J.Wilkes Wines at Delius Restaurant

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Looking forward to this dinner and seeing Wes Hagen again.  I know the food will be good because Delius always comes through, www.deliusrestaurant.com. This will be my first encounter with J. Wilkes wines, expect for a small taste of one of the wines 3 weeks ago.  I was not familiar with this label until Wes made the switch from Clos Pepe to J. Wilkes.. Numerous people I knew were in attendance. A good group to share a meal with.

Started out with a dish of Argentine Langostines with citrus zest, toasted hazelnuts, Asian pear and frisee salad. This dish was my least favorite of the night. The langostines were whole, head on. Made for messy eating. The flavor was good but I felt mine were a bit over cooked. Not as sweet and moist as they should be. Flavor was good with the salad but again we have that damm frisee that is hard to eat without cutting it up. I personally have an aversion to having to cut a salad. It should come from the kitchen ready to eat plus this one was in a bowl which makes it even harder to cut larger pieces of lettuce. The wine paired very well with the food. A 2014 Pinot Blanc. But it also made a fabulous picture on Facebook.

Second course was a Pork Belly Ravioli with brown butter and roasted sunburst squash. This was my favorite dish of the evening. Excellent flavors and the brown butter gave it the magic touch. A 2013 Santa Maria Valley Chardonnay was served. A tad oaky but the oak was cut by the richness of the ravioli. 

Third course was a Crispy Skin Duck Breast. Delius's duck breast is always perfect.  They do an outstanding job with duck breast and lamb chops. No one does this better. This dish was full of flavor. Served with roasted brussel sprounts,  fried sunchokes  and red wine cherry reduction. Paired with a 2013 Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir. Had a taste of this wine a few weeks ago and thought it was a bit rough. Tonight's  wine was a big difference. Could be bottle variation. This pinot was a blend of Bien Nacido, Solomon Hills, Sierra Madre vineyards with a small amount of Garey's vineyard in it.  A very pleasant, drinkable wine and a good pairing.

Main course served was a Pink Peppercorn Crusted Rack of Lamb with parsnip puree, haricot verts and lamb demi.  Another excellent dish. Lamb chops were cooked perfectly.  Accompanied by a 2013 Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir. (the menu said Santa Maria Valley but that was a typo). This was a very good Pinot. Sourced from vineyard that I was sworn to secrecy not to reveal their name. 

Dessert was yummy. A  Blackout Cake with Mulberry-Kumquat syrup, Mulberry ice cream and a citrus tuille. Light and refreshing. Beautiful flavor.

Another excellent wine dinner at Delius. Good wines from J. Wilkes.  Great to see Wes again. Good table companions.  Looking forward to next weeks wine dinner with Lane Tanner of Lumen Wines. Should be another good evening at Delius.