Jessica wrote:

> I really enjoy caviar and other fish roes so long as it isn't salmon roe.
> The flavor of salmon roe isn't bad it's a texture thing, too "juicey."
> The flavor is delicate yet molmentarily intense and the popping on the
> tongue sensation is blissful.

Funny, I was just about to write that salmon roe is my favorite! Flying fish
roe and herring roe are also right up there, but I don't care for caviar.
I've *had* the "good" caviar, and I really tried to like it, but it just
left me wondering what the big deal was. But salmon roe...my first
experience with it was at a restaurant in Manhattan which served a salmon
napoleon covered with a cream sauce and sprinkled with salmon roe. It was
more than twenty years ago, but I remember it vividly; that's how good it
was.


> I don't like liver based pates or foie gras, but I've never met any bird
> or mammal liver that I like.

Jessica, I noted that you specified "bird or mammal liver." Does that mean
you MIGHT like monkfish liver or lobster liver? Even <shudder> cod liver?

If liver is prepared properly, I like it very much. Chicken liver, duck
liver, goose liver, pork liver, calf liver...they're all good. I don't have
it often because it's so high in calories. (Dammit, now that I'm thinking
about rich food, I want rilletes!)


> Olives I love, preferably served with cheeses, crusty bread, garlic shrimp
> and good wine.

I'm not sure why olives are considered "gourmet" food. They're a staple for
the peasantry in most of the countries where they originate! There's a wide
spectrum of olive flavors, and I like some much better than others, but I
enjoy exploring the different types.


> Roquefort isn't my favorite on it's own but is a fine complement of tastes
> when matched with ripe off the tree pears in season or crumbled upon a
> sandwich of good rare roast beast & arugula.

Oh yeah (though you forgot to include toasted walnuts). Or melted together
with butter and dolloped onto a rare steak. Tastes *do* change, though. I
never used to care for *any* cheese, but now I'm gaining an appreciation for
the finer ones, thanks to some cheese-loving friends.

Since the subject is "gourmet items" and nobody else has mentioned this one,
I'll toss out my opinion that "tradizionale" balsamic vinegar is a gourmet
item without peer. It's a shame that the "di Modena" vinegar has been so
horribly corrupted for mass consumption.

Bob