$1 each

I appreciate you. The various Huet distribution-related threads were helpful. We will see.

My camera card was full, so I thought I'd attempt a vaguely wine-related diary.

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I have been deeply involved with El Barzn in the past 5 months. I love this restaurant. I bike to it. There are 80 menu items, and I keep getting stuck on the last one I eat. The plate bases are good, but the distinguishing feature is the sauces, fresh, time-consuming to prepare, and crowned with a mole containing more than 50 ingredients. The chef/owner let me write the wine list. The expense of stocking and serving these wines is largely supported by a premium margarita program which I was also allowed to write. In short, this place is my favorite job ever, so I have to take a break from it. There will be the LDM dinner on the 24th (spa-ha-ha-ham), and then I want my weekends back.

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The owner's son is an Iraq war veteran. I work with two Marines, and the experience has been extremely positive. They like to joke, but when the dining room is in chaos they keep remarkably cool.

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Women keep parking cats in my crib. I should be honored. This little fellow will be on his way away soon. And I will miss him.

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I see more immigrants from Oregon lately. One of my favorites is Brian Merkel.

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It's true. They are tearing us down. This was the Lafayette building. (You can see Lafayette Coney Island and American Coney Island in the lower left corner.)

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designers, pizzaiolos, and Supergay Detroit

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that night went on a little longer than it might should have ...

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my birthday. organic sicilian wine. it was decent. ...

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... but I really liked the sherry, "xepec" in Russian. This is from Massandra on the Crimean peninsula (I think) it was dry and assertive, polished, sunny and wry, with yellow pollen and sticky nutshell flavors, symmetrical, more interesting than and proper sherry I've had in recent years, not that I haven't tried to get in the way of some, we even hit some sherry bar in your New York town last October ...

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Zingerman's was in snow one day recently

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babies bought wine

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closed out wine is sometimes very amazingly delicious - I think we may get an inordinate amount of these bonanzas here in the legally backward states.

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same tunnel

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No Toledo this year. Or it is postponed. Or they were just trying to throw me off.

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T. R. Durham makes a smoked salmon that has a great deal of merit. I would hold it up against all the best I have tasted.

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Supposedly this is the "third basement" of the Book Cadillac hotel. I do not remember the details.

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One fellow brought this. I liked it.

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Otherwise I've been tweaking retail displays.

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The French make some of the best beer.

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Meatloaf. Goes with Rouge Gorge.

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Petit Verdot, Cab and Merlot (IIRC) it tasted Tuscan. How did they do that?

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And as always, there are many, many burgers to sell. Not buying them only drives the price lower. Is that what you want?
 

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What a nice surprise for a Monday morning. This fellow is always impressed with your ability to capture Detroit (and Ann Arbor). Thanks for awesome post Putnam.

PS Glad you liked the COS.

PPS Are you leaving Barzon?
 
Thiriez!

The Extra is probably my desert island beer. Perhaps that and Bam, and Orval.

Thiriez craving.

Thanks Putnam, these are beautiful.

Cheers,

Kevin
 
originally posted by Steven Spielmann:
I admit to curiosity about that "Spirit of Freedom" pamphlet.
It looks like it says, "The War in Ireland". Google says it's by London Attack International, 1971. That's probably the pamphlet reprint... $4 at several online shops I just searched.
 
originally posted by Putnam Weekley:

No Toledo this year. Or it is postponed. Or they were just trying to throw me off.

What??? Last I heard, it was a go. Thanks for the photoessay, Putnam. Great work!

Mark Lipton
 
Quite a bit of Bonny Doon, yes?

There's even more than that. I've been selling the 2006 San Benito Sangiovese by the glass. I find it very assertively scented. It's like a Rufina Niellucio or something, savory more than sweet, with chewy spontaneous tannins.

The Muscat goes with the pineapple pico de gallo, and the Syrah is amazing with the invertibrates. Pink with pipian is nice too, that pairing was featured in our recent Bonny Doon dinner. I don't know how to top that. I thought I'd play my last card, an LDM dinner, and see what happens.

I've been addicted to Foti's Vinudilice lately, and I can't even afford it.
 
originally posted by MLipton:
originally posted by Putnam Weekley:

No Toledo this year. Or it is postponed. Or they were just trying to throw me off.

What??? Last I heard, it was a go.

It was postponed. There were too few people who could make the trek this year.

Nice photos.
 
originally posted by Bwood:
originally posted by MLipton:
originally posted by Putnam Weekley:

No Toledo this year. Or it is postponed. Or they were just trying to throw me off.

What??? Last I heard, it was a go.

It was postponed. There were too few people who could make the trek this year.

I thought it was a victim of the Great Recession? Perhaps we could move it to someplace equally less acessible and down and out, like Wheeling WV or Erie PA?
 
originally posted by MarkS:

I thought it was a victim of the Great Recession? Perhaps we could move it to someplace equally less acessible and down and out, like Wheeling WV or Erie PA?

Gary, Indiana? Wait, too close to Chicago.

Flying to Detroit last year just as The Great Recession was really just getting into high gear was eye-opening. There appeared to be roughly two dozen people in the entire Detroit airport, and the interstates were empty.
 
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