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Thursday, January 28, 2010

Very, very, very, rare!!!

In stock now...

Sold Out!!
Old Rip Van Winkle Family
Selection 23 year Old Decanter....$349.99






Limited Edition ORVW 23 year-old Decanter
23 years old - 57% abv (114 proof)


Limited Edition Old Rip Van Winkle
Bourbon Whiskey to be released

FRANKLIN COUNTY, KY—December, 2009 —The Van Winkle family is pleased to announce the release of a very limited Old Rip Van Winkle Family Selection 23 year-old bourbon whiskey decanter. Every barrel of whiskey was chosen from the lower, cooler floors of the aging warehouse, allowing this wheated-recipe bourbon to age more gracefully.

Julian and Preston Van Winkle hand-picked these select barrels which were filled in April of 1986. This bourbon will not be chill filtered, leaving in all the flavor and complexity of the whiskey. Each decanter will be bottled at the original barrel entry proof of 114.

“This is some of our best whiskey,” commented Julian Van Winkle. “I’m thrilled to offer this new expression of Old Rip. Hopefully whiskey aficionados will appreciate the rich taste of this bourbon as much as I do.”

There will only be 1,200 of these unique decanters available. Each bottle was produced by the award-winning Glencairn Crystal of Scotland and is hand-engraved and numbered to commemorate the exclusive bottling. Every decanter will be packaged in a beautiful solid wood, leather-lined box along with a crystal stopper and two crystal glasses.


Bacon Basket....

Say ‘I love you’ with … bacon?
By
Evan Benn


check out the article on stltoday.com

Mardi Gras beer...

Each 6 pack comes with Mardi Gras beads...
Lakefront Big Easy Imperial Maibock...$8.79 / 6pk

"We brew just a few batches of our Big Easy Lager every year to celebrate Mardi Gras. Don't be fooled by this beer's light color: at about 7% alcohol by volume, it can very quickly make you the life of the party! Pours a brilliant blonde-gold with a bright white fluffy head. Malty aromas blend with German noble Hallertauer hops. The flavor is bold and malty, with a robust sweetness provided by ample amounts of Munich pale malt that continues to the clean finish. A great crowd pleaser, and a fabulous beer for Carnival, whether you're celebrating down in the French Quarter or right here with us in Milwaukee.
Pairs well with Cajun, or any spicy food. A rounded hop flavor and crisp carbonation lift the spiciness of gumbo and jambalaya, while the substantial body stands up to the richness of dishes like etouffee. The sweetness can almost even pair with caramely pralines." -- brewery

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

RateBeers best of 2010

RateBeer has released their list of top brewers of last year....
Best Brewers 2010

The Wine and Cheese Place stocks beers from the breweries underlined....we should feel luck we carry 5 out of the top 10!! Click on the beers to order online and read more.

1 Three Floyds Brewing Company -- Munster, Indiana,

2 AleSmith Brewing Company -- San Diego, California
3 Cigar City Brewing -- Tampa, Florida
4 Founders Brewing Company -- Grand Rapids, Michigan
5 Bells Brewery -- Kalamazoo, Michigan
6 Russian River Brewing -- Santa Rosa, California
7 Dieu du Ciel Montreal -- Quebec, Canada
8 Great Divide Brewing Company -- Denver, Colorado

9 Stone Brewing Co. -- Escondido, California
10 Brouwerij de Molen Bodegraven -- Netherlands
11 De Struise Brouwers Oostvleteren -- Belgium

12 Westvleteren Abdij St. Sixtus Westvleteren -- Belgium
13 Mikkeller Copenhagen -- Denmark
14 Hair of the Dog Brewing Company -- Portland, Oregon
15 Närke Kulturbryggeri Örebro -- Sweden
16 The Bruery -- Placentia, California
17 New Glarus Brewing Company -- New Glarus, Wisconsin
18 Southern Tier Brewing Company -- Lakewood, New York
19 Ballast Point Brewing Company -- San Diego, California
20 Avery Brewing Company Boulder, Colorado

44 Boulevard -- Kansas City, Missouri
86 Schlafly -- St. Louis, Missouri

Valentines February 14th

Great Valentine's Idea....
Bacon Basket...for that special someone. Its fun and its original. We can include Bakon Vodka, Bacon Chocolate Bars, Bacon Bandages, Bacon Soap, Bacon Gummy Strips, Bacon Air Freshner and of course BACON. We purposely have 2 more bacons ordered to arrive before Valentines day. We have also increased the amount so we hopefully will not run out. That way you can choose from 1-4 different bacons for your basket if you like. Remember, bacon freezes very well so you do not have to eat it all in one week.
While products last....call 314-727-8788 to order.

Vintage Dated Tuna

Best Tuna in the world?
2005 Bonito del Norte Tuna in Olive Oil...$13.99 / 3.9oz
(in stock at Forsyth)


Cured 2 years
"The Bonito del Norte (White Tuna) is fished from July till October at the Bay of Biscay. Ortiz Tuna is caught by rod and line, one by one, to assure the best quality in their preparations. This is a kind of fishing that helps to guarantee the future of the marine world resources. We select the best and hand-pack it right off the boat. We then cure it in olive oil in our family bodega for over a year."- Ortiz



New Holland special...

Another great closeout....also about 10 cases available....
In stock at Forsyth now
Rock Hill has a few bottles and will have more later today
Provsions will have some tomorrow (Friday)

New Holland Black Tulip - Trippel Ale...$3.99 / 22oz
Compare to the rest of the High Gravity Series...$7.29 / 22oz
"Since the early 1600's the Dutch have attempted to breed a pure black tulilp. Many have tried, a few have come close, but none have succeeded. In honor of this elusive flower, the Holy Grail of the tulip world, we offer a special brew, Black Tulip Trippel." -- brewery

"Mysterious, alluring and seductive, yet tantalizingly elusive; these are the storied characteristics of the Black Tulip. Golden in color, Black Tulip Trippel is a delightful beer with a slightly sweet body. Its ester-laden character reveals an enigmatic dance between Belgian ale yeast and Michigan beet sugar, conjuring hints of bananas and rock candy. Its inviting flavor is complemented by a pleasing dry finish. Alc. 8.8% by Vol" -- brewery

Anderson Valley closeout...

The distributor closed out these great beers....about 10 cases of each available at this price.
Brother David's Double Abbey Style Ale...$2.99 / 22oz
Compare to $6.99 at Spec's in Texas
9% ABV
"Rich mahogany appearance. Firm and substantial head that slowly fades to dry fruit aromas including apricot, figs, raisins, as well as malt and spice notes. The full body of this Belgian style ale supports initial fruit flavors that give way to malt notes and chocolate covered cherries, while suffused throughout with the distinctive flavor of the Belgian Abbey yeast. It finishes rather spicy and quite dry, with the warmth of its 9% alcohol. The flavors become more pronounced, blending and complementing each other as the beer warms. If you like Belgian beer, you owe it to yourself to try this American brewed Belgian-style beer." -- Anderson Valley


Brother David's Triple Abbey Style Ale...$2.99 / 22oz
Compare to $6.99 at Spec's in Texas
10% ABV

"A bright dry aroma tops off this deeply complex Belgian-style beer that has over tones of malt, fruit, and freshly mown fields. The intensity of the higher alcohol is rounded out by the deep richness of the malt and the light hop flavors. Light and pale in color, a nice malt backbone holds up the highlights of spicy hops intermingled with yeast esters and aromas. The triple (or "tripel" as the Belgian's call it) is a medium-bodied strong Belgian-style beer, with just a touch of mild malt sweetness and a dry finish on the palate. The comparatively light body of this beer is achieved by substantial additions of candy sugar in the kettle and medium-high carbonation level. The hopping has been kept low, with the use of classic European hop varieties to give just a hint of spiciness." -- Anderson Valley

PADDY is here!!

Everyone that travels to the U.K. comes back asking for Paddy's Irish Whiskey, but up until now, it has not been available here in the United States. We have it in stock now at Forsyth, Ballwin and Rock Hill. Missouri only received 30 cases at this point. Only size available is liters. But we have been transitioning most of our 750ml bottles of liquor into liters this year. It is 33% more liquor and a much better price per ounce. Jon our "slogan man" wants us to be the LITER leaders.




Paddy Old Irish Whiskey....$26.99 / liter
Here is some info from their website...
Nose:
Fresh and lively, aromatic - a complex interplay of nutty maltiness, woodland fragrances and spice, with hints of honey and vanilla.
Taste:
Mild, soft, a distinctive mellow maltiness, a touch of sweet oil, spiciness - and again those background notes of honey, vanilla, toasted wood.
Finish:
A sweetness gently fading, mellow maltiness and mild woody notes lingering pleasingly.



Paddy Whiskey is distilled three times from the finest quality barley and water. This ensures a whiskey, which is particularly light, well balanced and pure.Its relatively low pot-still content and uniquely high proportion of malt whiskey, ensures Paddy is 'One of the softest of all Ireland's whiskeys'
Jim Murray, International Whiskey Connoisseur.



During maturation in oak casks stored in dark aromatic warehouses for up to seven years, Paddy whiskey mellows, and takes on it's distinctive rich, golden colour.Two percent of Paddy Whiskey is lost to the atmosphere during maturation. This evaporated whiskey has come to be called 'The Angel's Share'.


The most well known of all the Irish whiskeys is Paddy whiskey. But less well known, is the fact that this delightful whiskey was named after a gregarious sales representative for Cork Distilleries Company called Paddy Flaherty.


Cork Distilleries Company
Cork Distilleries Company was founded in 1877 and had a number of distilling sites in the Cork city area. The distillery used the finest local grown barley and pure water from tributaries of the river Lee to distill world class whiskeys. The walls of the distillery still stand in Cork today in the area known as North Mall. In 1882, a young Patrick J. O’Flaherty joined the Cork Distilleries Company as a traveller. Paddy covered an area stretching from Youghal to Mallow selling the rather unwieldy named ‘Cork Distilleries Company Old Irish Whiskey’.

Fun With Bacon

When we said the year of the bacon, we meant it....
Now in stock at Forsyth....everything you need for the bacon lover...


Bakon Vodka - click to read more
Bacon Chocolate - click to read more
Artisan Bacon from around the U.S.



Now check out these items....we can make up the perfect Bacon gift basket for that bacon lover in your house.


Bacon Strips Bandages....$4.99



"Ouch! That smarts! Treat your minor cuts, scrapes and scratches with the incredible healing power of a designer bandage from Accoutrements. And if a fancy bandage isn't enough to dry up your tears, how about a FREE TOY!"


Funky Fresh Bacon Air Freshner...$1.99 / pkg


Bacon Air Freshener---Just say no to pine trees! Our selection of Air Fresheners features fun images and enticing aromas! Each one measures about 4" (10.2 cm) and comes with a string for hanging.



Uncle Oinker's Gummy Bacon...$4.99

"These succulent strips of Gummy Bacon are so realistic you'll want to fry some up and serve them with an egg and a side of hash browns. But please don't. Gummy Bacon should only be savored raw. Each illustrated window box contains four 20 gram slices of strawberry flavored gummy meat sealed in a plastic bag. Safe Handling instructions: Keep in a cool dry place away from sunlight, high temperatures and humidity. Do not attempt to fry or Microwave!!" :D





Bacon Soap....$6.49



"It's a sunny Sunday morning and you wake to the sweet smell of bacon wafting from the... bathroom? That's right, we've captured the enticing aroma of frying bacon in a bar of soap! Each marbled bar has the words "Bacon Soap" embossed on top and comes in a fancy tin. "


A delightfult soap infused with the sweet perfume of Bacon!!!





Bacon & Egg Bag....$6.99


Two happy friends together



"These days most people bring their own bags when they shop, but why settle for a bag that advertises the local grocery chain when you could be sporting something more stylish? And when we say stylish we mean something with illustrations of overly happy anthropomorphized breakfast food!"









Bacon Gumballs....$3.99



Yes, we've gone overboard with the "bacon" thing, but who can blame us? Bacon is a powerful force and we are but disciples doing our part to spread the gustatory gospel.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

The finest Roquefort

There are only seven producers of "real" Roquefort blue cheese. The largest and most famous by far is Roquefort Société. The others include Gabriel Coulet, Roquefort Papillon, Vernières, Carles, Fromageries Occitanes, and Combes (Le Vieux Berger).



Gabriel Coulet Roquefort "Le Petite Cave"
"La Petite Cave" is the reserve version of Gabriel Coulet. Their head cheesemaker selects the finest wheels of Roquefort in their cellar and they become "Le Petite Cave". Come in for a taste of this gold medal winning cheese.





"The story of Gabriel Coulet brings us in 1872, when Guilhaume Coulet, a carter by trade, began to dig a cellar under his residence of Roquefort with the intention of letting some bottles of wine mature…

Then, he discovered a fleurine (one of the famous faults which ventilate Roquefort cellars), and he decided to continue his labour to make a maturing cellar.

Years passed and our founder gave the torch to his son Gabriel Coulet in 1906. Passion becoming stronger, Gabriel Coulet worked passionately giving in this way his name and his fame to the company.

A few decades later, it was his son-in-law’s turn, Francis Laur, to take over the reins, and he made a famous cellar of it.

The fourth generation (Pierre and André Laur, Francis Laur’s sons) knew how to conquest over the years the hart and the papillae of lovers of Roquefort from France and abroad expanding strongly sales in the world.

The fifth generation (Jean-Pierre and Emmanuel Laur, Pierre and André Laur’s respective sons), boosted by a passion and an undeniable family talent, today takes up the challenge of Gabriel Coulet Roquefort recognized for its quality in the whole world.

Many medals (including Gold medal in 2004, 2005 and 2006 at the agricultural general show of Paris) reward the relentless work of this family and independent company (SME) hanged out in the middle of the mass of fallen rocks of Roquefort…" -- their website

Monday, January 25, 2010

A rare farmhouse cheese...

A very rare farmhouse -- raw milk Ossau Iraty...

in stock now at Forsyth....



Ossau Iraty Vallée d’Aspe Pur Brebis
Whole Raw Sheep's Milk Ossau Iraty
Most of the Ossau-Iraty we see here in the states is the large factory (non-fermier) produced version, but we just received an artisan hand-crafted farm-made (fermier) version. It is made from raw sheep's milk cheese from the Manech Ewe in the Pyrenees mountains. This cheese is more aged and more flavorful than the "regular" Ossau-Iraty that we carry year round. It has a great aged, nutty and very robust flavors.


Amazing cheese...


Nettle Meadow Kunik
New York
"This cheese is a sumptuous concentration of the organic grains and wild herbs our goats eat every day, including wild raspberry leaf, nettle, kelp, comfrey, garlic, barley, goldenrod." -- label


This is an amazing cheese that we only get in periodically. This new batch is quite delicious. We normally have the 8 oz "buttons", but this time we got in the 1 pound wheels. It is a white mold ripened triple cream cheese made from a blend of Jersey cow cream and from goat's milk. The delicious white paste inside the rind is rich and buttery from the Jersey cow cream and the goat's milk gives it a nice tanginess. Come in and ask for a taste and you will be hooked also.

More information about Nettle Meadow if you are interested...
Nettle Meadow Goat Farm and Cheese Company
Happy Goats - Great Cheese
"Nettle Meadow Goat Farm is a 50 acre 2300 head dairy and cheese company in Thurman, New York just below Crane Mountain in the Adirondack just between Gore Mountain/North Creek/NY and Warrensburg New York. It is owned and operated by Lorraine Lambiase and Sheila Flanagan. Both have a great love of animals, goat cheese and the simplicity and challenges of farm life. Our farm is run with the assistance of farm manager, Stephen Hitchcock, assistant manager Sam Saunders, Joan Flanagan, Mellanie Groff, Adam Clute, Nathan Groff and Janissa Parker. Nettle Meadow farm was originally founded in 1990 and is the home of 250 goats, several dozen sheep and a small group of happy Jersey cows.Nettle Meadow is committed to the principles of natural ingredients, happy and healthy goats, and carefully hand-crafted artisan goat cheeses. We make several varieties of soft goat cheeses including plain chevre, tellicherry pepper and lemon verbena chevre, chevre with mixed herbs, horseradish, olive oil and garlic chevre, maple walnut chevre, pumpkin spice chevre and herb, pepper and garlic chevre as well as fromage blanc, honey lavender fromage blanc, and rosemary infused fromage blanc. We are also well known for our semi-aged cheeses, including triple cream Kunik made from goat milk and jersey cow cream, and Crane Mountain made from 100% goat's milk as well as our most recent creation - Three Sisters (named after Three Sisters mountains which overshadow our farm) and made from farmstead sheep, goat and jersey cow milk.
Nettle Meadow's Sanctuary is also home a number of retired and rescued farm animals which includes several young male goats looking for good homes as pets or brush goats and male and female young kids free to good homes for pets and brush goats year round." -- website

Bacon #3 of 2010

2010 TWCP Year of the Bacon
Bacon #1 - Iowa -- Valde Rose - Sold out
Bacon #2 - Kentucky -- Scott's Jowl Bacon
(few packages left at Forsyth and Ballwin)





Bacon #3 - New Hamphsire
Just arrrived (at Forsyth and Rock Hill)

North Country Smokehouse

It looks delicious...(I will be trying it tonight)
North Country Cob Smoked Bacon....$9.99 lb
Thick Cut

Corn cob smoking is a traditional style of smoking in Northern New England. It is more pungent and less sweet than Applewood. The leanest bellies are selected to create the finest bacon available anywhere and at any price. Slow cured for days in maple syrup and select spices our bacon is then smoked and cooked for 8 hours.

"My family has been selling the finest smoked meats in the Connecticut River Valley for over seventy-five years. We have seen many changes since the days when my grandfather sold meat off a horse drawn cart. However, we continue to maintain only the highest commitment to quality and service possible." -- Mike Satzow, proprietor


Hand selected at a small family owned packing plant at the mouth of the St. Lawrence seaway extra lean pork bellies began there journey from farm to your table. Once it is accepted at our plant the bellies are marinated in a sweet brine and slowly smoked.

The same basic brine that we use in our hams and chops is also used with our bacons. Only the leanest of fresh pork is used in the preparation of our bacons and the blend of our maple cure and applewood or cob smoke making our bacon some of the finest available. In fact, Yankee Magazine says, "You will not find a finer bacon."

We could go on and on as to what makes our bacon so spectacular, but we would rather you take a taste and that will explain it all!

Bacon ---

I pulled 5 more packages of Scott's Jowl Bacon from Rock Hill
-- so we have a few more packages at Forsyth now and a few in Ballwin

Quilceda Creek Cabernet

Extremely limited!!
In stock now!!

2006 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Galitzine Vineyard...$144.99
"The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Galitzine Vineyard, located in the Red Mountain AVA, is 100% varietal. Dark ruby/purple in color, it delivers an enticing nose of pain grille, pencil lead, earth notes, spice box, violets, and assorted black fruits. On the palate it is dense, ripe, full-bodied, and structured. Still a bit tightly wound, it will reveal its full potential with another 5-7 years of cellaring. It will provide much pleasure from 2015 to 2026 at the least. In 1990, in Issue 69, after tasting a complete vertical of Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon, I wrote that the winery was producing Washington’s (and possibly America’s) finest Cabernet Sauvignon. Little has changed in the intervening years. The winery has been upgraded and the portfolio has been expanded, while quality remains at the summit."

Rated 96/100 The Wine Advocate