94's Blog

SOUP - Chicken Noodle - and not just any chicken noodle! This one was made with our own double rich chicken stock, Gemeli, bunches of fresh herbs, garlic of course and plenty of onion, celery and carrot.

DESSERT
Caramel Pecan
Vanilla Fudge Chunk
Maple Chevre Tart
Marcona Almond Double Fudge Tart
Caramel Apple Tart
Honeyed Peanutbutter Tart

It's been a light tasting week. I've been a little too busy for the rep's to catch me, so I have only tried 28 different wines so far and honestly, I haven't found much I thought you guys couldn't live without. Such is life! That's not to say I drank NO good wine... :)

Coming soon:

Mckinlay Pinot Noir - I sampled their "basic model". A nice, little Pinot from Parrot Mountain vineyard at a great price. $38. No, I'm not kidding. I have also requested samples of their upper level labels. Watch for updates.

1994 Kopke Colehita - Great balance! coffee, dried cherry, milk chocolate, Brazilnut and cashew.
There was a most humorous debate concerning what nuts were in this. Of course, I won...

Kopke Colehita 1985 Vintage tawny - Such beautiful fresh fruit at the core. Balance is amazing. This one is going to go with so many different flavors. I was fascinated by it.

Kopke 2005 Vintage Port - Molasses nose, thick mouth feel, molasses notes continue on the finish. You might think, oh, molasses, I dunno. Trust me, this isn't the flavor in that dusty bottle in the back of your cupboard. This is the beautiful flavors of a molasses purchased from a Puerto Rican Rum maker. Haven't ever tried them? Do.

Sorry, I have been neglecting you the last couple of days. Been busy doing a bunch of research, otherwise known as reading cookbooks to try to get inspired to create some new things. Not being a big believer in rules and doing what I'm told, the size of my cookbook collection might be baffling to some. I simply love to read them. I pretty much never actually follow a recipe. Me, you're kidding, right? I do find they help me to think, though when the creative impulses are at a low.

Tonight's new treats:
Appetizers
Calamari Dijon cream
spicy pickled pepper
Sounds simple, but you know it won't be.

Oyster Mushroom Garlic roast ~ herbs ~ mascarpone with sausage
Kevin is down in the Market hunting up something spectacular to turn this into a masterpiece as we speak.

Entrees
Sonoma Saveur Magret
Dense breast of roast free range duck
cider glazed ~ blackberry demi glace
wild rice ~ lacinado kale, lardon
Blackberries are beautiful with duck. I picked up some special fresh Pink Lady Cider in Woodinville Sunday that I'm using as well. Add the bacon in the braised greens and you have heaven in your mouth.

Tenderloin of Beef
Mid rare ~ port finished veal jus
Coltson Basset Stilton fritters ~ mashed ~ asparagus
I've been reducing the jus for hours and it's just right. The flavors that have developed are amazing. If you're watching the kitchen, I will add this magical liquid to the pan when I am finishing the steak, drizzle in a touch of all natural heavy cream and reduce it just a little further to a golden glaze I suspect I will see my guests trying to figure out how they can lick off the plate without getting caught.
Then top with those cheese fritters. These, of course, will be oozing down from the top. Oh, my...
See you for dinner!

Todays Soup- Chicken Noodle - and not just any chicken noodle! This one was made with our own double rich chicken stock, Gemeli, bunches of fresh herbs, garlic of course and plenty of onion, celery and carrot.

DESSERT
Caramel Pecan
Vanilla Fudge Chunk
Maple Chevre Tart

SOUP - Kaleidoscope Bisque
Stir this fun soup to see the swirls of color from wild rice, bits of multicolored sweet pepper, carrot, onion and celery in Moroccan spiced coconut cream and Chicken stock.

DESSERT
Caramel Pecan
Vanilla Fudge Chunk
Maple Chevre Tart

SOUP - Sweet Pepper Coconut Bisque
This is an interesting blend of non typical flavors. The texture is light, but the flavor is huge.

DESSERT
Chunky Monkey
Caramel Cheesecake
Caramel Pecan
Vanilla Fudge Chunk
Maple Chevre Tart

The Pelissero shipment arrived today! A couple of weeks ago, Giorgio was in to show me his wines. Yes, you will regularly find wine makers from Italy, France, Spain, Argentina, as well as America, at the counter, afternoons at 94. Usually, they are quite friendly and happy to talk about their beautiful wines with everyone in attendance. You should consider stopping by. It's always a party!

Giorgio had such a lovely lineup, it was hard to choose, but choices were made indeed and I just finished putting them on the next wine list to be printed. There are some really good values in this line up. Watch for them.

Pelisserio Barbera d'Alba, 2005 "Piani" $38 "Good masculine structure shows better than the average Barbera. Enjoyed the depth on the finish"
Pelissero Langhe, 2004, "Long Now" $76 "A dark and powerful example from this region" 50/50 Nebbiolo/Barbera
Pelissero Barbaresco, 2003 "Vanotu" $124 "The nose was almost pretty... but that's not the correct word for this masculine example of gorgeous fruit/structure/power. This wine truly speaks to you. All you have to do is sip and listen..."

Jarred came in a few days later with some bottles to tease me with. Ha! I'm a sucker for a Brunello every time! Vasco Sassetti's are lovely to behold. Those of you that chat with me regularly at the counter, know about the visual components of my palate. It seems to entertain everyone. I'm deadly serious! In the case of Brunellos, I always visualize them as women. They are powerful; divas. Enticing, exciting, voluptuous, sirens of the night...
2001 - It takes these wines a few years to mature. This young lady has just reached her maturity and the beginnings of her power, over all who behold her, have just begun. She has a little attitude! She knows who she is. You might want to meet this lady...
1997 - Oh, the lady is divine. This is a most splendid example of ripe womanhood. She knows exactly what she's doing. Close your eyes and let her hold you...
Hey, I'm great fun to taste wine with! LOL Chef!

SOUP - Seafood Chowder

DESSERT -
Caramel Pecan
Vanilla Fudge Chunk
Maple Chevre Tart

For those of you that frequent the counter at 94, Chef Celinda always has stories to share and great new wines she's talking about. We've convinced her to start telling everyone here, on the Blog site. As time allows, look for her great adventures...

Sunday was the perfect day for a drive to Woodinville. I had contacted a dozen of the new boutique wineries I've wanted to check out. Four of them were able to meet with me Sunday. For any of you that know me well, I am "geographically challenged" so any trip alone is going to be an adventure! Ok, so I probably put an extra 50 miles on Andy's Jeep, but, hey, I made it all my appointments!

First, I met with Brennan the wine maker at brand new Efeste winery. He was previously with Chateau Ste Michelle in their red wine program. Chris Upchurch is also the consulting wine maker for this brand new, very attractive label. For those of you that are familiar with Woodinville, their half built facility is in the location where Mike Januik originally was. It's not open to the public yet, but should be a nice place when it's done. Brennan opened the Cab's and Syrah they will be releasing in March. Yum! Tried the Syrah first. It's named for someone they met in their wine travels, Geidleigh. This is a beautiful, well balanced red. Should be excellent with food; not overextracted, but well balanced with elegant acid levels. I also was interested in their "Final-Final" Cab-Syrah blend; another fabulous food wine. Then the "Big Papa". Wow, what a beautiful big red wine; yet, once again, not over-extracted. Brennan completed my sampling with a sneak peak at all his in-barrel 2007's. He has a cab humming along that is going to be one of the best I've tried from Washington in a long time and I try a lot of wines!

On to my next stop, Edmonds Winery, located in the little industrial area where it seems a lot of tasting rooms are opening. They feature a "seated tasting" in their barrel storage area on the weekends. They weren't open this weekend due to wine blending projects for the next vintage, but made time for me to stop and sample. They are making some very nice, moderately priced reds. I picked up a lovely 2004 Claret you will be seeing on glass pour. It sports some expressive berry notes, interesting spice and a caramel base. I was amazed at the price and bought four cases to share with you.

Third stop, Tim Blue of Adams Bench Winery. The facility is located adjacent to their beautiful home in the hills above the Hollywood area. It was my good fortune to be invited in to sit with he and his wife in their dining room. They are brand new to the area and wine making. The wines I tried were huge, California style cabs. They won't be released for some time yet so sorry, couldn't bring any home for you. Tim was unsure how they plan to proceed with their marketing plan. Right now, he intends to primarily sell from the winery this year, but I think I may have an "in" to get a hold of a case or two down the road.

Last stop, Woodhouse Winery and assistant winemaker, Linn. A fun little place on Woodinville-Redmond Rd. They had some nice bargains on interesting varietals from Washington. Check them out, if you get a chance.

Gotta go. Have an Italian delivery coming in the door. Oh, some beautiful new Brunellos... a 2001 and a 1997! I'll have to tell you about those later.
Celinda

Finally, gottem in! They will be ready for dinner tonight.

Vermont Maple Chevre Tart
Vanilla Fudge Chunk made with Valrhona pieces and Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla
Caramel Pecan

See you later!

Soup:
Black lentil with ham hock
Seafood Chowder with bacon, clams, oysters and crab

Dessert:

Chocolate Covered Cherry
Lemoncello tart with mascarpone glaze
Butterscotch Cheesecake with Fleur de Sel
Chunky Monkey Tart
German Chocolate Tar

SOUP - Black Lentil with Ham Hock

DESSERT
Chocolate Covered Cherry
Lemoncello tart with mascarpone glaze
Coconut Macaroon
Butterscotch Cheesecake with Fleur de Sel
Chunky Monkey Tart
German Chocolate Tart

What a glorious day! Imagine, February in Seattle, its Friday and it's all wrapped up in a blue and white bow! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

That new dinner menu, wow! The biggest seller has been the new Ravioli stuffed with confit onion and cinnamon scented ricotta finished with brown butter and Parmigianno Regianno. (Of course it's the real deal! Geez! This is 94 we're talking about) Sous Chef Kevin has been working diligently to prep these beauties. I could swear I heard him muttering something last night about a "rule" that only vegetarians should be allowed to order the things. LOL!! Of course, for the carnivores in the group the New York steak topped with foie gras stuffed mushrooms was rolling out pretty steadily, as well. The kitchen was disappointed that no one tried the new Cherry Stone Clams. These are baked with double cream St Andre and fire roasted poblanos. Talk about fabulous! You gotta try these things.

Thursday was a little lighter on wine sampling for Chef. She only tried 20, I think. She says she is bringing on the 2005 Ca'Di Pian Barbera D'Asti from La Spinetta. Loads of flavor for a Barbera; nice texture holds the well balanced fruit/earth/spice all the way through. Look for it soon on the glass pour list. She also retasted the Cristom Oregon Syrah. It's on the list now, but she's ordering some 375's, as well. This is an old world style lovely. Tastes more like France than NW. Understated, elegant, good true fruit, dry, elegantly balanced minerality, earth, not dark.

Chef's putting together a bunch of private tastings in Woodinville for Sunday, so be sure and catch the site next week to see what she has found. She's been in contact with a number of the little boutique wineries that don't have tasting rooms open to the public.

In the meantime, enjoy this incredible day! See you for dinner tonight.

Chef's been at it again! Yesterday, she spent several hours sampling wines with her top reps. Of the twenty six she tried the stand outs were three from Basil Cellars new wine maker, Justin Basil, a beautiful Haut Medoc at a very reasonable price, a nice Paullac and a revisit with Cantenac Brown's Brio.
You'll want to also watch for her to update the list with the three beauties Andrew brought in: Walnut City Pinot Gris, Schoenheitz Muscat(very dry!) and believe it or not, a very nice, reasonably priced Pinot Noir from Westry Winery.

The dinner menu's in flux AGAIN. Yeah, like that's news! Chef can't possibly leave it alone and we love that. She's got a whole new line up coming out tonight. I see Cherry Stone Clams from the East coast and a new sauce for duck. Are those foie gras stuffed mushrooms really going with the New York? Yes! Were you at the last wine dinner? Remember the avocado chutney? Chef and Kevin loved it so much, she's actually made more and is using it with a new Sea Scallop prep. You know how she is about making something over again. That must be a really really good recipe! Wwhat's that? It looks like Confit Onion Ravioli! Oh, I'm getting hungry... Gotta see that new menu!

Wow, Chef's got MORE wine samples coming in the door right now! Gotta go. It's always a blast at 94 when Chef's here. Lucky for us, she almost always is! See you for dinner tonight.

SOUP
Potato with brie and Jamon Serrano, fresh herbs
Black Lentil with Ham Hock (Just for Paul)

DESSERT
Choc covered cherry
Lemoncello tart with mascarpone glaze
Coconut Macaroon

SOUP - Potato Brie with Jamon Serano and fresh herbs

DESSERT
Chocolate Covered Cherry
Irish Creme with hazelnuts
Lemoncello Tart with Mascarpone
Coconut Macaroon

SOUP - Lobster Bisque

DESSERTS
Chocolate Covered Cherry
Irish Creme with hazelnuts
German Chocolate
Lemoncello Tart with Mascarpone
Coconut Macaroon

SOUP - Hearty Spring Vegetable Chowder with bacon, chic stock, potato, cream, asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, herbs.

DESSERT
Caramel Fudge
Chocolate Covered Cherry
Irish Creme with hazelnuts
German Chocolate
Turtle

SOUP - Early Spring Vegetable Chowder with bacon, chic stock, potato, cream, asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, herbs. A fairly hearty soup.

DESSERT
Caramel Fudge
Chocolate Covered Cherry
Caramel Fleur de Sel WITH Vanilla Ice Cream (Do not charge for I.C.)
Brown Sugar Apple Tart
Irish Creme
German Chocolate
Turtle

SOUP - Manila Clam Chowder

DESSERT
Coconut Macaroon
Caramel Fudge
Chocolate Covered Cherry
Caramel Fleur de Sel WITH Olympic Mountain Madagascar Vanilla Ice Cream
Brown Sugar Apple Tart

valentines lunch
we are all booked for dinner.

SOUP - Manila Clam Chowder

DESSERT
Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla with Golden Monkey (China black tea) & Arriba Ganache
Caramel (Jazz) Apple Tart
Oban with chocolate chunk
Caramel Fudge Tart
Coconut Macaroon
Lemoncello Cheesecake
more coming.

SOUP - Manila Clam Chowder

DESSERT
Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla with Golden Monkey (China black tea) & Arriba Ganache
Caramel (Jazz) Apple Tart
Oban with chocolate chunk
Caramel Fudge Tart
Coconut Macaroon
Lemoncello Cheesecake

Soup: Creamy Potato with Brie

Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla with Golden Monkey (China black tea) & Arriba Ganache
Caramel (Jazz) Apple Tart
Oban with chocolate chunk

if you battle the wind, come get a bowl of soup
SOUP - Potato Brie

Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla with Golden Monkey (China black tea) & Arriba Ganache
Caramel (Jazz) Apple Tart
Oban with chocolate chunk
Lemoncello

SOUP - White Bean Chili with slow cooked pork and ancho chilies (tomato, stock)

DESSERT
Peanut Butter Tart
Maple Nut Tart
Turtle
Oban tart with arriba chunk
Lemoncello Tart

SOUP - White Bean Chili with slow cooked pork and ancho chilies (tomato, stock)

DESSERT
Caramel Fleur De Sel
Peanut Butter Tart
Maple Nut Tart
Turtle
Oban tart with arriba chunk
Lemoncello Tart

closed to general seating

SOUP - Saffron Sweet pepper with artichokes and ricotta

DESSERT
Caramel Fleur De Sel
Peanut Butter Tart
Maple Nut Tart

SOUP - Baby green lentil with ham hock and root vegetables (chic stock)

DESSERT

Chocolate covered Pecan Tart
Caramel Fleur De Sel
Peanut Butter Tart
Maple Nut Tart

Soup: French Lentil with Smoked Ham Hock

Dessert:
Chunky Monkey
Butterscotch Cheesecake
Brownie Torte served with Pear Sorbet with Raspberry Ribbon
Chocolate covered Pecan
Black Bottom Macaroon
Maple Nut Tart
Peanut Butter Tart
Caramel with Fleur de Sel

SOUP Spicy cannellini scented with orange - contains chic stock, bacon, sweet pepper

DESSERT
Chunky Monkey banana
Ginger Fudge fudge
Dried Cherry cherry
Butterscotch Cheesecake