richard-in-cincy
Well-known member
We had this wonderful dinner at one of the top 5 restaurants here in Cincinnati. I don't have recipes, but it was so unusual and imaginative, I thought it could serve as inspiration for some dinner party "show pieces":
First Course: Lasagne
Large paper thin slices of potato fried into crispy chips were layered with a tomato olve marmalade, leaves of fresh green sorrel, and that wonderful earthy (I always think "barnyard and hay" when I taste it) ricotta insalata.
Wine: Pieropan Soave Classico 2004 (Brilliant straw color. White fruit and almond aromas; pleasant minerality and an lingering note of bitter almond).
Second Course: Savory Goat Cheese Creme Brulee
This was a wild selection! The ultra-rich, smooth, and creamy (and savory) goat cheese custard had the classic sugar crust and topped with a salad of Red Grape and Basil with a Tangerine and Vanilla Vinaigrette. Unusual and absolutely sublime.
Wine: Far Niente "Dolce" California 2001 (Botrytis’d dessert wine. Semillon & late harvest Sauvignon Blanc. Dark yellow-gold, fat, rich and concentrated, with layers of apricot, fig, butterscotch, smoke, tobacco and caramel, supported by firm acidity and finishing with a long, rich, oily aftertaste. Liquid gold from Napa Valley.) This sweet dessert wine really held it's own with the richness of this dish.
Third Course: Tarragon Marinated Salmon
The tarragon infused salmon was grilled and served on a bed of applewood smoked bacon and oyster mushroom ragout. Topped with a Pinot Noir Emulsion (which I proclaimed looked like a pink frog's nest--farmboy, what can I say? smileys/wink.gif
Wine: Patricia Green Cellars Oregon Pinot Noir 2004 (The 2004 has the supple and expansive texture that is a hallmark of this bottling. What it really provides is incredibly dense and pure fruit. There are high toned sweet cherries from Balcombe, blackberries and licorice from Anden and Croft and a backbone of amazingly silky tannins from the barrel of the Estate Vineyard that was fermented with whole clusters). Another amazing dish with intense flavors, and once again, a wine pairing that was perfection. What the wine description dosn't include was how "earthy" and "forest floor mushroomy" this wine was. The bouquet was like standing in the middle of a dense and lush forest. Bilbo Baggins would have this wine in his cellar. LOL
Fourth Course: Roasted Veal Tenderloin and Braised Oxtail with a Red Wine Blanket.
Yes, it really had a blanket. A very novel agar-agar thickened red wine pliable and edible blanket (or more like ribbons). This was served with haricot vert. The oxtail was classic French slow-braised bistro fare done to a perfection. The tenderloin providing a nice contrast of texture and flavor. A most unusual dish.
Wine: Château La Fleur de Plince, France 2002
(opulent red with a high proportion of Merlot grapes gives this wine a fabulous sensuous richness on the palate. Deeply coloured this concentrated wine offers sweet black fruit, medium tannins and a smooth, long finish.)
Fifth Course: Chocolate Macadamia Nut Blini
The layers--pool of bittersweet chocolate sauce, raspberry coulis decorating the edges of the plate, whole cherries and blackberries marmalade, blini (sort of a soft chocolate cookie with macadamia nuts--I thought the macadamia nuts didn't work here, they seemed "raw" and unrefined compared to the other tastes and I immediately wanted the nut to be a toasted pecan), mascarpone passion fruit cream (out of this world!), blini, cream, chocoloate sculptures atop. Yummy.
Wine: La Spinetta Moscato d'Asti Piedmont Italy 2004 (I've already mentioned this amazing wine earlier, the bouquet is that of an old-fashioned damask rose. Unbelievable.)
Sixth Course: Cheese (epoisses, explorateur, petit basque)
I felt like a judge on Iron Chef as each dish came out of the kitchen and we dissected it and commented on it. Too fun.
First Course: Lasagne
Large paper thin slices of potato fried into crispy chips were layered with a tomato olve marmalade, leaves of fresh green sorrel, and that wonderful earthy (I always think "barnyard and hay" when I taste it) ricotta insalata.
Wine: Pieropan Soave Classico 2004 (Brilliant straw color. White fruit and almond aromas; pleasant minerality and an lingering note of bitter almond).
Second Course: Savory Goat Cheese Creme Brulee
This was a wild selection! The ultra-rich, smooth, and creamy (and savory) goat cheese custard had the classic sugar crust and topped with a salad of Red Grape and Basil with a Tangerine and Vanilla Vinaigrette. Unusual and absolutely sublime.
Wine: Far Niente "Dolce" California 2001 (Botrytis’d dessert wine. Semillon & late harvest Sauvignon Blanc. Dark yellow-gold, fat, rich and concentrated, with layers of apricot, fig, butterscotch, smoke, tobacco and caramel, supported by firm acidity and finishing with a long, rich, oily aftertaste. Liquid gold from Napa Valley.) This sweet dessert wine really held it's own with the richness of this dish.
Third Course: Tarragon Marinated Salmon
The tarragon infused salmon was grilled and served on a bed of applewood smoked bacon and oyster mushroom ragout. Topped with a Pinot Noir Emulsion (which I proclaimed looked like a pink frog's nest--farmboy, what can I say? smileys/wink.gif
Wine: Patricia Green Cellars Oregon Pinot Noir 2004 (The 2004 has the supple and expansive texture that is a hallmark of this bottling. What it really provides is incredibly dense and pure fruit. There are high toned sweet cherries from Balcombe, blackberries and licorice from Anden and Croft and a backbone of amazingly silky tannins from the barrel of the Estate Vineyard that was fermented with whole clusters). Another amazing dish with intense flavors, and once again, a wine pairing that was perfection. What the wine description dosn't include was how "earthy" and "forest floor mushroomy" this wine was. The bouquet was like standing in the middle of a dense and lush forest. Bilbo Baggins would have this wine in his cellar. LOL
Fourth Course: Roasted Veal Tenderloin and Braised Oxtail with a Red Wine Blanket.
Yes, it really had a blanket. A very novel agar-agar thickened red wine pliable and edible blanket (or more like ribbons). This was served with haricot vert. The oxtail was classic French slow-braised bistro fare done to a perfection. The tenderloin providing a nice contrast of texture and flavor. A most unusual dish.
Wine: Château La Fleur de Plince, France 2002
(opulent red with a high proportion of Merlot grapes gives this wine a fabulous sensuous richness on the palate. Deeply coloured this concentrated wine offers sweet black fruit, medium tannins and a smooth, long finish.)
Fifth Course: Chocolate Macadamia Nut Blini
The layers--pool of bittersweet chocolate sauce, raspberry coulis decorating the edges of the plate, whole cherries and blackberries marmalade, blini (sort of a soft chocolate cookie with macadamia nuts--I thought the macadamia nuts didn't work here, they seemed "raw" and unrefined compared to the other tastes and I immediately wanted the nut to be a toasted pecan), mascarpone passion fruit cream (out of this world!), blini, cream, chocoloate sculptures atop. Yummy.
Wine: La Spinetta Moscato d'Asti Piedmont Italy 2004 (I've already mentioned this amazing wine earlier, the bouquet is that of an old-fashioned damask rose. Unbelievable.)
Sixth Course: Cheese (epoisses, explorateur, petit basque)
I felt like a judge on Iron Chef as each dish came out of the kitchen and we dissected it and commented on it. Too fun.