Washington Wines at Arte Cafe

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Chateau St. Michelle was the wine house for tonight's dinner. They have numerous labels under their roof so tonight's dinner featured several of them.  Richard has gone up a bit on his price for dinner. It is now $65 which is still a bargain in today's market. Always has raffle items, bottles of wine etc., included.  

Started out with  appetizers of a Shrimp in pastry and Mushroom & Cabbage Spring Roll. Both were quiet good. Wine was a Domaine Ste. Michelle Sparkling Brut. Good choice to start dinner with.

Then onto a Shredded Chicken with apples on arugula with a Riesling , Olive Oil dressing and Parmesan cheese. Nice flavor. Chicken was moist. About half way through I decided I was starting to fill up so I took the remainder home.   A 2016 Chateau Ste. Michelle, Canoe Ridge Estate, Horse Heaven Hill, Chardonnay was the paired wine. Again a very nice pairing. Wine was not oaky and had a nice restrained crispness to it.

Second course is a Butternut Squash Gratin with Leeks, Duck Confit and Thyme. Excellent flavor, heavy dish as it is fall and time for the heavier foods for our hibernation.  I forced myself to eat the entire dish. But I am really full for some reason and I did not have any bread or rolls. Paired with a Spring Valley Vineyards, "Nina Lee" Syrah, Walla Walla, WA. Apparently "Nina Lee" was a vaudevillian  who married the founder of Spring Valley Vineyards. Nice catch. Good pairing also. 

Third Course is a Filet Mignon with Lump Crab Meat, fresh Asparagus, Truffled mashed potatoes and a Bernaise Sauce. Ate about one third of this dish and boxed it up to take home. A first vintage, 2015 Col Solare, Cabernet Sauvignon was the selection. This is a wine made in conjunction with Antinori from Italy.  Very good wine and it was a 94 pointer from Wine Advocate.

Dessert is a Pumpkin Cheesecake with a Pecan Praline Topping. Heavy duty. Great flavor but so rich I could only get through about two thirds of it. This entire meal was on the heavy side. Paired with a Eroica Gold Riesling. Not fond of the pairing. Two much acidity in the wine and it was a sharp contrast to the creaminess of the cheesecake.

Lots of raffle prizes. No winner here but someone did get a Riedel decanter along with a bottle of the Cabernet.

Charcoal - A Love Affair Dinner at the Playground

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Back to the Playground. www.playgrounddtsa.com.. I did this themed dinner earlier in the year and liked it so much I had to do it again. I also knew that the food dishes would be completely different. 13 courses and 2 desserts tonight. 

We started out with a cocktail made from Gin, Genepi, Citrus simple syrup and Charcoal Tincture. Dark grey in color and had a very slight smoky taste to it. Quite good.

Started out with a bread that was very dark grey/black in color. They took the flats of housemade dough and grilled them. Bread puffed up nicely. Had a really interesting taste to it. Served with their housemade butter.

Grilled dates with chicken liver mousse, pistachio, berbere, (Ethiopian Spice Blend)  candied lemon, mint.  Grilling dates makes them far more interesting and it really brings out the sweetness of them.

Charrred eggplant, tahini, pine nuts and zhoug. ( A green paste made with middle eastern spices, chilis, cilantro, parsley and garlic).  I am not an eggplant fan but had seconds of this dish. It was that good, I would had more except I knew the amount of food that was coming up.

A Poe, Rose, Sonoma County was served  with these dishes.

Grilled and chilled flank steak with grilled labne (Lebanese cream cheese) and crunch tabbuleh.

Grilled Gem Lettuce, pumpkin seed miso, lime and agave vinaigrette, radish, corn puree, grilled corn, tomatoes,  cranberry and cotija. Salad was a kitchen sink - very good, loads of flavor.

14 day aged Kingfish sashimi, charcoal oil and puffed rice.  Supple and flavorful.

Grilled Sea Bass, bone sauce and XO. (dried innards coked with shallots, garlic, chili and oil)

2017 Domaine La Ruse, Puligny-Montrachet, Premier Cru La Garenne was the wine with these dishes.

Christmas Lima Beans with charcoal butter, grilled scallions and chives. Not a fan of lima beans but these were smaller and I had seconds and took the leftovers home. 

Grilled pork jowl ( so good)

Hen of The Woods mushrooms, marinated in oil and grilled.

Grilled suckling lamb chops, vadovan (spice blend) yogurt marinade and pomegranate molasses. Lamb was cooked perfectly. I did not expect anything other..

2016 Once & Future, Contra Costa County, Oakley Road Vineyard, Mataro (Mouvedre) was the pairing.

Grilled cabbage with shiro-lime emulsion and Bubu-Acacia. (nuts)

Grilled A5 Wagu Beef.

2005 Hendry Vineyards, Napa Valley, Cabernet Sauvignon.

Lemon Sorbet

Chocolate caramel tart with charcoal cream.

San Rafael, Spain, Jerez-Xeres. Sherry

All the food is outstanding at the Playground. I have never been disappointed in anything. It is hard to describe how innovative the food is here. There go oit of their way to make sure dishes are not repeated on their themed dinners. Looking forward to "Road Trip, Israel next month.

Tercero Wine Dinner Al Fresco

Friday, November 11, 2019

Larry Schaffer of Tereco wines brought an array of his wines tonight. Dinner outdoors at Chef Louise's.  www,cheflouisecatering.com.  Weather is absolutely perfect for tonights dinner. 

Started out with Salmon Mousse and capers on toast and a spicy meatball.  Wine was a 2018 Tercero Mouvedre Rose. One of my favorite Rose wines.

First course is a Chipoltle Aioli Crabcake. Great flavor with just the right amount of kick in the Aoili.  Paired with a 2015 Tercero Granache Blanc.   One of the few white Rhone wines I like.

Next is a Creamy Mushroom-Walnut soup. This was a standard at Delius. Forgot how good it is. Earthy and supple.  A 2014 Tecero,  Roussanne, Zaca Mesa Vineyard.  I am not a fan of this grape but Larry served the wine just slightly chilled more towards room temperature and I found it to be  more pleasant on my palate. 

Third Course served is a Crispy Skin Duck Breast with Rhubard Gastrique and Acorn Squah-Farro. Duck was cooked perfectly and the gastrique was a good foil for the duck.  A 2016 Terecro, Cinsault was the paired wine. Nice pairing.

Entree is a Coffee Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Red Wine Pan Sauce and a Leek, Cauliflower, Potato Gratin. The Gratin had a great creamy texture to it. Paired with a 2016 Tercero, Sryah. Again a very good pairing.

Dessert was a Banana Cake with sliced bananas in a  caramely sauce and ice cream,

Dave brought out a few wines from his cellar, 2000 Tobin James, Charisma (Zinfandel. LaVie Vineyard, Plum Chardonnay and a 2004 Asagass Syrah.

Perefc t evening for Al Fresco, great food and wine and a really good group of people to share it with. 

555 East Steakhouse

Thursday, November 10, 2019

Five of us tonight for dinner at 555 Steakhouse in Long Beach. 555east.com. A great array of wines and food. 3 of us shared the Chateaubriand. Which was naturally outstanding. Along with mushrooms, spinach,  potatoes etc.  I had the  fresh oyster, 2 each of Coromandel, Island Creek and Copps Island.  Can't beat the quality or the "no corkage".  But the wines tonight were the star of the evening. All showing extremely well.  Hard to pick a favorite

2008 Henriot, Millisemme, Champagne 

2012 Williams Selyem, Drake Estate Vineyard, Brut Rose

1990 Robert Mondavi Winery, Napa Valley, Cabernet Sauvignon

1990 Jordan, Alexander Valley, Cabernet Sauvignon

2005 Shafer, One Point Five, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District,  Cabernet Sauvignon

2010 Saxum, Paso Robles, Broken Stones, Blend

1009 Chateau Rieusse, Grand Cru Classic, Sauterne

Oktoberfest at Jagerhaus

Saturday. October 5, 2019

Margies monthly dinner selection was the Jagerhaus in Anaheim. www.jagerhaus.net. Small group tonight which was good as the restaurant was packed. Everyone celebrating Octoberfest. The fest runs from late September to the first Sunday on October. This is probably why the restaurant was packed with people on the first Saturday.   Unfortunately it showed in the service which was very slow tonight.

A wide variety of items were ordered for dinner. I had the venison which was very good. Came with potatoes and red cabbage. 

The wines that were brought tonight are a real mixed bag.  Lots of whites. I tasted a few but since the white wine was kept in a cooler on a back table it was really a big inconvenience to get up every ten minutes or so and get another pour. Hence I drank from the bottles that were within easy each for me. Aside from a few I can recall the name of that I drank I cannot remember much of what I drank. Labels are confusing and with an overkill on white wines I wasn't that interested.  For people bringing mostly white wines my Dornfelder was a huge hit with them.

2012 Huber, Sta Rita Hills, Dornfelder

NV   Pin Piu, Mosel, Petnot, Sparkling Riesling

2014 Cardinal Cusanus, Stiflswein Brauneberger, Juffer Somnenuhr, Mosel, Riesling Spatleste

2014 Assmann Shauer, Hollenburg, Spatburgunder, Kabinett Trocken

2018 Graacher Himmelveich, Riesling Spatleste

2015 Cotes  du Rhone, I.V. Fleury

NV   Weingut Lothar Keltern, Spatburgunder Rose . Sekt

2016 Shine, Gewurztraminer

2017 Von Winninz, Sauvignon Blanc

2016 Rotwein, Trocken Spatburgunder

2018 Credia, Monterey, Gewurztraminer

2015 Fess Parker, Sta Rita Hills, Pinot Noir

2016 Castello di Amorosa, Anderson Valley, Gewurztraminer

2016 Heitz, Napa, Chardonnay

Charles Krug at Arte Cafe

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Arte Cafe in Cerritos hosted a  dinner featuring Charles Krug wines which is now owned by the Mondavi's.  Riana Mondavi was in attendance to show case these wines. Large crowd tonight but not packed full as the last dinner was.

My biggest complaint was the music. A live band playing outside on the patio was so loud that you could not have a quiet conversation. Sure glad I was not an outside diner tonight. 

We started out with a Seared Sea Bass with greens, blue cheese crumbles and a Sauvignon Blanc vinaigrette.  Interesting to have warm sea bass with cold greens. But it worked.  Paired with a 2018 Charles Krug Sauvignon Blanc. Way to acidic for my taste. More in the line of New Zealand Sau Blanc which are not on my favorite list.

Second course is a Grilled pork loin with apple cider cream sauce and couscous with herbs. A very good dish. sauce was excellent. Pork was cooked perfectly for me. The couscous was perfect. A 2017 Charles Krug Chardonnay was paired with this dish. Slight Oak but drinkable.

Main course is a grilled flank steak with blue cheese butter, to die for and some greens along with a roasted potato and Brussels sprouts. Good flavors. Wine selected was a 2016 Charles Krug Merlot. For a merlot this was good.

Dessert is a dark chocolate cake with raspberry puree and fresh raspberries. Cake was light and a good ending to a very good dinner.  Wine paired is a 2016 Charles Krug Cabernet Sauvignon.  A OK pairing .Wine was good.

Good dinner, a fun time and Arte Cafe 's wine dinners are the bargain of the year compared to other restaurants.

Molto Italiano Dinner at the Playground

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Playground restaurant in Santa Ana, www.playgrounddtsa.com. hosted another "road trip" dinner. I liked the first one so much I returned.

Started out with a cocktail made from smoked tea, Contrieu and Red Rosso a vermouth style liqueur from Italy. Light and refreshing. I liked it but I noticed about a third of the 18 diners didn't drink it.

12 course tonight and 3 desserts. Up first was a plate of house made Foccacia which they make with their own sourdough starter.  House made butter and fig jam accompanied it. 

A salad made with frizee, radicchio and other greens, pistachios and pears along with a shallot vinaigrette . Flavors were very good. But not date night food. I

Next was a dish with various diced tomatoes, fennel and green and purple basil. None of the ingredients are on my like list. But it did have good flavor if you are into tomatoes and basil. 

Cheese Financier ( almond french cake) with pinenuts, house made burrata and caviar. This I could have ate all night. Outstanding flavors and extremely addictive. 

A dish of Tripanata , have no idea what that means and googling it result in nothing. Had some tomatoes among other things with buckwheat over toast. Very good but odd.

A chicken thigh in soffritto with mascarpone polenta. To die for. 

Another to die for dish, Gnocchi in beure monte sauce with parmesan. Gnocchi was so soft and pillowy . Melted in your mouth. Justin is a master at making these jewels.

Escarole with caramelized onions, pork shoulder and toasted breadcrumbs. Another great flavored dish. Makes you want to like escarole. One diner (blond female) thought it was escargot. Obviously she doesn't know much about either. 

Another great dish from Justin, Garlic Risotto with pinenuts. Loads of garlic Perfect texture.

Grilled sea bass with porcini sauce and grilled zucchini. Cooked almost perfectly Just a teeny, tiny off perfect. 

Grilled flank steak , cooked perfectly for me. Nice red interior. Hot gill marks outside.

Hash brown with gremolata.  Potato was a large rectangle with the sauce on top. My least favorite dish. I think the hash brown itself was overcooked and had a hard exterior..

Desserts were a poached pear sorbet, nice light and refreshing. Good palate cleanser.  A Pistachio Lava cake with semifredo and a Budino tarte biete with whip cream. 

Wines tonight are Adriano Adani Prosecco, 2018 Aia Vecchia, Vermention. 2016 Isole e Oleans, Chianti Classico, 2016 Vigneto Bordin, Barneresco, 2014 Ciacca Piccolomini d'Araga, Brunello de Montalcino.  Topped off with a small glass of Amaro Montenegro. A botanical liqueur.

Another great dinner at the Playground 2.0 Room.  Looking forward to the Charcoal dinner next month and the Road Trip to Israel dinner in November.