Taste, Part One

On January 2nd, 2009, Bernard Lepic stopped on 123rd Street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. and Frederick Douglass Boulevards. His knees cracked as he knelt on the sidewalk and placed his bare palms on the cement. He felt the surface, paused thoughtfully at the old gum and shoe prints that had worn their way in. He admired the grass that peeked out from the crack between slabs, scraggly brown blades that had no idea they wouldn't survive the winter. An old woman shook her head as she waddled past, and two teenagers laughed and shouted about the crazy ass cracker who needs his medication. Mr. Lepic looked only at the pavement, and then he stuck his tongue out and leaned in.

Mr. Lepic is widely known in the foodie community as an expert taster. He can identify the age and vintage of any wine or cheese. These talents are not unusual, but his gift ventures further, into areas that most food critics would consider beneath their wealth of expertise. Mr. Lepic won a potato chip tasting contest in Des Moines, Iowa in February 2006, not only correctly naming every brand, but even the date that the chips were manufactured. It is in hand-made foods that Mr. Lepic's brillance shines brightest; he can identify the bakery and, in special cases, the worker that made any croissant, muffin, bagel, bear claw, or danish on the island of Manhattan.

Tune in for part two whenever I get around to writing it!!! (within the next week)