Delius Restaurant, http://www.deliusrestaurant.com/, held a wine dinner this evening. I had tasted Demetria , http://www.demetriaestate.com/, wines at the Malibu Wine Classic so I was looking forward to this dinner. I have done many dinners at Delius over the years and they are all good. A few have been over the top and this was one of them. The food was up several notches from their usual excellence. These wine special wines dinners seem to bring our such creative instincts in the chefs. Most of the food dishes at these special dinners will not be repeated and do not show up on the regular menu except for a very rare occasion.
I was seated at the table with Michael Roth, the winemaker at Demetria. Very personable person and a good dining companion. One of the nice perks about dining at Delius on these special wine dinners is that if you are a single diner they sit you at the table with the wine rep. There were 3 of us singles tonight. One person I knew and the other was new dining companion. We had a great dining experience and everyone seemed to have a really good time. Toby who usually joins us was dining with friends that night at another table.
Appetizer was a "Shrimp, Sage & Sweet Potato Ravioli, baby arugula with a balsamic reduction". The reduction was a perfect pairing with the ravioli. Could not have been better. This was served with a 2006 Demetria Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay. The grapes were sourced from the old "Ashley's Vineyard". The wine by itself had just a tad too much oak on it for me personally but when drank with the food they complimented each other. The oak was cut by the food and went very well with the dish.
The salad was "Braised Leeks, Mascarpone Sorbet, Red Pepper Foam & Basil Oil". The leeks were caramelized and all the flavors seemed to meld together. Each bite was perfect. The mascarpone sorbet was a very interesting touch and although it seems strange it was a perfect accompaniment to the leeks. This dish was served with a 2005 Demetria Papou (Rousanne & Viognier). Again another great pairing.
First course was "Roasted Duck Breast, Yukon Gold Potato & Brie Hash and Red Wine Veal Sauce". Louise is a master with duck and lamb and again this dish showed it. The skin was extra crispy and not a drop of fat was to be seen. The potato and brie hash was outstanding. Something I would bever had thought to put together. The wine was a 2006 Demetria Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir. Again the grapes were sourced from the old Ashley's vineyard.
Main course was a "Thyme-Mustard Crusted Lamb Chops, Butternut Squash & Braised Shallots. The lamb was full of flavor and the crust was really well balanced with the squash and shallots. A 2005 Demetria Estate Cuvee Constantine was served with the lamb. This wine is a Red Rhone blend of Mouvedre, Grenache, Syrah & Viognier. This was the highest alcohol wine of the evening at 14.8%. It did not had the taste of a high alcohol content and again a very good pairing with the lamb.
We finished with a Chocolate Espresso Alomond Cake with Peppered Whip Creamd Raspberry Compote.
Demetria is closed to the public. I will be stopping in at the invitation of the winemaker when I am up in the area in October. There wines are available online and at Wine Crush in Long Beach and Hi-Times in Newport Beach. The wines are medium priced and I found that I liked them.
The dinner was a smashing success with me. Fantastic food and good wine. Yes it was a little pricey at $85 but the quality of the food is worth it. I would prefer to dine out a little less often and be able to thoroughly enjoy a dinner at this level. This is one of those dinners I will remember for a long time. Great food, good wine, good service and no one hovering over you table trying to get you to leave so they can seat another party. I do like the concept of "Prix Fixe" dinning.
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