Wine Dinners At Last!
This month we are excited to host two wine dinners. Once upon a time we put on wine dinners twice each month. It was a cornerstone of our strategy to introduce ourselves to people by offering a fun-filled yet educational night out for a very attractive price. Then, because we became so busy, we had to move them from Friday night to Saturday night, and then to week nights, and from there they kind of fizzled. I don't think that our customers lost interest, but it's possible that I got a bit lazy. Janet has an opinion on that question.
THISTLE WINEMAKER DINNER
A few weeks ago we had Jon and Laura Jennings, owners of Thistle Wines, approach us about hosting a dinner to celebrate recent releases. We happily agreed to put on a dinner to be held on August 20th, at 6:30 PM. Four wines, four courses, $45. You can email us your reservation or call 503.614.0267 and we'll put your name in the book. Here's the plan:
Meet & Greet
Sip some "3 Pinots Pink" rosé while you visit with your fellow Thistle fans and nosh on our house-made charcuterie, olives, almonds and other such goodies.
Salad Course
Jon's 2012 Pinot Blanc is a luscious wine with full fruit, balanced beautifully with enough acidity to make it a perfect food wine, for which Janet has selected a salad made from grilled local corn and summer squash.
Meza Course
The Thistle website reports, "The 2011 Chardonnay is aged in stainless steel and light French Oak, then blended to be ever so food friendly with crisp acidity." Janet has decided to pair it with a Crab & Cauliflower Ravioli made with a creamy cauliflower sauce.
Main Course
Do you remember the story of 2010? Cool weather and long hang time are great for the final phase of a Pinot Noir growing season. Great unless huge flocks of migrating birds decide to lay over and devour a third of your crop. The 2010 Pinot Noir was Thistle's smallest vintage ever. A distinctive core of fruit is enhanced by a minerality that makes this a wine worth drinking - now and later. Janet will be serving a duck confit risotto made with lobster mushrooms and fresh sage.
Dessert
John has agreed to let us pour some 2005 Pinot Noir that Janet will conspire with Stacy to make scrumptious;y paired dessert. The $8 price of the dessert course is in addition to the $45 price of the other four courses.
PLEASE NOTE: We are usually able to meet special dietary request at these event... but we need to know in advance. It would be very helpful if you will let us know of your special needs at the time the reservation is made.
Wine Club member pricing will be available for all wines purchased the night of the dinner.
BON VOYAGE DINNER PARTY
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Check out our digs in Provence! We are also hosting a "Bon Voyage" party on August 29th to celebrate our upcoming annual (this makes two in a row!) trip to Europe. We are departing for the South of France on September 8th, with a short stint in Northern Italy. At the dinner on the 29th we will be featuring wines from wineries we'll be touring. This will be something of a freestyle event with a number of dishes set out to pair with Barolo, Dolcetto, Barbera and white and red Rhone wines from Chateneuf du Pape and Gigondas. This will be a "choose and taste" affair. Mostly, it will be a lot of fun. We hope you'll join us on August 29th beginning at 7 PM. Click to email us or call 503.614.0267 to save your spot.