The Coalition of the Swilling

Now mix that puppy up

and let the flavors coagulate for a little while.

Meanwhile, get out your conveniently packaged boneless leg of lamb (from our Dear Friends in Australia)

cut off the netting and open that beauty up

now you'll want to butterfly her out just a little bit to aid in the cooking. After you do that spread some of the marinade on the "interior" surface

and then roll that puppy back up and schplop her into a large ziplock along with the remainder of the marinade

and put the bag in the fridge to gestate for 24 hours or so, turning occasionally. The next day, about an hour before you put her on the grill, take her out and let her come somewhat up to room temperature

No, it ain't pretty. But sweet baby fluffmeister does it smell yummy. Then you pop that bad gal on the grill. I had the grill set to two levels of heat: a really hot side for the initial searing and a lower-flamed side for more sustained cooking. I wanted to bring the temp up to about 160º, which is medium for lamb. You need to watch it fairly constantly, which was easy to do between shots at the Masters, as the fatty lamb plus the yogurt can make for some Olympic-sized flare-ups if you're not careful.

Anyhow, what to consume while Fluffy is sizzling? Hmmm, well, Easter is a rather special day. And it would be a pity to let a nice bottle of bubbly go bad from just sitting there in the closet (it would be an even worse crime to save the bottle for my sister-out-law's visit next week, but that's a whole other story). Yes, yes; it's best we drink it today!

1998 Dom. My my. Exceedingly tasty. Mind you, I got it as a gift many many years ago, as I'm too darned cheap to drop a couple of hundred bucks on a bottle of champagne (which I don't really care for) but I'm perfectly willing to let someone else spend the money; I'm big that way. This bottle had aged exquisitely: the sometimes sharp acidity had mellowed into a toasty, softly yeasty yumminess and the bubbles were micro-sized in ticklish flavor. Yum yum.

By this point the Fluffster had come up to the desired temperature (I have not yet been able to convince my girls that rare lamb is a good thing)

and the flavor was exceptionally divine when paired with par-boiled yams that had been flavored with brown sugar and maple syrup by my Bride and a mixed green salad with a raspberry vinaigrette whose sharp acidity cut the sweetness of the yams and the latent heaviness of the lamb quite nicely.

All in all a quite yummy meal!