Posts Tagged Andersonville

Ivica and I enjoyed our conversation about Montenegro and the upgrades to Café Adriatic’s terrace, and he gestured to Tanja. “Pour him a glass of slivovitz… Yes, go ahead.” Tanja suggested the Markovic Estates slivovitz, which she said was the most popular. I contemplated my first shot of the evening.

In my family, slivovitz, a plum brandy, was usually referred to in a joke, as a sort of archetypal bad liquor. It’s a shame, because slivovitz is actually quite pleasant, if quite strong. I sipped the brandy, expecting some significant burn from the 45% alcohol content. It felt surprisingly smooth, however, and went down with ease. I sipped again, enjoying the lightly plummy flavor and aroma of almonds.

Suddenly, dessert didn’t seem like such a bad idea. Especially when one of the choices is crepes with “Eurocream and Plasma.” It sounded like the unfortunate result of some sort of Balkan blood-bank orgy. I had to have it.

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My favorite small wine shop, In Fine Spirits, delighted me once again this week. In response to my question, “What’s the weirdest thing you’ve got right now,” the clerk thought a moment, and I could veritably see the light bulb above his head suddenly burst into incandescence.

“I know! Here – this is called Vranac, and it’s from Serbia.” How magnificent — I had never tasted the variety, nor any wine at all from Serbia, and it cost only $12. I purchased the Vranac, and decided it would be most fun to share my discovery with a Serbian friend or two.

A quick scan of the contacts in my cell phone reminded me that, unfortunately, I have no Serbian friends. Determined to rectify the situation, I took the bottle to the nearby Café Adriatic (5553 N. Clark St., Chicago, 773-828-8889), an attractive if relatively unpopular Balkan restaurant up the street. I’ve yet to see the restaurant more than 1/3 full, and this evening was no exception. It was just what I was hoping for.

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