Page 4C
EAT, DRINK & EXPLORE
East Oregonian
Saturday, January 30, 2016
9 hacks to help you drink better wine by drinking it better
from heat and light. Organize your
wine and know what you have so
you don’t forget it and leave it too
long. And, says Kostovski, think
about investing in a Coravin, the
device that allows you to sample
wine repeatedly without pulling the
cork.
Having friends over for dinner
and plan to open a nice, older bottle
of wine? Stand the bottle upright
(ideally at cellar temperature, or
somewhere between 50 F to 64 F)
for a couple days before the dinner
party, advises Pinzon. This allows
any sediment that may have settled
in the shoulder of the bottle to
settle at the bottom instead, making
serving or decanting cleaner and
more ideal.
By MICHELLE LOCKE
Associated Press
Aiming for a new and improved
you in 2016? That’s tough.
Improving your wine experience?
That’s not hard at all.
Because if you want to drink
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wine better. To help you get the job
done, we asked the pros for their
best wine drinking hacks that will
make you a better person (or at least
a better drinker).
Learn by degrees
Aim for a middle ground when
it comes to temperature. Good
reds taste better with a little chill
on them and good whites taste
better when they’re not ice cold,
says Joe Campanale, co-owner
and beverage director for Epicu-
rean Group, which includes the
NYC neighborhood restaurants
dell’anima, Anfora and L’Artusi.
So if a red wine isn’t being pulled
from a temperature controlled cellar
or wine refrigerator, put the bottle in
a refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes
(or until slightly cool to the touch)
before serving, says Jessica Pinzon,
wine director of the Napa Valley’s
Miminashi restaurant. “Wine shows
more acidity and minerality at a
cooler temperature, and more fruit
and alcohol at a warmer tempera-
ture. Experiencing the transition of
(wine) warming up in the glass will
enhance your understanding and
enjoyment of the wine,” she says.
Add a touch of glass
Use clean, clear glasses with
a good stem, says Campanale,
who hosts the weekly “In the
Drink” program on Heritage Radio
Network. He uses Bordeaux-shaped
glasses (your basic red wine glass)
for “pretty much all wine, including
Champagne.” The stem plays an
important role — keeping your
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Prime that wine
Drinking two wines at dinner out
of one glass? Don’t rinse the glass
with water to make the change,
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Bazaar Meat in the SLS Hotel Las
Vegas. Once the glass is empty,
pour in a little of the second wine,
swirl it, dump the rinse and you’re
ready for a proper pour.
AP Photo/Matthew Mead
This Jan. 18 photo shows an assortment of red and white wine in Concord, N.H.
Age wisely
Drink most white wines young,
says Gordana Kostovski, general
manager and sommelier/beverage
director of the Volver restaurant in
Philadelphia. And these days many
red wines are made ready to drink
on purchase, too. Big red wines,
on the other hand — think French
Bordeaux — may need a little more
time. Wondering how long? That’s a
hard question to answer since wines
vary. You can ask for clues at the
wine shop or sometimes the label or
wine website will offer suggestions.
Develop a bubbly
personality
“Drink more bubbles,” is the
advice of Andy Myers, master
sommelier and wine director for
Washington, D.C.-based chef Jose
Andres’ ThinkFoodGroup. His
pick, Raventos I Blanc “De Nit”
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says Kosovski. Serve bubbles in a
coup or regular wine glass.
Dare to decant
Decanting a wine is good all
around. Whether young or old, a
wine improves when exposed to
a little air (which occurs naturally
when pouring the wine from the
bottle into a decanter). And careful
pouring also means you leave any
sediment in the bottle. “Decanters
aren’t just for somber, candle-lit
ceremonies to separate the sedi-
ment out of venerable, old bottles,”
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sommelier and beverage director
of The Smith Restaurants in New
York. “Young, inexpensive wines
are often improved with a good,
hard splash decanting. Oxygen
will open up the fruit and ease the
tannins.”
Note: If you’ve got a decanter
gathering dust at the back of the
cupboard, now’s the time to use it.
If not, simply pour the wine into a
clean pitcher or vase, says Pinzon.
And don’t limit this to reds, she
says. Champagne, white wine or
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too.
Pick savvy storage
Store wine on its side and
in contact with its cork, says
Kostovski. And if you’ve got a
wine refrigerator, keep it in there
at 55 F. If not, look for a spot in a
basement or closet that’s shaded
Shop smarter
There’s no hacking a really bad
wine. Campanale recommends
going to a good wine shop to get a
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like, make a note of the producer;
you’ll probably like some of their
other wines, too.
Relax
Learning about and developing
an appreciation for wine is inter-
esting, but don’t make it a chore.
“Have fun and enjoy the wine;
pair it with food and friends,”
recommends Kostovski. And while
you’re swirling and sipping — but
not while pouring — try closing
your eyes. “Feel the wine through
your senses,” she says, “Wine is
romantic!”
Phoenix Essentials: Dining,
hikes, art and sunshine
By TERRY TANG
Associated Press
PHOENIX — With hundreds of golf
courses and 300 days of sunshine a year,
it’s easy to cast metropolitan Phoenix as
a retiree’s paradise that leaves everyone
else out in the cold. But within the
desert beats the heart of an actual urban
core that has come into its own. There’s
an emerging restaurant-and-retail scene
along with classic attractions like the
view from Camelback Mountain, plus
newfound treasures like peeking inside
a little-known house designed by Frank
Lloyd Wright.
What’s new
AP Photo/Matthew Mead
Quick and spicy rotisserie chicken and black bean stew.
In a rush? Grab a rotisserie
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By MELISSA D’ARABIAN
Associated Press
Having a trusty fast food strategy is the
busy person’s key to eating well. When I’m
swamped with work, travel, kids’ activities
(or whatever), I quite simply cannot be
trusted to choose the healthy meal over the
quick one.
Unless, that is, the healthy one is the
quick one. Over the years, I have developed
a repertoire of healthier fast food options,
dinners I can get on the table in minutes.
A standby is, of course, the supermarket
rotisserie chicken. Pick up one of those,
add a quick spinach salad (by which I mean
spinach with red wine vinegar and olive oil
sprinkled on it with a handful of almonds
and a quick chop of scallions on top), and
my family is eating before anyone even has
time to ask what’s for dinner.
I also always buy two rotisserie chickens
(or roast two chickens when I’m bothering
to heat up the house with the oven), so I
have leftover chicken seasoned and ready to
go for another meal a day or two later.
This week’s chicken and black bean stew
is a meal inspired by one of those weeks.
The ingredients are all basic, simple stuff
that I have on hand most of the time (and if
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canned chipotles in adobo sauce for tons of
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then store it in a freezer bag and just lop off
a hunk for recipes as you need it).
Don’t have or like chipotles? You also
can use tomato paste and chili powder or
whatever other warm spicy item you have
in your cupboard (Sriracha? Red pepper
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secret to this quick stew is that the chicken
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a little spice and a little acid (the lime juice)
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than the quick and healthy little dinner gem
that this dish is.
Quick & spicy rotisserie chicken
and black bean stew
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Servings: 4
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons (or more) chipotles in adobo
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paste if no spice is desired)
2 cups low-sodium chicken stock, hot
1 1/2 cups water, hot
15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
2 cups shredded chicken from a rotisserie
chicken
2 tablespoons lime juice
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
1/2 large avocado, cubed
1 medium tomato, cubed, seeds removed, or
tomato salsa
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
Lime wedges, to garnish
In a large, heavy pot over medium-high, heat
the oil. Add the onion, celery and carrots and cook
until starting to get tender, about 5 minutes. Add
the garlic and chipotles, then stir until fragrant,
about 1 minute. Add the stock, water, beans, corn
and chicken and bring to a simmer. Reduce the
heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes.
Stir in the lime juice, then taste and season with
salt and pepper. Ladle into 4 serving bowl, then
top with avocado, tomato or salsa, and cilantro,
and offer lime wedges on the side.
Nutrition information per serving: 320 calories;
90 calories from fat (28 percent of total calories);
10 g fat (2 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 50 mg
cholesterol; 480 mg sodium; 37 g carbohydrate;
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A house built by Frank Lloyd
Wright that dodged the wrecking ball
is Phoenix’s latest tourist attraction.
The David and Gladys Wright House,
named for the architect’s son and
daughter-in-law who lived there, is
in the Arcadia neighborhood. There
are free public tours daily. The spiral
walkway offers a spectacular view of
Camelback Mountain. Events on the
grounds range from an Easter egg hunt
to yoga classes.
Changing Hands Bookstore, about
5 miles north of downtown near a
light rail stop, opened in May 2014
but already feels like the place where
everybody knows your name. Patrons
can grab a book with some beer or
wine at the store’s First Draft Book Bar.
Next door, the Southern Rail restaurant,
named for its proximity to the light rail
and its “low-country” cuisine, serves
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food like red beans and rice and fried
chicken.
Another new hub is DeSoto Central
Market in downtown. The property,
once a vacant brick building and former
car dealership, is now a market with
food stalls, bar and patio. It’s known
for happy hour, live music and swing
dance nights. Drool-worthy delicacies
include fried chicken-skin po’boys at
the larder + the delta.
Classic attractions
The 140-acre Desert Botanical
Garden boasts more than 50,000 plants
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desert plants play in the environment.
The latest exhibit incorporates eight
light-based installations using colorful
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With all the sunshine, take a hike.
Two popular summits are the 2,704-
foot Camelback Mountain and 2,608-
foot Piestewa Peak. Both are north of
downtown and offer views of the entire
metropolitan Phoenix valley. A less
crowded alternative is South Mountain
Park 10 miles south of downtown,
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The Heard Museum is known for art
and artifacts showcasing Southwestern
tribal culture, including Hopi katsina
dolls, Navajo textiles and Zuni jewelry.
Frank Lloyd Wright fans may want
to drive 30 minutes to tour his winter
home and studio in Scottsdale.
Galleries at the Musical Instru-
ment Museum in north Phoenix are
AP Photo/Matt York, File
In this May 2012 ile photo, a cac-
tus wrenn sits atop a flowering
saguaro cactus at the Desert Bo-
tanical Gardens in Phoenix.
organized by world regions. Special
headphones play music samples when
you near the corresponding display.
One gallery spotlights instruments and
clothes belonging to icons from Elvis
Presley to Taylor Swift.
Tips
Phoenix’s roughly 23-mile light rail
system makes the ideal hop-on-hop-off
tour bus with a $4 all-day pass. Several
stops have free park-and-ride areas too.
The tracks run through downtown,
the college town of Tempe and the
suburb of Mesa. In Tempe, stroll
around Tempe Town Lake, popular for
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racing. Mill Avenue is lined with shops,
restaurants and bars. In Mesa, get off
at the Main Street/Sycamore stop and
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The shopping center is a smorgasbord
of authentic Asian cuisine — dim
sum, pho or Taiwanese specialties like
simmered pig ear.
Hanging out
Phoenix’s artsy Roosevelt Row
neighborhood is the best place for
quirky people-watching along a seven-
block stretch with restaurants, bars,
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of each month, the neighborhood hosts
outdoor musicians, artists and vendors.
For a respite from the desert
landscape, the 10-acre Farm at South
Mountain in south Phoenix feels like
a country garden party. Onsite eateries
include a breakfast-brunch cafe and
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grown produce. You can also grab
lunch in a basket and use picnic tables
in the farm’s pecan tree grove.
Mexican restaurants in Phoenix are
like Starbucks: There’s practically one
on every corner, from gourmet taco
houses to casual mom-and-pop joints.
Barrio Cafe is a local institution known
for its collection of some 300 different
tequilas and for dishes made from
cochinita pibil (slow roasted pork)
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of spices.