“This smells like Christmas!” exclaimed a friend of mine who was trying this beer for the first time. Anchor Christmas Ale, from the Anchor Brewery in San Francisco (most famous for their Steam beer), is always the first beer I look for when the Christmas ales hit the shelves. Though the formula changes from year to year (and always remains a secret), it is consistently delicious and a great representation of what Christmas beers are about.

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In 2010, we were lucky enough to take a dream vacation to a villa in Tuscany – a week of eating, drinking and exploring the small towns and beautiful countryside of Italy’s most famous* vacation destination. It was as great as it sounds, and of course grows in stature in my memory every day since.

Unsurprisingly, we drank a lot of wine during the trip, almost all of it Tuscan. Vino Nobile di Montepulciano was the particular wine we consumed the most often, for several reasons:

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Local Cookbooks is a feature at MLD where we share a recipe from a cookbook with local ties. Have a cookbook we should consider? Let us know.

This month we’re featuring Corked & Forked by Keith Wallace, released in August 2011. Yes, that’s two recipes in a row from this cookbook, but 1) we really like it, and 2) it’s very appropriate for the season, so we couldn’t resist. For a little more on the book, check out our last post. We promise a different book next month (…though this certainly won’t be the last we see of C&F).

While the pork chop recipe we featured was decidedly simple, this month we’re moving into more advanced territory. This recipe is a play on the traditional Turducken (where a chicken and duck are stuffed inside a turkey); it features a turkey breast for the meat, and uses the essence of both chicken and duck, without the absurd stuffing process. This playful, yet quite usable approach is a great representation of Corked & Forked’s fun approach to cooking.

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Landor Associates image of new PLCB store in South Philly

As part of his campaign, new PA governor Tom Corbett promised to privatize liquor sales in Pennsylvania, but we’ve seen little action on this issue so far. It appears, however that this is about to change.  Last week, the movement gained a key ally when Senate Majority Whip Pat Browne (R-Lehigh) announced his support for the bill (House Bill 11) originally proposed by House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, R-Allegheny, which proposes to close 625 state liquor stores and sell 1200 licenses to the highest bidder. In addition, according to the PA Independent, Corbett has just recently received a report from a Philly-based business research firm detailing the potential revenue gains from selling off the state stores (this report has yet to be made public). Lastly, the Pennsylvania think tank Commonwealth Foundation has recently launched http://freemydrink.com/ to bring more exposure to the issue.

The debate is far from over, of course. Over the summer, Senate President Joseph Scarnati, R-Jefferson, spoke out against the bill, showing support instead for removing “handcuffs” to allow PLCB to operate more like a private business. Other state senators, including John Blake, D-Lackawanna, also remain skeptical.

So, from that standpoint, I must say that I’m quite looking forward to checking out the swank (for PLCB standards, at least) new Paoli digs, which are planned for the ACME shopping center, in the space where Blockbuster used to be. The store, which will dwarf the current cubicle that hides behind BK, will feature more than 3000 additional products. It will also have a 8-seat bar for tastings, a plethora of Chairman’s Selections (including high-end choices), a temperature-controlled room, and even a wine chiller that’ll cool any shelved bottle of wine in less than 15 minutes. And – gasp – it’ll be open on Sundays!

When will this store open? Well, that’s just the thing. Apparently it was planned for July, but is held up in Harrisburg. Shocking.

Local Cookbooks is a feature at MLD where we share a recipe from a cookbook with local ties. Have a cookbook we should consider? Let us know.

This month we’re featuring Corked & Forked by Keith Wallace, founder of The Wine School of Philadelphia, released in August 2011. As Wallace is known (previously to this book, at least) more for his drink knowledge than his cooking, one of the unique aspects of this book is that every recipe has a suggested drink pairing. Many are wine, but beers, cocktails and even coffees are also included.

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While perusing the selection one Thursday afternoon at the Great Valley Farmers Market, I was drawn towards a booth that was covered in pretty little cakes. (Somehow I leave the Farm Market with just as many baked goods as produce these days.) Not only did the cakes look tasty, they had a tasty name as well: MacDougall’s Irish Victory Cakes. The story behind these cakes is actually quite fascinating, yet I think owner Deborah Streeter Davitt does it better justice than I could (on their website):

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I recently had the opportunity to take “The Wine Foundation” course at The Wine School of Philadelphia, which is described by the school as “the only certificate program of its kind in the United States.” The course description goes on to say that “students will learn the techniques and knowledge to become extraordinary wine tasters. Graduates are able to identity major wine varietals in a blind tasting: a skill many seasoned sommeliers cannot accomplish.”

Though I was an experienced wine taster before taking the class, and thought I knew quite a bit about wine, it turns out I still had a lot to learn. This program opened my eyes to a deeper level of appreciation and understanding of the wines that I drink, and it truly did establish a foundation for lifelong learning. Though it is difficult to explain or detail what we learned in the class without sharing a few glasses of wine, here are 9 tidbits that I can share:

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New feature here at MLD, where we share a recipe from a cookbook with local ties. Have a cookbook we should consider? Let us know.

Today we’re celebrating the end of summer with The Grassfed Gourmet Fires it Up by Rita Calvert and Michael Heller (which was released in April 2011). Although the authors are based out of Maryland, the Grassfed Gourmet series (which contains one other book, by a different author) is published by Eating Fresh Publications of Haverford, PA.

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I was walking through the East Goshen Farmers Market, trying to figure out what to make for dinner, when I came across a small stand selling pastries that looked a bit too serious to be displayed in such a casual setting. After ascertaining that they were canelé (ca-neuh-lay), a French pastry from Bordeaux, I recalled reading a short article in PhillyMag that gushed over the treats. At the time, I had made a note to get my hands on some, but I guess the mental post-it fell to the floor. Still, here I was, staring them in the face. Were they the same ones lauded by PhillyMag, or some imposter? I wanted my first canelé experience to be the real deal, but had no time to research. I took the plunge.

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