Dinning Section of New York Times, Oct 31, 2012

choi

(1) David Tanis, The Pleasure of Persimmons in Fall.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/3 ... immons-in-fall.html

Note:
(a) persimmon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persimmon
(section 1 Names and etymolgy; section 2 Select species: Diospyros kaki's Japanese cultivar 'Hachiya')

* The "kaki" is Japanese proniunciation for Kanji 柿.
(b) For Fuyū, see 富有
http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%AF%8C%E6%9C%89
(section 2 由来: 1857年（安政4年）、岐阜県瑞穂市居倉の小倉初衛が栽培を始めた御所系統の柿の木がその起源である。当初は「居倉御所」と呼ばれていたが、接木による栽培に成功していた同じ村落の福島才治により、1898年（明治31年）、「礼記」中「富有四海之内」の一文から二字を取り富有と名付けられ)

translation: Started in 1857 by 小倉 初衛 (I do not know how 初衛 is pronounced) OGURA of Ikura (name of a neighborhood), City of Mizuho, Gifu Prefecture 岐阜県瑞穂市居倉. 福島 才治 of the same village conferred the name 富有 on the persimmon variety based on 富有四海之内 in (ancient China's) 礼記.

(c) The report says, "On the other hand [the print version has these four words here], if you tried to taste a slice of firm, raw Hachiya, you’d immediately discover what is meant, in persimmon terminology, by the word 'astringent.'”
(i) Hachiya 蜂屋 (柿)  

* The hachi and ya are Japanese pronunciations for 蜂 and 屋, respectively.
(ii) astringent (adj): 渋(kanji)/ 澀 (traditional Chinese character in Taiwan)
(d) In Taiwan, 富有 and 蜂屋 are called 硬柿子 and 軟柿子, respectively (we never heard of 富有 or 蜂屋).

(2) Florence Fabricant, Icy Beer Before It's Put on Ice.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/3 ... g-during-aging.html

Note:
bock
(a) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bock
(Several substyles exist, including eisbock, a much stronger version made by partially freezing the beer and removing the water ice that forms; section 2.4 Eisbock)
(b) German nouns--translation into Eglish
(i) weizen (masculine): wheat
(ii) eis (neuter): ice
(iii) biersch (feminine): ale house



(to be continued)

choi

(3) Clay Risen, Back in the Mix: New England Rum.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/3 ... to-new-england.html
("Invented in the West Indies in the 17th century, rum caught on in the American colonies, where distillers began importing molasses and quickly created a major industry. At its peak in 1770, the colonies imported six million gallons of Caribbean molasses, much of which became rum in New England’s 159 distilleries. The style varied widely, but it was said to be thicker and less sweet than its Caribbean cousin. Almost all the rum was produced for domestic consumption, but a small amount was sold overseas")

Note:
(a) Thomas Tew
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Tew
(a pirate; lived at one time in Newport, Rhode Island)
(b) rum
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rum
(The first distillation of rum took place on the sugarcane plantations of the Caribbean in the 17th century; section 2.2 Colonial America: The manufacture of rum became early Colonial New England's largest and most prosperous industry)

(c) The Berkshires
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Berkshires
(Politically, Berkshire County, Massachusetts was a governing body formed in 1761; Sir Francis Bernard, the Royal Governor (in office 1760-1769), named the area "Berkshire" to honor his home county in England)
(d) Ipswich, Massachusetts
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipswich,_Massachusetts
(named "after Ipswich[, the county town or capital,] in the county of Suffolk, England")
(e) molasses
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molasses
(The word molasses comes from the Portuguese word melaço, which ultimately comes from mel, the Latin word for "honey"; section 1 Cane molasses)
(f) The report states, "The British cut off access to cheap molasses."

Sugar Act
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar_Act
(of 1764; replaced Molasses Act of 1733; The Sugar Act was repealed in 1766 and replaced with the Revenue Act of 1766, which reduced the tax to one penny per gallon on molasses imports, British or foreign)
(g) The article talks about America's "rapidly expanding interior gave Americans a near-bottomless source of grain, which they used to make whiskey."

Bourbon whiskey
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bourbon_whiskey
(The name of the spirit derives from its historical association with an area known as Old Bourbon, around what is now Bourbon County, Kentucky (which, in turn, was named after the French House of Bourbon royal family); The typical grain mixture for bourbon, known as the mash bill, is 70% corn—with the remainder being wheat, rye, and/or malted barley
(h) tipple (n): "alcoholic liquor"
http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/american/tipple
(i) pot still
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pot_still
(j) The report finally mentions American wines from Russian River Valley and from Sonoma.

Russian River (California)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_River_Valley