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Viewers and judges were shocked at last night’s Masterchef when a contestant created a Soufflé with ice cream inside.
Discover recipes for red pozole, white pozole and green pozole…all flavorful versions of the traditional Mexican stew prepared with meat and hominy.
João Wengorovious tells Fine Dining Lovers how his book – We, Chefs – came to life: ‘Cuisine to me is a vehicle for universal messages’.
Take a look at the dishes from 13 newly starred restaurants in the Michelin Guide for New York 2019.In Malmö, Sweden, people are lining up to peep at bull testicles, get a whiff of Thailand’s notoriously stinky durian fruit and even try a bite of surströmming, the local fermented herring. No, it’s not an audition for Fear Factor: Chef’s Table; it’s part of a new (and straightforwardly named) pop-up exhibition, the Disgusting Food Museum.
Featuring 80 repulsive so-called foods and drinks from around the world—many of which can be smelled and some of which can be sampled by guests—the museum aims to make visitors question commonly held beliefs about what they think is “gross.” On display are real foods that are either eaten today or have historical significance somewhere in the world: casu marzu, maggot-infested cheese from Sardinia; cuy, roasted guinea pigs from Peru; hákarl, fermented shark from Iceland; and root beer, the sassafras soft drink from the U.S. that apparently is widely hated elsewhere!
There’s truly something to disgust everyone—enophiles will be particularly intrigued to find a Chinese delicacy mysteriously billed as “mouse wine” among the displays, while libations thrillseekers on the trail of the next winebeer shouldn’t miss kumis, a Central Asian horse-milk-… beer(?). Pair with a selection offered at the Altar of Stinky Cheese.
The idea for the project came from psychologist and the museum’s “chief disgustologist,” Samuel West, whose earlier curatorial efforts resulted in the internationally traveling Museum of Failure. West teamed up with Andreas Ahrens, a tech investor and economist, to make the latest collection a reality.
“The research was extensive and we involved Lund University,” Ahrens, who serves as the museum’s director, told Unfiltered. “Sourcing the unusual foods was and still is a huge challenge. You should see my credit card bill—I’ve ordered stuff from all over the world!”
But the museum isn’t just a freak show of food for fun’s sake: “Our current meat production is terribly environmentally unsustainable, and we urgently need to start considering alternatives. But many people are disgusted by the idea of eating insects and skeptical about lab-grown meat, and it all boils down to disgust,” West said. “If we can change our notions of what food is disgusting or not, it could potentially help us transition to more sustainable protein sources.”
The museum opened on Halloween and runs until Jan. 27, 2019, but may soon come to befoul a city near you, considering its success in Mälmo. “We have triple the expected number of visitors!” West said. “Two have vomited.”
Château de Beaucastel, elite estate of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and anchor of a Rhône mini-empire, is getting an $11.4 million cellar renovation and reimagination, a project that attracted bids from 400 architects around the world. Ultimately, the owners, the Perrin family, chose a design presented by Studio Mumbai with an emphasis on earth materials, a natural landscape and sustainability as the guiding ethos.
“I think whatever we do in architecture, we shouldn’t compromise the environment of our children and grandchildren,” said architect Louis-Antoine Grego of Studio Mumbai, in a recent presentation unveiling the design.
Described as more green than just tech-y, the design will rely on capturing the mistral—the fierce wind blowing two out of every three days in the Rhône—to provide natural air-cooling. “This is a system that’s been used in Iran for 500 years, probably much more, and it still functions in those old buildings,” said Grego. “Today it’s used all over the world. We will adapt it to the conditions in the Rhône at Beaucastel.”
And all the facility’s water needs will be met by a roof catchment and filtering system, with the water stored below the underground cellar. The building material for the above-ground structure—compacted clay—will come from the 49-foot-deep hole dug to make room for the new cellar, as will the sand mixture used for the underground construction.
Vintner Charles Perrin reflected on the admiration he and his family felt when they opened a bottle of Beaucastel made by previous generations. They hope to inspire the same respect farther down the line. “We’re building to impress our grandchildren.”
Humans have been storing wine in pottery since they learned how to make wine, and pottery, at least 8,000 years ago. Winemakers have lately brought back paleo-retro-trendy “natural” vinification in clay amphora and qvevri, and the latest region to run with the kilnware movement is none other than Champagne.
But the jars and ditches and funky bacterial effluvia stuff they dig on in the Caucasus don’t quite translate to Champenoise. Instead, Cuvée Sensorium presents the first-ever porcelain-packaged Champagne, a 70/30 Pinot Noir/Chardonnay non-vintage wine from grands and premiers crus vinified by the house Edouard Brun and bottled in vessels crafted by the historic German porzellanmanufaktur Reichenbach, an esteemed name (as you know) in Thuringian porcelain. But … why?
“The material porcelain brings optimal conditions for Champagne,” Joi Regestein, Sensorium CCO and partner, told Unfiltered via email. “Porcelain offers optimal cooling conditions. The Champagne stays longer [at] the optimal temperature.” The feldspar, quartz sand and kaolin used to make the porcelain, Regenstein noted, are “very environmentally friendly raw materials.” Each bottle must be cast in a mold from the raw clay stuff that becomes china, to a specific thickness, then dried, fired to 1740 F, hand-glazed, fired again to 2550 F, painted, and then fired a third time. It’s a lot of stress, all that getting fired, which makes the porcelain strong enough to contain Champagne.
For an even headier experience, Sensorium is releasing “Art Edition” 6-liter bottles to commemorate the 120th anniversary of the Brun house, each wearing a fanciful illustration of “Champagne Dreams” from the late American pop artist James Rizzi.
“James Rizzi was a very cheerful and positive artist,” explained Regenstein of the choice. More artists will adorn future bottles, but archaeologists of 4018 should have plenty to chew on when they turn up Rizzi’s anthropomorphic technicolor houses and grinning cartoon sun-moon-bird creatures.
We’re always pleased to hear when a local wine boy or girl makes good, so congratulations to Gavin Newsom. The owner of San Francisco wine shop PlumpJack became a Napa vintner in the mid-’90s with the purchase of an Oakville winery, and soon would become a restaurateur, hotelier, sustainability champion, 2006 Wine Spectator Distinguished Service Award winner, San Francisco mayor, lieutenant governor of his state, and as of Nov. 6, the governor-elect of California.
“If I’m correct, I think he’s the first governor-vintner-restaurateur to run one of the largest economies in the world!” Newsom’s business partner John Conover told Unfiltered; the general manager of PlumpJack and sister wineries Cade, Odette and the recently acquired Ladera property had attended Newsom’s celebratory fête on Tuesday, but by Thursday, we reached him up in the crosswinds on Howell Mountain on the final day of harvest for the season.
“It’s a great American story, a California wine story, in that a young man—he was in his mid-20s when he started the wine shop—went from being a small entrepreneur and wine shop owner to being the governor,” Conover said of his partner.
Newsom won the Distinguished Service Award in part for his early championship of progressive practices like using screwcaps on premium wine and, later, achieving the LEED Gold sustainability certifications for two wineries. He will be sworn in on Jan. 7, 2019.
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Watch the trailer for Chef Flynn: he opened his first restaurant at home when he was 16-years-old and his first in New York at just 19-years-old.Al Frediani was known for his love for his old vines, his meticulous farming and his sharp sense of humor. Born on his family’s Napa Valley farm, he spent his life working on the property. Frediani died Oct. 18, 2018, a month shy of his 97th birthday.
The 20-acre Frediani vineyard, tucked away in the northeast corner of the valley on a quiet road near Calistoga, is planted to prized Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignane, Valdiguié (a French variety locally dubbed “Napa Gamay”) and Petite Sirah, which Frediani called by its old winegrowers’ nickname, “Petty Sarah.” Producers including Relic, Conn Creek and Stags’ Leap Winery have purchased his grapes. The nearest neighbor is the famed Eisele Vineyard, which was purchased in July 2013 by the owners of Bordeaux first-growth Château Latour.
“Al was in love with his vines and loved spending time in the vineyard,” Relic winemaker Mike Hirby told Wine Spectator. “He farmed the old way, which meant dry-farming and organic farming of the simplest kind. He let the vines do the rest, which is what it is all about.”
Frediani’s father bought and planted the site after emigrating from Italy in the early 1900s. Frediani was born there Nov. 23, 1921, and was raised on the land, helping his father in the vineyards as a child and then returning to the property after serving in the Army during World War II. Since then, not much has changed in the way the land has been farmed, except that tractors have replaced horses, much to Frediani’s dismay.
Hirby says Frediani liked to talk about those horses. “He got his first tractor in 1953, and how he missed working the horses, although they kicked him and ran away often. He was a gentle spirit with a lot of heart and a great sense of humor, always happy.”
Frediani did not irrigate and he didn’t believe in spraying pesticides in his vineyard. If he saw a weed, he would simply pull it out with his bare hands. Even when his age slowed him down, he continued to do as much in the vineyard as possible, with help from his son Steve, who lives in his own house on the property.
Winemaker Jeff Cohn says he will remember Frediani as a “true character.” Cohn said, “The first time I met him was in the front of his home. He was skinning a jackrabbit to use [as bait] to attract the yellow jackets [away] from his house. It was a good-sized knife.”
“Grape sampling with Al was always interesting,” added Cohn. Frediani had an old Coke can with the top cut off. “He would take a bunch of berries, crush them up [in the can] and use an old refractometer to see the Brix. I have a feeling this refractometer had not been calibrated since John F. Kennedy was in office. It used to amuse me, how close his numbers were to what I would get at the lab.”
The vineyard’s old, gnarled vines were scattered among piles of wood, old cars, washboards and buckets of walnuts from a handful of trees Frediani planted years ago. “That was a mistake,” Frediani told Wine Spectator about the walnuts in an interview in 2014. “They don’t pay much.”
Frediani’s hard work and commitment to his vineyard was as legendary as his grapes. “I feel so lucky to have been able to work with him over the last decade,” said Hirby. “He taught me so much about what is important in vineyard work, wine, and in life.”
Frediani is survived by six children, 13 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.
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Check out the famous cheesecake and other desserts from Albert Adria’s sweets-only London restaurant Cakes & Bubbles that celebrated its opening this week.Overlooking Australia’s Willow Creek Vineyard in Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula wine region, Doot Doot Doot celebrates terroir through seasonal cuisine and a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence–winning wine program. The restaurant is housed in the Jackalope Hotel, a sleek, contemporary destination with dramatic art pieces including a glass-enclosed working cellar at the center of the lobby. Doot Doot Doot’s 250-selection wine list highlights Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, showcasing plenty of local examples from the property’s vineyard and beyond. When it comes to sourcing global selections, head sommelier Marcus Radny generally restricts himself to vineyards that are the same size or smaller than Willow Creek Vineyard, which is 27 acres, though he does make exceptions for rare labels. Like the wines, the five-course tasting menu for $80 celebrates the region, offering an array of local specialties. Chef Martin Webster changes the menu every two weeks, and the wine pairings—which cost an additional $146—change with it, creating a hyper-seasonal experience.
After its hotel and bar opened last month, NoMad Las Vegas will debut its restaurant Nov. 14. The NoMad Hotel, a collaboration between restaurateur Will Guidara, chef Daniel Humm’s Make It Nice Hospitality Group and the Sydell Group, has two other locations with Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence–winning restaurants in New York and Los Angeles. Make It Nice also includes Grand Award winner Eleven Madison Park.
“We’re trying to keep the DNA of what we did in New York and L.A. as a common thread, but also really embracing the fact that we’re in Las Vegas and people want to go a little bit bigger,” wine director Thomas Pastuszak told Wine Spectator.
The wine list will have a core focus on cool-climate, mineral-driven and high-acid wines from regions such as Champagne, Burgundy, Piedmont, the Finger Lakes and the Northern Rhône. Pastuszak will also showcase California wines, playing off the menu’s roasted meats with plenty of spicy, robust reds. The restaurant will open with about 700 wine selections, but NoMad Vegas’ storage space will allow for substantial growth, with the potential to exceed the 1,900 and 1,700 selections offered in New York and Los Angeles, respectively.
Overseen by chef de cuisine Mike Rellergert, the menu will highlight luxury ingredients like foie gras and truffles. Vegas exclusives include tuna and steak tartares made tableside, and a raw seafood platter to share. Pastuszak wants to cater to locals as well as visitors. “What we’re really passionate about, and we try to really do it in New York and in Los Angeles, is embrace the neighborhood,” he said. “And I think that Las Vegas is an amazing community of people who really want to eat and drink well.”
The bar, which opened with the 239-room hotel Oct. 12, offers a more casual dining experience, with a wine list of about 50 selections all under $200, and more than 20 wines by the glass.—J.H.
A second location of the Washington, D.C., Best of Award of Excellence winner Fiola opened its doors in Miami Nov. 1. It’s the first venture outside of the capital for restaurateur Fabio Trabocchi. “I guess it’s a challenge, but it’s a fun challenge,” wine director Casper Rice told Wine Spectator. “I think our product attracts people everywhere.”
The new restaurant will offer more seafood than the flagship D.C. location, but its 850-selection wine list will maintain Fiola’s focus on Italy, Bordeaux and California. “The cellar space in Miami is in my favor, with very big storage space for wine,” Rice said. “We have a great opportunity in Miami in that we have big shoes to fill, and we’ll slowly fill them in.”—B.G.
On Nov. 7, Miami entertainment mogul David Grutman and musician Pharrell Williams opened dual dining concepts in Miami’s Design District. Grutman’s Groot Hospitality Group includes Award of Excellence winner Komodo.
On the first floor of the new two-story space is Swan, a restaurant and bar with a garden and a D.J. booth. Upstairs, Bar Bevy has lounge-style seating with another D.J. booth and an outdoor terrace, and serves small bites and shareable plates. Chef Jean Imbert executes the menus for both concepts.
Wine director Collin Bleess told Wine Spectator that both Swan and Bar Bevy will have an abbreviated version of Komodo’s 360-label wine progam, similarly geared to Miami’s high-end clientele, with 120 selections. The list emphasizes American, French and Italian wines while also representing other major regions around the world such as Spain, South America, Australia and New Zealand. Expect several first-growth Bordeauxs and other premium wines. There are currently 15 by-the-glass options, and Bleess hopes to add eight to 10 more in the next month or two with the rollout of their Coravin program.—J.H.
The San Francisco outpost of Il Fornaio Cucina Italiana closed Oct. 28 after 30 years in business. A press release cited a challenging economy and the neighborhood’s “overall declining business occupancy” as reasons for the closure. The restaurant was known for chef Francesco Gazzana’s Italian cuisine and its 90-selection wine list with strengths in Italy and California. Il Fornaio still has 19 Restaurant Award–winning outposts across California, Colorado, Nevada and Washington.—J.H.
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