Al Spoler
Host, Cellar Notes and Radio KitchenAl Spoler, well known to WYPR listeners as the wine-loving co-host of "Cellar Notes" has had a long-standing parallel interest in cooking as well. Al has said, the moment he started getting serious about Sunday night dinners was the same moment he started getting serious about wine. Over the years, he has benefited greatly from being a member of the Cork and Fork Society of Baltimore, a gentlemen's dining club that serves black tie meals cooked by the members themselves who are some of Baltimore's most accomplished amateur cooks.
His most rewarding immersion in cooking came through his work as a television director at MPT. Spoler served as off-line editor and assistant director on two series featuring the legendary French chef Pierre Franey. He also worked with Mexican chef Patricia Quintana, and with Bed and Breakfast expert Gail Greco on her series "Country Inn Cooking". Al says traveling all over the US visiting country inns and taping recipes that they prepared in little makeshift television kitchens was an incredible education.
Spoler's tastes in cooking are influenced by regional tradition and contemporary casual French fare. Never slavish to recipes, he is never happier than improvising a Sunday dinner with whatever ingredients come to hand.
-
Hugh and Al agree, the Margaret River region of Australia is their favorite down under. The wines offer refinement, precision, and pleasure. -
Here in the bleak mid-winter, we Baltimoreans are lucky to have so many traditional dishes to keep us warm and happy. One dish is so closely associated with our hometown as to be known nation-wide as Baltimore-Style Sour Beef and Dumplings. As Chef Jerry Pellegrino will confirm, this is one of the tastiest and most comforting regional comfort foods that we know of. -
Many big wineries not only offer a premium line of wines, they also offer a line of reduced-price wines under a “second label”. Hugh explains. -
Of all the most popular cuts of beef, one stands above the others as the most desirable, and that would be the loin. The cut is expensive and is revered by many. But it is a much more complicated piece of beef than you might think. Chef Jerry Pellegrino explains all you need to know about this intriguing bit of meat. -
Occasionally the time of year, one’s list of favorite foods and the traditions of one’s city all coincide to conjure up the perfect meal. In this case, in mid-winter, here in sauerkraut loving Baltimore, lovers of Alsatian cuisine can cook their way to heaven. And to Chef Jerry Pellegrino, we could only be talking about one thing: choucroute garnie. -
Once the darling of the bargain hunters, Fetzer has returned to the market in a big way and is offering remarkable bargains. -
We all need to stretch our dollars a little bit after the holidays. Al has some recommendations for some high-quality, low-price whites. -
I’ve been lucky enough to travel in Europe quite a bit in recent years and I’ve enjoyed many wonderful meals and impressive glass of wine. At lunch time I may be tucking into a fresh tuna-salad and it occurs to me that the canned tuna I’m eating is really good. I asked Chef Jerry Pellegrino, is it true that European canned fish is something super? -
After the holidays, we all need to find wines that fit within our budget. Hugh has found some very affordable reds. -
So, the holidays are behind us and I’m willing to wager that one near universal resolution is to lose a little weight. In addition to hitting the gym with regularity, I would suggest adding more vegetarian dishes to your diet. And as Chef Jerry Pellegrino will tell you, if you do it right, you’ll never begin to think you’re depriving yourself of anything.
