Arts & Entertainment
The Douro River runs through the middle of Portugal. It cuts west to east from the Spanish border until it spills into the Atlantic Ocean. Steep rugged cliffs, rising up four to five hundred metres, flank the route of the river. The heat in summer on those cliffs climbs to 120 degrees or more. There is no shade. The soil is baked dry. To walk upon it is to sink into layers of dust. It is a land not fit for people or for many other living things. And yet within this inhospitable terrain, not navigable by car or tractor or any other motorized accessory, lies the heart of the port wine industry and a grape so hardy its roots can tunnel up to 30 metres deep into the rocky soil in search of water.
They’d chewed through the conch ceviche. They’d done the pot-roasted homegrown rabbit with Vineyard apple and sage sauce over garden-dug fingerling potatoes. They’d downed beach plum jelly, beach plum syrup, beach plum soy aioli and beach plum compote on dishes sweet and savory, and even Concord grapes on a vindaloo.
By the time the 33rd and final entry in Monday’s Wild Food Challenge was placed before the tasting panel at Détente, the three judges were relieved to find it was a digestif.
Eating chocolate is often compared to generating the swoony feelings of being in love, but true chocolate aficionados deny this. Chocolate is better, they maintain. Stronger. The passions it generates are far more urgent.
Consider this: You stand before a candy store case of chocolates, and the array overwhelms you. Chocolate-covered marshmallows, chocolate-covered almonds, fruits, buttercream, caramel. You brace both hands against the counter, you sigh, you wish you could order one of everything, but that would turn your stomach into an exploded Bunsen burner.
After scores of Islanders took up the offer of a free stay at the Winnetu Oceanside Resort last off-season, the Katama hotel is reviving the special deal. During selected dates, Island residents who order a meal at the resort’s Lure Grill can get a night in a one-bedroom suite for the price of the meal. That is, pay for two adult entrees and enjoy a room that can accommodate up to two adults and three children; all can enjoy the heated pool, tennis courts, fitness facility, fireplace, cocktail lounge or the South Beach surroundings of the Winnetu.
Military Care Packages
Donations are being collected to support care packages containing foodstuffs and personal items to be sent to Islanders serving in the military in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere over the holidays. Organizers are also asking for mail addresses of friends or family members serving in the military.
The care package mission is organized by Island veterans agent Joanne Murphy, with the generous assistance of Robert Pachico at Reliable Market in Oak Bluffs.
Hurricane Forecast
We felt the wonder
of the moment. . .
standing silent, awaiting
the outcome of an event unfolding
untouched by human hands. . .
wind and sea spoke with voices far away
but touching us nonetheless.
fear and hope we held in visions of
our own device. . .
— C. Glenn Sprague
