Den Hoed Cabernet at Beach House Restaurant Kauai
Vacationing with son Ryan, d-in-law Michelle and their family on the island of Kauai, we dined at the highly acclaimed scenic Beach House Restaurant located on the south shore Lawai Road in Koloa, Kauai, Hawaii.
Beach House is known for its scenic waterfront location with spectacular sunset views.
Each evening folks congregate to the seaside lawn to watch the sunset.
The Beach House Restaurant is a consistent winner of numerous culinary awards including Honolulu Magazine's Hale Aina Gold Award for Best Kauai Restaurant, and many others. The restaurant features what they call, ‘innovative Pacific Rim Cuisine’ - locally raised steaks and venison, farm to table fresh vegetables, and locally caught fresh seafood.
Beach House’s Chef Marshall Blanchard, born and raised in Wilton, Connecticut, graduated from the legendary Culinary Institute of America program at Hyde Park, (NY). Marshall made a name for himself spending 11 years as the Executive Chef at Restaurant D’Oro and The Golden Eagle in Vail/Beaver Creek, Colorado. He taught at Colorado Mountain College and hosted a monthly cooking show on Vail’s TV8 and has also worked with Bon Apetit and Food & Wine Magazine.
Prior to the entrees we had a selection of starters and salads including Ahi Tuna Sashimi - dayboat caught ahi, pohole fern salad and wasabi ginger, and Szechuan Smashed Cucumber Salad - pu'uwai gardens cucumbers, papaya, waipoli farms mixed greens, ok king farms cilantro, sesame vinaigrette, chili crisp.
For entrees, Linda and Michelle ordered the daily special fresh catch, Macadamia Nut Crusted Fresh Hawaiian Fish - Mahi Mahi with organic macadamia nuts, ginger bok choy, lemon, celery-caper relish, garlic-scallion rice, brown butter …
I ordered the filet of beef steak and Ryan had the surf and turf, combining the filet of beef with diver sea scallops …..
Beach House Filet Mignon - prime center-cut filet, sautéed mushrooms, hirabara farms rainbow chard & ok king farm kale, ulu mashed potatoes, herb butter.
Beach House Surf and Turf Duo - USDA prime center-cut filet, sea scallops, sautéed mushrooms, hirabara farms rainbow.
To accompany our dinner, I brought from our home cellar BYOB a special red wine that has special significance to Ryan, Linda and me. This special limited release label was from a lot that I acquired at auction, since this wine has a rather disparate lengthy family connection.
Ryan, Linda and I first tasted Den Hoed wines at chic upscale Canlis Restaurant in Lake Union, suburban Seattle, when we were together for a Seattle Culinary Wine Weekend.
We met the sister of the producer Den Hoed brothers, vintner farmers in Yakima Valley Washington, at the wedding of Linda’s niece, Ryan's cousin, who married the producers’ nephew.
https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2018/08/canlis-restaurant-seattle-extraordinary.html
Den Hoed “Marie’s View” Wallula Vineyard Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon 2012
As I wrote at the time. this is named for the wife of patriarch founder, Andreas Den Hoed who married Marie Den Hoed in 1956 and they planted their first vineyard on their property that year. After two years in the Army Andreas returned to the farm.
In the early years, they paid the bills growing mint. He continued to plant more vineyards as resources allowed, expanding acreage almost every year. In 1988, their two sons Bill and Andy joined the business as partners in a new project, with acreage planted to vineyards.
The father and sons team continued to expand in the Yakima Valley for the next 5-6 years. After several years of searching, in 1997, they purchased a 550 acre parcel of land bordering the Columbia River in the Wallula Gap. Since then the vineyard has earned a reputation as one of the finest in the region. It is sited in a picturesque growing location nestled high above the mighty Columbia River south of of the town of Kennewick. The wines produced from this vineyard have proven to stand the test of time and can stand up and hold their own against the best wines of the new world.
Two of their key labels are named for Andreas and for Marie. Each is a limited production estate wine which celebrates their family history and showcases the Wallula Vineyard. They are robust Cabernet Sauvignons crafted by Gilles Nicault of the notable Long Shadows Vintners Collection of wines that we collect as prime members of their club. We also discovered Long Shadows during that Seattle, Woodinville Wine Weekend.
Canlis Lake Union night view
Our first tasting experience of Den Hoed wines was ordering it from the wine list at Canlis Restaurant in suburban Seattle. The Andreas met our most lofty hopes and expectations and was a highlight of our extraordinary meal.
So, how fitting it was that that Canlis dinner was a mini family affair as wife Linda and son Ryan joined me at this legendary family restaurant. Moreover, a subplot to the story, our niece Anna Long, married into the Van Hoed family, farmers, wine growers, viticulturists and winemakers from the famed Walula Vineyards in the central Washington wine region.
Tonight we opened another Den Hoed label, Marie's View from a vineyard so named on the Walula Slope in the Horse Heaven Hills Washington State Appellation. This was from the same vintage as that first Den Hoed wine encounter, 2012.
So, how fitting it was that that Canlis dinner was a mini family affair as wife Linda and son Ryan joined me at this legendary family restaurant. Moreover, a subplot to the story, our niece Anna Long, married into the Van Hoed family, farmers, wine growers, viticulturists and winemakers from the famed Walula Vineyards in the central Washington wine region.
Tonight we opened another Den Hoed label, Marie's View from a vineyard so named on the Walula Slope in the Horse Heaven Hills Washington State Appellation. This was from the same vintage as that first Den Hoed wine encounter, 2012.
The 2012 Washington red wines vintage follows challenging vintages in 2010 and 2011. Some producers considered 2012 the best in state history - a notable great vintage that stands tall amongst the best in the past 20 years. While 2002 and 2005 may have produced wines a bit richer than 2012 made great wines across the regions, from cooler climate Yakima Valley to the stony Walla Walla Valley. Wines made in 2012 might have slightly more acidity,but they are generally balanced red wines that show a good core of fruits, while perhaps not as hedonistic as the big red wines made in 2013, 2014 or 2016.
At thirteen years, this wine was probably at it’s apex, not likely to improve with further aging, but certain to age gracefully for perhaps another decade.
The winemaker is the local well known Rob Newsom of Boudreaux Cellars.
Previous vintages of Marie’s View were blends of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Franc, and Sangiovese with the proportions varying from year to year. This is the first vintage of this wine to be labeled as a Cabernet Sauvignon as opposed to a red wine.
This was a perfect complement, pairing with the grilled beefsteaks and mushrooms.
This is from a vineyard block named for Marie Van Hoed, wife of founder Andreas, mother of the current generation producers.
This was awarded 93 points by Owen Bargreen, and 89 points by Wine Enthusiast. Earlier releases consistently earned 92 and 93 points.
This is the first vintage of this wine to be labeled as a Cabernet Sauvignon as opposed to a red wine, 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine from the Horse Heaven Hills AVA.
Den Hoed wines are packaged in an extra heavy bottles with the most incredible deepest punts (that indentation in the bottle around which sediment collects).
This is from a vineyard block named for Marie Van Hoed, wife of founder Andreas, mother of the current generation producers.
This was awarded 93 points by Owen Bargreen, and 89 points by Wine Enthusiast. Earlier releases consistently earned 92 and 93 points.
This is the first vintage of this wine to be labeled as a Cabernet Sauvignon as opposed to a red wine, 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wine from the Horse Heaven Hills AVA.
Den Hoed wines are packaged in an extra heavy bottles with the most incredible deepest punts (that indentation in the bottle around which sediment collects).
Even better than earlier tasting, perhaps benefiting from further bottle aging, densely colored inky garnet purple, medium full bodied, concentrated, firmly structured, full round black berry, black currant and plum fruits with notes of creosote, cassis, cedar and hints of pepper with a vibrant acid backbone and firm tannins on a lasting finish.
RM 93 points.
https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2799196
https://www.denhoedwines.com/
