In a new addition to the beer blog I will every so often review a few “higher” end beers. These will be hard to find, exotic, expensive, odd, and not the norm. My goal is too expand the idea of what beer is and what it can be. For the first series, I will be reviewing two Belgians, and a Danish beer. “The great Zen philosopher Basho once wrote, “A flute with no holes, is not a flute, and a donut with no holes, is a danish”, too quote Ty Webb from Caddyshack. Not that the quote has anything to do with beer, I just love that quote and it’s my blog, so deal with it.

Mikkeller – The Weasel 16oz $15.99 –

This is Mikkeller’s own description – “This imperial Oatmeal stout is brewed with one of the world’s most expensive coffees, made from droppings of weasel-like civet cats. The fussy Southeast Asian animals only eat the best and ripest coffee berries. Enzymes in their digestive system help to break down the bean. Workers collect the bean-containing droppings for Civet or Weasel Coffee. The exceedingly rare Civet Coffee has a strong taste and an even stronger aroma.”

Yes that’s right, beer made with civet cat droppings… to say this is one of the more unusual beers I have tried would be a bit of an understatement. It is one of the thickest beers I have seen, it pours similar to engine oil and has the color to match! The aroma coming off a freshly poured glass is actually quite good with a deep smell of earthy mocha and bitter chocolate. Be forewarned, the first couple of sips are a doozey. After that, all the sips are a doozey too. I tasted it weeks later, and it’s still, a doozey. It’s thick on the palate with lots of flavors going on and on and on… like dark coffee, bitter chocolate with hints of smoke. One word: instense. It took me about an hour to take down one pint. That’s not say it’s not a good beer. In fact it is a great beer. It’s just a heavy duty one. I’m not sure if I will ever drink it again, but I am glad I tried it at least once.

LaTrappe – Isid’or 12oz $30 –

Oh ya, $30 for 12 ounces of beer. This pale colored ale was aged in oak barrels and gives this beer an almost heavy oaked chardonnay aroma. Once the nose opens, you will find notes of caramel and wild honey. It’s very smooth on the palate with light carbonation and a very crisp finish, that lingers nicely for a few seconds. As it opens up, it actually becomes more subtle in it’s flavors of light caramel, oak, medjool dates and roasted pear. A nicely rounded and enjoyable beer. The price tag is a little steep for 12oz but it won’t stop me from buying it again for a special occasion.

Trappist Achel – Extra 750ml $17 –

This is hands down one of my ALL TIME favorite beers. One of only two breweries where the monks still actually work it, Achel is the only bottled one. This is a hard beer to find, but worth every effort to procure it.  At 9.5% abv it has a punch but more than you would expect from a single digit abv beer. Pour it in a goblet and smell in the beautiful malty earthiness of this brew. It’s slightly musty and has a deep fragrance of charred wood, fresh caramel and the smell of red hot charcoal that has been dripped with grilled steak. Somehow, behind all that heavy nose I still detect dark fruit and dried sour cherries.

When you first drink it you will notice how effervescent it is, almost champagne like but not in its intensity. It’s in how small the bubbles are as they dance around your mouth. Every little bubble that burst adds to the incredible flavor this beer produces. As far as Trappist Doubles go this is about mid-level in its thickness. It’s very easy to drink and has a finish that makes you come back for more. It has beautiful flavors of dark fruit, smoke, charcoal, and malty richness. The only thing that keeps me from buying this beer all the time, or keeping a supply in my house, is that it would be all I would want to drink! As much as I love beer, that would not be a good thing. What is a good thing is in enjoying this beer every so often, so I love every second of every sip. I LOVE THIS BEER!!!

That’s all for now. Check back again for more reviews of the world’s finest beers.

Sincerely, The Dude.

Written by Eric Hulme

     Eat right and exercise, stupid. I can’t tell you how many times I said that to myself throughout my life; two basic concepts that I’ve always paid lip service to, but rarely anything further.

     As far back as I can remember I was a “big guy”. In high school I weighed in around 250 pounds and from there I continued to gain weight until I peaked at 384 in January of 2010. That’s when I decided I needed to change. I needed to get healthy.

          I knew that fad diets never really work long term. Sure, you can lose some weight quickly doing Atkins or take your pick of all the insane diets out there. But once you go off their regimen, odds are your weight will just bounce right back.

     I needed a new approach to food. I needed to change the way I thought about eating. If you burn more calories than you take in, you lose weight. It’s just math! Literally, you are what you eat. Be smart, and more importantly, be consistent.

      I needed to have not only healthy, but fresh things to eat. Just because it’s a low calorie option at a fast food place, that doesn’t make it good for you. Many things in the world of “healthy food” are full of chemicals and additives that really just screw with your body. So my goal was to eat foods that not only were low in calories, but also not chock full of crap.

     On January 29th of 2010, I began my journey to a healthier me. I started blogging about my weight loss. I wanted to make it interesting and I needed a goal to set for myself. What is something that I’ve always wanted to do, but couldn’t because of my weight? I know… Skydiving! The max weight for tandem diving is 240. Perfect. Math is easy and I’m going to jump out of a perfectly good plane.

        And so was born, www.flyingfatguy.com. Here I could chronicle my ups and downs, all my trials and tribulations for the world to see. I started that night with my first of many (and continuing) trips to the gym and I began to eat healthier.

     Lucky for me, I live a couple blocks from downtown Culver City, and the perfect restaurant that was provides food exactly the way I want to eat it– all fresh, local, and organic . And if that’s not enough, it tastes like home cooking. Throughout my weight loss, I’ve eaten at Tender Greens probably an average of two to four times a week.
I’ve had a love affair with Tender Greens. Besides providing a healthy option, Tender Greens has really helped me on those days when I’m just to tired to cook, or when I want to have dinner with a friend and I want to introduce them to this healthy option in a world that still seems to be full of butter and cheese and useless calories. I know, I sound like a commercial right now, but that’s not my goal. I really love what they provide and just want the world to know.

      In February of this year I was able to fulfill my dream of jumping out of an airplane, along with a group of my friends have been along with me on this road to health. Today, I’m settled at around 185 pounds, and I’m still staying active and eating healthy every day– many of those at Tender Greens.

Written by Gary Holm

What is a La Caja China roasting box?

It was developed in Cuba by the Guerra family. It emulates a Hawaiian style pig roast where you dig a hole in the ground to lay the pig in, wrap with banana leaves topped with hot rocks and the heat radiates downward. With the Caja China Box, digging is not required. What is required is a Caja China Box, an animal to roast, some charcoal, probe thermometer, about 4 to 6 hours and a few cold beers. The beers are for the chef, after all roasting a whole animal is hard work, sometimes…

Let’s take a minute to talk about the animal that gave up its life to feed us. Always respect the animal. As a chef that is ingrained in our conscious as we navigate through the learning process of chefdom. A whole animal for roasting doesn’t come neatly wrapped in a grocery store. It comes almost fully intact, sans gizzards unless you ask for them, with its final expression on his face. Embrace this moment. This is the moment of a true carnivore. Too many meat eaters do not want to know that what they are eating was once a living, breathing animal. Those folks should be vegetarians. I know, I know, enough with my pro-knowing and understanding what you eat carnivore agenda…

Now that I am off my soap box, let’s get down to brass tax and talk preparation. Different animals need slightly different preparations. For instance, goats are really lean and need moisture added in the meat so it doesn’t get too dry. I inject the goats with way more liquid then I would do for a lamb and pig. I inject goats at 48 hours and 24 hours prior to roasting, too help ensure a moist product. Sometimes, I do a rub on the outside, once I tried an Ethiopian berbere spice that was perfect for goat. I inject the lamb 24 hours before roasting. If you want to dry rub the lamb I recommend harissa. I use a dry harissa and blend it with onions and garlic with a little olive oil and make a paste with it. Another time, I tried a “larding” type of injection with a lamb. I took the extra fat and slow rendered it down with herbs. Once it was melted and full of aroma, I injected that back into the lamb. That lamb came out very succulent and moist. It was damn good! I inject pigs once and add a light rub. Most pigs have plenty of fat so the meat stays nice and moist. I don’t mess with pig too much, and why should you it’s easily the best meat out there. All hail swine!!! You maybe asking, “What do you inject it with?”. I do variations of a basic brine, with appropriate flavorings in addition to what animal I will be roasting.

Let’s get the animal ready for its final hurrah. If you ever had any Boy Scout training, its time to revive those memories of all those knots you learned. The roasting racks that come with the box have hooks to connect to each other, but I never found them to work right. So instead, I tie the animal onto the racks with butcher twine. At this point if you rubbed the outside of the animal with seasoning you should wipe it off with a moist rag so it doesn’t burn. Center the animal on the racks when you go to tie them up. Try to tie the legs closely into the body to help it cook more evenly. Make sure you over tie it to the racks. Last thing you want to happen would be for the twine to break when flipping over the animal or carrying it to the table.

Time to cook! So what now? For the necessities – roasting box, charcoal, lighter, lighter fluid, probe thermometer, animal marinated, tied up and ready to go. I’m forgetting something…Oh ya, some cold beers. Find a nice spot to set your box that gives you room to maneuver around it with out problems. It will radiate a lot of heat so keep it a safe distance from anything that might catch fire. Wind can vastly effect the cooking time as it pulls the heat off the coals. If it becomes windy it will increase the cook time by a couple of hours. Try to block the wind if possible. Get the animal set into the box, rib side up. You will cook it this way for 75% of the time. Once the animal is in place you want to insert the probe thermometer into the meatiest part of the animal which is usually the back hip area. Get the tip of thermometer as centered as possible into that area. Set the charcoal rack on top of the box and simply follow the instructions on the side of the box as too how much charcoal and how often. This is very important, DO NOT, open the top of the box once the cooking has started. If you do all the heat escapes and it will take another hour to build the heat back up. Trust the instructions and the thermometer reading. When you are almost at the desired cooking temperature, you will want to flip the animal to finish the other side. If you’re cooking a pig, here is where you get your crispy skin. Lambs and goats don’t come with a skin usually and they don’t crisp like a pig’s skin. Is there anything better then some crispy pig skin and cold beer? I’m going to say no on that…

Is it time to eat? I’m starving!!! Patience my friends, patience. Once the animal is cooked to your liking, the worst thing you could do is cut into it right away. What you want to do is let the meat “settle”. When meat cooks, the juices run around it inside of it. If you cut the meat when it’s just done cooking all the juices will run out and you’re left with dry meat. After the animal comes out of the box, let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes. This will ensure that the juices have settled and the meat will retain its moisture. When butchering, I break it down into sections first: shoulder, back leg, ribs and loin. Once that is done I then carve up those pieces so I can keep them separate, and my diners can eat their favorite parts. My personal favorite part of any animal to eat is the cheek meat. I find it to be the most succulent and flavorful part of any animal.

So there you have it. A little time, a little patience, a lot of fun and some good food. What else can you ask for?

Written by Eric Hulme

When Erik Oberholtzer, co-founder of Tender Greens, first described the philosophy behind their restaurants—an old-world approach to serving a modern society’s high-paced lifestyle by providing organically and locally-grown food in a sustainable and environmentally sensitive way — I was impressed not only by their ‘outside-the- box’ ideals, but also by the success with which their vision had already been received by its ‘audience’—Seven very busy locations in a savagely competitive city where new eateries have a notoriously short lifespan.

Tender Greens was looking for an artist whose work would connect with people, either spiritually, emotionally or both…. much the same way Tender Greens had connected people with the local growers and producers of their raw ingredients and also with people’s appreciation for the freshness and simplicity of wholesome food prepared efficiently in a ‘homey’ yet modern environment; a collaboration between ideas and desires.

As a veteran of TV and Feature Animation for almost 25 years now and having enjoyed a successful venture into Fine Art, I, like most artists have felt a ‘disconnect’ from my audience due to the anonymous’ manner in which the work finds its way to the viewer. So the opportunity to connect with local patrons in my community, only blocks from my home was too rare an opportunity to miss.

Being an artist, I am naturally drawn to the magical quality of the Pasadena’s architecture and its status as a leading founder of the “Arts & Crafts” movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries with its hundreds of well-preserved suburban homes and storefronts. With such a rich cultural backdrop, we agreed it would only be fitting to base the art around it.

Back in June of this year, I sat in the newly finished Tender Greens in Pasadena with Erik and his two partners, David and Matt, and showed them my initial concepts. To quote animation slang, there were “crickets chirping”—that uncanny silence that occurs when others are not responding to your work and they don’t exactly know why. I had done drawing after drawing of “designy” abstract concepts featuring Pasadena landmarks…. but no reaction. To quote more animation slang, I began “tap dancing” (a distraction method by which you pull out the metaphorical top hat and cane and act super-enthusiastic about your ill-conceived idea) but these men still weren’t biting— they were much smarter than network execs and gallery owners. The six-year-old inside me wanted to unzip my grown-up costume, secretly climb out and quickly vanish into the ether. I’d experienced this countless times at DreamWorks, Sony, Disney, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon… you name it. But this was worse… I was totally out of my element.

After several moments of painful silence, Erik piped up and suggested looking at my website. iPads immediately flew open and after a minute, heads began nodding. “There’s ‘moments’ happening in these paintings…” David said, “…something happening and I don’t know what, but I feel something in it.” I looked out the window at the elegant façade of the Pasadena Playhouse 2 blocks away and realized that this great city did not create itself… people created it over 120 years ago, people who had envisioned a great city that was based around building a great community that was based around people connecting with each other. And the people who were drawn here, to this present day somehow felt that and still believed in it. Connection… collaboration.

I turned to my companions and said “We’ll do a series of pieces that capture people in ‘moments’ along their path of life—in the great City of Pasadena”. Nothing fancy, nothing profound. Let the viewer write the story. Heads began nodding, smiles returned to faces, excitement built. It was collaboration, built upon individual ideas that were already in place and just needed to be arranged.

I felt that the very nature of this project deserved a personal approach. I jumped on my cruiser bicycle and, armed with a camera and sketchbook, spent a balmy Sunday afternoon exploring downtown Pasadena. I had no plan…only to be “led” to the various places I had come to know and appreciate. My first stop was the famous Colorado Boulevard Bridge, which crosses the Arroyo Seco ravine. I stood aside the deserted bridge in the afternoon heat and felt the loneliness and beauty of the moment. I pondered the many thousands who had, throughout the decades, crossed or stood upon this monument of Edwardian greatness, this cement and iron creature that majestically connects the outside world to Pasadena like some magical gateway to Utopia. As I sat in the timeless trance of those thoughts, figures seemed to appear—-ghosts—of all the Dreamers and Thinkers, wistfully suspended between two worlds, like so many of us.

I moved on and repeated the experience at each subsequent location; City Hall, St. Andrews Church, Castle Green and finally a beautifully preserved Craftsman house only blocks away from my home in the historical Highlands district. I must admit I relied on photos of JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) to create its corresponding art. Finally, the last piece, a massive panorama of the city seen by the eyes of a very imaginative boy would include vignettes of all of the previous locations.

“Ariel” © Chris Reccardi 2011

Because of the tight timeframe, I was faced with the intellectual challenge of creating fine art on computer for the first time. I overcame the personal prejudice and concerns of “coldness” or “artificiality” by painstakingly using the identical techniques as my traditional paintings (albeit with ‘virtual tools’) to create the same organic “silk screen” and “woodcut” effects found in them. The process is painfully slow compared to traditional painting, but the power and flexibility to adjust colors and options is endless. Because of the required large physical size of the final prints, the digital files had to be created life-sized in the computer (‘Ariel’[below] measures 36” high x 72” wide) and at a lower resolution than most “fine” digital art in order to preserve processing power.

“painting” on the Wacom Cintiq 21UX

The final digital files were delivered to my print house, Artworks (Formerly located in Pasadena and now in Highland Park) where their experts printed them as large-format ‘Giclee’ canvas prints.

As an afterthought, I decided to populate the restroom hallway with six reproductions from my recent Australian gallery exhibit “GO” which, despite their somewhat “future/retro” look, somehow blend well with the other pieces.

I chose the name “Love, Pasadena” for this collection. Whether the title pertains to my feelings about the town or describes the emotions of the characters within it
will have to be your decision. It’ll be our collaboration.

Chris Reccardi
Pasadena, 2011

Limited editions of these pieces will be available in the near future, please contact sales@reccardi.com to inquire. To see more of Chris’s work and more info, please visit http://www.reccardi.com

Chris

Milled Grains

This is about 10.5 lbs of milled grains; 8.5 lbs of two row the (base grain) and then about another 2 lbs of specialty grain  (the flavoring grain. No, I’m not saying what they are. You don’t want the grain to be big or your extraction won’t be right, nor do you want it to be small.

As you can see I have it in a cooler because when you make your Mash, it is important to maintain a steady temperature. Fluctuations greater then five degrees, in either direction, will throw off the Mash and leave you with a less than stellar beer. Not only is the cooler great for holding the temperature steady but when your beer is ready for drinking, throw them in the cooler with ice and you’re good to go!

Starting Water Temperature For Mashing

Wetting the Grain

Begin with a temp of about 170 degrees when starting the Mash. You want your Mash around 155 degrees. So adding water that is 170 degrees to your room temp grain will leave you right around the 155 degree mark. Slowly add the water about 3/4 of a gallon at a time, stirring at each interval. You want to make sure that you are wetting the grains evenly. Work it until it’s consistency resembles oatmeal, then add a little more water so you have about half an inch of water lying over the grains. Close the lid and let it sit for about twenty minutes. Then check the temperature and add more water if it’s too thick or if the temperature is dropping too much. At this point your water should be around 158 degrees. Since the Mash is around proper temperature won’t need much hot water to bring it back up. Note the hazy straw coloring of the water; this will look much different when the mash is almost done.

Yeast and Hops for this Batch

Note that the hops are numbered. Hops are added at different intervals during the boiling stage. This recipe calls for hops at first boil 60 minutes (1) , then 15 mins left (2) and at zero minutes (3). More about that in a bit. This is also a great time to pull out your yeast and let it come up to room temperature and allow the yeast cells to activate.

The Mash at 45 Minutes

Note the darkness of the water and that it has more clarity than when the Mash was first started. Check the temperature and make sure it’s around 155. If it needs to be warm add more hot water. This will sit for another 15 to 20 minutes.

Straining the Mash.

It’s now time to separate the grains from the water. What you are left with is called the Wort. First strain off about half the water from the cooler. Then pour it back in the cooler and stir it up again. Now go ahead and strain it out. When a good amount of the Mash water is out, it is time to sparge the grains with your remaining water. This pulls all residual sugars out of the grain and ensures a robust Wort.

The Mash is Strained and Ready for Boil

This is now your Wort. Note the color of the Wort. It is very different from the start of the Mash and is way darker than how the grain looked before the Mash was started. From here it gets brought up to a boil where I make my first hop addition. It continues to boil  and after 45 minutes of boiling make the second hop addition. At 60 minutes, the last hops are added. The wort is then cooled down to about 68 to 72 degrees. This temperature as it is prefect for your yeast. Once cooled it is transferred into the fermentation bucket and the yeast is added. Here it sits for 3 to 10 days while it ferments. This is your beer. This is the first step in the brewing process. Notice, I said the “first step.” There are two more steps and a month worth of time before it’s ready to drink.

By Executive Chef Eric Hulme Tender Greens Hollywood

The Base Grain Bins

This is where you’ll find German Two Row, American Two Row, Munich, Dark Munich Wheat, etc…. When doing all grain batches these make up the base of your beer and require anywhere from 8 to 12 lbs to make a five-gallon batch.

Specialty Grains

These bins are full of specialty grains such as Crystal 10, Crystal 40, Cara Pils, Chocolate Malt, Belgian Biscuit, etc… These are your flavoring grains. This is where the majority of flavor variance comes from. They require less per batch. The range is anywhere from 12 oz to 2 lbs.

The Reefer

It holds all of the hops and yeast. On the right are all the different strains of yeast. There are about fifty different kinds in that cooler alone! On the left side, are the hops. There are pellets, compressed hops, and whole hops. There’s no real loss in flavor when using compressed hops. They are made that way for storage and space saving purposes.  The whole hops are used primarily for dry hopping.

The Start of Weighing the Batch

This is the grain bill used for brewing saison beer. It will be close to 13 lbs of grain.

The Grinder

Once you finish weighing your grain bill, you run it through the grinder to break up the grains. This helps release the sugars during the brewing process.

Weighing of the Hops

You use a lot less hops than grain. This is 1 oz of hops, which is the second hop addition to my saison.

Paying for the Goods

Being rung up are the ingredients for two batches of beer. The ingredients are the grain bill, hops, yeast and priming sugar for bottling (this makes the carbonation in the bottle).  I have the ingredients for Dunkelweiss, a dark German wheat beer. It’s great for fall and Oktoberfest! The other is a saison, which is a Belgian/French style farmhouse beer that is great for Summer.

Written by Eric Hulme, Executive Chef Tender Greens Hollywood and Home Brewer. “Eric’s Beer World” is a new blogging series that will take us through the ins and outs of  home brewing and Southern California’s Beer Culture. 

Low Brow became a misguided label pinned to a movement that when misinterpreted was a departure from classic stylings or even those of Abstract or Post Modern Expressionisms- Pollack, Rothko, Klee, DeKooning- institutions per se. The idea of Low Brow is a fusion of neo modern expressionism in several forms, most notably Pop Surrealism and Street Art. However, at its core, there is much more in common with supposed “High Brow” art. Symmetry, value, context ,intent, narrative, line, contrast, form, color, balance, shape, and technique are all very critical. Also critical are the times and influences of the times; like- advertising, product, consumption, ideology, technology, culture, etc. Art is a reflection of time and space and our passions, experiences and criticism in that time and space. Pop Surrealism borrows from Dali and fuses it in an exciting array of Pop Culture on steroids (think Tex Avery, Chuck Jones, Felix the Cat, Dia de los Muertos, Dali and Picasso all rolled into one) and parodied consumable appetites developed from definitions and futurist projections of post WWII American life, autocratic domestic bliss, “men on the moon”,”miracle products” and suburban life predictability and banality. Pop Surrealism is the narrative developed from artists in a particular generation where illustration and pop culture dominated their sensibilities.

I think Jeremyville is a good example. Jeremyville builds a narrative from humanoid creatures populating a universe that abstractly mirrors our own  relatable existence. However, his interpretation is Utopian. His universe includes rules intrinsic to its participants who believe in critical  thinking,compassion, questioning, forgiving, patience, camaraderie, symbiosis and understanding. His influences are illustration and pop culture in a reinterpreted alternative reality. He is a perfect example of a Pop Surrealist.

Street Art is a label consolidating several forms of live art or happenings in a public or private, external space. Graffiti. Graffiti comes in all shapes, sizes and mediums; most notably- spray paint (aerosol cans or pressure hoses), Wheat Pasting/fliering and sticker tagging. Property re-appropriation or improvised installations are developing influences and happenings in the community (Bansky, JR, Blu). Street Art is a direct narrative advertising the sensibilities, beliefs, struggles, humor, opinions, grievances, self-promotion, boasting, affiliations of certain people in that community/ neighborhood. Again, the principles still hold true to the principles structuring fine art. Intent, content, context and execution are the foundation.   Mico communities influenced and active in urban trends, music, street wear, skateboarding, punk rock, lifestyle, photography and graphic design drove the movement. The advent of Photoshop, Illustator, Kinkos, Copy Mats and personal printers were what created the supply chain and distribution channels for the artists’ advertisements and put much of it in the hands for anyone willing to participate. Art Supply and Home Improvement stores also supplied the tools. Street Art is a perfect example of “art today” because it is a product of the time, space, technology and appetite. It is fueled by opinions, advertisements, humor, grievances and healthy sense of adventure (daredevils). Content, context, form and ability are what are rewarded. Just like any other art movement. And like most art movements, the art is created to invoke reaction from everyone.

There are some crossover relationships and oscillating/borrowed influences between Street Art and Pop Surrealism- it’s primarily time, place and sensibility which connect them. The canvases and materials are usually different. The appeal, if effective in its execution, is similar.

By Jonathan Cathey

“I was born in Laguna Beach, California.  I was a fairly stereotypical So Cal kid.  I loved surfing, skateboarding, punk rock, playing drums, playing guitar, playing baseball and basketball.  I still do.  I gravitated to music and spent most of my late teen years and early to mid twenties wood shedding.  I played in some great and forgettable bands.  I was and am always immersed in the arts.  I graduated from Cal State Northridge with a degree in Theater Arts.  After school, I made two records went on some tours and packed it in in my early thirties.  I had started an art house brand in my late twenties which started the path that I am still on.  My entire social and professional circles were filled with emerging artists.  Los Angeles in the late nineties was a great place to be in the arts.  Now, I own a company called The Loyal Subjects (an art fabrication brand) and I’m also partners in a trade/event show called the Cultyard which is currently located inside New York Comic Con.  I look forward to all the new adventures that face me and the incredible people I meet who help shape my life.  I also own a dog, Zoe (13 years old).”

For as long as I can remember customers have asked the question- “is everything organic?” To which I reply- “everything is locally grown and sourced by farmers and artisans practicing sustainable farming methods.”  Usually this is enough and they move along satisfied with the answer. A handful of people can not get pass the organic label.  They need the seal of certification to feel comfortable with the product. Imagine that, trusting the government regulators over your local farmer!

I have spent the past month touring small farms and dairies in Northern and Southern California. In almost every case, the farmers have shared the same philosophy with me when asked where they stand on organic certification. They take great care of their animals to ensure they are healthy. Should one suffer from an infection or illness, the animal is removed from the herd and  given medication just as one would for themselves or a child. The animal is not reintroduced back into the herd until the medication has been completely filtered out of the system. Many hardcore proponents of organic farming take exception to this, believing it does not match their purist ideals. The counter argument is that a sick animal is one that is suffering and should be relieved of discomfort when possible. I side with the humane treatment of animals even if it interferes with politicized certification.

Another extreme barrier to entry for a lot of small farmers is the time for which farms need to wait until they may apply for certification. For farmers growing produce the soil needs to be tested and free from any fertilizer or pesticide for at least three years. For dairy farms it is much more extreme at twelve years. Most looking to get into farming can not afford to make this conversion. As a result, farmers have begun to put their money into what matters and not the administrative costs of certification. The result is more farmers practicing sustainable farming at a level where they can ”sustain” the profitability of their business and still deliver a superior product that is unique and healthy.

When we opened the first Tender Greens in Culver City five years ago we made a decision not to list any items as “organic”. Instead, we focused on supporting small, local farmers with whom we had direct relations with and trusted the practices they employed. Scarborough Farm is one such farm. They use the same farming practices for all of their products yet only some carry the “certified organic” stamp. The cost of certification and the time necessary to arrive at this point is just impractical. Taste our lettuces, nothing compares to Scarborough, certified organic or sustainably grown. So next time you find yourself caught up in a debate about organics remember, we have moved on to the next chapter of sustainability, where farming , logistics, energy usage, and profitability all have an important role to play.

- Erik Oberholtzer

Even if we could justify the cost, tough texture or gamey flavor of grass fed cattle, there would not be enough grassy range land, water or demand for it to be feasible in California. The concerns of land cost, water and feed do not stop with the grass fed animal. Corn needs lots of water. We do not enjoy vast water reserves in California so most of the feed is trucked in from the midwest. Understanding this we have found the best results outside of our home state. In Nebraska cattle are fed a regiment of grass and corn in the place that it is grown.  This regiment has been developed over the decades to create a taste profile that is consistent with the American Palette.

In an effort to deliver the absolute best product to our customers we adhere to strict standards of care. All of our animals are certified Black Angus bred, except for our San Diego location where we serve local, Holstein cattle. This ensures a taste profile that is complex and true to expectations. We demand that no animal is ever exposed to growth hormones or antibiotics in their lifespan. Any animal requiring antibiotics is pulled out of our program. The feed consists of a combination of non GMO grass and corn with no animal biproducts. The natural herds do not mingle with the conventional cattle. Though the quality of beef we source accounts for roughly 10% of the overall beef production in the United States it is still a very limiting niche market.

What about at home? If you go to Whole Foods or any other specialty market you will find a number of choices. Grass fed will be expensive, lean (select grade), and often that requires long cooking. Organic beef is similar to what we use only more expensive due to the administrative costs related to the certification and processing standards. I have not found a noticeable difference in flavor or ethics so I generally do not buy organic beef unless using ground product at a price I can absorb.  Naturally raised is what we use and generally what I prefer if I am using more expensive grilling cuts like NY strip, rib-eye or flatiron. Under no circumstance will I consider select grade commodity beef as the source, feed, conditions, breed and health of the animal are questionable. This is the beef you will find at the lower end markets and restaurants accounting for roughly 80% of the American beef market. It is the difference that makes all the difference between an ordinary food experience and one that can be memorable.

Aside from the “designer eggs” listed above, one will also find brown, white, speckled, grade A, grade AA, etc. For everyday use a grade A or AA egg is what most consumers need. These are reasonably priced, readily available, and generally local. The trade off is one does not know whether they contain hormones, where held in stressful conditions, or fed questionable recipes of feed.

I personally buy my eggs at the farmers market as needed. The eggs are from “pastured hens”, harvested and brought to market within a day of being laid. These eggs are far superior to what one will find at the supermarket and carry a price reflective of that quality. But dont’ let the price scare you. I pay about $3 for a half dozen eggs and use them with in a day of purchase. I bet most Americans these days spend more on a cup of coffee. The key to making this fit your budget is breaking the habit of over buying. Every time I cook at a friend’s house I am amazed at how full their refrigerator is. Packed to capacity with food they could never finish before expiration.

So next visit to the market think about these simple rules, buy the best you can afford and only what you need. An empty refrigerator is a good thing. And don’t be duped by marketing capaigns selling vitamin additives or omitting “harmful characteristics” that are naturally occuring in the food. Support your local farmer when ever possible.

-Erik Oberholtzer