lummi island wine tasting may 12 ’23
PLEASE NOTE: The wine shop will be closed during ferry drydock. We will again be open for wine tasting on Friday, May 26.
However… Friday bread pickup will continue from 4-5:30 pm, and “emergency” wine purchases can be arranged with Janice at those times. We regret any inconvenience and look forward to seeing you after drydock!
Friday Bread Pickup This Week
Poolish Ale – the preferment here is a poolish, made with bread flour, a bit of yeast and a nice ale beer for the liquid and fermented overnight. Mixed the next day with bread flour and fresh milled whole wheat. This makes a great all around bread with a nice crisp crust – $5/loaf
Sonnenblumenbrot – Aka Sunflower Seed Bread, made with a pre-ferment that takes a portion of the flour, water, salt and yeast that ferments overnight before mixing the final dough with bread flour and freshly milled rye, then loaded up with toasted sunflower seeds and some barley malt syrup for sweetness. – $5/loaf
and pastry this week…
Chocolate Croissants – a\A traditional laminated french pastry made with a bit of sourdough flavor and another pre-ferment to help strengthen the dough to create the traditional honeycomb interior. Rolled out and shaped with delicious dark chocolate in the center. – 2/$5
To get on the bread order list, click on the “Contact Us” link above and fill out the form. Each week’s bread menu is sent to the list each Sunday, for ordering by Tuesday, for pickup on Friday. Simple, right..? If you will be visiting the island and would like to order bread for your visit, at least a week’s notice is recommended for pickup the following Friday.
Champoeg State Park
morning fog out the back window at Champoeg State Park in Oregon wine country
Local Turkey Shows Off at Bullard’s Beach
Just arrived at Bullard’s Beach State Park just north of Bandon. OR, one of our favorite State Parks. As with nearly all WA and OR state parks, it is very well maintained, quiet*, and soothing.
Shortly after arrival, this Turkey started strutting around our site, occasionally gobbling for the nearby female, and at some point moved to dance his Display for his darling. And us.
Gonna have to do some research on how exactly these creatures have managed to survive in the Wild. After all, every day is Thanksgiving for wolves, coyotes, and other turkey fans. Maybe there is a special Turkey martial art…?
Economics of the Heart: Ferry Fare Update
Well…it’s been a very challenging several months. It began back in November by simply asking some ordinary questions about rationales, procedures, objectives, and goals about ferry accounting, and then waking up in a world where nothing I was hearing made any sense. And that, as the lead actress in an old BBC series used to say about nearly everything, “is my one Weakness…!”
First were the contradictions of an incoherent rationale for a substantial and immediate ferry fare increase that was suddenly necessary to avoid imminent fiscal disaster. When fairly mundane inspection revealed that the rationale was faulty, it would be replaced by another, which would also be found to be false, and on and on through several iterations, each with an ever-increasing sense of Urgency about the Disastrous Financial Crisis that would occur if the fare increase were not passed immediately, and a corresponding incompatibility with known facts.
Public Works was anxious to pass the increase, which made the County Council anxious to pass the increase, which made the County Executive anxious about all the anxiety, which made PW more anxious, etc etc., etc. And None of them was particularly picky about separating actual facts from convenient fiction. It’s been a LONG few months.
A month ago, after getting zero traction through normal channels, we went public with some of these concerns. That seems to have engaged community conversation and inquiry, and that led to the independent formation of an ad hoc group that took up the cause and which has managed to get enough traction to open up a public conversation about these issues. Members of this “working group” will be working with the Ferry Advisory Committee (LIFAC) (of which I am a member non grata) to sort out a proposed piece of County legislation that will lay the ground rules for ferry financing over the next bunch of years, including the anticipated transition to the new Giant Vessel around 2026.
“A Circle is Perfect— but the World is not Round…”
lummi island wine tasting may 5 ’23
PLEASE NOTE: The wine shop will be closed during ferry drydock. We will again be open for wine tasting on Friday, May 26.
However… Friday bread pickup will continue from 4-5:30 pm, and “emergency” wine purchases can be arranged with Janice at those times. We regret any inconvenience and look forward to seeing you after drydock!
Friday Bread Pickup This Week
Poolish Ale – the preferment here is a poolish, made with bread flour, a bit of yeast and a nice ale beer for the liquid and fermented overnight. Mixed the next day with bread flour and fresh milled whole wheat. This makes a great all around bread with a nice crisp crust – $5/loaf
Buckwheat Walnut & Honey – a flavorful artisan bread also made with a poolish, fresh milled buckwheat and bread flour. Buckwheat is not a grain it is actually a seed and closer in the plant family to rhubarb and sorrel than to wheat and contains no gluten. Though this bread is not gluten free as it is also includes bread flour made from wheat. Buckwheat has an earthy flavor that in this bread is balanced with a little honey. Some toasted walnuts add a nice crunch. This bread goes well with meats and cheeses – $5/loaf
and pastry this week…
Brioche Almond Buns – Made with a delicious brioche dough full of eggs, butter and sugar. Rolled out and spread with an almond cream filling. The almond cream is not made from pre-made almond paste, but rather is a delicious creamy filling made with lots more butter, sugar and eggs as well as almond flour. Yum, yum 2/$5
To get on the bread order list, click on the “Contact Us” link above and fill out the form. Each week’s bread menu is sent to the list each Sunday, for ordering by Tuesday, for pickup on Friday. Simple, right..? If you will be visiting the island and would like to order bread for your visit, at least a week’s notice is recommended for pickup the following Friday.
Grayland Beach State Park
It wasn’t as easy as you might think to teach Ulee how to paw his name into the sand. Then again, there is a LOT of sand out here, about a half mile from the edge of the dunes to the water, and he loves to dig in it.
It’s really quiet out here, with the constant and soothing background of the surf in the distance, no traffic…you know, another favorite Washington State Park.
It can get wet and gloomy out here, but this visit has delivered pretty good weather, more sun than usual and only a few sprinkles. Not to mention the best and freshest fish and chips on the planet a few miles north at Merino’s, right across the street from the pier in Westport.
Tokeland Hotel
Well over 100 years old, this old building in Tokeland, WA drips with charm from a long bygone era, and has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978.
For some years now it has been owned and operated by Heather Earnhardt, well known around Seattle for her tiny, magical café, The Wandering Goose, where her captivating infusion of Southern ingredients into her recipes built a large and loyal clientele. That same style has now resided in the remote reaches of Tokeland for many years, and its remoteness correlates perfectly with its anachronistic flair, unique style, and over the top Southern flavors.
In short: the food is amazing, the atmosphere chaotically comfortable, the portions (be warned!) are Huge, and even the water is delicious! And yes, it is also a real old-time hotel.
OOPS!
Sorry for the late post! Lost our internet connection for a day or two out here on the NW coast.
lummi island wine tasting april 27 ’23
PLEASE NOTE: The wine shop will be closed during ferry drydock. We will again be open for wine tasting on Friday, May 26.
However… Friday bread pickup will continue from 4-5:30 pm, and “emergency” wine purchases can be arranged with Janice at those times. We regret any inconvenience and look forward to seeing you after drydock!
Friday Bread Pickup This Week
Sesame Semolina –Tthis bread uses a sponge as a pre-ferment before mixing the final dough. Made with semolina and bread flour as well as a soaker of cornmeal, millet and sesame seeds, a little olive oil rounds out the flavor and tenderizes the crumb. The finished dough is rolled in more sesame seeds before baking. A bread with a lot of great flavors – $5/loaf
Dried Cherry Walnut – Made with a nice mix of bread flour and freshly milled buckwheat and whole wheat flours. Orange juice and olive oil are a unique combination in this bread that add flavor and keep a soft crumb, then loaded up with dried cranberries and toasted walnuts. Makes great toast! – $5/loaf
and pastry this week…
Muffins! Four muffins: TWO Chocolate (Great chocolate flavor and an incredibly moist texture) plus two Cinnamon Streusel Muffins, made with a brown sugar, butter, pecan and cinnamon filling that is swirled through the batter and then topped with a streusel and a cream cheese glaze. Yum! Feed your cinnamon roll fix!
To get on the bread order list, click on the “Contact Us” link above and fill out the form. Each week’s bread menu is sent to the list each Sunday, for ordering by Tuesday, for pickup on Friday. Simple, right..? If you will be visiting the island and would like to order bread for your visit, at least a week’s notice is recommended for pickup the following Friday.
Lummi Island from Bayview State Park
Tonight we are in our trailer at Bayview State Park. That’s our Island in the middle!
lummi island wine tasting april 21 ’23
Hours this weekend: 4-6 pm Friday, April 21
PLEASE NOTE: The wine shop will be closed until the end of ferry drydock, and reopening Friday, May 26. Friday bread pickup will continue from 4-5:30 pm, and “emergency” wine purchases can be arranged with Janice at those times.
Friday Bread Pickup This Week
Multi Grain Levain – – Made with a sourdough culture and a flavorful mix of bread flour and fresh milled whole wheat and rye. A nice mixture of flax, sesame sunflower and pumpkin seeds and some polenta add great flavor and crunch. And just a little honey for some sweetness. A great all around bread that is full of flavor – $5/loaf
Rosemary Olive Oil – Made with bread flour and freshly milled white whole wheat for additional flavor and texture. Fresh rosemary from the garden and olive oil to make for a nice tender crumb and a nice crisp crust. – $5/loaf
and pastry this week…
Traditional Croissants – Made with both a sourdough levain and a prefermented dough – aka “old dough”– where a portion of the flour, water, salt and yeast is fermented overnight. The final dough is then made with more flour, butter, milk and sugar, laminated with more butter before being cut and shaped into traditional french croissants. –2/$5
To get on the bread order list, click on the “Contact Us” link above and fill out the form. Each week’s bread menu is sent to the list each Sunday, for ordering by Tuesday, for pickup on Friday. Simple, right..? If you will be visiting the island and would like to order bread for your visit, at least a week’s notice is recommended for pickup the following Friday.
Restaurant of the Week: Elizabeth Station
Okay, okay, this is where we usually showcase one of the wines we are pouring this week. But as it turns out we had to go to town yesterday for a bunch of errands (including a beauty shop grooming for Ulee) and had a little time to grab some lunch. Our thoughts turned to Elizabeth Station, next to the old Aftermath Club at the corner of Broadway and Holly in Bellingham.
Though we had not been there for some years, last weekend a wine shop visitor who had been there recently was totally WOW’ed by their pizzas. Since we had to go right by it to get from downtown B’ham back out to the ferry dock, we stopped by to check it out.
They still have a vast selection of 1000 beers from everywhere, with 22 on tap. But the main business is Pizza. And as our wine shop guest had reported, this place takes “pizza” to a whole new level of subtlety, quality, and flavor. Think of it as “the magic of turning ‘pizza’ into ‘Gourmet Dining!’
A brief phone interview with manager/chef Tam Nguyen revealed the simple secret: an ongoing quest to source the best possible ingredients from regional artisan farms, mills, and cheese producers. The quest began when visitors and sales fell rapidly as Covid spread. That led a new vision: to make great pizza that people could order by phone and bring home with a six-pack of one of their wide selection of great beers and minimal contact. The magic was in tying that idea to a growing network of regional sources of the very best ingredients. That commitment makes an impressive difference. So no, all pizza is not created equal. Yum!
This Week’s $10 Wine Tasting:
Phantom Chardonnay ’20 California $15
Entices with its rich layers of green apple and pear that lead into spicy flavors of freshly baked apple pie, while barrel fermentation imparts a creamy, luscious mouthfeel finishing with sweet notes of vanilla and melted caramel.
Monte Tondo Veneto Corvina ’20 Italy $12
Organically farmed; bright nose of fresh cherries and black pepper; fresh and lively palate of cherry, dark chocolate and spice, with supple, well-integrated tannins and a smooth, seductive, slightly spicy finish.
Tre Donne Langhe Nebbiolo ’18 Italy
Dark mauve in color ; nose of red berries, tobacco, and chocolate opens to a balanced palate marked by soft, structured tannins that pair well with well-seasoned dishes, tasty sauces, and roasted or grilled meats.
Economics of the Heart: Price Elasticity of Demand
painting by Nancy Ging
Some bits of Economic Jargon are actually pretty useful concepts. Here in our little island paradise we have been beset for several months with the prospect of a major ferry fare increase. Our community has presented many questions and arguments against many aspects of the proposal, and we have seen some minor adjustments to soften the proposals a bit. Nevertheless, next week the County Council is scheduled to vote on the proposal which, though we have riddled it with holes, and though we have had some teasing indications that our arguments may be getting a little traction, the matter still seems to be on schedule for logic-defying passage in the coming week.
In the midst of all of this, a fairly simple economic concept which is fairly central to the matter continues to be ignored: price elasticity of demand. (read more)
We all operate on some kind of budget, so when the price of something we regularly buy goes up, we try to use less of it or substitute something else for it that will serve the same purpose. If it’s something we must have (gas for the car, say), then in the short run we will pay the higher price while we shop around for a lower one. In the longer term we might carpool, take the bus, or walk to save money. In the case of ferry fares, daily commuters pretty much have to pay the higher fare, at least for a while or until they can move away.
Raising a price brings in more $ per purchase but lowers the quantity purchased. If demand is perfectly elastic, raising your price will reduce your sales to zero. If it is perfectly inelastic, everyone will have to pay the new price until they can find an alternative. In between there will be gains from higher prices and losses from fewer sales. In the case of our ferry, major (300%!) fare increases from 2007-2011 increased revenue for a year or two until many commuters moved away and were replaced by retirees and telecommuters, whose far more elastic demand lets them ride a little less and stay on budget.
In that sense those major fare increases a dozen years ago “poisoned the well” for future fare hikes by pushing away so many commuters. It is anyone’s guess what will happen next week, but we can be pretty confident that demand now is far more elastic than ten years ago and that a major fare increase will bring disappointing revenue changes for the County.
For all these reasons a number of residents are supporting a much smaller fare increase (10% or so), along with a summer surcharge on cash fares, and monitoring of results as a limited experiment on whether it could raise revenue a bit with manageable impact on the community.
2072 Granger Way