Spritzenhaus
33 Nassau Ave
(between Berry St & 14th St)
Spritzenhaus may be one of the most misunderstood drinking establishments in the better borough of Brooklyn, by both its customers and owners.
Contrary to recent reviews, Spritzenhaus has a solid draft and beer selection, more comprehensive and eclectic than the more popular Bohemian Beer Hall and Studio Square in Queens, Berry Park in Brooklyn, and Loreley in Manhattan.
German lagers are the focus point of the "Spritzen" in Spritzenhaus: besides your Weihenstephaners Weizen, Spatens Pils, and Goffel Kolsch on tap, there is Hofstetten Kubelbier Kellerbier, Einbecker Mai-Ur-Bock, and Schlenkerla Marzen, selections only available at dedicated beer programs at restaurants.
The Teutonic-ness further extends to their German bottle list, with hard-to-find stateside labels like Arcobrau, Reltberger Kloster, and Schoenramer making appearances in several styles.
If you decide to ante up, there are some stars (albeit pricey ones) on the beer menu: Del Borgo Reale ($38), Etienne Dupont Bouche Brut de Normandie ($38), Saint Bon de Chien Biere de Garde ($55).
What Spritzenhaus gets fundamentally wrong is its connection to its neighborhood. A 6,000 sq. ft., Keith McNally-esque bierhall couldn't help but be looked at with skepticism by the Greenpoint locals, despite the obvious effort put into the project.
Most popular (not necessarily equatable with good) beer halls have built their locations with their neighborhood demographics in mind: Studio Square reflects the aspirant douchiness of Long Island City, Bohemian Beer Hall embodies the Eastern European history of Queens, and Berry Park and Radegast capture the lo-fi, communal drinking of Greenpoint and Williamsburg. In terms of the owners, what lead them to plonk money into a project where there are already two other fairly decent competitors in the area is beyond me. Spritzenhaus will definitely not serve as Harvard Businesss School case study material anytime soon.
Unfortunately, Spritzenhaus will be remembered not for its aspiring German beer program, but a wary reminder of the most important tenet of Real Estate 101: choose your location carefully.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Beecher's Handmade Cheeses
Beecher's Handmade Cheeses
900 Broadway (between 19th St & 20th St)
New York, NY 10003
Depending on your viewpoint, Beecher's recent opening has contributed to the Flatiron District's reputation as the new culinary hotspot, or the Epcot Center-ization of food in Gramercy.
Whether it was wise to enter a long-term lease for a multi-million dollar location in one of NYC's trendiest neighborhoods, Beecher's Handmade Cheeses nevertheless is an addition to Madison Square area that is become a burgeoning foodie destintation.
The store specializes in their eponymous cheeses (Beecher Flagship, Flagship 4-year, Marco Polo, No Woman, and Flagsheep), but also specialty cheeses and charcuterie purveyors across the United States. The space is vast, with several retail counters on the ground floor to sample cheeses, charcuterie, and prepared foods, adequate seating for lunch and dinner upstairs, and a cellar of a bar in the basement. Beecher's offers free samples of all their cheeses, but this is a normal courtesy offered at many of the premier NYC cheesemongers.
I went down to the Cellar Bar and had a side-by-side comparison of Beecher's (Flagship, Flagship 4-year, Flagsheep) vs. the other cheesemonger's (Mozzarella Co's Hoja Santa/Jasper Hill Farm's Moses Sleeper/Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Coop) cheeses.
Regarding Beecher's selections, I was impressed by the nuttiness and funkiness of the 4-year Flagship, but let down by the lack of distinguishable flavors in the Flagship and Flagsheep.
The Cheesemonger's selection was considerably more impressive. The Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Coop's sheep cheese trumped Beecher's Flagsheep with it's saltiness, pungency, and earthiness. Jasper Hill's Moses Sleeper (cow's milk, aged 3-6 weeks) had the buttery, bright, savory flavor associated with cow's milk, but the bloomy rindness of a brie. The Hoja Santa (goat cheese wrapped in hoja santa leaves) was a revelation: the tanginess of goat cheese played off minty, earthiness of hoja santa leaves like a bow to a Stradavarius violin.
The sides offered with the cheese plates are not to be missed. Beecher's biscuits have a slightly sweet, wheaty taste that complements most cheeses. The pickled raisins provided a nice foil to some of the tangier goat and sheep's cheeses. And the pickled fennel stems might be my new favorite bar snack in all of NYC, with the vinegar notes providing a subtle facelift to the anise in the freshly shaved fennel.
Despite the quality cheeses, I was disappointed by the lack of in-depth knowledge about the cheeses by the staff. I admit I am a particularly picky consumer, but for a store that features regional cheese, it's important to know not just whether it came from a cow, sheep, or goat, but how it was produced, and where it came from.
Beecher's is the new kid on the cheese block, and I wish it the best of success. After running into Kurt Beecher (who has an uncanny likeness to Eastbound and Down's Kenny Powers) upon leaving the store, I couldn't help but think how he has vastly underestimated how ruthlessly competitive the NYC fromagerie market has become since his visit to NYC in 2008. If it is going to make its mark just like it did in Seattle, it will have to step up the quality of its cheeses and staff education to compete against the likes of Murray's, Saxelby's, and Artisanal.
900 Broadway (between 19th St & 20th St)
New York, NY 10003
Depending on your viewpoint, Beecher's recent opening has contributed to the Flatiron District's reputation as the new culinary hotspot, or the Epcot Center-ization of food in Gramercy.
Whether it was wise to enter a long-term lease for a multi-million dollar location in one of NYC's trendiest neighborhoods, Beecher's Handmade Cheeses nevertheless is an addition to Madison Square area that is become a burgeoning foodie destintation.
The store specializes in their eponymous cheeses (Beecher Flagship, Flagship 4-year, Marco Polo, No Woman, and Flagsheep), but also specialty cheeses and charcuterie purveyors across the United States. The space is vast, with several retail counters on the ground floor to sample cheeses, charcuterie, and prepared foods, adequate seating for lunch and dinner upstairs, and a cellar of a bar in the basement. Beecher's offers free samples of all their cheeses, but this is a normal courtesy offered at many of the premier NYC cheesemongers.
I went down to the Cellar Bar and had a side-by-side comparison of Beecher's (Flagship, Flagship 4-year, Flagsheep) vs. the other cheesemonger's (Mozzarella Co's Hoja Santa/Jasper Hill Farm's Moses Sleeper/Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Coop) cheeses.
Regarding Beecher's selections, I was impressed by the nuttiness and funkiness of the 4-year Flagship, but let down by the lack of distinguishable flavors in the Flagship and Flagsheep.
The Cheesemonger's selection was considerably more impressive. The Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Coop's sheep cheese trumped Beecher's Flagsheep with it's saltiness, pungency, and earthiness. Jasper Hill's Moses Sleeper (cow's milk, aged 3-6 weeks) had the buttery, bright, savory flavor associated with cow's milk, but the bloomy rindness of a brie. The Hoja Santa (goat cheese wrapped in hoja santa leaves) was a revelation: the tanginess of goat cheese played off minty, earthiness of hoja santa leaves like a bow to a Stradavarius violin.
The sides offered with the cheese plates are not to be missed. Beecher's biscuits have a slightly sweet, wheaty taste that complements most cheeses. The pickled raisins provided a nice foil to some of the tangier goat and sheep's cheeses. And the pickled fennel stems might be my new favorite bar snack in all of NYC, with the vinegar notes providing a subtle facelift to the anise in the freshly shaved fennel.
Despite the quality cheeses, I was disappointed by the lack of in-depth knowledge about the cheeses by the staff. I admit I am a particularly picky consumer, but for a store that features regional cheese, it's important to know not just whether it came from a cow, sheep, or goat, but how it was produced, and where it came from.
Beecher's is the new kid on the cheese block, and I wish it the best of success. After running into Kurt Beecher (who has an uncanny likeness to Eastbound and Down's Kenny Powers) upon leaving the store, I couldn't help but think how he has vastly underestimated how ruthlessly competitive the NYC fromagerie market has become since his visit to NYC in 2008. If it is going to make its mark just like it did in Seattle, it will have to step up the quality of its cheeses and staff education to compete against the likes of Murray's, Saxelby's, and Artisanal.
Rosenthal Wine Merchants
Rosenthal Wine Merchants
318 E 84th Street
New York, NY 10028
For wine aficionados everywhere (including myself), there were inevitably two books that induced the wine bug: Kermit Lynch's "Adventures on the Wine Route" and Neal Rosenthal's "Reflections of a Wine Merchant". Both told the stories of wine explorers searching Europe for wines that express a particular terroir and philosophy of winemaking.
Rosenthal Wine Merchants specializes exclusively in European wines, predominantly France and Italy. The absence of foot-traffic is misleading: the store does a brisk business from numerous wholesale and individual orders from those who know that a Rosenthal label on the back of a wine bottle (rather than a Yellow Tail on the front) indicates sterling quality.
As a forewarning, this is not a wine store for novices. The store has rather inconvenient hours (Tuesday - Saturday; 10-6 or 10-7pm). Regions are not delineated, prices aren't marked, and there are no tasting notes to be found. However, there are gems to be found under $30 with some diligent perusing: a Lucien Crochet Sancerre, a De Forville Langhe Nebbiolo, or a Jacques Puffeney Arbois.
It is worth taking a trip and meeting Will, the proprietor of this hidden retail location on 84th St. A business acquaintance from the late 70s, Will has a commanding knowledge of Rosenthal Wine Merchant's inventory and almost every vintage of Burgundy and Piedmont. For someone who has been in the business for nearly 40 years, Will bequeathed some useful advice regarding wine: there are no shortcuts for gaining experience.
318 E 84th Street
New York, NY 10028
For wine aficionados everywhere (including myself), there were inevitably two books that induced the wine bug: Kermit Lynch's "Adventures on the Wine Route" and Neal Rosenthal's "Reflections of a Wine Merchant". Both told the stories of wine explorers searching Europe for wines that express a particular terroir and philosophy of winemaking.
Rosenthal Wine Merchants specializes exclusively in European wines, predominantly France and Italy. The absence of foot-traffic is misleading: the store does a brisk business from numerous wholesale and individual orders from those who know that a Rosenthal label on the back of a wine bottle (rather than a Yellow Tail on the front) indicates sterling quality.
As a forewarning, this is not a wine store for novices. The store has rather inconvenient hours (Tuesday - Saturday; 10-6 or 10-7pm). Regions are not delineated, prices aren't marked, and there are no tasting notes to be found. However, there are gems to be found under $30 with some diligent perusing: a Lucien Crochet Sancerre, a De Forville Langhe Nebbiolo, or a Jacques Puffeney Arbois.
It is worth taking a trip and meeting Will, the proprietor of this hidden retail location on 84th St. A business acquaintance from the late 70s, Will has a commanding knowledge of Rosenthal Wine Merchant's inventory and almost every vintage of Burgundy and Piedmont. For someone who has been in the business for nearly 40 years, Will bequeathed some useful advice regarding wine: there are no shortcuts for gaining experience.
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