Saturday Night – A Thank You Dinner – Part 2

Click here for Part 1

 

For the main course I did Beef Tenderloin and Grilled Shrimp with Béarnaise sauce and Green Beans and Baby Potatoes paired with a 2005 Beringer’s Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.

 

The nose on the Beringer’s was powerful with raspberry, all spice, dark chocolate, cinnamon and vanilla aromas.   Black cherry and dark chocolate were the two dominate flavours with some herbaceous notes in the background.  The wine was beautifully balanced with a long lingering finish.  My one small knock with this wine was I would have liked a slightly bigger mouth-feel to it.  As a pairing with the Beef it was heavenly.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 90, Mark - 90, Kathy – 90, Amy – 90, Overall – 90.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

BERINGER PRIVATE RESERVE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2009
VINTAGES 149955
750 mL bottle
Price $ 119.95
Made in: California, USA
By: Treasury Wine Estates
Release Date: Nov 24, 2012
Wine, Red Wine
14.6% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Sugar Content: 3 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: XD - Extra Dry

Tasting Note  - The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve is a beautifully balanced wine. Firm yet well-integrated tannins frame a core of dark red berries, flowers, mint, spices and licorice. The Reserve shows lovely inner perfume and mid-palate juiciness. It should drink well with a minimum of cellaring. The main vineyards in the 2009 are Home (37%), Lampyridae (23%), Vogt (14%), Chabot (11%) and Rancho del Oso (9%). Each lot was aged separately for about two years before the final blend was assembled. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2029. Score - 93. (Antonio Galloni, erobertparker.com, Dec. 2011)

* Note – This is for the 2009 and not the 2005 reviewed here.

Mick said he would have rated this a 91 but the high price point was his main reason for dropping it to a 90.

The final course of the evening was Baked Apple Tart with Almond Custard with a 2005 Henry of Pelham Botrytis Affect Late Harvest Riesling.  We have reviewed the wine before so I won’t go into too much detail other than to say this is wine we open about once a year or so just to see how it is developing and each time it has been a real treat.  I have one bottle left of this wonderful vintage and will be sad when it is gone. 

The Baked apple tart was a nice way to finish off the evening as it is a lighter dessert and by this time we were all getting very full. 

Cathy and Tom both said that this was the best steak they’d ever had which was nice to hear.  Cathy also now could understand when I roll my eyes when she is gushing about the Keg. 

It was a fun evening and I really enjoy both Tom and Cathy’s company and hope we can do another one of these dinners in the fall.  I really have to thank Mick for cooking the steaks and the shrimp to perfection in some not so great weather conditions; he really went above and beyond the call of duty here.

Cheers!

Mark