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Nostaglia Dining With Old World Wines |
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Saturday, 05 May 2007 |
Reported by Robert White
Twenty-four members of the guild met early in May at Algonquin College’s Restaurant International for an evening of Nostalgia Dining with Old World Wines.
 We mixed, mingled, and renewed acquaintances while enjoying Champagne George Gardet ‘Cuvee Saint Flavy’ Brut. This easy drinking champagne had notes of toast, green apple, and mineral with generous acidity and a good finish. Guild Director Martin Carriere then introduced the evening as a recreation of a time when meals were simpler, food was easily recognizable, and there were only what are now called Old World wines. We started off with Lobster Bisque and a classic match, Chardonnay. The 2003 Château de Meursault, Bourgogne was lightly flavoured with melon, peaches, and vanilla. This lightly oaked wine showed excellent balance with a moderate finish. Alas, many of the guests felt that the sweetness of the Lobster Bisque demanded a sweeter accompaniment, given that the basic guide is to always ensure that the wine is sweeter than the food itself, to avoid a “tinny” taste. A match with that most versatile of wines, a Mosel Riesling Spatlese, might have been a pleasing alternative.
We then moved on to the Wild Mushroom Ragout on Puff Pastry. Congratulations to the fungi chef! This tasty appetizer was matched with the hit of the evening, the fruit laden Chianti Classico 2003 ‘Tenuta Sant’ Alfonso’ from Rocco delle Macie, Tuscany. Beautiful aromas of crushed raspberries, cherries, warm spices, and vanilla led to delicious cherry and vanilla flavours in the mouth with silky tannins and a long finish. This was an excellent match.
 As we continued to remember the Chianti, we cleansed our palate with a sorbet of cassis and pear, and prepared for the nostalgic and main course of Chateaubriand Bouquetière Sauce Béarnaise. This was matched with two reds, the Château ‘Tour Haut-Caussan’, 2003, a Cru Bourgeouis Superieur from Médoc, and the 2004 Celeste from Torres in Ribera del Duero. The Bordeaux had black fruit, spice and earthiness, and cigar box on the nose leading to deep cherry and chewy tannins and a medium finish. The Celeste (100% Tempranillo) showed blackberry, with a spicy nose of licorice and black pepper. This wine was medium bodied and wellbalanced with good length. The medium-rare Chateaubriand was served with mashed potatoes and green and white asparagus. Both wines went beautifully with the entrée and we were split 50/50 as to which was the best match. It was generally felt that the béarnaise sauce could have used more “umph”, as the wines tended to overpower the sauce.
We were then treated to a Gorgonzola Cheese Panecota with fresh fruit (green grapes, red grapes, strawberries, and kiwi) matched to the Graham’s Six Grapes Reserve Port. The Port was dark red with plums, cherries, cedar, and licorice overtones. The spicy dried fruit flavour went well with the cheese and fruit and had a good length.
 Rad, the restaurant manager, helped us end the evening with a flambé demonstration of that nostalgic dessert Crepe Suzette with Grand Marnier Orange Sauce. Our mouths were watering before being served and we were not disappointed! Excellent!
We would be remiss if we did not commend the wait staff of the International Restaurant on their fine service. We were treated to a gold medal performance in synchronized serving – perhaps this will be the next demonstration sport at the Vancouver Olympics? All eight guests at each table were served each course simultaneously by four servers, under the watchful eye of Coach Rad. This added an additional element of uniqueness to a first-class meal.
Thank you Martin and the staff of the International Restaurant for an excellent nostalgic evening.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 08 July 2007 )
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Moderation |
 The National Capital Sommelier Guild strongly supports moderate and responsible consumption of wine and spirits. Guild dinner events allow a designated driver to attend at a reduced price. The designated driver will not be served alcohol. Guild tasting events provide and encourage the use of spit buckets. |
"Great wine is about nuance, surprise, subtlety, expression, qualities that keep you coming back for another taste. Rejecting a wine because it is not big enough is like rejecting a book because it is not long enough, or a piece of music because it is not loud enough."
—Kermit Lynch in Adventures on the Wine Route |
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