are supported by firm tannins and close in an extended finish. For a wine with such an impressive structure, Joseph Phelps 2005 Insignia is surprisingly accessible, though it would certainly benefit from a decade or more of cellaring.
I know that writing about wine and cheese combinations is much-overdone, but I have discovered one such pairing that I think worth sharing, especially since people will be entertaining friends and family thoughout the holiday season and might want to serve them something that is both delectable and deeply satisfying. I recommend offering guests Cabot Extra Sharp Cheddar, 
since this impeccably crafted Vermont cheese has a creamy texture to balance its robust flavors. I suggest matching it with Zinfandel, not only because I am an unabashed Zinfandel partisan, but also because this rich red wine would perfectly complement the deliciously assertive character of the cheese. I recommend choosing a Zinfandel from Ravenswood Winery, which produces a remarkable number of wonderful Zinfandels. My own admittedly sentimental choice is Ravenswood Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel, 
currently available in the 2006 vintage, partly because Lodi puckishly bills itself as “the other appellation” in deference to Napa and Sonoma, and partly because this bottling, with its generous and eloquent dark berry, plum, and spice flavors, has long been one of my personal favorites. Offer your guests Cabot Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese with a glass of Ravenswood 2006 Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel, accompanied by some walnuts and apple slices, and they will soon be wishing you a heartfelt Happy New Year.
Bodegas Borsao
Campo de Borja, Spain
Borsao Crianza Seleccion 2006
Price: About $17
The wine revolution in Spain continues its quiet but steady progress, as evidenced in Borsao Crianza Seleccion 2006, which is made from Granache, Tempranillo, and Cabernet Sauvignon. The consequence of this non-traditional blend is a wine with seductive dark fruit aromas that lead to generous, well- balanced flavors of black cherry, currant, and plum complicated by notes of spice and vanilla-oak that are complemented by a firm texture and which lead to a lingering finish. This wine would go especially well with most Mediterranean cuisine, though it would also match up nicely with meals featuring beef or game.
Bordinos
310 West Dickson Street
Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701
479-527-6795
Dinner Hours: Monday – Thursday, 5 p.m-10 p.m.; Friday – Saturday, 5 p.m. – 12 a.m.
Lunch Hours: Tuesday – Friday, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
It seems almost presumptuous to recommend a long-established landmark restaurant, but sometimes familiarity makes people forget good things when they are close by, and besides, visitors to northwest Arkansas should know that there is a world-class restaurant in the region.
Thanks to the creative artistry of Chef Chrissy, a graduate of The Culinary Instute of America in Hyde Park, New York, the cuisine at Bordinos has evolved beyond its original Northern Italian focus. The menu changes seasonally, and Chrissy offers patrons new specials on most evenings, but the regular selections always include Salads, Meat and Fish Dishes, and Pastas and Risottos. There are many wonderful dishes available, and they all deserve commentary, but if I were asked to pick a personal favorite, it would be the Fettuccini, Wild Boar Sausage, Cremini Mushroooms, and Roasted Bell Peppers, about which I sometimes dream.
The dessert menu includes creme brule, tiramisu, and what must be the finest bread pudding on the planet.
Vonnie, the wine and bar manager, working closely with Chef Chrissy, has created a constantly-updated wine list designed to provide ideal pairings for the restaurant’s cuisine. The proof of the success of their collaboration lies in the great number of loyal patrons who visit Bordinos frequently, as well as the accolades and awards the restaurant has received, including the much-coveted Wine Spectator Award of Excellence for 2006, 2007, and 2008. Patrons will also make the happy discovery that the courteous, helpful wait staff at Bordinos is thoroughly conversant with the food and wine purveyed in the restaurant.
Finally, in addition to its outstanding staff, wonderful food, great wine, and immensely attractive decor, on most evenings patrons will have the opportunity to meet the guiding genius of the restaurant, founder, co-owner, and host Joe Fennel, who traditionally greets customers with his justly famous query, “How is it?” This salutation reflects both Joe’s extensive background in philosophical studies and his mastery of the Socratic method, and so if someone wants to experience an evening that offers both the promise of magnificent dining and the possibility of metaphysical dialogue, there is no better choice than Bordinos.
Petra Cafe
31 East Center Street
Fayetteville, Arkansas
479-443-3090
Hours: Monday – Saturday, 11 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Residents of northwest Arkansas who never have had the good fortune to travel in the Middle East can at least have a taste of the experience by visiting the Petra Cafe, located one block east of the Square in Fayetteville. The menu in this splendid little restaurant offers a variety of delectable, reasonably-priced fare, including baba ghanouge (baked eggplant with tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and spices), falafil (patties of ground garbanzo beans cooked with herbs and spices), and foule (fava beans cooked on a low fire with onions, tomatoes, herbs, and spices), as well as stuffed grape leaves, tabouleh, baklava, and Turkish coffee. Customers can also choose from an assortment of combination platters, sandwiches, and salads, and there is a lunch special and soup of the day Monday through Friday. Owner/host Saleh Faur makes everyone feel welcome in his restaurant, and his genial presence, the delightful food, and the pleasant atmosphere in the Petra Cafe together convey a sense of the warmth and hospitality that have traditionally been at the heart of Middle Eastern cultures.
Layer Cake Wines
Puglia – Italy
2006 Primitivo
Price: About $15
“Primitivo” is another name for Zinfandel, and this robust Italian wine, with its abundant dark fruit flavors complicated by nuances of spice and long, flavorful finish, will almost certainly please fans of California Zinfandels. I recommend serving Layer Cake 2006 Primitivo with hearty pastas and grilled meats, though it certainly has character enough to be paired with barbecue.
Coffee Sanctuary
900 28th Street, Suite 1
Boulder, Colorado
303-545-0035
Hours: Monday – Saturday, 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.;
Sunday, 6 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Boulder, Colorado probably has as many coffeehouses per square mile (or square block) as Seattle, and many of them are excellent. However, the Coffee Sanctuary, located in the Lotus Building just one block off the University of Colorado campus near the junction of 28th Frontage Road and Aurora, is among the best that I have visited in Boulder, the wonderful city that is home to two of my unworthy sons but not, alas, to altogether worthy me. The restaurant offers a variety of coffees, teas, and food, including and especially the sorts of breakfast comestibles with which all right-thinking people yearn to start their day: scones, breads, muffins, etc. The owners are dedicated to serving only 100% environmentally and socially sustainable coffees, and the Lotus Building, with its attractive Japanese-style architecture, is a pleasant environment in which to sip and nibble, while viewing the nearby mountains.
Tibet Kitchen
2359 Arapahoe Road
Boulder, Colorado
330-440-0882
Hours: Monday – Saturday, 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Whenever I am in Boulder, Colorado, I invariably visit the Tibet Kitchen, a small restaurant with immense charm and good, reasonably-priced food. The lunch menu includes a wonderful buffet, from which customers can select several entrees, and the dinner menu features a variety of Tibetan noodle, meat, and vegetable dishes. I especially recommend the irresistible momo (dumplings), and I suggest foregoing rice as a side dish and choosing instead ting-mo (steamed bread). The friendly staff exhibits the characteristic cheer, puckish humor, and boundless good nature of the Tibetan people, and the food they serve in the Tibet Kitchen has the same hearty, straightforward appeal as traditional Tibet fare.
Verge Wine Cellars
Dry Creek Valley
2006 Syrah
Price: about $40
This Syrah is a stunning first effort from Verge Wine Cellars. It has lush dark berry and plum flavors with hints of spice and cocoa lingering in the background that lead to a long, polished finish. With its firm tannins and assertive character, this wine should probably be decanted for at least one hour before serving, since it will then open up and blossom beautifully. While it is certainly complex enough to accompany fine cuisine, this wine can also complement less lofty fare. For example, I cannot imagine a more pleasant way to transcend the trials of a chilling winter day than with a glass of Verge Wine Cellars Syrah and a bowl of hearty stew served with some crusty home-made bread. Since allocations of this limited-production wine will be small in all markets, I urge wine lovers to obtain a bottle as soon as possible.
