Gaja Wines at Michaels on Naples

Friday, June 14, 2019

Giovanni Gaja was in house to present his wines at tonight's dinner.  Interesting menu and a nice line up of wines. There were five of us tonight for this dinner.  They poured a glass of champagne to whet out appetites for dinner.

Started out with Polipo.  Octopus carpaccio, Taggiasca olive, fried artichoke leaves. The meat was so thin and had such delicate flavor. The olives gave it just the right amount of brine.  Wine was a 2016 Gaja, Chardonnay, "Rossj Bass" Langhe Piemonte.  $ 95.  A clean Chardonnay, slight minerality to it. Good wine and paired well.

Second course is a Vitello Tonnato.  Roasted veal shoulder, tuna sauce, caper-berries and Pursulene. Meat was tender and full of flavor. The thinly sliced radishes gave it a bit if a bite but not over whelming. Tonnato (tuna sauce) was a really nice added touch. Paired with a 2015 Gaja, Ca'Marcanda, "Magari" Bolgheri, Toscano.  $60. A red blend, Nice pairing but I tried the chardonnay with this dish and I liked it just as well if maybe  a bit better.

Third course is a Faggiano.  Roasted pheasant stuffed with chicken livers, black lentils and lardo. Lardo is cured pig fat. Fat is taken near the skin and cured over a period of time. The curing takes away the fattiness.  Delicate flavor. This was a rich dish but exceedingly good. Wine is a 2015 Gaja, Barbaresco, Piemonte.  $210.  Rich and lush. A good foil for the richness of the pheasant and livers.

Next is Cavetelli.  Hand rolled ricotta pasta, braised pork shank and gremolata.. Pasta cooked correctly. Not too al dente. You could actually bite through it without grinding your teeth. Sauce was perfect.  A 2004 Gaja, Bunello di Montalcinho, "Rennina", Montalcino, Toscana. $270.  Rich, opulent, bold wine.

Fifth course is Cervo.  Broken Arrow Ranch vension, Weiser Farms potatoes, fava beans. Venison was not gamey at all, very tender. I really liked the flavor of the potatoes. Very small cooked with skin on.. 2015 Gaja, Ca'Marcanda, "Ca'Marcanda", Bolgheri, Toscano. $145, A red blend. Another big, lush wine. Excellent pairing.

Dessert was a Zabaglione and almond cake. Not to heavy and a nice touch to the meal. We did get a glass of a sweet dessert wine. Have no idea what it was because the brought the glass out filled.

Good food and good wine. But the prices I listed for the wines were for bottle purchase at the dinner. They printed "limited time price".  I found all these wines listed at different wines stores for much less money. All of these wines a readily available in California.

The majority of time when I do these wine dinners I take home the last course so I can have dessert. I am usually very full by the end of the meal. Tonight it was quite different. I devoured everything on my plate and nothing went home with me. Portions on these dinners are usually small which suites me so I have no idea why I did not feel full after 5 courses and dessert. I had one piece of bread so I wouldn't fill up early in the meal. In retrospect I could have had several pieces.

A few of us discussed if we felt the dinner was worth $210 plus tax & tip. (about $270). We did not . Thought is should have been more in the range of $160 to $170.