Saucy Panama

April 1, 2011

Panama Update: This morning the “godfather” arranged a very privileged meeting with “The Restaurateur” of Panama; David Henesy. We met him at “La Chesa”, his highest end of three properties in Panama city…

The restaurant is located in an old colonial home flanked by towering palms and jungle trees. Inside it was intimate and exclusive…

with a private dinning room…

Michael had a quick look around the kitchen…

Then it was up to see David who loves the WCFC project and took a full hour of his time to share the secrets of success when working and living in Panama. Inspired we headed right out to the distributer district to see for ourselves what’s going to be available for you our guests. First stop had Michael and Tobey salivating as they discovered some of their favorite products…

These Joselito haunches are a delicacy in Spain and not available in Canada. Helen who was one of the suppliers took some time to explain how deliveries work in Panama…

I have to quote Tobey on her comments;
“Helen showed a lot of boob but was very professional”…that’s Latin America! Perhaps we should move to the wine. Yesterday we had our first glimpse of the wine selection here in Panama…

They have a vast collection from all over the world and the prices are half of what you can expect at home in North America. They also carry some serious heavy hitters…

…like this Sassicaia 2006 for a mere $230 USD. Everything down here is priced in USD by the way. Here’s Tobey scanning the sparkling aisles, looking for a nice product for arrival day on the ship, or something cold and fresh after a long day on the water…

So much choice! We were then entertained by Oriol Nadal who reps one of the most unique wine selections in Panama…

He was an animated gent of Spanish origin and proceeded to educate us on some of the more interesting varieties and information. In Panama 80% of wine sold is red but there are some excellent whites.

This Torrontes is a grape varietal that is only grown in Argentina, the wine was crisp, refreshing and would be great on the water with or without food. Oriol then explained that when tasting he rinses the glasses with the next pour as opposed to water…

He felt that a nice white was better for a fresh fish dinner on the Pacific Provider or a younger red without too much oak or heaviness. His next selections were his favorite…

The Secreto and a sparkling rose called Canals Nadal. Both he said were female favorites and that after the Secreto you can count on 1 hour of "love" with your wife, after the Canals you’re guaranteed 3 hours. So he cautioned that if you’ve had a long day and you’re a little tired bring home the Secreto...on Fridays he brings home the Canals. Thanks for the tips Oriol!
Here’s a close up…

The next up was the Barbara Fores made from the oldest grape varietal in the world (dated at 300 million years). It was a wild Mediterranean white grape which smells and tastes like a Pinot Noir. Tobey was a big fan…

Lastly we discovered that in Venezuela and Brazil they harvest grapes twice a year due to the favorable climates. It was a lot to take in…but we couldn’t stop there, we had other meetings including one with a cigar merchant specializing in Panamanian Cigars made using plants that were originally from Cuba…

Looks like a lovey product. After catching up with Brian Grange and Pablo the “godfather” whisked us to a restaurant opening that featured some central Panamanian dancers…

It was a fun evening although I wasn’t allowed to “cut in” at any point…

Maybe its better that I didn’t! There were a number of acts…

Which added to the whirlwind tour we’ve had so far. The last act was the “dirty devil”…

As Michael looked on skeptically I asked about the origins of the dance. It seems the strong religious factions in early Panamanian history created the dirty devil as a scare tactic to keep the youth from getting too comfortable with each other.

The “godfather” responded with a real Cuban and enjoyed a cold drink in the hot Panamanian night.

All in a crazy day in Panama City!

See you tomorrow,

Ken Beatty

WCFC Panama

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JOHN BAKER
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