Skip to main content

De Tierra Vineyards {Wine Pairing}

By

I'm embarrassed to admit that I had never heard of De Tierra Vineyards.  But, in my defense, we have a lot of wine here in California. A lot. And we have a lot of good, locally-made wine in California. But De Tierra is now on my radar since they teamed up with one of my favorite restaurants for a wine dinner.

Last night we went to La Balena Carmel where De Tierra matched, and poured, a wine with four courses. Cin cin!

 First up: Chef Brad Briske and Team La Balena served warmed olives with fresh bread; grilled octopus, fingerling potatoes, housemade pancetta, and apple mostarda; and baby lettuce, pear, walnuts, and moscato vinaigrette. De Tierra paired that with their 2009 Reserve Chardonnay. It smells of tree blossoms which complemented the apples pieces in the octopus dish and the pear slices in the salad. This golden-hued chard was nicely balanced - not too oaky and not too sweet. Delicious and fresh.


Next, a duo of delicious reds! Pillowy soft agnolotti stuffed with herb ricotta in a Fogline Farm pork sugo were accompanied by a 2008 Estate Merlot. Lush and voluptuous, the merlot started off fruity and finished with an intriguing combination of coffee and pepper. Then Chef Brad's chocolate and balsamic-braised beef shoulder over creamy polenta with broccolini emerged from the kitchen and De Tierra offered up a pinot noir that glimmered like a clear garnet. Though I typically gravitate towards pinot noirs, I was surprised that I preferred the merlot!


And along with an array of La Balena's dolci, De Tierra served their 2009 Late Harvest Riesling. Served in a tall cordial glass, this was a sweet treat to cap off another ridiculously tasty dinner from Team La Balena.


What a fantastic evening with good food, good wine, and good friends!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hot Chocolate Agasajo-Style {Spice It Up!}

By
photo by D For my Spice It Up! kiddos this week, I was looking for an exotic drink to serve while we learned about saffron. I found a recipe from food historian Maricel Presilla that mimicked traditional Spanish hot chocolate from the 17th century where it was served at lavish receptions called agasajos . When I teach, I don't always get to shoot photos. Thankfully, D grabbed my camera and snapped a few. Ingredients serves 14-16 1 gallon organic whole milk 3 T dried rosebuds - or 2 t rosewater 2 t saffron threads, lightly crushed 3 T ground cinnamon 3 whole tepin chiles, crushed 2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise 1 C organic granulated sugar 1 lb. bittersweet chocolate Procedure In a large soup pot that can hold a gallon plus, combine milk, dried rosebuds (or rosewater, if you are using that), saffron threads, ground cinnamon, chiles, vanilla beans, and sugar and warm over medium heat till it steams. Whisk to dissolve sugar, then lower heat an...
183 comments
Read more

Ki Ngombo = Okra

By
In honor of Mardi Gras, I searched for traditional recipes for gumbo...only to discover that there is no canonical recipe for gumbo. It seems there are as many recipes for gumbo as there are cooks!  The only two constants in a gumbo: variety and okra. The term 'gumbo' likely comes from an African dialect whose word for okra is ki ngombo .  Gumbos can have meat, seafood, just about anything.  In Mark Huntsman's "The History of Gumbo" he refers to written mentions of using muskrat and owl in gumbo recipes.  I embraced the unlimited potential of ingredients and opted for a combination of fish, chicken, pancetta, oysters, mussels, octopus, shrimp, and squid...and lots of okra!
Post a Comment
Read more

A Cheese Board Anchored on a Trio of Italian Cheeses + A Pinot Nero from Alto Adige #ItalianFWT on CulinaryCam.Com

By
I am in the process of migrating over to my new domain. Come on over to read " A Cheese Board Anchored on a Trio of Italian Cheeses + A Pinot Nero from Alto Adige " for December's #ItalianFWT.
Post a Comment
Read more