December 2011
22 posts
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From Scotland, Fog and Smoke and Mystery →
Seems our palates are slightly more aligned with Florence, but this is a great read on Scotch.
The panel tasted 2o single malts from Islay, smoky whiskies that demand a sense of wonder.
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Little Dragon Podcast!!
Foremost, a disclaimer: You should listen to this audiocast if one of the following statements pertains to you:
1. You like Little Dragon
2. You’ve never heard of Little Dragon
3. You’ve heard of Little Dragon, but think you don’t like them
4. You like awesome music
5. We are friends
Awesomeness Personified. Click here to listen to the podcast
Wow this one took a long...
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November 2011
29 posts
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isawstephen: On Government Ineptitude and... →
isawstephen:
Just days removed from a national day of gluttony, it seems things got underway a few days earlier in DC. I am still simmering about Congresses new (non) revisions on nutritional standards for school lunches. I am not alone. There were quite a few articles written (one of the best is from…
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isawstephen: Ruminantions on Gastronomy and... →
More than any other I can ever remember, this Thanksgiving was a celebration of the year. And there was a lot to celebrate in my first year in California. Last Thanksgiving I was in Vallecito, California (population 447) on a farm with one of my closest childhood friends. I remember frying turkey outside of his house and feeling very much like it was the beginning of...
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Tragedy in Bhopal: Nopa Host Shares a Firsthand...
If you’re reading this, you’re probably aware that this is a blog for Nopa Restaurant. Nopa, as much as anything, is about people. We are surrounded by intelligent, colorful and generally fantastic people. Our website wasn’t the right place to show this, but we hoped that Tumblr would be a platform to connect readers/diners to these wonderful people. So we started a...
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2009 Vinja Barde Vitovska
When people say they love coming to Nopa to try unusual wines, I often reply that I love working here for the same reason. Vitovska is one of those wines. We added this one a few weeks back, but I felt it needed some Nopalize love.
It’s from Carso, which is the Southeasternmost point in the Northeasternmost point in Italy. Friuli has always been one of my favorite regions, and while this...
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Germain Robin Part 2: Everything By Hand
How many of us really know how whiskey is made? Or spirits in general, even? Although I had an idea going into our visit to Germain Robin, I had no idea what it meant to do every step by hand. Apologies in advance if some of this veers into the realm of “too technical” but I will try to explain as plainly as possible what makes Germain Robin (and Crispin’s Low Gap label) such an...
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Millennial Farmers
Last week, the NY Times posted article on the obstacles facing young farmers. They never quite define “young”, but we have many friends on either side of 30 who could’ve been subjects for this article, so I thought it was worthwhile to share some thoughts.
Starting a farm is a courageous endeavor for a young person. The average age of a farmer in the US is 57. With those...
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“People know what they do; frequently they know why they do what they do; but...”
– Michel Foucault
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Last Night, Joe Montana Came to Nopa
Could there be a better nickname than Joe Cool? Could there possibly be a more iconic figure in SF pop culture than Joe Montana? A resounding no on both accounts. Last night, we learned that Joe Cool still lives up to the nickname. Poor Steffan had to be the one to politely inform Mr. Montana that the Chef’s Counter was being held for reservations. Joe was…cool about it. Persistent...
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Germain Robin Part 1: This is Why We Do What We Do
I am sore. On consecutive nights, I’ve been so exhausted that I feel asleep in front of a computer with my contacts still in. Once while entering sales numbers, once while web-trolling/researching. I have outbreaks of legitimate concern about my fingers and wrists, which have grown cramped and weary from the years of carrying plates and drinks. My best attempts at dating have defaulted to...
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“Youth calls to age across the tired years: ‘What have you found,’ he cries,...”
– mr. thomas
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Chablis Follow Up & Introduction to New Feature
Last week we wrote about the wines of Pattes Loup with a great deal of excitement. If you hung in for that read, you learned that we were on the last days of our Languedoc love affair and marching towards Chablis. We’ve arrived.
I meant to follow up that tasting with an additional post about some of the other Chablis we’re housing, but Chez Panisse and other stuff happened. Just when...
