For those of you who have been to Barcelona I hope that you had the time to visit the shop of E & A Gispert. It's almost as important to our people {foodies} as Gaudi's La Sagrada Familia is to art historians. It was founded in 1851 and is on a square with a church near the waterfront. In it's current incarnation E & A Gispert produces on-site wood fire roasted local marcona almonds and hazelnuts: ecstasy. They carry anything involved with nuts. They are a favorite place for locals and tourists alike to find the BEST quality ingredients. In point of fact, at my suggestion they picked up the Leblanc nut oils to compliment their nut product lines. In 1999 they won a "Coq d'Or" for their roasted nuts from the ever-vigilant and discerning society "Les Gourmand Associés" in Paris. This is no small achievement.

We have long wanted a reliable source for saffron, a five peppercorn mix and the Spanish style bouquet garni "farcelettes" (looks like a bay leaf cigar). Now we have it. The saffron is one gram of whole threads in a small artisan glass jar with a cork. The bouquet garni is a symphony of thyme, savory and oregano dressed in whole bay leaves accessorized (tied!) with kitchen string. The packaging is wonderful, and the quality? Well, what can I say, they LOVE Leblanc, and I met them with Pere Ferré from the makers of Antara olive oil. We should all have such good "guilt by association!"