Williamsburg Moonshine has a nice ring to it, we always thought there’s always been a bit of Appalachian DIYness about these here neck of the woods. Now two fellas see gold in that sweet, sweet water. No it won’t be Maker’s Mark, so sayeth Grub Street, but it won’t cost as much either. Under the banner of Kings County Distillery David Haskell and Kentucky native Colin Spoelman will be selling to Williamsburg, than the rest of the world, double-destilled whiskey, bourbon and apparently straight up moonshine. Their studio space is at 35 Meadow Street (off Grand/Morgan) in case you can’t wait for the Liquor Authority’s approval.
Getting a bit of buzz is the opening of Brooklyn Kitchen Labs, and it’s butcher counter aptly called Meat Hook. Perhaps its the DNA, the guys behind the counter are from Marlow & Daughters (Tom Mylan and Brent Young) and their angle is similar – locally sourced, house-aged cuts. Wait, there’s more, the place is an alter to meat and cooking, with an artisanal oil dispensary, cookbook library, classes, cookware and all manner of curious new customers.
We love Vietnamese food, but in all honesty, if the setting isn’t high end, it often looks like just another Chinese restaurant, with Pho being the only real point of difference. When we saw a new Vietnamese restaurant putting itself together first as a quick Ban Mi sandwich shop on Bedford and N. 7th in Williamsburg, we were heartened by the interior design – dark wood, a chandelier! Now the restaurant version, An Nhau, has opened and has surprised many with its well appointed garden (heat lamps, cabanas) and excellent service. PlateoftheDay.com approves, calling the bowl of pho “just the right thing for chilly winter”
No doubt you’ve noticed that the Banh Mi, the humble hoagie of the Asian world, has taken its turn in the culinary spotlight. Not far behind is one Michael ‘Bao’ Huynh, a chef of Vietnamese descent who hasn’t heard that there’s a recession in town. In the past year, he’s opened numerous restaurants with BET meets Saigon monikers, such as “Pho Sure”, which of course serves the famous Vietnamese noodle soup. He’s also leaked out that he’s negotiating a lease on North 5th and Kent on Williamsburg’s emerging Riviera, that will be something of a seafood karaoke restaurant along the East River.
Michael Bao Huynh with Martha Stewart
Never mind that the East River is not where I want to imagine my prawns to be coming from, Michael Bao, as he’s recently changed his name to, does have a way of acting on his instincts. In interviews, he’s likened himself to a gambler, doubling down on a hot hand and has confessed that the recession has been great for negotiating leases without key deposits. New Yorkers respect a hustler but is the food any good? Stay tuned as our mystery diners explore Michael Bao’s empire.
Greenpoint foodies begrudgingly head over to the nabe next door, Williamsburg, if they’re looking for a culinary experience. That’s not changing anytime soon, but the ‘Point is getting hipper by the day. Case in point, the new Manhattan Inn, by the people behind subversive rock scene Glasslands, on Kent Ave. The place is now open so check them out.
Glasslands Gallery proprietors Rolyn Hu and Brooke Baxter are happy to announce the grand opening of their new bar and restaurant, Manhattan Inn on Wednesday.
Formerly Johnny’s Cafe, this large dining house and full bar located in Greenpoint on Manhattan Avenue (between Bedford and Nassau, one block from McCarren Park); will be serving new American cuisine with tapas-like fare. Daily specials will coincide with seasonal produce sourced from local suppliers, including Rooftop Farms and Farm to Chef. Specialty dishes will include: Berkshire Pie (slow cooked Berkshire pork topped with creamed roots) and Pumpkin Butternut Squash stew.
Seating around 75, Manhattan Inn houses a grand piano with stellar acoustics for live musical acts. The bar will serve new and old fashioned cocktails, as well as a unique wine and beer list selected by James Endicott, formerly of Per Se and Allen & Delancey.
Chef Jesse Carpenter will be at the helm. His cuisine combines the accessibility of southern comfort food he enjoyed while living in Kentucky, the rustic flavors he experienced on the West Coast, and the varied, sophisticated dishes he mastered in New York City kitchens. The owners will be working closely with him, sharing recipes from both our respective backgrounds– Brooke’s British family and Rolyn’s traditional Chinese upbringing.
Manhattan Inn is proud to display the design of hOmE, a collaborative effort of Evan and Oliver Haslegrave who redesigned the most current incarnation of Glasslands Gallery. Manhattan Inn was built with a nod to the current detailed woodwork and playful whimsy of the Gallery — repurposed doorknobs as tap handles, school desks as dining tables.
Come January, Manhattan Inn will be open for breakfast and lunch, and will serve a full menu of espresso beverages.
Hours of operation: Monday – Thursday: 4pm – 2:30am. Dinner served 6pm – 12:30am Friday: 4pm – 4am. Dinner served 6pm – 2:30am Saturday: 11am – 4am. Brunch served 11am – 4pm; Dinner served 6pm – 2:30am Sunday: 11am – 4am. Brunch served 11am – 4pm; Dinner served 6pm – 12:30am
“Oh, come on. You guys have to be kidding me.” My terse comment was in response to the wrinkled noses and sideways glances that accompanied the offer, one recent balmy Sunday afternoon, “Now, who would like a glass of rosé?”
“I don’t like sweet wine,” said one friend. Another quipped, “Yeah, I mean, White Zinfandel? Who wants to drink red and white wine mixed together?” Oh man, I thought. These people are in trouble. They need help. Good thing for them, I’m a “pink” wine fanatic.
FIRST OFF, rosé wines are not all sweet. The vast majority produced today are bone dry, crisp and refreshing—the kind of wine you want to drink right out of the fridge on a hot summer day, accompanied by oysters or grilled salmon or a fresh green salad. It’s the kind of wine Mom would love (hint: Mother’s Day is coming!) – light bodied and dry, yet with juicy fruit flavors of red berries and even (sometimes) watermelon Jolly Ranchers. Rosé wine is hip, youthful and fun to drink (and yes, ladies and gents, it’s pink)—attributes that compliment our Boomer moms—and their moms, too.
SECONDLY, White Zinfandel is NOT a mixture of red and white wine. Zinfandel grapes are the third most popular varietal in the United States. White Zinfandel was originally produced using a centuries-old technique called the “saignée” method—when winemakers were pressing Zinfandel grapes to produce red wine, they would pour off a quantity of the juice and set it aside. The remaining juice sat with all of the Zinfandel skins, resulting in a stronger, more tannic red Zinfandel (think of it as a wine “reduction”). The juice that was poured off (remember, my friends, ALL grape juice is CLEAR, even juice from red grape varietals) only briefly touched the grape skins, picking up just a hint of color. Since this wine was not fermented with the grape skins, the resulting wine was light pink and low in tannins. Hence, White Zinfandel was born.
White Zinfandel suffers from a horrendous reputation for a very good reason—for decades, beginning in the mid-1970s, wineries like Sutter Home produced a sickly-sweet rosé that was actually a mistake. Their wine suffered from “stuck fermentation”, a problem that occurs when the yeast in a wine dies before eating up all of the residual sugar (leaving sugar in the wine). Instead of chucking it, the winery decided they liked the resulting taste (in the same way that Americans like ketchup, Coca-Cola and Hershey’s chocolate), labeled the wine White Zinfandel, and went on to promote and sell millions and millions of cases of the stuff. In short, White Zinfandel is the primary reason why none of my friends (or their cousins) will go anywhere near a “pink” wine today.
BUT did you know that people have been drinking amazing, fabulous, dry-not-sweet rosé wines for hundreds and hundreds of years? Germany isn’t just famous for Riesling—for more than 500 years, they have been producing rosé wines from Pinot Noir grapes (in Germany, Pinot Noir is called Spätburgunder). The same holds true for France, where pink wines made from the noble Cabernet France grape have been produced by Loire Valley winemakers for centuries. Today it is Provence that produces the most notable and popular rosé wines, primarily made from Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre and Carignan grapes. But Italy, Spain and even Portugal are getting in on the action—and with delicious results.
So come on, give “pink” wine a chance. Check out these excellent examples of rosé wine, and surprise yourself and your friends with a light, red wine, perfectly suited to the coming summer months.
P.S. (postscript): While it is forbidden in many wine-producing countries, pink wine CAN be produced by blending a red and white wine together. Our above-mentioned friends at Sutter Home currently export a wine called “Ménage à Trois”, which is a blend of Gewürztraminer, Merlot and Syrah. There is some debate currently circulating among EU winemakers as to whether this kind of wine should be allowed to be called rosé, as it is not produced using traditional winemaking methods. While the jury is still out, use your power as a consumer to help the lawmakers decide!
About this Author:
Jacqueline Lombard, aka “The Green Gourmet”, is an accomplished chef, sommelier and entrepreneur. She edits the Dining Section of The New York Herald. Her online home is jacquelinelombard.com
The wines are ranked in order from “must taste at least once” to “good, but expensive”. All are available for purchase or special order from New York’s venerable Sherry-Lehmann. Sean Thackrey Orion Old Vines Blend 2004, $109.95/750ml
Orion is the wine that Sean Thackrey is best known for, and it was the best of the wines tasted. Since 1992 Sean has been producing this wine from organically grown grapes cultivated by St. Helena’s Rossi Vineyard, which was planted in 1905. Orion is also his smallest batch wine, with only 300 cases per year. Bright, clear jewel-like purple color. On the nose, classic spicy Syrah, with notes of black pepper and floral aromas of beach roses. This food-friendly wine is bone dry, with smooth, well-integrated tannins and a medium finish.
Sean Thackrey Petite Sirah “Sirius” 2004, $79.95/750ml
Produced with grapes from Eaglepoint Ranch in Mendocino—“Basically, any black grape out of the field that we don’t have another name for”. This inky purple, almost black wine was the most interesting of the five tasted. On the nose, aromas of black fruits (black currants, black cherry, blackberries) and dried apricots. On the palate, this wine is bone dry with challenging, rough tannins, and surprising flavors of banana, Concord grape, blackberry and black cherry, with a medium. A whopping 15.3% ABV, this challenging wine was an eye-opener but quite pleasurable to taste.
Sean Thackrey Aquila Sangiovese 2002, $64.95/750ml
First released in 2000, Aquila is also produced from grapes grown at Eaglepoint Ranch in Mendocino. This wine was the trickiest of the lot—if I had tasted it blind I would have sworn it was a Tuscan Sangiovese. Dark ruby in color with signature orange tints. On the nose, woodsy aromas of cedar and pine, with fruity notes of cherry and plum. Dry and medium-bodied on the palate, with flavors of dried cherries and a sappy finish. Food friendly for sure, the Aquila would pair well with a nice, big plate of Bucatini all’Amatriciana, fire-roasted sausages and crispy, griddled pizza (if you’re one of those people who drinks a $65 bottle of wine with pizza, that is).
Sean Thackrey Pleiades Old Vines N.V. Lot XVII, $32.95/750ml
“It’s always an improvisation.” A blend of Sangiovese, Syrah, Viognier, Mourvedre, Rousanne, Barbera and Carignane (!!!), this wine has only been in the bottle for two weeks! Clear, bright garnet in color, with a watery rim. On the nose, spicy notes of cedar, cherry, red currant and dillweed. Bone dry on the palate, with distinctive, sandy tannins. Flavors of red cherry, red currant and baking spices, with a spicy finish. This is a surprisingly light, easy-drinking, food friendly wine, with a cheerful personality in the glass. I recommend that everybody buy at least 1 bottle for educational purposes—it’s worth it.
Sean Thackrey Andromeda Pinot Noir 2004, $83.95/750ml
This single vineyard wine from Devil’s Gulch Ranch in Marin County is made from organically farmed grapes. Medium ruby in color with a pink rim. On the nose, foggy notes of violets, black pepper, tobacco leaf and smoke—once the wine warmed up, it smelled like cherry Twizzlers (for real). A classic Pinot Noir on the palate, bone dry with fruity, floral flavors. Well balanced despite the high ABV, with a long finish. This wine ranks last not for it’s quality, but because it’s price point is prohibitive—you can get other very good Pinots for less money (although this wine is organic).
After years of reading (and drinking) the amusing and always informative wine lists created by Paul Grieco (the sommelier’s sommelier), I have come to learn that when Paul puts together a tasting, it behooves one to attend. Thus, when it was announced that cult winemaker Sean Thackrey would be making his first New York City appearance in a decade at Terroir Wine Bar, I had to be there.
It was not surprising when Paul introduced Sean Thackrey—charming, articulate and completely idiosyncratic—with the amusing caveat that Mr. Thackrey does not produce “cult wines”; instead, he is a “cult wine-maker”. I was however, shocked when Mr. Grieco, a passionate “terroirist” who believes deeply and passionately in terroir’s importance to the quality, understanding and enjoyment of wine, went on to explain that his guest, Mr. Thackrey, vehemently detests the notion of terroir. In fact, the controversial winemaker has been known to compare terroir to overpriced real estate and dog poo. Why invite a philosophical arch-nemesis into one’s temple to wine’s sense of place? Because opinions aside, the man makes really interesting, really unique wines.
Entirely self-taught, Sean Thackrey is perhaps the most well-read winemaker in the United States and perhaps the planet, when it comes to the history of winemaking. Fluent in ancient Greek and Latin (not to mention five other languages), the vast majority of the books Thackrey has devoured in the pursuit of historical traditions, ideas and inspiration were not written in English, or even in this century. Yet they are filled with fascinating advice on how to properly handle wine.
A centuries-old French sommelier’s guide for example, recommends that if you care anything at all about the quality of your wine, the last thing you will ever do is age it in French Oak—instead, German Oak is highly praised.
Passionate about the unrecognized value such tomes could offer to today’s modern winemaker, Thackrey tirelessly translates each text to himself, and hopes someday to offer English translations of these ancient texts on his website, The Thackery Library: An Archaeology of Pleasures.
“For me, using old texts gives you a background for how rich and complex winemaking is. I mean, people have been making wine since 10,000 B.C.—it would be nice to know how they did it.”
An art dealer by training, Sean fell in love with wine in the mid-70s, when he purchased his self-described “rural slum” in Bolenas, and decided to plant grapevines along his fence. He created his first wine in 1979 from Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes he purchased from Stags Leap Vineyards, and from there began purchasing grapes from growers in Napa Valley, Marin County and Mendocino. The highly experimental “Pleiades” was one of Thackrey’s first commercial bottlings. Made from up to seven different grape varieties (both white and red), the recipe changes every year, depending on the mood of the winemaker and the fruit from his growers. “It disobeys all of the rules of the wine world, and I love it,” says Thackrey. “It’s whatever I want to put in there.”
Thackrey names all of his wines after constellations. “I don’t know why I name them this way—I think a constellation looks like a cluster of grapes, but nobody in the U.S. has heard of these constellations, so I’m going to call my next wine “Big Dipper”, so that way people will understand.” Today, with production at 5,000 cases per year, Mr. Thackrey compares his role as a winemaker to that of a chef.
“I am a craftsman—I try to produce something that is really delicious…it’s just got to be something that I really want to drink. It’s like a chef in that way. If you like their style, then you’re going to like their food. If you like my style, then you’re going to like my wine. I try to buy the best produce, and I try to make wines that are pure pleasure”.
Mr. Thackrey is infamous for flouting traditional winemaking methods and for breaking many, if not most of the accepted rules for harvesting, fermentation and aging. He compares oenology courses to food science courses and asks how either result in a better winemaker or chef. “The absence of defects are not the presence of virtues,” he likes to say.
While Mr. Thackrey’s competitors in Mendocino & Napa Valley harvest their grapes before dawn, rushing them to the winery where they are immediately pressed to obtain the freshest juice possible, Mr. Thackerey takes a medieval approach, allowing his just-harvested grapes to rest anywhere from 24 hours to 3 days before pressing them. And that’s just the beginning of this cult winemaker’s topsy-turvy approach to creating wines that are big, high alcohol, roughly tannic, and full of intense flavors. The results may be sipped and savored in-person or through special order at New York’s venerable Sherry-Lehmann. According to Matt Wong, the General Manager, “That guy is way out there—but I like him, and his wines.”
A documentary about Sean’s work is currently in post-production and scheduled for release in late 2009 or 2010.
Rye, the new restaurant by Cal Elliot (well-regarded chef of Dumont, Dressler) is still in beta so to speak, perhaps that’s why Linnea Covington of New York Press is kindly suggesting that despite “unimpressive” entree options, and so-so risotto, the place has potential. Appetizer choices are excellent, the cocktail list is “fun”, and perhaps after finishing touches are put in place, it’ll be just as successful and hip as his other establishments. Understandably, a well-earned reputation goes a long way but in this economy, $24 striped bass in Williamsburg’s South Side better offer more than the chef’s pedigree. CASH ONLY.
photo: Eater.com
Address: MAP 275 S. 1st Street ((between Roebling St & Havemeyer St), Williamsburg, Brooklyn 11211
Chef Jacqueline Lombard hard at work in Greenpoint photo: PSE
Chef Jacqueline Lombard ( http://jacquelinelombard.com ) graduate of the French Culinary Institute, a former sous-chef of Mario Batali’s Otto restaurant, and a private chef to celebrities, shows you how to prepare a fabulous lamb dish for a few friends, for under $100, including wine!
Williamsburg Moonshine has a nice ring to it, we always thought there’s always been a bit of Appalachian DIYness about these here neck of the woods. Now two fellas see gold in that sweet, sweet water. No it won’t be Maker’s Mark, so sayeth Grub Street, but it won’t cost as much either. Under the banner of Kings County Distillery David Haskell and Kentucky native Colin Spoelman will be selling to Williamsburg, than the rest of the world, double-destilled whiskey, bourbon and apparently straight up moonshine. Their studio space is at 35 Meadow Street (off Grand/Morgan) in case you can’t wait for the Liquor Authority’s approval.
Rye, the new restaurant by Cal Elliot (well-regarded chef of Dumont, Dressler) is still in beta so to speak, perhaps that’s why 
