The Lounge 102

Album: Painted from Memory Artist(s) Elvis Costello, Burt Bacharach Genre(s) Adult Pop, Baroque Pop Hard to believe that this album was released in 1998.  A collection of 12 jazzy pop numbers by Costello and Bacharach.  The arrangements are classic Bacharach and result in a wonderfully rich full orchestral sound.  Costello is a fine singer, his voice is stretched to it's natural limit but copes well and remains strong.  The backing vocals of Lisa Taylor and Sue Ann Carwell compliment him perfectly.  Tracks like I Still Have That Other Girl   and In the Darkest Place  give an indication of the subject matter.  An album of songs dedicated to lost love, jilted lovers, divorce, infidelity etc should result in a dirge, but not here.  The music is upbeat and even the slower lament like tracks skip along. Toledo has become a modern classic and I Still Have That Other Girl won a Grammy in 1998. This is a wonderful album and is worthy of...

Armagnac is a fine, highly aromatic brandy from Gascony, deep in southwest France. The Armagnac region lies between two rivers, the Ardour and the Garonne. and was granted AOC (Appellation d'origine controlee) in 1936.  It lays claim to being the oldest spirit distilled in Europe with origins in the 15th century.  Despite this claim to great age it lives in the shadow of it's better known cousin, Cognac.  If you're ever in the region do not mix these up, especially in the presence of a local!  Armagnac is distilled once in a column still whereas Cognac is double distilled in a traditional pot still. This process results in Armagnac being a darker, heavier brandy, as one would expect from a region famed for its Foie Gras, Cheese and generally rich cuisine. Cognac is on the other hand lighter and fruitier. According to chef Alain Dutournier " Cognac is dependable, but Armagnac, like the Gascons who make it, is more forceful, more complicated - even excessive...

                          "Jazz washes away the dust of every day life" Art Blakey I 'm sure Art Blakey meant all jazz in all of its styles and all of it's performers.  From Dave Brubeck and John Coltrane to Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt to the doyenne of female artists, Ella Fitzgerald, the interpretation of jazz is wide and varied.  Indeed jazz has been called musical democracy given its acceptance of of so many styles.    And so it is that Limerick Jazz Society present their annual Limerick Jazz Festival from September 21st to 24th.  This years program takes in a number of venues throughout the city and promises some great gigs. PROGRAM Thursday Sept 21st:   Jazz Trail The Mysterious Mr.Valentine, Dolans, Dock Road, Limerick, 21:30 The Charms, Souths Pub, Quinlan Street, 21:30 Downtown Dixieland Band, George Boutique Hotel, Shannon ...

Low n Slow is a barbecue cooking method that does exactly as it says on the tin, low temperatures and a slow pace.  This method is ideal for large items such as turkeys, hams, chickens and also for meats that benefit from long slow cooking such as brisket and pork belly.  Temperatures for low and slow are typically 150F/65C to 300F/150C.  Times will vary depending on what you are cooking.  My Christmas ham takes about 8 hours.  What most people refer to as barbecue is in fact grilling at high temperatures.  Your everyday common garden variety barbecue with burgers and sausages is to low and slow as a greasy spoon cafe is to a michelin star. Low n Slow to my mind is best done over natural lumpwood charcoal.  As the great Spanish chef Jose Andres said "I prefer natural hardwood lump charcoal, the other stuff makes your food taste like Goodyear tyres"  I won't even comment on gas. Low n Slow allows for smoking food with natural woods.  Thes...

Cidre Fermier de Carnac Name: Cidre Fermier de Carnac Type: French cider from Carnac in Brittany, France ABV: 5% The areas of Normandy and Brittany are too cold for cultivating grapes for wine.  But not to be outdone the locals cultivate apples for cider, and boy, what cider it is.  Usually two varieties are made, dry (brut) and sweet (doux). Served cold, and traditionally in bowls, the cider is crisp and clean yet rich and lush in the mouth and bursting with apples.  This is an entirely different beast to industrial cider poured over ice and loaded with sugar.  An excellent accompaniment to fish, sea food and the local cheeses this is a drink to be savoured. My sister brought me back a gift of Cidre Fermier de Carnac from her recent holiday in the area.  An organic cider, this has all the noble characteristics of its lesser bred neighbours. A lovely bright colour, apples on the nose and a richness in the mouth make it a most satisfying dr...

Name: The Kraken Type: Rum, Spiced Rum ABV: 40% Rum is inextricably linked in myth, legend and marketing with the Caribbean.  With Pirate captains like Long John Silver and the British Navy.  The origins of the name are unclear and one strain of thought according to etymologist Samuel Morewood is that it may have been derived from slang for the best, as in "having a rum time".   In days of yore the navy used to issued a daily ration of rum to its sailors and indeed only stopped in 1970.  A double ration was issued at special times following the order to "splice the mainbrace", an order which could only be issued by the Queen, a member of the royal family or by the Admiralty.  In order to reduce the effects of the alcohol the rum was diluted with water and was known as grog, a term for booze that is still in use. The Kraken is a legendary giant sea creature which reputedly lives off the costas of Norway and Greenland.  It's also a blac...

Album: Spirit Artist: Willie Nelson Genre(s) Country, Folk Spirit was Willies Nelson's 49th album when released in 1996.  Many felt that it was his response to the 1994 Johnny Cash album American Recordings, I'll let you decide.  It's a stripped back album featuring just guitars, piano and fiddle.  The Spanish influence runs through the tracks with beautiful guitar, piano and fiddle solos in a very clear and clean fashion.  It features some of the classic themes of country.  Unrequited love, heartache, religion and declarations of love are all there.  It's an evocative yet personal album capable of taking you away to places in your imagination.  The opening instrumental piece Matador takes me to my imagined Mexico.  Indeed the instrumental tracks are probably the albums strongest from Matador to Mariachi which conjours up images of senoras and their caballeros dancing, to Spirit of E9 which showcases the virtuosity of guitarist,...

Title: From the Holy Mountain Author: William Dalrymple Genre(s): Travel, History Earlier this year a new name appeared on my twitter feed,William Dalrymple. Usually retweeted by my favourite Kerryman (yes I have one).  After reading a number of his tweets over the space of a few weeks I decided to follow him myself, which by the way William you have not reciprocated, however we'll let that slide. His tweets were usually about India be it history or society and drew me in from a travel and history point of view.  A google search revealed his books and newspaper articles.  A chance meeting with my favourite Kerryman lead to a discussion about Mr.Dalrymple's books.  "Any good?" I asked.  "Outstanding, says the Kerryman, probably my favourite book ever".  And Kerrymen don't lie.  So off I took myself to O'Mahonys Bookshop in Limerick and purchased a copy of From The Holy Mountain. Eased into my favourite armchair I started to re...

Arán, bread, bood, brot, pa, pane, pain call it whatever, it is the staff of life. I don’t mean the industrial muck plied with chemicals to hasten its rising time and still “fresh” days after buying. I don’t mean the stuff cut in neat slices and dressed in colourful wrapping declaring the presence of wholemeal or grains. All muck. I’m talking about bread made with five basic ingredients, flour, yeast, water, salt and time, I’m talking about real bread. Last year as I sat in my kitchen convalescing and reading the paper on my iPad my attention was drawn to an article on real bread. It warned me about the disappearing act of bread making and the dominance of industrial bakeries and supermarkets. The prolific presence of tasteless rolls and baguettes in filling station shops. Local bakeries had disappeared, driven out of business by industrial scale baking and changing lifestyles. We now bought our bread weekly, we were sophisticated and modern. No more twice daily trips to the...