Best meal at Chez Golay: Tossup between the Valentine's Day lovefest and the short rib extravaganza. While I'm sure I'll in some way regret not giving the edge to romance, the Hammersley recipe for braised short ribs - in Guinness and other goodies, no less - was tout simplement incroyable. I've made the dish a few times and it currently stands as my best effort to date. The Picard recipe for tomato tarte is up there, but does not quite a meal make. And yes, while we're on the subject, my wife is an excellent cook, more and more inclined to baking and desserts these days, which is all working out quite well. Everything I've learned about food has come from her (and by extension, her family). It's true.
Proudest cooking moment: The Valentine's Day meal collaboration with my wife, of course. See how I wrapped that one up? Also, in addition to widening the repertorie a bit this year (if you need something braised, I am your man), probably the thing that makes me feel best in the kitchen is the fact that I've learned to cook fish. I don't know why I've avoided it so long. I do understand a lot of folks' apprehension at cooking the stuff. It's the burning. There is, generally speaking, a narrow temperature range in which one must work. But, pay a little attention, give it a shot, and I think you'll find, as I did, that it's one of the easiest entree components to prepare. Broil, pan-fry, bake, grill, what-have-you. One of my favorite things to eat growing up was trout. I'd always wanted to cook it. And now I have, a few times. It's like a :10-minute deal, even with de-boning. I confess, though, I'm just doing the filet thing. I've never liked my food looking back at me. Oh, and also, speaking not of fish but of that magical animal the pig, I make a wicked carbonara. And I finally got a line on good pancetta. Rock and roll.
Best bottles of wine: There were several, of course. But thinking back, a few loom above all the rest. An '03 Scagliola Barbera d'Asti Sansi. An '02 Domaine Chandon Pinot Meunier. An '02 Eyrie Pinot Blanc. And the winner - a '98 Milliere Chateauneuf du Pape Vielle Vignes, a dinner gift from our friends Brian and Valerie, which paired perfectly with the short ribs, above. One of the best wines I've ever tasted - and I loves me the Pape. There were others, but those were the standouts around the house.
Best wine values: I still think Heron's pinot noir is some of the best value-oriented wine made. Ditto Perrin's Reservé Cotes du Rhône rouge. Unfortunately both are going to go up in price, as is everything European, next year, due to the weak dollar and higher transport costs. Domestically, Cline is still doing good stuff - just had an '03 mourvedre that was quite nice. Beyond those, the days of good, cheap-ish wine are numbered. If you find something reliably good coming out of Willamette for under $20, let me know. Montinore is the best I've found at that price point. Sad. Even the cheaper, good stuff coming out of Chile, Argentina, Spain and so forth is going to go up. Oh well. We consume. And so it goes.
Brew-ha: Probably because of the bike racing and a renewed fascination with Belgium (which of course would follow), I've been on a slight beer kick lately (which is only made possible by the coming and subsequent ending of cyclocross and thus, the racing, season). I'm forever a fan of Unibroue's stuff - Maudite remains a fave. Lately we've had a bit of the Rare Vos, Three Philosophers, a few bottles of Chimay. I was quite surprised by Allagash White. I'll need to try the rest of their Belgian-style ales. It's important to look forward to things.