THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 14, 1996 TAG: 9604110041
SECTION: FLAVOR PAGE: F2 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: Humble Steward
SOURCE: Jim Raper
LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines
A WINE DINNER last month at Cafe David in Virginia Beach reminded me how enjoyable - and educational - these informal gatherings can be.
Most wine lovers know about the dinners. A restaurant joins with a winery or wine distributor to wow us with exquisite food and wine pairings. The customer usually gets four or five courses and with each dish comes a different wine - or wines.
The price can be high, typically $45 to $70 a person. But the prix fixe might seem reasonable to people who frequent fine restaurants, or to those who save up entertainment and grocery dollars to afford the occasional extraordinary meal.
Not all of these dinners leave us with brilliant memories, but most do. Chefs often use the dinners as an opportunity to demonstrate the creativity and range of their kitchens. The wine industry representatives, likewise, are eager to give us experiences we will not forget. After all, the basic idea behind these affairs is marketing.
The wines served usually are new vintages of well-known labels or else are from producers who want to make a name for themselves in southeastern Virginia. In other words, the wine fancier can sample a half-dozen unfamiliar wines at a fraction of the cost of buying a bottle of each.
At Cafe David the dinner's theme was French wine and French-inspired dishes. Carol Fling of Associated Distributors presented and discussed the wines and the food was prepared by chef/owner David Watts. Here is the menu:
French onion soup with the Louis Jadot 1994 Pouilly Fuisse ($24 retail). Pouilly Fuisse is from southern Burgundy and is made from chardonnay grapes. This example tasted of ripe apples and peaches.
Asparagus and goat cheese pastry with Chateau Coufran 1993 Haut Medoc ($23). The wine is a Bordeaux cru bourgeois made mostly from merlot at an estate just above St. Estephe. Coufran typically produces lean and tart wines that are best when taken with foods, and this vintage was no exception.
Quail stuffed with foie gras with Chateau De Marbuzet St. Estephe ($29). This was my favorite pairing of the evening. The dish was cooked perfectly and served simply, inspired by a meal Watts had in Monaco. The wine was delicious, unusually lush for an modestly priced 1993 Bordeaux. Marbuzet is a cru grand bourgeois exceptional that sometimes has in its blend a significant amount of surplus wine from the well-known Chateau Cos d'Estournel. The two estates are owned by the same family.
Tournedo with Bordelaise and Bearnaise sauces with Chateau Malescot St. Exupery 1990 Margaux ($40) and Chateau Brane-Cantenac 1990 Margaux ($57). This entree was well-executed, but not flashy, which worked to the advantage of these lovely wines. The chef seemed to want the wines to be the stars, and they were.
The Malescot is classified as a third growth, but I've not always found it worthy of its rating, certainly far inferior to the wines of its neighbor, Chateau Palmer. This 1990 (a great Bordeaux vintage), however, was generous with fruit and spice, and had a long, warm finish. The Brane-Cantenac, a second growth, was brimming with lush blackberry fruit, vanilla and yeast flavors. Both of these wines are candidates for cellar aging.
Chocolate cake with orange sorbet with Champagne Taittinger Brut La Francaise ($39). The berry fruit from the pinot noir and pinot meunier grapes used in this nonvintage bubbly helped the wine match famously with the Cordon Bleu-inspired dessert.
So, did I enjoy myself? Certainly! Did I learn anything? Yes, that Marbuzet deserves more of my attention and the 1990 Haut Medoc reds just seem to get better and better. And was the food and wine worth $70? Yes!
Ask your favorite fine restaurant to mail you an announcement of any special wine dinners it plans.
by CNB