Ed & Laurie C’s Backyard

I thought I should mention Ed & Laurie’s beautiful backyard, which made perfect bookends to our evening at Cin-cin.  Beth and I arrived at Laurie’s about an hour before our reservations so as to carpool to the restaurant.  Ed opened a bottle of Champagne and we sat in the early evening sun in their beautiful backyard.  The waterfall flowing into the Koi pond highlights this wonderful space, surrounded with all kinds of flowers and plants and eclectic decorations.  It is really the perfect place to relax.

After returning from dinner, Beth and I were treated to one of Ed and Laurie’s recent finds; a bottle of Basil Hayden bourbon.  This is a Kentucky Bourbon and very mellow.  Ed and I enjoyed a cigar as we sat back and soaked in the very warm evening and very smooth bourbon.  Before we knew it, it was one in the morning and the Basil Hayden was dead.

Thank you Laurie and Ed for a great evening!!!

CIN-CIN WINE BAR

Laurie and Ed invited us to this relatively new wine bar/restaurant in Los Gatos over the weekend.  After viewing the menu online, I was excited to go!  The dishes sounded very tasty while the wine seemed a little pricey.  The meal turned out pretty much as expected.  Ed was nice enough to bring a very nice Pinot to start with (’05 Windy Oaks) and it went well with the small plates and sampler platters we ordered.  We did order another bottle of Pinot, a “06 Elk Cove from the Willamette Valley, but it wasn’t nearly as good as the first.  (Too earthy for me!)  As for the entrees, they were merely good.  Laurie and Beth both got the Steak Frites and while being a good plate of food, it really wasn’t something to rave about.  Ed and I both ordered the Griddled “Diver” Sea Scallops.  The scallops were good, not as big as I would have liked, and although the dish was certainly unique considering the addition of crumbled Italian sausage to the scallops, squid ink pasta, manila clams, broccoli rabe and saffron butter, the sausage did sort of overpower the dish.  Maybe a good, spicy zin would have helped.

Overall, I was a little disappointed with the entrees, but pleasantly surprised by the appetizers and small plates.  The Wild Mushroom Empanadas were very good and the sampler plate and Charcuterie Plate were delicious and lots of fun to share and taste!  There were some creative dishes and fun presentations too.  With one $50 bottle of wine and one corkage, out tab came to about $150 per couple including the tip.  A fun, lively (if slightly noisy) place to share a bite with friends.

SCOTTS FLAT LAKE

Beth and I went back to this pretty jewel of a lake for a second year with Nate and Steph and Ed and Laurie.  This year it was to celebrate Nate’s B-day, which we did by buying him a bottle of VSOP Cognac and helping him drink it.  Actually, the cognac was only a small part of what got consumed last weekend.  I polished of at least a liter of Old No. 7 with some help from Beth and Ed.  Ed also had martinis, rum drinks, wine and I don’t know what else the first night which quickly led to a battle with gravity which Ed soon lost.  Now, this is not a man who can’t hold his liquor, but I guess the 65 pounds Ed has dropped over the last six months probably has something to do with it.  So, now he looks great, at least ten years younger.  (Just ignore that scrape under his eye that he got when the ground jumped up and bit him!)

Again this year, our culinary flair served to piss off neighbors, highlighted by Laurie’s Pesto Stuffed Prawns on the Barbie, and then the tender Rib-eyes with her homemade BBQ sauce.  Laurie’s use of a camping “oven” was also a new trick I hadn’t seen before.  All it takes is lining the inside of a cardboard box with aluminum foil and placing it on the grill over hot coals.  Soon, your biscuits will be done!  Beth’s Muffuletta sandwiches were also to die for.

Saturday afternoon was interrupted by a sudden, very loud thunderstorm accompanied by a short downpour and a one minute hail storm.  It was very fun, if not slightly unnerving.

Overall, it was a weekend for relaxing, which I did with the help of a few cigars and plenty of company from my friend Jack.  We sat and watched the water and the younger set play in it.  Chelsea (yellow lab) was energetic as last year and Tristan and Zowie were a cute little couple. 

Indian Tabac Super Fuerte

Paul gave me one of these little box-pressed sticks last week and it smelled so good I decided to smoke it, rather than let it rest in the humidor. The pre-light smell reminded me of a leaf chewing tobacco (Levi Garrett, for those fellow rednecks out there) and for the first half inch, this was a very sweet, aromatic smoke. Alas, it did not last very long. Soon, this cigar became pretty harsh and stayed that way until the bitter end. (Pardon the pun) Maybe it needs some aging in the humi, or maybe this is just an inexpensive or inconsistant smoke. Either way, I wasn’t impressed.

LA FONDUE

Beth and I finally made a reservation to use the gift certificate that Gail and Jeff gave us as a wedding present!  I had never eaten at this long time Saratoga fixture, but Beth of course had eaten there numerous times so I let her be my guide.  We started out with cocktails, I ordered a Dirty Vodka martini and she a Champagne Cocktail.  Mine was great and hers, like all the others she has had that weren’t made in Paris, didn’t quite live up to the ones that were. 

After making our selections off the menu, we were given our very large salads to tide us over while the fondue pot heated up.  I was warned that there would be a lot of food, so I ate about six bites of the Chef’s salad (which was very good) and made myself wait for the cheese fondue appetizer course.  We had selected the 3 Cheese with Champagne and caviar, to which our server also added some garlic and black pepper.  The usual suspects were brought out to be sacrificed to the cauldron of melted cheese.  Bread, strawberries, apple slices, olives, broccoli and gerkins are some I remember.  I really can’t say I could tasted the caviar, but it looked cool (tons of little black dots in the melted cheese) and it gave a very interesting texture when each would burst between your teeth.  It was delish!

Next, came the main course.  The server replaced the fondue pot with a cast iron grill pan and brought our selected meats.  We had Yellowtail tuna, marinated Swiss chicken pieces, buffalo, scallops, beef filet and Pacific white shrimp.  Once the olive oil was hot we cooked and ate our food.  It was very good and accompanied by six different dipping sauces.

Finally, we got another fondue pot and it was filled with Bitter-sweet chocolate and Godiva liqueur.  Once again, a plate of fruit and sweets was provided for our dunking pleasure.  Very decadent!

The only downside to the meal was the violent abdominal cramping and subsequent unpleasantness on our respective toilets!  We were scheduled to go over to Ed & Laurie’s house for some wine by the Koi pond following dinner, but we had to drive straight home at a rapid rate instead!  We’re not sure the exact cause of our discomfort, as I’m sure I cooked everything properly, but I can now say that La Fondue ranks second on my list of worst restaurant diarrhea, surpassed only by Black Angus!  Of course, the cuisine was ten times better at La Fondue, but the feeling post-meal was about the same. 

Obviously, we ate something bad (or we are both suddenly VERY lactose intolerant!), but I would be willing to give La Fondue a second chance.  Maybe in a year or two.

ASTRAL TORPEDO

I guess I got one of these in a sampler pack of assorted brands.  It looked like a nice, mild cigar so I gave it a try the other night when I just wanted a smooth, light smoke.  The wrapper was a nice, smooth tan color and I was pleasantly surprised to find it was a good smoke!  I would call it mild to medium in body, with a sweet and nutty flavor.  For the most part, it didn’t seem too complex, however, I smoked it to the nub and it became more tangy with very interesting flavors towards the end.  I would definitely smoke one again!

SAN CRISTOBAL TORPEDO

I smoked one of these the other day at a BBQ and was fairly pleased.  I would smoke one again, but probably won’t be filling my humidor with any.  Overall it was a good, medium bodied cigar.  Spicey and pretty smooth.  Unfortunately, there wasn’t a huge volume of smoke.  Although, at this point I can’t remember individual flavors, it was a fairly complex smoke.  With about 1/3 left, I got tired of the low volume of smoke and clipped another 1/4 inch off the tip.  Wow, did that do the trick!  Suddenly, I had billows of smoke!!  The tight draw disappeared, and the cigar became much more enjoyable.  I would definitely recommend a rather large cut when smoking these.

COLLAPSE OF AIRLINE INDUSTRY

If gas and oil prices continue to rise, I believe will will see the end of affordable air travel for the masses.  Look at how much money the airlines are losing already.  Look how many have gone bankrupt already.  Now American is going to start charging for the FIRST checked bag? 

If gas prices keep rising, I think you will see ticket prices double.  The world will go back to being a larger place, with air travel becoming more of a luxury once again, as it was until about 30 years ago.

LA FLOR DOMINICANA CAMEROON CAB #4

I was expecting great things from this cigar, since I love the La Flor Dominicana Ligero so much.  I got a single cigar online and found out they don’t make bands for them.  This naked stick was very veiny, and there was some damage to the wrapper as well.  Add the fact that my humidor shot up to 73% humidity thanks to the new system I put in, and this cigar might have been wasted before I even made a cut.  When I did make the cut, the cap came off and the wrapper started to unravel.  I managed to light and smoke it down to about two inches, but I really didn’t enjoy this smoke.

Overall, this cigar was MILD!  I was expecting a medium bodied stick, but this was just weak.  The flavor was mild with no finish or aftertaste to speak of.  It burned okay, but didn’t put out much smoke.  Of course, this could have been because of the damaged wrapper.  I will give this one a try in the future, but not as a single stick from the internet.

EMILE’S

I took Beth to this long time, San Jose fixture to celebrate her Birthday last week.  Twenty or thirty years ago, Emile’s was known as the best restaurant in San Jose.  Since then, it’s seen it’s ups and downs.  First thing we noticed was the lovely decor and atmosphere.  It’s definitely a nice date place!  The menu looked promising, and the waiter promptly opened the bottle of 1992 Chateau Montelena Estate Cab we had brought.  The wine was very fruity at first, but soon settled down and was very good, although probably not one of the better years.

Unfortunately, the next time the waiter came around, he bore bad news.  They were out of caviar!  He said he hoped we hadn’t wanted to order any, and we had to inform him that I was definitely going to get the caviar and egg appetizer.  Oh well, I settled for the gnocchi and goat cheese, which was delicious if you made sure to get some baby spinach, goat cheese and a cherry tomato all on the fork with the gnocchi.  All together, the four ingredients make a wonderful taste experience.  Beth ordered a Filo Flower Pot, or something like that.  A filo dough “pot” with goat cheese (different than my goat cheese), greens, sliced pears, roasted walnuts and a Port reduction.  Great presentation and a very tasty dish as well.

For our entrees, Beth got a plate with Lamb, Veal, and a beef fillet on a bed of potatoes (mashed, I think) each with its own sauce.  Very good!  I ordered the Duck a la Orange.  The duck was great, but the veggies on the plate were just ok.  Not that special.

We ordered the Grand Marnier Soufflé when we ordered our appetizers, but there was still at least a 20 minute delay in getting the Souffle after we were finished with our entrees.  Not very good timing.

Overall, a good French restaurant in San Jose, but needs a little work.  It was a Thursday night, and there were only about 7 tables going while we were there so maybe there was only a couple of cooks in the kitchen?  Cost wasn’t too bad.  Less than $200.  Corkage was $25 I think.  I think we will try a different French restaurant in the area before heading back to Emile’s.