Growing Bolder Community

Before the Food Network and hit shows like "Top Chef," I was laboring away in the then unglamorous restaurant industry. My family has been running restaurants in the Central Florida area since 1948. For more than 30 years, the Central Florida landmark Villa Nova was operated by my family. In 1984, I struck out on my own and started Jordan's Grove restaurant. It garnered many awards, , including...

It's the regular suspects at the Thursday Tasting Group, and we're tasting Merlots. We know the rap...Merlot has become a bad word in the wine business. A novice entry level wine. Over-produced. Wimpy. Red Wine for girls. The Apple-tini of the Napa Valley set. These have become fables now. Sometimes legend. When one of my favorite actors, Paul Giamatti, trashes the wine in the movie 'Sideways',...

I walk into a tasting with the usual suspects at our Thursday Wine Group. This is a search to find great wines at great prices that are from small, cool and groovy vineyards to serve at several great restaurants in Orlando. This is the industrial panel...no swallowing, no verbal opinions ( til the end), wines are all tasted blind so we can't see who the producers are....We went through 50+ wines...

The invisible man returns. Sorry to be so long off the blog-waves...but as many Growing Bolders men and women in the world, I decided January 1 was the time to strike out on my own and leave the corporate world...and stake my own piece of the American Dream... So, I've been working ( still in wine and food) with clients as a liason in Supplier ( read wineries) and Retail negotiation in buying,...

Happy Friday, boys and girls.... Yes, I am going to write about the top 10 wines you've never heard, but that will follow this non commercial info-blurb about a buddy of mine... If you saw the previous blog on Umami ( the fifth taste), you may have noticed a little mention of my friend, Tim Hanni. Tim is a Master Sommelier, Master of Wine, Pretty good guitarist, lucky in love ( married the...

I asked the group in the last blog if anyone knew what the fifth flavor was....As you may remember, the first four are sour, sweet, salty and bitter. The Fifth taste ( not to be confused with the Fifth Element, a movie with Bruce Willis) is called Umami. I learned about this from my good friend Tim Hanni, a Master of Wine and a Master Sommelier ( I think there are only two or three in the...

Have you ever noticed the first four letters of the word Butter? It' s not a coincidence. It's Karma. I know, I know. Butter tastes good. In fact, the old saying goes something like: "Name the 3 most important things in French Cuisine." The answer is... Butter, Butter and Butter. I'm not saying that butter isn't good in moderation. Everything (albeit me getting caught looking at pretty girls when...

Lots of friends ask me where or how to buy wine. Where is easy. It's how that's a little tricky out there. There are tons of groceries ( Publix in FL is top), Big Box Clubs ( Costco has the best variety there), Big Retailers ( in FL there is ABC, Wine Warehouse and now Total Wine) and independent retailers that have one or two stores servicing a local market. There are also some pretty cool...

The phone rings the day before Thanksgiving, and the voice on the other end asked me what I was doing on Monday. Next thing I know, I'm on a plane to California going to a tasting of 15 or so really delicious wines from Spain. Some of our group had just come back from the country, and had sent in several wines from the various regions there for us to taste. We are, like many now, looking to...

Nothing is normal at our home when it comes to celebrations. Yesterday it was our 13yr old daughter' s birthday. As is the custom here, you get to choose what the family cooks for your birthday meal. Everybody kicks in and it's a great party. Of course, when you think of what a normal 13 yr old may ask for a dinner, your mind would normally think about burgers. Pizza. Something easy. But...