2011 December: Wine Tasting Day 5

Day 5

Brut                             Blanc de Blanc                       Albrecht                 Cremant d’Alsace            France                               NV

Brut                             Blanc de Blanc                       1er Cru Paul Georg   Champagne,                  France                             NV

Brut                             1er Cru Aubry                                                        Champagne                   France                                 NV

Muscadet                     Sevre et Maine, Surlie,           Chateau de la Cheshare Loire,                        France                           2010

Sancerre                       Pascal Jolivet                                                    Loire                                France                                 2010

Vouvray                     “Les Giradirer” Domaine des Ausbuisieres,              Loire,                            France                                    2009

Riesling                     “Rosenbourg” Paul Blanck,                                        Alsace                           France                                 2009

Pinot Gris                “Les Princes Abbe’s” Domaine Schlumberger,            Alsace                              France                           2007

Gewürztraminer          Albert Mann, Albert Mann,                                        Alsace                           France                                 2009

Chinon                       “Le Petites Roches” Joquot,                                          Loire                          France                                 2009

Here is day 5 tasting.  French whites from: western Loire, Central Loire, Upper Loire, Champagne, Alsace regions.  The Chinon was the only red.

Exquisite tasting.  Lots of terminology and rankings.

2011 December: Wine Tasting, Day 1-4

Wine Studies class at the CIA is said to be the hardest class to pass.  Now there is definitely a multitude of appellations to memorize and the "Tower of Power" with regards to pairings  but I look at it as the best Christmas present I could get...

Here is a list of the wines I had the pleasure of tasting during this three week class.



These are the wines from the first week.
Day 1 was a tasting of varietal style
Day 2 was all whites
Day 3 was California reds
Day 4 was New World Wines

2011 December: The Long Shot

Fifth term came faster than I imagined.  With an extra block tagged onto my 4th term due to a black sock issue I ended up owing almost $5000 to start my fifth and final semester at school.  I had exhausted all possible avenues for funding.  Bank loans, grants, scholarships were tapped and only the long shot remained. 

I had nothing to lose so I called my mom and told her not to send packages here for the holidays because my bill was way more than I had and I knew she did not have it either.  I had placed an phone call to my externship site to see if they would be willing to help.  I wouldn't hurt to ask right? But fearing for the worst I had filled out my leave of absence form and had obtained all the signatures needed for the temporary withdrawal.  I was in sad spirits that day all though I tried to keep a smile.

I was amazed at the results of those two conversations that day.  A miracle.  A blessing from above.  I was able to pay off the complete and final payment to the school in preparation for graduation.  I was able to get my final schedule and start the dreaded wines class.  Well dreaded my most.  I could not believe the perfect timing.  However intensive the studying and memorization for the class.  I get to taste 8-10 excellent wines daily for the three block leading up to our Christmas break. 

I plan on making sure that those who invested in me get their full return! 

2011 October: Fall at the CIA

searing the brisket

October started out very hectic this year.  I had just become president over one of the more active clubs on Campus, the slower "L" blocks were ending and I was back into the kitchens.

brisket seared and braising liquid almost ready

The club has events every weekend.  "Street Food" a means of polishing up cooking skills, marketing skills and financial management of a mini restaurant.  That is the Scholastic side, while the fun benefit side is we sell food to students during the weekends.  It changes daily and prices range from $1 to $5 dollars.  The club members get to eat free, so there are many value added perks to the club (SACE: Students for Advanced Career Experience).

Sauerbraten ready to go into the oven...overnight...mmmm

SACE in action.  The team is getting ready for "Street Food"

We started off the month with Sauerbraten for Oktoberfest, then rolled into Falafel Madness and Italian Family Night.  The we offered a Professional Development event, "Confit R &D". the student teams had to watch a short lesson on the classical preparation of Confit and then cure their duck.  48 hours later the teams entered the kitchen and cooked the duck confit style.  We had 7 teams.  Each team had to track their recipe, cure, main cooking time and a side garnish as well.  This was used during the evaluation and tasting as a learning tool.  All of the confit's turned out well, and better yet the students learned many lessons from the event.  The next week We had a turnover throwdown with another club as both fundraisers and charity events.  This was a success as well. The next morning was Sunday and of course we offered brunch.  This was a big hit and we will be doing it most likely on a weekly basis.

Chocolate roll

cinnamon pretzels-modern style

My baking class was a bit odd as we had three instructors during the program each offering different views on baking but the class lacked a cohesive track.  Having done a lot of baking in the past I wasn't to worried about the easy "a".

bagels

enriched dough breads

The next block however was "Cuisines of Europe and the Mediterranean"  and I had Chef Eisenhauer for my instructor. I can look back now that class is over and say that it was one of the best classes I have had here at the CIA.  However during the 3 weeks It was the most challenging experience I have had here.  Not the cooking, but rather the style in which the class was taught.  Game plans were taken to a new level, he students did all the ordering and if the dish was not perfect you had to "do it again".  These, sadly are not words you hear often in class, usually the production kitchens are focused on getting the food out, but not Chef E.  She has super high standards and it its not perfect you do it again and again and again.  I have the utmost respect for this chef especially, if not all of them, but she helped me raise my game, and that is why I am here!

apple pie

i love pie

6 braid Challah

eating samples - quality control

Next I head into the banquet kitchens.  FOH first the BOH.  THe club is gearing up for winter events and I hopefully will get one of the two RA positions I have been schmoozing to get.

so many attachments

triple cream Exploratour...SO GOOD!

pulled strudel dough....i cant believe it was that easy

Fall apple dessert project

2011 September: Vegan Chocolates, Who knew they would be so great

Divine Treasures is a chocolate shop specializing in organic Belgian chocolates.

Besides the utter divine nature of the tastes and sensations that come from eating this delectable chocolate

They have a few things that set them apart.

They are Vegan, dairy and gluten free.

Here are just a few of the fantastic chocolate treats.  A little scuffed from the journey.

 I measured them to give a basic scale referance.

 buddha is a new truffle with a fantastic eastern mystic about the filling

The elephant is filled with a nut from Africa. delicious

Next is a white tea extraction that was sublime and sensual.

The indian head is filled with a garam masala style flavor profile, really great.

 The pyamid is called Egyptian Jewel: cardamon, nutmeg and cinnamon with orange peel.  

Pecan Picante is next:cayenne pepper, cinnamon and pecan- really fantastic

 Hot and Smoky caramel is my favorite: chili on the inside and salt on the outside.

Next to that is a heath crunch and a Spanish Turona.

The triangle is a ship and is spiked with a warm rum concoction reminiscent of the Islands

Lastly a Grand Mariner truffle

Overall I tried roughly a third of her total selections and only a few made it home to be photographed.  If you find yourself in or near Manchester Ct. This chocolatier is a must see.

divinetreasurechocolates.com

I give credit to this great find to my wife, Karin

2011 August: Calm before the Storm

As hurricane Irene approaches the New York seaboard, The grey skies and clouds begin to close in around the CIA campus in Hyde Park.  I decided to walk the grounds and get pictures of what was happening waith regards to nature in the woods around campus.

mushrooms abound

reaching up for sunshine

old bridge located above the stream

rocky outcropping

moss covered tree

surprise

heads up

peeking through the grass

growing at the base of a shrub

dense moss along path

a barge is coming down the Hudson

lonely student

wild berries

mr. groundhogs home

orange bloom

walking bridge across Hudson

tugboat pushing a barge

tugboat

The rain is coming and the skies are turning grey and gloomy.  The humidity is up and the temperature is dropping fast.  The stores are out of bottled water and the lower part of Manhattan has been evacuated.  We shall see what is to come.

2011 August: Campus Life

I am finally getting settled in to campus life.  I live in a dorm with one roommate.  It is a 12' x 20' room with two desks, two dressers, and two beds.  a small closet and a small bathroom.
For me the change was somewhat dramatic. A year ago I was living in a loft with my wife sleeping on an overstuffed queen bed in a 25' x'25' bedroom had a car and a steady income.
As of today the car is gone, Karin is living in Connecticut teaching Jr. High students math, science and computers, and I am working Part time at a bakery.
School is full time and has been fairly challenging over the last five weeks.

I have been able to sleep through the night on my small twin mattress, getting used to my roommates differing schedule.  I have joined the photography club in hopes of learning how to use my DSLR for food pics.  I have taken over the presidency of the SACE club (Students for Advanced Career Experience)  We do Saturday night street food for the students since no decent food is available on campus on the weekends.  I have begun to get active with the SGA (student Government) and participate in several other functions volunteering my time on the weekends to stay busy, get a free meal and help stave off the boredom.
Most of all I am finding that I truly miss my wife.  I did not think it would be so bad.  We made it through my externship of 4.5 months but the next 8 months are going to be tough.
Hopefully keeping myself busy will help to keep my mind on the goal of graduation and the "dream job" to come.

I wanted the campus life and now I have it full force.  Be careful what you wish for, you may get it in droves.

Roth Hall