I have been a little remiss about mentioning some of the escapades of The Caller. The Caller as you may recall is a dear friend of ours and he and his charming wife go out for dinner often, and periodically he may tweak my nose with some messages and photographs of where he is, their dinner and of course the wine. Now The Caller is also big on trying some of the new and some of the very old cocktails that are reemerging and enjoying their time in the sun again, not that he is usually out in the sun.
The Caller sent me several messages about two months ago that he was at Knight’s Steak House in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I have never been to Knight’s even though there are two locations in Ann Arbor and another one in Jackson, Michigan. One evening we almost went to the Jackson location, but got so sidetracked at a winery and a late lunch that we did not need to have another meal. I have heard plenty of good reviews about the restaurant and knowing The Caller as well as I do, I would have to presume that his steak dinner was excellent, because that is the only time that he likes to tweak my nose, when he is having a grand time without us. He is that type of guy, but we love them anyways and tend to overlook that characteristic flaw of his.
He sent me two pictures of the wines that they were enjoying that evening, one was a Pinot Noir. The first wine was from the Willamette Valley in Oregon and that is an area that is known for having great success growing the finicky Pinot Noir grape. The wine is from Amity Vineyards and the label reads Amity Estate Pinot Noir 2011, and that it is a single vineyard wine. Once again, because I have not had the wine, I cannot relate anything about it, but since The Caller mentioned it, he must have enjoyed it. The other wine that he had, was a one-up on me, as the grape variety I have only had once and it was blended with several other varietals, and he had it straight up, so I am intrigued. They were enjoying Bouza Tannat Reserva 2013 from Montevideo, Uruguay. The Tannat grape originally came from the Basque region of Spain, but that area also straddles part of France and the grape is known from there as well. While the grape is not as popular in France it has been found to grow well in parts of Australia, in North America (California, Oregon and Virginia) and in South America (Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay). Tannat has become the wine in Uruguay, especially in the Montevideo region of the country and is becoming the grape for the country. I know that it will be a wine that I will be trying in the future. As I like to say to The Caller, that when I grow up, I want to be like him.
I’m keen to try Tannat too. Loved reading the post.
Thank you for stopping by and thank you for the kind words. – John
There are two Knight’s in A2. The original which looks like it hasn’t been updated in 40 years and one downtown that just opened a couple years ago. I’ve had execution issues at both, but decent when they get the steaks right. Good wine list. What sets them apart are the generous pours on wine and cocktails. Martinis are the size of a swimming pool.
John, I do have to get to at least one of the restaurants for my own opinion. I always hear how good the steaks are, so I must give them a try. I was sure that you had been there. Thank you for your insights. – John
The new one is much nicer, but the old one is a definite time warp.
Uruguay makes amazing wines out of Tannat. They really have handled well the crazy tannins of the Tannat. The country wine industry has a nice international future ahead.