Tag Archives: Cork and Cracker

An Indy northside-inspired dinner

14 Wednesday Dec 2016

Posted by in Food & Travel, Uncategorized

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So this blog is all about wine – well, at least most of the time. But the longer its been around the more often I get asked about some of the things I enjoy with wine – where I buy my wine, etc.

Let’s take tonight’s dinner for example. I made a big frying pan full of pasta/meat sauce that will provide a couple of meals beyond this evening. The wonderful sweet Italian sausage comes from Fresh Market at 54th and College. They also have a hot version for those a bit more spice inclined than me. it’s a wonderful upscale market. you can buy the mild or sweet sausage in bulk or large links. I like to slice up the links and combine with ground turkey.

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Tonight’s northside ingredients

It goes over really tasty and firm pappardelle from Nicole Taylor’s pasta shop. This stuff is great. The little shop tucked in an older strip mall is just down 54th from Fresh Market. After crossing the Monon Trail and seeing Mama Carolla’s landmark restaurant on your right, turn into the plaza on your left.

Tonight my glass of wine is – brace yourself – Merlot from Blackbox I picked up at Fresh Market. I tried this a few months back and its even better this time. I have it in my Boxxle, which I wrote a column about. It’s great to have a small glass of wine without opening a bottle.

But do buy a lot of wine in the area. One of my favorite stops for great weeknight wine is Cork & Cracker on 62nd close to Keystone Ave and a short drive out of Broad Ripple. Ask if Ron is in and tell him Howard sent you.

Chocolate, Julie

Julie Bolejack

Even a Tuesday night dinner at home deserves a small dessert. I dug out a piece of chocolatier Julie BoleJack’s incredible dark chocolate Purple Sue from Chocolate for the Spirit. Let’s just  call it  a small bite of incredible dark chocolate, with raspberry-rose ganache, and a hint of violet liqueur. These are not inexpensive but you won’t regret it. You might even be like me and wipe Julie’s supply out on future visits. She has a small shop on Carmel Drive, Carmel, that she is closing at end of this month. But she will still be making chocolates.

Dinner from the northside – it works for me.

Gifting Wine for the Holidays

09 Friday Dec 2016

Posted by in Holidays, Newspaper Column 2016, Uncategorized

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Christmas gifts, holiday parties, and New Years are always occasions for a great gift of a good bottle of wine.

Gifting wine during the holidays is as much of a tradition as lighting the Menorah, decorating the tree, or singing the seasonal songs.

grape-sense-logoBut giving a friend, boss, or client a bottle of wine doesn’t come without some trepidation. Since beginning the column, now more than eight years ago, I’ve often tried to take a journalistic approach to Grape Sense. I’ve written recommendation columns and will do so again.

But to talk holiday giving I asked friend and wine retailer Ron Miller, owner of Cork and Cracker near Broad Ripple in Indianapolis. Ron’s shop is one you should wish was near you. He has hundreds of choices under $20 and two walls of wine at higher price points.

He’s used to getting the holiday gift question. “Oh yes, we get it a lot this time of year,” Miller said. “We get questions for a lot of corporate gifts where someone is giving to clients so they don’t know what they’re going to want so we stick to Cabernet or Pinot Noir or if its white more standard items like Chardonnay.”

ron-miller

Ron Miller

Whether It’s a gift for a friend, a client or your boss price point matters if you’re trying to impress. “What we get a lot is they want to get a name brand the recipient is going to recognize,” Miller said. “But we don’t buy based on names but we do have some well–known labels. If they’re in the price point, we’ll give them a name the recipient will recognize.

“But we don’t carry Silver Oak and Caymus, those are some labels a lot of people will ask for because ‘they’ll know how much I’ve spent.’”

If it’s a bottle for a friend or to take to that party, it gets a little simpler. “First we ask what kind of price point do they want to be in and do they know what their friend likes,” Miller said. “We always get the price point. if they know what their friend likes we try to match up something that we think they will like. If they’re not sure we kind of stick with the standard Cabs, Chardonnay, and Pinots.”

It’s safe to say the advice probably wouldn’t be much different at any other reputable wine store. But it’s better, I think, hearing from someone who sells wine for a living.

I’d end by echoing Ron’s advice. If you have any doubt go the safe route with a Cabernet, Chardonnay or Pinot Noir. I’ll do what Ron won’t though and suggest you get up to at least the $20 price point for good quality wine.