Dunham Cellars 'Trutina' Columbia Valley Red Wine 2009

Dunham Cellars 'Trutina' Columbia Valley Red Wine 2009

Following our recent trip to Woodinville, Washington to taste Washington State wines in our Seattle Culinary and Washington Wine Tour, wines we continued our exploration by opening this Trutina Walla Walla Red Blend from our cellar. It was perfect with grilled sirloin steaks and scalloped potatoes with haricot verts.

We have a vertical collection of Dunham Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Red Wine Blend going back a dozen vintages to the nineties. How delightful to discover these Bordeaux varietal wines from Columbia River Valley in Washington, not well known for being a Bordeaux varietal region.

This was our first vintage of Trutina, a second label from Dunham at a lower pricepoint that offers great QPR (Quality to Price ratio) in this complex and expressive red wine blend. We're finding many of these Columbia Valley Reds have great quality and aging ability and offer great value over their French and California counterparts.

While not as complex or polished as the flagship label, Trutina was very impressive going on a decade of age. This showed bright garnet and inky purple color, medium full bodied with huge aromatics of floral and lavender with full forward bright vibrant flavors of black currant and black cherry fruits with a layer of sweet caramel mocha on a full cloying lingering tannin finish.

The blend is 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 6% Syrah, and 4% Malbec.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1456899 

Matthews Yakima Vally Red Wine Red Bordeaux Blend 1999

Matthews Yakima Vally Red Wine Red Bordeaux Blend 1999 

We continued our exploration of Columbia Valley Bordeaux varietal wines, following our recent trip to Woodinville, Washington to taste Washington State wines in our Seattle Culinary and Washington Wine Tour. We drove by Matthews Cellars' tasting room and it was on my shorlist of spots to visit but it was especially crowded each time we passed. As with the other tastings from that trip, this reflects significant QPR - Quality Price Ratio, especially relative their French and Northern California counterparts.

For midweek grilled beefsteak dinner, I pulled from the cellar this almost twenty year old Columbia Valley Bordeaux Blend, the last remaining bottle of a lot I bought at auction, and the oldest  remaining bottle of similar labels from this era. Much of the fun or intrigue of wine collecting and tasting is comparing a label over time as it ages, and comparing it with its' peer group, bottle from the same appellation - Yakima Valley AVA - same terrior, soil type and climate, and from the same price range.

Often, typically tasting notes will be similar, subtle bottle variations aside, show gradual signs of aging, amplified as they reach their apex and go beyond their prime on the aging curve. Since I acquired this lot of bottles at auction, its impossible to determine the provenance of each of the bottles, where they were sourced and how they were stored over time. Hence it is not surprising to find subtle bottle variations. This lot was the case as three of the four bottles were consumed in the year they were acquired, each showing slightly differently.

This bottle was held another eight years and was consistent with the median of the other tasting experiences. 

This was a blend of Bordeaux varietals, 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot and 11% Cabernet Franc.


Our last tasting of this wine was back in December 2011 when I wrote; "Surprising over-achiever for our gala Christmas beef wellington dinner - this was more polished than earlier tastings, full bodied, complex, vibrant and expressive with layers of blackberry, black currants and cherry fruits, a layer of spice, black tea and cassis with hints of tar, leather and tobacco on the lingering moderate tannin finish."

Earlier that year in Sept 2011 I wrote: "I found the fruit to be moderate upon opening but brighter and more expressive the second day; complex and polished; blackberry, black currants and cherry fruits, and eucalyptus with a layer of spice, black tea and cassis with hints of tar, leather and tobacco on the lingering moderate tannin finish.'

And, earlier that year in Feb 2011 I wrote; "Dark inky color - medium - full bodied - firm black berry and black raspberry fruits are giving way to a tar, leather, cassis and hint of tobacco as this wine is passing its prime."

This week the wine was consistent with the latter two tasting notes, with slight diminution of the fruit and structure as the non-fruit tones of leather, tea and tobacco were starting to be more predominant over the bright black berry and black cherry fruits.

Same rating as the earlier two tastings, RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=79548

Uriah Spring Valley Vineyards Walla Walla Red Blend

Uriah Spring Valley Vineyards Walla Walla Red Blend

Following our trip to Woodinville, Washington to taste Washington State wines in our Seattle Culinary and Washington Wine Tour, wines we took this Spring Valley Vineyard Washington State Columbia Valley Red Blend to our favorite Italian Trattoria BYOB for Saturday night dinner.  We hold close to a dozen vintages of this label and for tonight's dinner I pulled this 2004 vintage release, the oldest, to cycle our collection accordingly.

We know this wine well having tasted numerous vintages over the years so it was good taste it again after our tasting numerous other labels from the region recently. We gained further appreciation for the quality of Columbia Valley red wines and the state of the art there in producing wines comparable to the top labels from Bordeaux and Napa Valley.

This is a single vineyard designated wine, with 100% of the fruit from the Spring Valley Vineyard. Like many of the other wines we tasted from the region, including the wine from our nieces in-laws that we wrote about in our recent posts, Spring Valley wines are family owned and operated. The  land that has been farmed by the Corkrum family for five generations and this vineyard was planted in 1993. We wrote about our delight with our wine discovery and a family connection to a multi-generation family owned and operated Walla Walla producer in our blogpost Den Hoed Andreas Walula Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon.

This is from the Columbia Valley, Walla Walla appellations. Like many of the other wines we tasted in our Columbia Valley tasting, this forty acre vineyard is planted in Bordeaux varietals, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Malbec, and Syrah.

The terroir has been determine and has proven to be an excellent environment for growing Bordeaux varietal grapes. The elevation lies between 1,200 and 1,500 feet, on south-southwest facing hills where the vines are planted to follow the north-south slope of the hills in vertical rows to provide the vines optimal sunshine, cold air, drainage, and takes advantage of the reflective nature of the surrounding hills.

As I wrote, these wines rival the wines from Bordeaux and Napa Valley but are available at a fraction of the price for comparable wines, providing great QPR - Quality Price Ratios. This gap will most assuredly close as they gain more attention and notoriety in the years ahead. 

This is a serious wine, a red blend in the Bordeaux Right Bank style, meaning it is a blend of Bordeaux varietals predominantly of Merlot. The blend is 60% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Petit Verdot. It was aged 16 months in 95% French oak and 5% American oak barrels.

Serge Laville, the winemaker wrote in his release notes: "Aromas of ripe blackberry, plum and harvested wheat introduce a complex palate with flavors of currant, cherry and hints of liquorice and leather. Powerful and firm tannins resonate on the long, elegant finish.

In my tasting note from 2009 I stated this needed more time. In my last tasting note in 2017 I said, 'Its time!" Tonight, this wine has matured and improved with further aging and was better still, consistent with my recent tasting back in May of this year when I wrote below.

"Much better, smoother and more approachable than last tasting five years ago when I said it needs more time. Its time! Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, smooth polished forward aromatic black currant and black berry fruits give way to hint of nicely integrated oak turning to tones of minerality, black cherry and dark mocha chocolate with hints of anise and tobacco."

We drank half the bottle with dinner last night, and it was even better today with grilled tenderloin for our Sunday afternoon dinner! Its showing elegance and finesse and smooth polished texture with velvety tannins on the long finish. This is definitely as its apex in its fourteenth year!

RM 93 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=365759

https://www.springvalleyvineyard.com/

Kathryn Hall Vertical Tasting - Hall Wine Release Tour 2015

Kathryn Hall Vertical Tasting and Hall Wine Release Tour 2015

Kathryn Hall and the Hall Wine Club and marketing team hit the road this week to celebrate and promote the release of the flagship Kathryn Hall Cabernet Sauvignon for the 2015 vintage.  They conducted two tastings, a vertical tasting of Kathryn Hall Cabernet Sauvignon 2011 through 2015, and a tasting of select labels from the 2015 vintage release. Fellow Pour Boy, Dr Dan and me and our two Lindas attended the Chicago event held at the W Hotel, conveniently located a short walk from the office.

A highlight of the main event was the chance to meet Kathryn Hall, and to have her sign a copy of her and husband Craig's New York Times bestseller book, A Perfect Score. 

The book chronicles Craig and Kathryn Hall's twenty year journey from amateur winemakers to the ultimate achievement, recipients of an almost unheard-of perfect score from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate.

A PERFECT SCORE tells the tale of their meteoric ascendancy in Napa Valley restoring the historic St Helena winery into the site and tourist attraction it is today, the building of their Rutherford facility and the tug-of-war between Napa Valley localism and tourism. Its an enchanting tale of the Halls' account of the art, soul, and business of a modern winery.

We appreciate it when producers come to our fair city and try to support such activities. It shouldn't be surprising since Chicago was recently recognized as “best restaurant city in America” by Conde Nast Traveler. The declaration was from the magazine’s list of best restaurants in Chicago.

Hall Wines have gained great notoriety and recognition since they acquired the historic St. Helena Bergfeld Winery in 2003. That historic winery in St. Helena was once the home of the Napa Valley Co-Op, producing 40% of Napa Valley’s wines.  Today it is the site of the Hall St Helena winery and hospitality center.

Previously, in 1995, the Halls acquired the legendary Sacrashe Vineyard in the hills of Rutherford which today houses their private residence, state of the art winery and magnificent caves and tasting room.  The caves double as an art gallery. Our visits to the Hall Rutherford site have been highlights of several of our Napa Valley Wine Experiences including our trip in 2013 and again in 2017.

I enjoyed sharing with Kathryn, that we have held, (and since drinken) Sacrashe Vineyard single vineyard select Cabernet Sauvignon dating back to their early days with the 1998 vintage.

It was also an honor and privilege to be able to briefly compare notes of common acquaintances from my days in national security intelligence and Kathryn's time serving as the Honorable US Ambassador to Austria.

Today, Hall’s estate vineyards encompass more than 500 acres of classic Bordeaux varietals; Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Sauvignon Blanc.

The wine flight selections for the 2015 release tour were a family affair, for labels named for
Kathryn, the flagship Cabernet Sauvignon, and Walt 2015 Pinot Noir, named for Kathryn's  family maiden name, Walt.

Such release events are an important part of our wine collecting strategy since we collect specific horizontal collections in the birthyears of our kids and grandkids, as well as vertical collections of select signature labels for each of them. Indeed, these birthyear collections and our large format bottles for such were the subject of our feature when our cellar was featured in Wine Spectator in the Collector column in June of 2001.

Also served was the 2015 release of “Jack’s Masterpiece,”  an annual release of signature Cabernet Sauvignon named for Hall’s former winemaker and current President, Mike Reynolds, and the label artwork created by Mike’s then 18-month-old son Jack, as a Father’s Day gift, back in 2012.

We have fun with these wines, selecting the Sauvignon Blanc and one of the premier Cabernets for our holiday Christmas packs, with card coined, deck the Halls!

Last year, I helped source for son Alec and his leadership, the spectacular Hall Exzellence ultra-premium Cabernet Sauvignon for their holiday client recognition appreciation gift. 

Tonight's release tasting flight:

Hall Vineyards Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2016 (not shown)

Hall Vineyards Napa Valley Jack's Masterpiece Cabernet Sauvignon 2015

Hall Vineyards Walt 'Bob's Ranch' Sonoma Valley, Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2016

Hall Kathryn Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2015

Additionally, the Hall team hosted a separate, SOLD OUT vertical tasting of the classic flagship namesake Kathryn Hall Cabernet Sauvignon showcasing the vintages from 2011 through the current release 2015.

Steadfast Chicago Wine Dinner

Steadfast Chicago Wine Dinner

Kathryn Hall and the Hall Wine Club and marketing team hit the road this week with their Regional Release Tour to celebrate and promote the release of the flagship Kathryn Hall Cabernet Sauvignon for the 2015 vintage.  We attended the Chicago event held at the W Hotel, conveniently located a short walk from the office.

Before dinner we dined at Steadfast in the Kimpton Gray Hotel, another one of Chicago’s celebrated historical buildings. The gray Georgia marble dining room has been granted landmark status by the US Historical Society.

This was our first visit to this new establishment of the Fifty50 Restaurant Group that features New American cuisine in a chic, trendy upscale, chef-driven restaurant. The headliners are two noted up and coming chefs, Chris Teixeria and Ender Oktayuren.

Executive Chef Chris Teixeria was James Beard Award semifinalist in the "Rising Star Chef of the Year" competition for his work at Homestead on the the Roof in 2015.

Chef Ender trained and competed with 5-Time Olympic Medalist Chef Tim Bucci, and was Executive Chef at World of Whirlpool in Chicago and was Garde Manger Sous Chef at Sixteen in Trump Tower and Hotel when they earned their Michelin Star. 

Steadfast is located in the center of the Chicago Loop in Financial District, near the Theater District. The atmosphere is cosmopolitan, high energy, airy and light, but a bit noisy, fitting for the urban setting but not best suited for a business or intimate dinner.

Steadfast offers a carefully selected sufficiently broad winelist for the menu. As usual, we studied the list ahead of time and already had our selection pending any specials or other discoveries once on site. We were looking forward to introducing to fellow diner and 'Pour Boy' Dr Dan a wine featured and collected during our recent Seattle Culinary and Washington Wine Tour and our visit to the Long Shadows Wine Cellars . 

We wrote in these pages recently of our visit to Long Shadows Winery tasting room in Woodinville, WA and joining their top level wine club to ensure access to their selection of wines crafted by notable world class winemakers. Indeed we intend to share our three case allocation between son Ryan and Dr Dan.  

Hence, I was looking forward to present and showcase to Dan one of the selections, Long Shadows Pedestal Merlot, crafted by Michael Rolland, PhD and winemaker from several of the world's most exclusive wineries from Bordeaux and California. Pedestal Columbia Valley Merlot 2015 is blended w/ Cabernet sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

Alas, Manager and Sommelier Daphne advised us they had just sold their last bottle of Pedestal.  This forced an audible to select another wine suitable for the dinner, but not big, bold and robust so as to overshadow the upcoming tasting to come. 

Being predisposed to drink a Merlot we opted for the Ridge Monte Bello Vineayard Merlot, 2014. 

Ridge Estate Monte Bello Vineyard Merlot 2014

Ridge Monte Bello estate and vineyard sit high atop the Santa Cruz Mountains above Silicon Valley to the east and the Pacific coast just fifteen miles to the west. It lies in the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA, California’s coolest cabernet producing area. The Monte Bello vineyard ranges in elevation from 1300′ to 2700′ above sea level. Its distinctive terroir of soil, elevation, exposure and cool climate, produces wines that are impeccably balanced and capable for long-term aging. They are known for their firm acidity and minerality.

While not in the better known Napa or Sonoma, Monte Bello Vineyard is planted in Bordeaux varietals and the flagship Ridge Monte Bello Label, a Bordeaux Blend, has often been called America’s First Growth, as it has a long history and is one of the finest domestic examples of a classic Bordeaux blend.

This label, branded the Estate Merlot, is 100% Merlot sourced from the famed vineyard. in which cabernet sauvignon predominates.

Winemaker notes: "The 2014 reflects the driest year on record that brought significant water stress to the vineyard. After twenty-one months’ aging in American oak, this complex Merlot has developed wonderfully and will be most enjoyable over the next ten years. 

Saturated ruby color. Ripe cherry fruit, chaparral, black tea, toasted oak, and clove spice. Well-defined mountain fruit entry, rounded tannins, sweet oak, lengthy finish showing limestone character."

We found this dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, bright vibrant forward bold Cherry and Black Berry fruit flavors with sprites of clove spice and black tea, sweet oak and full rounded lingering tannins with bright acidity.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2591643

https://www.ridgewine.com/

https://www.steadfastchicago.com/

Our Entrees:

 

Steadfast Salmon

 

Steadfast Pork Chop

 

Steadfast Diver Scallops

 

Steadfast Bourimoundie

Pilcrow Napa Pym-Rae Cabernet at Harry and Izzys

Pilcrow Napa Valley Mt Veeder Pym-Rae Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2014




Visiting Indy and dear friends Eric & Cathy, we dined at Harry & Izzy's steakhouse. Imagine my surprise and delight to see this label on the winelist. Ironically, I brought a Marco Di Guilio Mt Veeder Napa Cab from our cellar to drink before dinner. We all visited Mt Veeder together  during our Napa Valley Mt Veeder Wine Experience 2011.

Recently, I wrote in these pages about Marco Di Guilio Pym Rae Vineyard Cabernet and about the end of an era of Robert Craig sourcing grapes from this vineyard over more than two decades. That was do to the passing of vineyard and estate owner Robin Williams and the sale of the property to a third party.

Meanwhile, in the interim, Sara Beers founded the Pilcrow label sourcing fruit from the property and released this label for two years, the 2014 and 2015 vintages.

Harry and Izzy's is the sister restaurant to legendary St Elmo Steak House, an institution in Indianapolis since 1902. It is named after the owners Harry Roth and Izzy Rosen, longtime friends since High School and partners in St Elmo since 1956. After decades of building St. Elmo Steak House into a hugely successful business, they recently opened Harry and Izzy as a more casual and trendy chic environment.

Earlier in the evening we drank the Marco di Guilio Mt Veeder Progeny Vineyard Cabernet 2001. The ideal drinking window for this wine is probably in between the eighteen year old and the four year old, one probably slightly past its prime but still very much in its acceptable  drinking window, and the other a few years away from reaching its apex.Then at dinner, we found the Pilcrow and naturally jumped at the opportunity to try it.

Pilcrow Napa Valley Mt Veeder Pym-Rae Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

Pilcrow was a labor of love for proprietor Sara Beer, her first winemaking project, this was her inaugural vintage, sourcing fruit from this legendary vineyard that supplied grapes to Robert Craig for over two decades. This all came to an end when the vineyard was purchased by the Tesseron family, known for their fine Cognac and Château Pontet-Canet of Bordeaux. Hence, Sara Beer's Pilcrow label only lasted two vintages through this and the 2015. 

This was was opaque garnet-crimson colored, medium full bodied with black berry and black currant fruits accented by creme de cassis, leather and tobacco with notes of lavender, cedar and cacao with lingering structured but smooth tannins. 

This showed some bright acidity and tartness begging for more age and time to settle and integrate, this will probably improve for five to ten years and be at its apex for another ten years or more. 

RM 92 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2630771


https://www.pilcrow-wine.com/  
See the notes the Mt Veeder Cab below to imagine how this will age over time.

Marco di Guilio Mt Veeder Progeny Vineyard Cabernet 2001

This is one of several vineyard designated select labels from winemaker Marco Di Guilio. At seventeen years, this is probably past its prime but not yet showing any serious diminution from age, but not likely to improve any further.

Consistent with early tasting notes in 2009 and 2011, "Dark inky color. Full bodied, big floral nose. Mouthful of black berry, sweet black raspberry (more predominant a few days later), cedar, spicy oak and a slight hint of anise; full finely integrated polished tannins on a long flavorful finish". The fruit flavors are just beginning to give way to non fruit tones of leather and tobacco leaf. Hence, my review is reduced from 92 to 91 points.

RM 91 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=42933

http://www.harryandizzys.com/

Pride Mountain Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2002

Before dinner we also opened this Pride Napa Cab, 2002 from high atop Spring Mountain in the central Mayacamas range on the east facing slopes above St Helena. We visited the winery back in our Napa Wine Experience back in 1999.

This was bright garnet colored, full bodied, bright vibrant forward black berry and black cherry fruits with notes of mocha chocolate and hints of cedar and expresso with smooth silky tannins on a smooth polished lingering finish.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=21855

https://www.pridewines.com/

Perry's Steakhouse Katy/Houston Wine Dinner

Perry's Steakhouse Houston Wine Dinner

For an important business dinner, we dined at Perry's Steakhouse in Katy Texas in suburban Houston. To accompany my Perry's Signature Bone-in Ribeye steak (shown below right) and for the other's steak dinners' accompaniment, we ordered from the wine list two favorite Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons. From the Oakville appellation, Groth Oakville Cab, and from the nearby Stags Leap District, Cliff Lede Stags Leap District Cab, both from the 2014 vintage.

Perry's are recipients of the Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence Award for the deep, broad and extensive wine list.

For our special business dinner, we dined in the private alcove room 'Table 79'.

For the dessert course we ordered a wonderful classic Inniskillin Vidal Gold Icewine 2013.

We have visited both Cliff Lede Winery and Groth during several of our Napa Valley Wine Experiences. We also visited the Inniskillin Estate Winery during our Niagara wine region visit back in 2012.

Groth Oakville Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

We drank this one first and while it closely resembled the second Cab, the Cliff Lede below, the Groth was slightly more subdued, less vibrant, hence was best served first for best comparison.

Bright dark garnet color with purple hues, medium full bodied, black berry and black cherry fruits with hints of vanilla black currant, licorice and touch of mint and oak on a smooth tannin laced finish.

RM 91 points.

This was ideal with my bone-in ribeye entree (shown below). This was actually a fairly good value being priced about the median price for a Cal Cab on the Best of Award Spectator wine list.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2664215



 
Cliff Lede Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

This is the standard Estate bottled Cabernet Sauvignon with fruit sourced from the hillside terraces of the Poetry Vineyard down the road and across the Silverado Trail from the winery, from the Twin Peaks Vineyard estate surrounding the winery, and a few neighboring vineyards in the Stags Leap District.

This is a consistent crowd pleaser from vintage to vintage.  We hold about a half dozen vintages of this label and they seem to hit their stride and be in their peak after a decade of cellaring. The 2006 was a hit during one of our recent wine dinners.

Dark garnet and dense purple in color, full bodied, bright vibrant black berry and black currant fruits with tones of anise, hints of cinnamon spice and oak with firm but smooth tannins on a lingering finish.

RM 91 points. This got 93 points from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and 91 points from Vinous 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2394746

 
 For the dessert course we ordered this marvelous Icewine that was perfect complement to the creme brulee' and other desserts.


Inniskillin Niagara VQA Gold Vidal Icewine 2013

This is classic - what Icewine is supposed to be like in its thick layers of unctuous fruit and sweetness.

Gold colored, full bodied, thick, syrupy with tones of tropical fruit flavors with hints of peaches and apricot and notes of creamy vanilla with notes of brown sugar and crisp acidity.

This is sourced from Vidal fruit taken from Inniskillin’s famous Brae Burn Vineyard – one of Ontario’s most storied vineyards near the Estate.

RM 93 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1950250


http://www.perryssteakhouse.com/menu-locations/houston/katy/

Barking Frog at Willows Lodge Wine Dine Experience

Barking Frog at Willows Lodge Wine Dine Experience


Our final culinary dining experience during our Seattle Culinary and Washington Wine Tour was dinner at the Barking Frog restaurant in the Willows Lodge resort.

Barking Frog is the fine dining establishment in the Seattle wine country suburb of Woodinville, home to, reportedly, over a hundred wine tasting venues.

Once again, it was a delight to have son Ryan along with us for the trip to share the experience.

We scored a dinner reservation from local Somm and wine room manager at one of the premier tasting rooms.

Barking Frog have an excellent wine list but we took one bottle BYOB, that son Ryan obtained from the Library collection at Long Shadows cellars, a 2004 Pirouette Bordeaux Blend.  This label was one of the wines we tasted and acquired at Long Shadows, one of their Vintners Collection Winemaker Series featuring world class winemakers collaborating to showcase the best art of the possible from Washington State vineyards.

Pirouette Bordeaux Blend is crafted by Augustin Hunneeus, Sr and Philippe Melka, noted for Napa Valley leading wine labels. We hold this wine in our cellar back at home but had not yet tasted this vintage. We also hold many other Philppe Melka labels from his own Melka brand as well as many others for which he is consulting winemaker.

Like we did for our other culinary ventures this week, we chose the Price Fixe tasting menu to follow the chef's suggestion for the pairings and courses.

Here were our course selections:

• Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras
• Heirloom tomatoes with basil, urfa biber, cherries/buratta and noble xo
• Asparagus with farro fries, parmesan tuile, spring herbs and lemon tarragon aioli
• Atlantic Sea Scallops with artichoke, fava beans, cipollini onions, onion soubise and porcini nage
• Beef  ribeye  w/ whipped potatoes,  asparagus and sauce chasseur
•  For the final course, Linda had the Vanilla Bean Creme' Brulee and I had the Trio of Sorbets

From the winelist we ordered a sparkling wine starter and a dessert wine for the finale.

What a treat, our second Inniskillin Ice Wine in as many weeks!  Ryan had the Sauterne which, while wonderful, was not a match for the Inniskillin. 

Inniskillin Niagara Estate Riesling Icewine 2015

Château Roûmieu-Lacoste Sémillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend 2015

Our Dinner Plates:

Hudon Valley Foie Gras

Heirloom tomatoes with basil

Asparagus with farro fries

Beef Ribeye

https://www.willowslodge.com/barking_frog/