Man's Best Friend

After a two-year break from writing this blog, it’s hard to pick a topic for a comeback post. Eventually, you just have to pick something and go with it.

Some my favorite posts have been about our dogs, so that seems like a safe bet.

The picture above is our latest dog, Abi. She came to live with us about a year and a half ago.

It’s been almost four years since we lost a truly epic dog. Peanut was an amazing girl, and my eyes still mist over every time I think about her. After she passed away, our whole family needed time to mourn. 

I understand why some people choose to fill the void left by the passing of a pet right away, but I just can't do it. I need the loss to fade before I can give a new animal the emotional investment they deserve.

It took a long time for me to wrap my head around adding a new dog to our household. The decision was eventually made by a simple fact – Hogan was lonely.

He had never been an only dog. After Peanut was gone, he had a couple dog buddies, and we tried taking him to the dog park. But Hogan isn’t a run-with-the-pack kind of guy. He likes to have a friend he really connects with.

One day a friend sent me a link to a rescue group's Facebook photo of a female Belgian Malinois that needed a home. I fell in love. And that is how Abi came to live with us.

It took a long period of adjustment, lots of guidance on feline diplomacy, a stolen sandwich, a chewed piece of wall and much patience from all parties involved, but Abi has become one of the family.

I don’t know how she ended up at the animal shelter where she was rescued the day before she was to be put down. She certainly bounced around quite a bit for the first year of her life.

It’s hard for a dog to get used to a new home with new rules. It was hard for Hogan to get used to living with a new dog, especially one whose idea of fun is a ferocious neck-grab takedown.

Right now I’m watching them sleeping side-by-side. Dogs – just like people – need time to form a relationship. Seeing the bond and love between them reminds me of something else common to dogs and people.

There’s nothing like having a best friend.   

Sunday

Once again, I've been seriously slack about keeping up with the blog. My days have been super busy, and blogging is something that's easy to leave undone.

Today has been a blur of multi-tasking: Lowe's, Home Depot, a last-minute search for hardwood charcoal, cooking, chores, etc. I neglected to think about the fact we might want some chilled white wine this afternoon, so I dropped a bottle of riesling in a ice bath for a quick chill.

When I pulled the bottle out, it had shed its label, but I like the way it looks now.


It looks very simple and refreshing, which it definitely is. It's a wonderful glass of wine for a busy afternoon: crisp flavors of apple and pear with just a hint of sweetness. Lovely.

We picked this bottle on a recent trip to the Asheville Wine Market. The price tag soaked off as well, but as I recall it was around $14 for a 1 liter bottle.


I've got a pork shoulder on the grill and there's slaw to be made and much more to be done, so I need to keep this short. Hope everyone is having a good Sunday.

I know I am.

Cheers.

Playing in the Dirt

Whew.

I spent the better part of the morning working on my garden. I planted nine tomato plants, seven basil plants, two eggplants, one squash plant, one zucchini plant and one mystery plant in the squash/zucchini family that was donated by a kind neighbor.

I've washed off the sweat and dirt, and this is going to be a short post because I need to fix lunch (and feed the cat before she starves to death which she is indicating is imminent). Some studies have shown that playing in the dirt can improve your mood. I'm inclined to believe it because I feel pretty good right now.

My garden is a humble endeavor, but hopefully a couple months from now we'll start reaping the rewards of my efforts. I'll no doubt add on some plants in the coming weeks as room allows. After that, I'll be providing tender loving care and anxiously awaiting our bounty.

Hope you're having a great Saturday wherever you are.

Dig Deep

One of the curiosities about winemaking is that the best grapes do not grow where you might expect. Although grapevines may thrive in fertile soil and perfect weather, the best wine grapes come from less than ideal locations.

Grapes grown in rocky soil with imperfect weather conditions develop more depth and character than their coddled counterparts. You can make wine from those grapes grown in ease, but it won’t be as good as the wine from vines that had to really work to produce grapes.

It’s easy to see the correlation with other aspects of life. Adversity and stress build character. Too much adversity isn’t a good thing, but a life of leisure rarely creates depth and character.

It’s important to keep challenging oneself throughout life, both mentally and physically. We all need to step outside our comfort zone occasionally.

I was reminded of this when E and I joined a gym after a much too long hiatus for both of us. Although I don’t relish the 5 a.m. trips to the gym, it feels good to challenge my body. It’s a small thing, but it’s been a nice change of pace.

I get stuck in a routine all too easily. My weeks frequently look startlingly similar: the same schedule, the same rituals, the same meals, the same wines. The weeks turn to months and the months to years. I need something to shake up my life from time to time.

One reason grapes develop more character in poor soil because it causes their roots to dive deep into the earth in search of nourishment.

Here’s to diving deep in life.

Cheers.

The IOU Project

This is a totally random post. On second thought, most of my recent posts have been rather random.

I was just contacted by these folks, and I don't claim to know anything about what they're doing. However, it looks interesting, and the video itself is stunning from an artistic standpoint.

It's worth a watch.

Spring Fever

This is a difficult time to be a blogger living in South Carolina.

It isn’t easy to get behind the wheel of the laptop when it’s a gorgeous spring day. This is the time of year when my mind is on everything but blogging.

Another reason I’ve slacked off from blogging is the lack of inspiration I get from the wines I’ve been drinking. They’re good – but they're often good in a familiar, homogenous way.

I was reminded of this when I read this article about the demise of California cabernet sauvignon. I would suggest that the same phenomenon is changing wines around the world – and not necessarily for the better.

Maybe we’re just getting what we’re asking for. While the United States has surpassed France as the world’s largest consumer of wine, we’re enjoying it differently than in the past. Fewer people are drinking wine with food.

I’m prone to this myself. Even though I’m an obsessive geek who agonizes over wine and food pairings, I still enjoy a big, plush, round red wine that doesn’t need food to show its stuff.

It does make me sad to see so many wines go to a New World style driven by the desire to score big ratings. Perhaps naively, I’m hoping that with more people drinking wine some of those people will start demanding something different, which will translate into more interesting wines in the stores.

I doubt, however, it will happen anytime soon, which means I won't have to drag myself off the porch to write about it.

Food for Thought

Today I'll leave you with this link without any commentary.

Regardless of your perspective, it's a topic worth considering.

Me and Julian Assange

This post has nothing to do with Julian Assange. It’s about writing for the web.

I’ve been blogging for over four years now, and I’m still a little clueless about the way things work in the blogosphere. I write because I like to write, and I write about things I care about. The finished product is something I want to feel good about.

Some posts are inevitably better than others. However, I don’t write a bunch of junk just because I think it will get hits. I also don’t write provocative headlines to get hits.

When I started blogging, I naively thought that good writing and consistent posting would earn me some readers. Over the years, I’ve gained and lost quite a few readers, but I’ve never picked up a large following. Part of that is my fault for being deficient in the consistency department. I guess another reason for my low readership is not playing the game correctly.

For lots of bloggers, the key to success is to write posts with little or no substance and give them catchy titles, like “Your Mom Thinks You’re a Loser!”

Actually, I’d read that post, because I’m not sure which side of that fence my mom falls on. But she loves me, dammit!

If you’re blogging in an effort to earn money, clicks equal cash, I suppose you do what you have to do. I’m still clinging to the outdated idea that content quality matters.

I’ve got blogging on my mind, because of this article in The Times about blogging and how it’s changing. My regular readers know I'm also struggling with what the future holds for Brim.

Writing anything of any worth on a regular basis is hard work, and blogs are no different. I can relate to the feeling of pouring time and effort into something and having very few people pay attention. Recently I’ve gotten some very nice compliments on Brim, which really does mean the world to me.

I write because I have thoughts, ideas and opinions that need to see the light of day. I write because I want to share the things that bring me joy–and sorrow. I write because I am a writer, and that’s what we do.

Just the other day, I stumbled on this article from The Times Magazine about how Amazon is peddling narrative nonfiction. It gives me hope that maybe good writing isn’t dying a slow death. It also makes me think more seriously about getting a Kindle.

I especially like the last line of the story. It's something I often say.

Thanks for reading.

Ode to Cap'n Crunch

Among the many atrocities committed by my parents during my youth, perhaps none was so severe as the sugar deprivation. There was a strict two-cookie limit, as well as an outright ban on sugar-masquerading-as-breakfast-cereal.

Fortunately, I was eventually emancipated and went on to have a torrid love affair with junk food of all types, including serious liaisons with the Cap'n. When I heard the now-discredited rumor that the Cap'n was no more...I was numb.

Okay, I wasn't really. But I was stunned when E told me she never tasted those sweet little cubes of goodness. I can clearly recall exactly how Cap'n Crunch tastes, even if it's been over 15 years since I last had it.

I have to admit I still love junk food. I rarely indulge my cravings anymore, a nod to both healthy living and my ongoing battle of the bulge. I've learned the hard way that real food makes me feel and look much better.

You've probably noticed I'm a big fan of Mark Bittman. I'm glad the The Times has given him more room to write about food and the larger issues that go along with it, as he does so well in this post.

Over the last five years I've drastically changed the way I eat. Junk food has almost disappeared from my diet. Meat and poultry are becoming less of main characters and more of supporting actors. I also care much more about where they come from.

Vegetables, fruits, grains and legumes are becoming the foundation of my diet. I'm far from perfect, but the change is underway. I know my eating habits won't save the world, but it will make me feel better.

And if I ever decide to backslide, good old Cap'n Crunch will be waiting for me at the grocery store.

10 Years Gone

It’s now officially been a decade since I moved to Columbia. It occurred to me this past weekend, when I noticed the wisteria vine outside our home is on the cusp of blooming.

As I’ve written about previously, that spring in 2001 is when I realized I loved my new neighborhood with its tree-lined streets, sidewalks and explosions of azaleas, dogwoods and wisteria around every corner. The first couple months in Columbia were a pretty heady time for me. Of course, that was before I realized I had misjudged my employment prospects and before the events of September 11.

The reality is that the last ten years have been full of ups and downs. Regardless, I still can’t help feeling nostalgic for that spring now ten years past. It was a vastly different time in my life.

My divorce was official, and I had ended my first post-marriage relationship. I was exploring a new city, making new friends and loving it. It was truly a new beginning.

My two dogs, now both departed, were in the prime of their lives. My hair, now graying and receding, was thick and dark. My career path, now winding, appeared to be moving straight ahead and rising.

Ten years brought so many changes. E came into my life almost seven years ago. A new dog will be four years old in a couple months. I see another career change looming on the horizon.

One of my first discoveries was a wine store with a really good selection not far from my new home. It’s the same wine store that E and I frequently visit after our Saturday morning trip to the All-Local Farmers' Market and Rosewood Market.

It’s also the store where I stocked the shelves, answered thousands of wine questions and learned a bit more about wine. That job paid the bills and kept my wine collection stocked for several years. Working retail isn’t exactly a walk in the park, but I loved talking to people about wine.

If I’ve learned anything over the last ten years, it’s that I want to spend more of my life doing the things I love. That's my goal for the next ten years.

Winespeak

Don't miss this post from The Pour about using words to describe wine. If you write about or talk about wine, you inevitably end up describing it. It's easy to lapse into winespeak.

I've consciously backed away from the most egregious types of winespeak in my writing. Using descriptors like "wild violets and lychee fruit" doesn't really help anyone. Every now and again you might encounter a wine that is worthy of such talk, and there's nothing wrong with batting around the smells and tastes of a wine with your friends, but there's no need to get carried away.

Wine is fermented grape juice. Sometimes the best thing to do is eat, drink and enjoy.

Cheers.

Signs of Spring

While much of the country is still locked in winter's grip, the end is in sight here in the Carolinas. We still have more cold weather to come, but there's light at the end of the tunnel.

I was reminded of this while I was working in the yard today (in short sleeves). Among the long-neglected leaves were a couple of dandelions, just starting to show some yellow.


The days are getting longer, and we'll have many warm days to come. It's also time to start thinking ahead to spring planting.

One of my goals for this year is to ramp up my gardening skills. I come by my gardening impulses naturally, as both my parents have seriously green thumbs. Presently, my skills might not be apparent upon viewing our yard, but what some people might see see as "neglected" is actually "biodiverse."

The local bird population definitely appreciates it. My approach is to let nature do its thing with minimal interference. More on that later.

In the meantime, bring on spring.

Eat, Drink & Be Local

Every year around Valentine's Day, I like to share my rant about what a ridiculous "holiday" it is. On the other hand, it's a great time to indulge yourself, your friends or your sweetie. Just steer clear of the kissing teddy bears at your local drugstore.

Instead, support your local merchants. Slow Food Columbia has partnered with the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce to encourage everyone to patronize local businesses for their faux holiday celebrating and all year long.


In that spirit, we started out the day at the All-Local Farmers' Market where we picked up lots of local food to enjoy over the weekend: City Roots greens, Sea Eagle tuna steaks, Wil-Moore Farms steaks and Heather's bread. You won't catch me anywhere near a restaurant until the rush has passed.

E also surprised me a little early with some cool new art from The Half and Half.

"Euripedes"

"Lessons in Beer Drinking"

On a side note, the ALFM raised $3,000 for Wil-Moore Farms this morning. The goal is $15,000, so we're going to keep working until we get there. Donate online at stateplate.org.

Time to Rally

There are moments when I wish I had legions of readers. Okay, there are lots of moments.

I'm wishing for the legions at this moment because I want to do everything I can to get the word out about lending a hand to Robin and Keith Willoughby of Wil-Moore Farms. It's been less than a week since we heard the news that one of their barns had burned, and the local community has sprung into action.

There's a link to some more information about what happened at stateplate.org under News. There's also a link to make a donation via PayPal. This Saturday at the All-Local Farmers' Market, some of the vendors will be donating a portion of their sales to support Wil-Moore. They'll also be "passing the hat" and donating 50 percent of ALFM t-shirt sales.

Please do whatever you can to help out.

Small farms are a labor of love and a gift to the community. It involves long hours, hard work and occasional heartbreak. We're so fortunate to have Wil-Moore Farms and all the wonderful products they bring to our tables.

Hope to see you there.

Home Cooking

I like to cook. That doesn’t mean I like to cook every single night or that every meal I prepare brings me great joy.

No, there are nights when cooking infuriates me. There are meals that miss the mark – sometimes broadly and sometimes narrowly. There are times when I fall into a cooking rut and prepare the same five or six dishes over and over until I can’t stand the thought of any of them.

There are also times when cooking gives me immense satisfaction, and I walk away from the table feeling satisfied in body and soul. Last night was such a night.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not a particularly skilled cook. I’m in the vast middle ground talent-wise, and my repertoire is pretty limited. But, I enjoy the act of cooking, and E boosts my confidence with her (wisely considered) praise.

Something I take small pride in is the ability to improvise. When you hit the kitchen after a long day at work, it’s useful to be able to look at what’s in the fridge and forge the contents into something tasty.

I had soup on my mind, but my failure to locate a ham bone derailed my dreams of bean soup. This is where the improvisation starts.

A roadmap to soup:

Foundation

What better way to get started than bacon? I had two lonely strips of thick-cut bacon in need of a home. I diced them and dropped them into a medium soup pot over medium heat. When they were brown and crispy I removed the bits with a slotted spoon.

Quite a few soup recipes start with a foundation of sautéed vegetables to form a base of flavor. The French call it a mirepoix. Latinos or Italians might call it a soffritto. I call it whatever I have in the fridge: a couple stalks of celery, two small carrots, half a red onion, part of a red pepper and a couple cloves of garlic. I diced everything (the garlic very finely) and sautéed the mix in the bacon drippings.

Liquid

I would have loved to use chicken broth, but I had none. I’ve sworn off canned broth, so that leaves water. I warmed up four cups in the microwave. When the vegetables were softened and aromatic, I added the water along with a couple bay leaves.

Body

Now it was time to give my soup some body. I still had beans on my mind, so I added a can of white beans, drained and rinsed. I needed something to thicken things up, and I had some potatoes that were also in need of using. I peeled and diced the potatoes into half-inch pieces.

I simmered the soup for about 20 minutes, partly covered. While it was simmering, I gave some thought to the seasoning. Since I used water instead of broth, I was concerned it wouldn’t have the deep flavor I wanted (and I cursed not being about to find a ham bone again).

What I did have was some country ham trimmings from Four Oaks Farm. I pan fried and chopped the trimmings so I had about a quarter cup. Into the pot they went.

Once the potato was nice and soft, I removed the pot from the stove and gave the contents a thrashing with a potato masher. I wanted to thicken the soup while still leaving some small bits of potato. It needed a dash of salt and some ground pepper.

Finish

To add a little more depth of flavor, I added a handful (1/3 cup?) of grated parmesan cheese. The final touch was a dash of hot sauce.

Perfection in a bowl.

This is hardly a recipe. I may have left out a step or an ingredient, because as usual I wasn't taking notes.

The moral of the story is that you can follow some basic guidelines and create some really good food from whatever you have at hand.

Sad Sunday

I had a much different post planned for today, but some bad news has my mind on other things.

I frequently mention our Saturday visits to Columbia's All-Local Farmers' Market. One of our favorite vendors is Wil-Moore Farms, a local source for cheese, eggs, chicken, goat and much, much more.

This morning, a fire destroyed one of their barns along with around 1000 chickens. Thankfully, no one in their family was hurt, and the fire didn't spread. My heart goes out them, and our thoughts will be with them as they work to recover.

Hearing of their loss makes me even more thankful for them and the other local farmers, food artisans and craftspeople who keep us supplied with so many good things.

This morning I cooked up a pork shoulder from Caw Caw Creek Farm. You just can't compare the rich, earthy flavor of the meat to the stuff that comes from the grocery store.

I have no doubt that the local food scene will rally around Wil-Moore and do whatever we can to help them recover. It also strengthens my resolve to buy local food whenever I can.

Five Tips for Buying Wine

When I was new to buying wine, I clearly remember being overwhelmed and intimidated by wine stores. One boutique wine shop in particular stands out.

I ended up buying a bottle of French white wine and being terribly disappointed. In retrospect, the bottle was probably corked, and I should have taken it back. Lesson learned.

When I was selling wine, I saw people who were obviously struggling with the process. Here are my top five suggestions for buying wine:

1.) Location is everything.

Finding a wine seller with a knowledgeable and friendly staff will improve your wine buying experience in leaps and bounds. Even some grocery stores now have someone on staff to help shoppers. Ask for help.

Whoever helps you should ask lots of questions. If they don’t or if they come off as pompous jerks, you should look elsewhere. Shopping for wine should be fun.

It’s worth the effort to go out of your way if you have to. You’ll end up spending less in the long run and enjoying the wine a lot more.

2.) Take notes.

I’m terrible at this. Fortunately, while I can’t remember anyone’s birthday to save my life, I can easily recall wines I drank ten years ago. That’s selective memory in action.

Keeping a wine journal is the best way to remeber wines you want to buy again, wines you never want to see again and it gives you easy way to tell a waiter or wine salesperson what you've liked in the past.

3.) Fear not.

There is far more good wine than bad wine. Don’t be afraid to buy a bottle just because it looks interesting. The more wine you buy the better your instincts will get.

4.) Buy low.

Price does not equate with quality. If you’re still reading this, you’re probably someone who doesn’t buy lots of wine. More expensive wines frequently aren’t made for casual wine drinkers or novices.

Inexpensive wines are typically easy drinking and accessible. They don’t need to age or be decanted. It also stretches your wine budget.

One important exception to this rule – avoid cheap cabernet sauvignon, merlot and chardonnay from California. Although there are exceptions to this exception, California churns out a flood of mediocre, low-priced bottles of these three wines.

Look for Spanish garnacha or temperanillo (or blends of both), Argentine malbec and Italian sangiovese.

5.) Know your importer.

This is something that has served me well over the years. If I like a wine, I take note of who the importer is. Importers have a certain style and tend to have some consistency across their portfolio.

Even if the wines are from different grapes, wineries or even countries, quality is frequently the common denominator. Three importers that instantly come to my mind are Eric Solomon, Jorge Ordóñez and Columbia’s own Spanish Vines.

Friday Night Link

It's a cold, rainy night here in Columbia. It's a great night for baked spaghetti alla puttanesca (thanks to E for the leftovers), arugula salad and fresh bread.

If you need something to warm your heart, check out this story from the NY Times.

Happy Friday.

Weeknight Cooking

Cooking during the work week is challenging. At least it is for me anyway.

I usually have something in mind by the time I hit the house, but after I've chopped, diced, sautéed, boiled and cursed a few times -- I'm worn out. This explains why I rarely have blog posts about weeknight dinners.

Tonight I arrived home a little early and whipped up some crab cakes real quick. During the week, it's easier for me to make things I've made a hundred times before.

I'm writing this short post while I sip on a glass of wine. My are crab cakes resting in the fridge awaiting a hot skillet, and the last thing I have to do is make a dressing. I'm serving the cakes with a simple side of dressed arugula.

We're (possibly) going out later so something light seemed in order. Since it's a weeknight, some inexpensive wine was also in order.

Domain de la Hallopière Vin de Pays du Val de Loire 2009 ($7.99, Green's Beverage)

Chardonnay from the Loire Valley? I wouldn't have expected it either. Chardonnay is more commonly used as a blending grape in the Loire, but this wine is a real find.

It's juicy without being overripe, clean and fresh with notes of white peach and lemon. I'm guessing it was done in stainless steel, because there's not a hint of oak. Fine with me.

Now it's time for that dressing. I'm thinking about a little mayo, some mustard, fresh lemon juice and a spoonful of hoisin sauce. We'll see how that works out.

Cheers. It's almost Friday.

A Taste of Spring

Today is yet another reason why living in South Carlina is quite nice. It's the end of January, and the high today is going to be around 70 degrees.

Ah, I do love the South.

I spent the morning playing with Hogan and taking care of our neglected yard. We had a simple turkey salad for lunch and a glass of tasty white wine.


Laudun Chusclan Vignerons Reserve de Lubin Blanc Vin du Pays du Gard 2009 ($7.99, Green's Beverages)

It's unusual to find a wine like this that's 100 percent grenache blanc. Grenache blanc is commonly used as a blending grape, but it's shines on its own. Pale straw in color, it has delicate floral and melon notes.

I think I'll pour a second glass and head towards the porch.

Cheers, y'all.