This is the first episode where we get to meet ‘the’ John Schneider – a dear friend who happens to have a former life as a high profile hunting and fishing guide. John also happens to be an organic grain farmer [@goldforestgrain]. John also happens to be a super nice guy. This episode, title included, is a nod to the story arc … Read More
FROM THE WILD – S1E9 – THE LAST TEN YARDS
Some of my earliest memories as a kid are connected to a white, 100+ year-old house with a huge multi-burner wood stove in it, and the smell of grassland sages. My dad would take my brother and I there a few times a year, mostly chasing waterfowl, the odd grouse, and later deer. They’ve been going down there for 40 … Read More
The Last [Root Cellar] Supper
I’m out. April 16th will mark the 2011 date that I ran out of 2010 garden veg in the root cellar. Turns out in one meal, I ran out of potatoes, carrots, and beets – all at the same time. Things may have been able to hold out longer, but quality was definitely starting to suffer. In best shape were … Read More
There’s an Antelope in my Cellar
I was asked earlier this fall by the fine man that guides my moose hunts if I would butcher an antelope if he got one, in exchange for half the animal. Pretty good deal all around. So yesterday, the antelope arrived, and I left it in my garage, ready to be cut this morning. The temp was 2C, which made … Read More
Smoked Antelope & Cheddar Crisp
It was the last pack from the 2008 antelope – an animal that had become revered as the game meat of choice over the past couple years around here, so tying into it was an event. A ‘leg roast’, which in this case meant the whole leg below the hip and above the knee [think a larger leg of lamb?]. … Read More
Dinner Party Menu
A breakdown of the menu for some new friends that came by for dinner last night. Excluding the first course – a salad from the garden…forgot the photo. The first three courses were paired with an alsatian riesling, the following 3 with a right-bank bordeaux. Overall, a lovely night: berkshire tenderloin on white bean purée, crispy sage pickled whitefish, dill … Read More
Friday Wine Night Returns?
I’m resolved that my ‘Friday Night Wine Night‘ concept needs a comeback. So last night myself and a friend tackled an 04 E. Guigal Cotes Du Rhone – widely available in an inexpensive pricepoint. A guest had graciously brought it earlier in the week, and it needed to meet its fate rather than be cellared. It’s an 81 pointer that’s … Read More
A Blissful Evening of Food and Wine
Excuse: 2 day seminar, attended by myself and a good friend who enjoys food and wine. Result: 8 courses paired to 4 beverages, 1 hangover. This wasn’t my first time with a menu of this scope, or wines of this caliber – but something – perhaps the reprieve of boredom from sitting through sessions on our butts all day – … Read More
Tasting Menu of Pronghorn Antelope
Having agreed to butcher an antelope as a favor to my dad, I found myself with an entire animal worth of cuts in my freezer. I had very little experience with it. Yen had never tried it. So clearly – clearly, it was time to do a multi-course tasting menu of Pronghorn Antelope. Seared & Super-Blue Proghorn Loin I’ve been … Read More
How to butcher an antelope.
How to butcher an antelope. First, acquire an antelope. Mine arrived this morning at 06:30, wrapped up all nice. Next, cut and trim as fast as you can before the temperature warms up and the wasps unleash their fury on you. This required that I start in the dark – a choice working environment when using knives. If the birds … Read More