In 2011 the chef Ferran Adrià stepped back and closed his avant-garde restaurant, El Bulli, to pursue a foundation dedicated to food ideas. The El Bulli Foundation, which replaced his restaurant, is now publishing more than 20 books about many aspects of gastronomy. It’s part of the Bullipedia project, encyclopedic surveys and analyses written by teams of experts. There are eight volumes of intensely detailed books on wine, Bullipedia Wine Sapiens; the first two, “Contextualizaton and Viticulture” and “Vinification and Classifications,” have been translated from Spanish into English — subsidized by Juvé & Camps, a venerable cava producer — and are now available in the United States. “We examined many books on wine, even wine atlases, but found none that took our encyclopedic approach,” Mr. Adrià said. The books are designed for professionals and gastronomes, especially for those who are engaged in and appreciate fine-dining, which Mr. Adrià contends is thriving. With Hubbell precision, the books examine the history, evolution, production, categorization, serving and appreciation of good wine, illustrating the material with close-ups of ripening berries, pruning methods, climate maps, bottling and more in the first two books’ nearly 1,200 pages. Mr. Adrià and Ferran Centelles, the sommelier who covers the beverage side of the project, say they have made discoveries, like the first printed wine list from 1804. It is all, however, seen through a Western lens; the foundation’s definition of fine dining is limited — it does not invite Asian cuisines to the table, for example. “We can only be experts in Western culture,” Mr. Adrià said.
Bullipedia Wine Sapiens, Volumes I and II, 120 euros per volume ($132.46), elbullistore.com.
A Recipe for Mom’s Gochujang
Gochujang is putting ketchup in the rearview mirror. For those burgers hot off the grill, consider a thick, artfully-spiced version from Bowlcut, a condiment company that got its start last year and has just introduced Bowlcut X Ji Won Choi. Crystal Ung, the company founder, collaborated with the designer Ji Won Choi for this gochujang on a recipe from Ms. Choi’s mother, and it’s in limited supply through the end of the month. Also available is a mellow slather for Cantonese-style roast pork, char siu, for marinating and basting, but made without the red food coloring that’s often used in it. It will give the expected flavor and ruddy color to pork chops, chicken, steak or shrimp on the grill. Classic chili crisp or a spicy version, round out the line.
Bowlcut sauces, $13.99 and $14.99 for six ounces, thebowlcut.com.
Summer Is Coming, So Get Out the Limoncello
The enormous distance and climate disparity between the Granite State and sunny Sicily have not daunted the brothers Phil and Nick Mastroianni, who import lemons from their grove near Siracusa to Salem, N.H., to make Fabrizia limoncello spirits. What began as a hobby more than a decade ago became a business once they visited family in Italy. During the pandemic they added baked goods to their offerings. Their latest, this spring, is a gossamer limoncello roulade: Golden lemony cake is rolled around a lemon marshmallow cream filling and a drift of confectioners’ sugar graces the top. The cake is shipped chilled, not frozen, but keeps for many days in the refrigerator. Some tart lemon sorbet alongside tempers the sweetness.
Limoncello Roulade $21.99, fabrizialemonbakingcompany.com.
A Touch of the Macabre for the Grill
Hopefully you will not imagine yourself as Sweeney Todd, the “demon barber of Fleet Street,” while carving meat for the grill this summer. But Hedley & Bennett, a company that makes restaurant gear, is having a little fun with its heavy-duty black denim apron embroidered with the logo of the Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler musical, now playing on Broadway. The protective covering, to own or gift, has brass rivets, multiple pockets and adjustable straps.
Hedley & Bennett X Sweeney Todd Apron, $125, available during performance times at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, 205 West 46th Street, or broadwaymerchandiseshop.com.
Eataly Plays the Pasta Hits
Each month for the next six months, the Eataly stores in New York and elsewhere in North America will celebrate a pasta dish for an Icons of Eataly series. The food will be served at its La Pizza & La Pasta restaurants, ingredients and kits to prepare the dishes at home will be sold and there will be corresponding classes at La Scuola di Eataly. Following a preview period featuring all six pasta dishes, the spotlight will be on cacio e pepe in June; paccheri ai tre pomodori in July, linguine allo scoglio (mixed seafood) in August, and so on. To introduce the series in New York at the Flatiron and downtown locations, guest chefs, including Stefano Secchi of Rezdôra and Missy Robbins of Lilia and Misi, will prepare menus, give classes and speak, through May 23. Programs like Pasta Festa, at Eataly Downtown on Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. ($85), and Pasta Camp, at Eataly Flatiron on May 19 from 6 to 8 p.m. ($75), will offer chances to sample various pasta dishes with wine.
Icons of Eataly, eataly.com.
