Andrew Peate. A man
of many words and a few pennies in his pocket when we last visited. He has a youthful shell but an old
cantankerous male interior, both of which are marinated in old soul. He is from these parts originally but his
genius musical prowess landed him a scholarship to the Manhattan School of
Music. Naturally gifted in rhythm, this
background in music helped to guide his contemporary work in writing. Now with a few screenplays under his belt
and hoping to be discovered, I know it’s just a matter of time before the whole
world sees what a talented savant is in the wings.
Draughts aren’t just for beer!
Most drinkers (myself included) froth at the mouth over a
perfectly poured beer, the beautiful head and anticipatory aromas of flavors
waiting. And now debuting all over the
country, restaurants and bars are offering cocktails, shots, and wine served on
tap, just like beer. Cooks, bartenders, and most importantly the patrons seem
to be gushing about its brutal efficiency and consistency.
From my vantage point the benefits to a bar program include:
- Ease of service (it takes only a few seconds to deliver)
- Consistency of the drink
- Novelty of the experience
- Pouring a taste to allow a guest to preview
- Reducing the amount of cans, bottles, cups, and other components necessary to make a custom cocktail, equals a significant reduction in waste
- Endorsement the establishment is giving the patron… we like this cocktail so much, we made a 100 liters of it!
- Preservation of wine vs. random open bottles
Maintenance seems to mirror the upkeep of draft systems for
beer with only a few exceptions, and the kegged cocktails/wine can retain a high
quality for weeks. Putting additional
beverages on tap can make work easier for bartenders, but the kegs with
cocktails do require occasional shaking to prevent ingredients from separating.
The legitimate cons for me seem to be centered around the
technical aspects like matters of oxidation or setting up the proper equipment. Other downfalls are that kegs can also make
it more likely to lose ounces of the cocktails, which can add up over time, due
to over-pouring, samples and self service.
Some talk however seems to be about the culture of drinking
and the customer experience. In an age of perfecting the perfect cocktail and
charging for it, are we undoing the notion that a great cocktail takes
time? That very ritual, watching a drink
come together, constructed one element at a time. I can imagine myself missing
that—if an establishment didn’t also serve traditional cocktails. What are the perceptions if the bartender
doesn’t have to do anything other than pour it?
Timing is everything right?
So on Tuesday when the bar isn’t crowded, maybe I’ll go for the
elaborate multi-ingredient, double strained, layered cocktail.
On Saturday when it’s 3 deep at the bar and I want a beverage, that
fizzy Negroni served at the same price as the rest of the cocktails with a
bigger pour is sounding pretty damn tasty.
Penny Profiler #46
BJ Shannon. For a man
with east coast roots and that moved to Seattle (relatively) recently, he knows
everyone, or perhaps everyone knows him.
You’ll find him at the newest rock show, at random dive bars, or the
latest trendy restaurant. He’s one fine world traveler and experience
collector.
I have been a huge fan of his (and the entire Shannon clan)
since our paths crossed many moons ago.
His penny investment assures me his mojo will be in the house when
Brimmer & Heeltap finally opens and I’ll do my best to get his butt in a
seat with some sort of regularity!
In Memory of sweet Yancy Noll
It is with a very heavy heart that I say farewell to a
beloved friend and colleague. His life
was tragically taken too early and rather than sink into the doldrums surrounding
his murder, I want to honor this vivacious, hilarious, confident, smart, and passionate
friend.
Our paths first crossed (sometime in the late 90’s) when I
picked up weekend shifts at Esquin Wine Merchants while I was working for the
Washington Wine Commission. Our foundation
was gelled with an instant brotherly/sisterly bond and he watched my back, guided
me in what to do and what not to do. We frequently shared belly laughs (and those who knew him can attest to his infectious
laugh), Indian food, amazing beer and wine.
It became quite evident that I would need to practice saying no and
meaning it when Yancy would come to me on a regular basis proclaiming “OMG, Jen, you’ve
got to get this wine. This
shit is amazing!” His philosophy was to buy 3, 6 or 12 bottles of a wine you
really liked. Drink one immediately and
the others in some sort of aged procession based on the quantity purchased.
Fast forward and countless speeches under his belt of how I
needed to buy this one or that one. One
day he had come to me with the same old story and I replied with something to
the effect of “Zip it! I’m
not falling for this Yancy. I need to
save money”. His retort was “you’re
making the biggest mistake of your life.
You WILL regret not buying this wine and I won’t share any if you don’t
get at least one bottle.” We both
laughed and laughed because I finally stepped into the big leagues this time
and purchased three bottles. Weeks
later, like ‘em or not, the Wine Spectator came out and named this one of the top
three wines in the world.
Well as luck would have it, I still have a bottle in the
cellar. In the coming weeks a friend has
organized a few industry colleagues to gather for a little tribute and bring a special
bottle to honor our dear friend. I know
what I’ll be pouring. You can bet your
bottom dollar that I will toast my spirited cohort and recall many fond stories
as I relish in how precious our time really is.
Penny Profiler #45
Jennifer or Jen, but definitely not Jenny, Miller. I also
owe a shout out to the fabulous men in her corner, Andrew, Mitch, and Austin. I
have known Jen almost my entire life.
Her family moved in when we were just babies. Today I have seen her babies grow up and
we’ve played witness to just about every high & low in each others lives. There are a myriad of inside jokes and
nostalgic tales of yesteryear. We have countless
embarrassing moments documented in the mind’s eye, maybe even a few on
film. Our history might read like a Judy
Blume and Huck Finn novel combined. This
penny installation would not be complete without a few anchors in my life and
Jen is among them. Now if only we were neighbors and could go play Sardines or Truth or Dare for
old time sake!
One man’s trash is another woman’s treasure…
I am the proud new mama of a few sets of seats from the old
Fort Gamble Theater. Maybe they’ll be
part of a large dining table or booth? I
love that they are adorned with a few graffiti marks from lovers of yesteryear
(or maybe still today)? KH + BE or Cane
+ CJ. Some of them still have gum on
their underside. Ew!
The historic Port Gamble Theater was build during the boom
times of this Pacific Northwest Victorian mill town near the turn of the last
century. Used for community theater,
vaudeville and eventually a movie house.
It was vacant and in a preserved state since 1956, when the last movie
reel ended. History seeps from this
space and I feel SO fortunate to have secured a few pieces of historic
remnants.
Penny Profiler #44
Karin & Kevin Schminke.
What do you get when you cross a talented artist (http://www.schminke.com/) with a clever and
witty professor? A darling couple that I
am lucky to call friends!
For the sake of this post, I’ll call Kevin ‘a collector’. (Karin might call him something that resembles
a person that doesn’t want to throw anything away.) The history is bleak behind the impressive collection
of coins deposited into the proverbial piggy bank. Kevin’s best guess was they’ve been in
storage and collected from the days when they moved in their Kenmore home 18
years ago!
Kevin is clearly a professor – I explained that I counted
them as I received them so I had an idea of how many square feet I was working
with. He appropriately schooled me on
how to expedite the process, “it’s simple” he said, “just weigh them.” Well I took his advice and 173 pennies = 1
lb. Where was he for the 43 other counting’s?
Penny Profiler #43
Julia & Casey Selfridge.
Absolut-ly priceless. I first
crossed paths with Casey while I was training for the London Marathon. At that
time, he was a wonderful coach for the Team in Training organization (also
known by the acronym TNT, is the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's
endurance sports training program. They provide training for a half
marathon, marathon, triathlon, century bike ride, or a cross-country
ski marathon.) For more info check out http://www.teamintraining.org/
Never look a gift horse in the mouth right? Ha.
After shaking the vodka bottle for what felt like an eternity to
retrieve these little coins, I contemplated whether it would be worthwhile to
clean up broken glass or continue shaking the bottle until every last drop was
out? Fact: the neck of an Absolut bottle
isn’t much bigger than a penny and the bottle can store at least 1230 pennies.
As for the pennies themselves, Casey is quite certain he”scored
the bottle from a new year’s party freshman year in college.” The bottle was filled by or before he
graduated and he never knew what to do with them so they have been a highly
ornate bookend for the better part of the last decade. Casey and his wife (especially) are glad they
have found a new home.
Local Inspirations (Part V)
It has been a little while since I last visited the topic of
where I head for local inspiration. Two
recent outings instigated this post.
……………….
Belle Clementine:
I think my first introduction was when I noticed a foodie friend check in on
Facebook. I had never heard of this
place so I googled it and then added it to my restaurant to-do list. It’s a never ending list btw with 73
destinations and counting. Fast forward
to my business partner and I having occasional discussions on the merits of
communal dining, she spots a mention in the Seattle Times, and presto we have
reservations. We loved it. Our family
style menu is included below and for $40 per person (inclusive of a glass of
wine or beer AND gratuity)… I’d say this is the best foodie deal in town!
Canapé of herbed fromage blanc and house-cured gravlax
Lentil soup with pickled peppers and creme fraiche
Braised Stokesberry rabbit, raddichio, corn & chanterelles with aged balsamic
Rice salad with herbs and greens
"Cookies and Cream"
Lentil soup with pickled peppers and creme fraiche
Braised Stokesberry rabbit, raddichio, corn & chanterelles with aged balsamic
Rice salad with herbs and greens
"Cookies and Cream"
Beloved dish: the
rabbit, raddichio salad was to die for but the menu changes daily
Special detail: Owner/chef, David Sanford, invites
you to join him in the kitchen as your meal is being prepared
Delicious drink: modestly appointed wine list with an
abundance of tasty options
……………….
The Dray: For the
love of beer! This tiny and by tiny I
mean less than 1000 square feet. Most of the local studio apartments are bigger. But what it lacks in size it makes up in
quality beers, snacks and locals hanging out there daily.
Beloved dish: I really love their sandwich melts but my
favorite is the extra-sharp white cheddar and turmeric pepper pickle relish on
rustic whole wheat bread.
Special detail: dog friendly
Favorite server: Nico
Delicious drink: an easy dozen specialty beers on draught
and a list of more than 80 in the bottle with show stoppers like Russian River’s
Pliny the Elder (on tap as of last night) available.
Go: www.thedray.com
Penny Profiler #42
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| For some reason the iphone flips all images! |
Erik Andrew. His
artwork was the medium for our friendship blossoming nearly a decade ago. You can find his work at http://erikandrew.com/ and in a few hot
spots around Seattle. This gentle and
talented, shy at times, man is a self taught artist whose genuine persona will
warm your heart.
Buyer beware: once you crack that sweet shell, the hilarious
and spirited side will rear its lively little head. He has participated in some memorable
debaucheries (thank god no photos exist of either of us) and provided me with
wheels on more than one occasion when my car wasn’t worthy. (Reference photo above – a ride came complete
with pennies)
I am proud to have his art hanging on my wall and seeing
sweet reminders of my dear friend every day.
