50 Shades of Rosé

Posted on September 13, 2016May 12, 2020 by p1v0t

Fall is in the air, and when the summer heat is winding down, but it’s not yet time for a big glass of red wine by the fire, we think of one thing: rosé. On the spectrum between red and white wines, rosés are made with the same grapes as reds, but spend less time fermenting with the skins than reds do. Rosés are perfect for this time of year, offering the refreshing brightness of white wines with added depth from the skins.

Rosé wines are made from nearly every wine grape, and as rosé’s popularity grows, so do the options (we know that makes us happy). From dry to sweet, simple to complex, they can offer characteristics of red fruit, flowers, citrus or melon depending on the varietal, region and winemaking process.

So what is the process for making rosés? There are three main methods:

Maceration Method. In this commonly used method for producing commercial rosé, grapes are pressed and sit in their own skins to ferment for a brief time. The juice and skins are then separated before the color gets too dark. Depending on the varietal, skins are left to ferment with the wine for varying amounts of time, from as little as a few hours to days.
Vin Gris/Direct Press Method. Meaning “gray wine,” the vin gris method is to make a nearly white wine using red wine grapes and white winemaking processes. Vin gris uses an extremely short maceration time, resulting in rosés with a very pale hue.
Saigneé. Pronounced san-yay, this method is a by-product of red winemaking. During the first few hours of a red wine’s fermentation, some of the juice is “bled” off to ferment separately from the rest of the wine. This method is more common in wine regions that produce finer reds, because it not only produces a nice rosé with a typically darker hue, but leaves a higher ratio of skin contact on the un-bled juice, concentrating the red.

Whatever the method, we love rosé. We are proud to feature several on our wine lists, including favorites like our Domaine de la Roche mourvèdre blend from the Bandol region in southern France, and the classic Domaine Carneros Brut rosé. We’ve also got a number of sleek rosés from around the world available that aren’t listed on the menu. Our fresh seafood and farm fresh specials are perfect candidates to pair nicely with any of our lovely rosés—we’d love to help you find the perfect wine to complement your dinner. Never hesitate to ask!

August Farmer’s Market Fun

Posted on August 11, 2016May 12, 2020 by p1v0t

August is an exciting month in Colorado, with an imminent football season, and students coming back into town. But most importantly, August is a great food month.

As always, you can find the best, freshest, locally grown fruits and veggies at Boulder’s farmer’s markets. We are passionate about producing great food, and that requires great ingredients.

Throughout this month you can find Chef Jim strolling through the market, looking for great ingredients and strengthening relationships with the local farmers who produce the food you love. What will he be looking for in August? Here are just a few of the foods that are in season this month:

Arugula: It’s a fact: we love arugula, and for good reason. Healthy and tasty, arugula is the main component of our Boulder Cork salad, a longstanding family favorite!
Summer squash: Of course, fresh squash are absolutely indispensable as a side dish for an entrée. August is a fantastic time for lovers of squash, especially if you’re a fan of delectable squash blossoms.
Herbs: The right seasoning can absolutely make a dish, and fresh herbs make all the difference. August sees fresh basil, cilantro, rosemary, thyme and dill, among many other popular herbs.
Peppers: Peppers are finally ripening, which is great news for those of you that like your food with a subtle kick. And you know what this means for some of our Southwest-inspired dishes!
Tomatoes: It’s here: tomato season. If you’re a fan of caprese, this is the right time of year for you. Chef Jim creates a wonderful (and beautiful) caprese with lovely heirloom tomatoes from area farms, complete with fresh garden basil and the best mozzarella. Yum!
Sweet corn: If you like sweet corn (and we know you do), August heralds one of our favorite times of the growing season: that of sweet corn from Munson’s Farm. Sauté it, pickle it, use it in a relish, or just roast it to discover some of the delights of summer.

Of course, this is far from an exhaustive list. As we said, August is a great food month, which means it’s a great time to visit Cork for the fresh, local food you love.

Part 3: Something Old, Something New, Nothing Borrowed, But Lots of Blues!

Posted on July 26, 2016May 12, 2020 by p1v0t

Drinks

By: Kate Smailer

Each morning we started the day with fresh coconut water. What a treat – so better than the bottled or canned coconut water we get in Colorado. Almost daily we visited the road side stand selling produce from Dominica. These “jelly nuts” or young coconuts gave us two large glasses, so refreshing and good for us!

Tropical Flower CO LTD continues to have two of our favorite Chardonnays – Cakebread and Ferrari-Carano for a better price than we can get at home! Grand Vin De France has wonderful French and Italian wines. Geraud’s is right next door. All the girls were super friendly and I think they love their new space!

Our last full day, we packed up our beach gear and headed to our spot on Shoal Bay. We enjoyed drinks from Elodias – we do miss Carol but her darling niece, Jakita is there with a big smile! We enjoyed talking with Junior, watching the boats race by, swimming, floating and strolling. A perfect last day!

Another fabulous vacation in Anguilla!

Part 2: Something Old, Something New, Nothing Borrowed, But Lots of Blues!

Posted on July 19, 2016July 24, 2020 by p1v0t

Part 2: Cooking at home

By: Kate Smailer

Every May since 2004 we stay at Fletch’s Cove Villa in Little Harbour. This one bedroom, 3 bathroom oceanfront villa with spectacular views, pool and gardens is a special property! The housekeeper, Cecile is the sweetest lady and she takes special care of us. We feel like family!

Jim loves to cook in several nights depending on food availability. This May was awesome! We procured lots of fresh produce and plenty of seafood – lobsters, crayfish and queen snappers!

A most favorite meal of the trip was Jim’s special spiny lobster salad, featuring simply-grilled fresh lobster with lemon juice, olive oil, basil, salt and pepper. It is a recipe he got from Ezio, a dear Italian chef friend from the Cafe Santa Fe in Todos Santos – such a simple recipe and such terrific flavor! I so love spiny lobster as it’s much sweeter than Maine cold water lobster.

Rainbow Farms is always a treat. Noel and Duke actually recognized us on the road and yelled hello! I know they meet a lot of people and we were touched they remembered us and made a point to greet. Rainbow had lots of tomatoes this year, great wild arugula and basil.

We ventured to the East End to find the new Sensational Flavours Market. What a nice size farm they have. When we visited, they were in between planting but we still managed to get a favorite item – seasoning peppers! These bright red peppers have the perfume of a habanero but not the heat! Jim lightly dresses them with sherry wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper and grills them on the barbecue – oh so good!

Part 1: Something Old, Something New, Nothing Borrowed, But Lots of Blues!

Posted on July 12, 2016June 5, 2019 by p1v0t

Part 1: Restaurants and Hotels

By: Kate Smailer

This May was our 21st trip to Anguilla! Once we found this gem of an island in 2002 we looked no further for a perfect beach destination. This trip offered new hotels and restaurants.

Manoah Hotel

Manoah Hotel (formerly the Anguilla Ku Hotel) had its restaurant and bar open even though the main hotel will not open until November. We enjoyed two lunches here, great Mt. Gay and tonics, buckets of Coronas and the most comfortable chaise lounges and umbrellas.

Each day we set up at Jacala Beach Restaurant. Lunch there is a treat! Jacques and Alain take super care of us—they take such pride and care with everything they do. We had all our favorite foods – grilled crayfish, lobster risotto, watermelon salad, mahi mahi poached in olive oil, chilled cucumber soup with tomato sorbet, calamari risotto and tuna tartare. Jim always asks Alain to serve his snapper ceviche with coconut milk and cucumber, which he serves in a coconut shell – divine!

In addition to our lunches, we enjoyed one dinner at Jacala. The atmosphere at night is different – so special, very romantic. The palm trees dance in the breeze and glow with white lights. White table cloths and candles dress the tables. Often, there is a spectacular sunset!

Hibernia Restaurant Art Gallery

We dined at Hibernia Restaurant Art Gallery two evenings. They feature open-air dining with a lovely pool and garden – we decided to give them a try and we are so glad we did! Hibernia is special and not to be missed!

The owner Mary Pat’s attention to detail is top notch (and she sets a most beautiful table), and the food that Raoul – the other owner – prepares is innovative, fresh and delicious. For appetizers we so enjoyed the smoked fish plate served with toasted homemade brown bread and a horseradish and ginger cream cheese, as well as a trio of tuna: gravlax, smoked and cured, and the sashimi plate alongside wahoo, scallop, crayfish and conch.

Entrees were also delicious. My favorite was the Crayfish sautéed out of the shell with vanilla, lemongrass and roasted onion and yam. This crayfish was so tender and incredibly sweet. Mary Pat told us that sautéing crayfish out of the shell results in a slightly different flavor and texture than the more commonly grilled crayfish. I am still dreaming of this taste!

Of course no meal at Hibernia is complete without the homemade rum raisin ice cream served with a snifter of aged rum. The dessert is served in a lovely bowl with long silver spoons to help you savor every luscious bite.

CoveCastles

We did try one new place for a dinner after reading such stellar reviews about CoveCastles and their executive chef Marc Alvarez. The restaurant had 5 tables that night and the atmosphere had a good energy. Jim introduced himself to Marc, and he was so friendly. Marc enjoyed showing Jim his special restaurant equipment – a wood fired pizza oven and a most special wood-burning grill made by Grillworks. Marc recommended the night’s special, which Jim enjoyed—grilled baby octopus served over homemade squid ink orecchiette. He started with the fried conch served with a tangy lemon aioli.

I enjoyed the grilled cherry tomato and burrata bruschetta, as well as the homemade lobster and pea ravioli.

Upon leaving, Marc came over to our table and suggested we come for lunch to try his pizza and said he would happily set us up on lounge chairs with and umbrella to enjoy the day on the beach. We did just this on our one cloudy day. Lunch was wonderful. Marc made us a great salad made with gem lettuce, avocado and tomato dressed in a vinaigrette made from olive oil and a most lovely vinegar (Vinaigre de Calamansi).

We also devoured two pizzas – a bianca and a margherita – AND a piece of the freshest snapper which he grilled on his wood fired grill. A most wonderful way to spend a cloudy day!

We Love June!

Posted on June 6, 2016June 5, 2019 by p1v0t

The Boulder Farmers Market is in full swing, and we’re excited about the gorgeous seasonal and local veggies we find there. Greens are finally in season, and Chef Jim is already crafting ways to weave them into our dishes, incorporating fresh, organic arugula into our salads and introducing a variety of braising greens into daily specials.

Of course, the Farmers Market isn’t our only source of fresh produce—our garden is brimming with delicious herbs. Throughout the summer, we cultivate a variety that make their way into dishes, appear alongside them as garnishes and get muddled in summer cocktails. We are proud to bring you such hyperlocal treats as lovage, basil, sage, oregano, borage, lavender, rosemary, parsley, sorrel, thyme, fennel, mint and more.

If all this talk about fresh greens has you hooked, grab some fresh parsley from the market this weekend and try Chef Jim’s great Spring Salsa Verde recipe. We highly recommend pairing this delectable sauce with fresh white fish or steak and a nice, crisp white wine.

And of course, we always welcome you to join us for a taste of these local and seasonal flavors any day of the week (we’ll help you pair the wine). Never hesitate to ask about our daily specials or recommendations. Chef Jim’s just getting started!

May: One of Our Favorite Food Months

Posted on May 16, 2016June 5, 2019 by p1v0t

In Boulder you can always confirm the arrival of spring with the sights and sounds of our legendary farmers market. Booth after booth, the market seems to expand each year, marking the arrival of established and new farms and ranches. Who can keep up with this bounty?

A longstanding devotee of the market, our Executive Chef Jim Smailer certainly does his best. Undeterred by the chill of an early spring morning, Chef Jim arrives early for the best selection. Lots of folks enjoy the Market, but for Chef Jim, finding the freshest local asparagus and greens is like panning for gold.

“I feel like I say this every year, but May is one of my favorite food months at home and at the Cork. We come out of five months of virtually no local produce, and May really starts the Farmers Market season off. The world comes alive in spring,” Chef Jim said.

It’s true that freshly-picked produce stands on its own, but its ability to elevate a dish is remarkable. That’s where Chef Jim’s true talents come in to play. The joy in his face reflects his delight in cooking with these kinds of quality ingredients, as well as the creative opportunities hyper-seasonal selections, such as pea shoots, offer.

That asparagus in his hand might just turn into Asparagus ravioli, which you can also try at home with Chef Jim’s recipe. Pea shoot pesto and squash blossom pizza are other examples of Jim’s artistry. To supplement goodies from the farmers market, The Cork regularly receives deliveries from the best local farms.

It’s also a great time for seafood.

“Wild salmon and halibut have been long gone. These two great American fish make a welcome return in the spring,” Jim said, “Oh, and I almost forgot to mention softshell crabs which I eagerly await!”

Together with Jim’s hand-picked produce, the possibilities for his seafood selections are almost endless.

“We also have spring lamb from Triple M Bar Ranch,” Jim said.

So, who can keep up?

Chef Jim, of course.

Come and enjoy Chef Jim’s inspired spring cuisine at the Cork!

Recipe: Pea Shoot Pesto

Posted on May 16, 2016June 5, 2019 by p1v0t

Ingredients:

2 packed cups of pea shoots
1/2 cup of fresh basil
1/4 cup of spring onion or scallion chopped
1/4 cup of lightly toasted piñon nuts (preferably Italian)
1/4 tsp. of black pepper
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup of grated reggiano parmesan

Directions:

Place all of the above ingredients in a food processor and slowly add extra virgin olive oil until you have the right consistency (should make about a 1/3 to 1/2 cup of finished pesto).
Can be made a couple of hours ahead of time, covered with plastic wrap and stored at room temperature.

Chef notes:

The pesto is the perfect complement to a piece of fresh halibut because it is a little less pungent than a classic basil and garlic version.

Recipe: Asparagus Ravioli

Posted on May 16, 2016June 5, 2019 by p1v0t

Ingredients:

1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 spring onions, coarsely chopped
1 cup ricotta
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/2 cup plus more for topping of Reggiano Parmigiano, grated
1/2 cup plus more for topping of Pecorino Toscano, grated
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 stick butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large saute pan add the olive oil over medium high heat.
Add the spring onion and chopped asparagus, reserving the spear tops.
Season with salt and pepper and cook until tender, approximately 10 minutes
Set this mixture aside to cool.
In a bowl whisk together the ricotta, nutmeg and 1/2 cup of each cheese
Add the cooled asparagus mixture and gently mix.
This mixture is a wonderful spring filling for ravioli. Find your favorite fresh pasta recipe and a ravioli mold and make ravioli.
The ravioli will cook in salted gently boiling water for approximately 4 – 6 minutes depending on the thickness of the pasta. Drain the ravioli and reserve about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water.
While the ravioli are cooking melt the butter in a saucepan just until melted, do not brown. Add the reserved asparagus tips and cook until just tender.
Add the cooked ravioli and the 1/2 cup of reserved pasta water to the saucepan with the asparagus tips. Toss the ravioli. Place in warm bowls. Top with the reserved cheeses and few grinds of black pepper.
This recipe makes about 36 small ravioli or 24 free form ravioli.
The size will depend on size of ravioli. This recipe will serve 6 people.

What’s on Tap at the Cork

Posted on April 4, 2016June 5, 2019 by p1v0t

Here at the Cork, we put a lot of the emphasis on our extensive wine list, and it’s hard to blame us—who wouldn’t want to highlight such a unique selection? But this month, we thought we’d steal a little bit of the spotlight from the vino and shine it on another area we do well: draft beer.

The Cork always features four beers on tap. Our selection rotates, but we’re currently serving Left Hand Black Jack Porter, Hacker-Pschorr Dunkle Weisse, Wibby Lightshine Helles Lager and Upslope Pale Ale.

Left Hand Black Jack Porter is a domestic described in its brewer notes as having notes of dark chocolate, espresso and herbal hops. Coming in at 6.8% ABV, Black Jack Porter took home Gold in the 2010 European Beer Star Competition and Silver in the 2014 Great American Beer Festival. It pairs excellently with rich dishes like our Pepper Steak or Green Chile While Cheddar Mac & Cheese, as well as desserts like our classic crème brûlée.

Hacker-Pschorr Dunkle Weisse (“dark wheat”) is an import out of Munich, Germany. The Hacker brewery had been in business for 555 years, since 1417, when it merged with the Pschorr brewery in 1972. With notes of caramel, apricot and clove, Dunkle Weisse is well-loved for its balance of sweetness and spice, and for its smooth, velvety mouthfeel. It contains 5.3% ABV and pairs beautifully with strong cheeses like asiago and gorgonzola, so don’t be afraid to try it with our delectable Happy Hour Waffle Chips!

Wibby Lightshine Helles Lager is a local favorite made just down the street in Longmont, CO. With its light, sweet finish, the Bavarian-influenced lager pairs well with pretty much anything, but we especially like it with our Drunken Fish Taquito appetizer or Dijon Chicken Sandwich. Lightshine Helles Lager weighs in with 5.5% ABV.

Last but certainly not least, we have Upslope Pale Ale, another local stunner made right here in Boulder. Upslope describes their 5.8% ABV signature beer as “clear, crisp and dry” with “a unique spicy hop bitterness” and a light-to-medium body. Try it with our burgers or one of Chef Jim’s featured seafood dishes.

We’re also excited to have recently installed a glycol-chilled, four-faucet Ice Cobra tower to chill and dispense our draft beers. Made in Italy, this tower is top of the line and will ensure a perfect pour and ice-cold beer every time. There couldn’t be a better way to enjoy one of our drafts—come check it out!