The 2013 Philadelphia Wine & Food Festival in Really Bad Pictures

Loafers without socks, leathery faces, and the quiet discomfort of being in a room where everybody makes more money than you. That basically sums up the 2013 Philadelphia Wine and Food Festival. Not that it wasn't a good time. There were some stellar pours, including a perfectly balanced sherry imported by P.R. Grisley Co.* and a sauvingnon blanc from Casa Patronales that drank like a high octane double or triple-IPA (imagine a boozier Double Jack or a less-syrupy Hop'solutely). Plus, it was all you can drink, although I did my best not to render myself useless for the next day's kid party doubleheader.

At the end of it all, I had the opportunity to catch up with a high school buddy of mine who dropped serious knowledge on the challenges of importing wine (P.R. Grisley is only available in 13 states), the effect of the E.U.'s disdain for austerity (It's no secret that Spain and Portugal, where many of P.R. Grisley's imports come from, are kind of fucked right now), and how wine's a whole lot cooler if you're not snobby about it. Check back shortly for a couple videos featuring a real-life Geico caveman and a drunken Spanaird. Buen provecho.

Update: Here's the Spanish bull (toro?) I was talking about. Foreign accents are so cool:

And here's the IRL Geico Caveman:

Dude, you've got some mango salsa in your beard.

*Full disclosure. These guys were my sponsors. I was pretty relieved, however, when their wines were among the best I had all night. It would have been really awkward if they sucked.

Field Trip: Crown Burgers in Salt Lake City, Utah

A snowboarding trip to Utah isn't complete without a stop at Crown Burgers.  Their eponymous burger is a thing of beauty.  After sitting on an open flame until charred in all the right places, it's topped with a slice of yellow American cheese, a half-pound of griddled pastrami, shredded lettuce, tomato, and fry sauce (mayo folded into ketchup).  Served with French fries whose shape and thickness would be the result of a steak fry and a McDonald's fry having fry babies, I was tempted to order three more in case it took me another three years to get back to Salt Lake (and three days after returning home, I feel like a jackass that I didn't). Buen provecho.

My Friends are Cooler Than Your Friends: Rachel Chamberlain

Our dear friend Rachel, whose lasagna was documented back in May of 2008, has finally decided to do what we've all been hoping she'd do for a while now.  The answer you're looking for is not "re-up on the pregnancy (although we're stoked that her and Dave are proliferating la raza cosmica), but rather "putting shit down on digital paper,"  so it is with great pleasure and high hopes that I introduce Blog Gras, an account of what happens when a Baltimorean marries a cowboy and decides to settle down in Salt Lake (there are also plans to involve food, home cooking or otherwise).  So far, we've seen a restaurant that looks like a dentist's office that houses a full bath, complete with a pair of socks drying on the shower door. We look forward to more such hilarity that can only come from reality.  Her acerbic wit cuts through life's bullshit like a jagged and rusty saw.  Plus, she's got the mouth of a sailor.  Welcome to the terrordome. Buen provecho.