Tag Archives: Graham Wigley

Businesses

Extra virginity now available in Northfield from Joe and Sherry Morgan

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Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive OilAbout a month ago, I happened to hear Splendid Table’s Lynne Rossetto Kasper interviewing journalist Tom Mueller about his new book, Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil on her show.

I normally don’t pay much attention to food shows but I knew that Northfield Olive Oils And Vinegars had opened their store in downtown Northfield earlier this year. I’m glad I caught it. Read or listen if you want a quick lesson on EVOO, both the industry and the product: What extra virgin means, and who in the olive oil industry abides.

The bar for extra virgin olive oil qualities is fairly low. Apart from some chemical tests, the law essentially says that it has to remind you in odor or in taste of fresh olives, and it can’t have any defects. The typical defects defined by the law are rancidity; fustiness, which is a fermented taste; and earthy, which is dirty olives. Each is connected to a flaw in the oil-making process. The law doesn’t say that it has to have any positive attributes apart from reminding you of olive fruit, so it’s a fairly low bar. Nonetheless, a lot of oils don’t clear it.

Joe and Sherry Morgan, Northfield Olive Oils And Vinegars, Northfield Olive Oils And Vinegars Northfield Olive Oils And Vinegars Northfield Olive Oils And Vinegars
Robbie and I stopped by Northfield Olive Oils And Vinegars on Bridge Square store yesterday and met the owners, Northfielders (10 years) Joe and Sherry Morgan.

Robbie Wigley, Joe Morgan, Sherry Morgan Northfield Olive Oils And Vinegars Northfield Olive Oils And VinegarsNorthfield Olive Oils And Vinegars
I used my better-than-before smartphone camera to take a few photos (the store is a visual treat) while Sherry gave my personal-chef-of-a- wife a tour of the store’s offerings. We got a short lesson from Joe on how to properly do an olive oil taste test: swirl, sniff, slurp and swallow. Who knew? We came home with three bottles of something and I expect we’ll be regulars.

Graham Wigley, Blue Door PubAs we were about to depart, Robbie mentioned to Joe that our three sons were foodies and that two of them manage the two Blue Door Pub locations in the Twin Cities.  Joe laughed and said that he and Sherry are longtime Sunday regulars at the BDP in St. Paul where they’ve gotten to know our son Graham quite well.

You can follow Northfield Olive Oils And Vinegars on Facebook and on Twitter @NorthfieldOlive.

See also the Jan. 4 article on Northfield Patch: Oil and Vinegar Store Opens in Downtown.

Photos, Weather

Mosquitoes hatch; makes me long for January

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Mosquito It was 81 degrees yesterday so Robbie and I opened all the windows to let in the fresh air.  No screens necessary, we thought, till we started swatting mosquitoes. Oy.  It could be a long hot summer.

Here’s a 30-second animated slideshow looking back to a gorgeous, –20 F mosquito-free day in January in downtown Northfield. The photos are from two of my hoar frost photo albums, here and here.

Music: “Italian Movie” by Graham Wigley. Continue reading Mosquitoes hatch; makes me long for January →

Fluff

I don’t have a bucket list, but if I did…

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I went to take photos of two of my sons, Tyson and Graham, doing a tandem skydive yesterday near Baldwin, Wisconsin. When I got there, they surprised me with an early birthday present: "We’re paying for you to go, Dad." I needed no arm twisting. As I wrote back in July, I don’t have a bucket list. But as a bit of a thrill seeker, my list would likely have more than a few adrenaline rush experiences, skydiving among them.

 Wigley boys in the skydive plane Griff Wigley Tyson Wigley 
Tyson paid the extra fee to have them video his jump. The above photos are actually screenshots of the video. Yes, they’re poor quality, but they’re enough of a teaser until he gets the video posted.

I love extreme roller coaster rides but nothing I’ve ever ridden compares to this. Dangling your feet out the door of the plane for 15 seconds at 13,000 feet is thrill #1. A-n-t-i-c-i-p-a-t-i-o-n. The first 15 seconds of the plunge is thrill #2 and it was the biggest rush I’ve ever felt. Nothing else comes close. The next minute of free-falling is thrill #3. Weightlessness rocks! Add spins to it for an extra kick. The final 10 minutes of turning and spinning after the chute is deployed is thrill #4. They hand you the steering straps so you can experience how easy it is to control the chute. Landing is thrill #5.

Graham Wigley, Griff Wigley, Tyson Wigley  John Bucsko, Griff Wigley 
John Bucsko, co-owner of Skydive Twin Cities (with me in the right photo), was my tandem guy. He said this has been their best year ever despite the recession. It’s a first-class operation. The staff was fun and friendly, the plane was top-notch, and all their preparation routines smacked of a rigorous approach to safety. I watched them pack their chutes. It was like a prayer service. Complete silence as the focused completely on the task at hand.