Dallas Wine Chick

Nature Runs Its Course: Lunch with Emiliana Organic Vineyards

Alvaro Espinoza Duran, Consulting Winemaker

I was recently invited to attend a wine lunch featuring wines from Emiliana Organic Vineyard with Jose Guilisasti Gana, general manager, and Alvaro Espinoza Duran, consulting winemaker.  The vineyard is based in Chile, a climate well suited for organic wines.  Founded in 1986, the winery quickly became the world’s leading source of estate-grown organic wines. 

Today Emiliana Vineyards produces a complete portfolio of organic and biodynamic wines that express the terroir and personality of the countryside.  The philosophy is to seek “harmony between the maximum quality of its wines and the respect for the environment.”  With the assistance of world renown enologist and visionary on making organic wines, Duran works closely with Emiliana’s winemakers to produce wines in Los Robles and Palmeras in Colchagua, the first estate that was biodynamically certified, and in the Maipo Valley.  Emiliana makes three labels — Novas, Natura and COYAM.

Duran told us that all of his wines express the character of the land and the rhythms of nature that create the four distinct seasons defined in the region.  All of the wines go through the same organic process with many Old World farming techniques.  The Natura wines were the most value-oriented and we tried a variety including the 2011 Sauvignon Blanc, Unoaked Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Carmenere.  These were all very approachable and drinkable for a great price point.  My favorite was the Carmenere with its juiciness, soft tannins and cherry notes.  And, it is no surprise that Duran is good at this grape as he was the first to bottle it while he worked at Carmen Vineyards.

We then tasted the estate grown Novas Gran Reserva wines – the 2011 Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay; the 2010 Pinot Noir and the 2009 Carmenere and Cabernet Sauvignon.   Again, I drifted toward the reds – the Carmenere with its soft tannins, cherries and chocolate flavors and the Cabernet Sauvignon with berry, pepper, cedar and was balanced.

Then we moved to COYAM.  Named the word for “Chilean oak” which was used by the Mapuches, the original inhabitants of Chile, and describes the trees surrounding Emiliana vineyards in the Colchagua Valley, this is the “crème de la crème” of the portfolio.   Made up of seven grapes from Chile, the blend is smooth, lush with rich fruit, green pepper, blackberry and cassis. 

Looking forward to the future of organic wines and that next glass of COYAM.

Matching Wine with Beef Tongue: My Chefs Under Fire Culinary Experience

The Winning Dish - Courtesy of Steven Doyle, Crave DFW

I attended the third annual 2011 Dallas/Fort Worth Chefs Under Fire Regional Culinary Competition last month at the Milestone Culinary Arts Center.  The contest, which is sponsored by the Keep Collection, LLC, was won by Kevin Martinez of Tokyo Cafe with a dish of seared tilefish, fresh peach and tomato salsa on a corn and okra-yuzu succotash topped with crispy shallots.  It looked great.  However, only the chef judges – Chef Tim Byres of SMOKE, Katie Natale of Four Seasons Resort and Club and Sharon Van Meter of Milestone Culinary Arts Center got to try the dishes.

The Wine Matching Challenge of a Lifetime

The rest of us had an array of appetizers to taste and a wine and food demo from Commissary Chef John Tesar, who prepared beef tongue, and Sommelier Scott Barber who had to match the dish with wines.  The question of the day is what wine do you serve with beef tongue?  Barber recommended two whites and a red.

Scott Barber, the Man with A Plan — Courtesy of Steven Doyle, Crave DFW

The Line Up

• 09 Château de Sancerre “Passe Avant le Meilleur” Sancerre, Loire Valley.  The minerality, pepper and smoky taste came out when paired with the beef tongue. A very crisp and subtle wine that stood up to the green notes in the salsa verde sauce.
• 2007 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling Spätlese.  This wine paired surprisingly well with the spices used on the tongue and with the floral, honey and tropical notes.
• 09 Château St. Jean de la Gineste Vieilles Vignes Corbières.  The lone red paired with the black fruit and Asian spices used in preparing the dish.  It was a mix of fruit and earthiness.

Gene and Julie Gates of 103.7 Lite FM cracked me up as guest emcees of the event.   

Chef Martinez will now advance to compete at the Chefs Under Fire final competition to be held on October 16 in Austin, TX.  There, he will compete against Chef Daniel Valenzuela, a student at Escoffier School of Culinary Arts who won the Austin/San Antonio challenge, as well as the Houston Regional Winner for a one week stay in Los Cabos.

Food/Wine Matches Made in Heaven: The Mustard Surprise

A long-awaited gathering of our wine club took place this month with a fun theme – food/wine matches made in heaven.  Ok, technically that wasn’t the theme, but when it worked, it was a good description.  We were all assigned food pairings to bring and the wine was taken care of by the couple hosting the party.  Because my husband was out of town and I don’t cook, I begged for ingredients that required little to no assembly.  So, I came bearing foie gras pate, a baguette and black truffle butter.

The format was to pair two wines with variations of one food.  Our first pairing was an Old World Chablis (08 Isabelle et Denis Pommier Chablis) and a traditional oaked chardonnay (09 Neyers Carneros) with  smoked and fresh mozzarella.  Hands down the smoked mozzarella went best with the Neyers and we all couldn’t come to an agreement about the Chablis pairing due to the citrus/mineral notes.

Our next pairing was my favorite – fabulous yellowtail and tuna sushi along with blinis and caviar matched with  Iron Horse Sparkling and 10 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand.  I liked them both, but was surprised how versatile the sauvignon blanc was with the sushi. 

The next pairing was a surprise to us all.  We tried sausage (veggie and Italian) paired with Dijon mustard and then just crackers with mustard coupled with 08 Domaine Zind Humbrecht Pinot Blanc and the 07 Chianti Castilla.  Who would have thought that my second favorite pairing would be Dijon mustard and crackers? 

We followed with black bean burgers with a sour cream/lime sauce with onion rings paired with 10 Les Plautiers Du Haut Brion White Bordeaux and the same Chianti.  The onion ring paired well with the white, not the red.  The black bean burgers, which were fantastic on their own, were even heartier with the chianti.

We then matched a guacamole and tenderloin with chimicurri sauce with a 05 Samuels Gorge Syrah and the 05 Abel Rioja.  I personally liked the tenderloin and rioja pairing better, but it was interesting to see what flavors the guacamole brought out in both wines.

Next, we paired a simple grilled piece of baguette with black truffle butter with a 05 Chauvernet Chopin Nuis St Georges fer Cru Burgundy.  This was a classic example of the symphony in your mouth that happens with the right food and wine pairing.  Divine.

Our last pairing was a foie gras with a 05 Chateau La Tour Blanche Donation Osiris.  Bliss on a cracker and another example of a food/wine match that had to be made in heaven.

The Experience of Loudoun County: Award-Winning Wines Take Bloggers by Surprise

I remember the crowd reaction last year during #wbc10 when Virginia was named as the host city for the next Wine Bloggers Conference in 2011.  There was skepticism, puzzlement and I heard the comment that the conference was clearly sold to the highest bidder.  I encouraged those around me to give the state a chance and that some of the wine there just might be a well-kept secret.  I was correct.

Fast forward a little over one year and I found myself at the Dulles airport at the pre-conference tour of Loudoun County.   Stacey and Wendy served as our very generous and knowledgeable hosts and we had no idea what a fabulous time we were about to have.  I was also thrilled to see some old friends from last year and those I connect with often on Twitter.  Our first stop was a tour and tasting of Tarara Winery.  Jordan Harris, general manager and winemaker, served us a variety of local meats, cheeses and fresh-picked blackberries.  I had to exercise a great deal of willpower to not eat the entire blackberry bowl single-handedly.

Jordan Harris, general manager and winemaker

Tarara Winery was founded in 1989 by Whitie and Margaret Hubert.  It is one of the oldest wineries in Virginia and focuses on artisan wines.  The winery has three main vineyards – Nevaeh (estate vineyard), Tranquility (in Purcellville) and Honah Lee (in Orange).  In Jordan’s opinion, these three vineyards best represent the terrior of Virginia and are defined by their place, not their varietals.  Interestingly, all of the wines produced by Tarara have screwtops.

We tried the following wines:

-          09 Charval, a blend of chardonnay, pinot gris, viognier and sauvignon blanc.  I tasted tropical fruits, floral notes and a little lemon on the nose, $20.

-          10 Viognier, a classic Virginia viognier (and that is meant as a compliment) with peach, melon and honeysuckle.  A very elegant wine for $15.

-          09 Navaen White, which is a blend of viognier and chardonnay.  I got mandarin oranges, floral, cinnamon and a little minerality.  This elegant wine was borne from a hobby that got out of control, $30.

-          09 Three Vines Chardonnay, full of pears, butterscotch, fennel and citrus.  This is a classic chardonnay for $20.

-          97 Chardonnay.  This was an interesting wine as we wondered how well Virginia wines could age.  Unfortunately this was past its prime and I couldn’t get over the musty smell, n/a.

-          09 Tranquility Red, this is a blend of the top two barrels that three wineries – Tarara, 8 Chains and Hiddencroft Vineyards – produced from Tranquility Vineyard.  It’s a great example of the collaboration that you find between Virginia winemakers.  I tasted blackberry, licorice and pine.  I’d like to have some time for this to open up to truly experience the flavors and in fact the winemaker recommends holding for 5-7 years, $40.

-          08 Nevaeh Red.  I tasted berry, cassis, mineral, plum and oak.  This wine is one of the first east coast wines to be named a Rhone Ranger, $40.

-          09 TerraNoVA, this allocation-only wine tasted of big currant, eucalyptus, menthol and red raspberry.  The fruit was harvested from several vineyards from Loudoun County.  Tarara selects its two favorite barrels of cabernet that best represents Loudoun’s terrior.  At $45, this is a very nice wine.

-          08 CasaNoVA.  This was the biggest wine of the bunch and therefore, my favorite red.  I tasted chocolate, mint, tobacco and cedar.  It was lovely, complex and well-rounded.  It was also $45.

-          07 Cabernet Sauvignon.  It was very Old World with earthiness, plum, cooked raspberries and strawberry notes.  It aged better than the white, but wouldn’t be my first choice to pull out of the cellar.

We ended with the 10 Honah Lee LH Petit Manseng, the winery’s first late harvest wine.  I tasted floral, honey and tropical notes.  It was a great dessert wine, but wasn’t for sale. We also tried an 08 syrah that was cold fermented with viognier – also not on the regular wine list yet.

Our next stop was Breaux Vineyards, which was founded in 1994 and opened to the public in 1997.  It has 104 acres planted with 18 different grape varieties – half red, half white — with views of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Owners, Paul and Jennifer Breaux, welcomed us with a hayride around vineyard.  It was scorching weather, but of course I had to participate as did most of our blogging crew. 

Jennifer Breaux Blosser, Sales & Hospitality Director 

We then moved into the cool cellar where we got to taste amongst the barrels and see how Virginia winemakers are encouraging experimentation with lesser known varietals like nebbiolo. 

We tried the following wines: 

-          10 Sauvignon Blanc – the perfect “after hayride” wine.  At $17, it was very crisp with citrus, melon and green apple notes.

-          10 Viognier – Lots of apricot, honey and floral notes with a touch of oak on the finish.  A very nice elegant wine for $24.

-          07 Nebbiolo Barrel Sample – Lots of promise in this wine.  I tasted deep berry, violet, roses and a bit of terrior-driven chalkiness.  It was a soft wine – even in the barrel – and one I can’t wait to try in the bottle, n/a.

-          07 Meritage – Definitely an Old World style with spice, pepper, blackberries and chocolate and oak on the finish.  It was a nice mosaic of Bordeaux varietals, which is priced at $28.

-          07 Cabernet Franc Reserve – very soft tannins with spice, blackberry, vanilla and raspberry.  Two bottles of this came home with me.

-          10 Cabernet Franc Barrel sample – I tasted raspberry and mocha.  This had a nice structure and it will be interesting to see what the end result brings, n/a.

-          10 Cabernet Sauvignon Barrel sample – Blackberry, chocolate, mocha, cassis and mint were the dominant flavors in this blend.

David Pagan Castaño, winemaker

We then got to try a few others including the 08 Nota Viva Viognier, which was refreshing with tropical notes, but a nice minerality and the Corcoran Seyvel Blanc, which wasn’t my personal taste.

After that, we took a short bus trip to Grandale Farm Restaurant. The restaurant is located on a Historic Operating Farm in Loudoun County.  The mission of the restaurant is to source locally as much as possible and the picturesque garden showcased some great looking herbs, fruit and vegetables.  The dinner was fabulous and paired with Loudoun County wines.  I enjoyed the first two whites – a Viognier and a Chardonnay, but the dessert wine pairing tasted to most of us at the table like it had turned.

Wine Soiree Came to the Rescue Many Times This Weekend, But Couldn’t Save the Dessert Wine

After eating way too much food, we were transported back to one of two hotels where we either hit the bar, pool tables or if you were smart, got a full night’s sleep.  I wasn’t.

Fourth of July, Family & Fireworks Meet Bordeaux and Chilean wines

Fourth of July.  It’s more American then apple pie, mom and tasting French and Chilean wines?  Let me explain.  I found myself over the Fourth of July weekend on a beach trip with my husband’s family.  Picture one beach house in Sandestin, eight adults and six kids (with all six under the age of six and a half).  Usually not ingredients for a successful wine tasting, but my husband’s family had indicated an interest in wine tasting.   In the beginning, I had my reservations with my husband blasting beach music, a Pixar movie on the screen, kids eating dinner and the family gathered around a small coffee table with one glass in hand.  But soon, the kids were happy, the electronics were off and we were discussing the wines.  

Due to a schedule mix-up, the Planet Bordeaux people had sent over some samples earlier this year for a Twitter Live Tasting while I was out of town.  We discussed conducting a tasting of my own at a later date and this seemed like the perfect opportunity.  The Planet Bordeaux folks are trying to get the word out about what Bordeaux and Bordeaux Superieur AOC wines have to offer.  Superieur Bordeaux’s are inexpensive, but come from a specific vineyard with a set amount of age.  I was surprised at the differences in appellations, blends and tastes of the variety of Bordeaux wines provided.  And that was a good thing because the folks in the room couldn’t have more different palates.

The wines tasted included the following:

• Chateau de Parenchere 07 Bordeaux Superieur Rouge ($15) – liquorice, blackberry, chocolate, tar and plum.  This wine screamed for a food pairing.
• Costes du Chateau Feret-Lambert 07 Bordeaux Superieur Rouge ($16) – this wine was fruity, but an earthier, chewier mouth feel.  I tasted cassis and blackberry.
• Chateau Cablanc 06 Bordeaux Rouge ($11) – this was smooth, elegant and the definite favorite of the group.
• Chateau Lamothe de Haux 09 Bordeaux Blanc ($11) – very grassy with big notes of grapefruit, lemon, crisp fruit and refreshing.  The crowd favorite of the whites and a fabulous price for a good white. 
• Chateau Marac 09 Bordeaux Blanc ($11) – This one had a lot of minerality, almost a little effervescence to it, muted soft stone fruit.
• Chateau de Lisennes Cremant de Bordeaux ($17) – This one was described as the “non champagne drinkers champagne” by my brother-in-law.  We were split on this one as half of us liked the dry palate and half wanted something with softer bubbles.  A great brunch or food wine.

The next day we decided to expand our journey to Chilean summer white wines provided by Banfi Vintners.  We first focused on the Casablanca (aka Carneros South, which is north of Santiago), region of Chile, which is known for cooler temperatures and compared on occasion to California’s Carneros region.

Emiliana Organic Vineyards, the world’s single largest collection of estate-grown wines, produces their wines from organically grown grapes.  Their winemaking is directed by Alvaro Espinoza, known for being a visionary for organic, biodynamic and eco-balanced wines.                                          

We started with the 10 Natura Sauvignon Blanc ($11) and Chardonnay ($11).  I smelled oranges, citrus, grapefruit and something floral.  I enjoyed this wine better on the second day as it was more balanced.  The Chardonnay had lots of tropical fruit and almost a nutty flavor.  My mother-in-law named this as her favorite.

We then moved to the 10 Casillero del Diablo Sauvignon Blanc ($12) once named “Devil’s Cellar,” after the owner spread a rumor about his cellars being haunted by a devil after a robbery.  It’s crisp, fresh and tropical – definitely the favorite of the group.  We followed that up with the 10 Casillero del Diablo Chardonnay ($12), which had lots of tartness, fruit, citrus and a crisp finish.

Our final wine was the 09 Marquis de Casa Concha Chardonnay ($18), which is from Limari, the “Land of Cold Light” known for the presence of limestone soil.  This was a much meatier wine with buttered toast, vanilla and citrus flavors.  This was also a divisive wine with half of the tasters naming it one of the top wines and the other half in disagreement.

It may have not been the most traditional thing to do on a fourth of July weekend, but then again, what better time to experience different wine with your family?  And, sometimes wine is the ingredient needed for all that togetherness.

Summer Whites: Virginia Wines Offer a Refreshing Alternative

I recently participated in the Summer Wines of Virginia Taste and Tweet that consisted of a group of twelve bloggers who will be attending the Wine Bloggers Conference in Virginia in July.  Like usual, I invited over my group of good girlfriends who happily opened their palates to a new experience.  And, they came bearing food in overwhelming quantities. 

I did some research and according to Virginia’s Department of Agriculture, the state ranks number eight nationally in commercial grape production and eighth for bearing acreage.  However, I’m from Texas and while we are making better wines than in the past, what was important to me was the taste.

We tasted six white wines – all pretty well priced in nature and all new to me.  We started with the 2010 Keswick Vineyards Verdejo, a light, crisp summer wine that tasted of citrus and green apple with a hint of floral.  It was nice, but seemed a little overpriced for an everyday wine at $20.

The second wine was the 2010 Veritas Sauvignon Blanc Reserve. If I tasted this blind, I would have guessed New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.  I really liked this wine and it had some structure, but with a New World style with grapefruit, grassiness and lemon.  It’s a natural with oysters.

The third wine was a rose.  You guys know that I have a hard time personally with roses unless they sparkle, so I definitely let the guests provide the more objective review.  The 2010 Boxwood Winery Topiary Rose, was described as “dusty strawberry” in taste – a mix of strawberries and minerality – and is priced at $14. 

We then shifted to the 2010 Jefferson Vineyards Viognier, which was rated very highly by other bloggers in the tasting.  Unfortunately, my bottle was corked, so I look forward to trying the wine at WBC in July.  This is priced at $25.

An unnamed guest with a good sense of humor

The fifth wine was the 2010 Chrysalis Viogner, which was definitely the favorite of my group’s tasting.   This wine was almost creamy with layers of pineapple and citrus along with some minerality.  This was priced at $29.

The final wine was the 2010 Lovingston Petit Manseng.  Priced just under $17, it was my first experience with petit manseng.  And possibly my last.

Chain Reaction: WineQuest Begins – Decent Wine at A Chain?

This is the official launch of a series of columns meant to answer a very important question: can you get a decent glass of wine at a chain restaurant?  As the mom of a five and a half year old, I am always looking for a dinner place that balances my desire to eat something healthy with Morgan’s desire to get food that she wants.  I’m lucky because she loves salmon sashimi, but that comes with a price tag and isn’t something we can have daily.  And if I find a place with good food, fair prices and I can get a decent glass of wine, you have my complete attention and loyalty.

Enter Cafe-Express.  I know, I know – this isn’t truly a chain - but it does have 18 locations and I wanted to begin this series on a high note.  I sat down recently with Greg Martin, the food and beverage manager, who talked about the wine program and I’ll let you in on a secret.  You can get a ¼ bottle pour of a selection of wines not seen on your grocery store aisle for $6.  Yes, $6 and it goes down to $5 during happy hour.  The wine by the glass a great deal and there was a nice range of wines - Chalone Cabernet, The Next Riesling, Sterling Sauvignon Blanc, Monstrall Cabernet and Acrobat Pinot Gris - on my visit.  And, you can buy the bottle and take it home.

Throw in the fact that Café Express’ menu is centered around fresh and good food for everyday dining using quality products and tested recipes, and you’ve got a great option for a meal with wine that won’t break the bank.

Kid In A Candy Store: Serendipity Portfolio Tasting

Occasionally I get the opportunity to truly be a big kid in a “candy store.”  In the wine world, these opportunities are known as portfolio tastings, where a distributor displays all of its wines for sale to a particular market.  For me, it’s like receiving the Barbie Townhouse that I got when I was seven.  That was one fabulous Christmas.  Spoiler alert: Incidentally this was the same year I learned about the reality of Santa.  While putting together the aforementioned Barbie Townhouse, my father let out a stream of words that I never heard from him before, and still have not heard since.  This caused me to leave my bed to investigate.  I have to say that since I have become a parent and dealt with “some assembly required.” I totally understand the reason for his outburst.

Last week, I arrived at the Palomar Hotel for Serendipity Wine Imports Texas Tour of 2011.  There before me were approximately 250 wines that I could taste.  Yes, 250 wines.  Absolutely overwhelming.  When I go to these I always try to peruse all the information in advance so I can make informed decisions.  My checklist usually starts out simple – am I familiar with the wines, are they new to Texas, what is the buzz from the other folks attending and what just looks interesting?  I try to hit those first.  Then, I start the reconnaissance portion of the mission by asking the folks who are pouring – if I was to try one or two of your wines, which ones do you recommend?  You avoid kissing a lot of frogs this way.  But, you also miss out on the opportunity at times to try new vintages – but did I mention there were 250 wines?

Sometimes you run into some old friends. I was thrilled to finally meet Mitch Bakich from Donati Vineyards and taste his new vintage of Claret, which was a delightful big red blend.  I hosted some of his former co-workers a few years ago when they came to Dallas and set up some events for them to gain Dallas exposure.  We ended the day with a party at my house.  At one point we figured they were lost as there was a long delay in them getting from the wine bar to my casa.  I later found out they had “committed a random act of wine” by stopping a neighbor and gifting him with a leftover bottle of vino.  My kind of people.

I also was thrilled to run into Ginger Dollins from Domaine Serene, one of my favorite Pinot producers from Oregon.   The full line up of Pinots (06 Evenstad Reserve, 07 Yamhill Cuvee) and one Syrah (07 Rockblock SoNo) were delightful and topped my favorite list.  The Domaine Serene Pinot Noir Grace Reserve was elegant, silky and filled with rich stone fruit.  This wine rocked.

Some of my other favorites included:

• Blue Rock 06 Cabernet Alexander Valley.  Big fruit, cherry, licorice – this wine continued to evolve in the glass.  The name Blue Rock comes from the soils where the vineyards are planted on top of rock.
• Blue Rock 05 Syrah.  Full of vanilla, currant and blackberry.  Sadly, this is the last vintage since I heard several times over the course of this event that syrah doesn’t sell.  That’s a damn shame as this is a great wine.
• Monmartre Brut Sparkling, which just debuted in Texas last month, is a fresh light sparking that is perfect for an aperitif from Montmartre, the heart of Paris.
• Bonny Doon 06 Le Cigare Volant.  This earthy Rhone blend is full of ripe fruit, but with almost a rosemary herbal nose to it.  A nice and well balanced wine.  And, one of my favorites folks on Twitter @megmaker works here, so I was very excited to try the wine.
• Bonny Doon 09 Ca’ del Solo Muscat. This one is delightful but hard to describe as it is a dry Muscat, with the floral nose you would expect, but with a crispness you don’t.

On my way out, I was given a secret handshake from my friend, Eddie Eaken from Veritas, and led to another table.  Behold was a decanter and I had the chance to taste the 06 Poderi Aldo Conterno Colonnello Bussia, Barolo DOCG, Italy.  It was a symphony of flavors in a glass – cherry, earth, herbs, licorice — and it kept me smiling the whole way home.  While I probably only sampled less than 20 percent of the wines featured, I can tell you I am looking forward to continuing my Serendipity research.

The Envelope Please: Cotes du Coeur Unveils Wine & Food Pairings

Last week I had the chance to attend the chef announcement party for the 20^th annual Cotes du Coeur International Fine Wine Auction and Celebrity Chef Dinner.  The event raises money for the American Heart Association’s fight against heart disease and is scheduled for April 9^th at the Hilton Anatole. A few days prior the event, I received an email that the location was being moved to the Addison Conference Center due to the increase in the amount of attendees expected.

Chef Richard Chamberlain served in an emcee role as he ran through the chef line-up paired with some wonderful wines.  He seemed surprised to receive the Cowboys Quarterback Award from Chairman John L. Adams for his tireless work on behalf of the Cotes du Coeur. 

The menu and associated wines are listed below and I have so many personal favorites including Gemstone, Realm, Ceja, Terra Valentine, Jordan and Peju that I’d be here all day talking about them. 

If you want to meet great winemakers, support a cause that impacts all of us and enjoy food from the best chefs in town, I’ll see you on April 9.

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 …