Sunday Night Dinner and Wine

There was the smell of Risotto in the air at my place on this past Sunday.

Our first course was Risotto with shallots and asparagus. I started dinner a little bit early, knowing the hour I would need to make the Risotto. As the Risotto cooked I started the salad. Tonight's salad was a mix of Mango, Papaya and Grape Tomatoes over a bed of Mesclun greens. The dressing was a very simple Lime and Tequila vinaigrette. A side of Broccoli florets (the kids love it and would be mad if I did not make it) was also prepared as well as Garlic bread that would compliment the main course... Steak.




I love Risotto and I am trying to get the rest of my family to love it too. My wife just can not be comfortable with rice that is creamy and thick. She likes her rice to be a longer grain, loose and have a buttery taste. My oldest son did not like the Risotto (because he hates Asparagus), but my youngest loved it. I told him it was like Oatmeal and he ate it up. I fear I may not be making Risotto that much in the future, it is just not worth all the stirring for just me. Well maybe it is :)

While all the food prepping and Risotto cooking was going on, my steaks were seasoned with salt & pepper and resting to loose the chill of the fridge. Once the Risotto was just about done, I fired up my biggest skillet and got it as hot as I could. Once the pan had reached "temperature of hell" status I chucked in the beef. Oh how I do love the sounds and smells of a caramelizing steak. Not to long now, just about 2 minutes a side and into the oven went the pan to finish up @ 400 degrees for 5 more minutes. Yep we like our steaks rare with a nice crust on the outside. When they were done, out they came and in went the Garlic bread. The steaks were wrapped in foil to rest and the Broccoli was steamed. Last thing before the bread came out of the oven was to emulsify the vinaigrette and toss the salad.




With the Risotto on the table and the salad being doled out by my wife, I brought over the Broccoli, steaks and the Garlic bread (just out of the oven). The decanted and well aspirated 2000 Chateau Cote Montpezat was poured and I sat. It was a nice dinner and felt good getting back into the kitchen on a Sunday night. It has been awhile since I was cooking on a Sunday night, I had been doing mostly smoking during the daytime and did not want to cook at night as well.

What would I change? The salad need more texture. Maybe some crumbled Tortilla chips next time.

A review on the wine will follow fer sure!

These won't last long
Originally uploaded by HotblackDesiato

Come on out from behind that TV Matt, you are not THAT shy. Those 6 bottle bags are great for carrying 2 bottles of wine and two glasses to you favorite BYOB.

1999 Clos Du Bois Marlstone

• 1999 Clos du Bois Marlstone - USA, California, Sonoma County, Alexander Valley (7/22/2008)
  This wine changes every hour. Popped and poured. Very red for a wine of this age, I was expecting a little bit of garnet or burnt sienna. Thin in the glass and a bit more transparent then I expected. Nose: Lots of tobacco. Like a handful of crumbled Lucky's. Some spice and red berries. Palate: Still tobacco, raspberries and some gamy meat. Smooth and thin with a bit of tannins. VERY dry. Cotton balls in my mouth. After about two hours opened it had a bit of poopy and garbage on the nose. I could have done without the garbage. No real heat despite the 14.2% ABV (except when consumed with dinner earlier). A little green on the finish after two hours, a bit of asparagus maybe. Nice wine, I would not mind a bit more length on the finish or a tad more complexity. I think I purchased this in 2004 from the Wine Library at maybe $29 to $35. (87 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

• 2002 Cardeal Dão Reserva - Portugal, Beiras, Dão (7/18/2008)
  Nose: Very floral with plenty of Violets. There is also a bit of Port on the nose and blueberry pie filling. The nose is actually very good (after at least an hour or two open). Palate: Here is where the points disapear. A little Port, a little spice and some chemical reminiscent of a Cali Cab. Very dry at the end and that is good. Other then that, the finish is very short and light. I wish this performed better on my palate, but this is no Quinta da Cortezia Touriga Nacional. (88 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

• 2006 Franco M. Martinetti Gavi - Italy, Piedmont, Gavi (7/14/2008)
  This one is probably my new favorite white. Popped and poured then let sit for about an hour to open up. Nose: Initially it was nothing but Pineapple and pears. After a bit it showed incredible Honeysuckle and Lime along with the Pears and Pineapple. There is also some kind of candy from my youth but I can't put my finger on it. Very sweet and floral on the nose. Palate: It is like a very acidic Pear that someone poured Lime juice over, but not fresh Lime juice, instead it is the sweetened Rose's Lime Juice. Wow, this is good. Star fruit on the backend. Plenty of acidity to hold it together, and there is a little bit of fizzy-fizz on the tongue. 13% ABV and perfect balance and complexity. Martinetti Gavi FTW! (92 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

• 2004 Château Petit Védrines - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (5/25/2008)
  Nice melon and mango on the nose plus a little petrol. Apples and mangoes with honey on the pallet with overwhelming green tea on the finish. Very nice. (90 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

Would you trust this guy with your palate?

Changing the wine world, whether you want peace or not!

I wont go nuts posting all my TN's (Tasting Notes) but here is a quick run down of the juice I consumed.

2006 Tittarelli Torrontes Reserva

Ever since I picked up a Torrontes (thanks Gary Vee) I have been through about 4-5 different wineries with varied results. I brought home several bottles of Tittarelli from the Wine Lib when they had the all day event back in March and I now have none left. It is good, very good. People step away from the Sauvignon Blanc and try a Torrontes. It is what Argentina is all about. Nice floral nose with tropical fruits and peaches. Blue stone and peaches on the palate with nice acidity. I actually prefer this to Alamos. At 11 bucks you can't beat it. Drink it all summer long (when the WL gets it back in stock that is). 90 points .

2007 Turkey Flat Rosé



Sorry for the stock image but I forgot to take a picture before we tossed the bottle.

Awesome color. Like Gary says, don't be afraid of the pink. A blend of Grenache, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Dolcetto. This is pure roses and strawberries on the nose. Not a sweet wine by any means. One of my guests thought it was White Zinfandel. I pulled up a chair and had a little discussion with her that opened her eyes to wine that actually taste like wine. This one was very complex and balanced. A bit of acidity, a bit of berries and some melon. A nice change for those women that poured a glass and was expecting sugar water. Once again 90 points.

Jonesy Old Tawny Port NV

This one was weird. I have had many Ports. Especially Tawnys. But none this cheap, 8 bucks at the Lib. The color of this one could only be described as Coca Cola. It was darker then a Madeira. There was not a hint of Port on the nose. It was where Maple Dr. and Raisin St. meet. Wow. When I took a whirl all I could think about was uncooked ginger bread dough with maple syrup and raisins on top. It was 18.0 % alcohol and I could not even tell if there was any in it at all. A very different experience. Not a bad one, just different. 87 points (good QPR)

2004 Château Petit Védrines

This was a nice break from the norm. Whats the norm? Inniskillin Vidal Ice Wine. The Chateau Petit Vedrines Sauternes was a bit cheaper (14 bucks for a 375 ml) but was no less enjoyable. Nice melon and mango on the nose plus a little petrol. Apples and mangoes with honey on the palate with overwhelming green tea on the finish. I originally scored this a 90 but I am actually going to backslide to 89 points. I have had better Sauternes, but I have paid a lot more. Good QPR.

Now here is one we didn't drink...

2007 Jorge Cabernet

Like I said, we did not drink it, but I bought a couple of bottles due to the fact the procedes go to Jorgies charity. How good could this wine be anyway? Gary are you ready to put it on WLTV? 13 bucks for a good cause. Now I hope Jorge can get healthy and join the team on the field, we need him bad.