The Grill at the Ritz

Posted on April 21, 2016 by thewineraconteur

I am actually writing this article, on the day that I met my Bride, but that is an article that I wrote years ago several years back, and you may have missed it. Anyway, I realize that the title of this article is a bit vague, as several Ritz establishments have The Grill, but the one I am writing about was in Dearborn, Michigan. This particular Ritz was always hinted at, that it was the most affordable of all the hotels in its chain, and that could be. Though from the time that you met the valet for your automobile and encountered the doorman, you realized that you were at the Ritz, and not an ordinary hotel, it may have been affordable, but the service was still stellar. I think that the most incongruous feature was that when one had their reservation for The Grill, one had to pass by hordes of people that looked like they were at an amusement park, instead of the Ritz, I guess that is just my last century upbringing coming to the surface.

Heitz Cellar Marthas Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 1986

One night we were having dinner with our family from Louisville and The Grill was the chosen destination. One could tell that this was a much more laid-back Ritz as the restaurant was not sequestered off to the side, but just seemed to be part of the main hall. It certainly worked well for their famed Sunday and Holiday brunches. After being seated for dinner and studying the menu and the wine carte, we proceeded to order for the evening. My Bride started off with Caesar Salad and it was the classic version, while I opted for the classic French Onion soup. The other couple had a Caprese Salad and a classic Shrimp Cocktail. They then proceeded to have a Filet Mignon for my Sister-in-Law, while my Brother-in-Law had Dover Sole, a dish that he tends to order whenever he gets the chance. Of course we are creatures of habit as well, and my Bride had Pan Roasted Salmon with capers and olives, while I went with Braised Short Ribs of Beef with Ciopillini Onions. We ordered some sides of asparagus and the Five Mushroom and Onion Braise. A truly delightful meal with outstanding service and worthy of the Ritz and their well earned fame.

Ritz-Carlton Matchbook

After cocktails we had selected almost the perfect bottle of wine, but then again both my Bride and my Brother-in-Law both have no problem having a full bodied red wine with their meal. We enjoyed a bottle of Heitz Cellar Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 1986. This is one of the first of the legendary Cabernet Sauvignon wines to emerge from Napa Valley in the Sixties. The wine was first produced in 1965 and Heitz was so impressed with the 1966 vintage that he insisted that Martha’s Vineyard be added to the label. Martha’s Vineyard is still in production today and it is strictly an agricultural pursuit and they have sold all their production each year, by agreement, to Heitz Cellar. Even though Heitz Cellar is in St. Helena, Martha’s Vineyard is located in Oakville and nowadays the wine carries the Oakville AVA, but back then it just read Napa Valley. While the wine is from 1986, it was not bottled until 1990, so it had plenty of time to mature at the winery. For such a great wine there was quite a large production, as according to the label there were 6,938 cases of wine produced as well as 2,400 Magnums, and each bottle receive it owns number. It was a great meal and wine, up to the standards of other restaurants that we have dined at, at other Ritz locations.

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Cuisine, the Restaurant

Posted on April 19, 2016 by thewineraconteur

One never knows what will invoke memories. Since I just wrote about the Restaurants of the Year, as reported by one of our daily papers, I got my memory working again. As I lament that matchbooks no longer are a staple “give-away” sometimes one needs a prodding from other sources, such as Cuisine, a very fine restaurant on the back side of the Fisher Theater in the New Center section of Detroit. The Fisher Theater is one of our grand institutions to see theatrical productions in the Detroit area and for years we maintained season tickets, which alas we have given up, as it was harder and harder to get another couple to join us. I remember the first time we went to Cuisine, as we tied the dinner into seeing Neil Simon’s Laughter on the 23’rd Floor, his comedic take on the days when he wrote for Sid Caesar during the glory days of television in the Fifties of the last century. As I went searching for the Stage magazine for this play, as I do like showing visuals with my articles, I also reread the magazine. I knew that Howard Hesseman was the star of the production, but when I looked at the cast, I was surprised to see that an actor that was born in Grosse Pointe, Michigan was part of the supporting cast. This actor is J.K. Simmons who two years ago received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and I just found this fact to be cool. He has also become a regular guest on one of the local talk shows that I listen to, especially when he can lend something for one of the many fund raising projects that are a hallmark of the Detroit area in times of concern and empathy.

Avignonesi Grifi 1993

As for Cuisine that evening we enjoyed a wonderful meal. We started off by sharing a cold Charcuterie plate of Duck Liver Pate, a Country Pate and a Seafood Pate with the proper accompanying sides, and you may notice that my Bride and I often share an appetizer, especially when it is rich, and may account for the reason that my physician is always admonishing me about my slightly above the “norm” cholesterol numbers. For our entrée dinners my Bride went with sautéed Lake Perch as she is very partial to fish, and I opted for Beef Tenderloin and Beef Short Ribs with Horseradish potatoes. After dinner we had coffee and sherbet as we went with something light after the fine meal, and didn’t want to be over sated before we went to watch the play.

Laughter

Of course we enjoyed a bottle of wine with our meal, and we opted for a Super Tuscan, which was not as popular of an item then, as it is today. We had a bottle of Avignonesi Grifi 1993. Avignonesi is a fine winemaker from the Montepulciano area of Italy. This bottle was listed back then as Vino da Tavola Rosso di Toscana, which roughly translates as Red Table Wine from Tuscany, and you will notice that is predates the Toscana IGT designation that we now see so often for red wines from this district that are blended with varietals not indigenous to the area. In this case the wine was a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese; Sangiovese is the work horse of the district. It was such a delightful wine, but I know that it was overpowering for my Bride’s entrée, but she will endure the juxtaposition of red wines with her fish, knowing that a white wine would not compliment my beef choice, and she has really found an appreciation for big red wines. See what happens when something triggers my memory banks and I finally search for all the pieces for a great evening.

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Detroit: Food and Wine

Posted on April 17, 2016 by thewineraconteur

I was born in Southwest Detroit and I grew up in Detroit, and even went and finished college there as well. I have watched through the years the changes that occurred in my city and I am so proud to watch the changes that are happening. For years Detroit was dynamic and proud, the Arsenal of America, the Motor City and then it hit a wall, that has made it the butt of jokes for years, and I am observing the slow return of the city it once was. When I was young the city was bustling with well dress men and women that went out for dinner, drinks and dancing, and then the horizon changed. And then it changed again, this time for the better, alright the well dressed part has not arrived, but Detroit is thriving with activity and it is becoming known for food and restaurants and that makes me smile. With quality restaurants on the upswing, which also tells me that better wines will be pouring to accommodate the cuisine.

Gaja Sperss Barolo 1991

Detroit has still managed to maintain two newspapers, which is unique anymore for most cities, and even though I do not care for the political bias of the morning paper, I still read it, with my morning coffee, as I believe news should be reported and not be editorialized, but I am old fashioned. I am only mentioning the newspaper, because they recently announced the top restaurant for the year and of course that caught my attention. One of my constant laments is that restaurants no longer use matchbooks, and that was one of my main sources of remembering a night out and the wine for the evening. I am elated that my memory has been jogged, so I shall look at the winners, since this concept has started:

Carruades de Ch Lafitte-Rothschild 1966

2000 was the first year, and the first restaurant to be awarded was Tribute and a grand restaurant it was. I wrote about a dinner and the wine that we enjoyed there, of course there were still matchbooks, back then.
2001 was The Hill and of course the matchbox allowed me to recall some visits there.
2002 was Cuisine, and we have been there, but I realized that I did not write about it, because I have no matchbook from there.
2003 was The Grill at the Ritz Carlton, and we have eaten there, but alas, I did not write about the dinner, as the romantic (that I try to be) I wrote of the first night that my Bride and I met, and how we ended up having coffee in the lobby, and I am glad to say that anniversary will be remembered again on April Sixteen.
2004 was Jeremy Restaurant & Bar, and yes we went there, but I have so far neglected to regale you with my memories.
2005 was the Five Lakes Grill, which was always one of our favorite restaurants and I actually wrote about the night of the Morel Dinner and I was with The Caller and his wife, and my Bride was out of town.
2006 was Seldom Blues and this was a restaurant that we had never gone to, and I guess we never will, as it closed in 2010.
2007 was the Beverly Hills Grill and still one of our favorites for breakfast, lunch or dinner; and they have recently remodeled the entire restaurant, while still maintaining some of the classic dishes that the regulars almost demand.
2008 was Saltwater at the MGM Casino in Detroit, and while I go to Las Vegas often, it is to see our children and grandchildren, and not to gamble. I mention this, because this is another restaurant that we never went to and I guess we never will, as it closed in 2012.
2009 was Michael Symon’s Roast and the Westin Hotel, which was the old Sheraton Cadillac that has been brought back to life. While I have discussed an evening there at the hotel, as of yet, I have not mentioned our dinner at Roast.
2010 was the Forest Grill, which was not near a forest, but located on Forest Street and is since 2015 when it changed ownership is now known as Forest. This was the restaurant that the owner/chef from Five Lakes Grill opened to be closer to his clientele, because Five Lakes Grill was quite the drive for most people. I had never dined there, but my Bride has, she tends to get around even more than me.
2011 was Union Woodshop, another restaurant that we have not made a trip to get to.
2012 was The Root, another great restaurant, which seemed out in the hinterlands, because you could not get there from here. Another delightful meal that I have so far neglected to write about, but that will be corrected.
2013 was Bacco Ristorante and one of the finest Italian meals one could ever have. We have ate there often and I wish that we would eat there more often, but it is more of an event restaurant, and oh so wonderful. It also has one of the finest wine cartes of Italian wines that one will ever encounter and we have had some great memories of our times there.
2014 was Torino, a very small and unique restaurant that we missed going to and it closed in 2015, so we never got there.
2015 was Selden Standard and I wrote a couple of articles about the wine tasting dinner that we had there, through the auspices of Elie Wine Company and the delightful wines and stories that were furnished by Jean-Francis Bourdy and his family’s wines of the Jura.
2016 is Chartreuse, named for the famed drink and located in the Park Shelton Hotel, next to the Detroit Institute of Arts on the campus area of Wayne State University. We go to the DIA often and this will give us a fine reason to stop there and write about our experience.

Bourdy Chateau Chalon 1947

So while I have enumerated all of the winners in the Detroit area according to our morning paper, I am really excited, because it reminded me of the dinners and the wines that I have not wrote about, because sometimes when I don’t have a matchbook or some other object from the venue, I tend to not write about the moment. Of course, this also gives me a reason to go into my boxes of wine labels and not the photographs of the bottles. What joys and pleasure wine brings to me.

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A Milestone of Sorts

Posted on April 15, 2016 by thewineraconteur

I guess I should pay more attention to the information that my publisher gives to me, but at times, at this point in my life I do not like to be rushed. I tend to try to keep a series of articles lined up, because there are times that the Muse has not tickled my fancy and I do not write. I like some semblance of balance in my life, and something that I do for fun, should not feel like a job or to require a deadline. A couple of articles later I discovered that I had wrote and published nine-hundred articles, the majority of which I am proud of, and some are what I call fluff, but it all depends on my Muse and my mood. In the first year that I started being The Wine Raconteur I wrote an article to be published every day, just to get into the habit, as it had been years since I had been a student and writing was not what I did often enough. Since that first year, I allowed myself some leeway and published an article every other day, and I tried to always have it at the same time. I might also say Blast Daylight Savings Time, which always throws my articles off a couple of times each year, as I do not plan ahead enough.

Cru Chardonnay 2011

When I actually realized that I had published nine-hundred articles, even I was amazed and I took the trouble to announce it on Social Media, which for me is Facebook and Twitter, and both of them perplex me at times. I might add that it was one of the highest ranking posts of “likes” that I have ever posted, and I have included the same picture here. On Facebook I went to so far as to create a second page, just for The Wine Raconteur, which I try to keep chaste and only for the announcements of my articles, in hopes of getting more readers. I wish to thank my Bride, some of my cast of characters and even some of my fellow Bloggers have over the years become my “friends.” Of course my main gripe about Facebook is that they keep bothering me daily to pay them a fee, so that they can get me more readers and “likes,” but I have refrained, as through the years of reading and observation, some of the high counts are from individuals that are on some type of payroll of Facebook to “like” certain sites. Thank you, but I will endeavor to slowly grow at the snail’s pace that I have grown.

Close Up

As I slowly keep trying to retire, along with my Bride, the rules keep changing and we keep plugging along, trying to have as much fun as we can. Lately we were both very busy and today, we ended up with a semi-rushed day, not enjoying the “Sprinter” weather. She decided to make a nice dinner of chicken, macaroni and cheese and broccoli. I decided that instead of one of our usual house wines to grab something more interesting and I must admit that we both enjoyed it. I opened up a bottle of Cru “Appellation Series” Chardonnay Arroyo Seco 2011, which I had received from my wine club A Taste of Monterey. Cru Wine Company began in 2003 as Mariposa Wine Company. Arroyo Seco which means Dry Creek is an AVA in the middle of the Salinas Valley in Monterey County and became an AVA in 1983. This particular wine is blended from the fruits of two vineyards; Marks Vineyard and Cobblestone Vineyard. From what I can gather from research, the fruit from Arroyo Seco is quite popular and is purchased by other wineries to blend and alas the wines made get an AVA of a larger designation, so the Arroyo Seco AVA is seldom seen. The notes on this wine claimed five to six years for cellaring and may I say that it was what I look for in a Monterey Chardonnay, more French, than California. Oh well until my next milestone.

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Did I Miss a Winery?

Posted on April 13, 2016 by thewineraconteur

It is always fun to hear about a winery, especially since I thought I missed one, and I did miss quite a few of them during our last trip to Niagara-on-the-Lake in Ontario.  One of my cast of characters that I have dubbed “The Messenger” sent me a photo of a bottle of wine that she was enjoying one day, while she was out and about with her daughter.  The next day while I was catching up on my reading of some of the other Wine Blogs that I follow, I discovered that Bill of Duff’s Wine wrote about the same winery.

Tawse Riesling 2014

 

The wine that I was informed about was Tawse Winery Riesling Niagara Peninsula VQA 2014.  At first I thought perhaps I had missed the winery and then upon further reflection, I realized that it was from the Niagara Peninsula and not from Niagara-on-the-Lake, where we had one of our holidays last year.  This area is part of the Niagara Escarpment and we had kind of passed it on our way, along the Queen Elizabeth Way, but it is located between Hamilton and St. Catherines, so I was a bit relieved, when I realized that it was not in the immediate area where we were touring.  Tawse Winery, Inc. is located in Vineland, Ontario, and they are not along side of the QEW, though I am sure that it was among the many wineries that were listed by the province as we drove the route.  Since I used to visit St. Catherines for years in my youth, this area was basically all orchards and mostly cherry farms.

Tawse Winery

 

Since Bill and The Messenger had both touted me on the wine and the winery, I had to do my research.  Tawse Winery, Inc. was the first winery ever to wine the Canadian Winery of the Year, three years in a row, which is 2010, 2011 and 2012 by the Canadian Wine Access Magazine.  The winemaker Paul Pender was also selected as the Winemaker of the Year in 2011 at the Ontario Wine Awards.  All in all some great accolades for the winery and of course, the wines.  I will venture to say, that the next time that my Bride and I make another journey to the Ontario wine country, I will definitely make a well deserved detour to see and try their wines.

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MWWC#24: Pleasure

Posted on April 11, 2016 by thewineraconteur

“Ya got pleasure Folks! Right here in River City, pleasure with a capital ‘P’ and that rhymes with ‘V’ and that stands for Vino.”

It is certainly a fact that Meredith Wilson did not write those words for Professor Harold Hill, but we have another entry for the Monthly Wine Writing Challenge. The last Challenge was won by Ted who contributed an article for The Drunken Cyclist and  as his reward he has suggested the next theme and that theme is “pleasure.”

wine-stain Monthly Wine Challenge

If there is anything I know about is the pleasure of enjoying wine. Not to blow my own horn, but anyone that has endured my writing for any period of time will realize that is all I write about. Some may even question the sanity of my writing, as I meander around and finally get to the wine. If I was writing newspaper articles, I would probably be fired, because as they say “I tend to bury the lead.”

The majority of my writing is about the pleasurable times and how wine adds to the festivities. It is all I write about; there are holidays, birthdays, dinners and almost anything gathering of friends or relatives that are not enhanced by the addition of wine to the moment.

Trouble

Wine that glorious beverage that has been around for centuries and has even been suggested to have been created by my ancestors of yore. Wine in any form, to me, makes the occasion more pleasurable. I have had enjoyable moments with bulk wines, boxed wines and even sometimes the nectar of the Gods, those fabulous wines that every wine writer wishes to associate themselves with.

After the Challenge is announced, I usually ponder what I can write about. I thought of rehashing earlier articles, which I have done at times, and I realized that wine and pleasure go hand in hand with all of my writings. I also realized that I tend to be all over the board with wines and my arcane asides, which only please me. I think of some of the cast of characters that I sometimes allow to invade my writing, because I can vicariously indulge in the pleasures that they confide in me about the wines that they have discovered. I may give them Damon Runyanesque or Dashiell Hammett nom de plumes, but that is my way of creating a mystique for some of my friends.

Aisle in the Cellar

Even my Bride is my Bride and I think of how she has evolved and she finds more and more pleasure from wines. When I first met her, she only drank white wines, when she wasn’t enjoying a Scotch and Water, while I would order a Whiskey Sour, and invariably the server would hand me her drink. As she slowly immersed herself into the wines that I would introduce her to, she discovered the pleasure of wines from all parts of the world. In fact I enjoy the fact that she now will want Cabernet Franc as her first choice, if she can get it.

When I was a youth drinking with my friends at the park with (God) forbid a bottle of Boone’s Farm, and if you are of a certain era like me, you can remember with a smile. Thankfully I discovered real wine during those days and I have not left that road since. Every bottle is a learning experience and another pleasurable moment and I realize that there are many bottles of wine that I have had, that will never be written about, until that moment that reminds me of another story, for that is what a Raconteur does.

Far Wall in Wine Cellar

The conceit of a Raconteur is to spread pleasure with his stories, sometimes with his tongue-in-cheek. This Raconteur has eschewed technicalities and for the most part, the wine jargon that is the stock and trade of the industry. Sometimes the color, the nose or even the terroir that one encounters from the particular wine may get a brief mention, because I tend to get stuck in the story and not how great I am for having a certain wine.

Once again I have meandered all across this article, because pleasure is where one finds it, and sometimes one has to see beyond the bottles to realize that one has found pleasure. I have found pleasure in so many ways; from building my own wine cellar that is now too small to the wonderful moments of dinners, tastings and tours. Though the real pleasure of wine is to be able to share the moment, sometimes just with my Bride and other times with a crowd. Family and friends are the vessel that makes the wine pleasure.

Corks for Trivet

 

“Ah sweet mystery of life, at last I found you”

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Of Tweeting and T-Shirts

Posted on April 9, 2016 by thewineraconteur

I will grant you, that the title of this piece is not as elegant as “of cabbages and kings.” This is a fluff article, which I do once in a while, if something catches my eye or interest regarding wines. Let’s face it, if pushed I could probably find a “hook” that would tie wine to almost any subject, similar to the way Mr. Portokalas can make any word derive from the Greek language.

Zin Shirt

As I have mentioned in the past, I was and still am a clothier, when I will be ninety, if I am still around, I will still be dressed probably in a French cuff shirt with my corkscrew cuff-links. I recently saw two T-shirts and one sport shirt that had wine motifs, in fact two of them had corkscrew as the featured item. They are very fun and witty, though you will never catch me in a T-shirt, perhaps if I were built like Victor Mature, then perhaps. Let us say, that rather than vanity, I will claim “age appropriate.” The other shirt that I saw was a traditional short sleeve sport shirt that would have the ability to disguise my “maturity.”

Warm up T                                  Clock T

The other thing that I want to mention is that I just discovered that I have five hundred followers on Twitter, and I have no idea what I am doing, when I am there, half the time. I think that they need a primer like Twitter for Dummies on their website. I mean half the time that I want to add in to the fun, all I end up doing is “retweeting.” I am so lost on that site, but to be truthful, I am still learning about Blogging, but then most people would agree on that. I think that I shall do what I do best and just go and relax with a glass of wine.

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Whiskeys on the Water

Posted on April 7, 2016 by thewineraconteur

The other day I ventured into a new restaurant that opened in Wyandotte, Michigan called Whiskeys on the Water. It was what one would call a “soft” opening, as they did not even have signage for the establishment up. The building I presume from the edifice was at one time a bank, later had become a theatrical and costume shop and later for a while had become a restaurant called Lions, Tigers and Beer, which you have to admit is a great name for a watering hole in the Metropolitan Detroit area. The commonality of most communities is that most retailing potential storefronts are now becoming restaurants and taverns, and though part of me misses the local retail environment, I do look forward to local eateries as compared to the chains that are so prevalent these days.

Dark Horse Merlot 2016

As I said this was a very “soft” opening of the establishment, and the menu was at the time a one page computer generated menu, and it was mostly sandwiches. This made sense to me, when one figures that they were opening up, testing the staff and the kitchen before finalizing the menu. Considering that Whiskeys on the Water had no signage on the façade, the restaurant was really jumping and I was there for a late lunch, when most workers would be back toiling at their jobs. Since the menu consisted at the moment of only sandwiches, it was quite easy to make my selection and I went with Roast Beef and Cheddar and it came with the usual French Fries. The sandwich was generous and sated me and I did nibble on the French Fries, which I normally would not order as I find them bland, but these were spiced well. My only complaint, if it is, and I understand the philosophy of “bar food” was that the French Fries were very salty, but that encourages an extra drink or so, I guess my Bride has made me eat too healthy, as in the old days I may have not even noticed the extra salt, but since they were in the testing period, I am sure that it may change.

MI Whiskeys on the Water Interior

The beverages were still being worked on, and from later conversations with some of the people affiliated with Whiskeys on the Water, I discovered that they have not even received all of the Whiskeys that they want to carry, which is a category that is becoming trendy in its own right. The wines I understand will also be in three tiers, the “house” brands, a selection of moderate priced wines and then a top tier of wines by the glass. All of the wines were being decided on, I am sure to accommodate the choices of dishes that are soon to appear, as they do not wish to rely just on sandwiches. The wine I tried with my sandwich was The Original Dark Horse Merlot 2014, which will be part of the “house” wines category. The Merlot wine is the latest of the selections being produced by Dark Horse Wines of Modesto, California and the winery has become a good seller across the country because it offers a good product for a good price. While the wine is listed as California AVA, the fruit basically comes from Lodi and the delta area of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys. I was impressed from my first visit, and from what I hear, it is Standing Room Only at dinner time, so I shall have to make a second trip there and see what the menu and the wine carte looks like when the dust is settled.

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Easter and Birthdays

Posted on April 5, 2016 by thewineraconteur

Easter is one of the major holidays for families, especially in this household, and it was also a way to tie in the birthdays of the month for some of the clan. We had a couple of milestones for birthdays as we had one celebrant that turned twenty-one and another celebrant that turned the Big Fifty. We also had the luxury of having our one son and his family in from Las Vegas, so we got a double shot of time with them.

Monna Lisa 1999

Needless to say there were some extra busy times in the kitchen for all of the extra people for Easter Sunday. My Bride was preparing ham, turkey and Fettuccine Alfredo as well as sides and salads, and everything else. She was extra happy that I decided to make by Sauce Bolognese and it is good that I made it, when she wasn’t home as she claims that I am OCD and that I make unnecessary messes and dirty more plates then needed, because of all of my prep work. I decided to have fun with it, and even announced that I was being creative on Social Media, and I even had two friends that followed my tedious step by step production, but that was all done in “messenger” format, rather then boor everyone on my site, not to mention to give away my secrets, as if I know what I am doing. Though I did post a photo of myself in a white Chef’s coat (it is amazing the crazy items that we have in this house) and one friend who is a Chef gave out an audible moan, and another “friend” being funny thought I looked like a dentist. There is no recipe and I do make my Bride a villain with the butchers, as I require a certain cut of meat, which then has to be ground. I also at my Bride’s request have to make enough to feed a small town, because she freezes some of it, because I complain if I have to have imitation pre-made sauce, if she is in a hurry to make a dinner.

Chef JAT

For years my secret ingredient for making my Sauce Bolognese was Molson Canadian Beer, as it gave a distinct nuance to the sauce, but one day when I was making it, I discovered that I had no beer in the refrigerator and I used wine (which we are never out of in this house). So when I got to the point where the wine should be added, I went to the cellar to search for a likely candidate. It has been told to me often that while I should not use top notch wine for cooking, I should never use wine that I would not actually drink, and that has been a good lesson for me. I was looking for the wine to use and was wondering if perhaps some of the wine may have been stored too long, which can happen in my cellar and I am sure that it happens in other cellars as well. I saw a bottle of wine that was given to me as a gift, because people know of my collection of wine labels that I have wall papered my cellar with. The bottle of wine was Cantine Leonardo da Vinci Monna Lisa Sangiovese Toscana IGT 1999, and of course the label depicted the famous Mona Lisa. The question to me that I pondered as I went back to the kitchen was, will the wine be over the hill? As I removed the foil cap, the cork look fine, and it came out intact without any difficulty and no crumbling, which were all good signs. Then the final and most important test came, as I poured some into a wine glass. The color was soft, as was to be expected for a seventeen year old wine, and the nose was soft, as some aged wines get, and then the taste proved that with proper storage, this wine had made the trip successfully. It was a very mellow wine, not a lot of nuance, but totally fine for the sauce and for me to have as I watched the progress of the pot. I venture to say that I may have enjoyed the wine at this stage more, than I would have, if I had opened right after receiving it. Trying to discover a bit more about the wine, as it only listed Sangiovese on the front and back label, but it carried the Toscana IGT designation, I had to do some research and as best as I can discern this wine was a blend of Sangiovese and Merlot, hence the Sangiovese Toscana IGT labeling, as Sangiovese is the grape of choice in Tuscany. I do feel that it made the day more interesting as I made my mess in the kitchen.

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More New Wines

Posted on April 3, 2016 by thewineraconteur

I am finally writing about the new wines that I received from my wine club A Taste of Monterey. Everyone that belongs to the club, probably received the wines a couple of weeks ago, but I asked that they delay shipping the wines, as it could be impacted by our recent trip to Las Vegas, and the club willingly obliged. I just enjoy great customer relations and service. As always the wines come with a pamphlet that contained an article about the varietal Pinot Blanc, an article about Stilton cheese, a recipe and a well written article about the passing of Richard Smith of Paraiso Vineyards, one of the “founding fathers” of Monterey County Wine. I have some wines from Paraiso Vineyards that I have mentioned from other shipments, but as of yet, they are still resting in my cellar, for future articles.

Pelerin SLH Pinot Noir 2012

The first wine that I received is Pelerin Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir 2012. I have received other wines from this winery and I have tried some as well, and so far I have been pleased with the wines. I am becoming quite a vocal fan of the Pinot Noir wines from Monterey County and especially from the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA. The aging potential for this wine is suggested as seven to eight years. Since I am not a winemaker, but from all that I have read, this varietal is very temperamental and is extremely hard to grow successfully, but not from this area; so I am looking forward to trying this wine.

Cima Collina Meritage 2010

The second bottle is Cima Collina Meritage 2010 from the San Antonio Valley AVA and I have to admit that the San Antonio Valley AVA is new to me. The fruit for this wine all came from the Lockwood Oaks Vineyard and this is the third Meritage wine produced by Cima Collina. The wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot. The wine was aged in both French and American Oak for fourteen months and the aging potential is eight to ten years. This will be the third wine from this winemaker for me as I have received a Pinot Noir and a Chardonnay from them.

Heller Estate Malbec 2012

The last bottle in the shipment was Heller Estate Malbec 2012 from the Carmel Valley AVA. I have written and tasted several of their wines over the years, as we have even visited the winery on one of our trips to Carmel-by-the-Sea. Heller Estate is an organic winery that was certified in 1996 and one of the pioneers of this approach in the Monterey area. I am looking forward to this wine, but I may wait as it also has an aging potential of eight to ten years. My Bride and I have been very happy with the selections that we have received over the many years, since we have joined this club.

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