My first guest today is Chef Eric Greenspan to talk about his new program “Eric Greenspan is Hungry.”
IT’S ONE PART ADVENTURE, TWO PARTS HUNGER, A DASH OF AMERICANA, AND THEN ADD A WHOLE LOTTA MEAT
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL UNLEASHES CHEF ERIC GREENSPAN ON AN AMERICAN ROAD TRIP DOCUMENTING HIS GASTRONOMIC QUEST FOR THE QUINTESSENTIAL MEAT EXPERIENCE
Chef Eric Greenspan
Chef Eric Greenspan is, without a doubt, one of the funniest, loudest, most innovative chefs on the planet. But there’s really only one thing you need to know about Eric: He’s no vegetarian. Premiering Monday, Nov. 24, at 10 p.m.ET/PT on National Geographic Channel, Eric and his trusted friend and carnivorous gastronome, Mauzner, travel on the meatiest road trip, discovering Americana through rare homegrown family recipes, to satisfy their wildest imaginations and to get inspiration for Eric’s critically acclaimed restaurants in Los Angeles.
Eric Greenspan Is Hungry (#EricisHungry) takes viewers on a cross-country, off-the-beaten-path adventure, looking for wild hog in Warren, Arkansas, for wild turkey in Tunica, Mississippi, for Buffalo in Jasper, Arkansas, and for goat in Grand Coteau, Louisiana, just to mention a few of his stops. Traveling in the heartland, Eric goes directly to the source of local recipes to meet the people who farm, raise, nurture, hunt and butcher animals such as bison, prehistoric gar, goat, crawfish, pig and wild turkey. It’s meat unlike what you get from a purveyor. Eric and his cohort will break down the animal, butcher it and prepare the recipe all on location to crank out the best dishes imaginable.
Journey with Eric and Mauzner as they get deep into the rich history of these family recipes — the meaty goodness — waiting to be discovered in America. The homegrown, mouthwatering recipes — whole roasted goat flambéed with sugarcane vinegar, “bang-bang” turkey, bacon-wrapped gar balls, whole smoked hog with “squealer dust” rub — will be sure to leave viewers hungry and wanting more. Never far from one another, Eric and Mauzner like to call their time together “an orgy of food and drink,” and are content to wine and dine their way to happiness and hedonism.
In the second half I’ll be talking to Harry H Wetzel the IV, Asst. Winemaker/Family Partner of Alexander Valley Vineyards. www.avvwine.com
Harry Wetzel IV
When you are born into a family business and the “office” is just outside your back door, the chances are pretty good you will be put to work at a very early age. And so it was for Harry Wetzel IV, whose grandparents started Alexander Valley Vineyards and whose parents, Hank and Linda Wetzel, founded the winery.
At the age of 5, Harry was already in the vineyards that surrounded his house, picking grapes. At the age of 13, his father decided he needed to learn other parts of the business. He worked in the shipping department and then later in the vineyard, installing an irrigation system and developing a new vineyard block.
Today, Harry is one of the third generation working at the family owned winery. “For me, being part of a family business means continuing the traditions my grandfather and father started at the winery and in the community,” Harry says. “It’s also a matter of preserving the integrity of the Wetzel family name. It’s a lot to live up to given the work the rest of my family has done, but I see it as a fun challenge.”
Harry will be in Wichita for The American Institute of Wine & Food annual Holiday Dinner at the Hyatt Wichita. The dinner is open to the public but discounted to AIWF members. Learn more at www.aiwfwichita.org
Good Life Guy’s Wine of the Week:
The Wines of Alexander Valley Vineyards