Hors dourves: Dried Apricot, goat cheese, Marcona almond, basil, honey bite
Salad: Citrus Salad - Spring greens, supremes of blood orange, orange, grapefruit, goat cheese and walnuts, citrus honey vinaigrette
Mains: Grilled filet mignon with balsamic red wine reduction, butter poached Argentinian red shrimp
Sides: vegetable tian, wild rice mushroom "risotto"
Dessert: Salted Almond ice cream with a trio of brûléed pears - paired with Beringer Nightingale Dessert wine
Post planning that menu came the dreaded consideration for what to do about the inevitable question, "what can we bring?" Rather than dodge the question, my fiancee had the brilliant idea of doing a blind wine tasting. As our primary protein of the evening was steak with red wine sauce, we decided to go big and ask everyone to bring a Cabernet Sauvignon based wine with a set price limit (I won't say what it was because one of our friends predictably though 'accidentally' failed to read the email with the price limit).
When everyone arrived, we stripped the foil on their wines, opened them up to breathe, wrapped them in a brown paper bag, and mixed them all up before numbering the brown bags (ok, bottles) 1-4. We poured them in the random numerical order, careful to decant each one prior to pouring for the table. Here were the 4 wines that showed up and the order in which we drank them:
1) Las 3 Marias by Gandolini, 2011, Maipo Valley, Chile
2) Burrowing Owl, 2011, Okanagan, BC, Canada
3) Cakebread, 2012, Napa Valley, USA
4) Cougar Crest, 2009, Walla Walla Valley, Washington USA
Having visited several wineries in both the Okanagan and Napa Valleys (and Yara Valley in Australia in the case of my fiancee) and tasted flights of their various offerings, at no point in my time as a wine nerd have I learned more about what I like about Cabernets than I did on this night. Of the 4 wines listed above, I had tried 3 previously. The one wine I had not had before, the Cakebread, I was not unfamiliar with as we were in Napa for the release of the 2012 Cabs (the first in a fine series of Napa vintages if you're to believe the critics). Before summarizing each wine for its own merits, I will say that the theme of the night for me was how well the lesser known regions of the Walla Walla and Okanagan valleys stood up to the better known "cab regions" of the Napa and Maipo Valleys. I will also say I'm a sucker for the density and structure of Napa Cabs so would still put them at the top of my list but they are now joined by some of their lesser known peers.
Gandolini Las 3 Marias 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon - We opened this and polished it off as our first glass before dinner. At just over $40 CDN, this is a wine with great density and structure, loads of dark fruit and lots of oak. There is however a subtle green pepper note that I'm not super fond of (and which often overwhelms some poorer examples of 2011 Napa cabs) and a grip to the tannins that could use some time in bottle to soften. In a previous review of this same wine that I posted less than a week earlier on Vivino, I called the tannins near indecipherably smooth. I mention this to illustrate how much I learned this night as the tannins of this particular wine stood out above the rest. Overall, as you'll see, despite it being a decent value option for a rich cabernet, it was my least favourite of the evening (and I don't feel bad saying it as it was the wine we donated to the blind tasting). On second review, I'd give it a 15/20.
Burrowing Owl 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon - We'd tried this wine on a previous occasion and letting our eyes and misconceptions dictate our taste found this wine to be lighter than we expected for a Cab and a little fruity. When chasing the denser Maipo Valley expression, we found this to be a well rounded, smooth, structured wine. Definitely more fruit forward but a pleasant acidity and soft tannin structure. This was the biggest surprise at the table when we cut away the paper bags. One of the Okanagan's better producers really did their region a good service with this effort. Outstanding wine. 17/20 (Stay tuned for a post about our trip to this winery coming up in June!)
Cakebread 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon - While not a value option (and the obvious contribution of he who chose not to read the rules) if you're looking for a classic expression of Napa 2012, here it is. Deep, dark purple leaning black colour. Very dense and rich. Lots of tannin and oak expression in this wine. "Tastes like dirt," was the comment of the bestower of this wine on our party. While the intent of his expression was not as positive as my view of this wine, I'd like to call that note "an earthy expression of terroir." (Or at least that's what I think the French would call it.) This is a wine that did Napa proud, though at more than twice the price of the other wines on this list, it's worth giving the others a good look. 17.5/20
Cougar Crest 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon - This is another wine we had at a previous dinner in which the label lead us to read more into the wine that what was truly in the glass. It is certainly the lightest wine of the evening but the fruit character and balance that came through when the varietal was not bogged down by oak and grape skins was enlightening. Lots of red fruit and smooth, bright acidity. Seeing how this wine held up against the rest, I'll be seeking out more cabs from the Walla Walla Valley going forward. 17.5/20 - obviously for different reasons than the Cakebread example. Also worthy of note, this wine was the popular pick for best wine of the evening.
Once we got through the wines, and the dinner, we moved on to the botrylised dessert wines from Beringer's Nightingale series (2008 and 2009 vintages). This is one of the least cloying dessert wines we've ever had so paring it with fruit and a savoury leaning ice cream was key. It was a hit and a great way to finish off a meal, though not necessarily a party as evidenced by the final picture in this post and the headaches we all texted each other about the following day....
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