There's enough seafood here to satisfy even the hungriest of ocean predators. more ›

Who to Know: Jim Bube, sales representative at Heritage Wine Cellars more ›

I was searching through the food and drink archives yesterday and, at one point, keyed in the word "champagne." Ho-LEE!! There's a lot. more ›

• Life & Limb, the highly anticipated brewing collaboration between Dogfish Head's Sam Calagione and Sierra Nevada's Ken Grossman, receives its official launch party at Sheffield's tonight at 7 p.m. Life & Limb is a 10 percent ABV dark ale brewed with barley grown by Grossman at Sierra Nevada's Chico, CA brewery, and pure maple syrup from Calagione's family farm in Massachusetts. The two breweries took the mash from that and brewed a 5 percent beer called "Limb & Life." Both will be available for tasting this evening, as will some of each breweries more experimental beers. this would be a great primer for our reader meetup Thursday.
• Binny's South Loop has a reserve champagne tasting this evening from 6-8:30 p.m. featuring luxury cuvees Roederer Cristal, Dom Perignon and more! Also included will be sparklers from the U.S., Spain and Italy. Gourmet cheeses will be paired with the champagnes.

Craft breweries may receive (deserved) recognition for the inventiveness they're using to raise the profile of beer in the marketplace. It's wise to remember that today's brewers are merely dusting off techniques that date back generations, to those first groups of friars who discovered that fermenting malt made for a nice loophole to their fasting. The brewing history of the De Landtsheer family starts in the 1600s, but Emmanuel "Manu" De Landtsheer's Malheur (French for "misfortune") listed his first beer for public consumption only 12 years ago. The Malheur brews we'd shank a man with a sharpened toothbrush handle for are the ones brewed in the "methode champenoise" style. more ›

Normally, we wouldn't recommend readers spend their New Year's Day engaging in knifeplay. That's why it's left to the pros, or amateurs in controlled situations. Yesterday we managed to cross "saber a bottle of champagne" off the list of things to do before we die. Done right, it's a very safe way to serve and drink champagne. more ›

Eighth grade students from Franklin Middle School in Champaign have written, produced, and acted in a short film about the effects of bullying. Part of an anti-bullying curriculum that will be instated by Franklin and other schools throughout the U.S. next year, the film shows some situational examples of bullying and its consequences, and hopes to make an impact on bullying by provoking classroom discussion on the topic. more ›

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The Greater North Michigan Avenue Association wants us all to “Feel Magnificent,” and this month apparently that means knocking back the bubbly. Throughout February, businesses on the Magnificent Mile and its surrounding area have been serving champagne to diners and shoppers all along the Avenue, which means we have T minus 7 days to score some free (or reduced) sparkling goodness. The Mag Mile web site can fill you in on everywhere that’s filling flutes, but here are our suggestions on where to stop along your own personal “Champagne Crawl.” more ›

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'Tis the season for free champagne tastings. Get started tonight at the Artisan Cellar (located on the first floor of the Merchandise Mart) with a sample of some rare bubblies from 4-6 p.m. Learn all about the history of smothered foods from author Wilbert Jones, the author of Smothered Southern Foods. Jones' lecture, "Smothered - Southern Style" is being held Saturday at the Chicago History Museum, sponsored by the Culinary Historians of Chicago. The lecture... more ›