Category Archives: Photos

Crooked Fence Beer Tasting at Salt Tears

04 Wednesday Apr 2012

Posted by in Beer and Ale, Boise Adventures, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Salt Tears, Special Information, What's For Dinner?

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It has been a while since we have been to Salt Tears Coffee House and Noshery, 4714 W State St., Boise. Last night they held a beer tasting for the Crooked Fence Brewing Company at 5242 Chinden Blvd., Garden City, Idaho. We really had some good beers and the food to accompany it was well matched.

I have also posted a general menu from Salt Tears here. They have specials several times a week and music. Left-Click these graphics to get a larger and printable view of these menus.

This is the weekend special menu. Live music every Thursday and and Saturday with Fridays being a different fish meal. Use the scan code to go to their site.

Jennifer and Danny, Manager of Salt Tears (Thanks Jan), are stocking the Finger Foods to go with the beer.

Andy Leathers of Crooked Fence Brewery. Story goes that the fences in the meadows of Sun Valley are “crooked” and that is where the name of this brewery came from. Andy  previously worked at Widmer Brewery in Seattle.

The three beers of Crooked Fence. (L-R)
Picket Porter
nice blend of chocolate and coffee. I also got some sesame off of it so it might go well with an Asian dish. 5.5% alc
Rusty Nail Pale Ale
my favorite for the night. an Idaho pale ale with cascade and galena hops. great with a summer BBQ.
5.5% alc
Hole Wheat
a very light beer that will work well as a thirst quencher. made with wheat, pilsner and 2-row hops. orange peel and grains of paradise

(L-R) Picket Porter, Rusty Nail Pale Ale and Hole Wheat

Finger Foods to go with the beers
Salt Tears Pickled Vegetables
Onion Sour Cream Dip
Cheese Fondue

Salt Tears
Cream of Broccoli Soup

Awesome Birthday Wine Dinner At the Buzz

02 Monday Apr 2012

Posted by in Celebrations, Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Special Events, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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This was a great birthday for me. Michelle Larson also had a birthday and Cristie and Tommy, owners of the Buzz, did a superb job creating a party atmosphere! Both Michelle and I thank them sincerely for allowing this party to happen. Look at the menu we had. See anything “strange”? The dinner was served backwards – that is, dessert first! Cristie is so creative. I want to thank our friends and family who joined us and the many cards and gifts they gave: Ed and Mary, Jan (Maize), Margaret, Robin, Bob and Gail, Marnie and Mac, Sophia, Madison and Chris and Barbara and Patrick. Thank you all so very much for making this a fantastic day.

Brunch at Berryhill and Co. Hard to see the cake with the candle.

Some of the gifts received at the Buzz.

70 Beers!!!

Ed and Mary, Jan, Margaret and Robin.

Bob and Gail, Marnie and Mac, Madison and Chris. Sophia was not in the photo.

An awesome TBA that Robin and I offered to all of our friends who were there. It’s a sweet wine so there were some who did not like it. But not many. We are happy that we could share this fantastic wine with everyone. Auction value? $425.00

One beer for every year – 70 different beers!

Dessert
Donauweller Cake
NV Zonin Lambrusco
8.5% alc, not my favorite, light on bouquet and balance [12] $10.00
NV Fonseca Porto
20% alc, it was a good port, good balance and bouquet [16] $20.00 (750 ml)

Chicken Rollatini
Baked Tomatoes
2010 Poggio Sangiovese
13.5% alc, weak on body but overall a good wine. [17] $17.00
2010 Bolla Bardolino
12.0% alc, week on body and finish. [14] $10.00

Salad
Asparagus and Edamame
(Interesting and good salad)
2010 D’Aguino Pinot Grigio
12.0% alc, really a good wine. [17] $10.00
2010 Tabali Sauvignon Blanc
13.5% alc, weak on color and balance. [14] $13.00

Soup
Sopa Poblano
Awesome soup!
2010 Arenal Carmenere
14.0% alc, a little weak on the bouquet but went well with this soup. [17] $13.00
2010 Montes Malbec
14.0% alc, a good strong malbec. did not over power the soup [ 18] $13.00

Appetizer
Salmon Bites
Worstenbroodjes
Chiles en Nogada
2009 Luna Merlot
14.9% alc, a big and bold merlot. [19] $22.00 
2008 Yellowtail Reserve Merlot
14.0% alc, another big merlot [18] $11.00

Again, I thank everyone for making this a great Birthday Party! Cheers.

Braised Pork with Cream Mustard Sauce

25 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by in Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Pork, What's For Dinner?

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Braised Center-Cut Pork Chop
with
Cream Mustard Sauce
Balsamic Brussels Sprouts
Green Salad with Carrot Strips
Baked Sweet Potato
(not pictured)
2006 Parma Ridge Vineyards Zinfandel

This was a really good dinner. Easy to prepare. Enjoy!

TBA For When?

24 Saturday Mar 2012

Posted by in Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Things To Do, What's For Dinner?

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Most people, if they are extremely lucky, will have 3 TBA’s (Trockenbeeren Auslese) in their lifetime. This will be my 6th! This is an Austrian wine. A rich gold color and awesome! Each grape is picked by hand and each grape has sugar concentrated in it. This particular wine has an alcohol level of 10.0%. Question is – When will be a good time to open this?

Greek Tilapia

24 Saturday Mar 2012

Posted by in Ethnic Foods, Greek Food, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, What's For Dinner?, Wine Dinners

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You see? We eat other seafood than salmon. Here is a good recipe for tilapia done in a little different way. Our menu for tonight?

Greek Tilapia
(See recipe)
Rice Stuffed Grape Leaves
Greek Green Beans
2008 Vale Wine Co. Merlot


Greek Tilapia Recipe

While on a trip through the Greek islands, my husband and I had a dish that we loved. I tried to duplicate it by combining several different recipes and came up with this. —Sally Burrell, Idaho Falls, Idaho

Ingredients:
6 tilapia fillets (4 ounces each)
4 teaspoons butter
1 egg
1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled tomato and basil feta cheese
1/3 cup fat-free milk
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 large tomato, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped ripe olives
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
In a large skillet, brown fish in butter in batches. Transfer to a 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan coated with cooking spray.
In a small bowl, combine the egg, cheese, milk and cayenne; spoon over fish. Sprinkle with tomato, olives and pine nuts. Bake, uncovered, at 425° for 10-15 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.
In a small bowl, combine the parsley, lemon juice and pepper; drizzle over fish.

Yield: 6 servings.

I reduced the recipe to feed just Robin and I and it turned out just fine. You can see the plated dinner in the photo above. Enjoy!

Margaret’s Irish Soda Bread

20 Tuesday Mar 2012

Posted by in Bread, Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, What's For Dinner?

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Great to have these small cooking/baking classes for those interested. This one was particularly nice because Margaret requested it. Well ……. Sort of! Fun to make this Irish Soda Bread – it only has 3 ingredients in it – and quick. Total time about an hour. And look at what she made. (Do I hear applause for her?) Left-Click for a larger view of the photos.

But before baking this morning, we had to have some dinner last night. How about

Broiled Talapia
with
Fresh Made Tartar Sauce

Braised Asparagus and Mushrooms
with
Montmorency Cherry Sauce

Wow! This was super! And serve it all with a 2010 Indian Creek Winery Mountain Syringa and you have an awesome and delicious dinner!

Now …… Back to baking!

Margaret. Ready to learn how to make the Irish Soda Bread. She did a great job!

Look at what she made! So easy and so good. Great Job Margaret!

But wait! Here are two loaves. We’ll make one additional loaf at no additional cost! Sucha deal. Spread a little butter on and maybe some honey. Oh my!

April Schedule at the Buzz

20 Tuesday Mar 2012

Posted by in Photos, Photos By: Bob Young

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Because of the “non-static” nature of information from the Buzz, I am going to post their articles on this main page. I think it works better. With that in mind and since it is snowing outside and the Irish Soda Bread class that we held is over, here is the latest from Cristi and Tommy at the Buzz. Cheers!

Greetings!
As the first day of spring has arrived with blowing snow covering the budding trees, we at Buzz are getting ready for our spring, which is full of events and fun. Hopefully, you will be able to join us during these activities.

Up and Coming Events –

April Fool’s Day Dinner
On April 1st at 6:30 PM Buzz Coffee and Wine will host our April Fool’s Day Dinner, no joke. We will feature a five course meal with each course being paired with two different wines, we will then discuss which wine pairs better with the food. This is a Quarterly Event hosted by the Buzz. Reservations are required, space fills quickly so be sure and call early for your reservations. The cost is $30 per person and reservations can be made at (208) 344-4321 or buzzwine@cableone.net.

Upcoming Music
3/23 Blaze and Kelly
3/24 Sandy Sanford
3/30 Johnny Shoes
4/6 Gayle Chapman
4/7 Lee Penn Sky

Music starts at 7 PM and ends at 9 PM with wine tasting starting at 6 PM. As always we will feature a dinner special each night along with the wine tasting and music. 


April Wine Club
The wine club dinners continue to focus on wine and media. For April our focus will be social media and wine. The wine club dinners will be April 10 and 11 at 6:30 PM. Please make reservations early as spaces fill up quickly. Hope to see you there.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank each of you for your business along with our hope to see you soon. If you have any catering needs this spring do not hesitate to call or email and let us be part of your festivities throughout the season. We will be hosting our annual Mother’s Day Brunch on May 13 so watch for more information to be coming. Also, don’t forget we carry a complete line of take and bake meals, the menu is posted on our facebook page so give us a call so we can have your take and bake meal ready and waiting for you. Free delivery on any order in Boise over $50 or Caldwell and Nampa over $75.00. (24 hour notice requested). Thanks again.

Sincerely,
Cristi and Tom Takeda
Buzzwine@cableone.net or (208) 344-4321

Original White or Dark Irish Soda Bread

18 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by in Bread, Irish Soda Bread, Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, What's For Dinner?

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Well … It was a super St Patrick’s Day dinner! There were 20+ people there and everyone pitched in to help either by preparing something, or setting the table or prepping. It was great. Thank-You Leanne and Tom!
The photo to the left is a White Irish Soda Bread that I made. (The link takes you to the recipe) This comes from an original recipe from the Preservation of the Irish Soda Bread web site. (There is also an article of the Irish soda bread below.)





I had to make two loaves, and I am glad I did. I made one as a White Soda Bread, above. Here is the Dark Soda Bread, to the back of the pan, and the White Soda Bread to the front of the pan. The only difference between the two are the ingredients. Both are mixed and baked off precisely the same way. I have them both in the same recipe as listed above. These are really very easy and quick to make. Do try them and let us know what you think. Cheers!

Copper River Salmon Dinner

17 Saturday Mar 2012

Posted by in Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Salmon, Tomatoes, What's For Dinner?

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Rain. Rain. More rain. Rivers flooding. Snow melt in the mountains is causing roadway flooding. Some homes flooded in Weiser. And what is it doing now? Rain!
So there has to be a bright point in the day. Try this ….. (Left-Click to see a larger view!)

Broiled Copper River Salmon
Baked Red Potatoes
Fresh Green Salad

That was a super dinner. Brush the salmon lightly, after drying it off, with a little salt and pepper and then some lemon curd. Rub the potatoes in bacon drippings before baking. Mix the salad greens with tomato, onion, almond slivers, bacon bits and the dressing of your choice. Top this all of with a 2009 Indian Creek Pinot Noir (13.5% alc – another great Idaho wine) and you have an awesome dinner. Quick and easy to do! Enjoy.

The Buzz – Sideways and Bottle Shock Tour

14 Wednesday Mar 2012

Posted by in Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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“The Lily”


So what does this photo have to do with the Wine Dinner? Actually, nothing. It’s a lily that Robin bought because she likes them. And it is so pretty.


On March 13, the Buzz held another Wine Dinner and this time the theme was “Sideways and Bottle Shock”. If you did not see the movies and you like wine, rent them. They are good. This tasting was good, too. If you missed it, you can always make the next Buzz Wine Club Dinner on April 10 or 11. But, here is what we had tonight. Left-Click and of these photos for a larger view. Enjoy!

Austin, Joe, Tommy and Peggy get ready to serve the crowd.

Two of the opening wines. I am not a fan of Carmenere and the Cortese grape in the Gavi is one I have not had before. Another one to add to my Century Club score card!

Now here is  wine from the Russian River area of California. Yes, the Joe Swan area! And this wine had hints of Joe’s 1975 chardonnay … but just hints.

2009 Selby Chardonnay
14.0% alc, fruity and light. not over oaked. earthy [17] 

Corn and Chanterelle Crostini and Goat Cheese-Edamame Pitas

2009 Cycles Chardonnay
13.5% alc not bad and went well with the goat cheese. [17] $12.00

Gingery Sweet Potato Soup

2008 Dynamite Merlot
13.5% alc not really the best merlot that I have had. not a lot of balance and low on finish. [15] $14.00

Beet, Fennel and Jicama Salad
with
Macadamia Nut Dressing
(One awesome salad!)

2009 Line 39 Cabernet Sauvignon
13.0 alc one of the better wines for the night. good body, balance and finish. went very well with this salad. [19] $12.00

Smoky Pork Pappardelle

2010 Hahn Pinot Noir
14.0% alc good, but I have had some Idaho pinot that is much better, Indian Creek Winery for one. fair body and finish. [18] $15.00

Pear Tart
(A great tart!)

2002 Fess Parker Syrah
(Yep! Ole “Davey Crocket” himself!)
14.0% alc This wine would have made him proud. went great with the tart. good balance and finish with a hint of smoke [19] $19.00


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The schedule for upcoming events is out. Be sure to make reservations as these events fill up quickly and seating is limited!! Look for their link in the sidebar or call (208) 344-4321 for reservations.

Sunday April 1 – (No this is not a joke!!)
Quarterly Dinner
Special dinner that has no particular “lesson” associated with it. Come and enjoy some great wine and a special five course dinner. There are only four of these dinners per year.

April 10 and 11
Wine Club Wine Dinner
$15.00 per person for 4-5 courses, 6-7 wines and a lecture on the selected wine type. These dinners sell out quickly, so call for your reservations. The dinner is repeated on each night.

May 8 and 9
Wine Club Dinner

May 13
Mother’s Day Brunch
A very special Mother’s Day Brunch will be offered