Thanksgiving Day and Beaujolais Nouveau

Posted on November 23, 2012 by thewineraconteur

I do hope that all that read this and are celebrating “American” Thanksgiving Day have a wonderful time to enjoy family and friends. Around Thanksgiving time, there has begun a new tradition of the Beaujolais Nouveau.  I can remember years ago, a few restaurants in town would fly in barrels of this wine, and there was much to do  about the actual opening day of the wines, and when they could be sold.  Beaujolais may be one of the most known name of wines from France, and they can be found from mediocre to something quite exciting and interesting.

                  

 

Beaujolais like it’s other cousins from France has sub-divisions.  There is Beaujolais, Beaujolais-Villages and then individual Villages and sometimes even an individual grower.  Though most of Beaujolais is grown by many small growers and sold to blenders to maintain a certain taste year to year.  I will discuss this area more in depth at some point in time, but for today I am just talking about Beaujolais Nouveau which is a young wine that has been bottled and hopefully features a full fruit taste and nose.  This is a wine that is not intended for cellaring, but more for enjoying at the moment.

    

 

Because of the timing of this wine, it has become a darling of Thanksgiving dinners.  I have to admit that I have offered it to my guests as part of the Thanksgiving feast.  I am just going to show some of the assorted wines of the moment that we have offered our guests on this day, and tomorrow I will actually discuss our latest Thanksgiving dinner and the wines of that day.

    

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“Well…Do You Feel Lucky?”

Posted on November 22, 2012 by thewineraconteur

I would venture to say any guy from my generation knows that question and the fellow that asked it.  The actor was known for paring his dialogue down and his raspy voice worked to great effect in the Dirty Harry series of films.   On one of our trips to Carmel, which I will eventually get to, but this is a story that can be told at any time; we stopped at “The Hog.”

The Hog’s Breath Inn is located in the Eastwood Building in downtown Carmel by the Sea.  The Eastwood building also had a western apparel shop and a jazz radio station where the disc-jockey could be seen through a large picture window with the music pumped onto the street as well.

We went into the pub area for a quick lunch that day and had some Dirty Harry Sliders and my Bride had some chicken quesadillas.  I remember that they were serving Lockwood wines by the glass and we enjoyed a Chardonnay and a Cabernet Sauvignon with our lunch.

After our lunch we got directions to where Clint Eastwood’s Ranch was and we took a leisurely hike to it.  I know that we took pictures of it and it was beautiful right on the ocean, but I cannot find the photographs of it.  The most memorable part of the hike was that I remember that it seemed that we walked uphill in both directions, which sounds funny but we took two different routes.  I was worn out from all of this good exercise and we ended up in a little bistro, the name of which eludes me.  I remember we had a dessert and a bottle of Faun Vineyards Monterey Port as well as a couple of coffees.  This held us until we had dinner later that evening, but our times in Carmel are for another time.

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Moro’s in Allen Park, Michigan

Posted on November 21, 2012 by thewineraconteur

I grew up with a bunch of former Jitterbugs and Zoot Suiters, e.g. my Father and all of his cronies.  I was smiling when I read the other day in the paper that the Zagat Survey of Restaurants listed Moro’s in Allen Park in the top ten ranking.  I was smiling, because I think of all the times that I was there on a Friday or a Saturday night, where I would watch all of the men of my Father’s era jostle each other as they stood in line with their Brides or their ladies.  All doing the tough guy act from B Movies of the Forties, if they weren’t so serious about it, it would be funny.

 

 

Why are all of these men so serious in line, because Moro’s delivers a great meal in the old school manner of “class” restaurants.   Moro’s offers a wide selection of Italian dishes, a couple of Hungarian dishes, seafood and steaks, including Chateaubriand for two.  There are also several tableside presented dinners as well as a couple of tableside desserts.  All of this fine food offered without airs or pretentiousness.  It is an easy place to be comfortable in and know that you will want to return time and time again.  I have had many of the dishes over the years and never had a bad dish of food, and the line up of diners is a sure sign that I am not the only one to have encountered this good food and good service.

 

The wine list as I recall was small and tight and selected to appeal to the clientele that frequented the restaurant.  This is not a “frou-frou” chic place, this is an honest to goodness Italian restaurant with old world manners, and the wines that I remember were of the same caliber.  I remember having bottles of Bardolino by Bolla, one of the largest shippers of wine in the Verona area, and they have become their own brand name.  Bardolino wines tend to be lighter or more delicate than a Valpolicella wine which is from the same district.  Bardolino, Valpolicella and Chianti are probably the three biggest wine types known from Italy and a decent or better bottle of any of them will be most enjoyable with a good or great Italian dinner.

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Commander’s Palace in Las Vegas

Posted on November 20, 2012 by thewineraconteur

On our many trips to Las Vegas to visit two of our children and our growing group of grandchildren we combined two unique venues.  The Brennan family of New Orleans Commander’s Palace, which we have been to, and the old Aladdin Casino and Hotel.  The Aladdin is now part of the lore of Las Vegas as it has been removed and a newer grander complex has replaced it.  In the back part of the Aladdin was an area called the Desert Passage which had many retail operations and restaurants and that is where we were able to find the Commander’s Palace.

I have to admit that I may not be the most popular grandfather in the world, because I insist on taking my grandchildren to real restaurants at the expense of fast food venues.  They also have to be dressed and well mannered, which can be a compromise.  So far I have been able to overcome most of these problems, as in the night we had dinner at the Commander’s Palace.  Watching the children encounter dishes like alligator meat, turtle soup, and gumbo are beyond their normal diet.  As for my Bride and I we enjoyed the turtle soup, duck breast with demi-glace and pecan encrusted fish.  It was fun to watch as the children saw Banana’s Foster made table side as well as Bread Pudding Soufflé with whiskey sauce.

For a dinner like this we enjoyed a Haut-Medoc wine, as I think one needs a French wine with good old Creole food.   The two are entwined historically and by cuisine dictates, as far as I am concerned.  We enjoyed a bottle of Chateau Coufran 1999, which is a Cru Bourgeois.  The wine was affordable, because a dinner of this size mandates that there must be some fiscal responsibility or I could suffer the wrath of a terrible charge card bill the next month, which happens any ways when we are on holidays.  The Haut-Medoc gives that wonderful robust taste that one expects from a Bordeaux wine that pairs well with the rich sauces of New Orleans.  As I have stated before my Bride does enjoy a rich red wine with even a fish dinner, especially if it is prepared with a rich sauce and taste.  I also find that even the whiskey sauce that came with the dessert flowed well afterwards.

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A Get Together of Former Classmates

Posted on November 19, 2012 by thewineraconteur

I recently got together with three other classmates, one I had gone from Elementary School through High School and the other two we went from Junior High to High School.  We were all in the same homeroom in Junior High.  We met at a restaurant for conversation and dining.   The restaurant is called The Brewery and though it sounds like it should cater to the draught and bottle crowd, they had a very good wine list as well as their menu.  The restaurant was a very ample size building with table service along side of the bar which was in the middle of the structure as well as a side dining area.  We had a table that was by ourselves and was excellent for good conversation, even with a musician soloist playing near the bar and the entrance.

 

Dinner choices were divided nicely; one had a chicken gorgonzola salad, one enjoyed white fish and two enjoyed orders of braised short ribs (I am sure that some readers may deduce one of the diners of short ribs).  It really was a bit of a decision because several of the dishes on the menu, as well as a couple of the evening’s specials all sounded delightful.  Each entrée included salad or a soup, a starch and vegetables, and one order of creamy macaroni and cheese was also ordered and shared as there was enough to be shared and would have been overkill for one person.

 

We had a wonderful series of conversations catching up with each other as some have not seen each other since High School.   Since I am such a pack rat, as all of my labels and matchbooks will attest, I had brought some show and tell items from our past.  I had brought some report cards from Grade and Junior High, graduation commencement souvenirs and a couple of newsletters.  Some items were remembered immediately and some had to be studied to make the mind remember.  As we looked at pictures of other classmates, we all started remembering other good times and laughed into the evening.  I am sure that our server would have wished we had left our table sooner, but we just awash with memories and stories.

 

Two of us were going to have wine, one abstained and one wanted a good taste.  Since the two who were having wine both had ordered the same dish, it made a wine decision much easier.  On the wine list under Meritage was an interesting bottle from Stag’s Leap Winery of Napa Valley.  It was called “Hands of Time” 2010, I had never had this particular wine, but I have enjoyed wines from Stag’s Leap Winery so the decision was easy, especially since it was not as dear as some Meritage wines can be.   The wine was very supple and soft, not as heavy or as tannic as some Meritage wines can be at first taste, so it was appreciated by all.  The most important part of the evening is that a grand time was had by all, and we are looking forward to an encore and perhaps adding more members to the group.

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The Spaghetti Company

Posted on November 18, 2012 by thewineraconteur

At one time one of the hottest restaurants in the Metro Detroit area was The Spaghetti Company and they had a couple of locations.  These were very spacious restaurants with good classic dishes that one would expect from an eatery with that name.  They were always busy, with a good chance that there might be a waiting period to get a table.  Naturally the bar was always busy and conversations were lively.

 

I remember ordering the gnocchi with a Bolognese sauce, as this is how I usually test a “pasta joint.”  If the gnocchi is light and fluffy, it tells me the pride and artistry of the restaurant, if it is heavy I usually presume that it is commercially bought frozen pasta and it will keep me from returning.  They passed the test as I recall and that made me very happy.

 

In those early days as I have stated before, most restaurants did not want to develop large wine lists, especially if they carried mostly Italian dishes.  They carried a few “names” and a few known and tested grape varietals.  I went with a basic Chianti Classico from Brolio (Barone Ricasoli) still one of the big wineries of the Chianti region, and they are being rediscovered today with a new family member now running the show.  One of my basic tenets when picking a wine from a limited list is to go with a traditional wine of the cuisine if possible and hope for the best.  It worked very well in this instance.

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A Restaurant Called Home Sweet Home

Posted on November 17, 2012 by thewineraconteur

The first time I went to Home Sweet Home was with my dinner club.  The restaurant was a retro-fitted home that was quite a good size home.  With my dinner club you really don’t get a real feel for a home as our hosts select three entrees for the evening.  Each meeting we have three hosts and they select the venue, the menu and pick up the entire meal and drinks for the night.  Then the rest of the year, they enjoy meals on other host’s dime.  It works quite well as I have been a member of this over a hundred year club for about twenty-five years.  The dinner here was fine, but the accommodations for forty men was not adequate as we did not have our own room, but sequestered off in a corner of a large room.  This is really not the best situation for our meetings.

 

The food that evening was good enough for my Bride and me to go there on our own and enjoy a dinner.  The restaurant featured good “American” food or as some like to refer to as “comfort food.”   We had a good dinner and relaxed and enjoyed our company.

 

The wine list was not large, but I did find a Cotes du Rhone wine.  This designation will always get my attention as the wine is usually not expensive, but there is enough flavor and body to always enhance a meal.  The bottle was from Domaine de l’Espigouette 1995 and was bottled at the domaine according to the wine label.  So far I have never encountered a bad bottle of Cotes du Rhone and I have enjoyed many over the years.

 

The restaurant unfortunately did not make it, as it was in a secluded area that is surrounded by residential subdivisions and off the main roads.  It is now a Japanese restaurant with a “fusion” touch.  They must be doing something right, as they have been open for about a decade.

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A Return Trip to Schweizer’s Restaurant and a Good Lesson

Posted on November 16, 2012 by thewineraconteur

Some time after my first trip to Schweizer’s Restaurant I had another date there.  I remember even trying a few different dishes, but still went for volume and loaded up the table.  At this point in my life, I had hollow legs and I had an appetite that could not be sated and it did not show on me.  Thankfully I do not have that appetite anymore as my metabolism has slowed and I would probably be obese.

 

The lesson that I did learn was that you have to read the wine list carefully.  I saw the name Schloss Reinhartshausener and assumed that I was going to order the same wine again.  The name was the same and it was from the Rheingau district, but when the bottle arrived at the table it was a white wine.  I did not want to get flustered and show my youth, especially since I was under the legal drinking age at the time.  What I had ordered was a 1971er Hattenheimer Wisselbrunn Riesling Auslese.  The wine took me back, but since I had ordered it and wanted to keep face, I did not say anything.  The wine was totally enjoyable though it was sweeter than I would have preferred at the moment.  All in all it was a very good wine, but it did teach me to pay more attention to what I am ordering on the wine list, as I even missed that the Schloss Reinhartshausener was listed in the white wine section.  A couple of days later, when I went to research my new “selection,” I discovered that by accident I had chosen a fine wine.  In that Wisselbrunn is an important vineyard for Hattenheim, and that the wine was an Auslese was more of a plus, but that explained why I found the wine to be sweeter than I had hoped for.  All lessons in life should be this fun to learn.

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Schweizer’s Restaurant in Detroit and a Red Wine

Posted on November 15, 2012 by thewineraconteur

At one time Schweizer’s Restaurant was the old restaurant in Detroit, it started in 1862.  I took a date there when I was still in high school, as I attended high school in downtown Detroit and the restaurant was downtown as well.  From the outside it was not an inviting structure, after all it was an old painted brick building.  On the inside it was a warm inviting room, but even in my youth I knew that the restaurant had seen better days.  There were still a few German restaurants even in the downtown area at that time.

 

The truth is told neither my date nor I were that up on German cuisine but we both ordered some of the specialties of the house and ended up with a table full of plates.  We had Sauerbraten, Potato Pancakes and Wiener schnitzel.  All I remember is that the food was all very heavy and filling, which when you are a teenager made perfect sense.

 

When it came to the wine list, I knew enough not to pick a Zeller Schwarze Kat or a Blue Nun wine.  I had chosen a wine from the Rheingau district of Germany; actually, I was tossing darts at the wine list as my wine knowledge was limited.  I was aware that the Rheingau was considered one of the finest areas in Germany for wines and the wines were noted for their body and character, as opposed to being a delicate light tasting wine.  At that time I figured that I should go with the gusto of a big wine.  The wine chosen was a Schloss Reinhartshausener 1971er Erbacher Siegelsberg Spatlese.  The real reason that I chose this wine was that it was a red wine and I thought that was unique, because I thought of German wines as basically all white wines.   The label listed the grape varietal as Spatburgunder (Pinot Noir) as is considered the elite varietal of red wine as Riesling is to white wines.   As I look back, this was not one of the important vineyards of Erbach, but it did suit my wishes at the moment and I could say even then that I tried something different.

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An Afternoon Dinner with Friends

Posted on November 14, 2012 by thewineraconteur

We had a nice dinner with some of Bride’s girlfriends and their spouses; they have stayed in touch since their initial times in Elementary, Junior High and High School.  The dinner was held at our house this time, so my Bride was a whirling-dervish trying to make everything perfect as is her disposition.

 

We had set out cheese and crackers and shrimp cocktails for appetizers, and one of the ladies also brought some additional cheese and crackers to start off with.  Then we had my Bride’s Caesar Salad, which is always a hit.  One of the other ladies brought in some Chicken Soup that was so thick with meat and vegetables it could have been a meal in its self.   We then served Salmon filets with a Teriyaki glaze and Armenian Pilaf.  The lady that brought the soup also brought a large pan of grilled vegetables that complimented the dinner.  For dessert the other lady brought a flourless apple cake that had a rich taste and not overly sweet and delicious.

 

 

After dinner and more discussions from the ladies and catching up, there was a lively game of cards.  My Bride taught the others a game that they had never heard of, but they were willing students.

 

 

For the wine selections, I had a rather eclectic mix of wines for the afternoon.  We started with a Clos du Bois North Coast Chardonnay 2009 which was a simple but tasty choice with the appetizers.  While we were still in the appetizer stage of the meal, I opened up a bottle of wine that my Bride had received from one of her sisters; called Oakey Blonde from Washington Street Wine House from New Baltimore, Michigan.   I had never heard of the wine or the winery and looked them up later in the day, Oakey Blonde was listed as an Australian Chardonnay, and as there was not much in the write ups about the different wines on the site, I must presume that this winery makes wines from concentrates as some of the other wines that they offer were international in sourcing.  The wine was a soft Chardonnay, and perhaps would have been better in the hotter months of summer.  Since we were still enjoying good conversations and the appetizers I opened another bottle of white wine.  This wine was Chateau Tanunda Grand Barossa Riesling 2010 from Australia.  Chateau Tanunda states that they were the first to plant vines in Barossa in 1845.  I was a little concerned that the wine might be too sweet after the other two whites, but it was a nice dry Riesling that worked as a fine segues into the dinner portion of the afternoon.

 

Then onto the red wine for the dinner, I brought up a bottle of Schweiger Vineyard Merlot 2000 from the Spring Mountain District of Napa Valley.  As I tried to uncork the bottle the cork shattered which caused me some concern, and then I tried using the spring steel cork remover with no avail.  I had to push the cork in, and grab a decanter and a funnel, in these cases I use a paper coffee filter inserted into the funnel and just start pouring the wine.  This so far has always worked, and the good news is that the wine was fine, and the extra aeration from the forced decanting opened up the wine instantly.  This Merlot wine worked very well with the salmon and did not compete with it.  After dinner, there was a big card game and I opened a bottle of Chariot Gypsy Red 2009 as it is a good sipping wine, while everyone was talking and having a good time.

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