Peaches

This particular morning we walked towards Peaches, a short walk down Lewis avenue in Brooklyn and joined the cheering group of people sitting in front of a massive screen. The speech that was given by the newly elected president Mr. Barack Obama and its response made me aware of how acutely everyone was into this change and into bidding adieu to a troubled past. Peaches is a neighbourhood restaurant located on Lewis Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant and it's fare adds an emphasis on Creole and Cajun cooking with fresh greenmarket produce. The restaurant is a welcome addition to the developing but extraordinarily beautiful neighbourhood that I fell in love with a few years ago.

The name Stuyvesant comes from Peter Stuyvesant, the last governor of the colony of New Netherland. This area was originally settled by Dutch farmers and chartered in 1663 as part of the Town of Breukelen, retaining it's rural character until the present street system opened the way for urban development. The district changed gradually between 1870 and 1920 when block after block was filled with handsome rows of houses. The 1960s and 70's were a difficult time for Bedford-Stuyvesant as one of the first urban riots took place here. This led to a huge decline in an area which had always been a cultural centre for African Americans after Harlem in Manhattan. In the 1970's certain sections like the newly christened Stuyvesant Heights and Weeksville were declared as Historically Land Marked areas and steps for their preservation were undertaken. Beginning in the 2000s, the neighbourhood began to experience a renaissance that continues until today.

(Some of this information was provided by a plaque from the New York Community Trust, 1972 which is erected on one of the beautiful houses of Decatur Street).


393 Lewis Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11233
(718) 942-4162

Petite Abeille

The atmosphere is warm, Rafael the bartender from Gabon is also very warm besides being an excellent host and the cheese croquet accompanied by a glass of Sangiovese is equally scrumptious. And yes, if you are looking for an assortment of Belgian beers to suit your palate....this is the place. 'Petite Abeille' is a character from a Belgian TV series- a little girl whose hair style made her look like a little bee. Tin Tin, created by the Belgian artist Herge is also part of the decor at any of the 4 branches of this Belgian cafe. A great place for beer, hot chocolate and croquettes.

44 West 17th Street
New York, NY 10010
Tel: 212 727 2989

Christmas with Opus

On my many visits to California, and Napa Valley in particular, I had visited some amazing vineyards, met with some crazy owners and winemakers and to top it all tasted some exquisite juice. Some really fine wines that I have savoured over the years have been Cabernets produced by Midsummer Cellars, a wonderful Chardonnay by Wend Tyler, Bob Egelhoff's blend of Australian Shiraz and Napa Valley Cabernet called Two Worlds and others which I will mention by and by. But there was this one wine that I had always been eager to try but until tonight it had in many ways eluded me.

As far as appeal goes, it is one of the premium wines of California, a case of the first joint venture selling for $24,000 dollars at the first Napa Valley wine auction in 1981. This venture was put together by Baron Phillipe de Rothschild and Robert Mondavi after they had met for the first time in 1970. I had over the years thought that this would be another one of those wines that had inherited a big name (in this case two big names) and not only that, Opus One has a tremendous marketing machine behind it because of those two big names. Now with the umbrella of Constellation Bands above, the three names cannot get any bigger. So perhaps, it was just a case of judging a case of wine by it's heritage?

This Christmas evening though, there it was on the table standing tall next to the serving dish full of a plump turkey and some excellent stuffing. I was quite excited and at my first sip I was completely convinced. It is one of the top five Cabernets I have ever tasted. From France, Australia, Italy or California. Dark, a deep garnet with a tinge of violet in colour, the nose was quite difficult to fathom at first but gradually I got plum, cocoa and black fruit. And then as I took my first sip not really knowing what to expect, my tongue was transformed. The Opus One 2003 has tremendous depth, each sip is like a dark toast - to dark chocolate, liquorice and black, black berry. It is lush, concentrated, quite intense and will develop over the years into a powerhouse.

The finish is endless.

Varietals:

Cabernet Sauvignon 91%
Cabernet Franc 3%
Merlot 2%
Malbec 1%
Petit Verdot 3%

Barrel aging:

17 months in New French Oak