tony b

I thought that he was getting ready to smelt some iron ore. 😆

Post over in the other Forum thread for admin help.

I don't use it, no help here. It's probably a plug-in app and the admin just needs to add it.

Says the man with just about every toy for cooking with fire! LOL

Now, THAT'S armageddon!

It actually is the nickname that I gave to the Tazmanian mountain pepper berries.

It was surreal in Napa. Monday it was 110F. Tuesday it dropped like a rock and the sky stayed completely overcast all day. This was Tuesday morning at Trefethen @ 10 am.

@Troble - same scene up here in the Bay area. Left Napa yesterday after folks started closing because of the poor air quality. This was taken as we were leaving at 10:30 am. Quality didn't improve substantially as we traveled south back to San Jose.

I use a small battery-powered blower, called a FiAir. Works well in tandem with my MAPP torch.

Welcome to the Obsession! You are about to be amazed. I have NEVER owned a gas grill. No comparison. But, use good hardwood lump charcoal - Fogo and KJ Big Block are my current choices. Red Devil is good. But, stay away from Cowboy - it's cheap scrap lumber, so you never know what kind of wood it is and it burns up super fast, so it's not really a bargain. Can't wait to see pics of your uncrating and first cooks!

Yeah, we're definitely going to be taming our consumption in the heat. Lots of water. Stags Leap, Trefethen, Cuvaisson, Saintsbury and Walt are on the 2 day agenda. Stops at Stone and Russian River breweries, too.

I hear yah. I'm visiting a friend in San Jose and it's 101F today and suppose to hit 109F tomorrow up in Napa, where we're headed in the morning for 3 days. Hoping to not burn up - both literally (wildfires) or figuratively (heat exhaustion).

Understand that completely. I started out brewing beer before the "craft beer" wave, when the selection of "good beers" was very limited, especially where I live. And, what was available was very expensive. But, even now when I can buy all sorts of amazing beers, both at the store and at local breweries, I still brew my own, just not as much as I used to. Now, it's more about experimentation than trying to clone a commercial beer. New hops and yeasts coming out all the time. I have a new, small brewing system coming that will be more tailored to experimenting with than my current system, which is geared toward making "standard size" batches of 5 gallons. I've enjoyed exploring ciders and meads, as well. Sourcing different ingredients and seeing what I can come up with? A few "winners" and a lot of so-so batches. Similar to concocting your own BBQ rubs. Lots of good commercial ones out there, but nice to tailor your own sometimes. YMMV

Understand that dilemma, especially traveling to visit friends.

It's like many things - beer making, bread making - it's not about saving money so much as it is about control of the ingredients and the satisfaction of making it yourself.

Are you looking for a scale for large quantities or small amounts? How accurate do you want? Modernist Cuisine has nice accurate scales for smaller quantities. Check Webstaurant.com for commercial sizes.

Yes, hone after each use. Sorry, but I'm traveling and using the phone to post; otherwise I'd send you a link to some good videos for knife sharpening. I can't remember the guy's name, it was Richard something, if I'm remembering correctly. I haven't watched them in quite a while.

You are using the smoker pot correctly. Curious as to what you are using the drip pan for, as most of us hardly use it, except for special cases? Normally for indirect cooks I just use a sheet of aluminum foil on the lower grate. I generally only use the smoker pot on cooks longer than 2 hours, which are usually indirect. Plenty of space for charcoal for low & slow cooks lasting up to 20 hours.

Hit me where I live! Sucker for good knives, especially Japanese. I started out with Shuns, which are very good, but have bought a few of the handcrafted ones. Pricey, but amazing. I don't practice enough with my stones. I probably should buy the "cheater" guides, particularly for the 15 degree blades. Be very careful, as this is another rabbit hole that will empty your wallet in a hurry! 🤑

Wow, $11.99! That's way cheaper than my CostCo. I'm happy with $16.99 Prime. Nothing wrong with a nice filet.

Very nice.

I've only done 1 this big. Started out in the sous vide, then final sear on the grill. Use the basket spitter (assuming you have one) and reverse sear. Roast up on main grate on the indirect side until 5 degrees below target, then drop down to the lower grate on the direct side, flip every 30 seconds until you have a crust built up. Can't wait to see the pictures!

That's a good winery. Look for Ridge Zins. They are top shelf.

Catching up on a couple of cooks. Sunday dinner - duck on a stick. 3 different preps - French (red wine, herbs de Provence, powdered roasted garlic & tarragon), Asian (oyster, hoisin and soy sauces with 5 spice powder) and classic Chinese Duck Sauce, with some extra apricot jam and szechuan pepper oil. Direct, 350F, main grate, cherry wood chunks. Plated with duck fat spuds (hint, hint tekobo!) and a nice Pinot Noir. Birthday dinner last night - rack of lamb (rubbed with Dijon and Penzey's Greek seasoning). Direct, main grate, 325F, grape vine chunks. Plated with a nice salad, more duck fat spuds and Bubbly! After dinner - a lovely late harvest Zinfandel. Very port-like. Better than cake!