To celebrate our upcoming 4th anniversary (the end of April) and our best friend’s 5th anniversary (March), we decided to splurge on a weekend getaway. We stayed at the Heritage Manor Inn and attended the Fenn Valley winemaker’s dinner. This is the third year that DH and I have gone to a dinner there. Living close to such a great winery makes eating (and drinking) locally a joy!
Along with the cheese they served a sparkling riesling and a sparkling demi-sec.
The first course featured Pinot Grigio 2009 and Clams Genovese (Little neck clams stuffed with pesto and broiled). They were quite tasty.
The second course featured Riesling 2009 and Shaved fennel with blood orange salad (Shaved fennel and supreme blood oranges topped with Romano cheese, and pomegranates). At this point DH and Mike started talking about the “Cork Dork” stuff, which was provided along with the menu for those who want to read all about the alcohol and sugar residuals, etc. Christina and I were talking about the fennel and how this was a great use for it. When I get it in my CSA I always have lots of uses for the leafy part but not so much the bulb. I may have to recreate this!
The third course featured Dry Riesling 2009 and Grilled shrimp with white beans (Grilled shrimp on a bed of arugula, white beans and tarragon, drizzled with mint oil). The shrimp was heavenly, with a heavy smoke flavor. It paired WONDERFULLY with the dry Riesling.
Next up was the Cabernet Franc 2009 paired with Duck Scaloppini with dried cherries and Grappa (Thin sliced duck breast dredged and fried with a grappa, red wine, & cherry sauce). The sauce was excellent, but the Cab was to die for.
At last it was time for the main event, although I have to admit that at this point we were pretty full and feeling the affects of unlimited wine which was served by the carafe-full at each table. I don’t remember the Meritage 2008 but I do remember the Osso Buco with risotto (Classic slow braised veal shank served over risotto). Oh. My. Word. It was so tender and flavorful.
You know how dessert is usually the highlight of the meal; a sweet ending to a crescendo of tastes and textures? Unfortunately this one fell flat. The Select Harvest Vignoles 2009 was good, but the Clementines with balsamic vinegar and pepper over walnut cake (Supremed clementines tossed with balsamic and topped with fresh cracked pepper spooned over a walnut sponge cake and garnished with candied walnuts) was just . . . wrong. I understood where the chef was trying to go with the flavor profile, but the balsamic was overpowering and not in a good way.
This was the other couple at our table, who I’m sure learned way more about us than they cared to by the time the night was over!
All in all, other than the dessert everything was quite tasty. It’s nice to let someone else do the cooking once in awhile, and it’s also fun to get ideas for menus and different things to try at home.
This was so much fun! So glad we were able to go with you guys this year!
Thanks for the post, I long for dinners like that but don’t quite have the means at this point in life. I find it fun to know that you don’t use the fennel bulb because I’ve never used any other part, not knowing how. What do you do with it?
You know, the more I learn to cook, the more I think I would have more fun if I actually planned and cooked a menu like the wine dinner myself. I have a cookbook that has multicourse meals and suggested wine pairings with each course. Of course the ambiance is fun though. A nice splurge, I know we are lucky to be able to do it.
As for the fennel – I use the leafy part as a substitute for dill, and I also have a killer egg salad recipe that uses the stalk.
What a great way to celebrate! The food looks wonderful, I hope you try and re-create some of it and blog all about it. And the Fenn Valley Meritage 2008 is a really nice wine. Not as good as 2006 if you had it then but still really good 🙂