The Longest Dinner

There is a level of service one expects when dining in a fine restaurant, and the speed of service is more a personal preference than a hard-and-fast rule. However, Bill and I found a new level of slow when we recently dined at Plump Jack Inn located in The Village at Squaw Valley. I won't bore you with the details - you can read my review on Open Table if you like - but suffice it to say, for once I had plenty of time to write notes in my trusty paperblanks notebook.

What we drank:
Dutton Goldfield Dutton Ranch 2008 Russian River Pinot Noir
The nose was full-bodied and spicy, with notes of blackberry, dark cherry, leather and cinnamon. The front of the wine was quite fruity, although it did have a nice balance of fruit and spice. The mid-palate brought in softly rounded tannins and a bit more of the cinnamon. The finish was a bit too soft for my liking, although it had a nice smoothness and lingering notes of juicy berry and cherry with a little white pepper. 8 out of 10 because of the lighter finish.

This wine was perfect with the carrot-cardamom soup, which had a garnish of Thai chili pepper threads and black rice. Lovely! It was good, but not great, with the Korean Spiced Seafood Cones, which contained ahi and salmon with caviar, ginger, and hints of soy and wasabi, in a crispy wonton skin cone. Since it took 90 minutes to get the Cones, I nearly ate them faster than I could taste them!

Provenance Vineyards 2007 Napa Valley Merlot
This had a bizarre nose that smelt predominantly of vitamins. Not minerals, mind you, but actual vitamins you take in pill form. It did open up over time and lose a little of that smell, but it was very off-putting to me. The wine tasted good, however, opening with a nice juicy berry flavor that became more bright cherry in mid-palate. The wine had a soft, smooth finish but did not leave much on the palate afterward. I rated this wine a 4 out of 10. I expect more of any 2007 from Napa - it was a stellar year!

Sadly, our experience at Plump Jack was not just about bad service. The small dining area was astonishingly loud, and there was a family with a very small, very cranky child next to us. The adults in the group did not seem inclined to pay any attention to the children, who tried to control the smallest, and of course that ended with the little one running in between tables, screaming. Lovely. That was our last visit to Plump Jack. With entrees starting at $23, it just costs too much to have a bad experience. Oh, and did I mention that the restaurant had to be at least 85 degrees? Ugh. Sweaty. Not good.

The Perfect Afternoon

I just had one of those perfect experiences where food and wine come together with fun and interesting people. Acacia Vineyard in Napa held a cooking demonstration by Joey Altman where they paired Joey's superb food with some of their highest-rated and most delicious wines. It was heaven in a winery. Joey Altman is a professional chef whose cookbook, Without Reservations, is perfect for home cooks who want to up their games. I bought the cookbook before the event at Acacia, and found it to be inspirational and fun, with recipes that were well within my capabilities and just plain delicious.

Joey Altman is quite inspirational and fun himself, and although this is totally irrelevant, he is quite a dishy guy, which just made the event even better. Joey shared some really great tips with us as he cooked each dish, and he made the preparations seem effortless. This guy knows his flavors, and his explanation of balancing salt, sweet, and acid in any dish was probably the single most important piece of information anyone has ever given me. It sounds basic and logical, I just never thought of cooking that way. Guess that's why he's a professional and I'm not!

Below, rather than using my usual wine blog format, I am going to explain each food and wine pairing and what I loved about each one. There was nothing in the food or wine that I found to be anything other than delicious and perfect, so I'll share some of the preparation tips and what I especially liked about each combo. Also, I tasted each wine prior to and then with the food and my notes reflect both states.

Honey Roasted Spiced Carrot & Fregola Salad with Arugul, Pistacios, and Green Goddess Dressing paired with Acacia 2008 Sangiacomo Chardonnay
The honey-roasted carrots were a revelation! Joey placed honey around the perimeter of a hot pan and let it carmelize for a moment, then added sliced carrots and tossed them together for another few minutes. Once the carrots were softened, he added a sprinkling of cumin seed. These tasted so good, and I generally don't like cooked carrots. Fregola, which coincidentally was recently featured on an episode of Chopped: All Stars, is a pasta that has been formed into small beads and toasted. The components of this dish worked so well together, all you heard from the audience was a collective, "YUM!" The wine had a wonderful, full and complex nose of oak, apple, peach, guava and honey, and the front of the wine reflected this lovely and smooth balance. The mid-palate brought some tannins and stronger notes of honey and guava. The finish was velvety smooth and had light tannins with lingering notes of honey and peach. It was a flawless match to the salad. So delicious!

Cauliflower Bisque, Chanterelles, and Bacon paired with Acacia 2008 Winery Lake Pinot Noir
Yes, I know what you're thinking, I thought the same thing. Cauliflower bisque? As Joey pointed out while making this, the cauliflower really did not have a strong presence in the bisque other than to make it impossibly velvety with a lovely creamy finish. The bisque was topped with chopped chanterelles that had been carmelized a hot pan, and then croutons that had been toasted in bacon fat were added to give the topping a wonderful crispy texture. I tried the bisque with both the chardonnay from the previous dish and the pinot noir, and while I liked the pinot pairing a bit better, the chardonnay was a good combination as well. The pinot noir started with a medium-bodied nose of smoky oak, roses, and bright cherry. The front of the wine had a wonderful brightness to it, with flavors of red cherry, roses, watermelon, and a hint of oak. The mid-palate brought in some nicely balanced tannins and more of the smoky oak flavor, and the finish was smooth and soft with lingering notes of oak and cherry. I thought the smokiness of the wine perfectly complemented the bacon components in the topping on the dish, and the creaminess of the soup.

Seared Tuna, Buttered Leeks, Lentils, Pancetta, and Red Pepper Vinaigrette paired with Acacia 2008 Lone Tree Pinot Noir
Prior to searing the tuna, Joey crusted it with a mixture of cracked black and pink peppercorns, which added a wonderful peppery flavor that complemented the tuna without overwhelming it. This was placed on a bed of French green lentils that were cooked perfectly, with some bite to them, and served with the buttered leeks and a wonderful olive and roasted red pepper tappenade that I could not get enough of. In fact, I would have plated the dish with less lentils and more tappenade, it was so, so good and went perfectly with the tuna. The buttered leeks were delicately shaved and again a perfect pairing with the other components. The Lone Tree pinot noir is one of my favorites from Acacia because, although it is a good wine on its own, it is a great wine with food. The nose was medium-bodied with notes of smoky oak, chocolate, and black cherry. The front of the wine brought in a juicy blackberry flavor along with the smoky oak and black cherry. The mid-palate was a lovely, warm balance of tannins, oak, and fruit, and the finish was smooth and had lingering notes of pepper and oak. This just went so well with the dish, I wrote, "OMG delish!"

Warm Salad of Duck Confit, Red Cabbage, Apples and Goat Cheese with Candied Walnuts paired with Acacia Barrel Select Lone Tree Pinot Noir
It would take too long to explain the process of confitting the duck here, but I will say that Joey did not use fat in the confit so rather than a heavier, fattier dish, the duck flavor was prominent in all of its ducky yumminess. We all begged for the candied walnut recipe, and it actually is not that hard. I'll write it out below. Again, the components of the dish were beautifully balanced, and included some shallots that had been marinated in lemon juice, something I am going to try as soon as I get some shallots from the market. The red cabbage was shredded and sauteed just until it was dark red, so it was sweet and mild. Altogether perfect. The Barrel Select Lone Tree was a blend of Lone Tree pinot vintages, and one of the best pinot noirs I have ever tasted. Ever. I only bought one bottle of this wine and already I am wishing I had bought more. The nose was deep and rich, of smoky oak, black cherry, and rose. Throughout, the wine was full, rich, and beautifully balanced. The front and mid-palate were complex and had flavors of black cherry, chocolate, rose, and a hint of oak. The finish was rich and full, with stronger notes of oaky tannins, and long, lingering notes of pepper, oak and cherry. Pow! Bam! WOW.

Joey's Candied Walnuts
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit

2 C fresh walnut halves
1/4 C white sugar
2 Tbls. kosher salt
Add these to a hot pan and allow the sugar to carmelize and "get chunky" around the walnuts. At that point, add:
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
freshly ground black pepper

Add a little water to the pan to make a syrup of the carmelized sugar, swirl to coat. Dump the walnut mixture onto a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet. Place in 350 degree oven, bake for about 8 minutes until crunchy.

Rainy Day Blues

Another in a long string of rainy days here in Northern California; like most of the U.S. we are experiencing a strange weather pattern. It's also the NCAA tournament, which both Bill and I enjoy, so we decided to order a pizza and open a new bottle of a barbera/nebbiolo blend purchased from Lot 18. The wine definitely helped us get over the disgusting pizza from New York Pizza, which when I think about it (we're in California, why am I eating pizza from NY Pizza) tasted like it was flown in from the Rotten Apple.

What we drank:
I'Uvaggio Di Giacomo Il Lupo 2003
This is a 61% Barbera, 39% nebbiolo blend. The nose was odd - not much there, with light notes of slate, yeast, and violets. Thank goodness the wine delivered much more than the nose indicated. It was very smooth, just a hint of tannins and still rather hot. with 14.5% alcohol. The front of the palate was rich with dark cherry and blackberry, with hints of briar and oak. The mid-palate brought in rich cinnamon and pepper, and a bit of the violet I picked up in the nose. The finish was smooth and rather tannic, with lingering flavors of cherry and cinnamon. I gave this wine a 7 because of the nose, and have to say I had two glasses, more than usual just because it was so drinkable.

Hic...

Epiphany

Back from a long road trip to Fresno for work, I was crashing watching Top Chef (where d'ya think I get all my great cooking inspiration?) when Bill suggested opening a bottle of wine. I had gotten a white wine from Lot 18 that I had put in the fridge and forgotten, and that was what we chose. It was an inspired choice, perfect for relaxing and watching other people sweat over a hot stove.

What we drank:
Epiphany Inspiration 2008
This is a white blend and it truly is an epiphany. The full-bodied nose was predominantly apple and oak, with a hint of lemon. The front of the wine was a lovely smooth balance of fruit and acid, with notes of apple, lemon, mandarin, and a hint of oak. The mid-palate was a bit hot, although still smooth and well-balanced, with an added note of peach. The finish was silky smooth, bringing in some tannins, and lingering notes of creamy peach and oak. I rated it 8 out of 10, and just lovely. It was great just to sip, and I think it would be excellent with spicy Thai food, creamy pasta dishes, and risotto.

I Love to Cook with Wine Part Deux

It's been raining for what feels like months, although it's really only been a week. Northern Californians either wholeheartedly embrace the rain and fog typical of winter in our Mediterranean climate, or (like me) wholeheartedly despise the gloomy weather. In typical years, our winters are quite mild with beautiful deep, clear blue skies and temperatures in the mid-50's to mid-60's, interspersed with some heavy rain/fog/windstorms. This runs from about late November to early March. Every once in a while, though, we have very wet winters with rainstorm after rainstorm, and gloomy day after gloomy day. That's been this winter, and I am heartily sick of it. On the plus side, though, because we haven't been able to use our outdoor kitchen and grill, I am doing quite a bit more cooking at the stove. This has resulted in dedicated time to perfect a few things I have been trying to master for years. Bolognese sauce is one of those.

I like to use a zinfandel or sangiovese for red pasta sauces because I like the fruity and peppery notes these wines give to the sauce. Tonight, though, we had a Petite Sirah open from the night before and there was quite a bit left. I have this quirk that whatever wine I put in the sauce has to be drunk with the meal, or the experience just isn't right. Weird, I know, because I don't do this at restaurants at all. So, I decided to try the Petite Sirah, not wanting to have two open bottles hanging around. The sauce turned out to be one of my best efforts yet, and the wine complemented the meal perfectly. Below are the recipe and my tasting notes.

Bolognese ala Francesca

1 lb. ground beef, veal, pork, or turkey
1/2 C chopped onion
1/2 C diced carrots
1/2 C diced celery
3-4 cloves pressed garlic
1 Tbl. extra virgin olive oil
Basil, oregano, marjoram, thyme, either fresh or dried, to taste
1 large can tomato puree or tomatoes in sauce (chop tomatoes if using those)
1 small can tomato paste
1 C red wine
2 Tbl. mascarpone (fresh mozzarella) cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Brown ground meat in skillet. Drain, remove meat and set aside. Heat skillet over medium heat, add olive oil. Add vegetables, pressed garlic, and herbs, saute until onion is golden and soft. In large saucepan, add meat, vegetables, tomato puree (or tomoatoes and juice), tomato paste, and red wine. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 45 to 60 minutes, until desired consistency is reached. Add mascarpone cheese, salt and pepper to taste. (Actually, I usually taste the sauce about halfway through and adjust all the seasonings.)

To serve pasta and sauce, I cook the pasta until it is nearly done (remove about 2 minutes early) and drain it. Then I put the pasta back into the pan, add the sauce, and cook this over medium-low heat for the remaning time.

What we drank:
Bogle 2004 Clarksburg Reserve Petite Sirah Merritt Island
The nose was lovely, full-bodied and rich with blackberry and oak. The front and middle of the wine were nicely balanced and very smooth, with deliciously juicy flavors of blackberry, oak and cinnamon. The finish, though, was quite tannic, and felt rough to me, although I loved the lingering notes of pepper and oak. I gave the wine 7 out of 10 because I felt the finish was flawed. However, I did notice that with time in the glass, the tannins softened and became much rounder, making me wish we'd aged this another year or so. Bogle sold out of this wine a long time ago, and this was our last bottle, so I am sad. Live and learn!

Another Red Wine Reduction

My kitchen experiments with wine continue, and as I gain confidence, I am having better results. Tonight was one of those dinner emergencies that often create wonderful culinary experiences. I was going to make Italian sausage with onions and red peppers over rice, and sadly when I pulled the sausage out of the fridge, it had expired a week ago - on the same day I bought it. Shame on me for not checking, and shame on the high-end market where I bought it. Fortunately, the sausage was sitting on the same shelf with some butternut squash ravioli I just bought (I prefer my homemade version, but rarely have time to roast the butternut squash and make the pasta dough...) so I had an immediate vision of that ravioli in another red wine reduction sauce.

I decided to try the ravioli with a different version of the red wine reduction I last made, and it really turned out well. This version was even more rich and flavorful, and would have gone better with my homemade ravioli which has a stronger, smokier flavor. It also would go well with roasted or grilled salmon, or even a pork roast. Here it is:

Fran's Red Wine Reduction #2

1 1/2 Tbl. extra virgin olive oil
1 sweet onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 Tbl. maple syrup
1 750 ml bottle red wine (I used Bogle Petite Syrah)
1 500 ml bottle ruby (red) port (I used Bogle Petite Syrah Port)
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 Tbl. butter
2 Tbl. flour
1/2 C toasted, chopped pecans (optional)

Heat a 6-qt heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and heat. Add onions and garlic and saute until golden, 8-10 minutes, adjusting heat as needed.
Add wine, port, and maple syrup, stir and simmer over medium to medium-low heat for about 1 hour, until reduced to 1 quart.
Strain sauce into 3-qt. saucepan, place over medium to medium-low heat and simmer until reduced to 2 cups. Taste sauce, add salt & pepper to taste, adjust sweetness as needed.
Make a roux in a small saucepan: melt butter and add flour, cook and stir over medium heat until mixture begins to brown, remove from heat.
Add a little of the wine reduction to the roux, blend with whisk. Add to reduction sauce, blend well with whisk.
Continue simmering sauce until desired consistency; add toasted, chopped pecans if using.

Enjoy!

Wine + Cheese = Dinner!

After we moved to California, I first lived in Novato, a small town in the north bay area. Nearby was a lovely cheese factory, Rouge et Noir, where my husband Bill and I would stop on motorcycle rides through the tranquil rolling hills and canyons. This is where our practice of making dinner out of wine, cheese, and either bread or crackers became an art form we practice happily to this day.

Tonight, I had a wonderful smoked fontina cheese from Whole Foods Market that I prepared by melting it in a hot skillet. First, I heated the small skillet over medium heat, then added a tablespoon of lemon-infused olive oil. (Note: this works best with a cast iron skillet and can be done over a campfire as well.) When that was hot, I covered the bottom of the skillet in thin slices of the smoked fontina and let it melt and begin bubbling. This I wisked quickly to the patio table, where the crackers and a bottle of wine awaited.

What we drank:
Bogle Vineyards 2007 Reserve Zinfandel, Lodi
This wine is a bargain at under $20. The nose is a lovely balance of oak, tannins, pepper, and blackberry. The front of the wine is a little hot, although the balance is very nice with flavors of cherry, oak, and a hint of rose. The mid-palate is somewhat stronger in tannins, and the oak is more pronounced. The finish in smooth and very peppery, which lingers on the palate along with the cherry. I think this wine would do better with more aging, and gave it 7 out of 10. We bought two bottles at our last Bogle excursion, so I am going to stick one in the wine fridge and see how it does in a year or two.

This wine went very, very well with the smoked fontina and sesame crackers. There was a lovely interplay of flavors where no one flavor was overwhelmed and everything worked together quite nicely. Sitting on the patio on a perfect early-Spring evening, with the fountain running and the birds chirping, I had that "I love California!" moment that makes life here so special and memorable. When are you coming to visit? The guest suite is waiting, the wine is ready, where are you?

I Love to Cook with Wine

"I love to cook with wine," the tile in my kitchen proclaims, "Sometimes I even put it in the food." I laughed when I bought it, because it's close to the truth. The fact is, I do love to cook with wine and I am always looking for new ways to incorporate it into my cooking. Tonight's meal was a good example.

Butternut squash ravioli are one of my favorite ravioli, except I have never been able to find a sauce that pairs well and is light. I have made many variations of browned-butter and sage sauce, but it's just too heavy for my taste. I've tried several lighter cream sauces, but they seemed innocuous compared to the rich flavor of the butternut squash. After several hours of pondering this afternoon, it occurred to me that a red wine reduction might pair well, particularly if made with the right wine. So here is what I developed:

Fran's Red Wine Reduction for Pasta
1 large sweet onion, sliced
2 Tbl lemon-infused olive oil
2 Tbl fresh thyme, removed from sprigs (or just chop up several sprigs)
1 bay leaf
2 C red wine, Merlot or Pinot Noir work well, should be fairly fruity
2 C chicken stock
1-2 Tbl. maple syrup
1/2 C toasted pecans, chopped (toast in 350 degree oven or brown in butter on stovetop)
4 Tbl butter

In a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat, add olive oil and heat. Add onion and saute for five minutes. Add thyme and bay leaf, saute for another minute or so. Add wine and broth. Bring to boil and cook until reduced to 1 cup, about 35-40 minutes. Midway through, taste the reduction. If it is too tart or sour, add the maple syrup to taste. I also added a cocoa spice rub from Dean & DeLuca at this point, it had cocoa, cinnamon and nutmeg, if you want to try that. Continue cooking until reduced; remove from heat and strain through a sieve into a smaller saucepan. Place over low heat and bring to a simmer. Add butter and whisk until incorporated. Continue to simmer until thickness is to your taste. Add toasted pecans just before serving, and then pour over pasta. Be sure to have some thick crusty bread on hand to sop up the remaining sauce. You could use port for this reduction, especially if you want a sweeter sauce.

This was fantastic with the butternut squash ravioli. The fruit and acid were a perfect complement to the sweet, rich flavor of the butternut squash, without being too rich or fatty. The toasted, chopped pecans added a lovely crunchy texture to the dish. Even my ultra-picky husband loved this!

Lot 18 Finds

A few months ago, one of my magazines had an invitation to join Lot 18, a members-only wine sales website. I joined, and we've been enjoying ever since. Lot 18 has a wide variety of wines at discounted prices, although usually only six to nine are available at any given time, and all sales have time limits. What I like about the site is that if the wine is rated, the ratings are disclosed along with the review, so I have some idea of what I am buying when I don't know the winery or vintner. The wines have arrived within days of ordering, another nice bonus, although the flat $10 shipping makes some less expensive wines not worth buying from the site.

What we drank:
Stolpman Vineyards, La Coppa Sangiovese 2009 Estate Grown, Santa Ynez Valley
First, I am a fan of the Sangiovese varietal, which typically pairs well with tomato sauces and tomato-based dishes, pizza, richer seafood and meats. This wine is a very nice example of the varietal. It starts with a full-bodied nose of oak, currant, and bright red cherry. The front of the wine is a big pop of fruit, with notes of currant, cherry, and nice oaky tannins. The mid-palate is smooth and develops into plum and pepper, and the finish is a lovely lingering oak and pepper velvety smoothness. This is quite young, and as it sat in the glass, the wine continued to improve and develop some lovely layers in the mid-palate and on the finish. I originally gave this 8 out of 10 points, and after just tasting it again, I am upping it to 9 out of 10. I really like the finish on this wine, and I think it will be stellar with food.

There are so many ways to buy wine here in California - at wineries, at tasting rooms, at wine bars, and online. Each method offers something to the buyer, and typically I prefer to taste before I buy. However, with some online wine websites including wine ratings and reviews, it takes some of the risk out of buying this way. In addition, because Lot 18 is only a wine broker, the wines ship directly from wineries, so you have some reassurance that the handling will not damage the wine. You just have to be home when the delivery comes (or ship to work...hmmm...might be tempted to drink it at work!)