For about six years now we’ve been making an annual spice order from [Penzeys][], a shop based in Wisconsin. When we started ordering from them, they had maybe three shops, all in or near their home state.
[Penzeys]: http://www.penzeys.com/
In the past few years, however, they’ve been opening retail stores at a Starbucks-like rate. This culminated recently in a contest where the city that sent in the most postcards would get a Penzeys store. The winner was Boston, but they decided to give runner-up Portland a store, too, and they say they’re scouting out locations in some of the other cities that made a good show. (Seattle is in the next tier.)
We’re all down in Portland at the moment on a family visit, so I decided to sneak out and hit the Penzeys store here. It’s not *exactly* in Portland–it’s on 82nd, near Clackamas Town Center. Naturally, there was some kind of water main break today that snarled traffic on 82nd for miles, but I persevered, and it was so worth it.
It’s not that there’s a big difference between shopping at a Penzeys store and shopping the catalog, but shopping the catalog is one of my favorite pastimes, and the store has exactly the same selection (I came in with a list of about fifteen items and all of them were in stock; keeping great inventory seems to be store policy). In addition, at the store you can sniff all of the spices, and it’s more suited to impulse buys. I didn’t come in with Spanish *pimentón de la vera* (smoked paprika) in mind, but I walked out with some; it’s destined for a goulash-style recipe from [Italian Slow and Savory][ISS].
[ISS]: https://www.rootsandgrubs.com/2005/12/10/best-cookbooks-2003-2004-italian-slow-and-savory/
Why buy from Penzeys instead of the grocery store? Three obvious reasons: price, selection, and quality. Spices at Penzeys generally run about one-third of supermarket price. Penzeys has spices your supermarket probably doesn’t, like *pimentón de la vera*. And the freshness and potency of most of their stuff will blow you away.
These are my favorite Penzeys products:
* China Cassia Cinnamon and China Ground Ginger. Order some of these. When they arrive, go into your cupboard and find your ground cinnamon and ginger. Stick your nose into the jars and sniff them. Then open the Penzeys spices and see if they aren’t more fragrant before you even get your nose near them.
* Chili powder (medium hot). Since Iris started clamoring for anything with chiles in it, we’ve gone through literally a pound of this a year. Mostly it goes into enchiladas and tacos, but it’s totally acceptable for making chili, or for use as a spice rub. Normal I go for the spiciest version of any product, but the medium really is just right.
* Whole ancho chiles. I buy my other dried chiles at Pike Place Market, but there’s something special about Penzeys’ anchos. They never seem to have the crusty or discolored parts that I find on other people’s anchos (I’m sure these are purely cosmetic flaws, but still). They’re the Angela Bassett of chiles: dark, silky, and alluring.
* Bay leaves. Most whole herbs and spices are fine for a couple of years, regardless of what fussy cookbooks will tell you. But bay leaves really do crap out within a year. Penzeys’ leaves start out with plenty of punch in their, uh, petioles, so by the end of the year they still have some love to give.
They just opened a Penzey’s in my area (Greater Detroit). I’ve been telling everyone about it, but (a) nobody else seems to have heard of Penzey’s, and (b) nobody seems to care.
Maybe because they (and I) would all still rather go down to Rafal’s at the Eastern Market (www.rafalspicecompany.com). And while we’re there, pick a few pounds of cheese at R. Hirt Jr.