This ALA Report Sponsored by Jay Lake's Cheese Obsession

Michel, the owner of Bistrot Du Coin, hanging out with Steven Tyler from Aerosmith (fairly sure that's Tyler...)We've arrived in Washington DC for ALA, Ann and I, and we've been walking around the city having a lot of fun. The most fun has been had at the Bistrot Du Coin, at which our search for Leffe finally paid off. And on tap, no less! Our long national nightmare was at an end.With our Leffe we ordered a cheese plate, and had one of the most pleasurable gustatory experiences of the last year. Two amazing goat cheeses, a cheese a bit like Stilton, and another cheese that might have been a derivative of brie. The owner, Michell, talked to us for awhile and explained that the secret to the cheese tasting so good is to leave it out on the counter for a few weeks. "The refrigerator is no good for cheese."He also recommended the L'Artisanal in New York City as the best cheese shop in the country, news that I thought might embolden Jay Lake to visit that fair metropolis in the near future, given his love affair with cheese.Tonight it's dinner with Scalzi, Erickson, and Kathleen Dougherty, and tomorrow the presentation.JeffPS Paul Riddell asked about squid being sent to me. Yes, I still get dried squid in the mail. Quite a bit of it.