lummi island wine tasting aug 2-3 ’19
click on photos for larger images
Friday Breads
Cinnamon Raisin – Made with a nice mix of bread flour and freshly milled whole wheat as well as rolled oats. Some honey for sweetness, a little milk for a tender crumb and loaded with raisins and a healthy dose of cinnamon. This is not a rich sweet bread with a swirl of cinnamon sugar, instead the cinnamon is mixed into the dough and flavors the entire bread. It is a hearty rustic loaf. Great for breakfast toast, even better for french toast – $5/loaf
Toasted Pecan & Flax Seed – This bread is a little different than most of the levain breads that I make as it is made with a starter that is fed with rye flour instead of wheat flour which creates a different flavor profile. The final dough adds bread and whole wheat flour, toasted pecans, flax seeds and honey for a very flavorful bread – $5/loaf.
Brioche au Chocolate – A rich brioche dough made with plenty of butter, eggs and sugar, rolled out and spread with pastry cream before sprinkling with dark chocolate. The dough is folded over all that delicious filling and cut into individual pieces. 2/$5
(note: breads must be pre-ordered by Wednesday for pickup here at the wine shop at our Friday wine tasting, 4-6pm. Email us to get on the mailing list!)
962
Most of our regulars know Kellie, her mom and two brothers who frequent the wine shop on numerous Saturdays during the warmer months of the year or on Canadian holiday weekends (of which there seem to be many!) In the photo below are Craig, Kellie, and Mom…and, er, as we recall, this old photo was taken of them with another couple who happened to have the same name who were in the wine shop that day…
For about as long as we have known Kellie and her family, her husband Derek has been building a Porsche 962 race car. He somehow acquired the molds for the fiberglass sections of the body, and over the past 20 or so years has built a brand new version of the car.
Last Tuesday Island race car buff Tom Philpot and I drove up to Mission Raceway in BC for the car’s debut on a road race track. As you can see in the photo, the car is (click on image for larger version) Pristine, just off a very lengthy assembly line.
Sadly, the tires on the car were 20 years old and had lost their flexibility. On his first turn Derek spun out through a 360, quite sobering! Since racing tires work by heating up and shedding layers of themselves onto the track for control, and lose that ability as they age, he had to proceed with a healthy sense of prudent restraint the rest of the day, a big disappointment. He was on the track for maybe an hour altogether, but never got to drive the car as it was designed to be driven.
Still, it was milestone event, and really fun to be that close to a classic race car!
Art Show Opening Sunday
This weekend begins a new art show at the Gallery, featuring our dear yoga teacher and (as we now have learned) accomplished painter Constance Drake. I know, I know, she has kept it a close secret from most of us up till now, so here is your chance to come see another side of She who tries to keep us Old people functional.
We had our first look at her latest works as we put up her show this afternoon. She uses oils on wood or canvas to develop complex textures and color ranges that evoke the many moods of the Pacific Northwest that you all will recognize but may have a hard time defining.
Although the show will be in place beginning Friday, we invite you all to attend the opening reception this Sunday, August 4 from 3:30-5:30 to meet the artist, see the works, and visit over wine and snacks. The show will be on display through the month of August.
Mar a Lago Update: Mayor Pete’s Paradigm Shift
In the interest of Full Disclosure, in case it hasn’t been obvious, we are card-carrying political Progressives. Like most political terms, this word has different meanings for different people. Our meaning is taken from the values we grew up with in the 50’s and sixties, when the political zeitgeist of the era was still firmly attached to the New Deal and the aftermath of World War II. The entire western world was breathing a sigh of relief, and there was a pervasive optimism even in our lower middle class household in Maine. Life was good, and we were proud and content to be Americans.
According to Mayor Pete (listen to podcast), our country basked in the Paradigm of the New Deal through the sixties and into the seventies. There were conservatives and liberals in both political parties, making party line votes in Congress the exception when they happened. The general sense was that the government was on our side and reflected our common values.
All of that changed when Reagan brought in the Paradigm of the Bottom Line, which continues to this day. This new paradigm was based on the philosophy that, as Reagan put it, “Government is not the solution to our problem, government IS the problem.” His administration then began the process of dismantling social safety nets, attacking unions, weakening economic competition, increasing defense spending, and increasing taxes on the middle class while lowering them for the wealthy. Under the auspices of “Supply Side” Economics, (aka Trickle-Down), the Rich got much, much Richer while everyone else has Struggled. The Public Trough could afford to pay for luxury cabins for the Very Rich, because they are, you know, the “Job Creators,” but, alas, but Oh, so Sorry, you have Steerage ticket, no Lifeboat for you!
According to Mayor Pete, the rise of the Tweetster is one of many signs that we are ready for a New Paradigm. Most obviously, the Republican Mantra of shifting more and more tax burdens to the middle class, lowering tax burdens for the Wealthy, and exponentially increasing the national debt has stagnated the Real Incomes of the Middle Class for forty years. We have a Congress stacked against progress by systematic gerrymandering across the Red States, a Supreme Court that condones both gerrymandering and unregulated campaign contributions by Corporations and the Very Rich that distort election results at all levels, and a Senate Majority Leader who refuses to bring to the floor any vote which is not in the interest of the Very Wealthy.
Mayor Pete suggests that it is time for a New Paradigm, a system where even those who are NOT Millionaires have a fighting chance for a satisfying and secure life– the life many of us oldsters experienced as kids in the Eisenhower-Kennedy years. Those who voted for the Tweetster were (we guess) choosing to Burn the House Down because they were Desperate after 35 years of Republican Trickle-Down Bullpucky. Like Chief Joseph, we all feel the politicians “made many promises, more than I can remember, but they never kept but one; they promised to take our land, and they took it.”
In every instance that we have watched and listened to Mayor Pete, we have been moved by his intellect, kindness, and keen insight. This week, watching him on the stage with a dozen other candidates, we gained new insights into his unique gifts that differentiate him from the other candidates. In short, it does seem like time for a New Paradigm the whole middle class can get behind, and so far he seems the only candidate with the talent and temperament to deliver it.
Washington Post Tweetster Lie Count to date: 10,000 as of 5/1/19
This week’s wine tasting
Three Rivers Steel Chardonnay ’14 Washington $11
Bright melon, freshly sliced apple and pear aromas lead to an incongruously unctuous texture and tasty apple and tart lemon with hints of minerality and a fruity medium dry finish.
Borsao Rose ’18 Spain $10
Spicy aromas and flavors of ripe red strawberry; nicely concentrated and supple, with refreshing minerality.
Crios Malbec ’18 Argentina $13
Bright, dark red. Redcurrant, black cherry, ripe strawberry and spices on the nose; sweet red fruit flavors are complicated by earth, licorice and menthol; creamy fruit is firmed by smooth tannins…a terrific value.
Lagone Aia Vecchio ’16 Italy $15
“Super-Tuscan”blend of Merlot, Cab Sauv, and Cab Franc. Rich and expressive, with aromas of cherry, vanilla, raw beef, and herbs; structured palate of plum, wild berries, and hints of spice, with a long finish that begs for food.
Juggernaut Hillside Cabernet ’16 California $19
Huge, rich, and opulent, with complex flavors of chocolate, coffee, blackberries, cassis, mint, and velvety tannins. New French oak adds notes of vanilla and toast; concentrated, rich, and smooth on the palate.
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2072 Granger Way