A Night of Snake River Farms & Wine.

Thursday night, 19th November 2009, I was at Enderun's Restaurant 101 for Kosh Sehwani's Snake River Farms ("SRF") Dinner. I don't really know whose idea it was to invite me, but I'm pretty sure it was Mike Stephenson's idea as I've been a customer of Kosh's premium meat distribution company (Alternatives Food Corp.) for around 3 years - ever since Boozze told me they sold US prime grade rib-eyes. Since then, all the steaks served in my house are from them.

Kosh and Restaurant 101's Chef See

Shortly after my arrival, an endless stream of immediately recognizable Champagne Jacquesson Cuvée 732 NV (I've been having a lot of this lately) poured as Kosh gave a brief talk about the quality of Snake River Farms products while the EO-heavy crowd watched and listened attentively...

Ricky & Bubu Andres, Mike Stephenson and Vince Grey

It was nothing really new to me, though, being an old customer. I'm even aware that most all the restaurants I haunt (e.g., Je Suis Gourmand, Ciçou, Mamou, Sala) get their beef, kurobuta pork and what-have-you from Kosh's company. Chef See thereafter took the floor and explained how even Snake River Farms' less rarefied cuts make for excellent dishes. I tried some of them (pass-arounds) and he was right, especially the mini satay skewers with peanut sauce. Had I not known that at least a kilo of meat per person was budgeted for the evening, I would have eaten more of them.

I must mention that, aside from Mike who I haven't seen in a while, I was particularly happy to see Jay and Bambi Sy at the dinner. Ever since I left EO, I rarely bump into them - mainly in restaurants as they are also intrepid foodies. They are always very nice and fun to be with. Very charming couple. Moreover, it turned out that we all wound up seated at the same table together with Edward Lim and Annette who, I later discovered, likes wine, used to be my neighbor in Greenhills and our respective parents knew each other from there. We had a good table.

It is no secret that, though I do have very high regard for the real deal Kobe beef from Japan (it is so fatty that my palate tires after a few bites), my favorite beef is US prime-grade beef. I've tried countless others, including the touted Charolais from France (I must have eaten a lot of these white cows the first time I visited Burgundy), and, though, many are most acceptable, for me, nothing beats a thick, juicy, rare slab of US prime beef.

Being able to make a pretty mean steak myself (or so I think), I consider 90% of the game is using high quality beef. The remaining 10% is proper heat and timing. Sounds easy, but I am sometimes surprised how many accomplished cooks at fine restaurants can't seem to get it right. The latter was definitely not the case last night, as Chef See's dishes were all impressive (it was my first time in Restaurant 101). A glance at the menu (which was earlier sent to me by Mike) told me the pairing wines were all from Premium Wine Exchange (PWX).

Our meal started off with Cured, 5 Pepper Crusted Sashimi of SRF Black Wagyu Tenderloin with Three Aïoli...

...paired with...

2005 Shea Wine Cellars Estate Bottled Pinot Noir - The fruit of this wine hails from Oregon's largest AVA the Willamette Valley. While I am by no means an expert at US pinot noirs, I've found those I've had from Oregon more to my personal taste than those from California. The former seems to possess generally better acid balance and the wine is not so in-your-face. Whether it is the cooler Oregon night temperature or the local winemakers' general style that is key to better acidic balance (or, at least, my impression thereof), I really wouldn't know.

The wine presents good nose of sweetish, darkly spiced ripe cherry and damson compote, slight bit of cola, underlying dark berry, slight vanilla and a merest whisper of sous bois. These are joined by a cinnamon nuance in the mouth, all on a plump body, midway between medium and full. The fruit is nicely soft, slightly candied, not over-ripe. Well-crafted, with a pleasingly rounded mid-palate feel.

I would never mistake it for a Burgundy, it is a good New World pinot noir that really blossomed when sipped after the tender wagyu tenderloin "sashimi" starter - the wine's gentle, sweetish-ripeness subtly tamed the heat of the 5 pepper crust in admirable counterpoint.

Fine marriage. I had a rosé from Château Troplong Mondot in my wine bag, but there it stayed. I could not have paired this starter any better than it already was.

Next was a bowl of SRF Black Wagyu Chuck Short Rib Ravioli in Tomato Basil Broth, with which we were served...

2004 Bodegas Felix Callejo Reserva - A powerful, creamily oaked tinto from Ribera del Duero. I tried a bottle of this wine just a week shy of a year ago at a paella night by Marc Aubry, during which an impromptu Spanish wine taste-off ensued. My notes on it then were as follows:

Another modern/international 100% tempranillo from Ribera del Duero: dense, powerful, very ripe (not as sweetish as the Alion), full-bodied with generous toasty oak in its mouth-coating, darkly spiced blackberry, cassis, black cherry, black coffee and licorice. This is also a forward wine but in a more no-holds-barred, pedal-to-the-metal style. Huge drive and push on the palate, with a comparatively feisty character and firmer structure.

At P2200 per bottle full retail at Premium Wine Exchange, it is one of their best-selling wines.

The wine is pretty much the same, save that it seems to have dialled itself down a few notches - which, to me, is a good thing. In addition, it showed off considerable depth of fruit, indicating to me that the grapes must have come from older vines (likely an average of over 40 years). I must admit that this pairing initially puzzled me. After having the dish and wine together, however, it somehow worked pretty well - the slight acidity of the tomato and garlic laced broth, together with the shredded beef's earthiness blended well with the spicy, oaky dark fruit. Nice surprise. I knew then that my rosé would be coming home with me that night.

As regards the dish itself, what made it for me was the broth's excellent aromas. The tomatoes smelled and tasted just nicely ripe, freshened and sweetened by the basil, with an artful, seamless touch of garlic, complexed by the earthy shredded short rib ravioli. Bien jugado, but don't just take it from me...

...the empty bowls and quickly emptying glasses were ringing testaments to the goodness of the food, wine and marriage of the two.

Then arrived the dish I was most anticipating that evening. Having been eating a lot of steak lately (as can readily be seen in my recent posts), I was really looking forward to the Slow Cooked, Honey Glazed Kurobuta Belly on Roasted Sweet Potato and Apple Cider Reduction.

This was undoubtedly my favorite dish and pairing of the evening. I knew the dish would be good - slow cooked Kurobuta belly (sous vide in this case - different from oublié au four because of the use of the vacuum-sealed plastic bag and immersion in water) then glazed under a salamander, how could it not be? Add to this a classic Teutonic touch of apple (apple cider in this case instead of the ubiquitous apple sauce), and the flavors couldn't go wrong.

Pairing a relatively buxom California chardonnay with roast pork tenderloin with apples has always made sense to me. Chards have base flavors of apple and pear, those from California a pronounced fatness/buttery/vanilla/oak leaning and, at times, a slight honeyed note to the ripe fruit - just the ticket for honey-glazed pork with apples. Because it was kurobuta belly, I brought along a bottle of 2006 Saintsbury "Brown Ranch" Estate Bottled Carneros Chardonnay (also from PWX). I decided, however, to first try Kosh's chosen pairing wine before opening my bottle. Long story short, my chardonnay kept my rosé company in my wine bag on my way home.

2006 Flowers Sonoma Coast Chardonnay - This is a nice one. Its aromas lived up to its name, presenting lightly honeyed, slightly buttery baked apple, ripe pear, vanilla/oak - all laced with acacia flowers and a slight nuance of orange blossom. The scents were mirrored on the palate with a touch of leesy creaminess, touches of tarte citron and white minerals, in a full, rounded but nicely-packed body balanced off with adequate acidity. The wine finished with a flourish of acacia flowers and moderate vanilla/and oak notes.

The pork dish seemed to bring out more of the orange blossom nuance, the fruit ran with the glaze and brightened the rich pork, its acidity giving a subtle cut. I exhaled flowers and honeyed fruit. Loved them together.

I guess Peter Angliongto liked it as much as I since he seemed to be subtly hinting for more.

A Passion Fruit Granité cleansed and refreshed our palates of the pork's richness...

...to prime us for yet another indulgent dish: Grilled SRF Black Wagyu Steak and SRF Kurobuta Short Rib Hash on Roquefort Crushed Potatoes and Red Wine-Grain Mustard Mousseline.

In the interim between courses, I poured my bottle of 2001 Antinori Pian delle Vigne Brunello di Montalcino to go with the main course (after all, I had already opened it earlier in the day just to make sure it wasn't corked or otherwise damaged). Ever since Oscar's Night at L'Opera over a year ago, I have strongly favored Tuscan and Piedmontese reds with grilled red meats - pulling them out more and more often, it seems, than Bordeaux, Burgundy or Napa cabs. The last time I opened a bottle of this particular wine was a little over 7 months ago during one of our Italian wine lunches at Pepato. My notes then were:

My bottle, 100% sangiovese (called "brunello di Montalcino" in the Montalcino area). I've had this wine a few times before (as well as a few of other vintages of it). The Doc was the one who introduced me to this wine many several years ago. I last had this from the Stockbroker during his 2008 birthday lunch, side-by-side the more modern 2001 Casanova di Neri Brunello Montalcino. My notes then are still applicable:

"2001 Antinori Pian delle Vigne Brunello di Montalcino - Off the bat, from the aromas, I opined that this one was closer to the classic/traditional style: More of sweet cedar, touch of camphor, ripe strawberry, raspberry, cherry, cassis, underlying espresso, light touch of licorice, tobacco, minerals, violets, a whisper of leather. The fruit was not as sweet, but well-ripened as well, and earthier in character.

Clearly more earth-driven (rather than fruit-driven) compared to the other wine - less polished, rounded and sleek as well; but firmer in structure, much better focus and definition. Much more properly reserved. I liked them both, but much preferred this wine as a match for the steak. This is more of an eating wine, it needs food to show its beauty, where the other wine I enjoyed more alone. I accepted a second pour of this one and drained every drop. Excellent match. Loved it with the steak."

This bottle was, as earlier mentioned, decanted and aerated since 12:15 - so over an hour before serving. I like the firm but flexible, somewhat lean but sturdy structure of this wine. Showed more apparent leather notes than last time. Definitely masculine brunello, if not particularly complex, but a no-brainer pairing with the steak.

Of course, I also had the evening's pairing red with the steak.

2005 Long Shadow Vintners "Feather" Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon - 100% cabernet sauvignon from Washington State. Randy Dunn is the winemaker here - I became aware of him because of Tina Caputo's short documentary entitled "Robert Parker's Bitch" (nb: made for Vineyard & Winery Management Magazine), where Dunn bravely lambasted the US Emperor of Wine (the film was made way after the 2005 vintage; Parker's Wine Advocate gave this wine a score of 93).

Crème de cassis, black currants, blueberries, black cherry, licorice, cedar, slight cinammon, bit of violets; very evident but not over-bearing dose of oak. Sturdy, strong, yet not loud, blowsy or over-wrought. Somehow, it comes off balanced enough. I noted the alcohol push though - surely over 14% abv. This was a bread-and-butter, no-brainer reliable pairing. Good, but I, honestly, prefer more acidity in a red to pair with thick, grilled, well-marbled cuts of red meat such as the evening's steak.

I took the lull before dessert as an opportunity to grab another quick smoke outside. By the time I returned, the alcohol had obviously taken its desired effect on most everyone.

Marc Aubry then walked in donning an elaborately designed shirt. I only then realized it was the first time I've seen him not dressed in his chef's whites. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of him.

Trio of 101 Desserts: Panna Cotta on Raspberry Coulis, Hazelnut Macaron with Frangelico Ganache and Green Tea Opera Cake. Those who dine with me regularly know well that I normally take just one or two small bites of dessert before abandoning it for a double espresso. However, I finished every bit of the above trio - all except for the chocolate base painted on the plate - and only because it was too difficult to scrape it all off without endangering the plate.

I then proceeded to my usual double espresso to keep me awake for my southward drive home - they certainly serve great espresso at Restaurant 101, I must say. The night deepened and Edward took a not-so-French leave. Even Jay, for all his ironman/triathelete stamina, started to look a little worse for wear. This is a sure sign of a successful wine dinner.

Several cigarettes and stories swapped outside with Marc, I thanked the evening's host, said goodbye to Mike and made my way home. A great meal and well-thought wine pairings with friends made for a fun night.

Monday Afternoon Italian Wines.

I was supposed to attend an Italian wine lunch at Pepato organized by Miguel this Monday, 16th November 2009, but had to beg off for various reasons - one of which was because I had been having too much to drink too often, accompanied by too much rich food. Around 2:45pm, though, I was able to catch up from my office for "just a glass or two". Well, it turned out to be 6 glasses, but not full pours.

Aside from Miguel, the Stockbroker, J-Lab, Aaron and Greg were there - everyone with their respective bottles (or 3). They went through 10 bottles including Italian whites, but, as I said, I tried only 6 of them.

At first, the Stockbroker gave me a glass of a "Mystery Wine", asking me to try to identify at least the country of origin. I noted a sweet, spicy, crème de cassis, cherry/raspberry, plum syrupy smell with mocha and vanilla/oak thrown in, all topped by a raw, tinny, somewhat saline, scent. In the mouth, it tasted of ultra-extracted, sweet and candied red fruit over dark. The finish started off sweet, turning to sourish cherry. I guessed it was from South Africa. I was wrong. It was a...


...2007 Csányi Pincészet Villány Prestige Cuvée, a Hungarian wine, the first red wine I have ever tried from Hungary. It was really not to my taste, and, apparently, everyone else's as I that saw nobody drank down their glasses of it.

That bit of novelty over, the real wines poured for me.

1990 Tenute Cisa Asinari Dei Marchesi Di Gresy Camp Gros Martinenga Barbaresco - The Stockbroker's bottle. Dense, rich, very ripe, soft, somewhat meaty, jammy violets-and-old rose infused dark fruit/black cherry compote, hints of dried fig, truffles, aged balsamico, leather, well-integrated oak. Undoubtedly full-bodied, concentrated, deeply extracted, stylish, very broad, generous and expansive. Very round and hefty middle, velvety-molten tannins, good enough complexity, with a long, strong finish.

Acidity is notably low compared to other nebbiolo-based wines I've tried. Very nice in a somewhat modernish style of Barbaresco - and one could say heavenly after the Hungarian red. I'd think this is in a good drinking window now and can probably hold for 4-6 more years.

1998 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia Serralunga d'Alba - Miguel's bottle, brought home from his most recent trip to Piedmont for sure. Comes off with more typicity with brighter acidity, firmer structure (than the preceding wine - this is a Barolo after all) to its drier, more minerally, less fruit-forward character. Less dense, not as big or rich and lighter-footed than the preceding wine; there is no jamminess to its dark fruit, violets, black coffee, leather, "tar" and slight licorice/dark spice. Very fragrant, with clean and neat lines and admirable purity. Drinking very well now, but can undoubtedly gracefully age for many, many more years.

1989 Château Lagrange - Aaron's bottle. I know I've had it since then, but the last time I opened a bottle of this was over lunch with Miguel, Rene and Santi at Je Suis Gourmand during our 2008 Christmas lunch. My notes from then are still pretty much applicable:

1989 Château Lagrange - A highly-regarded and over-performing 3rd Growth from St-Julien in the Médoc. Much credit for Lagrange's success is given to the steadfast and generous financial backing of the Japanese owner (Suntory) and the talented Marcel Ducasse. To the best of my recollection, I've had only their 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996 and 2000 vintages - all when Marcel Ducasse was still in charge of the château, before Bruno Eynard took over in 2007. From that virtual handful, however, I have been impressed by the high standard, reliability and consistency of their wines. They may be quite generous with the oak, but the wines have always been in balance in my experience.

x x x x x

This wine, the 1989 grand vin, was warm, comforting, earthy with subtle hints of game and truffle (which is why, after much thought, I chose this in the end for the pairing). Its molten darkly ripe fruit and cassis have an earthy, roasted character (not torrefaction though, more like warm gravel). Mild nuances of cedar, old worn leather, tobacco and well-integrated oak. Slightly over medium-bodied, but not legitimately full. Low acid, just barely enough to keep it in balance. Not as lush, stylish or expansive as the 1990 version, this is comparatively somber, more serious and quietly reserved. Good depth to it.

The wine didn't have the acidity to present any cut to the venison, but it did walk hand-in-hand with the earthiness of the latter. A good pairing, I think, but I could have done much better. I really just felt like drinking something mature. I think the guys liked it.

Next opened was a sweet white.

2006 Mueggen Passito di Pantelleria (Salvatore Murana) - Miguel's bottle. Wild flowers and honeyed dried apricots, sultanas and concentrated cling peach. It is, of course, sweet and rich, but with good depth. Though I do like the Italian passitos I've tried before, they all seemed a bit simple to me. This is different in that there is a bit of complexity to this and it is notably graceful. Very nice indeed.

Though we had moved to a sweet white, Greg wanted some more red "to finish off the cheeses", and, so opened...

1999 Pio Cesare Barbaresco - Greg's bottle, popped and poured. Very classically cut Barbaresco, clean lines, well-defined, well-focused and firmly structured. A bit tight and austere initially, but it fleshed out a bit in the glass with added truffle, violets and a touch of meat in its tar-infused, darkly spiced black cherry on a body halfway between medium and full. Not anywhere as complex or deep as the above Martinenga Barbaresco or Cascina Francia Barolo, not as stylish as the 2001 Michele Chiarlo Barbaresco, but has notable typicity and is, undoubtedly, well-crafted old-school Barbaresco.

A double espresso and a few cigarettes later, it was back to the office for me at a little past 5pm.

Mille grazie, amici miei!

Blind Bordeaux Challenge XIV.

Saturday night, the 14th November 2009, was the Grand Crew's Blind Bordeaux Challenge XIV at the usual venue of Old Manila. Defending his crown was the Stockbroker, that which he wrested from my embattled brow at the XIIIth challenge last August 20th. We were only 7 this time as Mrs. Stockbroker wasn't feeling well.


Mrs. Vigneron, Doc, the Stockbroker


My Wife, the Vigneron & Mrs. Doc

Priming our palates were welcome glasses of....

Champagne Jacquesson Cuvée 732 NV - From the Stockbroker for sure as Premium Wine Exchange is Jacquesson's official Philippine distributor. I've had this many times, the last being at the IWFS President's Dinner this past 15th October 2009. "(T)he bright lemon and citrus dominant flavours of which, combined with an entertaining slight breadiness past mid-mouth" seemed creamier and rounder than all the previous times I've had it, brightening the amuse bouche nicely.

I don't recall what the other's had for starters, but I had the rather lackluster Black Truffle Raviolini Soup.

The reds were then served...

..and tasting began before our main courses arrived; mine was a rare 300-gm. Rib-Eye Steak with a side of fries.

As regards the quality of the meat, let's just say I was glad there were great wines to drink.

Wine #1: Initially, a sweet perfume of cherries, kirsch, dark/ripe plum, spice and violets with an ever-so-slight sherry nuance. Softly mirrored on the palate, silky, over a stream of graceful dark fruit. Very femininely elegant, but with a good, albeit gentle, push on the palate. It started to fall apart, separate and fade, the sherry notes starting to take over after around 30-40 minutes; so, if you have any of this, I'd advise to try it for a few minutes before deciding to decant for aeration.

I ranked this wine 2nd best. It turned out to be the Stockbroker's 1982 Château Le Gay.

Wine #2: Initially the best nose for me, proudly displaying meaty, truffled black fruit, cassis, cedar, tar, tobacco and licorice. Good depth and power. In the mouth, it was nicely warm, full and familiar. It started to fade and fall apart relatively quickly though, faster than Wine #1. For this reason, I, thus, had no choice but to rank it 3rd best. It was the Doc's 1994 Château Léoville las Cases (in Magnum).

Wine #3: Cedary nose of gravel/pencil-shavings-infused cassis, violets and leather. Good power and balance, of a classic cut; but the wine, to me, lacked the admirable depth and heft of the others. I could easily tell this was my wine, but simply had to rank it 4th place. It was, in fact, my 2001 Les Forts de Latour - a very dark horse of a Pauillac, I admit, but I just wanted to see how it would fare against the heavyweights.

Wine #4: This wine took the longest to open, but, when it did, it just kept gaining darkly quiet, smoldering power, depth, body and roundness. Rich, deep, complex, dark plum, cherry, cassis, violets, leather, spice - what struck me most about this wine was its astounding balance of power and elegance. I had no choice but to rank this the best wine of the Challenge. It was the Vigneron's 1999 Château Trotanoy.

The Vigneron looks on pensively. He had been trash-talking us the week before, pointing out that, historically, he always took the crown home to Bordeaux during the Christmas season. As far as we all knew, he was right. Now, as Mrs. Vigneron tallied the votes, it was the moment of truth.

The Results:

Mrs. Vigneron then announced the wines' rankings in ascending order:

4th Place: Wine #1, the Stockbroker's 1982 Château Le Gay, with a total of 13 points (0 votes for 1st place, 2 votes for 2nd place, 2 votes for 3rd place, and 3 votes for 4th place).

Above, the Stockbroker just looks slightly bemused in seeing his bottle take 4th. I was busy taking photos at the time, so when I saw the Stockbroker pointing to me through my camera lens, I knew the next bottle revealed was mine.

3rd Place: Wine #3, my 2001 Les Forts de Latour, with a total of 14 points (1 vote for 1st place, 1 vote for 2nd place, 2 votes for 3rd place, and 3 votes for 4th place).

Mrs. Vigneron then called out for the 2nd place wine to be revealed. In the above photo, you can see the Vigneron on the left, his hands clasped deep in prayer...

Note, however, the change in his body language when it was revealed...

2nd Place: Wine #2, the Doc's 1994 Château Léoville las Cases (Magnum), with 20 points (3 votes for 1st place, 1 vote for 2nd place, 2 votes for 3rd place, and 1 vote for 4th place).

1st Place: Wine #4, the Vigneron's 1999 Château Trotanoy, with a convincing 26 points (3 votes for 1st place, 3 votes for 2nd place, and 1 vote for 3rd place). When asked how he decided on this wine, the Vigneron gave credit to his old friend, Sebastian Bardinet, in helping him identify, taste and decide on the winning bottle. Needless to state, the Vigneron was very happy and I'm sure we'll not be hearing the end of this for a while.

Naturally, he said he had no doubt that he'd win; and, to prove it, he showed me how he filled up his voting card earlier in the evening:

In any event, it was a convincing win for him, and, yet again, the crown returns to Bordeaux for the holidays. Good natured teasing ensued...

...everyone good friends again....

...for now.