Miami Trip (Miami, FL)

I took a trip to Miami this past weekend to take care of some family matters, but with them looking rather less bleak upon my arrival than anticipated, I took advantage of some of the happier aspects of this ridiculously hot city.  I should just mention first though that the people at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach are incredible, and anyone who goes through that hospital should be thankful.
My second night in town, my uncle and I went to a whiskey tasting event, which included Scotch, bourbon, rye and even Japanese whisky, which I had never had before.  Ten dollars got you a tasting glass (which you were welcome to keep), samples of about fifteen whiskys, and paella, plus ten percent off any of the bottles being sampled.  The paella was good but not great, featuring a variety of meats, which I enjoyed, though my uncle was thus forced to pick through it.  The liquors varied from terrible to amazing, but the real treat of the night was meeting a couple of the people who work for the distributors.

(L-R) Basil Hayden's, Knob Creek, Jim Beam Honey, Laphroaig 10yr

The folks from Beam Inc., best known in this country as the producers of Jim Beam, were the first I sampled from.  They brought Laphroaig 10 year, a Scotch that my mother loves and that I cannot stand.  They also brought Jim Beam Honey, Knob Creek 9 year (a very good bourbon, but one I have had enough times not to need to try it that night), and Basil Hayden's, which I had never had before and was very pleased to see, having heard very good things about it.  It was not quite as good as I was expecting, but that is simply an issue of expectations being raised unrealistically high; in fact, it was a very solid whiskey, and I really enjoyed it.

Heaven Hill Distilleries

"Kentucky Powerpoints"

Second up were the offerings from Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc., which included some really spectacular and unique spirits.  This is the home of Evan Williams, one of the best drinks for your money out there, so I figured they would be decent, but I was really taken aback by a couple of things.  The Rittenhouse Straight Rye was exceptional for a 4 year old whiskey, having an insane amount of flavor and smoothness despite its short aging period, nearly equal to Redemption Rye.  The really incredible drink though, was the Bernheim Straight Wheat Whiskey, made in the same way as bourbon or rye, but with wheat as the primary ingredient, was like nothing I've ever had before.  It was not my favorite, but it was definitely the most interesting I had all night, and I can see that it would work perfectly for its primary intended purpose, as a utilitarian but flavorful cocktail whiskey.  They also brought what they called "Kentucky Powerpoints," bottles filled with the ingredients of the individual liquors, in the proportions that each contains.  It was a neat and clever way to show what is actually in the different drinks.

Following a little paella, I moved on to Bowmore 10 year.  It sucked.  Avoid at all costs.  Enough said.

Dewars' Aberfeldy 12yr

Dewars followed that, with their Aberfeldy 12 year; it was not my thing, but they made up for it with a drop dead gorgeous young woman presenting it, and they gave out free flasks.  The Aberfeldy was a bit too harsh and biting for me, without providing any of the really wonderful oak-y, vanilla-y flavors that I look for to balance that out.


The final company represented was Anchor Distilling Company, and they were by far my favorite of the night.  Bringing some that I had already had and loved, including Eagle Rare and Buffalo Trace bourbons, each of which I brought to a couple weddings over the last few months and

(L-R) Hirsch Bourbon, Nikka 12 yr "Pure Malt," Nikka 15 yr single malt

(L-R) Templeton Rye, Macallan 12 yr, Eagle Rare, Buffalo Trace

which led to some seriously impressive hangovers--worth it--and which are classics at a very reasonable price.  Macallan 12 was present, a classic Scotch, as were Templeton Rye Small Batch and 1792 Ridgemont Reserve Barrel Select, the latter of which was less impressive than I was expecting.  The real winners of the evening, however, were the two Japanese whiskys and the Hirsch Reserve Small Batch Straight Kentucky Bourbon.  The Hirsch was deliciously smooth, oak-y and sweet in the most pleasant way imaginable, a truly spectacular example of what bourbon should be.  The two Nikkas, however, were just really cool to try, as it was my first foray into the Japanese interpretation of Scotch whisky.  The 12 year, which is labeled as a "pure malt," a blend of malts from Nikka's two distilleries, was really good, but once I tried the 15 year old single malt that was the only thing I could think about.  It was as good as almost any Scotch I have ever had, with a character and smoothness that showed the true craftsmanship of the master distillers.

(L-R) Buffalo Trace, 1792 Ridgemont Reserve, Four Roses Bourbon, Four Roses Single Barrel

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Saturday evening was spent with my cousin and her friends at Grovetoberfest, an annual beer festival in Coconut Grove, Miami's oldest neighborhood.  Far more of a festival than a beer tasting event, this was a lot of fun, but definitely targeted a different audience than the American Craft Beer Fest, where almost no one is trying to get drunk; at Grovetoberfest, that seems to be the predominant intent among attendees.  There were some very good beers there, including some local options that I had never had, but the best were from Founders Brewing Company, which was no surprise whatsoever.  All in all, it was a fun event, and I really enjoyed myself, but I prefer the ACBF.

Following the festival, which concluded at about 7:00pm, our group headed to Sandbar Grill, a ridiculously loud and over-crowded tourist bar that nonetheless was a pretty fun place to hang out, as it was loaded with televisions tuned to various sports; plus, they had Yuengling on tap, and that's...well...awesome.  (Yuengling is coming back to Massachusetts!!!)  An old friend of mine from college who lives in the area joined us there as well, along with his best friend from childhood, and after a while of shouting at each other to be heard, the three of us, plus a friend of my cousin's friend adjourned to Vinos in the Grove, where we had a glass of wine each.  Their wine list is pretty impressive, including some really good by the glass options, and they also serve a few cheese platters that sounded pretty damn good.  Next time I am in Miami, I will definitely head back there, and it seems like a great place to take a date if you do live in the area.

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Pai Men Miyake (Portland, ME)

After starting my holiday trip to Portland with a long awaited stop at Duckfat, on the 24th I had lunch at Pai Men Miyake, the casual accompaniment to Masa Miyake's celebrated Miyake restaurant.  Situated at the top of the "Old Port" section of Portland, Pai Men Miyake focuses on ramen (Pai Men meaning "100 Noodles" according to the website) blending traditional Japanese flavors with the use of local, fresh ingredients to create a truly remarkable meal.  Yakitori is available after 5:30pm, but since I was there during lunch and obviously could not have that, I went with the "Tei-Shoku" lunch special, choosing one option each from two of four "groups" of dishes, including dumplings, vegetables, ramen, and sushi; prices depend on what you pick.

I started with the pork gyoza, simple potstickers that did not outwardly look any different from any others, but are made with fresh, local pork and cabbage, with a nice, subtle flavor of each, a perfectly thin wrapper, and served with a light sesame oil and soy dipping sauce.  They were seared in such a way as to have a little bit of browning, and thus the accompanying flavor of a light pan fry, but without being really crispy; this is actually a good thing, as pot sticker type dumplings tend to fall apart if they get too hard a sear.  These were some of the better dumplings I have had, but the second I tried my sister's brussel's sprouts, I regretted my choice; more on that later.

For my primary dish I had the paitan ramen, with the traditional Japanese ramen noodles surrounded by a strong pork and chicken broth, topped with a little pork belly, half a soy marinated soft boiled egg, scallion, and a piece of nori (seaweed typically used to make maki rolls).  This is very, very different from the Korean style ramen of Manna House, but I wouldn't say it's better or worse; simply different.  I had them add the spicy garlic paste, but even with that there wasn't much spice, and the broth was lighter in color, though flavor-wise it was still intense.  The pork belly was good, though there was little of it, and the nori did not really add much, but the egg was remarkable; I'm not a big fan of soft boiled eggs, but this was so perfectly cooked, with such a delicate soy flavor enhancing the natural flavor of a really fresh egg, that I found myself wishing there were several of them. 

My little sister ordered the tokyo abura-soba ramen, which is simply the noodles, chili oil, egg yolk, nori and sambal (a spicy chili paste with a flavor similar to that of sriracha, though it is significantly thicker), without any broth.  Spicy and simple, this was really tasty, and not something I would have really given much thought to ordering, as it has neither broth nor meat, but this was just one of a couple dishes outside my normal realm of interest that surprised me that day.

My older sister started with the brussel's sprouts, as I said, and they were...my god, they were good.  I can't even describe it.  A huge serving of halved sprouts, drenched in tamari (a soy sauce variety) and fish sauce, they are tangy and slightly sweet, roasted just to where the outside leaves are a little crispy, just inside are softer leaves, and then the core is just slightly crunchy, with a great bite to them that I have not been able to achieve when I've made roasted sprouts, and that I haven't really had elsewhere either.  These were by far the best sprouts I have ever had, and I'm really hoping to learn to make them the way that Pai Men does.

Her second dish was a pair of steamed buns, sandwiched around thin pieces of fried tofu.  I normally don't really like steamed buns that much, simply because they're rarely well made, and I almost never like tofu, for textural and flavor reasons.  Both were incredible.  The buns were light, porous, and slightly chewy, and the tofu had a slight crunch to the exterior that kept it from feeling like the spongy mess that I associate with tofu normally.  I have no clue what the tofu was marinated in, and I can't even describe its flavor, but it was really, really delicious, and went perfectly with the aioli-like mayonnaise that was lightly applied to the inside of the bun.  Since I liked it, I suspect anyone else trying it will too, even those who typically object to tofu; it really surprised me, and changed my mind a little bit regarding pressed bean curd.

With the exception of the gyoza, all the portions were pretty good; the brussel's sprouts came piled in a large bowl, and it took all three of us picking at them to finish without having my sister be full prior to the buns' arrival, while the bowls of ramen were plenty of food.  The gyoza had just four dumplings, which were not filling, but after mooching some of the sprouts and eating my ramen, I left quite satisfied.  For drinks, a number of local craft beers were available, both on tap and in bottles, with Smuttynose Brewing Company being the best represented.  I went with their Scotch Ale, a strong, heavy, and well made beer that may have been a little too much for this particular meal, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.  My older sister had the same, and my little sister went with the Oxbow Saison Noel, a very dark representation of this traditional farmhouse beer, though it maintained the lightness and flavor of a normal saison.  All in all this is a fantastic restaurant, and I look forward to not only going back but also exploring its sister restaurant.  It's also very vegetarian friendly if that's your thing.

On a side note, both restaurants and the Miyake Catering business are served by Miyake Farm, where they raise fowl, pigs, and produce; this is true farm to table, in the purest sense of the term.  

©Miyake Farm

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