Fred Foodie- Eating And Drinking In And Around Frederick, Maryland » Stores

Odds and Ends & Validation!

Fred — Wed, 09 May 2012 12:06:45 +0000

Grocery stores seeking way around alcohol sales ban. I have mixed feelings about this. Comments anyone? I do admit that I stop at the Leesburg Costco from time to time to get wine.

Good op-ed piece in the Sun on this issue by Adam Borden president of MBBWL.

And finally on Monday I posted about the best rose I have had in ages. Well it seems that I am not the only one who feels this way. In today’s wine column in the Washington Post Dave McIntyre gives the Alexander Valley Vineyards Dry Rose of Sangiovese the highest rating out of all the rose he reviewed. Refined palate or just plebeian tastes? I know which theory I’m going with.

Odds and Ends

Fred — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 11:54:13 +0000

Nice article on Frederick County’s newest winery, Catoctin Breeze Vineyard, in the Frederick News Post. I can’t think of any other business where so many people go into the business out of sheer love for the product. Of course talking to Maryland winery owners you would be delusional if you were getting into it for the money. I look forward to sampling their wines.

West Frederick Farmer’s Market re-opens Saturday May 5th for the season!

Chef Bryan Voltaggio Snapped at the Farmer’s Market

fredfood — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 13:01:34 +0000

Not trying to get all paparazzi on you but here is a recent picture of Chef Voltaggio at the West Frederick Farmer’s Market shopping. It’s not my picture so I’ll just link to it.

This serves as a great reminder to get out there before its over! I was there two Saturdays ago and just blown away by the abundance. All the fall glory with some of summer still hanging on as well. This really is the best time of year to go. Among my scores were some amazing apples, my favorite vegetable of all time: brussels sprouts and got a huge bunch of rainbow chard on impulse. Mrs. F displayed her strong knife skills (Shout out to Chef Christine and the Kitchen Studio!) by julienning the leaves and dicing the stems. Sauteed the whole thing in olive oil and served it with a sprinkling of sea salt and a squeeze of lemon. Amazing!

This picture does not do it justice!

Mionetto Prosecco

fredfood — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 13:27:25 +0000

Mionetto prosecco frequently pops up on lists of value bubblies. I’ve had it a few times over the years and enjoyed it but it hasn’t been in our regular rotation here at home, which was frustrating since I know its very widely distributed. It turns out it’s just really a matter of going to the right liquor store, and I found it this past week at Old Farm Liquors. It was on sale for $9.99. To be precise, since they make several varieties, I am talking about Mionetto Prosecco Brut D.o.c. I found it to be moderately bubbly, with lots of golden delicious apple flavors with a hint of pear. It winds up with a nice, crisp dry finish. It also had a little bit of champagne-like undertones that elevated it a notch above the usual prosecco. Had it with ham and cheese (Gruyère) crepes and it was excellent.

Frederick Wine House Closes

fredfood — Fri, 20 May 2011 12:14:20 +0000

If you are as fond as I am of this store then this headline probably gave you a heart attack, but its true. Today after their customary Friday tasting they will shutter their doors at the 7th street location for good! Boy am I feeling evil. As Paul Harvey would say: now for the rest of the story. They are only closing to move their store for their long-planned relocation to the Wegman’s shopping center on Route 26. Word from them is that they will reopen by next Friday (5/27). The owner says they will have an increased selection of wines and are adding an extensive beer selection to their line up. I can’t wait! Loyal readers will know that this is my favorite wine store in Frederick. You can bet I’ll post a full report as soon as I can visit.

Frederick Wegmans

fredfood — Wed, 18 May 2011 11:41:34 +0000

The new Wegmans is getting ready to open June 5th. They say that they anticipate 12,000-15,000 people (!!!) to show up for opening day. I’m definitely excited having never set foot in one before. I promise to report back here on my impressions when I do go, but there is no way you could pay me to go near that place on the first day. I’ve been to the Lowe’s that opened in the same shopping center and I can’t imagine how they will accommodate that kind of crowd.

West Frederick Farmer’s Market

fredfood — Thu, 05 May 2011 10:22:56 +0000

Reminder:- the West Frederick Farmer’s Market kicks off its 2011 season this Saturday, May 7th at 10:00 am. It is at the same location (110 Baughman’s Lane (Potomac Physicians Parking Lot), Frederick, MD 21702) as it has been in past years. It will be interesting to see what the vendors have. It seems to me that it has been a wetter and colder spring growing season so far. I know my garden is a couple of weeks behind last year. No matter what is there I am looking forward to it. It’s sort of Foodie/locavore opening day? Also due to the recent legislative change wine tastings will be allowed at Farmer’s Markets. I hope that is in the cards for the West Frederick Market. How cool would that be?

Voila!

fredfood — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 01:02:51 +0000

Confession time: I hate coffee- dislike the taste so much that I don’t even care for mocha ice cream. My caffeinated beverage of choice is tea and I am nuts about a relatively new place (fiveish months old?) that has opened in downtown Frederick.

The place is Voila! and they have a huge selection of black, green and herbal teas all sold loose by the ounce. The proprietor always has three varieties (usually one of each type) brewed and available for your sampling pleasure. Everything they sell has samples in these cool little magnetic canisters attached to the wall so you can sniff each one to get an idea of their taste. The range of teas is huge and many I have never seen elsewhere (Tea on The Beach is an inscrutable favorite). I have tried about half a dozen varieties over the last couple of months and they have uniformly been excellent. I am also especially enamoured of Wild Grey green which is a green tea version of the famous Earl Grey blend. The costs vary but most are around $8 for two ounces. I get about 12-15 pots out of each two ounce can, so they aren’t that crazy expensive.

Voila: 10 North Market Street, Frederick. 301-663-0704. No web page that I am aware of but they are on facebook.

L.O.V.E.

fredfood — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 11:57:38 +0000

All sorts of catchy titles and puns come to mind but the bottom line is I love the Lebherz Oil and Vinegar Emporium (LOVE). The place rocks! I finally got around to going in there and I have no idea why I waited so long. They have over 40 different oils and vinegars in stainless steel casks all of which you can try. I was in a rush so I only had time to taste a few samples. I hit the store right when it opened and it was a good thing I was the only one in the store because the vinegars were so good that I may have been a little undignified (obscene?) licking those last few drops out of the sampling cups! I walked out of there with their 18-year-old balsamic and a raspberry balsamic vinegars. Their olive oils were so good it was overwhelming. I’ll go back when I have more time to sample. All the oils and vinegars in casks were available in three sizes of bottles (200, 375 and 750 ml). I also felt their prices were very reasonable .

Located at 214 North Market Street, Frederick and on the web here.

Riverside Liquors

fredfood — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 18:38:02 +0000

Like someone who always believes there is something better on the channel he’s not watching I can’t resist stopping by new liquor stores when I get the chance. I took advantage of such an opportunity to stop by Riverside liquors today. Boy was I surprised. I had been in there before a couple of years ago and found them to be pretty much the average Frederick County beer and liquor store. They sure have changed since my last visit. In the Spring they took over the space next to them formerly occupied by Blockbusters and doubled their size. They now have a huge selection of wines and a very decent selection of beer and liquor. Prices are in line with other Frederick County prices, but they do have some bottles on sale which you don’t often see around here. I noticed they had an everyday favorite of mine, Gnarly Head Old Vine Zinfandel, on sale for $8.99 a bottle. They also had the largest selection (about 8-12 different varieties) of Prosecco that I have seen in our area.

The only gripe I would have is that they have some of their wine arranged by by region (ie France, Italy etc.) and some arranged by varietal (Zinfandel, Merlot). The also had a section for “Chili Wines” which were not in actuality refrigerated wines, but rather bottlings from the country-Chile.

Riverside Liquors- 1299 Riverbend Way
Frederick, MD 21701
[In the small shopping center in front of the Rt 26 Walmart]

Direct Shipping of Wine

fredfood — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 13:47:37 +0000

The Comptroller’s Office is running a survey through September 30th on direct shipping of wine to Maryland. I have been posting here for several years about efforts in the Legislature to get this passed. It always gets shot down by the influence of the alcohol wholesalers. Last year a bill passed that requires the Comptroller to report to the legislature by the end of the year “on the viability and efficacy of permitting direct shipment of wine to consumers in the State.” Please take the survey by clicking here. It takes less than 5 minutes.

Rose Tease Part II

fredfood — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:47:15 +0000

So I went back to buy the rose from Frederick Wine House and they were all sold out. I found out this week that it was because MY PARENTS went and bought them out after hearing me rave and tasting it. I’m going to have to up my security level even higher. At least maybe I can drink some on their nickel. In case you are wondering the wine was 2009 Toad Hollow Pinot Noir Eye of the Toad. I gave it a solid 89 points and my notes said: “Very very nice. Orangey- red color. Nose of strawberry with hint of candy. Flavors of tangerine, strawberry, lemon and a hint of minerality. Dry finish. A delicious rose and a good value.”

Seafood- Where to Buy in Frederick County?

fredfood — Thu, 27 May 2010 12:34:45 +0000

I’m hoping some readers can help Fred out. We usually buy our seafood from the Common Market and we’ve always been happy with what we have got there. But like a man with the TV remote I’m always wondering if there is something better on some other channel.

So where do you get your seafood in Frederick County? It has to somewhere where the person can clearly explain where it comes from, whether its wild or farmed, and of course it has to be fresh. Is there somewhere better than the Common Market, or just somewhere with a different variety that you like? Let me know.

West Frederick Farmer’s Market

fredfood — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 12:38:44 +0000

According to the blog Grown In Frederick the West Frederick Farmer’s Market is staying put. There was a lot of drama at the end of last year as to whether they would remain at their long-time Baughmann’s Lane location but they have announced that they signed a contract with the property owner and they will be back. Congratulations and I’m sure they’re happy.

The market opens May 1st!

Viniferous

fredfood — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:50:11 +0000

I had a chance to stop by the new wine store, Vinferous, which is located on North Market Street across from Volt. Got to love a wine store (they also sell craft beers) that I can walk to from work. The store is beautiful but clearly still getting on its feet. Not a huge selection yet: they have about 3 dozen different wines on display. I saw all price ranges from $8.99 to $80+. A note about the display: they have the bottles in what appears to be photographer light box -type counters of the sort where the light is in the counter and projects up through an opaque piece of plastic. Very striking and unique, but I assume the owner has fully researched this and the light will not negatively affect the wine. Speaking of the owner (or co-owner actually)- he was very friendly and incredibly enthusiastic. He has a lot of great ideas and is already working with pairing with some of the local restaurants and getting Zoe’s Chocolate to make a chocolate to go with a specific wine for Valentine’s Day. I wish Viniferous all the best and shall certainly return.

Only minor FredFoodie gripe was that the owner tried to sell me an Italian Cava? WTF? As loyal readers will know Cava only comes from Spain. Anyway I gave him the benefit of the doubt and assumed that it was just his enthusiasm getting carried away. But really!