Occasion: Anniversary dinner with my wife
Location: The Regency Room
Food Selection:
Starters: Olives and Ridgeline Cheese platter (paprika coating, ash line, mild, buttery), served with spicy mustard, pickled vegetables, rye crackers and bread/butter
Main Course:
FILET MIGNON with celery root apricot puree, demi glace fingerling potatoes, and kale salad
JUMBO LUMP CRAB CAKES with spicy grilled leeks and creamy tomato polenta
When approached by the waiter, his first question was asking what we'd like to drink. As advised by our intrepid professor, I informed him that we would be interested in a wine that paired well with our dinner selections, that generally we preferred red wines that were not too dry, and that we were interested in sticking to a bottle between $40-$50.
Dessert: Ice Cream
Wine Selection:
The waiter said (although we were ordering both steak and seafood) he could recommend a lighter red, probably a Piot Noir. There was a cheaper option available on the menu, but (of course) he recommended the Erath Piot Noir from Oregon. (2021 vintage/ $58)
Pairing comments: (wine uncorked only minutes before consumption)
The wine was a bit disappointing on its own. It was tart, and dry, with a bitter flavor. Very little fruit scents or flavor. Given that it was going to cost over $60 all included, we stuck it out.
The cheese platter and wine paired better though - the smooth, rich cheese balanced the tartness of the wine and brought out more sweeter flavors in the cheese (and maybe covered some of the flavors of the wine we found less desirable). The rye crackers and cheese worked well together, and sipping the wine following the food made the earthy, leather flavors of the wine pleasant.
The wine was a little too weak to really pair well with the filet mignon. I believed this would have been a better pairing than with the crabcake dish, but unfortunately I don't think the char-grilled steak benefitted from the tartness of the wine. I couldn't find any other desirable flavors in either the meat or wine when mixed. The meat could also be partially to blamed I suppose. I don't normally order Filet Mignon at fancy restaurants, but this was a special occasion so I went all out... Unfortunately, the filet - although cooked medium rare as ordered - lacked much flavor and was dryer and tougher than expected. The wine improved it not at all. The saltiness of the potatoes and sweetness of the apricot puree added much more desirable flavors to the mix, and improved the meal overall (but the wine continued to add little value).
With my wife's dish, the crabcakes, the wine offset the rich oiliness of the fried crabcakes and creaminess of the tomato polenta. Ironically, the red wine worked better with her dish in this regard. I was able to taste a few bites and, with the wine, could enjoy a multitude of different flavors. The wine (while still tart) brought forth more oak flavors, which we interesting with the crab.
Overall: Disappointing attempt at a dinner/wine pairing. I probably was stuck on the fact that I was paying triple the expected cost of this bottle at the market, and didn't get the type of wine we were looking for. I trusted the waiter because of his position and sense of confidence, but in retrospect I question if he'd actually ever tasted this wine. Looking forward to trying this process out again - but next time I'm staying away from the Erath Pinot Noir 2021.
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