All Vitis species are completely edible, varying in size, flavor, and seediness. But even the smallest and seediest are excellent for juice, jelly, wine, etc. just no good for fresh eating. With wild grapes the challenge is finding a productive vine as most just put out a whole lot of vegetative growth and very little fruit. Larger, tastier wild grapes of the species you commonly have in Virginia are certainly out there, it is just a matter of locating them at the right time. You should get a good book on wild edibles and learn their characteristics along with those of the toxic look-alikes if you're anticipating foraging...

This is not the place to advertise your website selling reproduction bronzes. Let's let this sink.

Annie, Here is an outline from Egullet on how Dejah makes Sesame Chicken. Looks easy and you probably have all the ingredients. Posted 27 August 2006 - 10:23 AM I think General Tso's chicken, from various googled images, is the same as what we served as sesame chicken, except for the excessive # of dried chili peppers. I do deep fry the chicken pieces, usually thick strips of dark and white meat. I season the chicken with salt, MSG, and sesame oil, then work in an egg, flour and baking powder. This is worked in thoughly, then the chicken is tossed into fine cracker crumbs. The chicken is deepfried, and they end up with a nice crunch without thick batter. The sauce is just vinegar, water, a little sugar, sesame oil, 5-spice powder, and lots of crushed pepper (amount depends on the consumer). This is thickened with a cornstarch slurry, and the chicken pieces are tossed in quickly to coat. I prefer to NOT completely soak the chicken pieces with sauce. I do provide a side of the sauce for those who like more sauce. It's crunchy, spicy, more tang than sweet, sesame flavoured, and topped with sesame seeds.

Just saw this or I would have posted earlier. There was a Chinese guy in Manhattan who was a wine freak - was on a mission to show that wine worked w Chinese food. Great restaurant and great wines. He finally sold his place (Henry's, on 1st Ave) and moved to Napa to open a restaurant. You did well. Problem w much Chinese food is the salt levels - soy sauce, fermented beans, etc. So reds, especially tannic reds, can taste really wierd. Cantonese tends to be lighter with a lot of seafood, so I would go with whites. People recommend gwertztraminer - OK I guess, but chenin blanc, sauvignon blanc, and some others work better. I would avoid anything that has noticable oak and instead look for something with light, crisp flavors and lots of acidity. Riesling can be perfect as it comes in so many guises.