"obsession" news and stories

Photo: jljjld(away)/Flickr

Is there one food about which you -- despite maybe being a food snob the rest of the time -- are not at all fussy? About which you say, "I don't care who makes it: I'll eat it!"

We realized after chomping down our second ice cream of the day that perhaps, perhaps, we are not so discerning about the stuff. It was late at night, and Häagen-Dazs Five (mint) had us rather over the moon. Then we realized that really, we've rarely met a decently-made ice cream that didn't sway our affections at least a little bit.

It's one of those foods that, as long as its basic components are intact, fails to register on the Picky Meter. Such eats are a relatively rare breed; they exist largely to answer a timeless and bottomless craving, and their combination of ingredients hits the pleasure buttons that in turn short-circuit the ability to criticize -- and to say "no."

Here are five we think might hit those buttons. Vote for yours, and if it's "other," hit the comments to let us know what it is!

I didn't know that you could make a brand new fruit, but I guess if you can make a grapple (that's an apple that tastes like a grape), you can make a grape called Symphony.

Dr. James Olmo created the Symphony in 1948 (that's a baby by wine grape standards!) at UC Davis by  crossing the Muscat of Alexandria grape with Grenache Gris.

Ironstone Vineyards in California makes a wine called Obsession from Symphony grapes from their own vineyards. I bought a bottle of the 2004 Obsession a few nights ago only because I was curious about a California born-and-bred grape, and the wine guy said that it's light, sweeter, a little bubbly, and would go well with spicy foods. Besides, how could I pass up a wine called "Obession?!?"

I drank a glass first while cooking, since I was preparing for Spirited Cooking (which I took quite literally). The wine looks very pretty - light, pale, and the wine guy was right. The Obsession sort of sparkles in the glass as well as on the tongue. It was much sweeter than I expected, though. Not quite like a Moscato or the super-sweet Rieslings, but still rather sweet and perfume-y for something right before dinner.

It was fine with the spicy foods we were having for dinner, but I couldn't really imagine drinking the Obsession with Korean food. The search for a good pairing with kimchee still continues.