Articles for September 29th, 2010

TX/OU Weekend…A Few Things To Do

posted by Hayley Hamilton | September 29th, 2010 5:43pm | filed under beer, Contests, Festivals, Wine & Spirits |

The chill of fall is finally in the air, the State Fair has started with fried margaritas to please all, and Texas plays OU this weekend…there is a lot going on, especially if you are up for a lively libation.  Here are a few ideas:

On Friday, October 1st two TX and OU alums create a Red River Shootout of their own with the first annual Russian River Shootout.  University of Oklahoma alum, Chris Donatiello from C. Donatiello Winery, will be taking on University of Texas alum, Mark McWilliams from Arista Winery, for a battle of the senses. I visited Arista a few years ago and fell in love with their wine.  This is sure to be a solid battle from two great great Pinot Noir producers. The battle will take place at Grailey’s Fine Wine starting at 6pm.

If you are up for heading to Ft Worth after the game Saturday, Oct 2 is the 5th Annual Fall Beer Festival at the Flying Saucer Draught Emporium in Downtown.  From noon until 10pm over 30 beers will be poured in 8 tents in their Sundance Square parking lot featuring craft beer favorites like SKA Nefarious Ten Pin Porter from Durango, Colorado; Allagash Curieux from Portland, Maine; and Breckenridge Regal Imperial Pils from Breckenridge, CO.

If drinking beer at home watching the game is more your speed Central Market is having their beer blow out through October 5.  With 350 domestic and imported beers available you are sure to find one that appeals to you.  Thursday afternoon there will be a tasting with Boulevard Brewery from Kansas City at 4pm for a sampling of some of their beset including The Sixth Glass, their Belgian Style Ale…so good.

If you are in the mood for vino during the game there are some great options out there from South America, for great prices too!  I had lunch with Miquel Salarich last week, winemaker for Acordeón Torrontes and Malbec, as well as Finca [ñ] wine from Argentina’s Finca Ferrer.  Miquel was as charming as his wine was tasty.  I particulary enjoyed the Torrontes, a light, refreshing wine without too much bite.  Sometimes the floral aromas and the sharp acidic punch on the palate can overwhelm a Torrontes, this one was smooth and refreshing with lots of good citrus, but not so much that it overpowered, and a retail price of about $10 a bottle, available at Dallas Fine Wine and Spirits.

And, stop by Three Sheets late night Friday, Oct 1 for the second Australian football championship – the Aussie Superbowl of sorts.  The game was played last weekend to a draw, so they replay Friday night for the championship.

What I Ate at The Texas State Fair

posted by Allison Hatfield | September 29th, 2010 4:54pm | filed under Uncategorized | 8 Comments »

Here’s the most important thing you need to know about this year’s fair: the fried s’mores Pop Tart is in the Cuban booth, outside the entrance to the Cotton Bowl. That’s the only place that’s selling it. And even with map in hand, you wouldn’t think to look there. It took us nearly an hour of spinning in circles to find it. But, oh, when we did! Imagine: a s’mores flavored Pop Tart. Coated in Cereal. Maybe Count Chocula. Warm. Covered in whipped cream. Drizzled with chocolate syrup. I think they should sell this at restaurant brunches. I would order it. A lot. Forget what the judges said; this dessert is the clear 2010 fried foods winner.

And this ridiculous confection was the grand finale of a State Fair eating extravaganza last night that began with a corn dog and also included the fried Frito pie (meh), the fried beer (skip it), and the fried PB&J (still a crowd-pleaser). The only thing that could have made it any better would have been a dollop of ice cream on top of the Pop Tart. And don’t worry about me: My trip to the fair was preceded by a call from the doctor who said my cholesterol levels are “excellent.”

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Exploring World Cheese Culture at Scardello and Beyond

posted by Sarah Reiss | September 29th, 2010 1:30pm | filed under Cheese, Foodie People, Gifts, Groceries | 3 Comments »

The list of things I enjoy but have no understanding of could form an unbroken string of topics stretching from the sidewalk on St. Paul up to our 21st floor offices. Organized alphabetically, the list would start with alchemy and bootlegging and progress through cheese making, juggling, string theory, sexual astrology, and water births.

As a Sagittarius (thanks for asking) it’s in my nature to want to understand how stuff works, and yesterday seemed like as good a day as any to flex that compulsion and start my exploration into those bulwarks of bacteria: artisan cheeses.

I started my education at Scardello, the luscious Uptown microcosm where warm and welcoming in-house epicure Emily walked me through a primer intended to hold me over until I could attend their next Cheese 101 class on Oct. 21.

Let the record show that I’ve sung odes to fine cheeses from Bruges to The Black Sea, but my applied knowledge of cheese comes to a grinding halt somewhere around Camembert. So when Emily presented me with a 13-item tasting slate and sat down with me to explain not just the provenance of each cheese but the proper method for consuming each bite (press it to the roof of your mouth and exhale), I decided it would be a good idea to start taking notes.

Within one hour I tasted the following:

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Dallas Farmers Market Friends Throws a Hoedown

posted by Nancy Nichols | September 29th, 2010 12:31pm | filed under Celebrity Chefs, Celebrity Diners, Events, Farmers Markets | 1 Comment »

The annual Dallas Farmers Market Friends hoedown is one of the best foodie events of the year. This year, the 16th Annual Hoedown, A Totally Texas Taste, will take place on Thursday, Nov. 4 at Fair Park’s Food & Fiber Pavilion. The evening highlights the best local chefs, artisans, and entertainment and benefits the Dallas Farmers Market.

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Abel Gonzales, King of State Fair Fried Food, Judges Dr Pepper Cake Contest

posted by Nancy Nichols | September 29th, 2010 9:36am | filed under AgriBusiness, Celebrity Chefs, Contests, Diets are stupid, Health Food, Junk Food | 2 Comments »

Abel Gonzales fries.

Yesterday we dispatched intern Valeria Turturro to the State Fair to cover Dr Pepper’s 125th anniversary cake competition. She files this report:

Today I got my first taste of the State Fair of Texas. As someone who’s new to Dallas, I’m also new to Big Tex, endless fried food. and everything else that makes the Texas State Fair special. So what better way to break me in to the tradition than witnessing firsthand the frying of a cake.

In celebration of Dr Pepper’s 125th anniversary a cake competition was held at the fair earlier in the day.  Julie Ray won first place. Abel Gonzales, the deep-fry king known for giving us heart-stopping concoctions like fried butter, was one of the judges for the contest.

Around 2:15 there was a swarm of cameras around Abel’s fried-food booth. I thought to myself, all this for a cake?

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