Articles for February 23rd, 2012

Top Chef: Texas, Episode 16 Recap

posted by Carol Shih | February 23rd, 2012 4:48pm | filed under Alright already!, Delusional behavior, Top Chef: Texas | 5 Comments »

[Sorry this is late. I keep getting distracted because Paul Qui is posting creepy photos of fish here and here on Twitter. Yeeea, Paul, I "sea" you.]

It’s down to the three amigos: Pretty Paul, Stinky Sarah, and Lame Lindsay.

Good thing Bev’s gone because this trio has to cook Asian food inside Vancouver’s Chinatown for the Quickfire Challenge. “Asian food is not my forte,” says Sarah. Naw, really? All I’ve seen you do is make pasta and fish. You are lucky Bev isn’t here to whoop you with some of her braised short ribs.

Jump for more cans of whoop @$$.

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Honig Vineyard Shows Off Its Older Wines at Bailey’s Prime Plus Tasting in Dallas

posted by Andrew Chalk | February 23rd, 2012 2:45pm | filed under Andrew Chalk, Steak, Wine Pairing | 1 Comment »

Only 13 bottles left.

Honig Vineyard and Winery is a Napa winemaker that has always seemed to fly under my radar. No longer. I was invited to a meal and tasting of Honig wines at Bailey’s Prime Plus in Dallas this week with owner Michael Honig in attendance. The wines showed Honig wines to be as good as any on the Rutherford Bench. Interestingly, Bailey’s sommelier Jennifer Jaco did not serve the latest bottlings. Rather, she procured older vintages that are almost impossible to find at retail.

Most exclusive of the lots was the 2002 Honig Cabernet Sauvignon, ‘Bartolucci Vineyard,’ ‘Premiere Napa Valley 2004,’ Napa Valley. It is worth deciphering that label. This is a 2002 vintage Cabernet Sauvignon from the Bertolucci Vineyard in the St. Helena region of Napa Valley that was produced exclusively for the Napa Valley wine auction called ‘Premier Napa Valley’ held in 2004. Napa wine producers participate in two wine auctions each year that they call their own: the Napa Valley Wine Auction that my colleague Haley Hamilton reported on here. That auction is the better known of the two and is open to the public. The secret auction is trade only. An exclusive list of only 200 Napa wineries are permitted to auction there, and they sell wines made exclusively for the auction. This Honig wine consisted of only six cases. Five went up for auction and were bought by Centennial in Dallas. In 2011 Centennial sold its fine wine collection, and Jaco swooped to buy some coveted lots, including this one.

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Bits & Bites: Things to Do and Chew in Dallas

posted by Liz Johnstone | February 23rd, 2012 1:18pm | filed under Events |

I know, I know. It’s been ages. I’m sure you all missed me. Here’s a quick rundown of delicious opportunities to eat and drink in the upcoming week, beyond your normal sustenance schedule.

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What To Drink Now: Open That Bottle!!!!

posted by Hayley Hamilton | February 23rd, 2012 10:02am | filed under Silly Reasons to Celebrate, Wine & Spirits | 1 Comment »

Saturday marks the 12th year special bottles of wine across the country will be opened in honor of simply enjoying a great bottle.  Open That Bottle Night was founded in 2000 by Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher of The Wall Street Journal, who, at the time, wanted to encourage their readers to enjoy a great bottle of wine they had been holding on to simply for the purpose of enjoying it.  I also have to think the duo had probably run in to what I have dealt with a few times in the past: holding a bottle so long that the once silky, seductive, celebrated juice turned to a vinegar-like substance.
So, look in your cellar, your closet, under the bed (or wherever you hide that great bottle) and dust it off to enjoy it.  I have a nutty, yet vibrant, melon and stone fruit-filled  2006 Miner Wild Yeast Chardonnay and a 2004 Bressia Conjuro Malbec blend with luscious cherry and plum flavors married with earth and leather – both incredible wines.  What will you be drinking?  Let me know and raise your glass high in honor of your favorite bottle.

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Mexican Seafood in Grand Prairie at Agua Azul

posted by Allison Hatfield | February 23rd, 2012 9:19am | filed under Mistakes I made, seafood | 4 Comments »
papyot

Whole red snapper cooked in foil

I realized a little too late that the Uptown Theater I purchased tickets to was in Grand Prairie, not in the Uptown neighborhood of Dallas, where I live. Always up for an adventure, I decided to make the most of my mistake — eat someplace on Main Street, Grand Prairie before the show. Surely a Main Street anywhere has something worth eating, right?

I hit up the city’s website for a recommendation after discovering D’s own couldn’t help and chose Agua Azul. The restaurant’s website read “Mexican Seafood.” “I don’t know what ‘Mexican Seafood’ is,” I wrote my dining companion, “but I am willing to find out.”

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Dallas’ BBQ Snob, Daniel Vaughn, is Writing a Book for Anthony Bourdain’s New Ecco Line

posted by Carol Shih | February 23rd, 2012 8:16am | filed under Breaking News, Dancing, GO TEXAN, Meat | 6 Comments »

Our BBQ guy, Daniel Vaughn

Anthony Bourdain’s a smart man for selecting Daniel Vaughn, BBQ Snob and the genius behind “Full Custom Gospel BBQ”, to write one of the three titles for his new line of books published under Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

Our favorite BBQ correspondent (who did his first print story with us) will be writing Prophets of Smoked Meat, a full-color tour of the best Texas barbeque joints he’s visited since he first got hooked on the ‘cue. The book will feature recipes of smoked classics and sides, and shed some light on some of the people whose passion drive the Texas BBQ food scene.

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