On 11/4/10 4:48 PM, st.helier wrote:
> "Mark Lipton" wrote ......
>> On 11/4/10 10:43 AM, Mike Tommasi wrote:
>>
>>> Mature wines are not tastier, they taste different. I did not read the
>>> article to see what was meant by savory...
>>
>> I believe that the usage of savory was in the sense of "not as sweet"
>> and I would agree with that statement. In the case of dry wines, as
>> they lose their primary (fruit-based) character they gain in return
>> tertiary (mushroom, earth, leather) characteristics. In the case of
>> sweet wines, they become less sweet with long age as the glucose becomes
>> esterified with acetic acid, so they too become marginally more savory.
>>
>
> Mark, I tend to disagree with your first sentence - having read and
> re-read the article, I think your assertion that the word "savory"
> relates somehow to "lack of sweetness" is not in context with the
> original article.
>
> I tend to think of the word savory (or is that savoury ;-) as being much
> closer to its more literal meaning - i.e. piquant; aromatic; delicately
> herbal, and I think that this was what the author was trying to convey
> - and nothing to do with a lack of apparent sweetness.
>
> But please, can you do me a favour (or is that favor!) - can you take
> Jean and scoot up to Chicago and go to Alinea and check it out first hand.

Milud,
I believe that we are in essential agreement. The sense of savory as
herbal or aromatic rather than tasty is what I was getting at. Savory
flavors are, as a rule, not sweet, so savory can be placed in opposition
to sweetness, even though it is not explicitly not sweet.

As for Alinea, we are unlikely to go there as Jean is not taken with
playful cuisine a la the molecular gastronomy crowd. (She did indulge
me last year for my 50th by going with me to El Celler de Can Roca in
Spain, but don't expect another such display of largesse any time soon)
However, we have plans to go to Grant Achatz's new restaurant, soon to
open: Next, which has a very different ethic.

On a separate note, we are beginning to consider our next sabbatical
leave in Spring 2012 and Jean's talking about Univ. of Cantebury! Stay
tuned...

Mark Lipton


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