Ratamacue Stew

I'm a big fan of Mojito's. Ran across this food blog from one of Cindee's coworkers and it looks awesome. Definitely going to try it once the weather warms up.

It's been several months since my last posting. While I've eaten at several nice restaurants the in the past several months, nothing has been "blog worthy" until tonight. As we close out 2009 and enter 2010, Cindee and I decided to have a culinary night for New Year's Eve as we ring in the new year. We made several great dishes and I decided they were blog worthy enough to share (despite my comments in my previous blog about being a so-so cook - I won't use the term chef). All of the courses we prepared were very good and our approach to the dishes was interesting and fun. We took several recipes and combined the best parts into what we ended up serving. This is what I would consider the start to becoming a better cook. Taking ideas, merging them with your own, and coming up with a new dish that doesn't fit a recipe found in a book and can be called your own.

Here is our menu for the evening (oh how good it did taste, too!)

The appetizer is courtesy of a cookbook from one of our favorite restaurants in Ann Arbor called Eve. The main course and salad were combinations of recipes Cindee had from some of her cooking magazines. Dessert was plain old fashioned cherry pie.

Wines for the evening included:

2007 Rodney Strong Reserve Zinfandel
2006 Rodney Strong Reserve Syrah
The Black Chook Sparkling Shiraz

We wish everyone a Happy New Year and all the best for 2010!

In 2003, Cindee and I were in Banff to support a friend who was working on his Ph.D. and presenting at a conference. We came up, ostensibly, to attend his presentation to provide moral support. Truth be told, a long weekend in Banff to see the mountains and take in some skiing at Sunshine Village was certainly a contributing factor in our decision to come up. Although as it turned out, I was the only one to go skiing as Cindee was pregnant with Aedan and wasn't able to ski.

During our trip, we had dinner at a steak and fondue restaurant in Banff called The Grizzly House. We had no idea what to expect but the name sounded fun and fondue harkens back to the disco era of the 70's. We had a fantastic meal and a wonderful experience and vowed the next time we were in Banff we'd eat there again.

So, now in 2009 as we're enjoying our family vacation in the Canadian Rockies, we had The Grizzly House on our list of places to eat. We went last night and had an equally great evening in a very unique restaurant. This time, however, I took pictures. Among our group last night, we had the Hunter Fondue Bourguignonne, Exotic Fondue, Fondue Bourguignonne, and Seafood Fondue.

We had no room for dessert after this meal. Although the last time we were here we had the dessert fondue with melted Toblerone and fresh fruit.

All in all a great dining experience, fun with food as you cook on the stones, and a place you'll definitely want to check out if you have the chance to visit Banff.

When I think of German wines, Pinot Noir is not usually the varietal that immediately comes to mind. But, a local wine store which we really like (The Crushed Grape) had a German Pinot Noir that I had purchased last year some time and really liked. When Cindee and I visited them recently, I remembered the wine and was able to buy their last two bottles. I'm hopeful they'll have more next time I'm in there.

In the meantime, if you're able to find it, I'd highly recommend picking up a bottle. You'll really enjoy it and I'm sure you'll look twice at the bottle to make sure it really does come from Germany.

Wine: 2005 Hans Lang Pinot Noir
Country: Germany
Region: Rheingau
Tasting Note from Cellar Tracker: Medium ruby color with a strong edge of cranberry...raspberry and cherry on the nose with a little baking spice. Very easy entry and medium fruit grip at mid palate with a very light sense of fruit sweetness underneath with a very light acidic counterpoint...demure and elegant.

Ate dinner at a very nice restaurant in Madison, WI last week. Harvest Restaurant is located on the Capital Square and has a great small restaurant ambience to it. Had the following for dinner:

First Course
Yellow Split Pea Soup, Moroccan Spices, Yogurt

Main Course
Braised Beef Short Ribs, White Corn Palenta, Apple and Celeriac Remoulade, Beef Jus

Sides (Shared): Anson Mills Spin Rossa della Valsugana Polenta, Potato Puree, Spinach and Garlic Confit, Hen of the Woods Mushrooms

Wine
Corteforte, Valpolicella Ripasso, Italy 2005
Expressive fruit notes of ripe plums and black cherry, excellent complexit

A good restaurant with great atmosphere and reasonable prices.

I was down in Phoenix, AZ for work this past December and had dinner one night with my good friend Al (a sommelier). Al had a Rhone that I thought was amazing. Very reasonably priced ($12-$15) with a deep velvety color and rich flavor that Al said was due to the heat in Southern France where the vineyard is.

One I didn't want to forget about so here's the Cellar Tracker Link:

Chateau Hautes Ribes Vacqueyras

Al said it's kind of hard to come by so good luck to you if you happen to search for any.

While traveling in the San Francisco area on business, I had the opportunity to eat at an excellent steakhouse called Alexander's Steakhouse. Alexander's is a classic American steakhouse with hints of Japanese influence laced into the menu.

Alexander's features Certified Angus Beef, corn fed from the midwest. They have their own dry-aging room which you can see immediately upon entering the restaurant. In addition to American beef, they also serve true Japanese imported Kobe beef of the A5 grade (the highest grade possible).

Great atmosphere, excellent wine menu (Wine Spectator Award of Excellence), fantastic presentation, and great flavors made for a very enjoyable evening.

Throughout the evening, we had the following wines:

2001 Chateau Beau-Soleil
2006 Domaine Drouhin
2004 Masi, Amarone Classico, Veneto

*Note: CellarTracker links are approximate to give you a feel for the wine. Specific vintages were not always available.

Here's what I had for dinner:

So, if you're in the San Francisco area, I would definitely recommend giving Alexander's Steakhouse a try. Great food, great atmosphere, great fun, and a place where you'll make some memories with friends and family alike.

I'm attending a conference in Las Vegas and benefiting from the hospitality of our hosts. A great opportunity to try some new restaurants.

Sunday - Sushisamba
A unique blend of Japanese, Brazilian and Peruvian cuisine, music and design made for a great dining experience. The menu is full of opportunity for a dining adventure and instead of having to choose what to eat and leave out something equally delicious, the wait staff prepared a "family style" dinner for us with a variety of selections from the menu. Five courses in all and probably too much food, it was a wonderful dining experience and a highly recommended restaurant to try out for some interesting fusion flavors.

Monday - B&B Ristorante
A Mario Bitale restaurant, had to stop for appetizers and dessert We had:

- Proscuitto San Daniele "Riserva" with Black Pepper "Fett 'unta"
- Calamari and Seppie Fritti
- Matsusake Carpaccio (doesn't appear on this particular menu)
- Cioccolato w/Braised Huckleberries

Had a good super Tuscan: 2005 Campo di Sasso Toscana IGT

An intense young red, with violet, black fruit and light toasty oak character on a medium body, with fine tannins and a medium, espresso-tinged finish.

Tuesday - Nobu

Located in the Hard Rock Hotel, Japanese Restaurant Owner and Chef, Nobu Matsuhisa, is highly recognized for his groundbreaking modern and authentic Japanese cuisine; the sushi is fresh as is all the seafood and most entree's will introduce a guest’s taste buds to delirium. Signature dishes to satisfy any palate include the Lobster Ceviche infused with citrus flavors that give guests the reminiscent feel of the tropics; Shrimp and Main Lobster drizzled with tangy lemon sauce and the Scallops in Spicy Pepper. Other exotic offerings are the Assorted Sashimi flavored with garlic, ginger and sesame seeds, slivers of Red Snapper with chili paste or for the more adventurous type, the Yellowtail with jalapeno. The house specialty is a Three-day Marinated Cod seared and served with sweet miso sauce.

Aside from the fine cuisine found at Nobu, the interior design features bamboo pillars, wooden birch trees, a black river rock wall and a seaweed wall, replications of the décor found in Chef Nobu’s New York restaurant, TriBeCa. Other impressive details include the burnt ash tabletops to match the bamboo feature and a black rock at each table setting to hold chopsticks.

Wednesday - Aureole

We spent our last night in Vegas at Aureole which is located in Mandalay Bay. A dramatic space with urban sophistication, serene elegance and world-class cuisine. "Wine angels" fly through the four story wine tower retrieving wine from a selection equal to most in Vegas. The wine menu itself is presented to you on a wireless tablet PC with sorting and search capabilities to let you hone in on your favorite country, region, varietal, etc.

The menu was excellent and offers two prix fixe choices and one a la carte three course menu. The entire table must order the same menu so if you have some with you who aren't adventurous with their taste buds, beware that you may not get all that you are wanting when choosing from the menu. In our particular party, we had a stickler who didn't like sushi or duck (I think he's crazy personnally) and that kept us from the prix fixe menu we wanted. But, we were not disappointed in the menu we did have and thoroughly enjoyed our evening. We paired dinner with a 2004 Chateau Lascombe Bordeaux. Below are pictures of the dishes I had.

Some of the choice pickups we made on our trip to Napa Valley this past October:

2005 Arrowood Cote de Lune Rouge
2005 Benziger Family Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Gordenker Vineyard
2005 Benziger Family Winery Tribute
2007 Elizabeth Spencer Sauvignon Blanc Proprietor Selected Special Cuvée
2005 Hopper Creek Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Clos Valmi
2005 Hopper Creek Winery Merlot
2004 Reynolds Family Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Select
2005 Rodney Strong Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
2006 Rodney Strong Pinot Noir Reserve
2004 Rubicon Estate / Niebaum-Coppola Cabernet Sauvignon

Below is a photo I took at the Benziger Winery. We were there during harvest so the colors were amazing and it was great to see the wineries in full swing with the fall crush.

Dinner at Diva

Spring Asparagus Soup w/Mock Truffle
Canadian Striploin with wild mushroom saute, braised cipollini, crispy pave, red wine jus
Warm Chocolate Souffle with Pistachio Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce


Wine - Blue Mountain Pinot Noir Okanagan Valley 2006

Shows lovely black currant, floral and black licorice notes. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a tight bead of fruit and mineral throughout. Has a long finish. Best after 2009. 10,830 cases made.

Score: 92
Release Price: $18

One of the recommendations from Wine Spectator for the 2005 Vintage of the Century.

Sineann Pinot Noir Willamette Valley Resonance Vineyard 2006

Bright and juicy, with crisp acidity to carry the fresh dark berry flavors. Not as profound or complex as some vintages, but its impressive length suggests that cellaring might add some depth. Drink now through 2012. 450 cases made.

Score: 89
Release Price: $48

C O-two Fruit
S'Mores
Flapjacks