Wednesday, December 18, 2019
Last wine dinner of the year tonight. Restaurant is packed, large crowd and tables put everywhere. I have never seen so many people here for a wine dinner. Napa Valley & Bordeaux comparison. 12 wines, 6 courses and dessert. At the price of $69, Biggest bargain of the year. All wines were good but I and the people I was with all agreed that Bordeaux had the edge. Some of the pairings left a little to be desired. Don't know who did the selections but they missed the mark on several pairings.
Assorted cheeses paired with Scattered Peaks, Napa Valley and 2015 Chateau Blaignan, Medoc. 3 cheeses, one a smoked gouda that did not pair with the wines.
Herb Meatball with Truffle oil, bok choy and slivers of yellow and red pepper. Large meatball but mine was under cooked. I could not taste the truffle oil but I could get a real hint of chile. I wondered if someone in the kitchen grabbed the wrong oil.. A very definite bite . The two wines were St Supery, Rutherford and 2014 Chateau Dufort-Vivens, Margaux.
Roasted root vegetable salad with greens, oregano and sage. Baby root vegetables were very good but I felt that if we had a plate of just the vegetables and it was warm it would have paired much better with the wine. Nevers, Left Bank Red and 2015 Chateau Malmaison, Moulis-en-Medoc.
Beef broth with beef, chives and sour cream. This was a winner. Simple but effective in flavor. 2016 Hall, St. Helena and 2014 Chapelle de Meynay, St. Estephe.
Petite Filet with asparagus and Roquefort cheese , balsamic reduction. Cooked perfectly Reduction had loads of flavor. 2016 Whitehall Lane, St, Helena and 2017 Chateau Mongravey, Margaux.
Grilled Rib Eye with diced Yukon potatoes, green beans and a Bordelaise sauce. Again meat was cooked perfectly. Richard has upped his game in cooking beef. Always been a fabulous seafood, lamb, duck cook but had a tendency to over cook beef. 2015 Clos du Val, Stags Leap and 2015 Chateau Clarke, Listrac-Medoc.
Dessert was a chocolate mousse with macaroons.
Thursday, December 19, 2019
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Bubbles and Bites at Gelsons
Tuesday, December 10, 2019
First time going to the expanded wine bar at Gelsons market. www.gelsons.com. Have not been in this grocery store in years. Wine/Beer bar sits 10 at the higher level and has a low set up for 2 because of ADA requirements. This was a Champagne tasting on the medium to higher scale. Bottles were available for purchase, which many people did, but I found the "special tonight prices" to be on the high side. The Clicquot Yellow Label special price was $55. Regular price was listed at $65 - I know several places that it can be purchased anytime in the $43 to $45 range. But Gelsons is a high end market and prices reflect that.
We were served a plate that had 4 cheeses and 4 proteins. Each set was to go with a particular wine. All the pairings worked well together
First in the line up was Veuve Clicquot Yellow Brut along with Campofrio Jamon Serrano Spanish Ham and Brillat Savarin (triple Brie) cheese.
Veuve Clicquot Rose with Les Trois Petits Cochons Duck Mousse and Emmi Gruyere Cheese.
Moet & Chandon Brut Imperial with Creminelli Varzi Salami and La Tur Mixed- Milked Cheese (slightly funky)
Moet & Chandon Brut Imperial Rose with Les Trois Petits Cochons Duck Confit and Red Cow Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese (too much hard rind that was uneatable)
Ruinart Blanc de Blanc with Lobster Salad Slider.
Ruinart Rose with Chocolate Covered Strawberry (huge).
I preferred the Ruinart Blanc de Blanc. All the wines were very good but that one was my favorite of the evening.
The wine bar is a nice set up. You can have lunch there and order a glass or wine or beer (tap). Great if you live in the neighborhood.
First time going to the expanded wine bar at Gelsons market. www.gelsons.com. Have not been in this grocery store in years. Wine/Beer bar sits 10 at the higher level and has a low set up for 2 because of ADA requirements. This was a Champagne tasting on the medium to higher scale. Bottles were available for purchase, which many people did, but I found the "special tonight prices" to be on the high side. The Clicquot Yellow Label special price was $55. Regular price was listed at $65 - I know several places that it can be purchased anytime in the $43 to $45 range. But Gelsons is a high end market and prices reflect that.
We were served a plate that had 4 cheeses and 4 proteins. Each set was to go with a particular wine. All the pairings worked well together
First in the line up was Veuve Clicquot Yellow Brut along with Campofrio Jamon Serrano Spanish Ham and Brillat Savarin (triple Brie) cheese.
Veuve Clicquot Rose with Les Trois Petits Cochons Duck Mousse and Emmi Gruyere Cheese.
Moet & Chandon Brut Imperial with Creminelli Varzi Salami and La Tur Mixed- Milked Cheese (slightly funky)
Moet & Chandon Brut Imperial Rose with Les Trois Petits Cochons Duck Confit and Red Cow Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese (too much hard rind that was uneatable)
Ruinart Blanc de Blanc with Lobster Salad Slider.
Ruinart Rose with Chocolate Covered Strawberry (huge).
I preferred the Ruinart Blanc de Blanc. All the wines were very good but that one was my favorite of the evening.
The wine bar is a nice set up. You can have lunch there and order a glass or wine or beer (tap). Great if you live in the neighborhood.
Monday, December 9, 2019
Christmas Dinner at The Silver Trumpet
Saturday, December 7, 2019
Silver Trumpet Restaurant at the Avenue of The Arts Hotel
Last dinner of the year arranged by Margie. Beautiful restaurant, Silver Trumpet in Costa Mesa.
www.silvertrumpetrestaurant.com. Hotel was decorated beautifully for the holidays.
We had the choice of regular menu of a prix fixe. Opted for the Prix Fixe. 3 courses and it was more than enough for me. I chose the onion soup which was very good for a starter.
My main was lamb chops which were very flavorful and cooked perfectly along with a medley of vegetables.
For dessert I chose the Tiramisu. Had favor but was the strangest Tiramisu I have had. Round, tall stack with what looked like crushed Oreo cookies.
Wines were an interesting mix. Some never made it to our end of the table so I did not get a chance to taste them. I brought a 2011 Tercero, "The Climb", Petite Syrah and Syrah. Bigger, bold flavors, Soft and elegant on the palate. Went very well with the lamb.
2017 Merry Edwards, RRV, Meredith Estate, Pinot Noir - did not taste
2016 Zosia, Diamond Mountain District, Napa Valley, Red Blend - interesting blend, medium body.
NV Beau Joie, France, Brut Champagne - copper clad bottle, very impressive. Slightly yeasty, a tad acidic, good wine.
2016 The Hilt Vanguard, SBC, Chardonnay. - Very slight oak on the back palate but overall the taste was similar to Chablis.
2012 Saxum, Broken Bones, Syrah blend - Saxum is always big and good. Bold flavors.
2016 Schramsberg, Calistoga, Brut Rose - this wine is always a winner.
2018 Weiussenkirchen Riesling, Austria - Nice, clean Riesling.
2013 Dragonette, MJM, Syrah - did not taste.
2012 Sea Smoke, SRH, Seaport - a port style from Pinot Noir grapes. A bit on the sweet side, not rich in flavor.
2014 Melville, SRH, Syrah - good balance, soft tannins, drinking very well now
2015 Story of the Soil, SM, Pinot Noir- very light in color and taste, light cherry
Silver Trumpet Restaurant at the Avenue of The Arts Hotel
Last dinner of the year arranged by Margie. Beautiful restaurant, Silver Trumpet in Costa Mesa.
www.silvertrumpetrestaurant.com. Hotel was decorated beautifully for the holidays.
We had the choice of regular menu of a prix fixe. Opted for the Prix Fixe. 3 courses and it was more than enough for me. I chose the onion soup which was very good for a starter.
My main was lamb chops which were very flavorful and cooked perfectly along with a medley of vegetables.
For dessert I chose the Tiramisu. Had favor but was the strangest Tiramisu I have had. Round, tall stack with what looked like crushed Oreo cookies.
Wines were an interesting mix. Some never made it to our end of the table so I did not get a chance to taste them. I brought a 2011 Tercero, "The Climb", Petite Syrah and Syrah. Bigger, bold flavors, Soft and elegant on the palate. Went very well with the lamb.
2017 Merry Edwards, RRV, Meredith Estate, Pinot Noir - did not taste
2016 Zosia, Diamond Mountain District, Napa Valley, Red Blend - interesting blend, medium body.
NV Beau Joie, France, Brut Champagne - copper clad bottle, very impressive. Slightly yeasty, a tad acidic, good wine.
2016 The Hilt Vanguard, SBC, Chardonnay. - Very slight oak on the back palate but overall the taste was similar to Chablis.
2012 Saxum, Broken Bones, Syrah blend - Saxum is always big and good. Bold flavors.
2016 Schramsberg, Calistoga, Brut Rose - this wine is always a winner.
2018 Weiussenkirchen Riesling, Austria - Nice, clean Riesling.
2013 Dragonette, MJM, Syrah - did not taste.
2012 Sea Smoke, SRH, Seaport - a port style from Pinot Noir grapes. A bit on the sweet side, not rich in flavor.
2014 Melville, SRH, Syrah - good balance, soft tannins, drinking very well now
2015 Story of the Soil, SM, Pinot Noir- very light in color and taste, light cherry
Saturday, December 7, 2019
Haewah Dal Korean restaurant
Friday, December 6, 2019
New restaurant in the Belmont Shore area of Long Beach. www.haewahdal.com. There were six of us tonight. We all had good opinions of the place. Interior is beautiful, table settings are upscale and the wine glasses are good quality. Service was very good. Food was excellent. But I do think that this will be a short lived restaurant in the place it is at. It is too pricy for the area. The area is "walking". The foot traffic will bypass it because of the pricing. It is a great destination restaurant and would be better suited someplace else.
There were six of us tonight. We all had good opinions of the place.
All of us choose the six course tasting menu at $80 per. plus $20 corkage for each bottle They did give us a few "amuse bouches" along with the six courses.
Started out with a Heirloom tomato marinated in 2 year aged plum juice. The marinating took the acidity out of the tomato. Next we had fried oyster in squid ink with mustard grain aioli And a dish of sweet potato fries, Very thinly sliced and salted. Presentation is everything.
A bowl of Seaweed soup with Kimchi fritter and spinach. Great flavor.
I choose for my tasting menu Diver scallop, mushroom, roasted beets and butternut squash. Scallop cooked perfectly. Flavors were great. This is a three bite dish.
Tuna tartar, trout roe, Korean pea and seaweed cracker. A tasty morsel. Again 3 bites. But with the long gold metal chopsticks it became a few more.
Chilean sea bass with Doenjang marinade (soy bean paste) berry chutney, green beans, Korean black raspberry wine reduction. Again a extremely good dish. This one was about four bites.
3 day processed braised short rib with gingko nut, dikon radish. I was a bit disappointed in this dish. Meat was tender and flavorful but a bit on the dry side.
Lastly came Bansang. Small side dishes served with rice.. Kimchi, spinach and a few other bites. There was sauce that you mix in with the rice along with some shredded vegetables. I ate a couple of the side dishes and left the rest. At this pint I was full. Dishes were small in portion but I was full at this point and we did have dessert coming.
Two desserts were served. Cheesecake ice-cream with raspberry compote and a Red bean gelee with chestnut.
There were four wines tonight6 I brought a champagne from Reims, France. Parker and Co. Fiurst year imported into the US. Bought a six pak at a tasting a few months ago. It was as good as I remembered. Everyone seemed to agree.
2015 Arbe Garbe, Sonoma, blend of bianco, tocai and ribolla gialla..
2016 Mail Road, Sta. Rita Hills, Pinot Noir
2017 Williams Selyem, Russian River Valley, Pinot Noir
New restaurant in the Belmont Shore area of Long Beach. www.haewahdal.com. There were six of us tonight. We all had good opinions of the place. Interior is beautiful, table settings are upscale and the wine glasses are good quality. Service was very good. Food was excellent. But I do think that this will be a short lived restaurant in the place it is at. It is too pricy for the area. The area is "walking". The foot traffic will bypass it because of the pricing. It is a great destination restaurant and would be better suited someplace else.
There were six of us tonight. We all had good opinions of the place.
All of us choose the six course tasting menu at $80 per. plus $20 corkage for each bottle They did give us a few "amuse bouches" along with the six courses.
Started out with a Heirloom tomato marinated in 2 year aged plum juice. The marinating took the acidity out of the tomato. Next we had fried oyster in squid ink with mustard grain aioli And a dish of sweet potato fries, Very thinly sliced and salted. Presentation is everything.
A bowl of Seaweed soup with Kimchi fritter and spinach. Great flavor.
I choose for my tasting menu Diver scallop, mushroom, roasted beets and butternut squash. Scallop cooked perfectly. Flavors were great. This is a three bite dish.
Tuna tartar, trout roe, Korean pea and seaweed cracker. A tasty morsel. Again 3 bites. But with the long gold metal chopsticks it became a few more.
Chilean sea bass with Doenjang marinade (soy bean paste) berry chutney, green beans, Korean black raspberry wine reduction. Again a extremely good dish. This one was about four bites.
3 day processed braised short rib with gingko nut, dikon radish. I was a bit disappointed in this dish. Meat was tender and flavorful but a bit on the dry side.
Lastly came Bansang. Small side dishes served with rice.. Kimchi, spinach and a few other bites. There was sauce that you mix in with the rice along with some shredded vegetables. I ate a couple of the side dishes and left the rest. At this pint I was full. Dishes were small in portion but I was full at this point and we did have dessert coming.
Two desserts were served. Cheesecake ice-cream with raspberry compote and a Red bean gelee with chestnut.
There were four wines tonight6 I brought a champagne from Reims, France. Parker and Co. Fiurst year imported into the US. Bought a six pak at a tasting a few months ago. It was as good as I remembered. Everyone seemed to agree.
2015 Arbe Garbe, Sonoma, blend of bianco, tocai and ribolla gialla..
2016 Mail Road, Sta. Rita Hills, Pinot Noir
2017 Williams Selyem, Russian River Valley, Pinot Noir
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