While we were still in Las Vegas, we really tried to monopolize the time with our kids.  While they were making final arrangements, we wanted to make sure that they were eating properly, after all, isn’t that one of the functions of being a parent?  We were also still on Detroit time, so if the bar at our hotel/casino opens at four o’clock, it is still seven o’clock for us, and we are used to eating at least by five.

Ever since My Favorite Daughter got married and the wedding was held at the Suncoast Casino and Hotel, we have been staying there, except for the odd times for a business trip.  The complex is in a major renovation that began last year, when we were in town and it is still on-going.  For ages, the hotel felt like a “senior citizen” complex, but no longer, as Summerlin now has the cachet for the region.   There was an Italian restaurant there, that I had originally ate at, when they were on The Strip.  Now, I was taking the crowd that was still in town there for dinner; two of the grandchildren had to get back to Detroit for either college or work.

The bar at William B’s Steakhouse opens at four, and the restaurant opens at five, but the bar menu had plenty of offerings.  The bar didn’t take reservations, and my memory only recalled booths for six, but I was hoping that they would find accommodation for a party of eight, and they did, in a little alcove just off the bar and technically in the restaurant, but I wasn’t going to complain.  We, just left it to each person to order, plus the grandchildren knew if they could order drinks or not, and they knew that their grandfather would turn a blind eye if they wanted some wine.  It was easy to get a couple of bottles of Tommaso Gambino Cuvée Brut Prosecco Veneto, Italy NV.  Gambino Prosecco was launched in 2015 and is owned by GV Liquid Group, Inc.  The Gambino winery is based in Sicily, but they also produce a Prosecco from the Treviso and Valdobbiadene regions.  The chalky soil of the Treviso area compliments the winery’s image of their wines in the shadow of Mt. Etna.  The Glera grapes are hand-harvested and then undergo gentle pressing to minimize any bitter tannin extraction.  Primary Fermentation is in Stainless-Steel temperature-controlled tanks, and the Secondary Fermentation occurs in pressurized tanks using the Charmat Method.  The entire process takes about forty days to maintain flavor freshness.   A soft-lemon colored wine with small to medium size bubbles offered notes of peaches, green apples, citrus with traces of bees wax, herbs and spices.  On the palate this light-to-medium, well-balanced sparkling wine displayed tones of green apples, passion fruit and lemon zest blending with some acidity, with a soft brioche and ending with a short-medium count finish of fruit, citrus and wet stones.

It was quite an evening of assorted seafood appetizers and dishes, and plenty of cheeseburgers, and may I opine, that I truly think that a steakhouse delivers the best burgers, along with classic salads and sides.  And then followed by assorted desserts, I know that this old curmudgeon had his fill, and I can also safely say that the assorted college age students and parents were also well fed.  Of course, these days I tend to have side-stepped desserts and go for some additional liquid enjoyment.  I had a glass of Taylor Fladgate Ten-Year-Old Tawny Porto NV.  Port or in Portuguese Porto gets its name from Oporto and the famed Douro Valley in northern Portugal. The name was changed to Porto, because of all the inexpensive wines that flooded the market years ago called Port. If you ever get a chance to see a fine list of Porto wines being offered you will be surprised that they all seem to have English or Scottish names in the brand, and that is because for years the chief market for Porto wines was England, though the rest of the world has caught up with it. There are several distinct types of this wine, and a Tawny is just one of them. A Tawny is a slightly lighter colored wine, hence the name, but especially in an older blended wine like this one, the nuances of the wine can be greatly appreciated; the other thing about a blended 10 Year old is that it can be enjoyed immediately as opposed to a Vintage Porto that may require another twenty years in the cellar to fully appreciate the complexity, and many consider a Vintage Porto to be one of the finest wines known to man. The most common varietals for this wine are Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and/or Tinta Barroca.  A deep amber colored wine with notes of dried fruits, almonds and chocolate.  On the palate this full-bodied, well-balanced wine displayed rich tones, but medium-sweetness of stewed and dried fruits and medium chocolate and ending with a long-count finish of dried fruits, nuts and a touch of caramel.