Dallas Wine Chick

Decent Glass of Wine At A Chain Series: Russo’s Coal Fired Italian

As a part of my ongoing and often sporadic “Can You Get a Decent Glass of Wine from a Chain Restaurant” series, I was invited to Russo’s Coal Fired Italian Kitchen, a chain of more than 25 Italian restaurants.  I’d never been to Russo’s before and so I made the ride to Richardson, TX, with my friend, David, who graciously agreed to be a part of the taste experience.

This series started after I told my husband that I did not want to meet him for drinks after work at Mi Cocina due their very pedestrian wine list.  While I have been pleasantly surprised  with the results of this series (I’ve had two good experiences at Cafe Express and The Olive Garden),  I wasn’t sure what to expect from a pizza and pasta chain.  Again, I found that I need to check my pre-conceived notions at the door.  

We were warmly greeted by Chris Demers, director of operations for Russo’s, who began talking passionately about the wine program.  Russo’s offers twelve wines by the glass — one prosecco, five whites and six reds — and ten of those rotate monthly.  All of these wines retail for $7 for a 5 oz. pour.  When we visited the restaurant, there were some other specials including Ferrari Carano for $6 and Masi for $9.  Demers has a background of helping bring The Wine Loft, a national wine bar concept, to fruition so when he came to work at Russo’s he immediately overhauled the wine program.

He told us that, overall, Richardson (Dallas) wine drinkers were adventurous and while he needed to have some traditional Italian Chianti’s and Pinot Grigio’s on the menu, people were also willing to try Argentian Malbec and Chilean Sauvignon Blanc.  After checking his website, we realized the list Demers has is different from the Russo’s wine list.  That is by design.  Half of these wines aren’t available via retail as he’s trying to encourage a positive adventure in wine for his diners.  It is paying off — since he overhauled the wine program, sales are up over 50 percent.  There has only been one exception — Mark West Pinot Noir.  He tried to replace this crowd favorite and quickly realized it was a sacred cow.

Here’s the line-up that we had the night of our tasting:

White:

• Cavit – Lunetta Prosecco 09.  I tasted peach and pear with a mineral ending.  A very nice drinkable sparkling to start your meal.
• Castegio – Pinot Grigio 10.  This is a crisp and tart pinot grigio.  This grape isn’t my usual first choice in wine, but it was a good representation.
• De Martino – Sauvignon Blanc 10 (Chile).  This was my favorite white.  Lots of citrus and pineapple, but with the minerality that I like.  If I tasted this blindly, I would have said this was a sauvignon blanc from New Zealand.  Note this one is very hard to find in Dallas.
• Alias – Chardonnay 09 (California).  Loved the story behind this project by eight un-named wine makers who wanted to make a good wine.  This was made in Old World style with lemon, tropical fruits and honey, but without being a butter bomb.  This was David’s favorite white and a very nice chardonnay.
• Chateau Ste. Michelle – Riesling 10 (Washington State).  Always a critics’ favorite — especially at this price range — this had lots of stone fruit flavor and was a great value riesling.

Red:

• Mark West – Pinot Noir 09 (California).  The people have spoken.  No comment.
• Ruffino – Sangiovese 10 (Chianti).  You have to have a by the glass chianti, but there are much better options on the list.
• Ca’Momi – Merlot 09 (Napa).  This is one of them.  A big jammy, food-friendly wine with notes of plum, cherry and menthol.  A really nice merlot and David’s favorite red.
• Altos – Malbec Classico 10 (Mendoza).  A very nice representation of a Malbec with vanilla, mocha and chocolate. 
• Blackburn – Cabernet Sauvignon 08 (Paso Robles).  Run, do not walk and see if you can find this wine in Dallas (if I don’t buy it all first).  This drank like a $30 cab and was off the charts good.  Big notes of plum, cherry, earth and menthol.  

We also got to sample a few of the menu items, prosciutto with buffalo mozzarella, which I didn’t try because I’m allergic to pork, and the spinach and artichoke dip, which was off the charts good.  My advice for you is to come from 3-6 for Happy Hour or on Wednesday’s when wines are $5.  Order the dip and the Blackburn and savor the fact that not only can you get a good glass of wine from a chain, but you have found a cabernet that is a fantastic price to taste ratio.

Salud.

Wine Quest: Decent Wine at a Chain Search Continues at Olive Garden

I fully admit that I had some trepidation going back into an Olive Garden Restaurant, especially to taste wine.  But, I had willingly committed to doing a series about the possibility of finding a decent wine by the glass at a chain.  So, I grabbed my friend, Jennifer, and off we went.

Danny and Jeff

We were met by General Manager, Danny Gabaldon, and Certified Wine Trainer and a guy you want to work for you, Jeff Kidd, and seated in the bar area.  The restaurant had recently been remodeled with a Tuscan influence and was not the dark wood, dark place that I remembered from about 15 years ago.  We were presented with the wine list, which had 38 wines total with 35 offered by the glass at all price ranges.  The wines ranged from the house Cabit to the more interesting Italian wines.  Master Sommelier Andrea Immer Robinson helped create the wine training program for the Olive Garden and you can definitely see her influence.   So I’m sure you wondering which three bottles aren’t available by the glass – Zonin Prosecco , Bertani Amarone Della Valpolicella ($100) and Col d’Orcia Brunello di Montacino ($65).

Danny pointed out the featured wines list, which changes every six weeks, is matched with seasonal food items.  The wines are 6 oz pours or for another $2.50, they will pour 9 ozs.  The restaurant puts a sticker on each bottle that indicates the day the bottle was opened and when it is no longer consumable.  In addition, air is pumped from each open bottle nightly.  They brought us some bruschetta, Italian cheese and some individual sized desserts and we began to taste. 

We tried the following wines:

• Rocca delle Macie Sasyr 07, a blend of Sangiovese and Syrah.  This is a very fruity, tangy and easy to drink wine that pairs well with Italian flood.  This was our favorite red wine.
• Feudo Arancio Nero d’Avola Sicilia IGT 09, cranberry, berry and lots of fruit.
• Mandra Rossa Fiano 09, nice nose with lots of pear notes with tropical fruit and citrus.  This would be a great pool wine.
• Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie Sartori di Verona 10, a very typical Pinot Grigio that would pair well with Italian food.

We also sampled the Moscato and the Roscotto, a sweet red made only for Olive Garden, with the desserts.  I think I’m going to stick with my dessert wines favs, but it’s nice to know that these are around when Great Aunt Stella is ready to have some vino.

I must say that I’m impressed with the effort that Danny, Jeff and Darden Restaurants are putting effort into making sure diners have the option for a good glass of wine with their meal.  At least at Olive Garden, you can get a decent glass of wine at a chain.  Bravo!

WSWA Convention – Trend Two: The Proof is in the Packaging

So, this takes us to trend number two from my time at the WSWA Convention & Exposition.  I always heard from my mother that “what’s inside matters.”  Still the case, but why can’t what is outside be streamlined and functional? 

The first vendor that I encountered was Bluebird Wines, who offered a Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in an astro pouch with California grapes from Monterrey and Mendocino.  Priced at $17.99 for what is equivalent to two bottles, it is the perfect boating, game day or picnic wine.  The Chardonnay was more my style, which makes sense considering I’d probably consume this outside.  Still not for sale in Texas, but Bluebird is currently distributing in ten states with an eye on nationwide distribution.

The second exhibitor that I met, Copa di Vino, has the brilliant idea to offer single serve wines in disposable, individually packaged glasses (hard plastic actually) for $2.99.  When James Martin, the owner, was in France celebrating his 20^th wedding anniversary, he saw this innovative packaging, secured the first license in the United States and built a company around it.  It’s brilliantly simple – remove the cover and sip.  No spillage nor waste nor a commitment to drinking a full bottle of wine.  Martin recently participated on the ABC reality show Shark Tank and was offered an investment in the single-serve technology only.  He declined because he believes that the technology side and the wine side should be integrated.  He spent tireless hours launching Copa as a proof of concept and is currently talking with wineries all over North America to provide the juice.

So, your next question is how is the wine?  Some of it is actually good.  Currently sourced from Columbia Valley grapes, I enjoyed the Merlot and the Pinot Grigio.  And, some are currently being reconsidered with different juice than the ones that I tried – and that is also a good thing.  With all the bad wines by the glass being served out there for ridiculous prices, I love that for under $3, I can get something decent at my local convenience store if I happen to be going to an outdoor park, movie theater, etc.

And, heck, if they can figure out how to do reserve wines that resemble stemware, I’m all in.  Keep an eye on Copa di Vino and Bluebird – they have the potential to change the way we drink wine in places where we usually have limited options.

Brown Bagging: A Wine Twits and Barone Fini Pinot Grigio Tasting

I had the opportunity to attend the Wine Twits Barone Fini Pinot Grigio Blind Taste Challenge last week.  I loved the premise of the brown bag challenge, happily removed my wrapped bottles from the wine tasting kit and eagerly anticipated putting my taste buds to the test.  Count Giovanni Bonmartini-Fini, the winemaker, graciously hosted a large group of bloggers and wine enthusiasts.

The Barone Fini family has been making wines since 1497 with a focus on producing quality wines with a family focus.  I fully expected that the tasting would focus on the Barone Fini Valdadige and the Barone Fini Alto Adige, the winery’s two Pinot Grigio wines that are made in different styles.

However, the organizers had different plans for us.  I gathered several folks at my house and we opened the first wine at the appointed time.  I was not a big fan.  It had a creaminess to it, but was somewhat flat with some apple and tropical notes.  I couldn’t quite reconcile the flavor on my palate.  I think if I had the right pairing, I would have liked this wine more, but I didn’t want to just sip it.

The second wine had notes of green apple, citrus, floral and almond that appealed more to my palate.  The wines were so different that I made the remark at some point that evening that this appeared to be an old world vs new world tasting.

At this point the tasting was still blind and it was entertaining to watch the live simulcast from New York.  Finally, the unveil.  The first wine was Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio, an overproduced and overpriced wine that is not on my favorite list.  As a blogger, I was so glad that my pre-conceived notions stayed true or this would be a column about eating crow.  I was surprised that how many bloggers that I respect preferred the Santa Margherita.   

The second wine was Barone Fini Valdadige.   Of the two wines, this was my personal preference as well as my entire group of wine tasters in Dallas.

Cheers to Wine Twits and Barone Fini for putting together an interesting and informative tasting that challenges wine styles as well as pre-conceived notions (see if you also can find the surprise visitor who did not taste wine that evening).

She’s leaving on Midnight Train to Saint-Emilion

I know you’ve heard the old saying, “Be careful what you wish for….”  About a month ago, I was lamenting the fact that review wines were stacking up in my kitchen and I posted on Facebook that I needed some tasting assistance.  Naturally, several people immediately jumped to help and the next thing I knew, Lea Cromer had arranged for our tasting to be held at Saint-Emilion Restaurant.com in Ft. Worth, TX for a nominal fee. 

First, I had to figure out how to get a bunch of folks from Dallas to Fort Worth without having to drive.  We were planning to drink 16 review wines and we were ready for some fun.  Sure, we could have paid for a driver, but since it was the midst of the holidays we didn’t want to spend the funds.  In most metropolitan cities, this would not be that big of a deal, but in Texas, public transportation is not an easy feat.

We found out the Trinity Railway Express would get us from point A to point B in less than an hour.  Seemed easy.  Notsomuch.  My friend, Julie, and I took a taxi from my house to the station and found it difficult to navigate with someone else driving.  Actually, that’s an understatement.  Do you remember the scene from National Lampoon’s European Vacation?  We had our Look kids.  There’s Big Ben.  There’s Parliament moments.  The real irony occurred when several of my friends tried to (gasp) drive their cars to the station and park.  That’s when we found out that the ample lot located next to the station is closed and they wanted three women driving separately to park 15 minutes away and walk… because that is safe and makes sense? 

I must admit.  Once we got on the train we planned to clandestinely pour some wines into coffee cups to toast the journey.  The train was so packed that was not a reality, but I know some of the conversations that we had definitely were not what the daily commuters were used to overhearing.  Once we hit Fort Worth, we piled (and I mean piled) into the taxi where we were finally en route to Saint-Emilion Restaurant, one of Fort Worth’s treasures.

In the past, I haven’t spent a great deal of time in Fort Worth outside of client business or the arts community, but I can’t put into words how lovely and hospitable the owner, Bernard Tronche, was to us. He truly rolled out the red carpet.

Bernard had arranged for the tasting wines to be properly chilled and stemware was waiting when we arrived.  Our aperitif was the Biltmore Estate Blanc de Blancs Methode Champenoise.  Made of chardonnay grapes, it was floral, had a touch of honey and some citrus notes.  A very nice sparkling for $24.99.

Once we had finished our sparkling, Bernard began to bring out lovely plates of cheeses, frog legs, escargots and freshly baked warm bread to complement the food.   There were arsenal meats, goat cheese rolled in spices, almonds, olives and an amazing bruschetta appetizer that I couldn’t stop eating. 

My favorites of the 16 wines that we reviewed:

Favorite Wines

• Cupcake Sauvignon Blanc 09.  At $13.99, we were pleasantly surprised with this wine.  Lots of citrus, but with a touch of pineapple that made it balanced. It was named by one of the attendees as her 2011 “lakehouse wine.”
• Blackstone Sonoma Reserve Rubric 07.  I had a bit of a bias against the Blackstone wines, but really enjoyed the Rubic.  Big notes of blackberry and a caramel smoothness made this a nice drinking experience. Priced at $22.  The Blackstone Sonoma Reserve Cabernet 07 also received some good table reviews.
• Caviste Carneros Pinot Noir 07.  Lea, who reps several wines with retailers, brought this one made by Acacia.  It had notes of licorice and a lavender note that I really liked.  Priced at $17.99.
• Albino Armani Corvara Pinot Grigio Valdadige 09. This was an interesting wine.  I tasted pears, peaches, honeydew and a touch of bubble gum.  Definitely one to be served as an aperitif.  Priced at $19.99
• Bodegas Osborne Tempra Tantrum Tempranillo/Cabernet 09.  Very fruity with blackberry notes.  We deemed this a great picnic wine at $11.99.
• Robert Mondavi Merlot Napa Valley 07.  Raspberries, blueberries and black tea made this a well balanced wine.  Priced  at $23.
• Dona Paula Estate Malbec 09.  Hands down – our favorite of the wines to be reviewed.  Velvety smooth and notes of cherry, herb and licorice.  Very nice.  The quote of the night occurred here – “I want to sleep with this.  I want to bathe with this.”

Right as the Dona Paula Malbec was poured, Bernard and crew came with the grand finale – a fantastic steak, pommes frites and grilled asparagus.  The meal was absolutely heavenly and I don’t think I left a bite.  Saint-Emilion opened in 1985 when Bernard, a transplant from France, decided that he wanted to open his own restaurant after working at restaurants in New York, New Orleans and Dallas.  Mark Hitri serves as the Chef de Cuisine and joined last September. 

Bernard and I enjoying the evening

We wrapped up the night with a few wines from our own collections.  The Summers Adrianna’s Cuvee Cabernet Sauvignon Napa 07, the 00 Chateau Margaux Pavillon Rouge and the 05 Marquis Phillips S2.  This time we planned ahead and filled out “to go” cups before arriving at the station for the long ride ahead.

I can tell you one thing – the food at Saint-Emilion is worth the trip.  I will be back – and might even take the train again to do so …

A Night with David Mirassou

One the of the coolest things about having a blog are the invitations that you receive from wineries to attend wine dinners and events.  Bloggers are starting to gain credibility as a media source and because 1,800 of you have logged on since I began Dallas Wine Chick in February, this blog has built some fast “street cred.”  So, let me start with a big thank you to all of my readers (especially the 1,780 of you who are not related to me in any way).

Mirassou Winery and Stephen Pyles teamed up to host a media dinner last week and I had the chance to attend with one of my favorite friends and bloggers Write for Wine who happened to be in town from Seattle at a work event.  I was vaguely familiar with Mirassou wines, which you’ve probably seen at your neighborhood grocery store, due to their large distribution and value. 

We were hosted by the delightful David Mirassou, who is the sixth generation of one of America’s oldest wine making families.  My husband always says when he likes someone that they “are someone you’d want to sit down and have a beer with to talk.” David is one of those guys – funny, unassuming, likeable and just an all around good person.  Even though he addressed the crowd with every wine poured, he took the time to sit down at every table so we could ask him our questions and he kept us laughing with his stories.  And, a bonus for me is that he and my uncle Mike are dear friends.

We started with 08 Mirassou Pinot Grigio as an appertif.  It was crisp and fruit forward.  It was served with an amuse bouche of cured hake, caviar and a confit of pine nuts with a balsamic gelee.  Delightful match.

Next step was the 08 Mirassou Sauvignon Blanc paired with sea scallop “migas” with spring pea emulsion and chorizo.  Recently, I have been surprised at how well sauvignon blanc pairs with spring peas.  This wine was my personal favorite of the bunch.

We moved on to the 08 Mirassou Chardonnay matched with a butter poached lobster with corn milk-green chili custard, hearts of palm and black garlic cream.  I tasted green apples, tropical notes and it was very food friendly (and how can you not get friendly with lobster?)

The rest of the group ate sous vide pork tenderloin with masa cake and texas strawberry-pasilla gastrique with the Mirassou Pinot Noir, but they substituted lamb for me due to a pork allergy.  I tasted cherries and a bit of pepper.  Super interesting fact – the Mirassou family (his great, great grandfather) was the first to bring over pinot noir cuttings from France.  

At this point I was stuffed, but the food kept coming.  A foie gras “forest” with shaved chipotle brioche and carmelized figs was paired with a 08 Mirassou Merlot.  This was the smoothest red to me and I liked the spiciness, big fruit, hints of vanilla and balance.  Definitely a fabulous pairing.

The 08 Mirassou cabernet sauvignon was paired with a cherry salsita-stuffed waygu shortrib with Dallas goat cheese-chimichurri tamale.  I am still dreaming of that tamale.  And, did I mention I was stuffed beyond belief two courses ago?

Our finale was the 08 Mirassou Riesling with mango-semolina croquettes with coconut-marcona almond sauce.  The fruit in the dessert paired well with the tropical notes in the wine.  Truly a “wow inspiring” dinner with value wines that held their own with the food.  And , did I mention that all wines are under $12? 

Since Summer seems to be the month of weddings, here’s my Dallas Wine Chick insider tip.  Mirassou is hosting its 6^th annual “I Do with Mirassou” contest where brides- and grooms-to-be can enter for a chance to win $10,000, plus a trip to San Francisco to meet with Food Network Chef Aida Mollenkamp and David to plan a custom wedding menu, complete with food and wine pairings. To find out more, enter by June 27, 2010 at www.mirassou.com/ido.