Calcareous Wine Dinner

Friday, July 30, 2010

Delius Restaurant in Signal Hill, www.deliusrestaurant.com, hosted a Calcareous wine dinner this evening. Rick Potruch was down from the winery. I met Rick last year when he was the rep for Opolo wines.

Calcareous is in the Paso Robles area on Peachy Canyon Road between Nadeau and Stacked Stone. Wines are reasonably priced.

First course: Braised Pork Belly with corn puree, pineapple compote with radish. Delius always does well with pork belly. It was so tender you could cut it with a fork. This was paired with a 2008 Calcareous Viognier/Marsanne. This dish and wine pairing was voted the favorite of the evening.

Second Course: Salmon Terrine with oyster mushrooms and oven dried tomatoes. Paired with a 2007 Calcareous York Mountain Pinot Noir. Flavor was good and went well with the wine.

Third course: Roasted Duck Breast with dried cherries, baby turnips and gnocchi. I'm a sucker for good duck and this did not disappoint me. Also the gnocchi were so very tender. They melted in your mouth. Wine with this dish was a 2006 Calcareous Syrah. Good pairing.

Fourth course: Lamb Loin Sous Vide with white bean puree, parslied shallots, baby carrot and lamb jus. Lamb was very tender and I really liked the white bean puree. Personally I prefer lamb chops over lamb loin because I feel it has more intense flavor. This dish appealed to people who are not lamb lovers. The wine paired with this dish was a 2006 Calcareous York Mountain Caberent Sauvignon. This was a nice cab and paired well with the dish.

Dessert was a big winner - "Coffee & Donuts" - Expresso Panna Cotta, Buttermilk Donut (like a donut hole), raspberry puree and coconut crisp cookie. Excellent. Everyone loved this dessert.

This was my first time tasting Calcareous wines and they are worth taking a look at. When I venture up to Paso Robles in November I plan on stopping in and taking another look at the wines.