Drinks Are On Me

Though he cooked meals under seemingly impossible circumstances, Chef Robert Irvine has finally met a challenge he couldn’t meet: Telling the truth on his resume.

Irvine, the star of Food Network’s “Dinner: Impossible,” fabricated stories that he cooked at the White House as well as for the British Royal Family. Food Network immediately chose not to renew Irvine’s contract.

TVSquad.com reports that Chef Michael Symon, winner of “Next Iron Chef,” will become the host of the newly expanded one-hour “Dinner: Impossible” with new episodes airing in July.

Drinks are on me!

Sometimes I like to pretend.

Uber-wine blogger Tom Wark publishes a great interview series called Bloggerview. He’s already revealed the secrets of some the blogosphere’s most well known wine writers, including Eric Asimov, Alice Feiring, Lyle Fass, and more.

I’m not nearly as important as some of those folks, but sometimes I like to daydream and imagine what it would be like if he interviewed me. I like to think it might go something like this:

Who: Dale Cruse
Blog: Drinks Are On Me
Where: http://www.DrinksAreOnMe.net

Dale Cruse is a lucky guy. On an almost daily basis, he’s able to combine his three favorites passions: writing, the web, and wine. Combining his background as a journalist (he’s a former U.S. Army photojournalist and later had a stint as a news producer at CBSNews.com) and website creator (he currently heads up all internal websites for the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston) with his passion for wine results in his attractive weblog Drinks Are On Me. The site was nominated in the Best Wine Graphics category in the 2008 American Wine Blog Awards.

1. When did you begin blogging and why?
I started Drinks Are On Me in September 2007. I had gone through some major changes in both my personal and professional lives and wanted an outlet to share my passion.

2. In two sentences describe the focus of your wine blog.
I’ll do it in one: I only write about food and drinks that I like.

3. What sets your wine blog apart from the pack?
See #2. My blog is not a traditional wine review site. Instead, I only write about things I like. If I don’t like it, I won’t write about it. I like to think that my genuine enthusiasm comes through in every post.

4. How would you characterize the growth in your readership since beginning your blog?
Slow and steady wins the race.

5. Do you accept samples for review?
I would, but no one has offered yet! If you’d like to, email me at dale.cruse@gmail.com.

6. What kind of wine rating/review system do you use and why?
My system is super simple: If it’s on my site, I like it. There’s no 100 point scale, no five star scale, no scale at all. It’s all or nothing - on or off.

7. How do you fit the maintenance of your wine blog into your daily schedule?
That’s not a problem for me. Unlike many other wine bloggers, I am a full time website creator. Tweaking my site is a daily pleasure for me. My XHTML 1.1 code validates too!

8. Have you utilized any particular techniques to successfully market your blog?
I always make sure to include my blog link everywhere I go online. The site is linked to from various social network sites as well. Also, in addition to writing blog posts, always remember to comment on other blogs as well. That can be a tremendous source of traffic for your own site, especially if you leave a compelling comment on a well known site.

One technique I’ve used since my journalism days is a good editorial calendar. Plan what you’re going to write about in advance. Put a few posts in your publishing queue in advance. Those tips will help you publish on a regular basis.

Remember to be yourself. This is the one that took me the longest to realize. But once I decided to be myself, write only about what I like, and always do it with an enthusiastic tone, my readership jumped.

9. In your view how, if at all, is blogging different than traditional wine writing for print?
We need to stop thinking of the online world as somehow different or separate from “real life.” You buy things online and can meet people online. Just about anything you do online you can do “IRL.” The lines have blurred so much to have become irrelevant.

10. Which other wine blogs do you read regularly?
There’s a huge list on the right side of every one of my blog posts. I’m proud to support all those great publishers!

11. Do you believe wine blogs have made any marked impact on the wine industry or wine culture?
We’ve barely scratched the surface. Companies dedicated to marketing and public relations for the wine world have barely begun contacting wine bloggers for reviews and endorsements. This is an area I see continuing to grow.

12. Vacation: Paris or the Caribbean?
Paris. Unfortunately I would burn in the Caribbean sun.

13. Pet: Dog or Cat?
Cat. But I wouldn’t say no to the right dog.

14. Airplane Reading: New Yorker or People?
New Yorker. You can’t pay me to read People under any circumstance. I’d rather read the back of my cereal box.

15. Car: Prius or BMW?
I have been a proud Toyota Prius owner since 2002, the second model year they were available. I love my car and am happy to show it off to anyone who’s willing to listen.

16. Chablis or California Chardonnay?
Some subscribe to the “ABC” method - “anything but Chardonnay.” I don’t believe in any system that completely eliminates any type of wine. Though I might choose Chablis firs, there’s a time and place for Chardonnay.

17. Describe what you would have at your last meal?
I don’t even want to think about it. But life is a short and precious thing and any meal could be my last, so I try and enjoy every one to the fullest.

18. What is Heaven Like?
Forget waiting to find out. Instead, truly live every moment here on Earth and create your own personal Heaven now.

19. If you could invite 4 people dead or alive to your fantasy dinner party, who would they be and who would you have bring the wine?
Here’s my strategy: I’d like Chef Thomas Keller to cook. Then I would invite Robert Parker, Jancis Robinson, Karen MacNeil, and Gary Vaynerchuk and make each of them bring the wine!

20. What advice would you give to someone considering starting a wine blog?
A few things:

1. What are you waiting for? Let’s go.
2. Post regularly. Create and use an editorial calendar to keep you on track.
3. Remember to read and comment on other sites. You can’t have a dialog if you’re busy talking all the time.
4. Develop your voice. Figure out who you are and what makes your site unique.

Drinks are on me!

On Monday night I had the pleasure of tasting an incredible Bordeaux vertical with winemaker Henri Lurton.

Jonathon Alsop and the Boston Wine School hosted Lurton and the 2000-2006 Chateau Brane-Cantenac Bordeaux vintages. It’s rare that you can taste every single vintage for multiple years so of course an event like this is very special. Below are my raw notes on each.

2000 - Fantastic nose - full but relaxed nose and tannins - green pepper and cassis on the nose - 40% Merlot and a good amount of Cabernet Franc - still lots of life - garnet color - slightly flowery - smell of dried roses and dark chocolate and cedar box. A great start!

2001 - More purple color - fuller, more viscous - more tannins and more youthful - unlike New World makers, Lurton doesn’t strive to make the same wine every year - instead, he said he tries to make the best wine for the place and year - more spice - more upfront but less on the finish - “more easily understood,” Lurton said.

2002 - Cassis on the nose - dried roses again - my friend Yoko Sawyer of Winestone in Chestnut Hill, MA, called it “more feminine.” This one might be favorite of the lot.

2003 - Several people commented that this one almost smells like beer! Stewed fruit on the nose - uncharacteristic of most Bordeaux - lacks typicity - juicy - Lurton described it as “an odd vintage.”

2004 - That green pepper nose is back! A bit close but yields enough to be enjoyable. Longer finish than 2003.

2005 - The modern classic vintage. Big, black tea-like tannins - more masculine. This is a fascinating preview of what this wine may become.

2006 - This last-minute addition is a barrel sample for a vintage that has not yet been released. Sawyer described this nose as “creme brulee without the sugar.” She continued with a “poached cherry in butter sauce” flavor description. Wow, she’s good! My new friend Tamara Stanfill of New York-based Millissime observed, “It’s so evident that this hasn’t been through the oak process. It’s still all fruit!”

We wrapped up this wonderful evening with a dinner paired with wines made by Lurton’s sisters! We enjoyed:

• Amuse bouche of “Beluga caviar” with smoked sturgeon and quail egg paired with 2005 Chateau Coucheroy.
• Broiled shrimp on roasted poached fennel paired with 2003 Chateau Bouscaut.
• Boneless rib roast with rosemary crust and wild mushroom sauce with roasted baby potatoes, Fiddlehead ferns in shallot butter paired with a red wine whose name escapes me (sorry!).
• We finished up with a refreshing green salad (arugula is really growing on me!) and a cheese selection with a 1978 Chateau Climens. The evening ended with a vanilla crusted tart with poached apricots. It was a delicious ending to a fabulous evening!

Many thanks to Jonathon Alsop for hosting Henri Lurton for the evening. And special thanks to my lovely and talented dinner companions Yoko Sawyer and Tamara Stanfill! It was a pleasure dining with both of you and I hope we get to do it again sometime!

Drinks are on me!

New York Magazine writer Adam Platt has done something I’ve always wanted to do: eat Japanese blowfish and live to tell the tale.

Blowfish, known as fugu in Japan, is one of the world’s deadliest meals. In April, Platt traveled to a back-alley restaurant in the Sumida section of Tokyo to sample the world’s most dangerous dish.

Platt said fugu is usually a winter delicacy. However, his interpreter revealed that Chef Naohisa Hashimoto had just returned from the famous Tsukiji fish market with fresh tiger fugu caught in the waters off Miyazaki prefecture, in southern Japan. Platt said, “Tiger fugu is considered the filet mignon of blowfish, coveted, according to the twisted logic of fugu connoisseurs, for both its distinctive flavor and its unparalleled concentration of lethal toxins.”

Platt described fugu poisoning:

“Tetrodotoxin is the name of the poison that collects in the fish, especially in the liver and ovaries…. Tetrodotoxin can cause a pleasing numbing sensation when eaten in tiny amounts, but if you ingest too much of the substance, nothing pleasant at all happens. The symptoms of tetrodotoxin poisoning include dizziness, exhaustion, and nausea. Eventually your muscles begin to freeze - first your lips and tongue, then the tips of your fingers, then your hands, then your arms and legs, and finally your heart and lungs. Victims typically remain conscious, but are eventually paralyzed and can’t move or speak. (In parts of Japan, legend has it, the bodies of fugu-overdose victims were once laid beside their open caskets for several days to ensure that they were not being buried alive.) The amount of tetrodotoxin required to kill a man can fit on the head of a pin. Tetrodotoxin poisoning has no known cure.”

Sounds a like a fantastic ride, doesn’t it? It’s the culinary equivalent of bungee jumping.

Hashimoto served Platt a sampling of various fugu preparations, including the engorged sperm sac - the most potentially fatal part of the fish.

Platt said the sashimi was so thin and tasty that bravado took over and he assumed he’d have nothing to worry about. But he couldn’t have been more wrong.

He starts to feel a numbness in his lips, breaks out in a flop sweat, and begins to panic. The chef quickly dismisses this. “It is your mind playing tricks,” the chef says. “If your lips are really numb, then nobody can save you. If your lips are really numb, Mr. Platt, then you are already dead.”

After downing much sake and not enjoying the majority of the rest of the meal, Platt realizes he’s safe and manages to enjoy a bowl of fugu porridge and green tea. He doesn’t find fugu delicious, but realizes it’s not about flavor - it’s about the experience. And isn’t that what life’s about?

Drinks are on me!