The manager of the hotel related a story to me how years ago, many years ago, they swam at a beach called Mauones which is at the far end of Vathi. Being curious about the beach of yesteryear headed down the road. But there was no beach but a break wall with rusted pieces of metal and an old refrigerator submerged. Sort of like a post-industrial nightmare. Yet there were several old folks paddling about as happy as clams. I suppose memories of long ago have clouded their evaluation of this “beach”. Nearby rusted cranes, garbage and old tires. No thanks. Hopped on the bus to Kedro Beach a great beach with no one there. Had an early dinner at the beach bar of spaghetti with Greek hard cheese (kefalotyri) grated on top giving the sauce a unique flavour.
RKS Film: “Come Back Anytime”: Get Me to Tokyo Quick!
Welcome to the world of ramen noodle master Masamoto Ueda owner and self-taught ramen master operating out of a tiny restaurant in Tokyo named Bizentei. No big flashy décor but instead a rather homey restaurant that seats 30 at most. And Ueda is referred to by most of his customers as “Master”. He is self taught and entirely likeable unlike the prick chefs with their nonsensical television shows one encounters of late. Yes he was a bit of a bad boy in his youth coming close to being a petty criminal but marriage and a child cleaned his act up.
We are witness to his loyal and adoring customers to the extent the viewer almost feels part of the family as they sing their praises to Ueda. He connects with each of them and after work he takes some of them hunting for wild yams in the mountains or pear picking. He is a father figure to some and a good friend to others. Yes Ueda is the star of this documentary but it is his customers that raise his stardom as they are strong supporting cast. While we get up close with the patrons Ueda reveals much about himself and his attitude towards food and people. While I have eaten in many top restaurants in Europe and the United States with their Michelin stars and crack sommeliers I am just as happy in eating in countless small restaurants (a good many of them in Portugal) that will never be graced with stars and food that looks more like art than food.
Ueda has a limited menu with ramen and a few appetizers but he focuses on these dishes with spectacular results in a tiny behind the counter kitchen.
The documentary leaves you in a happy state with a regular guy chef and regular people patrons. A perfect soundtrack of jazz and quasi classical music is seamlessly interwoven.
Unlike the classic “Jiro Loves Sushi” this is no food porn production! Get me to Bizentei quick! I would happily go to Naples just to eat pizza. In Tokyo I would go to eat Ueda’s ramen. Would his ramen with Chashu pork send me over the moon? One customer is a ramen addict and has eaten at hundreds of ramen restaurants throughout Japan and his favourite is Bizentei.
Directed by John Daschbach.
The film opened in Toronto on July 22 at Hot Docs Ted Roger’s Cinema but get ready it will be making its rounds globally!
RKS Film Rating 92/100.
RKS Wine: Niagara-on-the-Lake’s leaning post 2021 Rosé
The leaning post 2021 Rosé is 100% Pinot Noir.
The nose presents watermelon, raspberry, strawberry and field tomato. A very summery greeting to the nose. The palate is energetic and enthusiastic like some toddler dancing to “Baby Shark”. But giving that simile a nudge, this is no flippant candy cane Rosé. It is a very serious Rosé with firm texture that would be best suited with food. I would pair with salmon kebabs or Portobello mushroom and sweet potato burgers however it has versatility to enhance many other dishes on the grill such as pork loin, goat or even beef burgers. It has definite Pinot Noir pedigree delightfully mutated. But concentrate and pick up the Pinot Noir!
Consume by the end of 2022.
(leaning post 2021 Rosé, VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake, Leaning Post Wines, Stoney Creek, Ontario, $21.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario #27360, 750 mL, 12%,, RKS Wine Rating 91/100).
RKS Wine: The Perils of a 17-Year-Old Wine: French Wine Gods Have Mercy Please!
I had a friend over for a flank steak with chimichurri sauce recently. It is a classic Argentinian dish. The Merquen and young Ontario garlic can create a bit of a piquant sauce. I chose a 17-year-old Château Monbrison Margaux. 2005 was an exceptional vintage in Bordeaux and I have 8 bottles left. I can’t say anyone was “blown away” by it. This is the reward that 17 years of cellaring brings?
The next day out of the terrible humidity the wine was consumed in it was tried again. Considering the wine had been resting in the bottle for 17 years there were no obvious flaws on the palate or on the nose. On the nose there were smoky black cherry and restrained black fruits tucked away in the outer recesses of the wine with strawberry giving an impression of hidden and tamed power. Great power on the decline but great power nonetheless. Think of it as America the great empire in decline. On the palate a perfect harmony of acidity and tannins. The wine is soft yet dense with a muted power that has internalized its power. All said and done the wine is in decline but savouring such a great wine in decline is educational and unforgettable. I paid $36 for this as a Bordeaux future. Perhaps ten years ago it was a starlet with cameras flashing all around it. Now it is a classy and ageless Helen Mirren like in “The Good Liar” can still wow with skill and talent as opposed to upfront flash.
I am having difficulty in rating it. I am tempted to have a special “Senior’s Category” but I am afraid I rate what is the glass here and now with a warning collectors beware. There is a point in time to open your treasures. I have a 1982 Château Latour I must crack open but it is hard. Very hard. But every day that passes is a risk. Anyone out there with a grand to take it off my hands. And the 7 bottles of Chateau Monbrision lend me your private jet for a trip to Greece and they are yours!
To avoid being drawn and quartered I rate the 2005 Château Monbrison a 93/100. French wine gods have mercy.
RKS Wine: Château Puybarbe from Côtes de Bourg: Example of Out of Whack Acid
Côtes de Bourg has been long known as a bit of an affordable gem for Bordeaux reds. Will this $15.95 2019 Château Puybarbe fall into this category?
It is a blend of 76% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% each of Cabernet Franc and Malbec.
The nose presents black cherry, blackberry and blueberry with a forceful frontal assault. On the palate the acidity is excessive. One expects a degree of smoothness with the high Merlot percentage. Well if there is that smoothness granted by Merlot the acidity robs it of that. The acidity is not rampant but subtle enough to notice it with a trained palate. It is too bad you are not here now so we could have a lesson in the fine prickling to the tongue that acidity brings. Of course, you could buy a bottle have a glass and find out for yourself. Wine education could use some tutoring as to what constitutes an off wine. I often use wine in cooking instead of tossing it. However bear in mind the adage don’t cook with what you won’t drink. This will be returned for a refund. As an aside leftover red wine is great in pasta sauces, chili con carne, ragouts and beef stews. White wine in risottos, orzo-based dishes and many pasta sauces where you have no red wine!
Many wine drinkers can’t identify excessive acidity and are reluctant to return to the seller. Understandable but the way I see it how can “sophisticated” wholesale buyers let this happen?
(Château Puybarbe 2019, AP Côtes de Bourg, Château Puybarbe, Mombrier, France, $15.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 22945, 750 mL, 14.5%, RKS Wine Rating 58/100).
“Travels to A Different Time” :29July2000: Samos: Off to Kokari: Too Much German Flesh Oozing All Over the Place: A Walk to Ano Vathi
Some of the morning spent booking a tour to the Turkish Archaeological site Ephesus. Prices varied from 14-23,000 dracs including lunch. Selected the 14,000 dracs option. Breakfast a spinach pie and a Fanta leminoda. Stopped at a local wine shop. No bottles there but large vats you fill up your own bottles with. About $2 for 1.5 litres. Filled up a bottle of Cretan white and local red. Drinkable and quaint. He had tanks of banana and cherry liqueur. This is an old tradition of buying from vats and I think it will be one that disappears. The customers were all older men.
Took the local bus to Kokari and unlike the last trip the bus was old with no air conditioning. Spectacular scenery as up high in the hills with a view of the azure blue sea below. Kokari is very touristy like Pythagorian with tourists outnumbering the locals. The main street is longer than in Pythagorian. There are many shops catering to the tourists. There are so many beaches. Selected the least touristy beach. You couldn’t go that far out as sea urchins abounded and you do not want to touch or step on them or you will get jabs with the spikes. Yet more elderly and rotund German ladies topless with crispy brown skin. Not so good for digestion. Found some Frito Lay Oregano Potato Chips. That’s a new flavour. The restaurants, some 15 of them are lined up in a row set with a view of the ocean benefitting from a breeze. Stuffed vegetables for lunch. Average quality. Since there was a 45-minute wait for the bus grabbed a taxi back to Vathi which was $5. Dinner was spinach pie and tomato salad and then off to Ano Vathi up the hill. This is the original Vathi with a spectacular view downwards of the ocean and Vathi. Narrow winding streets and stone houses seemingly piled over each other. This is the Greece of old and for the time being few tourists as not a beach town and mass tourism wants a beach town!
RKS Passage of the Day: Jean-Paul Sartre: “The Reprieve” A Summary of Trump?
“He looked at his feet to avoid all those merciless faces: ‘hulking brute!’. He was a proper human wall, one of those callous cruel brutes, like that hulking boy Chamerlier in the elementary mathematics class who snapped fingers in his face at school, one of those types who never question anything, least of all themselves, who are never ill, never suffer from nerves, take women and life as they come, and march straight to their goal, shoving all who get in their way against shop windows.”
Jean-Paul Sartre, “The Reprieve” Penguin Book 1963
“Virus # 26”; Director’s Cut: Chapter 10 “Lessons Learnt from COVIDs: Propaganda’s Effect”
In the guise of a never-ending flow of “public service” messages Canadians were bombarded with an incessant stream of propaganda. Propaganda is primarily a tool of totalitarian governments to maintain control of its citizens. The volume of it will dim independent thinking. However, at some point it just becomes noise and has little effect if not the opposite effect of what it was intended to accomplish.
As for COVID-19 it had some effect at least for wave 1 and 2 but after that point it was resented and rejected by those who previously lapped it up. Masks have been proven to have almost no beneficial effect. Social distancing was manslaughter for those “in shelter”. About the only truth was the benefit of washing your hands.
It was really disturbing for me that so many people blindly accepted the propaganda for so long. In the end social distancing and mask wearing were tired old phrases and too bad so many millions smiled like deer in the headlights. Many of these people were highly educated (and well paid until they lost their jobs) and what a shock to see them parrot what was being rammed down their gullet.
So why all the propaganda? Firstly, it was a legitimate excuse to reward advertising agencies run by the friends of the politicos. Secondly it was an attempt to silence anyone who had different ideas about “sanitary measures” through shame and ostracization. Thirdly it justified all decisions taken by the politico-medicos. It also showed the paternalistic attitude of the politico-medicos. I think it also had people in so much fear they were easier to control.
At the end of the day it served to justify the decisions of the politico-medicos and crush anyone with opposing views.
But what is the expression? You can fool some of the people some of the time but not all the people all of the time?
I had the great opportunity as a long haired knapsacker to spend several years in the Iron Curtain in the 1970’s. Czechoslovakia in 1974 was particularly bad with propaganda being blared over loudspeakers in the street Gustáv Husák the communist leader had witnessed the Czech uprising of 1968 and decided to try crude mind control through propaganda being blasted out to the street in loudspeakers. In Canada’s case television and radio were the loudspeakers bolstered by an unthinking and compliant media. Even my favourite classical and jazz station had their announcers cozy up to the party line. The sad thing was they actually believed the loudspeakers and became the loudspeakers. So much for the integrity of the media!
“Travels to a Different Time”: 28July2000: Samos, Greece; Pythagorian: Charming Seaside Town
Took the municipal bus from Vathi to Pythagorian. The bus service is decent but many tourists seem intimidated by public transportation and ride by taxi. I have no complaints. Buses are clean and air conditioned. The drivers are helpful. The schedule is well laid out and the buses are on time. A breakfast of oranges, honey and Samos honey from thyme flowers. There is no better honey in the world and I have tried countless honey in my travels. The trip was 20 minutes and impressive scenery with pine forests. The town is charming. Touristic but tastefully so. Vathi is more of a business centre and Pythagorian can be best described as a laid-back beach town with narrow streets, lots of bars and restaurants. Many of the bars are in the harbour and a glass of wine overlooking the fishing boats, yachts and the statute of the famous mathematician Pythagoras the town in named in honour of is a treat. Both the church and the castle were closed the latter for renovations so walked further down the road amongst ancient ruins in the fields to Doryssa Bay resort one of those upscale seaside complexes very tastefully done unlike so many Mexican resorts. There is even a recreated Greek village where “houses” are used as accommodation. I understand the Greek government under the junta expropriated property to ensure construction of the resort but one condition was there be a recreated Greek village constructed. There are mostly German and Dutch tourists and many with children. The beachfront is not spectacular as Greek beaches go but the water is clean and warm. Had a Greek salad for lunch poolside. The prices are somewhat steeper than in Vathi. A beer in a restaurant in Vathi costs 350 drachmas, at Kedro Beach bar 400 and at Doryssa 700. I am not saying tourists are hosed in Greece but when in a major tourist spot crammed with foreign tourists expect higher prices. Stayed on the beach and then walked back to Pythagorian at 17:00 . There was a nice breeze to counter the blazing sun. The hills and fields have been blackened by fire. Samos is so dry it has a forest fire issue. Had a beer at a café by the bus stop. With the sun, ocean and the beer you get a bit dozy. However the change of routine and scenery that travel generates recharges the soul. One slows down in Greece. How will one adapt to a hectic go go North American lifestyle when the vacation ends?
RKS Wine: Kacaba and a Trip Down Memory Lane
Years ago while on a trip the Ontario Wine Society took to several Niagara wineries I picked up a bottle of Kacaba Rebecca Rosé and it was superb. But that was years ago and a trip down memory lane can bring smiles to one’s face but that was then and today is now. So what is now going to be for Kacaba Rebecca Rosé?
What does the aroma do? It impresses. A deep and penetrating exposition of watermelon, raspberry, Niagara cherries, strawberries and it suggests a possible sweet touch. On the palate it is youthful and not overly serious but not flippant. The boisterous nose is slicked down on the palate making this a happy go lucky rosé. There is everything on the palate that is on the nose but more subdued and it is dry. It is one of those sultry summer rosés that is a good hot afternoon sipper if you have done enough errands or yard work to justify taking it easy.
It would pair well with a Greek Salad or a pasta with a rosé cream sauce such as smoked salmon added at the end of cooking a pasta sauce with fresh tomatoes, Ontario garlic, scallions, your home-grown basil all prepared with a good splash of this wine.
Enjoy until the end of 2022. This will go well with a Thanksgiving roast turkey.
(Kacaba Summer Series Rebecca Rosé 2021, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Kacaba Vineyards, Vineland, Ontario, $20.15, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 227025, 750 mL, 11.7%, RKS Wine Rating 90/100).
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