WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU HAD CAVIAR WITH ALL THOSE GARNISHES, VODKA AND CHAMPAGNE?

I've long been expressing huge concern about at least four groups most responsible for spreading COVID-19:

• The unvaccinated.
• Asymptomatic people who innocently pass on this virus.  Said to spread 59% of all cases.
• Trump states.
• Because of schooling, children, who bring home this disease.

From the Sunday New York Times:

According to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation, only 18.8 percent of children in the 5-to-11 age group are now fully vaccinated and only 28.1 percent have received one dose. The disparity among states is stark. In Vermont, 52 percent of young children are fully vaccinated; in Mississippi, it is 6 percent.

More and more, as I get older and older, I splurge on a meal, for I don't have all that much time left.  What are the ultimate eating pleasures?  CNN last year had a list of 50 world's best foods:

• #50  Buttered popcorn, U.S.
• #48  Potato chips, UK
• #47  Seafood Paella, Spain
• #45  Chicken rice, Singapore
• #43  Tacos, Mexico
• #39  Ketchup, U.S.
• #36  Hummus, Middle East
• #29  Wagyu beef, Japan
• #22  Poke, U.S.
• #21  Croissant, France
• #17  Lobster, global
• #13  Corn on the cob, global
• #9    Ice cream, global
• #6    Hamburger, Germany
• #5    Peking duck, China
• #4    Sushi, Japan
• #3    Chocolate, Mexico
• #2    Neopolitan pizza, Italy
• #1    Massaman curry, Thailand

Can't say I agree with the above.  I've been to Thailand 25 times and don't remember ever having Massaman curry.  I was a bit surprised to see chocolate ascribed to Mexico.  Turns out this delicacy can be traced back to the Mayans.

Lonely Planet had a top ten, placing som tum from street vendors in Bangkok as #5.  Again, never tried this dish.  But I avoid vendors in Thailand.  And I really don't like green papaya salad.  #1 was San Sebastian's pinxtos, another term for tapas.

Turns out much of these ratings had to do with not so expensive meals you can have at home.  Or as culturally important where you live.

Lux Life rates the most luxurious foods in the world.  #1 is saffron, #2 white Alba truffles and #3 oysters.  However, while oysters can be the base for a good meal, saffron and truffles are additives.  #4 was caviar.

There was a time when first class air travel meant caviar.  While this level of comfort seems to be disappearing, some still serve caviar.  When the Gulf War began two decades ago, I remember once being the only passenger traveling first class on United from Honolulu to Japan because of terrorism threats.  I blatantly asked for a little bit of all the red wines.  They opened a really large can of beluga caviar.  I ate a lot and almost died.  In 2010, in one of my most tumultuous flights, first class from Delhi to Munich on Lufthansa, I was smart enough to stick with the caviar that was served.

In 2013 I again was the only passenger in first class on Thai Air from Sydney to Bangkok.  They started with Dom Perignon and went on to caviar.  I was wise enough to also stop at one serving.

Seven years ago tomorrow, an organization I belonged to, Chaine des Rotisseurs, gathered at the Pacific Club in Honolulu for Champagne and Caviar.  There were six kinds of champagne, going up to $106/bottle for the Blanc de Blanc Cru of Billecart-Salmon.  The caviars were Sturia:  Classic, Grand Chef and Oscietra.

Three years ago, on my way to a special tasting of Chateau Lafitte Rothschild in France, I passed through the International terminal of Los Angeles Airport.  I had an absolutely fabulous lunch at Petrossian of French caviar, a French champagne and Grey Goose Vodka (which comes from France).

I found a review of the the very best meals possible from Food and Wine:  13 Over-the-Top Dining Experiences to Splurge on with Your Tax Returns.  Caviar dominates.

Here are some caviar highlights from Wikipedia:

• Traditionally, caviar is salt-cured roe from sturgeon of the Caspian and Black Sea.
• The UN Food and Agriculture Organization indicates that true caviar only comes from a sturgeon.
• 
  Supposedly, the Chinese invented the salt-curing of fish roe, caviar was loved by Greek philosopher Aristotle and Russian czars elevated it to luxury status.
• Kaluga Queen is said to have won most of the actual tasting contests.  That was the caviar I had on my Lufthansa flight mentioned above.  Guess where this caviar comes from?  China!  Can you believe that China today supplies 60% of all caviar.

• 
  Can you believe the USA is #3?
• In earlier America, sturgeon of the Delaware caviar sold for a nickel, as tavern keepers saw that the more their patrons ate caviar, the more they consumed alcohol.  So caviar was the salty peanuts of our past.
• The best Osetra Caviar in the U.S. is from Marshallberg Farm.  Note the golden color.
• Here are how the three primary sturgeon look:

• 
   In addition to these three, there are 25 more species of sturgeon.
• If you can find it, Polanco Caviar from Uruguay compares with the best from Russia and Iran. The fish came from Russia  and is Siberian Sturgeon, as was the French caviar I had above. 
• Humanitarian processes are more and more being utilized to safely extract the roe from sturgeons.  Massaged-out caviar is among the more expensive.

I have long looked upon caviar as being deleterious to my health because of the sodium content of the product.  However, here are 6 surprising benefits of this fish egg, from Healthline:

• One ounce (28 grams) provides 7 grams of protein, 236% of daily Vitamin B12, 34% of daily selenium (for immune response), 19% of daily iron....but 18% of daily sodium.
• Small amounts of calcium and vitamins A, D, and E.
• Great source of omega-3 fatty acids.  The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend you get per day
• 250 mg of EPA and DHA.
• One ounce of caviar delivers 800 mg of EPA and 1080 of DHA.
• Stimulate adipocytes to produce adiponectin, which improves skin's wound-healing and anti-inflammatory processes, while also promoting collagen synthesis.  In short, caviar reduces skin aging, while improving skins smoothness and reducing fine lines and crow's feet.
• May improve brain and mental health, while lowering depression.
• May promote heart health, while lowering blood pressure, improve cholesterol levels and preventing platelet aggregation.
• May improve male fertility.  Increased sperm counts in rats.
• May support your immune system by reducing inflammation while restoring barrier function of skin, intestines and lungs.

Just how expensive are caviars, and why don't you see some of the more popular types in your markets anymore?  

•  The Guinness World Record is Almas from a rare Iranian Albino Beluga.  $1000/ounce.
• A range of factors including government bans, difficulty with growing/handling and general scarcity raises the price of caviar.  A few comparisons:

• 

  In 2005 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service put Caspian sturgeon on the Endangered Species list and banned the importation of the classical caviars.  Finding them means a lot more money, but this is allowed if the fishery farm in the U.S. started before 2005.
• Royal Beluga Caviar can still be bought for around $200/ounce.  
• This means $3200/pound.
• White truffles are traditionally a bit more than $1000/pound, but last year went up to $4500/pound because of weather and supply problems.

• 
  But there is American caviar from shovelnose sturgeon (right), paddlefish, lumpfish and bowfin.
• Sturgeons are the biological cousins of sharks and can grow up to 24 feet long and weigh as much as a large car.  One pregnant female can carry up to 100 (1600 ounces) pounds of caviar.  Compared to the other two, sturgeons provide the best caviar.
• Sturgeon AquaFarms is the only legal producer of Beluga caviar in America.  Typically, Marky's  Sturgeon Caviar sells for $420/ounce.    

• 
  I went to Amazon.com and saw this brand selling for $3995/35.2 oz, which is $113/ounce, or $1800/pound.
• The true caviar eggs range in color between dark brown and black.
• Marky's Paddlefish Caviar sells for $28/ounce.
• Amazon does not send to Hawaii.
• Other American Sturgeon Caviars regularly sell for $50 to $70/oz.
• Herring roe:  $17/oz.
• Bowfin roe:  $17/oz.
• Golden Whitefish rod:  $5/oz.
• Paddlefish roe:  $38/oz.
• Salmon roe:  $16/oz.
• Tobiko (flying fish egg):  $12/oz.
• Trout roe:  $10/oz.
• Whitefish roe:  $9/oz.
• 
  There is also lumpfish caviar.  
• Lumpfish is a marine bottom animal like a flounder, and can be found on both sides of the Atlantic:  Newfoundland/Labrador to New Jersey and Iceland/Greenland.
• A female lumpfish, which is larger than the male, can produce over a quarter-million eggs and grow to 2 feet long and weigh more than 22 pounds..

• 
  Amazon sells Agustson caviar for $40/3.3 ounce, or $12/oz or $194/pound.  Which of course is not sent to Hawaii.
• Other lumpfish roe can go as low as $1.75/oz.
• You should know that the lumpfish itself is made into dogfood.
• How terrible is lumpfish caviar?  If you are not familiar with caviar, you might not be able to tell the difference from Beluga.  The lumpfish roe is slightly crunchier and taste a bit more fishy.

Williams Sonoma suggests well-chilled vodka (which does not freeze in the freezer, but can get syrupy).  Some restaurants flavor with lemon.  Champagne, or any sparkling wine, is also recommended.  Some serve white wine if the caviar is part of a meal.  Also, consider sake and soju.

You can serve caviar any way you want, but the more snooty use a mother-of-pearl spoon to scoop the morsels.  Silver spoons do tarnish.  While most sources say keep the vodka and caviar as cold as possible, another school of thought suggests that you miss the nuances unless you raise the temperature a bit.  Of course, still cold, but not ice-like.

You can show-off by placing the caviar on the back of your hand (right).  They say that your body temperature brings the pile to the right temperature when you get the purest taste of delicacy.  Me?  I place some cream cheese (the more esoteric use creme fraiche, which is sour) on a bliny (a small Russian pancake made with leavened batter, using wheat or buckwheat flour).  I like to lightly fry the bliny in butter.  Add some chopped red onion and hard-boiled egg, then top with a safe amount of caviar so you don't spill the eggs.  Some use a thin slice of lemon peel on top, but I squeeze lemon or lime juice onto the above.  I hate rind.

With all that introduction, I had another memorable meal of caviar last night.

A good excuse for social distancing:

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