[Northkeep] Drop Talana in a spice merchant's shop and watch her go

[Jean Paul de Sens]

Any chance you might bring the *real* cinnamon and some normal cinnamon to
WK this weekend?  I'd like to be able to compare the two...

JP

Qui mieux fait, mieux vault.


On Wed, Jan 26, 2011 at 9:01 PM, Jennifer Carlson <talana1 at hotmail.com>wrote:

>
> Tulsa . . . has an epicier!
>
> Spiceology opened this week in the Farm Shopping Center, just north of
> Hancock's Fabrics, in the space once occupied by the Game Shop.  I have been
> waiting eagerly since the sign went up over the door before Christmas.  Last
> night, while making an emergency run for thread at Hancock's, I saw that
> they had finally opened for business, but alas, had closed for the day.
>  This morning the Tulsa World and an article on the store, which opened
> yesterday: so, of course, I beelined for the shop after work this evening,
> and was delighted at what I found.
>
> The shop is set up like a boutique, meaning that the display cases are
> small and the shop has a lot of open space, but hey - their product is all
> in small bottles, so there is a great deal of stock to drool over.  You'll
> see test tubes among the bottles - those are display samples you are welcome
> to sniff.  They package and label their own goods, and the colors and scents
> of their wares tell you this stuff hasn't spent five years in a leaky
> Italian galley coming from Cathay by way of India, to be held in an Adriatic
> port for another year until it's packed and shipped to Paris, with upcharges
> and price hikes along the way, until a poor London housewife can hardly
> afford a bit of cinnamon for her camaline sauce, and peppercorns become a
> form of currency.
>
> I immediately scooped up a jar of Ceylon cinnamon - that's cinnamomum
> verum, or true cinnamon, not the cassia that we're used to.  True cinnamon
> has a more delicate scent and flavor.  It was $3.49 for .9 ounces - you
> can't beat that.  Also for $3.49 I snagged a bottle of garam masala.  It's
> so fresh the aroma smacks you.  Diarmaid is looking forward to a tikka
> masala dinner soon.
>
> I made myself pass over whole and ground corianders and cardamoms and
> nutmegs.  They have juniper berries, allspice, mace, and cloves.  They have
> jars of grains of paradise that make the tiny packets from High Gravity look
> stingy.  One display case is devoted to salts - sea salt and mined salt;
> white, gray, and pink.  There's even a salt that our friends who ride the
> Mongolian Steppes would be familiar with.  For those whose cookery leans
> toward the grill, you can take your pick of mixtures and rubs.  If you need
> extracts, you can find high-quality vanilla (I confess I didn't examine
> those as closely, as my wallet was making mewling noises and I knew if I
> didn't leave soon, it would be ramen noodles for dinner till payday).
>
> I was hoping for long pepper, cubebs, and blade mace, but at least for now,
> their stock is a tad more mainstream.  The owners (a husband and wife),
> however, said they are open to doing special orders, and took notes about
> the long pepper in particular.
>
> I am not being paid anything by Spiceology - I'm not getting kickbacks or
> free merchandise for talking them up (though that's something to discuss
> with them).  My reason for emoting is far more selfish:
>
> We have a spice merchant in town.  The prices for some of these items -
> when you can find them - at local grocers would make a Geonese trader
> petition for price controls.  Let's do what we can to get them up and
> running and keep them that way.
>
> Oh, and their hours are 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, Tuesday through Saturday.
>
> Now, back to making candy,
>
>
> Talana
>
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