28722 Thu Apr 08 05:38:29 -0700 2004 3 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 120485 This was quite a day. Prompted by the NYT's mention, emails from far flung friends started arriving from the Pacific Rim shortly after midnight. Following the path of the sun, by the time I arose, Europe and the East Coast had been in touch, followed by Chicago, and then the West Coast. Fielding a phone call as I drove to a morning appointment in Napa, my friend suggested meeting for a belated birthday dinner. But not just any dinner - this would be the Women for Winesense dinner to be held at the new Carneros Inn. It was sold out, but she proposed just showing up in case there was a cancellation. Since I was curious about this not-open-to-the-public dining venue and would be working less than 15 minutes away, it was a no-brainer to go along. Arriving around 6pm, I was able to park fairly close-in and walk up to the Hilltop (left photo). Later guests would park further away and be shuttled in on golf carts. I plopped myself into one of the Aidirondack chairs with a flute of the reception wine, 1999 Bisol Brut from Viansa Italia, and took in the view while hoping for no-shows. The terrace faces the pool (right photo) affording a sweeping view of surrounding vineyards. Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/28329#118262 Image: http://home.earthlink.net/~melainewong/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/carnerosinn.jpg Thu Apr 08 05:38:29 -0700 2004 0 Melanie Wong 1 120486 Luck was with us. We were able to secure two spots. The first course was a salad of valley greens with soft herb and verjus vinaigrette. Tender greens tossed with fresh tarragon, chives, mint, Italian parsley, fennel, and perhaps other herbs were served nearly dry and piled high on the plate. The delicate verjus and a generous salting pinpointed the savory herbal accents. The accompanying wine was 2003 Edgewood Estate Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc which had a young tutti-frutti and tropical nose that carried through to the palate with more floral and herbal tones. Residual sugar approaching one percent rounded out the fat finish, but I would have preferred a crisper ending. One woman at our table commented that the chef was bold to serve such a robust and generously sized course, Pinot Noir braised beef short ribs, to a room filled with more than 90% females. We’re glad he did, as this was incredibly delicious. Each of the six ladies at our table polished off her own big serving of beefy short ribs nestled on a bed of horseradish potato puree decorated with glazed root vegetables. The butchering was interesting – each portion was a cut of three ribs still connected at the bone with most of the meaty cap cut apart and served as a long rectangular boneless second piece. The connective tissue around the bones was fully browned and achieved greater tenderness. The boneless slab was easy to cut into and more manageable. The texture was so satisfying, not at all stringy, with the well-marbled, carefully seared meat offering just a bit of resistance and juiciness with each bite along with deeply resonant flavors. The peppery horseradish of the finely pureed potatoes provided a welcome cleansing contrast for the richness of the beef. The mosaic of snow peas, cubes of parsnips, turnips and carrots, and favas were each cooked to their optimal textures and tied together with a drizzle of pan juices. I was especially impressed that the kitchen and wait staff were able to serve this steaming hot for a group of 50+ covers. With the ribs, two Aussies were poured: 2001 Penfolds Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz and 2000 Rosemount Show Reserve McLaren Vale/Langhorne Creek Shiraz. I preferred the Penfolds for the spice, pepper, minty notes, and focused fruit of its Coonawarra terroir. However, it was all upfront and had no finish or aftertaste to speak of. The Rosemount Show Reserve was disappointing compared to prior vintages. The color was browning and the fruit drying out, offering mostly the toasty coconut flavor profile. Neither wine improved when paired with food. The ribs were more enjoyable without their accompaniment. Dessert was also very fine, a gingered Asian pear crumble with Montmorency cherries and lemongrass ice cream. A pair of crumbly and very short wafers provided a top and bottom for the sandwiched filling of tart dried cherries and slices of Asian pear. The pear could have been firmer, but overall this take on an American comfort food was brilliant. The ice cream was ultra-rich with a powerful lemongrass signature, and the long slivers of tender candied garnish were a ginger lovers dream. The dessert wine was 2002 La Famiglia Moscato Bianco. Light textured and slightly fizzy, it had some herbal tones but was fairly pleasant. Link: http://chowhound.safeshopper.com/21/cat21.htm?481 Image: http://home.earthlink.net/~melainewong/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/wfws.jpg Thu Apr 08 05:46:34 -0700 2004 120485 0 Melanie Wong 2 120516 That looks like quite a sumptuous and delicious meal. Despite the recent comfort food onslaught, resulting in shortribs popping up on every menu from here to New York to LA, I still enjoy it when it's done right. I think the cut is well suited to braising and I'm sure all the nice connective tissue was meltingly good. I don't know about the Pinot Noir-Shiraz pairing though. While I certainly enjoy the same spicy, minty notes when paired with Lamb or something a bit more gamey, I think the shortribs may have been too subtle. Perhaps if they had gone with one of Penfolds excellent Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz blends such as bin 389, the finish might have been more rewarding and appropriate with the dish. As to the Rosemont wine, I am also surprised at its relatively poor showing for you. Given that the vintage was a pretty decent one and certainly not past its prime, it sounds as if you may have had bad bottle. The change in color and fruit sounds like there was some oxidation along the way. The last time I opened a bottle of the same wine, I found its color to be on the brick red side, but definitely no trace of browning. I also found the fruit to be pleasingly forward in balance with its peppery notes. The dessert looks very promising and your description sounds like an excellent candidate for pairing with a Moscato. Too bad about the pear's consistency though. The defining characteristic of the Asian Pear that I've enjoyed since I was a child is the crisp, yet not unripe, mouthfeel of the fruit. All in all, it sounds and looks like you had a very nice time. BTW, kudos to your mention in the media and a belated "happy birthday" to you. a sante, Curtis Thu Apr 08 15:43:13 -0700 2004 120486 0 Curtis 3 120738 Thanks for the good wishes! Let me confess that when I first read the menu on our placecards, I felt a little let down. However, the finesse shown in creating these "comfort foods" soon dispelled that! Yep, pork belly and beef short ribs are all the rage. I still marvel at the texture of that beef. There was little Pinot Noir or wine influence of any type in the taste, which was fine with me as braises are too often over-wined, wiping out the meat's natural flavor. I should mention that the wine selection may not have been of the restaurant's choosing. The wines for our meal were donated to the association and discussed by the producers during dinner. While it was interesting to compare examples of Shiraz from two different growing area, the cooler Coonawarra vs. the hot climate McLaren Vale, a single wine of better quality from the Southcorp portfolio might have been better. The spot is interesting and you should check it out the next time you're in the neighborhood. Zoned as a trailer park, the tinroofs of the luxury cabins are rather trailer-like. We had the table next to the windows facing the registration/lobby area. The view is even more pastoral and pristine in that direction and the sky at dusk was marvelous. For now, the restaurant is only available to hotel guests and private parties until the permit issues can be worked out. Hope that changes soon, as executive chef Philip Wang is very talented. Here's a picture of him taking his bows. The price for dinner was $60 per person for members. Image: http://home.earthlink.net/~melainewong/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/peeps.jpg Sun Apr 11 01:39:54 -0700 2004 120516 0 Melanie Wong