oodlebox

Shout out to Rick

2009-06-18T22:19:00.000-07:00

June 18th, 2009

Blog by Esther Ritter

"Shout out to Rick"

Thanks to all who have been following our trip with Darrell Corti to Chile. If it wasn't for Rick Mindermann (Corti Bros store director & Darrell's personal assistant), we'd be sending Pen Pal letters.

Stephanie Locher and I (from Oodleboxtv.com) were essentially there to capture Darrell on his travels through the food and wine cultures of Chile. I know by the end of a very long shoot and travel day, I was ready to put my head on the pillow. Not Rick. After a long dinner (and many Pisco Sours) Rick stayed up late (and sometimes early into the morning) and blogged, sent pictures and video to our site.

He scoured the tiny nooks of rural Chile to find an Internet connection. Coffee shops, country vineyards, you name it...Rick was a man obsessed to send a timely account of our journey.

I don't know how he did it, but he did. We are grateful of his amazing stamina and energy; his dedication and his talent.

Thank you, Rick!

Darrell Tasting

2009-06-18T22:03:00.000-07:00

Darrell smells, listens, contemplates, tastes, listens, contemplates.

June 18th, 2009. Blog by Esther Ritter

"Travels with Darrell"

There's a reason very few people have followed Darrell on an international culinary trek: it's hard to keep up with him!

At age 67, Darrell is considered one of the foremost experts on wine, olive oil and all that is the culinary. But don't let his professional outfit fool you (signature slacks, tie, sweater and suspenders). Although he may look like the culinary Mr. Rogers, Darrell has deep passion and legendary passion on the road.

After a grueling overnight flight to Santiago, Chile, Darrell immediately hit the Santiago central Mercado (market). Exotic sea foods, little known vegetables, Darrell was a gracious teacher and host to a camera to which he was initially coy.

As a photojournalist who has worked in the food/garden/how-to genre for a few decades, I found Darrell to be a generous and an exciting subject. The minute I turned the camera on him, he delivered content gold.

But it wasn't just me who felt that way around Darrell. He was invited to Chile as a guest of CORFO, the Chilean Economic Development Agency, to observe and speak to wine makers, olive oil producers and fruit growers. Regardless of his audience (big producers, small producers, well know or up and coming) when Darrell speaks, people listen. A fluent Spanish speaker, he literally enraptured the attention of the people who gathered around him. He intertwines his opinion of food and wine with history, philosophy and economics.

But Darrell doesn't just speak...he listens. Intently. That's how he learns (and spending hours in at the local bookstores or library). He hangs around until the last person has had a chance to speak with him. He's a true statesman; someone who is honest, intelligent and kind. Darrell is truly a generous man.

I felt honored to tag along side Darrell. He spent countless hours in the van listening to (and laughing at) our vulgar jokes, strange references to underpants and keeping accurate count of our obsessive drive to drink 100 Pisco Sours. He even pulled out his white handkerchief to give me a white balance for my camera. I found Darrell to be a truly fun and interesting travel companion.

My last question to Darrell is...where next?

Nano Vehicles

2009-06-17T14:07:00.000-07:00

Chile may very well have the distinction of having the most diverse number of cars and trucks on the road in the world. We never saw two of the same make, model, or even body style of car or truck next to each other at any one time. I was taken by the mini, micro, and even nano in vehicles there. Chevrolet has a Corsa model there which I affectionately named the "Chevrolet Pimpola" yes... that's pimple. Although I never snapped a picture of the Pimpola, I did get the closest thing...that would be the Hyundai Blemish". I loved the Suzuki super micro van. I tried to sell Esther on bringing one home and told her she could use it as an Oodleboxtv.com equipment van. The Company logo would look really good on it and might just fit on it. She could probably even squeeze her camera inside.

More to come.

2009-06-17T11:38:00.000-07:00

June 17, 2009. Our blog is now current, so our whole trip is outlined in text, pictures, and videos. Feel free to comment, or ask questions, and we will respond. We will be adding some video from the two HD Cameras, commentary, how to's, and more over the next week or two, so check back on our blog.

Pisco Sour Count

2009-06-17T11:27:00.000-07:00

June 14, 2009. We got to the airport 2 hours before flight time, so we had to up our Pisco Sour Count. We had 87 total after the 4 in Darrell's room at the hotel. We each had one at the airport, upping our count to 91. Esther and I each had a second one bringing our total count to 93 Pisco Sours. 7 shy of our 100 Pisco Sour Goal goal. Esther and I thoguht about 7 more for a moment, but we were going to board the plane soon. Oh well...guess we'll be back to try again.

Preparing for departure

2009-06-17T11:18:00.000-07:00

June 14, 2009. We left Ichiban restaurant and headed back to the Grand Hyatt to pack for home. It began to rain, which was a very good thing, as there has been almost no rain the past months here and rain and snow is much needed here. The weather has been perfect our whole trip. As Roberto drove us to the Hotel, he made the most endearing comment of the trip. He said "The weather has been very good for you the past 7 days and now you are leaving us. Santiago now crys with rain that you are leaving us." Roberto you touched our hearts. Thank you for everything! We gathered in Darrell's room for another round of Pisco Sours, then headed off to the Airport.

Ichiban Serenade

2009-06-17T11:00:00.000-07:00

June 14, 2009. CORFO Executive, our dear friend and rock-n-roll star, Pablo Ugarte serenades us after lunch at Ichiban, while authenticating the hand made Andean flute I bought at the art market for my son.

Ichiban

2009-06-17T10:42:00.001-07:00

June 14, 2009. We went to Ichiban Restaurant for lunch, which was to be our final meal of this wonderful trip.
http://www.ichiban.cl/
Chef/Owner Minsu Bang prepared a delicious meal, which was embellished by Roberto's addition of three 70's vintage Chilean wines out of his cellar. And of course there were Pisco Sours.

Finally a bit of shopping

2009-06-17T10:30:00.000-07:00

June 14, 2009. After our stop at Jumbo, we took a cab to Centro Artesanal de los Dominicos. It's housed on the grounds of a Dominican church. Local and regional artists and crafts dealers sell their wares on the very rustic grounds. After logging over 1000 miles in 7 days on a very tight pace, it was so nice to just casually browse the marketplace and pick up a few trinkets.
http://www.culturallascondes.cl/html/dominicos.html

"Whittle while you work"

Mega Store of Mega Stores

2009-06-17T10:25:00.000-07:00

June 14, 2009. After a good rest back at the Grand Hyatt in Santiago, we went to see Jumbo.
It's a complete one stop shopping mega super center. Its 71 checkstands were epic. If they don't have it...you probably won't find it anywhere else.

Back in Santiago

2009-06-17T10:14:00.000-07:00

June 13, 2009. We arrived back to Santaigo around 10 pm. after a 2 1/2 hour drive from the Maule Region. Darrell had a hankering for pigs feet, so we returned to Raul Correa & Family restaurant. It was a bit odd having dinner at 10:45 pm, but I chalked it up as the start of our adjustment to returning home, since we were leaving tomorrow. After all it was only 7:45 pm in California. Of course there were Pisco Sours, and Esther finally got her taste of the pigs feet.

Olivares de Quepu Orchards

2009-06-17T09:33:00.001-07:00

June 13, 2009. We drove up to the olive orchards of Olivares de Quepu, just up the hills outside of the Maule region's main town of Talca. Alvaro Cortese showed us around and told us of their operation. http://www.olivaresdequepu.cl/blog/?language=en

There's a storm a blowing in.

Alvaro receiving a Narsai David olive tie from Darrell.

Darrell Corti the Jacques Cousteau of Food and Wine

2009-06-17T08:49:00.000-07:00

June 13, 2009. We were served Ceviche of Fillet of Sole and had a few wines with lunch at Toro Bayo. Darrell explains sole, and makes a very interesting comment about the naming of red wine. Darrell truly is the Jacques Cousteau of Food and Wine. Like Jacques. who was the sage of sages in the Oceans of our world, so to is Darrell the sage of sages in the world of food and wine.

Lunch in Talca

2009-06-16T22:18:00.000-07:00

June 13, 2009. We were invited to taste the just bottled 2009 harvest of Olivares de Quepu olive oils at the Toro Bayo restaurant in Talca by Alvaro Cortese. After the tasting we were served an amazing seafood lunch.

Pisco Sour anyone?

Five on the menu. Wow.

Ceviche...yum!

We're loco for Locos!

Darrell wanted to try a regional microbrew. Kunstmann.

O Fournier Vineyards

2009-06-16T18:13:00.001-07:00

June 13, 2009. Darrell and O Fournier Founder/President José Manuel Ortega share a happy moment in the winery ruins.

June 13, 2009. After a very rustic night in the over 100 year old guest house, we toured the O Fournier vineyards. The are the only winery in Chile that can say they produce from only old vines. The Range of age is 65 -120 year old vines.

We also were treated in their showing us the winery ruins around which their new winery will be built preserving this winery from 1840. It was quite a stunning sight.

O Fournier Tasting

2009-06-16T17:53:00.000-07:00

While Nadia was hard at work in the kitchen, we sat down to a tasting of O Fournier wines. They were all quite delicious. http://ofournier.com/web/index_in.html

O Forunier

2009-06-16T17:23:00.000-07:00

June 12, 2009. We arrived at the Guest house of O Fournier in Maule Valley.

O Fournier Executive Chef, Nadia Haron de Ortega prepared a meal of potato and squash soup with fried spinach and almond, mushroom risotto in a crisp bowl of Parmesan, and a french toast dessert for us. Delicious!

So how are we doing so far Darrell?

2009-06-16T13:25:00.000-07:00

June 12, 2009. Here are Darrell thoughts about our trip so far.

Inacap Presentation

2009-06-16T12:50:00.000-07:00

June 12, 2009. We were treated to a special presentation at Inacap. Inacap is a Technical University in Chile,which has a wonderful culinary program. They prepared a number of Chilean specialties for us to sample, and had a number of regional product producers present to show us their goods. My favorite was Pastel de Choclo, the national dish of Chile. It is a bit like our tamale pie. Inacap's preparation was so wonderfully fresh and sweet in its use of the corn. I found the Cereza de los Andes truly unique.

Winter morning in Chillan

2009-06-16T12:37:00.000-07:00

June 12, 2009. A cold winter morning in Chillan, the major city of the Bio Bio region. We stopped to look around and slipped into a coffee shop to sip and warm up.

Murtilla and Raspberries

2009-06-16T12:03:00.000-07:00

June 12, 2009. After seeing the town of Chillan, we drove to a farm which produces Raspberries and a Chilean berry called Murtilla. They are somewhat cranberry like in appearance and flavor, and contain a high amount of vitamin C. Murtilla can be dried, preserved, and used as a flavoring in canning.

The wonder of the Pisco Sour

2009-06-16T11:21:00.000-07:00

After Darrell told us about the history and wonder of the Pisco Sour, we set a goal for ourselves. We would try to have 100 Pisco Sours between the four of us in the 8 days in Chile. A Pisco Sour is made with Pisco, the national spirit of Chile (Grape brandy), Limon de Pica (a greenish to yellow skinned lime from Chile), and egg white (for body, but a syrup of Gum Arabic is usually substituted), shaken with ice, poured, and then a drop of bitters is usually splashed on top. Every Pisco Sour we had was delicious, but slightly different from the last. They are very refreshing. The most interesting one we had was at Inacap University where they made a version that we can do here in the U.S. since Limon de Pica is not available. They cut the top and bottom off of a lemon. Quartered the lemon, then put it into the blender. They immediately passed it through a fine sieve. This juice was shaken with Pisco, a touch of powdered sugar, and ice. Upon Darrell's tasting, he said "Maybe we can make a good Pisco Sour at home now". We'll let you know what our final count will be at the end of the trip. We're giving it our best shot...

Roadside flavor

2009-06-16T10:16:00.000-07:00

The images out on the road have been wonderful. Always filled with unique flavor and culture.

Vina Chillan

2009-06-15T23:24:00.000-07:00

June 12, 2009. It was cold upon our arrival to Vina Chillan last night, and foggy cold this morning, but the hospitality, food, and company was warm, wonderful, and enjoyed.

Andes from the road

2009-06-15T22:31:00.000-07:00

June 12, 2009

Chilean farmed black truffles

2009-06-15T18:16:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009. We have been invited to see a new black truffle farm by Trufa's http://www.trufa.cl/
They harvested the very first farmed black truffles in Chile two weeks ago on their other farm
much further south of this on in the Bio Bio region.

The Roberto Report

2009-06-15T15:07:00.000-07:00

June11, 2009. Our guide and a natural ambassador of Chile, Roberto Olmos, reports on Casa Lapostelle.

Casa Lapostolle's Cellar

2009-06-15T14:41:00.001-07:00

June 11, 2009. Casa Lapostolle has a very unique cellar entrance. Closed, it appears to be a tasting table of smoked glass in the center of the barrel room. Half of the table rises upon opening the cellar and then one can descend the stairs to see the bottle cellar.

Marnier Lapostolle

2009-06-14T06:48:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009. Charles gives us some Marnier Lapostolle family history.

Charles' selection

2009-06-14T06:18:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009. Charles slipped a favorite of his into our tasting. Casa La Postolle 2007 Cuvee Alexandre Carmenere.

More from Casa Lapostelle

2009-06-14T05:54:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009. Casa Lapostolle's cellar concept is quite unique. They thought of placing a wine barrel upright in the mountainside. You can see to representation by the staves reaching upward. The cellar goes 8 stories deep into the mountainside. We toured the cellar and the grounds. After, Char invited us into the residence where we were treated to a tasting of Casa Lapostolle wines and wonderful food. We've posted our first clear picture of part of the Andes Mountains. We've seen a lot of them, but there has been haze and distance up to this point.

Casa Lapostelle

2009-06-13T23:35:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009. On to Casa Lapostelle. We were greeted and hosted by

Charles-Henri de Bournet, Char affectionately to us. He is the Chief Performance Officer, and the 7th generation of this amazing family business. http://www.casalapostolle.com/ http://www.closapalta.com/

Spirits Tasting

2009-06-13T23:09:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009. Spirits tasting at Espiritus de Colchagua in Santa Cruz.

2009-06-13T23:04:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009, Muchos gracias Senior Cardoen C.

Connection issues

2009-06-12T13:21:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009 - June 12, 2009. It's afternoon here at Vina Chillan, just outside of the town of Chillan. We are deep in the countryside and have had very slow, or not available Internet connection, so We haven't been able to load more pictures or video. We're hoping to get caught up tonight. Certainly by tomorrow evening. We have seen, tasted and experienced a very good number of things...so check back. The only thing worse than challenging internet connections here is that we're in serious wine country today and tomorrow, so NO PISCO SOURS :( this could put a damper on our goal of 100.

Espiritus de Colchagua

2009-06-11T20:11:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2009. We ate breakfast and then walked two blocks to Espiritus de Colchagua in Santa Cruz, which is another passion of
Senior Carlos Cardoen C. PhD. Espiritus de Colchagua is quite like a museum, but actually an amazing place where hundreds of fruits, herbs, and plants are infused into spirits. We tasted a number of the. The bowl and shot glass below show my favorite, something not usually seen. Fig liquor. It was delicious.

2009-06-11T04:29:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. We had the wonderful pleasure of meeting and sharing drinks with Senior Carlos Cardoen C. Ph.D, Presidenta of Museo de Colchagua and owner of Hotel Santa Cruz and Casa Santa Cruz. Mucho gracias, Senior Cardoen C. for an absolutely amazing visit to your properties.

Bananas

2009-06-11T04:00:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. Darrell talking about the bananas at Casa Santa Cruz.

A walk through the Chilean past

2009-06-11T03:48:00.001-07:00

June 10, 2009. Casa Santa Cruz has done a terrific job displaying Chilean history and culture. The experience is quite a fascinating step back in time.

Across the valleys

2009-06-11T03:40:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. Here are some of the different views from the top on the observatory grounds looking out over the vineyards and valley at Casa Santa Cruz.

Take me to the top

2009-06-10T23:37:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. After lunch at Casa Santa Cruz, we hopped on the aerial tram for a ride up to the observatory, where they also have museums of the indigenous people of Chile, the Mapuche and the Rapa Nui.

Casa Santa Cruz

2009-06-10T23:28:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. On the hilltop kitchen's veranda overlooking Casa Santa Cruz.

Soup of the day.

2009-06-10T23:17:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. Darrell reviewing the soup Chef Guillermo prepared.

No soup nazis here

2009-06-10T23:11:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. I think Stephanie likes the soup.

Lunch at Casa Santa Cruz

2009-06-10T22:57:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. Chef Guillermo Munoz, executive chef at the Santa Cruz Hotel came to Casa Santa Cruz estate to prepare us a lunch of empanadas and Caldillo soup made with shrimp and Congri, which we call Conger (fish not eel). We watched him prepare our lunch in a octagonal shaped building perched on a hill above the vineyard. The view was breath taking and the lunch certainly matched the spectacular views.

Hotel Santa Cruz

2009-06-10T22:45:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2009. Arrived at Hotel Santa Cruz, our bed down for the night. It's in the heart of the town of Santa Cruz in Colchagua Valley. The lobby has a display of very old Pisco pots that were used to sail Pisco to the U.S. so So San Fransiscans could have their Pisco Sours around the Gold Rush era.

2009-06-10T22:35:00.000-07:00

June 9, 2009. Darrell talking about the second crop of Carmenere at Casa Silva

Casa Silva

2009-06-10T22:14:00.000-07:00

June 9, 2009. A lot to talk about, so little time. Casa Silva is passionate about wine and horses. They showed us a practice of Chilean rodeo, their near 100 year old vines, and their prised Carmenere vines.

It's close to winter, so we saw second growth clusters still on the vines.

Macha, an amazing type of rare clam they served us. The seafood here is so wonderful.

The horse riding training facility with polo field in the back ground.

On the road

2009-06-10T22:02:00.000-07:00

June 9, 2009.

On the road in the Chilean countryside. On route to Colchagua valley

Olive oil for dessert

2009-06-09T21:57:00.000-07:00

June 9, 2009. Dessert tasting with Daniela at Soho.

Hummingbirds in the orchard

2009-06-09T21:39:00.000-07:00

June 9, 2009. Darrell explaining one method of olive harvest.

Olive oil bottling

2009-06-09T21:29:00.000-07:00

June 9, 2009. Darrell comments on the olive oil bottling at Soho

Darrell about olive grafting clones

2009-06-09T21:15:00.000-07:00

June 9, 2009. At Soho olive oil orchard.

In the orchard

2009-06-09T20:53:00.000-07:00

June 9, 2009. Today we visited the orchard home, olive orchard, and olive oil processing plant of Juan Carlos Fabres Durrels, managing director of Soho. We had a wonderful time. Juan Carlos and his family made us feel like we were a part of their family. Thank you, Juan Carlos!

Really Fowl

2009-06-09T02:46:00.001-07:00

June 8, 2009. A glimpse ahead. Darrell showing Roberto Olmos, our dear friend & guide, the Araucana chicken. We will see this bird and it's eggs on Friday in Bio Bio, which is in the south. They are a unique bird which were developed from stocks raised by the native Mapuche by an animal scientist here in the early 1900's. They are know as the chicken that lay the Easter eggs. Their eggs are of different colors. Tan, redish orange hued, bluish, and greenish-blue .

Culinary inspiration

2009-06-08T21:01:00.000-07:00

June 8, 2009. Tonight was very inspirational for me. It got very professional. Darrell bought a book on Chilean cuisine yesterday at the mall, which was co-written by Raul Correa. We ate at his restaurant tonight, here in Santiago. All I can say is that we will hold a mystery dinner this fall based on what we had here tonight. Darrell will select the courses and wine. We will have two national journalists and 12 guests. The dinner will be blind. Possibly the best of the best, or from the 5th quarter. We will learn from this dinner. It was quite a dinner here. www.raulcorreayfamilia.cl

CORFO Investment forum

2009-06-08T15:32:00.000-07:00

June 8, 2009. At the Grand Hyatt for the CORFO Investment Forum. We got all of the numbers on Chile today. The tone certainly was that Chile in emerging in the world market and they have much to offer.

Esther talkin' over dinner

2009-06-08T14:51:00.000-07:00

June 7,2009 Esther' entry

We've had interesting dinner discussions over Pisco Sours, kinda like a Chilean version of a Whiskey Sour. I asked Darrell, at Rick's urging, about the slow food movement. Darrell had a few things to say, but the one thing that stood out was his admission that on occasion he likes going to a drive thru (In and Out, preferred) and eating in his car while he drives. It accomplished two things: he cures his hunger while he gets to where he's going. Nothing wrong with that, he figures.

I remember asking for a "to go" cup in a small cafe in Switzerland. The waitress literally laughed out loud. "Das gibt nichts!) (We don't do that!) she exclaimed. Hey, I like drinking coffee in the car while I'm driving. I find it pleasurable and relaxing.

Our fellow Oodleboxer and traveling companion, Stephanie added that although the slow food movement embraces growing your food, cooking from scratch and generally slowing down, we have to do what works for us. The American tradition of eating and drinking in our cars can be a simple and practical pleasure.

Speaking of simple pleasures...another Pisco Sour please!

Esther & Darrell: a close up of barnacles Stephanie fears the Pisco Sour.

2009-06-08T14:28:00.000-07:00

June 8, 2009. CORFO Day. The Chilean Economic Development Agency held it's Invest Forum today. Over 60 executives from at least 5 countries came to hear CORFO explain all of the benefits of partnerships and investments in Chile's Wine, Olive, and Fruit businesses. We saw a pretty amazing fact that CORFO presented during a powerpoint presentation: "21 million people around the world eat or drink something from Chile everyday, but half don't even realize where it came from". Hopefully, this will change soon. More people will become aware of the wonderful bounty of Chile.

The first day's dinner

2009-06-08T14:15:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. On the walk back from the mall, it was amazing to experience the smell of the coming winter in the air. There was a briskness filled with the scent of turned leaves. It gave us hunger, so Darrell steered us to the Matsuri Restaurant at the Grand Hyatt. We had our own room, where Darrell poured a 4 year old Chilean Pisco Reserva with a grape tendril inside that he bought in a Macy's like store at the mall. It was delicious. A bit Grappa like with wisps of dry herbally licorice notes. I cut it with Evian water after the first sake glass of it. It really softened the burn, but the flavors held beautifully. Darrell ordered Chawan Mushi soup with prawn and chicken, Gyoza, Sashami of Chilean sea bass and Robolo, fried rice, and a bottle of '08 D.O. Maipo Valley Pinot Noir. Japanese dinner was a perfect call by Darrell. The meal was good, satisfying, and light. Now off to bed.

Mall anyone?

2009-06-08T14:06:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. We needed to walk of those Pisco Sours, so we headed across the street to the Parque Arauco. www.parquearauco.cl
We got scared for a second...swore we were magically transported directly to South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa California, only busier...lots busier. 350 stores. Even Tony Roma's, Brooks Brothers, and Kenneth Cole to name a few.
It was a bit surreal.

Esther was digging all the winter fashion in the windows. After all it is the start of winter down here.

U.S.O.

2009-06-08T13:57:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. We returned to the Grand Hyatt to relax in the lounge. Darrell ordered Pisco Sours. I thought I'd take a quick stroll around the pool grounds and stumbled across a couple of Unidentified Standing Objects. Wait...I haven't even had my Pisco Sour yet. Thought to myself "isn't this the kind of thing you see when you've a one Pisco sour too many down here?" Very Eastern Island-ish for sure.

Going upscale

2009-06-08T13:50:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. After lunch, we wanted to gain some contrast in the way locals really shop, so we stopped by the upscale market called "Unimarc". Unfortunately, they didn't allow our video cameras in, but this modern, clean, and well stocked market was really something we'd expect in any of our upscale grocery markets. Esther and I were thrilled to find canned Locos on the shelf. We both bought some. $20.00 U.S. Locos party when we get home. One note to coffee drinkers: The best you'll find here is instant. Darrell's comment on coffee in Chile is "It's a complete travesty" I second that notion! We did actually pass by a Starbucks on the way back to the hotel.

Bel Paese lunch

2009-06-08T13:42:00.000-07:00

Seafood Cannelloni

June 7, 2009. Darrell and Roberto Illari.

Locos

2009-06-08T10:12:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. Locos...Wow! We were all amazed at this very special and rare Chilean abalone like dish.

Lunch Salads

2009-06-08T10:09:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. The left is a salad of Ulte, a type of Chilean seaweed which has the texture of tender cactus. The right is a salad of Penca, which is somewhat like celery with hints of artichoke.

Raw Sea Urchin

2009-06-08T09:23:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. Chef Roberto Illari cracked and cleaned our raw sea urchin. He commented that all sea urchins have "five tongues" giving a sea star look when opened.

Bel Paese Restaurant

2009-06-08T09:21:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. The Bel Paese restaurant in Santiago.

Catch of the day

2009-06-08T09:11:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. Langostinos, rock crab, sea urchins, mussels, and sea bass. The urchins will be along for lunch.

Fresh seafood at the central market

2009-06-08T04:29:00.000-07:00

At the Market

2009-06-08T04:11:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. Darrell with Stephanie, and our dear friend & Guide Roberto Olmos selecting Ulte, a type of cactus like seaweed and Penca, a celery like plant for our lunch.

Mercado Central Downtown Santiago

2009-06-07T22:26:00.000-07:00

After checking in to the Hotel and freshening up a bit, we headed to Santiago's famous Central Market to see Darrell shop for fresh local specialties which we will take to the Bel Paese restaurant, where Chef/Owner Roberto Illari will use them to make us lunch.

Our place for the next two days

2009-06-07T21:44:00.000-07:00

The rooms are great here at The Grand Hyatt. Esther has a slight fear of heights and is having trouble adjusting to a "sunken" lounge in her room, but we're working with her.

Pay to enter

2009-06-07T21:37:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2009. We made it safely to Santiago on time. 30 minutes before landing, while on approach around 6:45 am, I (Rick) had an amazing view of the dawn starting to rise over the Andes. The best part was seeing Mt. Aconcagua rising 22,841 ft. against the dawn. WOW. Esther had an equally wonderful of the Chilean coast line and mystery fog banks shrouding the coastal valleys. FYI $131.00 U.S. to get into Chile. They call it a "Reciprocity Fee", but it does cover the life of your passport. Guess we'll just have to go back.

Our Pisco Sours at One Flew South

2009-06-07T21:34:00.000-07:00

June 6, 2009. While sitting down to dinner during our 3 hour layover in Atlanta, Darrell noticed a few bottles of Pisco on the bar. Pisco is the national distilled spirit of Chile (Peru shares the distinction). It is a brandy produced from aromatic varieties of grapes. Darrell asked our server, Carolyn, if she could make us Pisco Sours.

She cheerfully replied that she could. Pisco Sour you ask? This was the top cocktail in San Francisco in the 1850's because California really only had gold in 1850, so we traded liquor and citrus with Chile. The Pisco sour is a delicious, refreshing cocktail made with the juice of the Limon de Pica Chilean lime, egg white (powdered egg white or goma syrup - syrup of sugar and gum arabic are used now), mixed in a cocktail shaker with ice, then usually poured into a champagne style flute glass and topped with a drop or two of aromatic bitters. These are so good we're going to try to resurrect San Francisco's top cocktail then, and Chile's favortie cocktail now, into our favorite national cocktail over this summer. Hey, the Mojtio became a craze and is in the minor league compared to the Pisco Sour, as far a s I'm concerned.

Bitters from Chile

2009-06-07T21:33:00.001-07:00

June 6, 2009. Bitters from Chile

More on One Flew South

2009-06-07T21:27:00.000-07:00

June 6, 2009. More on "One Flew South Restaurant & Sushi Bar": Darrell had a Manhattan with dinner, the rest of us had beer. Darrell then let us try his Gin & Tonic made with Stirrings tonic Water. Yum! Now it was time to focus on Chile, so Darrell ordered us each a Pisco Sour. Carolyn made it with lemon juice instead of lime and bitters from Chile. Not only did Carolyn shake the Pisco Sours in proper fashion, she made them quite good! Our recommendation: definitely visit One Flew South if passing through Atlanta's Hartsfield Jackson Intn'l Airport. www.oneflewsouthatl.com

There is good airport food in Atlanta

2009-06-07T21:14:00.000-07:00

June 6, 2009. Got off to Atlanta 25 minutes late, but the pilot made up the time in the air and we arrived on time. We had a 3 hour layover before our flight to Santiago. Darrell wanted hot dogs, but this wasn't Chicago's O'Hare. We found "One Flew South Restaurant Sushi Bar" in our E Concourse. What a complete surprise! Darrell had a Pulled Duck sandwich, Esther & Stephanie had Braised Pork Belly, and I decided to go with our server/bartender Carolyn's suggestion of Duck Breast with Porcini Ravioli. Esther and I split a Frisee with Poached Pear & Bacon Salad. The presentation was very good, and everyone was delighted at how good the food was. Darrell tried the bacon from our salad, and proceeded to order a rasher of just bacon, then two BLT sandwiches, which we all split. AMAZING bacon, and the best BLT's we've ever had! Carolyn gave us the name of the bacon producer: Allan Benton in Madisonville, TN. We're certainly going to contact Mr. Benton about sourcing his products. There was just one problem with One Flew Souith...we were to return through Atlanta on Monday June, 15th. We asked if One Flew South could have Pisco Sours & Bacon waiting for us at our 6am arrival, but alas they weren't open that early. Guess we'll just have to go back.

Great way to start a trip

2009-06-07T21:03:00.000-07:00

June 6, 2009. I cant think of a better way to start a trip.

A Bon Voyage Toast

2009-06-07T20:44:00.000-07:00

June 6, 2009. A Bon Voyage toast to a successful trip to Chile. Gosset NV Champagne at Vino Volo, Sacramento Intn'l Airport

The poping of the cork.

2009-06-07T20:19:00.000-07:00

Saturday June 6, 2009. The beginning of our trip to Chile had to start off by adjusting our time zones, so in true Darrell fashion, it wasn't 11am in Sacramento when he was popping the cork, it was 2pm in Santiago, Chile!

The Story Breaks

2009-06-04T10:36:00.000-07:00

Darrell Corti - President / Owner of Corti Brothers, Rick Mindermann - store director & Darrell's personal assistant, Esther Ritter - Oodleboxtv.com partner and camerawoman, and Stephanie Locher - Oodleboxtv.com partner and producer are traveling to Santiago, Chile and touring the wine, olive, and fruit growing regions. Here is Sacramento Bee "The Good Life" columnist Rick Kushman's article telling of the trip.

The Good Life:
Starring role's ahead for 'low-key' food, wine expert Darrell Corti on Chile trip
By Rick Kushman rkushman@sacbee.com

Published: Wednesday, Jun. 3, 2009 - 12:00 am Page 1D
Wednesday, Jun. 3, 2009 - 8:17 am

Click the link below to read the whole story:
http://www.sacbee.com/161/story/1913052.html

oodleboxtv.com

2009-05-31T16:00:00.000-07:00

I am very excited about oodleboxtv.com going to Chile. Follow along with us as you will eat, drink and be merry with food experts and other food professionals from across the world. Visit beautiful wineries, restaurants and extraordinary farm lands they have to offer. If you are looking for your next travel destination, this might be your travel resource center for Chile. If you are interested in fine dining and exotic foods, oodleboxtv.com is your place to visit.