I have the great fortune to be spending a good chunk of time at the end of one of those Maine peninsulas that sticks out straight south from the mainland. In the little bit of poking around I have done so far, I acquired a bean pot of the kind roughly recommended by John Thorne in Serious Pig. Turns out that the proper vessel does indeed improve the outcomes of the beans.
In reading and re-reading the “Knowing Beans” chapter, it has slowly dawned on me the extent to which I take a richly varied diet for granted. Baked beans and brown bread were dinner; they did not accompany dinner, they were the main and only attraction. It is a good show, but much simpler than the dinner I usually sit down to. It also calls attention to the detail that one can devote to Knowing Beans.
Living here in the spectacular natural beauty of Maine in the Fall is a wonderful think.
Now I just need to find some good salt pork…
Lewis E. Gilbert 