Dallas Wine Chick

Brown Bagging: A Blind Tasting Experience

Before the holidays, a group of Dallas-based wine folks gathered together for our first brown bag tasting event.  We tried ten wines in an informal format at Campania Pizza in Uptown, who was generous enough to waive the corkage fee. 

The parameters were wide open – a red wine in the neighborhood of $20-25 a bottle.  I was really intrigued to see what the group would bring as it was a varied group of wine lovers – some formally trained and some self taught – all interested in continuing their journey with wine. 

Here was the line-up and my reactions:

• Cooper L’inizio – 2008 (Washington).  After hosting Neal Cooper on his first Dallas visit last year and being impressed with Washington State wine at the Wine Bloggers Conference 2010, I thought I’d bring something that the rest of the tasters couldn’t get in Texas.  Note that I did break the rules a bit and bring a bottle that is now estimated to sell around $40 in very limited quantities.  Definitely in my top three wines.
• Inwood Estates 2008 Cornelius (Texas) I admit it – I continue to struggle with the price point and payoff of this wine.  @jftxwine brought it as the zinger of the night and I tasted concrete and something sweet that didn’t work for me especially at $40.
• Petalos Bierzo 09 (Spain).  I tasted blueberry, spice and a hint of floral, which may have been lavender.
• La Vierge,” Cahors 07 (France), smoky, dark cherry, flinty, meaty and earthy.  This wine is referred to as the “French Malbec”
• Mollydooker The Boxer (Australia) – After having the ability to spend some time with Sparky and Mum late last year, talking about these guys is like talking about family.  I tasted big berry, licorice, oak and cedar.
• Bodini Malbec – 2010 (Argentina).  Berry, meaty, licorice abound in this juicy Malbec.
• Toasted Head Cabernet Sauvignon 09 (California).  Cherry, cassis, coffee and some spice.
• Haven’s Meritage 09 Rutherford (California).  Blueberries, vanilla, spice and a big juicy red.  Definitely in my top three wines.
• Domaine Alain Graillot Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 09 (France).  Raspberry, cardamom, smoky with a little pepper.  On my top three list.
• Pagos del Moncejo Garnacha 08 (Spain).  Cedar, spice, vanilla and cherry.

We had a great time, ate some really good pizza and enjoyed diverse wines from around the world.  Our next brown bag tasting is in early February and we’ll taste Pinot Noirs.  I just happen to have another surprise in store.

Dallas’ Most Interesting Wine List is at a National Hotel?

Last month I attended the Texas/New York Gridiron wine challenge had the opportunity to sit at a table with Hunter Hammett, sommelier for the Dallas Fairmont Hotel.  Surprisingly enough, our conversation shifted to wine and he told me about the Fairmont’s wine list which he had totally overhauled including a large number of Texas wines.  I was intrigued, so I asked Hunter if I could spend some time with him learning more about the list.

He’s an agreeable guy and very passionate about wine, so I found myself in the totally revamped Pyramid Restaurant & Bar at the Fairmont – with a tasteful local focus on Texas products and a rooftop garden.  I was handed the list, which received a Wine Spectator 2010 Award of Excellence, and like a kid in the candy store, I started perusing.  As Hunter hand-selected the 250 wines that are on the list, it was important find a variety of on and off “the beaten path” wines at any price that patrons would love.  I especially enjoyed the Underrated Reds and Underrated Whites sections that had a number of wines I have enjoyed in small little wine bars or across the country.  I never expected to see them at a restaurant in a national hotel.  You’ll also find grapes you’ve probably never heard of nor had the opportunity to try like Aligoté, at least in Texas, until now. 

Gruet was one of the selections on the Underrated Reds list and I mentioned that I had never tried its still wines.  In short notice, I had a glass of the 06 Gruet Pinot Noir Cuvee Gilbert in hand.  Hunter also had a large selection of wines that are positioned by varietal vs. region to encourage experimentation of all different types of grapes from around the world.

Of course, because this is Texas, you will find the usual big suspect Cabernets -we all know that restaurants have to carry these to please certain patrons.  Also, I believe that having some of the big steakhouse wines gives people the trust factor to try other wines that may not have considered otherwise.  

Wines that are sustainable, organic and environmentally farmed are given special consideration.  You’ll probably see a future focus on building out the French section of the list in 2011.  Hunter’s credo, like The Wine Century Club, is to broaden the wine drinking scope at every opportunity.  I, for one, look forward to my trip around the world with his wine list as my guide.

Membership Has Its Privileges

Date night.  As someone who has been married for almost 16 years and the mom of a four-and-a-half year old daughter, it’s has been an important time for my husband and I to reconnect – away from the grind of the everyday realities of life. 

If you know me, you know that Abacus restaurant is high on our rotation list – we eat there often and my husband takes cooking classes there many weekends.  We realized we went there possibly too much when we received flowers from them when our daughter was born.  We still have no idea how they knew when I had given birth and what hospital we had chosen.   But, we have another place on our rotation that is as equally wonderful.

Some of you may remember William Koval, the highly lauded chef that made the French Room at the Adolphus Hotel a five-star experience as well as the youngest executive chef in history for the Ritz Carlton.  He’s a man who inspires awe in other chefs and the foodies that follow him.  After the Adolphus he had a few other gourmet stints in other cities, but has come back home.

William’s food is enough of a draw, but when you combine it with a Wine Spectator “award winning” wine list of small production, unique wines, under the direction of Tony Zaranti, you have food/wine nirvana.  What’s the price tag, you ask?   Sixty dollars for a three-course gourmet dining experience plus the cost of the wine, which has a very small mark-up.  And did I mention that you don’t tip on that?

So, I’m telling you this in the hopes that you have some friends in East Dallas and can wrangle an invitation to the wine room at Lakewood Country Club.  Our last experience included the following menu:

First Course:

Chilled Maine Lobster (paired with Moet Chandon Sparkling)

Sticky Rice, Laosion Crispy Beef, Cashew, Dried Cherry, Mint, Candied Ginger, Spicy Carrot Sauce

 Carrot Ginger Liquid (paired with Basil Hayden Bourbon; husband’s choice)

 Shrimp and Pork Shumi

 Second Course:

 Seared Nova Scotia Halibut

 Spinach, Artichoke, Parsnip, Orange Powder, Ver Jus Sauce

 Seared Sterling Silver Beef Tenderloin

 Roasted Sweet Pepper, Shallot, Garlic, Golden Yukon Fries, Black Pepper Demi

 Third Course:

We bypassed the warm green apple almond tart, fried Valrhona chocolate and the soufflés for the artisan cheese plate and sorbet with mixed berries. 

Due to a snafu with an older vintage, our main wine that night was a 05 Chateau de Beaucastel Red.  While young, it had fantastic fruit with liquorice and blackberry undertones.   I also detected some spice.  The wine list at Lakewood has received an Award of Distinction from the Club Manager’s Association of America’s International Wine Society for the quality of the list.  And, without the painful markup of most restaurants, you can pick a great wine for a great price.

As we left for the evening we received a nice breakfast package of cinnamon rolls – just a nice touch for an elegant evening of gourmet food and well-paired wine.