– Forbidden Foods, and Matching Wines by Michael Parker In a recent guest opinion printed in the Mountain Xpress, a local animal lover bemoans the local chefs who offer foie gras. He repeats the allegations of the cruelty behind its production and the resulting environmental devastation, and finishes with “PleaseContinue Reading
¡Sangría! by Michael Parker All this talk about a Trader Joe’s coming to town, a rumor-turned-reality that was (for reasons that must make sense in the newspaper world) front page news, above the fold, two days in a row. All this means to me is a coming glut of groceryContinue Reading
– and Suggestions for What to Think by Michael Parker There is a joke that asks, “What’s Irish and comes out in the springtime?” The answer: patio furniture. There’s another joke, an unintentional one, spoken at wine tastings. “This is a nice patio wine.” Those who say it are notContinue Reading
– a short and sweet note about not-so-sweet pink delight by Michael Parker I lucked up and got to lock up the restaurant even earlier than anticipated. There was a semi-late wine-sippin’ sendoff for a respected local wine guy that I was anxious to attend. As often happens in situationsContinue Reading
by Michael Parker Dom Catawba Just another Wednesday night in January it was, after a long meeting planning the 2012 Asheville Mardi Gras. I needed a drink. “Need” is a funny word, isn’t it? Yes, need. The need was for a good local dark beer. (People give me a hardContinue Reading
Random Thoughts About Wine by Michael Parker Goody Two-Shoes We won’t be needing this,” she said with a large measure of smugness as she held the wine list under my face. The restaurant had no host that night, so I showed the couple to a table (in my opinion theContinue Reading
