Dona Paula Wines at Utopia

Thursday, October 27, 2016

Another wine dinner at Utopia.   www.utopiarestaurant.net       This time it is with a winery in Argentina.  Dona Paula from the Mendoza area. An interesting collection of guests tonight. One woman even had the gaucho hat and split skirt on. Big earrings - looked very Argentinian. 

Ended up having 3 glasses of Chardonnay before our first course arrived. Utopia has never been known for fast service. But you learn to deal with it.  A 2015  Chardonnay - I would have thought it was from California with the oak - it had seen about 30% oak but that is about 25% too much for me. Nice slight green apple, touch of tropical fruit.  Did pair well with the Ceviche de Mariscos. Not much ceviche but lots of lettuce and ridiccio. 

Second course was a Wild Mushroom Ravioli with a sundried tomato cream sauce. This was a very nice dish. Good flavors. Wine was a 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon. Light tannins, decent fruit but way to young.  Don't think this is a wine for cellaring but at $12 a bottle it was OK for dinner.

Main course served a a pair of  Grilled Lamb Chops with caramelized onions and garlic, goat cheese and roasted pine nuts. Good flavors. Naturally the chops were overcooked by my standards. And unfortunately the mashed potatoes were  luke warm. paired with a 2015 Malbec. Again way too young but the better wine of the evening. Selling for $11 per bottle.

Dessert was Utopia's standard Tiramisu which they make themselves. Always very good . A glass of Croft Distinction Port accompanied the Tiramisu. Decent port.

Utopia's food is always decent, some things better than others. But at $55 for a wine dinner it is always a bargain. They are generous on their pours. Service is always up and down depending on which waiter you get that night.  But it always takes awhile to get through these dinners. Starts at 7:00 pm and I got home at 10:30 pm.