Saturday Night – Mick’s new classic – Part 2

Click here for Part 1

 

The main course was Bifteck Saute Marchand de Vins from the Julia Childs cookbook or in simpler terms - Pan broiled steak with red wine sauce and a touch of red wine shallot butter.  This was served with green beans and homemade fresh cut French fries.  Mick paired this with a 2002 Robert Mondavi Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

 

The nose on this wine was huge with aromas of strawberry, cherry, Christmas cake, eucalyptus and cedar chest.  Tasting the wine, stewed cherries and green pepper/vegetal flavours were to be found.  The wine came across almost syrupy as the acidity was ok but the tannins were almost nowhere to be found.  This gave the wine an almost Port-like mouth feel.  The finish lingered for a long time.  If I tasted this blind I would have guessed it to be an Amarone rather than a California Cabernet. It was decent as pairing for the steak but would have been better with more tannin to give it some bite.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 89, Mark – 87, Kathy – 88, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.75.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

ROBERT MONDAVI CABERNET SAUVIGNON (V)
VINTAGES 255513
750 mL bottle
Price $ 34.95
Made in: California, USA
By: Robert Mondavi Winery
Release Date: N/A
Wine, Red Wine
14.3% Alcohol/Vol.
Style: Full-bodied & Firm
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Sugar Content: 5 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: XD - Extra Dry
*Please note that this is probably the 2009/2010 vintage and not the 2002 reviewed here.

This was an odd wine to rate, as an example of a good California Cabernet Sauvignon, it fails badly but as a red wine with lots of interesting tastes and aromas it was quite good and hence why it got an 87 from me.  So if you are looking for a good Cabernet Sauvignon – move along nothing to see here, but if you are looking for a good red wine where you don’t have any preconceived notions this might be your cup of tea.

Thanks to Mick and Amy for hosting and Mick for the all the wonderful food.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Mick’s new classic – Part 1

Mick and Amy hosted dinner this past Saturday night and they had a couple of new wines for us to try and two new dishes as well. 

 

The first course was a new one – sweet garden peppers stuffed with corn, cheese and herbs.  Mick paired this dish with a 2007 Chateau Pey La Tour (red wine).

The second course was a BBQ Brie with bruschetta topping served with toasted baguette slices and we had the 2007 Chateau Pey La Tour with this course as well.

The nose on the wine was easy to find with cherry, pine needles and tar.  Tasting the wine, a sour cherry flavour dominates the wine but there is also a hint of mushroom lurking in the background.  The balance was off slight as the acidity was stronger than the tannin in this wine.  The higher acidity was different as it reminded me more of a Sangiovese from Italy than a Bordeaux blend.  The wine had a nice medium length finish.  Not a big fan of the wine on its own, it got even worse with the first course as something in the dish was throwing it a curveball it couldn’t handle but it was very good with the BBQ Brie. 

 

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 86, Mark – 87, Kathy – 86, Amy – 87, Overall – 86.5.

 

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

CHÂTEAU PEY LA TOUR (V)
VINTAGES 925859
750 mL bottle
Price $ 19.95
Made in: Bordeaux, France
By: Dourthe Freres
Release Date: N/A
Wine, Red Wine
13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Style: Full-bodied & Smooth
Varietal: Bordeaux
Sugar Content: 4 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: XD - Extra Dry

 

Before I jump to part 2, I would like to state how good Mick’s BBQ Brie was.  Mick has done this recipe a few times over the past couple of years and it has always been very good.  Tonight’s version was stunning and I don’t think I have enjoyed a dish that much in a long time.  This dish is certainly a classic and I hope that we’ll be having it again a number of times in the near future.

 

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night - Return of the Combique

The Blog has been a little quiet recently as our usual Saturday dinners with Mick and Amy haven’t been so usual.  Health matters, schedules and holidays were to blame but on the upside we did get together with Mick and Amy on Saturday with four extra guests as Steve, Melanie, Zdenka and Alex joined us.  The original plan was Mick, Steve and myself were going to hit the drag-strip and spend the afternoon laying down some rubber on the track and then the eight of us were going to get together for a Combique style dinner.  Unfortunately due to the weather the only thing getting laid down on the track was lots of rain water.

 

Normally for a Combique each couple brings an appetizer sized course and a bottle of wine to pair with it.  For this one, as we were supposed to be at the track most of the day, we changed so I would provide the meat for a mixed grill, Mick/Amy and Melanie/Steve were making sides to go with the mixed and Zdenka/Alex were bringing dessert

As the weather cancelled the event and I had free time I made a Blue Cheese and Bacon dip as a starter and we kicked the evening off with this and a bottle of Roederer Champagne (which turned into two bottles as the first went down so well).  I won’t review the Champagne as we have had it a number of times and it is always very good.

The main course was a mixed grill of Beef Tenderloin, Chicken and Wild Boar Sausage which Mick was kind enough to grill on the BBQ.  Mick made a corn and bean salad which was very good and Melanie made cheese stuff potatoes (two types – Blue Cheese and Cheddar) and a tomato and feta salad.  The potatoes were awesome looking and tasted just as good as they looked. 

I opened a bottle of 2005 Decoy as the pairing to go with the main course.  Decoy is a red wine blend (45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot 11% Cabernet Franc, 8% Petit Verdot.) from California.

Nosing the wine, you will find a nice mix of black licorice, eucalyptus, pine, black berry and black pepper.  Tasting the wine, flavours of raspberry, mint, pepper and green pepper are to be found.  The wine came across as very dry due to the tannin being a little out of balance when drinking it on its own.  Having the wine with the food though is where it really shined; the tannin was toned down thanks to the food and the wine came across as very smooth.  I was impressed that the wine was easily big enough to handle all the different flavours of the main course without an issue and worked as a great pairing for all of those food flavours.  The other thing of note was the finish – big, beautiful and lingered around forever.  All in all, a very solid and nicely crafted red blend.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 90, Mark – 90, Kathy – 88, Amy – 89, Overall – 89.25.

There was no LCBO information on the wine but a quick web search puts it at $29 US per bottle so between $40 and $50 Canadian.  At that price, it is a heck of a wine for the money and I would recommend if you happen to come across some to pick it up.

For Dessert, Alex and Zdenka brought a La Rocca Chocolate Truffle Royale cake which happens to be a favourite of Amy’s.  It was a nice finish to a great evening.

It was great seeing Alex, Zdenka, Melanie and Steve again.  Too much time passes between our get-togethers but it is amazing how quickly we get comfortable around one another as if no time at all has passed. 

Thanks to everyone for making it a great night!

Cheers!
Mark