Page 15 - Boca Club News - January '25

Boca Club News, Page 15
Grape Expectations: My New Year’s Resolutions

By Ed Wolfarth, who recently Many wine lists do not include vintages, so I always Burgundies for a fraction of the cost. Look for Kermit
moved to South Florida after ask our servers since vintage variation is another Lynch or Georges Dubouef on the label. 2020, 2021 &
retiring with his wife, Vicki, as important factor in choosing a wine. I have found some 2022 were excellent vintages.
Professor of Sports Sciences & upscale steak restaurants switching vintages on their Also seek out Moulin a Vent and Morgon for really
Physical Education at both Queens expensive Cabs—an unfortunate restaurant practice. In age-worthy silky smooth wines. Or, Brouilly, St. Amour
College and Hofstra University. He this instance it helps to carry a pocket vintage chart. You or Fleurie for wonderful food-friendly wines. All for less
is a nationally ranked senior tennis usually can’t go wrong choosing a reliable producer from than $20 a bottle! These single-vineyard Gamays are my
player and long-time USPTA Elite a good vintage year. favorite Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner wines.
Teaching Professional. Ed has Another consideration is to trust a local wine merchant. Wines from the Pacific Northwest, Washington and
written many educational and tennis articles in the past. Here in Florida, I found that the personnel at the Wine Oregon. in Oregon, more specifically the Willamette
Over the past few years, Ed has turned his hobby of wine Wave in Delray are knowledgeable and extremely helpful. Valley, Pinot Noir is king. Lemelson, Erath, A to Z
collecting into a way of continuing his passion for writing Recently, Jeremiah recommended a $15 Chianti that Wineworks, Shea and King Estate are making fabulous
and has written on the subject for publications. As a self- would rival any $40 Brunello, IMHO. Since then I’ve Pinots at affordable prices. 2019, 2021 are fine vintages.
proclaimed “wine snob,” he has collaborated on many tried many of their staff’s recommendations and have Avoid 2020 as wildfires marred the harvest and many
wine lists for private clubs and a few restaurants. Ed can never been disappointed. wineries skipped the vintage entirely, fearing smoke taint.
be reached at wolfarthe@msn.com. Allow me to suggest a few wines, producers and In Washington State, Merlot is king. My favorite
Every year at about this time we all vow to make our vintages you need to try next time you are imbibing. producers are: Columbia Crest, Chateau Ste. Michelle,
New Year’s resolutions. For me it’s usually about eating Remember, this is your New Year’s resolution! Waterbrook and Milbrandt. Columbia Crest makes a
smarter or getting to the gym more often. However, as I New Zealand wines. Most of us know about their middle of the road line called H-3 or Horse Heaven Hills.
often say, addition is easy but subtraction is hard! It’s easy Sauvignon Blancs. In the early 1960s, Cloudy Bay put All selling for around $15 a bottle.
to take a pill for this or that, but try giving up chocolate? New Zealand on the world’s wine map. Now there are While I haven’t seen it on too many on wine lists
That doesn’t work. And now to wine! dozens of excellent producers, including Dog Point, Villa you should be able to find their reds in local wine shops.
Too often we settle for the comfortable choice: That Maria, Starborough and, most notably, the ubiquitous Kim The Waterbrook Reserve Merlot was the house wine
name brand of wine or that Pinot Grigio has become the Crawford, that gives you a distinctive “grapefruit” taste. at our favorite, but now defunct restaurant in Chelsea,
default choice of many consumers. Or at a restaurant Besides the above-mentioned, New Zealand is home Sonia Rose. and can easily compete with any right bank
we’ll ask our server to choose a wine for us. This too has to some excellent Pinot Noirs. While red Burgundies Bordeaux. Milbrandt is a boutique winery that you really
its inherent problems. Many wait staff have little wine are more expensive and often unreliable, and California need to seek out. All their bottlings run around $15 - $20
knowledge or may have “hidden agendas.” But if you are Pinots tend to be made in a style that suggests more is and are fabulous examples of Washington State wines.
willing to step out of your comfort zone and try something better (more alcohol, more fruit, etc.), I prefer Pinot from All current vintages were excellent for Merlot, Syrah and
different, trial and error and self-discovery will lead you either Oregon or New Zealand. Look for Craggy Range, Cabernet.
to some terrific wines at affordable prices. And that, my Amisfield and Nobilo Icon. Remember the names Otago So there you have it. Do a little research, seek out
friends, is our New Year’s resolution. Valley and Martinborough. a knowledgeable wine merchant and most importantly
Lately, I find myself perusing the online wine lists of Single Vineyard Beaujolais — yes, Beaujolais! step out of your comfort zone and try different wines.
restaurants I am about to attend. Since I don’t know many Not the nouveau type that comes out every 3rd week of Become familiar with reliable producers. Nothing
of these wines I do a bit of research to look for value and November but the good stuff, also made from the Gamay ventured, nothing gained! Remember, it’s your New
interesting wines I need to try. grape, but vinified in a style similar to the great red Year’s resolution. You won’t be sorry.
Get Fresh! Tips from

The Produce Maven…Bananas–COVID

Irving Swedko and his wife, Bananas are always bent due to a phenomenon known Green bananas can be important for healthy skin and
Beverly, are members of Broken as negative geotropism. Once developed, instead of hair. They support proper kidney function, are filling and
Sound Club. He hails from Ottawa, growing toward the ground bananas turn towards the sun. can help with weight loss, may help lower blood sugar
the capital of Canada, where he The fruit continues growing against gravity, giving the levels and cholesterol, contain resistant starch that boosts
spent more than 50 years in the banana its familiar curved shape. the immune system and promotes the growth of beneficial
produce business that included One serving, or one medium ripe banana, provides gut bacteria, improves the absorption of essential minerals
taking a small fruit and vegetable about 110 calories, 0 grams fat, 1 gram protein, 28 grams and nutrients, helps regulate blood pressure and can
retail store and expanding it across carbohydrate, 15 grams sugar (naturally occurring), 3 improve metabolism.
the city and into other areas to grams fiber, and 450 mg potassium. Roasting bananas in the oven at 250°F for 5–10
include wholesale, food service and importing, bringing With 105 million tons produced annually it’s safe to minutes softens them, making them easier to incorporate
trucks of fresh produce from across the U.S. directly into say bananas are one of the world’s favorite fruits (although into batter. Roasting for longer concentrates the sweetness
Ottawa. His experience made him an expert on all things botanically speaking they are berries, and the “tree” they and caramelizes the banana pulp. Microwaving unpeeled
produce-related, from how to select the perfect melon to grow on is actually an herb). bananas in 30-second intervals softens them, making them
the best way to store fruits and veggies. After retiring, Storing a bunch of bananas on a specific hanger will keep easier to mash.
Irving and his wife Beverly became snowbirds and have them from getting bruised, which might quicken browning. For a savory treat you can fry dark green bananas
been enjoying life at Broken Sound for 20 seasons. He is Ethylene gas is released from the stems of bananas, which by peeling and slicing them into 1/2-inch pieces, then
the proud father of three daughters and looks forward to is where the bunch is held together. Wrap some plastic wrap frying them in vegetable oil until golden brown. Some
family time with his seven grandchildren. around the crown to slow the ripening process. say they taste like French fries, especially with a sprinkle
The banana equivalent to COVID-19 is spreading to Bananas aren’t the only fruit that releases a lot of of cinnamon sugar after frying.
new countries, forcing the industry to change how the ethylene as they ripen. Apples, pears, potatoes, avocados Bananas ripen by releasing a natural plant hormone called
world’s most widely eaten fruit is farmed and even how and tomatoes are some of the other types of produce that ethylene gas, which converts the banana’s stored starch into
it could taste. release a lot of ethylene gas. You’ll want to keep bananas sugar. This process softens the banana, breaks down its acids
A killer disease turns up out of the blue. It moves by away from them. and replaces its chlorophyll with a yellow hue.
“stealth transmission,” spreading before symptoms even Often after one day of purchase, bananas turn a brownish- Bananas are ripened in warehouses using a combination
show. Once it takes hold it is already too late to stop it; grey color, most likely due to mishandling in stores. This of ethylene gas, climate control and pressurized rooms to
there is no cure. Life will never be the same again. Sound is perhaps because bananas are transported in refrigerated speed up or slow down the ripening process. The banana’s
familiar? trucks with other food and vegetables kept at 35 to 37° F. That name comes from the Arabic word baanan, which means
Bananas are thought to have originated up to 10,000 temperature is only good for bananas when they have turned “finger.” This is because the original bananas from Southeast
years ago in the jungles of Southeast Asia, including yellow. Bananas are very sensitive to cold temperatures, Asia were small, about the length of an adult finger.
the Philippines, Indonesia, New Guinea and the Malaya which causes the unsightly greying. The bananas are still The name Chiquita, which is now widely recognized
Peninsula. Some scientists believe they may have been edible, although they don’t taste as good. as a banana brand, is a Spanish term of endearment that
the first fruit on Earth. To ripen bananas quickly, putting them in a paper bag means “little girl.” The name combines the Spanish word
They are now one of the most widely grown, traded traps the ethylene gas and helps them mature more rapidly. chica (meaning “girl”) with the suffix ita. The name has
and eaten crops in the world, a staple foodstuff in many You can also add an apple, pear, apricot or avocado to the been used for centuries in Spanish-speaking cultures and
regions and available in nearly every grocery store around bag to speed the process even more. is still a popular name for girls.
the world. Most Americans are unaware that today’s Chiquita Brands International, the banana and produce
yellow banana is like a shadow of the one that preceded firm known for its trademark blue stickers, was sold to
it; a yellow banana with a sweeter flavor, firmer texture, two Brazilian companies in a deal valued at around $1.3
was once the norm. billion on October 27th, 2014. Bananas became a symbol
The long, curved, yellow banana that America first of German reunification after the fall of the Berlin Wall in
marveled at was a variety called the Gros Michel, or “Big 1989. In communist East Germany, bananas were a rare
Mike.” It was the dominant banana variety in the United luxury and exotic treat. When bananas were delivered to
States from 1870 to the late 1950s. However, the fungus stores long lines would form outside. After the Wall fell,
destroyed vast areas of Gros Michel plantations in Central bananas became widely available, symbolizing newfound
America, where the bananas were grown. Farmers were freedom and abundance.
forced to switch to hardier varieties, such as the Cavendish,
which was immune to the disease. Now the Cavendish
variety is threatened with a fungus, so the industry needs
to again develop a new variety.