One of our favorite prefectures for sake is Niigata and today Sakaya (324 E. 9th Street) is having a tasting of sakes from one of the region's best breweries - Hakkaisan. Try their Ginjo, Junmai Ginjo and Honjozo sakes from 3pm to 6pm. (Sat 2/28)
February 2009 Archives
Something just crossed our inbox that seemed enticing until we actually read it. TimeOut sent a sponsored promo invite to a March 4th event called "Fabulously Frugal" in... Yonkers. Yonkers? Yup, that "city" just up the Hudson River trying to revitalize itself as happening place.
Seems a building called 66Main is trying to fill loft-style apartments and they've come up with an event they hope draws newly frugal New Yorkers to what is essentially an Open House. They promise food from area chefs, free "spiked punch," giveaways and more!. As they put it, "Westchester's hottest brands and hot new chefs will show you how as you mix and mingle at Yonkers' address for luxuriously affordable living."
Apparently, after all the goodies, they had about $5 left in their budget for the graphic to the right. Anyway, if you're so inclined, here is the website. We would, however, like to remind those tempted by this fab offer that it is indeed YONKERS.
Seems a building called 66Main is trying to fill loft-style apartments and they've come up with an event they hope draws newly frugal New Yorkers to what is essentially an Open House. They promise food from area chefs, free "spiked punch," giveaways and more!. As they put it, "Westchester's hottest brands and hot new chefs will show you how as you mix and mingle at Yonkers' address for luxuriously affordable living."
Apparently, after all the goodies, they had about $5 left in their budget for the graphic to the right. Anyway, if you're so inclined, here is the website. We would, however, like to remind those tempted by this fab offer that it is indeed YONKERS.
The sad truth of this recession is no one and no thing is being spared. Even booze sales are now officially down. Conventional wisdom says that "sins" like booze and cigarettes survive well during recessions as people try to chemically cope with a depressing reality. But this recession is proving a lot of people wrong.
Bloomberg reported yesterday that "take-out sales of alcoholic beverages tumbled 9.3 percent in the fourth quarter", the largest decline in fifty years of record keeping. The biggest bust? Surprisingly beer, down 14%. Wine was down 1.6% and liquor 0.9%. If you're into this sort of stuff, a handy chart at FiveThirtyEight.com shows the ups and downs of booze vis a vis GDP.
Bloomberg reported yesterday that "take-out sales of alcoholic beverages tumbled 9.3 percent in the fourth quarter", the largest decline in fifty years of record keeping. The biggest bust? Surprisingly beer, down 14%. Wine was down 1.6% and liquor 0.9%. If you're into this sort of stuff, a handy chart at FiveThirtyEight.com shows the ups and downs of booze vis a vis GDP.
East Village subterranean lounge Blue Owl (196 2nd Avenue) is offering free drinks according to TONY. Stop by tonight from 6pm to 8pm to try the Flapper (citrus vodka, lemongrass-infused vermouth and ginger syrup).
Citysearch just posted this week's "Save on Food and Drink" guide and there are a bunch of deals tomorrow night. Highlights are the Allen & Delancey's (115 Allen Street) Tuesday half-price cocktails at the bar, a Fat Tuesday party at Village Pourhouse UWS (982 Amsterdam Avenue) with an all you can drink special from 5pm - 8pm and Artisanal's (2 Park Ave on 32nd Street) "Brew Tuesdays" where artisanal brews are half-off.
Citysearch just posted this week's "Save on Food and Drink" guide and there are a bunch of deals tomorrow night. Highlights are the Allen & Delancey's (115 Allen Street) Tuesday half-price cocktails at the bar, a Fat Tuesday party at Village Pourhouse UWS (982 Amsterdam Avenue) with an all you can drink special from 5pm - 8pm and Artisanal's (2 Park Ave on 32nd Street) "Brew Tuesdays" where artisanal brews are half-off.
Sometimes things are wrong on so many levels, it's hard to figure out where to begin. Case in point - Slender Wine. Apparently, some folks in Indiana thought it would be a good idea to make "Sweetened Wine" with a sugar substitute called Zerose. And if that isn't bizarre enough, there's this - the wine will be in the gift bags at the Oscars!The wine comes in three varieties - white, blush and red - and is produced by a winery called Chateau Thomas outside Indianapolis. Apparently, the winery itself has been around for 24 years but after 2 years of "research and experimentation," Slender Wines were born. And how did that happen? Well, check out the most surreal winery video ever...
From the website:
Sweetened with Zerose® , a natural sweetener which has zero calories, a zero
glycemic index, no carbs, no fats.
The world's only naturally sweetened wines. A wine for those who don't
want or
No Sugar
No Carbs
No Fats
No After-taste
No Kidding!
Our question is why would anyone want "naturally sweetened wine" in the first place?
Continue reading Crimes Against Wine - Slender Wine.
A pair of wine tasting events are taking place just blocks from each other tonight:
Highly regarded organic winemaker Tony Coturri is having a tasting of his wines at 67 Wine (179 Columbus Avenue) from 4pm to 7pm. His Albarello, Grenache, Zinfandel, Carignan and Pinot Noir (the only NYC outlet for this wine) will be tasted.
Just five blocks away, Acker, Merrall & Condit (160 W. 72nd Street) is having a tasting of hearty French country wines - try Colombard from the southwest of France, Bourgelil and "Baby Minervois" from Languedoc, a sparkling French apple cider and French cheeses. 5:30pm - 7:30pm.
Highly regarded organic winemaker Tony Coturri is having a tasting of his wines at 67 Wine (179 Columbus Avenue) from 4pm to 7pm. His Albarello, Grenache, Zinfandel, Carignan and Pinot Noir (the only NYC outlet for this wine) will be tasted.
Just five blocks away, Acker, Merrall & Condit (160 W. 72nd Street) is having a tasting of hearty French country wines - try Colombard from the southwest of France, Bourgelil and "Baby Minervois" from Languedoc, a sparkling French apple cider and French cheeses. 5:30pm - 7:30pm.
A while back, we slapped Perbacco on the wrist for selling warm wine and placing candles in front of wine bottles. Unfortunately, new restaurant Sorella (95 Allen Street) is another offender. We slipped in for a glass of wine the other day and were impressed by the design and the attention to detail in everything from an interesting wine selection to the printed materials. Then we looked up to see wine everywhere.
Folks, we can't stress enough that you store wine for customers properly. Having wine stored on shelves lit by candles is pretty but it's not wine we want to drink. Even worse, when the temperature control on the room's thermostat is set in the upper 70s, we get really concerned for the wine.
The winelist is heavily skewed towards Northern Italy (good) but very pricey (bad). Since the cooking is skewed towards Piemontese, the region wines are well represented. Unfortunately, bottles under $50 are in short supply and the bulk of the reds from Piedmont were over $80. Wines by the glass tend towards the obscure, which is fine, but nothing we tried was really delicious. Prices by the glass, $10 to $17, would be fair if the pours were more generous. Right now they skimpy.
Folks, we can't stress enough that you store wine for customers properly. Having wine stored on shelves lit by candles is pretty but it's not wine we want to drink. Even worse, when the temperature control on the room's thermostat is set in the upper 70s, we get really concerned for the wine.
The winelist is heavily skewed towards Northern Italy (good) but very pricey (bad). Since the cooking is skewed towards Piemontese, the region wines are well represented. Unfortunately, bottles under $50 are in short supply and the bulk of the reds from Piedmont were over $80. Wines by the glass tend towards the obscure, which is fine, but nothing we tried was really delicious. Prices by the glass, $10 to $17, would be fair if the pours were more generous. Right now they skimpy.
Subterranean bar PDT (113 St. Mark's Place) is one of the best drink spots in the city, so it's not often we partake in a classic cocktail while we're there. However, a recent night got late in a hurry and we needed our usual nightcap - the Manhattan.We didn't offer a liquor suggestion and we were not disappointed. The drink we were served was made with Rittenhouse Rye and Carpano Antica, purportedly "the original" sweet Italian vermouth. It was terrific, perfectly balanced and nicely presented with three small cherries on a skewer across the top. If only all Manhattans could be this delicious.
If you're on the Upper East Side, you have some good options for discounted wine. Both Garnet Wines & Liquors (929 Lexington Avenue) and Cellar 72 (1355 2nd Avenue) are giving 10% off all wines and 15% off cases. Garnet's sale ends on February 22, but Cellar 72's is, for now, open-ended.
If you are a fan of the single malt, Chelsea Wine Vault (Chelsea Market, 75 9th Avenue) is having a Balvenie tasting tonight from 7pm to 8pm. Cost is $35. For more info, click here.
When is a beer too fancy? That question is a common one these days as restaurants continue to look for ways to jack up prices with obscure beers and importers bring in ever more product. Case in point, Kasteel Cru, a fairly new arrival on the scene from Alsace, France made with champagne yeast and now selling at Whole Foods for $4.99 a bottle.That's a fair amount of scratch in these times, even for a lifestyle beer which this clearly is. So we picked up a bottle to see what the hype is all about. The first taste is of a well made lager with a bit of an effervescent character. Sipping further, we found that the slight bitterness of the initial taste seemed to mellow into an almost bubbly quality. This actually counteracts the "beerness" of the beer and makes the taste less cohesive but certainly makes for a bit of lightness in the mouth feel.
We were curious how the beer held up over, say a half hour or sipping. Unfortunately, it doesn't quite hold the effervescence and gets a bit out of balance with more bitterness evident. The beer was passable with food and seemed best suited to cheese.
All in all, it's a good, not great beer, with a fancy pedigree and way-too-high price. Stick with the regular lagers unless you're showing off new found wealth for a friend.
A reader posted a comment to our news bit about LeNell's closing this week saying, "the store itself is completely cleaned out already. I went on Saturday,
and the shelves were bare save for a few of bottles of bitters and one
or two lonely $200+ bourbons."
If those bottles of bourbon are so lonely, we'll be happy to give them a proper comforting... In the meantime, keep those tips coming.
If those bottles of bourbon are so lonely, we'll be happy to give them a proper comforting... In the meantime, keep those tips coming.
Apparently the condo project did permanently kill Cedar Tavern (last found at 82 University Place). Grub Street is reporting that the tavern will not return, as was originally promised. Looks like the owner is out of the pub game for good. In the meantime, they have put up one ugly building, complete with million dollar apartments no one can afford. Thanks a bunch for that.
You may recall we addressed the controversy over natural wines in a previous post. This Saturday, Astor Center wades into the fray with a tasting of more than 12 French natural wines. The guided tasting will be led by Christian Binner (Domaine Binner) who is bringing a few bottles from his own cellar to sweeten the deal.
Astor Center Natural Wine Tasting
Saturday February 21, 3pm - 6pm. Tickets $15, available online
Astor Center Natural Wine Tasting
Saturday February 21, 3pm - 6pm. Tickets $15, available online
So much free booze to taste, so little time:
New York Vintners (21 Warren Street) is having a "Recession Proof Wine Tasting" of 10 wines under $25. Also tastings of cheeses and 15% off the wines. Sat 2/14 from 12pm - 6pm.
Namazake sake season has arrived - try three unpasteurized spring sakes at Sakaya (324 East 9th Street) on Saturday from 3pm - 6pm.
Acker Merrall & Condit (160 West 72nd Street) is holding a Highland Park Scotch tasting. Try out the 12, 15 and 18 year olds from 4pm - 7pm on Saturday.
Still more, including a couple tonight -
New York Vintners (21 Warren Street) is having a "Recession Proof Wine Tasting" of 10 wines under $25. Also tastings of cheeses and 15% off the wines. Sat 2/14 from 12pm - 6pm.
Namazake sake season has arrived - try three unpasteurized spring sakes at Sakaya (324 East 9th Street) on Saturday from 3pm - 6pm.
Acker Merrall & Condit (160 West 72nd Street) is holding a Highland Park Scotch tasting. Try out the 12, 15 and 18 year olds from 4pm - 7pm on Saturday.
Still more, including a couple tonight -
Continue reading Weekend Tasting Events.
Is Milk & Honey open to the public again? Sure seems that way after Urban Daddy published the "secret phone number" today in their email round-up. They cite the end of "temporary shuttering" as the reason for giving out the number, even though it was widely reported that M & H went private and started charging for membership. However, we will honor Eater's standing request to not publish the number, even if Ben Leventhal - a former UD consultant - had self-serving motives in writing the post. We get it, we like to get in too.
Update: Seems the info is very public now - thanks to a Grub Street reader for pointing us in the right direction. For their website go here. You can text 718-308-6881 for reservations after 7pm.
Update: Seems the info is very public now - thanks to a Grub Street reader for pointing us in the right direction. For their website go here. You can text 718-308-6881 for reservations after 7pm.
Lots of booze news to report today:
Grub Street has the closing date for Red Hook booze-arium LeNell's - February 20. This of course is due to the dreaded "lease issues" and we can only wonder what kind of crack their landlord is smoking.
Eater is on the scene with a report of how the Feds quashed Six Point Ale's "Hop Obama" brew. Seems the Dept of Homeland Security put the "kabosh" on the whole thing and even threatened seizure. Ouch.
Lastly, we are somewhat intrigued that Dan Aykroyd is at Astor Wines today (12pm - 2pm) to shill for his vodka. Huh? Yup, you can get autographs but you can't taste the vodka. Guess you'll have to fork over $50 and let us know how if it's worth it.
Grub Street has the closing date for Red Hook booze-arium LeNell's - February 20. This of course is due to the dreaded "lease issues" and we can only wonder what kind of crack their landlord is smoking.
Eater is on the scene with a report of how the Feds quashed Six Point Ale's "Hop Obama" brew. Seems the Dept of Homeland Security put the "kabosh" on the whole thing and even threatened seizure. Ouch.
Lastly, we are somewhat intrigued that Dan Aykroyd is at Astor Wines today (12pm - 2pm) to shill for his vodka. Huh? Yup, you can get autographs but you can't taste the vodka. Guess you'll have to fork over $50 and let us know how if it's worth it.
We noticed an odd sight outside FiDi's Gild Hall, a fancy Thompson Hotel venture complete with an upscale celeb chef resto - a whiteboard promoting happy hour. The joint, fancifully named the Libertine, opened with typical fanfare due to the name of its chef Todd English - English does English! - but failed to thrill both critics and diners.The beer-heavy ($4 Stellas, $5 Draughts) happy hour skews heavily towards guys with an appetite for oysters. The $1 - 1.50 oysters are a nice touch, but hey, how about something liquid for the ladies?
Unlike Gild Hall, the trendy Thompson production, and Libertine, which was supposed to evoke London clubhouses circa 1970s (monied? plush?), the whiteboard sign is decidedly downscale and uninviting. Frankly, it looks to us like it was pulled from a back office (we hope the conference rooms' boards are cleaner than this!).
Dear Management, this is the most passive-aggressive approach to promoting happy hour we've ever seen. Are you sure you want anyone coming in?
The Libertine
15 Gold Street
Happy Hour: 5pm - 7pm
Today, Eric Asimov wrote a piece in The New York Times about little known Italian wines that are a good value. Unfortunately, the paper didn't include the most helpful information - where to buy them! That's right folks, the paper decided to only list importers since it insists on having a national food section. Too bad that isn't much help to New Yorkers.
Here are a couple of our favorite places to pick up Italian wines from $10 to $20:
Smith & Vine (268 Smith Street, Brooklyn) has a great selection - 50 different bottles in that price range.
Astor Wines & Spirits (399 Lafayette Street) is even more impressive, with over 90 wines in this price range.
Enoteca DiPalo (200 Grand Street) opened in November two doors down from the original DiPalo, featuring wine from each of Italy's 20 regions. While the prices are generally higher than the Times range, more like $15 - $29 for most bottles, the selection includes some hard to find wines and is chosen with the usual DiPalo family care.
Let us know where you like to pick up Italian (or any other) wines.
Here are a couple of our favorite places to pick up Italian wines from $10 to $20:
Smith & Vine (268 Smith Street, Brooklyn) has a great selection - 50 different bottles in that price range.
Astor Wines & Spirits (399 Lafayette Street) is even more impressive, with over 90 wines in this price range.
Enoteca DiPalo (200 Grand Street) opened in November two doors down from the original DiPalo, featuring wine from each of Italy's 20 regions. While the prices are generally higher than the Times range, more like $15 - $29 for most bottles, the selection includes some hard to find wines and is chosen with the usual DiPalo family care.
Let us know where you like to pick up Italian (or any other) wines.
Thursday means all night happiness at West Soho lounge The Anchor. $20 will buy you all you can drink. TGIT!
The Anchor
310 Spring Street (at Greenwich Street)
The Anchor
310 Spring Street (at Greenwich Street)
The New York Wine Expo is coming to town from February 27 to March 1st. If you are inclined to hike over to the Javits Center to taste 600+ wines from around the world, tickets purchased before February 20th are $80 (Friday) or $90 (Saturday) including an admin fee. Add in the handy Time Out promo code of "TONY10"and you get a further 10 bucks off.
We here at BoozyNYC think it's time for you to start planning your summer vacation and we've found the perfect spot - Bruichladdich Distillery on Islay off the coast of Scotland. There you can partake in the Bruichladdich Malt Whiskey Academy's one week course in all things single malt. Writer Sarah Doyle Lacamoire wrote about her week at the distillery and she clearly had a blast, experiencing the entire distilling and bottling process before "graduating," presumably with honors.
If this sounds like a great way to spend a week, drop an email to ella@bruichladdich.com.
The academy is only open May through November. The £850 tuition includes B&B accommodations, all meals and lots of Scotch.
If this sounds like a great way to spend a week, drop an email to ella@bruichladdich.com.
The academy is only open May through November. The £850 tuition includes B&B accommodations, all meals and lots of Scotch.
East Village sake shop Sakaya (324 East 9th Street) will provide a taste of spring with tomorrow night's tasting. Stop by from 6pm to 8pm to try the first spring namazake (unpasteurized) sakes from importer Joto Sake, one of the top importers of specialty sakes - they bring a favorite label of ours - Yuki No Bosha. Tomorrow, they will be pouring Wataribune Junmai Ginjo Nama Genshu and Taiheikai Nigori
Nama Genshu, both from Ibaraki brewery.
Ninth Avenue in the area around Port Authority has never been the pretty part of town, and the Holland Cocktail Lounge (532 9th Avenue) has always seemed to fit right in. There was nothing modern or sceney about the neighborhood dive but it did the job, until its recent closure that is, due to the landlord trying to sell the building. Given the state of the market, that effort went nowhere and so the bar is open again, per Grub Street, and ready to serve $4 beers. In this day and age, that's something.
Thrillist, Eater, et al posted yesterday about a new speakeasy - yes, narrow space, downstairs, unmarked door, yada yada - called Raines Law Room (48 W. 17th Street) and immediately a couple of skeptics weighed in. Seems some people are tired of speakeasies and we can understand that - everything from tiny PDT, the world's most promoted speakeasy, to Woodson and Ford, the open but not basement joint on Bleecker Street, has started to grate on folks. These days, people want to drink and they kind of prefer places that a) they can get into and b) they can find.
One of the bartenders hastily leapt to the spot's defense, promising "it's not like any other bar in town." Now it's arguable that was even necessary since only two commenters initially posted their skepticism and it was hardly the usual Eater vitriol. Of course, the bartender's response opened him up for further criticism and a good bit of hole was dug, though he was certainly diligent and fair in his comments. However, it might serve folks working at speakeasies to be a little less sensitive to internet comments.
From our perspective, the place actually sounds intriguing and we don't mind the concept - assuming they have a policy of actually letting people in. We'll let you know how that Old Fashioned tastes, it does sound like a delicious version.
Raines Law Room
48 W. 17th Street, downstairs, unmarked door
One of the bartenders hastily leapt to the spot's defense, promising "it's not like any other bar in town." Now it's arguable that was even necessary since only two commenters initially posted their skepticism and it was hardly the usual Eater vitriol. Of course, the bartender's response opened him up for further criticism and a good bit of hole was dug, though he was certainly diligent and fair in his comments. However, it might serve folks working at speakeasies to be a little less sensitive to internet comments.
From our perspective, the place actually sounds intriguing and we don't mind the concept - assuming they have a policy of actually letting people in. We'll let you know how that Old Fashioned tastes, it does sound like a delicious version.
Raines Law Room
48 W. 17th Street, downstairs, unmarked door
Every Tuesday Astor Wine & Spirits (399 Lafayette Street) has a different region of the world on sale and this week it's New York State wines. Time to think local - try a Finger Lakes Riesling, Long Island Cab Sauvignon or Hudson Valley Tocai Friuliano. The full list is here. With wines as low as $9.34, bargains abound.
Death + Company (433 East 6th Street) is undoubtedly one of New York's best cocktail bars, as well as one of its most controversial, due to its never-ending battle to stay open. We've spent some extended time there recently - look for a review later this week - and after much imbibing, decided to test the bartender's Manhattan chops. We left it up to him and his take ($13) was interesting and quite delicious - he used half Booker's Bourbon and half Rittenhouse Rye to create a rich, nicely balanced drink. It certainly sent us out into the cold night feeling no pain.
Tribeca brasserie Cercle Rouge (241 West Broadway) has a great deal for Monday nights - all wines on the list are 25% off and they are offering a three-course prix fixe for $25.They round out the three-fer with a small selection of bottles for $25 each that includes a couple of Bordeaux, a red Burgundy, a white from Beaujolais, and a Cote de Rhone.Check out the wine list - there is a nice selection of Burgundy and Bordeaux, plus a whole section of vin naturels (grown organically or biodynamically and made with minimum intervention), including a number of bottles from Annie & Philipe Bornard from the up-and-coming region of Jura.
Cercle Rouge
241 West Broadway, 212-226-6252
We passed by respected Japanese kaiseki spot Rosanjin this weekend and came across this disturbing, misspelled sign signaling a "temporary" closure. We peered over the screens covering up the windows and saw an empty room, save a ladder in the center. Was their transformation from set menu to a la carte not enough to keep the restaurant afloat? Or is there a problem with the space that needed fixing? The outgoing message on the restaurant's machine gives no hint of closure and Open Table has tables available from Wednesday on (Mon and Tues not available).UPDATE 2/2/09 12:30pm - A call to the restaurant confirms the closure is temporary due to unspecified problems and they hope to be open Thursday or Friday.
