My brother-in-law, Jon Ruis, was just written up in the St. Cloud Times (Minnesota) where he lives and spends his time working at St. John’s University. His article helps debunk the fact that Thai cooking is difficult and time consuming and gave inspiration to Thai cooking at home. He returned last year from a four year stint in Thailand where he lived in a small village and learned firsthand just how to cook Thai correctly!

Whenever (and i mean each time!) Jon comes to Grand Rapids, we can be found pouring over Thai cookbooks though seriously 95% of our choices end up coming from the Quick & Easy Thai book by Nancie McDermott. After the recipe study, you can find us over at one of the Asian markets on Division near 36th picking out our ingredients. We make a great team, chopping & blending and then everyone in the family gets to enjoy our authentic delights.

One of my favorite wines to pair with Thai food is Gewurtztraminer. German or Austrian or even some great dry Rieslings are fantastic companions. Try the Thomas Fogarty Gewurtz @ $17.50 for a treat!

Next time you’re inspired to make a fun meal with friends, or for friends, try Thai, it’s easier than you think, especially after you pick up the Quick & Easy Thai book from us!

We enjoy being Art of the Table.  We enjoy being at Art of the Table.  We’re celebrating four years in October and are so thankful for our customers & friends!  So although we love being at the store, we’ve got a different locale in which to enjoy life that night.  On October 26 at 6:30pm we will be hosting a party at the Chop House downtown complete with food & wine, music & friends.

Please consider joining us – tickets are $60 – and available at the store.  You can stop in or call to purchase yours!  We would love to have you there.   Want more details?  Ask one of the staff, they know how fun it will be!

On Wednesday about 15 of us convened in the back “Benton” room at our good friend Louis Benton restaurant for a tasting through six wines made by Jed Steele. Jed as you know is a crazy busy wine consultant who makes wines for all sorts for people but also makes wine for his own label Steele, and it’s second label, Shooting Star. We’ve been having fun with his wines since we opened and thought to highlight what he does in this tasting. Here’s my notes from the event with added commentary.

First off I want to stress that we started right at 6:30 P.M. as scheduled. I actually was looking at my phone’s clock and started speaking as soon as the time changed. Bradford arrived shortly thereafter and then individually welcomed everyone in the room. “Well, hello there. My name is Bradford. It’s so good to see you. Welcome, welcome . . . Bradford . . . Hello there.” We were off with a bang and the excitement of the first two wines was palpable.

The first wine was the 2006 Shooting Star Aligote from Washington State. Aligote is a white grape most commonly associated with Burgundy, as well as being the redheaded stepchild to Chardonnay. This was a much richer version than the French Aligote’s I’ve had in the past. It was pale gold with very little rim variation. The aromas were Asian pear, golden apple, Mandarin orange, lifting floral notes, spice and a whiff of lanolin. The flavors reminded me most of a nice baked apple pie with accents of spice and hazelnut. Excellent acidity and a lovely finish made this a crowd pleaser. Alongside the Aligote we poured the 2005 Shooting Star Chardonnay from Medocino. Apparently we learned that Jed declassified two lots from his single vineyard Chardonnays because they didn’t “fit” what he was working on. This wine was freaking gorgeous as we soon found out. It was pale gold with an ever so slight variation. The aromas leaped with notes of red apple, fig, vanilla spice and toast. (At this point I’m sending a shout-out to Ruth Speyer, who we’ve not forgotten. She would always laugh out loud whenever she would read my descriptions that ended with “and toast.”) On the palate the Chard was certainly a bit rounder and had that total ML (malolactic fermentation) feel to it with lots of buttery, creamy stuff going on around the intense apple notes. I loved the Chardonnay. The crowd preferred the Aligote. It was certainly an interesting contrast.

Next we tried the 2006 Shooting Star Riesling from Lake County. It was pale gold with little variation. The aromas were rich with lots of lime, lemon zest and apricot. It is a very clean and crisp wine, despite a touch of residual sugar. On the palate the peachy aspect of Riesling really came across, with more lime and hints of nectarine and spice. It was a really fun wine and the appetizer came out at this point which was stuffed shells with a crazy spicy sauce, and the Riesling cut through great and really shined.

Next we tried the 2005 Steele Carneros Pinot Noir. It was lovely. A pale, intense garnet with little variation, the wine began somewhat muddled aromatically for me. With vigorous swirling I began to get some earthy notes of strawberry reduction, red cherry, caramel and spicy stuff. It’s definitely a tick young at this point but was drinking great after ten minutes. It’s got lots of pedigree for a wine under $25, I can highly recommend it.

Next up we did a vintage comparison between the 1999 Steele Lake County Merlot and the 2003 Steele Lake County Merlot. The ’99 was medium garnet with more than a slight haze and medium variation. Its aromas were meaty at first, kind of like turkey thighs (know what I mean? Hey, I’m trying to be accurate) with oodles of black cherry and anise. On the palate it was lovely with darker fruit than the aromas, more like black cherry with big notes of brown sugar, star anise and yes Ruth, toast. I thought this wine was at a plateau and showing beautifully. The 2003 Merlot was clear and medium ruby with little variation. The aromas were jumping out of the glass with lots of burnt sugar and campfire smoke with cassis and black cherry lurking beneath. On the palate it was classic Merlot with black cherry, cassis, tobacco and spice with a touch of mocha. This wine was drinking great and had the tannin to survive a few years aging. I thought the 1999 was more interesting but both were lovely. The ’99 was a testament that Steele wines age.

Last up we had the Steele 2004 “Red Hills” Cabernet Sauvignon from Mendocino. It’s medium ruby with little variation. The aromas are rich and intense with notes of black cherry compote, cassis and brown sugar. On the palate the wine is full-bodied and relatively dry, despite how ripe it seems. Flavors of red cherry, cassis, Very Berry and toasted spice linger nicely on the finish. A day before, Ryan and I had been to Detroit and tried both the 2004 Dominus and the 2004 Beringer Private Reserve, which hover around a hundred and a quarter retail. I seriously think the ’04 Steele Cab would have hung in there quite nicely in a comparative tasting, and goes for eighty bucks less. Nice wine.

Another amazing tasting, I had tossed Steele in the “just another California winery” bin – and their wines really showed up. They’re awesome values for what they deliver, especially the Shooting Star Chard and the Steele Cab.

Last night while we packed up we took a break for some grilled cheese sandwiches and thought, let’s pop that Penalba Lopez 1990 Ribera del Duero Gran Reserva to see if it’s still alive. Whoa. Yes almighty indeed very much alive. 1990 was an excellent vintage for Ribera del Duero and this wine, while aged beautifully, was not fading at all. It was a pretty cherry/ruby color with medium variation and was fairly brilliant in brightness. The aromas were effusive with notes of dried black cherry, cassis, tobacco, coffee and spice. I spent five minutes smelling the wine before I even managed to taste it. On the palate it’s big and very complex, with plenty of cherry fruit mingling with black licorice, chocolate and firm, yet integrated tannins. Lots of licorice. In a good way.

One of the things I’ve begun to look to in terms of a wine’s quality is its finish. The finish on this was gorgeous and super long. Most wines have a normal finish length, but the truly special ones have discernible finishes that you actually remember as much as the aromas and flavors. This is one of those wines you can’t believe you’re drinking, because it’s so seemingly perfect. So on a Thursday night at midnight with grilled cheese while you pack your girlfriend’s car before she drives to California for law school is a good time to open a seventeen year old Tempranillo. Trust me.

It’s difficult to find wine that’s been aged but I’m always on the watch for overlooked gems. For similar but not quite as amazing experiences, check out our Penalba Lopez 1999 Ribera del Duero Crianza, it’s a lovely wine drinking great right now and it’s a steal for $10.75. It will be here for a good week or two before we run out. For some Ribera del Duero selections that are worthy of aging I recommend 2004, a crazy good vintage, probably the best of the decade at this point.

I have secretly stocked many wines from this vintage here at Art of the Table. We have limited amounts of

2004 Montecastro Ribera del Duero at $44.75 (94 pts Wine Advocate)

Avan “Nacimiento” 2004 Ribera del Duero at $35.50 (91 pts Wine Advocate)

2004 Pesquera Tinto at $36.00

Vizcarra “JC” Crianza 2004 Ribera del Duero at $24.50 (92 pts Wine Advocate)

2003 Pesquera Reserva Ribera del Duero at $58.00, which should be awesome as well.

Mike D.

Recently the G-pal and I attended some good friend’s 4 year old daughter’s birthday party. There were many young people, the requisite slip and slide in the backyard, a sand box, many parents, burnt hot dogs, melted ice cream. You get the picture? Expecting such, we brought a bottle of pink, the ’06 Stephen Pannell Grenache, which is pure strawberry creme-sickle btw, and were ready to battle flies. We were pleasantly surprised in that the hosts were also thinking pink, and had both the ’06 Domaine Faillenc Syrah and the ’06 Gour de Chaule Gigondas. The Syrah was bright and yummy with lots of upfront fruit, almost to the point of slightly sweet, it went great with my spicy brat and watermelon wedge. The Gigondas was a different story. Bone dry, lots of complexity, notes of mineral, earth, crazy pink fruits, easily the best dry rose I’ve ever had. My partner became a ball hog with the Gigondas at this point, which was fine with me. Fyi, I think there are about two bottles left at the store.

So at this point Allison and I are talking away with various parents and generally having a jovial time and getting mildly stuffed. Our expectations had been met and suddenly, as the third designer lunchbox had just been torn from goofy wrapping paper, I noticed my glass empty, just as John arrived with a box of wine. “Who’s that strange red man?” Allison asked. “Things will get interesting,” I muttered. We heading back to the patio where John was pulling out three bottles of Loire Valley gems. A ’96 Savennieres, a ’95 Coteaux du Layon and a ’90 Quartes du Chaume, all from Domaine Baumard, and all are, if you don’t know, incredibly ageableChenin Blanc. We were delighted at the opportunity to try these wines.

The Savennieres was first and the driest of the bunch. Deep gold with medium variation, it had aromas of dried apricot, peach, toasted nuts and honey. On the palate it was rich with additional notes of mineral and lime. Outstanding in every way, it quickly went as everyone caught wind of the tasting. Next up was the ’95 Coteaux du Layon, which was more advanced visually, a more turgid gold, almost browning. The aromas really shot out of the glass and all I was getting initially was circus peanuts. Seriously. The more we swirled the more we got citrus rind, orange blossom, lots of honey. Truly complex aromas. I think I went almost five minutes before I even wanted to taste it. On the palate it’s certainly ripe and pushing sweet, but the thing I kept going back to was the ripping acidity. This wine was not going to go anywhere and I anticipate it lasting another ten years plus. Finally, the ’90 Quarts du Chaume was poured and was discernibly lighter in color, a brilliant yellow gold with much less variation. Likewise, the aromatics were somewhat muted. We were stunned! This seventeen year old wine wasn’t even ready to drink. After vigorous swirling typical notes of botrytis, candied pear, orange liqueur and spice began to yield. Very sweet and again, ridiculously acidic, this is a wine to toss in the furthest corner of the cellar, as I anticipate it will last 25 more years. At the end of the night I snuck the last of the ’95 into my glass to share with Allison, which we agreed was easily showing the best this night of all the wines. It was utterly sublime .

We have a 2003 Savennieres here at the store, and a 2003 Coteaux du Layon, please stop in and ask your friendly Art of the Table representative about Chenin Blanc.

This past week, Amy & Steve took a quick trip to California for both some R&R and some wine tasting. We happily report that California is just as beautiful as last time! Apparently there was an earthquake in San Francisco while we were there, but we were over in Modesto at the time and didn’t feel the effects. We did, however feel the effects of great food, wine, pool, sun & friends! We try to venture to California every other summer. We always go with the same three couples as they’re great travel companions. They have to bear with us as we get very in depth, full line tastings and the whole 9-yards tours of wineries. But then again, I don’t think it bothers them too much. They’re Dutch and I get them in free with extra wine!

Wine visits on this trip included a jaunt to Santa Rosa to taste at Hook & Ladder winery. We currently carry my favorite two wines from our tasting there – the Gewurtztraminer & Cabernet Sauvignon; and though I never thought I’d hear myself say this, their White Zinfandel wasn’t bad!

The other two visits that day included Ace Cider Company and B.R. Cohn winery.

We rented a house in Sonoma and ate out at two neat restaurants; Deuce & The General’s Daughter. Both were great, though if you go to The General’s Daughter, be prepared for a price fixe meal. We weren’t. Don’t get me wrong. It was good food, it just wasn’t what we were expecting.

The other day of our tastings took us to Napa. We made a quick stop at the Oakville Grocery so Amy could get some more ideas of products to carry. Watch for the Bread Dip Co. to arrive soon! Our two wineries today included Cosentino & Grgich Hills. At Grgich, we got the special tour from Dave Bos, one of the vineyard managers (originally from Holland, MI). They are using biodynamics in their fields to create better grapes – therefore making better wines. We got the whole schpiel and our own tasting with Dave. My favorite? The Fume Blanc. It’s got a ton of flavor and it’s round and full in the mouth.

At Cosentino we tasted through a ton of different stuff. On the top of my list were – the expensive ones! Seriously though, collectively we liked “The Franc”, Legends Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, the Merlot and the Napa Cab. The Cabernet was not ‘typical’ we decided. It was lighter and dirtier than most. The Merlot had a great nose, was plush and at a great price. The real fave for me was the Legends Meritage. A blend of 41% Cab, 37% Merlot & 22% Cab Franc, it was plush but not sugary, besides that all I could think about was the green pepper. Yes, up there at $80 of course I like it!

This is (as always) an exciting time of year for the wine department here at Art of the Table. As Spring approaches we get excited for fresh air and move our palates towards white and rosé wines. We will be getting all our spring direct import deliveries soon! First arrival: 2006 rosés, 2005 red Rhone & 2006 white Rhone selections in late April/early May & our 2006 German Rieslings late May/early June!

We are tasting new wines all the time looking for the best values and best varietals from the very best producers from all over the world for you. More than ever are so many amazing wines available to us—and that’s exciting! Here’s a brief on some standouts:

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2006 at Art of the Table was another amazing year. This year we had more new and interesting wines in the store than ever and more new and interesting customers along the way as well – and we love that!

I thought it would be fun to list off the highlights for the year and that turned into the saga shown below. We’ve not done one before and as it’s been so crazy around here I’m actually looking forward to doing something fun. (It must have been fun, because Mike slipped in a 26 th wine on Amy’s nagging request!)

What’s the criteria for Top Twenty Five status? Well, the intrepid wine staff here at Art of the Table has spent hours in round table discussion and we’ve used every possible rational to determine just which wines should be honored including “best selling,” “cutest label,” “quality verses price,” “Mike said it was good,” “it really went well with that ______ display,” “Suzanne said it was good,” “the label looks like a spaceship,” and many more as you can imagine.

Top 25 drumroll please…

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Ken Wright started in Oregon Pinot Noir in 1986 as the winemaker for Panther Creek. In 1993 he established Ken Wright Cellars and began a path of bottling only single vineyard Pinot Noirs.

From 1993 to 1996 he served as winemaker at Domaine Serene while he built and established his own winery.

Ken’s Pinots always emphasize elegance over power; and he achieves this by having very close relationships with his vineyard owners and their workers, and thus yields are very low and concentrated. Ken’s philosophy is that winemaking revolves around working with nature to fully allow the vines to express their quality of fruit and place.

He mentions, “human beings are not responsible for the wine we enjoy, the qualities the grapes posses are inherent, we don’t inject them.” He views his role as to “simply try to have the purest expression the fruit is capable of, brought all the way to the bottle and evident in the glass of wine.” Because of this philosophy, it’s no wonder that Ken feels “pinot noir has a far greater ability than any other variety to express the qualities of place, and that’s magical!” Needless to say we’re excited to have been able to grab a few bottles of the 2005 Ken Wright’s Pinot Noirs. These will be fantastic gifts for the collector for the holidays, as they age well for 8 to 15 years.

Following, a breakdown of the different single vineyards:

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It’s beer mail time again and new in the store this week:

Old Curmudgeon Old Ale from Founders Brewery in good ‘ol Grand Rapids, Michigan is here at a rate going for $3.15 per and $12.60 for four.

This Old Ale conjures up thoughts of classic seafaring ports, their local pubs, and the weathered fisherman that frequent them. In traditional style, Curmudgeon is brewed with an intense focus on the malt bill, creating a very strong and rich malty characteristic and a sweetness indicative of its cousin, the Barley Wine. Displaying exceptional balance, this is deceptively smooth and drinkable at 9.3% ABV. Try this alongside beef flautas with black bean puree, roasted pepper salsa and cilantro-tequila cream.

Not to be outdone, New Holland Brewery out of Holland, Michigan presents their Blue Goat Dopplebock in a 22oz. format available for sale at seven dollars and yes, a nickel.

Blue Goat is a tribute to the perseverance and billy goat toughness of those charged with the mission of bringing beer to the people. Many charismatic, resourceful people and countless pieces of quirky equipment have endured endless challenges to exceed humble expectations.

Art of the Table is all about these people and thusly we say, “For all you do, this Blue Goat’s for you.” And so you know . . . .Blue Goat Dopplebock is chestnut in color with a nutty malt profile from its signature Munich malt. A muted hop presence and smooth caramelized body culminate in a clean, dry finish. 9.0%ABV

Enjoy with grilled lavash pizza with spicy humus, grilled eggplant, feta, red chili oil and fresh mint.

Besides our star beers of the week, we’ve got some oldies but goodies back:

• New Holland’s Zoomer Wit
• Hoegaarden
• Smithwicks
• Founders’ Rubaeus
• UFO Hefeweizen

Enjoy the sunshine and warmer weather!

Amy & Mike