Barbecue Wines

     Thursday July 16, 2015

Reservations Closed
Course Pairing / Description Wine
Hors D' Oeuvres Crispy Plantain Crusted Jumbo Shrimp Swords (Roasted Pineapple, Cilantro And Watermelon Ceviche); Braised Oyster Mushroom Bruschetta (White Wine And Herbs With Shallots, Garlic And Boursin Cheese)
A river, the Garonne, a city, Bordeaux and its port, the "Port de la Lune", have inspired and given life to this fittingly-named rosé wine, "QUAI de la LUNE"! Offering both tradition and modernity, Quai de la Lune may be savored all year round, by day or by night, as an aperitif with friends, with a simple picnic or at all those convivial moments. With its pale, radiant color, Quai de la Lune brings a scent of summer and festivity to your table. Its fresh, fruity aromas will carry you away to Bordeaux, to the banks of the river and to the hustle and bustle of the Port de la Lune. The selected grape varieties originated from chalky-clay area located between the Dordogne and the Garonne Rivers. These soils have the distinctive feature of attracting and keeping rainwater and heat. This area enjoys a sunny and quite dry climate. This wine experienced pre-fermenting maceration and fermentation was performed with temperature monitoring, preserving all of the fruit flavor. The wine was then macerated for 20 days in closed vats. The Bordeaux Rose has a beautiful pale and radiant pink color with cherry red highlights. Its bouquet reveals an aromatic nose with intense raspberry notes. The attack is round and gourmet sliding on a fruity finish, enhanced by a pleasant acidity giving the wine a good freshness.
Quai de la Lune Bordeaux Rosé 2014
Salad Course BBQ Iceberg Wedge Salad (Fire Roasted Sweet Summer Corn, Crispy Cayenne And Brown Sugar Candied Bacon With Blue Cheese Crumbles And Chipotle Spiced Buttermilk Dressing)
The Russian River Valley is named as such due to its proximity to the Russian River, the river itself named for the Russian fur traders who came down from Alaska in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The Russian River is agricultural land. While there is a focus on wine, beyond the vineyards are many small, family-owned farms cultivating everything from cattle to Christmas trees. Laguna Ranch Chardonnay opens with delicate notes of apple, pear, tangerine and quince, framed by hints of Asian spice. Well-balanced and rich, this Chardonnay has an expressive mouthfeel and a layered, lingering finish.
Laguna Ranch Russian River Chardonnay 2013
Pork Course Zinfandel Braised Baby Pork Shanks (Local Orange Blossom Honey-Sriracha BBQ Sauce, Four Cheese Grits, Melted Sweet Onions And Broccolini)
The Allegrini family has played a leading role in the history of Valpolicela since the 16th century and has passed on the culture of wine making from generation to generation. In the Allegrini home, hospitality comes first as a duty, but above all as a joy. The company daily experiences the pleasure of welcoming the guests who come to visit their vineyards and wine cellar, who are anxious to get acquainted with, drink and understand their wine. This Valpolicela is ruby red in color, with purplish-blue highlights; the nose exhibits fragrant fruit with prominent notes of cherries, echoed by fresher hints of pepper and aromatic herbs, typical of Corvina and Corvinone, the historic varietals of this appellation. While still young, it is impressively lively and playful on the palate whereas some two years on it expresses greater delicacy and finesse. This type of Valpolicella is the perfect accompaniment to Italian antipasti, soups, pasta dishes and other dishes typical of Mediterranean cuisine. It also pairs well with roasted and grilled white meats and is ideal as a summer red to drink with fish dishes.
Allegrini Valpolicela 2013
Beef Course Black Angus Skirt Steak With Sweet Basil Chimmichuri (Grilled Zucchini, Roasted Sweet Pepper And Zinfandel Reduction)
The smaller-scale Dry Creek Valley spares nothing when it comes to flavor. Just 16 miles long and two miles wide, the Dry Creek Valley was created by uplift from ancient seismic faults. Its unique characteristics earned the Dry Creek Valley one of the country's first designations as an American Viticulture Area (AVA) in 1983. The vineyards that straddle Dry Creek benefit from two major soil types: gravel and sandy loam on the valley floor and red clay loam on the hillsides. Warm sunshine envelops the region during the growing season, tempered only by coastal fog in the late afternoon and evening. The result is a full day of ripening sun followed by a cool night that slows maturation and encourages flavor and acid retention in the grapes. With an ideal soil and climate combination, the Dry Creek Valley produces exceptional grapes for the Frei Brothers Zinfandel. The grapes for this Zinfandel were gently destemmed, but not crushed, allowing a significant amount of whole berries in fermentation. The wine was cold soaked to extract intense color and flavor from the grapes prior to primary fermentation. The wine underwent malolactic fermentation and was aged on its lees to enhance the mouthfeel. It displays red jam aromas with spicy notes of clove, nutmeg and cinnamon. It has concentrated flavors of mixed berry compote and plum meld with hints of jam and toasty oak, framed by rustic tannins and a lingering finish.
Frei Brothers Dry Creek Zinfandel 2013
Beef Course Black Angus Skirt Steak With Sweet Basil Chimmichuri (Grilled Zucchini, Roasted Sweet Pepper And Zinfandel Reduction)
Ghost Pines knows no boundaries. Without the restriction of traditional winegrowing boundaries, the grapes for Ghost Pines wines are chosen from California’s best regions solely for their quality and flavor. This philosophy delivers wines of consistent quality and a distinct combination of richness, smoothness and balance that could never be mistaken for ordinary. Named for the indigenous Gray Pines dotting Northern California’s hillsides, Ghost Pines embodies the progressive spirit of California winemaking and inspires a sense of individuality. The Ghost Pines Zinfandel blends fruit from San Joaquin and Sonoma counties to accentuate the best of what each of these phenomenal Zinfandel-producing counties has to offer. 53% of the blend is from San Joaquin County’s Lodi AVA, a region renowned for its world class Zinfandel grapes, and the balance is from Sonoma County’s Dry Creek Valley AVA, another outstanding region for sought-after Zinfandel fruit. The 2013 growing season was mild in Lodi, where a Mediterranean climate affords a desirable combination of hot days and cool evenings. Warm spring days were followed by a moderate summer generally free of extreme, high temperatures, allowing Zinfandel fruit to ripen evenly and with full flavor. The 2013 vintage started early in Sonoma County, where a long, moderate growing season created ideal conditions for ripeness and flavor development in Zinfandel. In both regions, warm, dry conditions allowed for outstanding maturation and development of concentrated flavor in grapes. This Zinfandel opens with rich, complex aromas of ripe raspberry jam, cracked pepper and toasty oak. On the palate, the wine offers intense, jammy flavors of black cherry, boysenberry, brown spice and cola framed by lush structure and a long, multi-layered finish.
Ghost Pines Zinfandel 2013
Dessert Course Raspberry Topped Dark Chocolate & Black Pepper Spice Cake (Black Pepper And Raspberry Coulis With Nutmeg Scented Whipped Cream)
Gallo wines are deeply rooted in decades of passion and dedication. Since the inception of E. & J. Gallo Winery by Ernest and Julio Gallo, they have remained true to the land and true to the wine. Above all, they cherish their family heritage. Building on the historic winemaking tradition established by their founders in 1933, the Gallo Signature Series brings to life the enduring legacy of Ernest and Julio, and it celebrates their family’s vision for the future. After more than two decades as a winemaker, Gina Gallo embarked on a journey to tell her family’s story through a deeply personal collection of wines. With incomparable access to some of California's most sought-after vineyards, Gina is able to tap into their diverse collection of estate vineyards to hand-select the finest Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. The Gallo Signature Series marks a return to hands-on, artisanal winemaking for Gina, and it reflects their remarkable vineyards in Napa, Sonoma and Monterey counties. For this venture into Sonoma, Gina looked to the the heart of the Dry Creek Valley, Frei Ranch Vineyard, which was originally planted to grapevines in the 1880s. With its warm days and cool nights, Frei Ranch produces grapes of extraordinary character, yielding refined, elegant wines. This Zinfandel is a well-structured wine with aromas of black currant, cassis and white pepper. It reflects dark and jammy fruit on the palate which is underscored by hints of black licorice, vanilla and toasted coconut.
Gallo Signature Sonoma Zinfandel 2013