Valentine's and Such

Last Thursday Tor came into Ginsberg+Chan to present his premium Napa (Oakville) wines.  Gotta love when winemakers stop in mid-afternoon for a tasting.

Round.  They were all super supple, full, and luscious.  The wines had all been open since Tuesday which may account for some of the softening, but still they were quite velvety, a quality which Tor says he wants the wines to have as soon as they get bottled.

The 2013 Chard was ultra creamy and vibrant- filled with tropical fruit, orange blossoms, cedar and a slightly bitter finish.  Tor mentioned that this was his very mineral expression and I'm beginning to wonder if my idea of minerality differs from everyone else...  It was interesting to note that he lets the wine undergo MLF so that he doesn't have to filter it before bottling.  Interesting indeed. 

Then we tried 3 different 2012 Cabs; one a blend of vineyards in Yontville (crushed flowers- very pretty), and the other two from single vineyards.  The Tierra Rioja was my favorite for its rich sweet fruit (the To Kalon was more black stewed fruit).

Definitely Cali in style and I look forward to visiting in March to try some older vintages. 

 1990 Dom, 1976 Leroy Beaune 1er Cru, Penthouse dessert platter complete with poprock tofu, nitrogen frozen ice cream, and the best eggy custard thing I've ever had.  Thursday.

 Valentine's day at Casa Andy means 1974 Barolo, which was drinking absolutely on point with tons of mushroom and balsamic, and the most tender deliciously seasoned Chateaubriand ever.

And then the coup d'etate that erased any memory of anything other than over the top decadent 4 cheese mac and cheese.  Mac and cheese.  Mac. and. CHEESE.

 More cheese.  And weird marshmellowy desserts.

Sunday morning I went for my first run in weeks despite the grab-a-handful-out-of-the-sky pollution.  Like most things, it felt good at the time but now I'm paying for it with a face full of pimples and an unshakable hack.  Thank you, Hong Kong, or should I say China?

Post run met up with Kenny, who is in town on business, and the rest of the crew for quite possibly the best dim sum I've ever had.  Fu Lum (I think) in Sheung Wan is a secret (to me?) treasure.  

 As we rolled out of brunch we debated what to do next until we saw a sign that decided it for us- 'Free Drinks 1-3pm'.  This was the grand opening of a restaurant that Paul, Julia and I had lunch at well over a year ago.  Who's to argue?

 Followed by more drinks with Doug & Jake at Posto Pubblico where people fluttered in and out.  Except the three of us.

 And more drinks at Ho Lee Fook.

 This is my third time there in the past few months and man is it good.  Solid Asian inspired food including the umami laden shrimp toast above.

 Tuesday am I decided to try my hand at doing my laundry which I haven't done in months, Louise does it, and I'm now fully convinced that this is the way is should be.   My wine fridge is so large that it precludes me from carrying my laundry basket past it, so in bit of a sideways shuffle I made my way by, out the door, and onto the roof to do laundry.  Because really, where else?  Then followed it with a solid 8k run.  Thank you.

Came home and my door was locked.  The door has a key pad, so no keys necessary.  The handle of the door should never/has never been locked.   Somehow in my laundry shuffle I must have jimmy-ed that lock shut because I was locked out.  45% phone battery.  8:30 am.  In shorts and a tank.

About an hour later my new best friend, pictured above, showed up. We originally met last week while he was fixing the hot water heater.  I went 2 weeks without hot water.  So far this new apartment is working out great...really though it is. Photos coming soon.

This week I enjoyed his company much more as he took his hammer to the door handle and managed to bash it off in 10 minutes flat.  While he installed a new less faulty door handle I showered and tried to bribe him with Alison (pictured below)'s leftover beer.  Still no takers on the San Miguel.  If you know anyone that'll drink this crap, please send them by.

Chinese New Year begins on Thursday so I need to clear my home of crap, my head of hair, and spend more time in the northern reaches of my apartment.  And find stools for my roof.  3 tables 0 chairs...big week ahead.