Thursday, August 20, 2009

Monday Wine Classes Fall Schedule






MONDAY WINE CLASSES~
For almost three years, we have worked on spreading the love of all things wine by holding an informal wine class. Once upon a time they were Saturdays and since they moved to Mondays. They have been very popular with singles, couples, mothers and daughters and friends because it gives them a way to learn more and have an environment to ask simple or sommelier-like wine questions from storing, to cellaring, to buying to food pairing. They are held from 6 to 7pm and we taste 6 to 7 wines with a prticular topic in mind: Rioja, New Zealand, Pinot from around the World and so on. Well, now I'm asking for your input...whata regions do you want to learn more about? What topics do you want covered? Wine should be fun, never boring and never pretentious. Take a moment to let me know is it Sauvignon Blanc that's ticking your fancy today or is the spice jar of Shiraz that interests you? See you soon and I'll post the schedule at the end of the week for the fall line up.
Cheers!

Monday, August 17, 2009

Four Course Tomato Dinner at Napa & Co tomorrow night ! Featuring the best local tomatoes available



If you can get local tomatoes now, eat them, enjoy them, and savor the memory – because that very well could be it for Connecticut tomatoes this summer – especially organic ones.
Late blight is what we’re talking about here. I’m sure you’ve been hearing about it for the last few weeks. It’s the disease that caused the Irish potato famine in the 19th century. It’s a water mold type fungus that also affects tomatoes and is running roughshod through northeastern tomato crops right now. Here in Connecticut the prognosis is shaky at best.
Dr. Jude Boucher is the extension educator for agricultural and commercial vegetable crops for the University of Connecticut Cooperative Extension office in Tolland. As of Wednesday, he said he’s found late blight in all but New London and Middlesex counties (to be honest – he hasn’t tested Middlesex yet). He’s found it on “upwards of 20 to 25 farms.” That’s a lot. And no names – he’s not allowed to say where, other than that some farms have lost everything.
And if you ask him whether the organic tomato crop is in danger of being wiped out this year – he said: “There’s a very good possibility unfortunately. I don’t think were at that point yet. But each farm that gets it, it puts a lot more spores in the area, so the proximity of late blight sources increase.”
Translated – that means the more farms that get it, the greater the potential to spread. Late blight spreads through the air. It needs 65 -70 degree temperatures, rain and high humidity to survive and infect a plant and that’s basically what we had all of this summer.


Enjoy ‘em while you’ve got ‘em is our philiosophy. In this vein, we have a wonderful

Four Course Tomato Dinner tomorrow night for $50....

Heirloom tomato & watermelon gazpacho
Morroccan spiced striped bass, eggplant and tomato stew, preserved lemons, chick peas

Duck breast with spiced honey glaze, marinated heirloom green tomato & duck confit salad
Local Goat Cheese Cake, tomato marmalade


With wine $65...call for reservation 203-353-3319

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Oysters & Albarino tonight!


Tonight enjoy...
Prix fix Chef's Tasting Menu: August 3rd-13th
Available Mon-Thurs: 3 courses $30
5:30 to 7:30. With wine: $40
This is our stimulus package! Great food, great value, great time.

5 to 7pm
OYSTERS & ALBARINO!
Not many places in CT to find fresh, "Just shucked" oysters but Napa will solve that! We'll be featuring a flight of Albarino from Spain, Portugal and California paired with 1/2 dozen oysters. Albarino has this great minerality and you can almost smell the salt water. Perfect pairing-perfect time. $15pp