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Archive for April 2016

2005 Burgundy at Water Grill

Apr29

Restaurant: Water Grill Santa Monica [1, 2]

Location: 1401 Ocean Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90401. (310) 394-5669

Date: April 27, 2016

Cuisine: American Seafood

Rating: Solid coastal seafooder

_

Tonight’s outing to Water Grill Santa Monica is with a friend’s wine group. Some of the regulars I’ve known for some time and a bunch of the others I can’t believe I haven’t “met” as we clearly have been at the same events together.

The primary wine theme is 2005 Red Burgundy. A little young, but beginning to come around.

The ocean sunset throws some awesome color on the facade.

1990 Henri Goutorbe Champagne Collection René.

2010 Domaine Billaud-Simon Chablis Grand Cru Vaudésir. Burghound 95. There is a lovely mineral reduction to the pure aromas of citrus, ripe orchard fruit, dried rose petal and sea breeze that marry into full-bodied and overtly muscular flavors that possess seemingly endless reserves of acid-buffering extract on the mouth coating, long and almost painfully intense finish. This bone dry effort will require plenty of cellar time but it will be more than worth the wait as it’s a knockout.

2004 Hospices de Beaune Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières Cuvée Baudot Louis Jadot. Good stuff, very “round” and tres meursault.

The King Iced Shellfish Tower. Love me some raw sea creatures.

Downstairs are oysters, clams, shrimps (with and without heads), mussels, and snails.

Upstairs is uni, lobster, crab, and Peruvian bay scallops with salsa.

From my cellar: 2005 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles. Burghound 93. A very discreet touch of brioche highlights the much more reserved honeysuckle, anise, honeysuckle and apricot aromas that are elegant, pure and wonderfully refined and dissolve into sweet, intense and unusually precise flavors that also reflect more minerality than I typically find in this wine as well, culminating in superb punch and energy. A terrific vintage for Pucelles and one to consider closely.

agavin: sadly our bottle was (mildly) corked 🙁

2013 Francois Carillon Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 91-94. A beautifully expressive nose of notably ripe yellow fruit, acacia blossom, spiced pear and hints of lemon are trimmed in enough wood to notice. The detailed, concentrated, layered and intense middle weight plus flavors are unusually powerful before culminating in a stony, persistent and palate staining finish. This is dense to the point of being luscious and while this is certainly a lovely effort, I wouldn’t call it typical in the context of a classic Chevalier.

agavin: crazy young but still fabulous, particularly at the end of the evening once it got some air. Super long finish.
 Crudo Sampler. Wild tahitian bigeye tuna, wild eastern sea scallops, farmed faroe islands atlantic salmon.
 Farmed Manila clams with Chorizo. Steamed in saffron broth with crispy french baquette.
 Jump lump blue crab cake. celery root remoulade.

From my cellar: 2005 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Fuées. Burghound 94. Here the aromas are slightly riper than those of the villages with a positively sublime elegant dark berry fruit and violet-infused nose that complements the seductive yet notably powerful plum and mineral-inflected medium full flavors that are firmly structured yet velvety with excellent depth of material on the driving, complex and stunningly long finish. The mid-palate sap completely buffers the dusty tannins and this should be capable of at least a decade of improvement but it’s a 25 year wine, perhaps longer. This delivers grand cru quality and should absolutely be on your shopping list.

agavin: lots of promise, but needs more time.

2005 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru. Burghound 93. A strikingly complex nose offers up notes of dried rose petal, exotic spices, tea, earth and very ripe red pinot fruit that merges into rich, full and wonderfully precise medium full-bodied flavors that possess impeccable balance and length that goes on and on. A smaller version of the Musigny and built to age almost as well.

agavin: forward enough to be really yummy, but pretty young
 Fritto misto. mixed fried seafood with smokey marinara and tzatziki.

Seafood fritters. crab, shrimp and atlantic cod, with romesco sauce and pickled peppers.

2005 Domaine Xavier Liger-Belair Clos Vougeot. 94 points. Drinking great, with lots of umph. Big wine too.

2005 Domaine de la Vougeraie Clos Vougeot. Burghound 92. Moderate wood spice and a pretty if serious mix of red berry, black pinot and plenty of earth influence can be found on the round, rich and very suave full-bodied flavors that possess ample volume and excellent underlying material though the finish is perhaps not quite as precise and delineated as the very best in the range. Still, this offers plenty of character and superb length plus it’s less youthfully austere than most examples at this very early stage.

agavin: this is a very new world producer. Wine was pleasant, but a little short.

WILD ALASKAN RED KING CRAB LEGS. steamed with our homemade coleslaw and drawn butter.

LIVE WILD NORTH AMERICAN HARD SHELL LOBSTER. steamed with our homemade coleslaw and drawn butter.

2005 Domaine Drouhin-Laroze Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. Burghound 93-95. A pungent mix of wood spice, earth, red berry fruit, game, smoke and natural spice highlights the moderately sauvage character of the rich, full, refined and pure flavors underpinned by ripe and very firm tannins that culminate in an austere and very backward finish. This will require lots of cellar time to be at its best and like the Clos de Vougeot, this will be a long-distance runner.

2005 Camille Giroud Chambertin. Burghound 93-96. There are actually several different cuvées of this wine and at the time of my tasting, Croix had not decided what he was going to use for the final blend. The best of them featured a reserved and very backward, indeed almost brooding nose of ripe and distinctly earth red pinot fruit plus a touch of animale that merges seamlessly into textured, powerful and pure big-bodied flavors that despite the size, richness and raw muscle are harmonious and perfectly balanced. A monument in the making but I reemphasize that this review may or may not reflect the final blend.

agavin: massive but very good

PRIME DRY AGED SPLIT-BONE “COWBOY” RIBEYE 20 oz.

PRIME NATURAL “NEVER EVER” NEW YORK STRIP STEAK 16 oz.

FILET MIGNON “double r ranch” 12 oz.

French fries.
 Yukon gold mashed potatoes.

Overall, a super fun evening. The wines were a bit young but fun — plus I never mind a surplus of Burgundy. Food was tasty and fresh. The restaurant did a good job by us, even if they didn’t totally get our “wine guy” thing (they never do). Seafood and apps more exciting than mains. The company was awesome though, and that’s what really matters!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Water Grill Santa Monica
  2. Burgundy at Providence
  3. Burgundy at Bouchon – Faiveley
  4. Valentino – 2004 Red Burgundy
  5. Burgundy at Bouchon – Jadot
By: agavin
Comments (2)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: 2005 Red Burgundy, Burgundy, Santa Monica, Water Grill, watergrill, Wine

Armenian Sunday

Apr27

On the night of the Game of Thrones premier (4/24/16), I went off with some friends to Studio City for a BBQ — little did I know I’d be in for one amazing Armenian feast!

 From my cellar: 2013 Christophe et Fils Petit Chablis. 90 points. Ripping acidity and precision for this level. Should age beautifully for years but it’s a treat now. Wish I’d bought more.

Cheese. Close to feta, yummy and salty.

Raw beef. One of two preps, this one without the bulgur wheat, but with lots of garlic!

Raw beef. The traditional raw beef and olive oil version. One of the best I’ve had with great texture and freshness.

Pulled pork. This slightly “off theme” dish showcased delicious pulled pork on wontons with “spicy” mayo.

In case you didn’t get to see the pork close enough.

Cheesy noodle pastry. Noodle and soft cheese on the inside, crispy dough on the outside. Delicious!

From my cellar: 2005 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve. 93 points. Medium red. Spicy cherry and blackcurrant on the nose, with deeper licorice and tobacco adding power. Fresher red berry flavors show impressive minerality. Finishes with silky tannins, gentle grip and an echo of sweet red berries. This has very good balance and focus.

Lula Kebob. Special family recipe. Waiting to be fired.

Filet mignon Kebob.

Chicken.

Cooked, the chicken and Lula.

And the beef too.

Fattoush salad. Bright acidity to balance the meat.

Crispy potatoes. Perfectly crunchy on the outside!

Bacon mac & cheese. Might not be Armenian, but was awesome.

Berry “cake.” Graham crackers, custard, and berries!
 Olive oil cake.

Overall one hell of a BBQ!

Related posts:

  1. Eastern Promises – BBQ Joint
  2. Park’s Finest BBQ
  3. Deep South – Mandovi Goan Cuisine
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Armenian Cuisine, kebob, raw beef

Game of Thrones – Episode 51

Apr25

20160226073939!GoT_season_6_official_posterShow: Game of Thrones

Genre: Fantasy

Watched: Episode 51 – April 24, 2016

Title: The Red Woman

Summary: Lots of threads

ANY CHARACTER HERE

NOTE: SERIOUS SPOILER WARNING. This review/discussion contains tons of spoilers about the episode and even ones crossing over from the books. It’s really my free-for-all musing given all the information at my disposal.

Plot threads are unraveled and discussed one by one.

Jon / Castle Black – As we closed with Jon’s body, so we open. Sigh. The camera pans across the wall and Castle Black to the scene of the crime. Ghost is howling plaintively in the background. Davos is the first to spot the corpse and rushes to the scene, followed by Dolorous Edd and all of Jon’s remaining friends — how it is that they were all waiting around the corner? They carry his body inside and Edd closes his eyes. Davos asks about ghost. Then a knock at the door, and the Red Lady Melisandre shows. Given the episode title and her presumed skillz at resurrection a big tease. But Mel is so depressed she almost looks like a different actress. First Stannis then Jon. Things haven’t gone well with her vision prophesied royal bloods. She mumbles something about having seen him (Jon) in the flames fighting at Winterfell.

102215_HS__DSC2050Next, Alliser Thorne sits in the main hall and tries to spin his treachery. He takes full on credit and goes for a half-assed Julius Caesar style pitch mostly focused on Jon’s terrible direction of leadership and his helping the Wildlings. I think this could have been better. Brutus, Cassius and all had a better argument (even though I’m a huge Caesar fan). They made the reasonable (to Romans) pitch about Caesar having taken too much power (kingship) unto himself. In the political context of the Roman Republic which like America valued the balance of power, and with the historic founding story involving the overthrow of Tarquin as example, they had some decent spin. Alliser Thorne not so much. But he does sound like he believes what he says, and I’ve always thought the show (and the actor) has done a good job humanizing his role.

Back in the impromptu Jon Snow memorial chamber, Ghost licks his hand. The gang there talks about how they are going to get revenge, and out of this alive. Some want to just attack. Davos argues they need to appeal for help to the outside (presumably he’s talking about the Wildlings and/or the Red Lady).

Later in the episode Thorne comes to their door and demands their surrender by nightfall, but offers them free passage. Inside, they know he likely will kill them. Davos reiterates that the Red Woman is their only chance.

However, she is moping in her room in what is clearly a crisis of faith. She glances at the flame and her reflection in the (crappy) mirror. Then undresses. Again?!? I even commented out loud, because she’s always getting her clothes off. But then she takes off her necklace and is revealed to be an ancient crone. Interesting. Is this merely a glamour curtesy of the Lord of Light? Or does she feel young normally? Uh, and incidentally, the full body shot was kinda extreme.

Anyway, but ending the show on this note the writers drag out the question of Jon Snow and his resumed undeadly return. It was too much to hope they’d get right into it.

ep601_publicity_still_11_00154954_a[1]Ramsay / Winterfell – With Joffery dead, Ramsay is easily everyone’s favorite villain on the show. Really, he does a fabulous job. Here he is delivering the eulogy over Myranda’s body, or at least musing about her in the presence of Maester Wolkan. There is some depth to him and you can see who he liked the hot-but-evil bitch. Textbook touch when he orders her body fed to the dogs.

Next, he has to take some more abuse from his ice cold father (no wonder he’s a whack-job). Roose congratulates him for his battlefield victory but berates him about loosing Sansa, who we (the audience) are reminded (again) is the key to holding the north. We learn that Ramsay has hunting parties out looking for her. No duh! Why isn’t he on the trail himself?

081015_HS_DSC_1274Sansa / Theon – I guess because of what is about to happen. Sansa and Theon run through the forest — perhaps even the very same set (I mean forest) that we saw way way back in the Season 1 Episode 1 intro. Theon is pretty nimble too for someone without most of his toes because he’s doing the leading. He even forces Sansa across a freezing river to “loose the trail” (hounds are barking in the distance). They make it across, but are in serious danger of dying of hyperthermia and have to take a break under a tree to freeze to death.

The hunters draw close. Theon valiantly runs out and pretends she is dead, but the ruse lasts for all of 2 seconds before the hounds find Sansa, who isn’t doing much more than cowering and shivering. All looks grim until…

071715_HS_DSC_7405Brienne / Pod – ride in for the rescue. An oddball helter-skelter fight scene too as Brienne initially does well, then is knocked from her horse and barely — with the help of Theon and Pod — manages to do in all the Bolton soldiers. Sansa, again, cowers under the tree. After, Brienne kneels before Sansa and again offers her services. This time a grateful, less “innocent”, Sansa takes her up on the offer. The exchange of vows worked nicely, even more underscored by Sansa’s marginal memory of the oath.

Cersei / Jaime – Cersei chills in her room, still reeling from her “confession” as Jaime’s ship sails into the Dubrovnik — I mean King’s Landing — harbor. She rushes down all excited to catch sight of her brother on the launch with a gold draped corpse — uh oh. The actual bad news and Cersei’s reaction is skipped, cutting to the twins on a balcony talking about death, their dead mother, the witch’s prophecy and all that. Jaime doubles down as usual saying “Fuck everyone who isn’t us” and this time Cersei needs him again enough to hold him close.

090715_HS_DSC_5068Margarey – Is still cooped up barefoot and dirty in her cell. An annoying Septa reads scripture to her and demands confession. The High Septon swaps in to try good cop. Marg still isn’t ready to yield and asks after Loras, but we don’t learn anything.

080515_HS_DSC_0385Dorne – Price Doran is limping along with Ellaria Sand and they exchange what seems to be pleasantries about his and his brother’s personalities. But Tyene Sand (Bronn’s “girl”) stabs Hotah in the back and Ellaria takes out her pseudo-brother-in-law. It’s all too sad and still fairly cheesy.

Then back on the Dornish boat the young price, Doran’s son Trystane is ambushed by his cousins the Sand girls. They make short and gruesome work of him. I guess Dorne is in full revolt.

Tyrion and Varys – walk the streets of Meereen exchanging their usual jokes. There is a whole thing where Tyrion tries to give a beggar girl some money and she thinks he wants to eat her baby (his Valyrian being bad). It doesn’t really work too well. They wander past a Red Priest giving a sermon. Not clear what that’s about. Then they see a bunch of people running and follow the trouble upstream to find the ships burning in the harbor. I guess Dany won’t be sailing anytime soon when she returns.

GOT_MP_100615_4902Jorah and Daario – a exploring Northern Ireland in search of Dany and the show reminds us gratuitously of Jorah’s grayscale by having him take a peek. No surprise, it’s bigger. They find charred ram, clearly Drogon’s leavings and then Dany’s ring. Not totally sure how they manage to do that other than it being on the one untrodden spot where she was standing — and magically figures out that the horde has her.

Dany – Is being marched along with lots of other slaves in this new Khalasar. We find out Khal Moro is in charge and Dany listens to the Dothraki discuss the many ways in which they plan to “have” her (in Dothraki). Their arrival at the Khal is heralded by one of the most amusing bits of the episode, where the Khal and his bloodriders debate “the 5 best things in life,” in which, according to the Khal, “seeing a woman naked for the first time” outweighs “slaying another warrior.”

Dany pulls out her rusty Dothraki and lists her titles, but the Khal isn’t impressed until he learns she’s a Khal’s widow. Off she must go then to Vaes Dothrak to live with the crones. Maybe not the greatest, but buys her more time than “entertaining” the soldiers would have.

GOT_MP_092415_3330Arya – is not only still wearing uncomfortable white contact lenses, but is begging in the street. The Waif creeps up on her and beats her with a staff for a while. Clearly, in future episodes, Arya needs to listen to the Force and hone her blind-girl fighting skills!

GOT_MP_090315_0035Overall, it’s great to have the show back but this is one of those episodes that has so much scene setting, and so many story threads that no one really gets that much time to move the plot. That being said, it’s not all just establishing position because a whole lot of stuff happens. As usual in this show everyone’s position is shifting rapidly and isn’t always what it seems. GRRM (and D&B) love to each plot line to alternate highs and lows. Although frankly, there are plenty of lows right now.

I can’t believe we have to wait another week!

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Season 6: [51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57]

102315_HS__DSC2195

Related posts:

  1. Game of Thrones – Episode 27
  2. Game of Thrones – Episode 45
  3. Game of Thrones – Episode 36
  4. Game of Thrones – Episode 50
  5. Game of Thrones – Season 6 Trailer
By: agavin
Comments (2)
Posted in: Television
Tagged as: a game of thrones, A Song of Ice and Fire, Game of Thrones, George R. R. Martin, HBO, Season 6, Season 6 Episode 1

Rhone at Officine Brera

Apr22

Restaurant: Officine Brera [1, 2, 3]

Location: 1331 E 6th St, Los Angeles, CA 90021. (213) 553-8006

Date: April 19, 2016

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Some of the best (new?) Italian in the city!

_

Officine Brera is one of LA’s hottest 2016 openings and I’ve been waiting for an excuse to haul myself Downtown for months. Another modern “rustic” Italian by the team that brought us Factory Kitchen, including master chef Angelo Auriana, plus Brera brings in some new blood in the form of Mirko Paderno who rocked it at Oliverio.

The actual restaurant is behind us, but like many recent hot openings (including Factory Kitchen), Brera is located in the “Arts District”, a bombed out region of DTLA not far from skid row that is rapidly up and coming.

The area offers a mess of old brick 40s warehouses and factories which are being lovingly converted, allowing large spaces at reasonable rents (for now).

There is a nice outside patio/bar.

And inside the gigantic warehouse/factory space has been reconfigured with highly attractive duct work. Who would have thought that grungy 70 year-old factory windows could look so good?

Tonight’s menu — it changes constantly.

Ron brought: NV Pierre Péters Champagne Grand Cru Réserve Oubliée Blanc de Blancs. VM 92. The NV Brut Réserve Oubliée, is essentially the Cuvée de Réserve with an additional year of aging in tank. In this case, the wine is based on the 2008 vintage, which includes reserve wines going back to 1988. Almond, hazelnut, dried pear and spice notes are all nicely delineated. Sweet, perfumed aromatics add lift to the textured, inviting finish.

Frisceu. vegetable sage fritters, red onions, boston lettuce. Very soft, light, and doughy. Sort of an Italian hush puppy.

Bonus from my cellar: 2010 Paolo Bea Arboreus. 91 points. This is a very special and somewhat odd wine. Very floral and fruity nose with strong apricot and honey notes. On the palate this seems like a different wine with a much drier impression with quite high acidity. Good, and I just can’t resist the charm of the aromas.

Culatello. traditional pianura padana inspired heritage pork, most prized salume. They aren’t kidding when they say traditional. Both Auriana and Paderno are from the Po river valley. Check out this ultra similar treatment at a super traditional (and fabulous) place I ate at in Parma.
 Walker brought: 1990 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage Blanc Chevalier de Sterimberg. 93 points. Really interesting nose – almonds and flowers. Subtle and understated on the palate but loved by all at the tasting. A haunting rather than powerful finish. If I had any left, I would be thinking of drinking up.

agavin: in really great shape.

Polpo. grilled mediterranean octopus, water cress, frisée salad, sunchokes purèe.

CF brought: 1993 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Echezeaux. Burghound 91. The once explosive black fruit nose has now begun to evolve and while still showing obvious class and breed, also displays the front edge of maturing fruit, spice and earth notes that leads to still firm but softening flavors that possess impressive concentration with excellent depth of extract and lovely persistence. This has all the material it needs for a very long life and it should go for 30 years with no difficulty at all if properly stored. For my personal taste, I would continue to cellar this beauty until 2010 or so but it could certainly be approached now with pleasure. Tasted twice recently with consistent results.

agavin: opened the night before, kinda gone.

Fagiolini. blue lake green beans, radicchio, baby kale, toasted hazelnuts, raspadura, garda oil. Nice salad.

CF brought: 1993 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Richebourg. Burghound 92. Relatively austere and reserved with more minerality than Richebourg usually displays and it possesses outstanding flavor detail. There is still limited breadth of flavors but the intensity here is impressive as is the length and there is clearly a classiness here that is unmistakable. This is still extremely young and very backward in magnum format and this will require lots of additional bottle age to realize its full potential.

agavin: also opened the night before. Better by far than the Ech, but totally missing fruit when I got to it.

Battuta cruda. hand chopped beef, celery, raspadura, quail egg, black ash dressing. Some awesome beef tartar — and I love beef tartar.

Tonight’s theme was actually great red Rhone wines. Funny for an Italian restaurant, but we had the theme before we picked the place.

From my cellar: 1976 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle. Our bottle was totally corked 🙁 Forced me to open the Rayas (below), a turn of fates that no one complained about.

Gnocchi. handmade potato gnocchi, castelmagno cheese fonduta, chives. Simple but amazing. Light fluffy pillows and very cheesy (as it should be).

1978 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Côte-Rôtie Les Jumelles. 93 points. amazing gun-powder aroma that lasted for very long, very impressing & shocking aroma that was first noticed after more than 20 years of wine tasting!!! deep secondaries & tertiaries aromas, mainly of dry ripe cherries, some spices, smokiness and lether. A true expereince!

Nastrini del miracolo. ancient grain house made pasta, butcher’s table meat-ragù, italian parsley. The Fettucine Bolognese you wish your grandmother made! Really a very nice ragu.

Walker brought: 1983 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Châteauneuf-du-Pape Les Cèdres. 94 points. The nose is the star here: full on, heavy and rich with stewed red fruit, spice and old tobacco. The finish is medium length, still some lingering tannin; just a little hollow mid-palate where you would expect more fruit to fully complement the enticing nose.

agavin: drinking great!

Cannelloni. braised beef stuffed oven baked fresh pasta, foie grass, melted cheese béchamel. Now these were awesomely rich and delicious.

Emil brought: 1990 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle. 95 points. My first impression was how perfumed this was on the nose. Just gorgeous and complex, with many aromas including provence scents with black olive, incense, dark cooked cherry, plum, dark chocolate. The palate was enveloping, broad yet fresh, full bodied. The (13.9%) alcohol was felt on the finish, which was just slightly drying, but I’m nitpicking. Really delicious wine! Thanks to Karl Kellar for bringing this gorgeous wine.

agavin: ours was a little reserved at first, but opened up.

Crostacei. vialone nano veronese igp rice, langoustines, crab meat, asparagus, crustacean broth. The risotto here is amazing. When Auriana was at Valentino long ago (I’m talking the 90s) I first had his seafood risotto and it was the best risotto I’ve ever had. Things haven’t changed.

Vahan brought: 1990 Delas Frères Hermitage Marquise de la Tourette. 95 points. Dark red violet color; lamb jus and charcoal nose; bewitching roasted lamb, smoke, black fruit and pepper palate; medium-plus finish.

agavin: our bottle was drinking awesomely!

Milanese. vialone nano rice, saffron, bone marrow, lodigrana. A version of the classic Milanese risotto but with bone marrow, including that big chunk pulled out. Awesome!

From my cellar: 2000 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve. 95 points. enormous spicy nose, very intensive on the other hand fine and very elegant, as light as air and full of vitality, still very young, long, long+, for decades!

agavin: awesome. So much spice!

Polenta and snails. Corn polenta with butter sauce and snails. On tasting the Rayas Auriana went back into the kitchen and ordered this up for us, off menu, to pair. Believe it or not it was perfect, as this wouldn’t be your first guess for a match with big CDP!

Vahan brought: 1998 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de mon Aïeul. VM 94. Good deep red. Deep, smoky aromas of black raspberry, pepper, garrigue and spices. Silky on entry, then compellingly sweet in the middle but with strong acidity and firm minerality framing the raspberry, tobacco and roasted herb flavors. The wine’s solid backbone of strong, dusty tannins give great grip to the finish. Offers an uncanny combination of sweetness and verve. This has evolved spectacularly.

Quail. Also off menu. Super tender and with lots of meat.

Ron brought: 1990 Penfolds Grange. Parker 95-96. Deep garnet-brick colored, the 1990 Penfolds Grange has an evolved, earthy character of damp loam, black truffles and tar with an underlying core of figs, dried mulberries, salami and aniseed. There’s a good amount of savory flesh supported by a crisp acid line and medium to firm level chewy tannins, finishing long with some smoked meat coming through. Drink this one now to 2020+.

agavin: big and awesome. Tons of Eucalyptus.
 Carne bovina. 18oz California reserve prime ribeye, ash-roasted onions, potatoes, baby carrots. Flannery beef, I think.

Larry brought: 1994 Penfolds Grange. Parker 91. This is the first vintage where Grange went to a bottle with laser-etched identification numbers to preclude the possibility of fraudulent bottles. The wine, a blend of 89% Shiraz and 11% Cabernet Sauvignon, shows some toasty oak mixed with notes of root vegetables, damp earth, blackberry liqueur, prune, and licorice. The wine is dense, full-bodied, not terribly complex in the mouth, but layered and rich. I would not be surprised to see the rating on this wine improve as this youthful Grange continues to evolve. Anticipated maturity: 2004-2020.

agavin: even more Eucalyptus!
 Rustin nega’. grilled grass fed 22oz veal chop, cured pork, cipollini, european butter.

Vahan brought: 1997 Ojai Syrah Cuvée Henry Daniel. 93 points. Great color, got darker in the glass as it opened over time, rich, tobacco, blackberry jam.

The dessert menu.
 Gianduiotta. milk chocolate hazelnut, sbrisolona crumble, caramelized brulee
 Castagnole. freshly fried doughnuts, anise sugar, salty bourbon caramel sauce
 Torrone. honey & nut nougatine semifreddo, warmed fudge sauce, amarena cherries
 Torta di riso. baked rice cake, meyer lemon mascarpone, raisins, seasonal citrus
 Bonet. chocolate custard tart, orange thyme marinated figs, fresh chantilly cream

The chef spent the whole later evening at our table.

Overall another amazing evening.

Food. The food at Officine is just awesome. It’s very Italian, with a fairly non Italian “vibe” to the place and a more modern share plates style. But the pastas and risotto are as good as any you will find in LA with a real hearty flavor forward style.

Service. Service was great and we were treated like family. They are a bit new, and there are still a few minor kinks here — plus this is a busy place casual place so there is a touch of chaos.

Atmosphere. I loved the big factory look. It was a little loud, but not as bad as some (Bestia!). We had 7 people and a fabulous round table.

Company. This particular crew, my “Foodie Club” crew, is really great fun. Everyone steps up, we bring great wines on theme, and there is a touch of organization and division of labor. We plan a whole table food order in flights and flight and order the wine. Plus the company is great.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

More insane Foodie Club dinners.

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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Angelo Auriana, Dessert, Foodie Club, Francine Diamond Ferdinandi, Mirko Paderno, Officine Brera, Rhone, Wine

Szechuan (second) Impressions

Apr20

I was even more impressed at my April ’16 visit to Szechuan Impression, having eaten at many many Szechuan restaurants in the 18 months since I was last here. Plus, one of my initial gripes with SI was that the menu didn’t feature some of the Szechuan greatest hits but they seem to have expanded the offerings. Because of the wine thing this is more a lunch place for me, but check out the details here.

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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Sichuan, Szechuan cuisine, Szechuan Impression

Messy at Messob

Apr18

Restaurant: Messob

Location: 1041 S Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90019. (323) 938-8827

Date: April 4, 2016

Cuisine: Ethiopian

Rating: Globby goodness

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Los Angeles has a good sized Little Ethiopia over on Fairfax and a variety of food to choose from.

I recently tried out Messob, which is one of the top rated places in the heart of the district.

Messob has an attractive decor with neat wooden furniture and those woven two person tables.

Honey wine. We ordered a bottle of this Ethiopian beverage which I assume is made like mead traditionally from fermented honey. It was very pleasant, with a tasty apricot-like flavor.

Then we ordered the Super Messob Exclusive. This dish is served communally and eaten in without silverware but with that soft spongey thin Ethiopian bread (injera). This type of eating is apparently called Gursha. On this giant plater are:

Doro Wot. Chicken stewed in pepper sauce with an assortment of spices. This is the reddish drumstick in the foreground. Super tasty.

Siga Wot. Strips of beef, braised in red pepper sauce with assorted spices. The leftmost of the deep red dishes. My favorite!

Yebeg Siga Alitcha. Mild lamb stew, delicately spiced w/garlic, ginger and assorted spices. The greenish dish to the left of the vegetables in the front.

Yater Alitcha. Steamed peas with onions, seasoned with garlic and ginger. The yellow stuff.

Kitffo. Finely chopped lean beef w/spiced butter and mitmita (hot spiced chilies).

Tibs. Sautéed strips of Beef w/onions and green chilies. The beef on the right.

Yatakilt Alitcha. Steamed Vegetables with onions, seasoned with garlic and ginger. The foreground veggies.

Tomato Fit-Fit. Tomato tossed with injera. The pink/orange dish to the far left.

Yemisir Wot. Split Lentil in red pepper sauce, seasoned with assorted spices. The middle one of the deep red dishes. My favorite of the vegetables.

Collard Greens. Steamed and delicately seasoned with garlic and green chilies. The green stuff on the right.

Since Ethiopia is known for its coffee we figured we’d get some, although the place ended up like a small boutique Starbucks.

Iced caramel latte.
 And a coffee.

All in all, a fun afternoon.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: coffee, ethiopian cuisine, injera, Messob

Chevaliers – Terrine

Apr15

Restaurant: Terrine

Location: 8265 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048. (323) 746-5130

Date: April 7, 2016

Cuisine: French American

Rating: Yummy

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Terrine has been on my “to try” list for a long time and it took a Chevaliers du Tastevin dinner for me to get there.
 Located on Beverly not far from the Beverly center…

The pig says it all.

Very classy interior and bar.

Chevaliers always goes all out with its events.

NV Paul Clouet Champagne Grand Cru Brut. VM 91. Vivid yellow. Tightly focused citrus and orchard fruits scents are complemented by deeper hints of buttered toast and honey. Fleshy and dry on the palate, offering mineral-laced pear and tangerine flavors lifted by juicy acidity. Suggestions of tarragon and chamomile emerge on the finish, which leaves a dusty mineral quality behind.

There were a number of other great wines during the cocktail period too, but I didn’t get photos of them all.

2008 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne (magnum). Burghound 95. There is a hint of exoticism to the citrus, pear and white peach suffused nose that is presently trimmed in a noticeable, if very slight, touch of sulfur. The rich and extremely fresh middle weight plus flavors possess an impressive amount of dry extract as well as ample mineral influence on the austere and ultra-pure finish that seems to go on and on. This powerful and impeccably well balanced but presently closed effort should live for many years though it will probably come to its peak 10 to 12 years from now. In a word, fabulous.

Charcuterie plate. Various pates, pickles, and the like. I liked the reddish smoked meat and the country pate.

The menu for tonight’s special dinner.

We took over the whole restaurant.

2013 Comte Senard Bourgogne Blanc Ana. Burghound 86. A discreet note of exotic fruit adds breadth to the very fresh aromas that are composed by pineapple, pear and apple scents. There is fine richness and excellent volume to the lush and generously proportioned flavors that are supported by soft acidity on the sappy finish. This delicious effort should drink well immediately.

agavin: This is really a Aloxe-Corton Blanc, as the grapes come from the village.

Potage de Petits Pois. Lait fume, Croquant de Sarrasin. Soup Peas . Milk smoke , Crisp Buckwheat. A nice pea soup with crunchy buckwheat “grape-nuts” at the bottom.

Seriole a Cru. Citronette de Kumquats, Sesame, Radis du Japan, Ciboule. Yellowtail. Citronette of Kumquats, Sesame, Radish of Japan , Ciboule. A little bit of spice here and an interesting crunch from the radish.

2005 Marc Colin et Fils Corton-Charlemagne. BH 92. Here the wood influence is no longer subtle and while it does not dominate the green apple and white pear aromas, it does fight for center stage with them. The flavors however do seem entirely up to the job of integrating the wood as they are big, rich, powerful and well-muscled, brimming with both minerality and dry extract on the impressively long finish. This is a dramatic wine that is still in search of its center but there is time.

agavin: very young and oaky, but a super elegant wine with years left to it and nice acidity.

2006 Domaine Marius Delarche Corton-Charlemagne Reserve. 89 points. A nice wine but given the lack of complexity I’m thinking past peak. It all depends on your personal preference. A bit advanced and hot on the finish.

Terrine de Fois gras Maison, Fraises, Cresson, Vinaigre Minus 8. Terrine of Foie house fois gras, strawberries, watercress, vinegar, strawberries. Classic fruit and fois prep. I love this kind of fois best.

2004 Patrick Javillier-Guyot Aloxe-Corton. BH 86-89. A wonderfully attractive, fresh and picture perfect red pinot fruit nose nuanced with raspberry and ripe strawberry notes merges into delicious, full and generous, indeed even fleshy flavors that coat the mouth on the finish. This is easy to like but not simple and sufficiently forward that it could easily be enjoyed now.

agavin: 2004, ick. Not the worst meany greenies I’ve ever had, but definitely not appealing.

2010 Domaine Follin-Arbelet Aloxe-Corton 1er Cru Clos du Chapitre. BH 89-91. Discreet wood influence frames pretty, cool and ripe aromas of violets and dark cherry that infuse the expressive nose. There is good energy and a real sense of intensity to the well-delineated and mineral-infused medium-bodied flavors that possess slightly better finishing complexity.

agavin: young but nice

Agnolotti de Canard, haricots bolotti, chou vert de Savoie, Cantal. Duck Agnolotti, bolotti beans, green Savoy cabbage, Cantal. Yum, except for the beans, I can’t handle that much bean.

2002 Comte Senard Corton-Clos du Roi. BH 91. This is a big step up in aromatic complexity with ripe and notably spicy red pinot fruit that has hints of floral and violets to it. The powerful and round flavors retain a fine sense of detail to them and despite the muscle and solid structure, this remains particularly well balanced and with plenty of buffering sap on the mid-palate. Terrific quality here and this is recommended for those who are prepared to have some patience.

agavin: Nice. Just beginning to get into maturity.

2007 Comte Senard Corton-Clos du Roi. BH 89. A highly complex nose that is classic Clos du Roi with its earthy and intensely animale character to the nuanced and layered red, blue and violet aromas that complement well the textured and moderately concentrated medium weight flavors in the context of the vintage, all wrapped in a driving finish that possesses excellent length. This is certainly attractive as it’s notably more forward than usual but overall, it’s pretty rather than profound.

agavin: a little too young, even for a forward vintage.

Viandes en Duo. Plat de Cotes Braise, Bavette, Creme d’Avoin, Poireaux Sauvages, Fromage Blanc, Jus de Cuisson. Duo of meat. Cotes flat Braise, bib, Creme of Avoin, Wild Leek, White Cheese, Cooking Juice. The risotto like stuff was good but a little “wheaty”. I liked the braised short rib better of the two meats too. But nice dish and a very healthy portion of meat!

Bread for the cheese.

Assiette de Fromages. Cheese plate. Super creamy good stuff on the left, nice nutty cheese on the right.
 Chocolats. Filled with caramel or some other liquid.

Overall, a super fun night with lots of great food and wine. I was very impressed with how Terrine handled things for a party of this size (the whole place!). Food was quite on point, and there was plenty of it. Very timely too. Wine service was good, with only a few timing hiccups — which is actually an A effort given how hard pouring a group this size with so many wines is.

All in all, pretty awesome.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Chevaliers, Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin, Terrine

Baking Hot Dessert

Apr13

Restaurant: Erick Schat’s Bakery

Location: 763 N Main St, Bishop, CA 93514. :(760) 873-7156

Date: March 25, 2016

Cuisine: Dutch Bakery

Rating: Great sandwiches and dessert

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Passing through Bishop countless times I’ve often observed the crowd forming around Schat’s Bakery and wondered what it’s all about, so I decided to see.

The place is ancient for California, founded in 1938 by Dutch immigrants. Imagine what Bishop was like in 1938? It’s hardly a metropolis now!

Schat’s has too sides, both packed, the sandwich/bread/savory side and the sweet side. We stopped off first to get some lunch and had to wait 20 or so minutes.

Besides all the classic sandwiches and house-baked bread they feature jams, beef jerky, and all sorts of accompaniments.

Pastrami sandwich on rie. How could I resist? I did sub in aged Gouda cheese for swiss. I hate swiss cheese. This was a great pastrami. Tender and juicy and the bread was nice.

Classic tuna. As American as it gets, and they do it well.

There is a LOT of bread at Schats, many types too.

And more bread.

And even hot cross buns!

Over on the sweet side are all sorts of Northern European influenced goodies — plus some clogs, Delft, and other Dutch kitsch.

Bearclaw danish ring with almond paste. Woah! That looks good. I had a mini version and it was pretty old school and delicious.

Sweet buns.

Old fashioned cookies.

Crazy shaped cookies.

Chocolates.

Candies and more.
 And even things like this marzipan and buttercream mouse on cheese!

Schat’s is certainly a fun (and popular) stop over. It was mobbed on both sides, which the pictures don’t totally represent because I was trying to keep the people out of the frame. We left both satisfied and with a sugar high!

For more Mammoth dining reviews click here.

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By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bakery, Bishop California, Dessert, Erick Schat's Bakery, Pastrami, Sandwiches

Mountain Eats – Brasserie

Apr11

Restaurant: Mammoth Rock Brasserie

Location: 3029 Chateau Rd, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546. (760) 934-4200

Date: December 27, 2015 & March 24, 2016 & Dec 28, 2018 & March 23, 2019

Cuisine: French / American

Rating: excellent, for Mammoth

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Mammoth Lakes isn’t exactly a culinary capital, but the Brasserie is one of the better places I’ve found:

Mysteriously, it’s located above — and owned by — the bowling alley!

Yep, downstairs is the Rock & Bowl!

Some nice views though.

And the upstairs is classy and surprisingly contemporary for Mammoth.

On our second visit we had this huge private room!

The menu.

From my cellar: 2000 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis 1er Cru La Forest. VM 93+. Pale green-tinged straw. Reticent but ripe and highly nuanced nose combines peach, nectarine, lime, lemon skin, nuts and an intriguing, soil-inflected vegetal/smoky quality. Very dry, taut and reserved yet already rich and mouthfilling, with the ripe fruit notes perfectly supported by a flavor of liquid stone. A wine of great energy, finishing with explosive length and powerful minerality. Grand cru size and cut.

Bread & butter.

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Butternut squash soup (12/28/19). Very tasty dairy based soup, tasted like corn soup.

House Green Salad. Tomatoes, Cucumber, Carrots, Rice Wine Vinaigrette. One of our party really likes green salads!

And even more feel the same about caesars. Classic Caesar. Romaine, Parmesan, Croutons, Caesar Dressing.

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French Onion Soup. Nice broth, solid soup. My version didn’t have enough cheese though.

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Beef Carpaccio (12/28/18). Very nice carpaccio.

Special Fois Gras Torchon with toast. Can’t go wrong with foie!

Mary’s Free Range Airline Chicken Breast. Roasted Garlic Cream, Root Vegetable Julienne.

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Simple pasta for my son (12/28/18). My son loved this particular pasta.

Grilled Vegetable Wellington. Puff Pastry, Parmesan, Gruyere, Ricotta, Tomato Basil Coulis.

Elk Medallions. Aged Balsamic Demi Glace, Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables.
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Lamb chops (12/28/18). Not bad. Could have used a bit more gamey flavor.

Bone In Rib Eye. Roasted Garlic Beurre Blanc, Pomme Frites, Seasonal Vegetables.
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Filet with sauce on the side (3/23/19). They likka the sauce here.
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Beef Bourguignon with bacon (3/23/19).

Ice Cream Sundae (down at the bowling alley). This wasn’t the greatest, just regular vanilla ice cream with Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup.

MBR is quite excellent for Mammoth. Dishes are a little on the heavy side stylistically, but execution is good, which puts them radically above many places in town — and service was also quite decent.

Revisiting in Dec 2018, MBR remains perhaps the second best (after Skadi) kitchen in Mammoth. It’s actually pretty good, which is a rarity for a town not exactly known for its culinary genius.

For more dining reviews click here.

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By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: bowling, French Cuisine, Mammoth Lakes, Mammoth Rock Brasserie, Rock & Bowl

Bold & Loud at Leona

Apr08

Restaurant: Leona

Location: 123 W Washington Blvd, Venice, CA 90291. (310) 822-5379

Date: April 5, 2016

Cuisine: American Small Plates

Rating: Bold flavors, many hits, a few misses, and uneven pacing

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The Hedonists have long been frequenters of Wilshire, and so when chef Nyesha Arrington opened her own place in Marina del Rey we wanted to check it out.

Leona has a typical but attractive contemporary space with open kitchen, bar, and high ceilings.
 There’s a pretty extensive porch too.
 The problem with those high ceilings and hard surfaces is a nearly deafening din. LOUD, even at the end of the night with only a few people in it.

But anyway, on to the food.

Ron brought as usual: NV Billecart-Salmon Champagne Brut Rosé. VM 92. Pale orange. High-pitched red berry, orange zest and jasmine aromas, with suave mineral and smoky lees notes adding complexity. Spicy and precise on the palate, showing very good punch to its strawberry and bitter cherry flavors. Opens up smoothly with air and picks up a bitter rhubarb quality that lingers onto the long, tightly focused finish. This bottling showed more brawny character than many past renditions of this cuvée, but with no lack of vivacity.
 The current menu. There aren’t that many dishes, and we were 13 people, so I ordered most of the menu and they brought 4-5 of each dish.

From my cellar: 2002 Louis Jadot Corton-Charlemagne Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot. VM 96+. Knockout musky, soil-driven aromas of lime, chicken broth and crushed stone. At once dense and penetrating, with elegant but seriously intense flavors of lime, lemon, powdered stone and mint. Wonderfully light on its feet for a wine with this degree of power and thrust. Great building aftertaste shows superb density and cut. This should age like a red wine, and will be spectacular in 8 or 10 years.
 COCTEL MIXTO. Local Seafood, Radish, Cilantro, Crispy Rice Paper. This was one of the weaker dishes. It was fairly hard to eat, and even harder to get the ceviche on the crisp.

Ron brought: 2007 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Bougros. BH 92-95. Here too there is a very subtle influence of wood that frames ripe yet elegant and impressively pure aromas of citrus, spice hints, tidal pool and oyster shell notes, all of which are picked up by the highly complex and deep big-bodied flavors that are incredibly intense and quite unusually for Bougros, possess ‘hot knife through butter’ cut and delineation. An atypically elegant effort for the appellation.

CITRUS CURED TAI SNAPPER CEVICHE. Fire Water, Crispy Sweet Potato. This raw fish, by contrast, was fabulous. Looked good. Tasted great. Interesting textures and really bright flavors.

2005 Faiveley Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Chaignots. BH 88-91. Strong wood influence currently dominates the dark berry and black raspberry-infused nose that precedes the somewhat woody medium weight flavors that are round and sweet with fine depth and complexity but the wood is not subtle and it causes me to question whether it will cause the finish to eventually dry out?

BABY ICEBERG. Local Blue Cheese, Hard Cooked Egg. Not bad, but I kinda missed the goopy cold Blue Cheese dressing.

Brock brought: 2000 Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair Vosne-Romanée Clos du Château. BH 88. This has opened considerably since last year with expressive, intense aromas of Vosne spice and a bit of toast followed by medium weight, beautifully defined flavors and solid length. The tannins are ripe though firm and show through on the lingering finish. The same mineral character of the 2001 is present here as well. Very solid quality here.
 CRISPY SMELT. Kennebec Potato Crisps. The chips were a bit chewy, but this was some really great fried fish. Lots of batter, but light and crunchy and oh so delicious.
 Chile de Árbol House Malt Vinegar took it to the next level.

Brian brought: 1996 Maison Champy Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. 94 points. A bit more mature than we were expecting, and clearly further along in development than my bottle three years ago. Nonetheless, this remains an enjoyable bottle of Beze and a nice example of at peak burgundy. My red wine of the night actually.

LAMB BELLY WONTONS. Tat Soi, Crispy Artichoke. I really liked these. Nice texture and rich lamby flavor.

Ron brought: 1996 Maison Roche de Bellene Clos Vougeot Collection Bellenum. 89 points. Open for hours. Really tight at first; took a good 30 minutes to get anything off the nose. Darker fruits, oak, five-spice, and the longer it is open a touch of truffle. Medium+ weight, long finish due to integrated but prominent tannins.
 “BACON & EGGS”. Potato Crusted Duck Egg, Smokey Bacon Broth, Chives. Super creative great tasting dish. The fried egg was seriously crusted in there in those yummy potato strips and the big chunks of crispy bacon were awesome.

Larry brought: 2008 Louis Jadot Grands-Echezeaux. VM 93. The 2008 Grands-Echezeaux is wonderfully expressive in its aromas and flavors. Clean, mineral notes frame an attractive melange of sweet red cherries, flowers, licorice and spices in this mid-weight, intensely long Burgundy. This is a classy effort from Jadot. Nice, but not yet in balance. Needs at least 10 more years.
 FOREST MUSHROOM PIZZA. Tallegio Cheese, Tarragon, Orange Zest. Not a bad pizza, if a little earthy.

Brock brought: 1998 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Le Rocche del Falletto di Serralunga d’Alba. 95 points. Young and tight, but still going to be a great wine.

SPRING PEA “RISOTTO”. Burrata Cheese, Red Wine Reduction, Quinoa, Almond Crumble. Very soft, with a tapioca like texture to the risotto, but I loved the mix with the burrata and it was light, refreshing, and delicious.

2002 Dominus Estate. VM 92+. Red-ruby. Cool, shy aromas of currant, blackberry and licorice, with a leafy, medicinal aspect. Dense, fat and structured but also quite penetrating and powerful, with black fruit, licorice and herbal flavors and a strong impression of extract. This offers noteworthy energy in the mouth, and finishes quite claret-like, with fine-grained tannins and sneaky length. A sample from another bottle that had been decanted for 24 hours showed a suaver texture but had not lost its solid tannic spine. Offers excellent potential but not quite the length of the 2001. Champy notes that the pH of 3.87 is the lowest in recent years here.

agavin: drinking nicely now

TAHINI ROASTED CARROTS. Mint, Turmeric Oil. This was probably our least favorite dish. Just kinda mush.

1996 Whitehall Lane Petite Sirah. Big.

DUTCH FRIES. Kale Salt, Seaside Sauce. Salty, but good.

1994 Peter Lehmann Shiraz Stonewell. VM 88. Ruby-red. Aromas of redcurrant, chicory and smoked meat complicated by herbal nuances. Thick, ripe and suave, with lovely fleshiness but not at all overly sweet. Finishes with dusty tannins and good length. Rather subtle, sophisticated shiraz. Also tasted: 1998 The Barossa Chardonnay, 1995 Mentor Barossa Valley, 1998 Cabernet Sauvignon Barossa Valley*, 1998 The Barossa Shiraz*, 1996 Eight Songs Shiraz Barossa, 1998 Botrytis Semillon Sauternes Barossa.

LOCAL BLACK COD. Sweet Onion Jus,Japanese Mustard Greens. Very soft and full of rich umami flavor. Nice!

2000 Château Calon-Ségur. VM 90. Full red-ruby. Musky aromas of tart red berries, smoke and meat, with a light medicinal nuance. Suave on entry, then rather tightly wound, even a bit youthfully dry. Fairly rich wine, but the redcurrant, smoke and spice flavors are presently dominated by solid underlying structure. Finishes firmly tannic, with sneaky persistence.

CAULIFLOWER ALIGOT. Smoked Mozzarella. Loved the cheesy top. Very nice gooey stuff.

2005 Chanticleer Cabernet Sauvignon. 87 points. This blend of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Sangiovese captivates immediately with aromas of cassis, fraise des bois, Morello cherry, cantaloupe, spearmint, tarragon, cedar, and vanilla. It offers luscious, ripe, dark-berry fruit, juicy natural acidity, and creamy oak notes. The silky, mouth-filling Cabernet shows its tannic structure only on the slightly drying finish, which is also imbued with a gorgeous, long-lasting blackcurrant note. A mere 405 cases were produced.
 MEATBALLS DE CORAZON. Piri Piri, Crispy Plantains, Roasted Beef Jus. We had high hopes for these, but it was like they dumped 2-3 times too much seasoning in the meat balls rendering them VERY salty and a bit too spicy (even for me, mostly because of concentration). Not good at all.

2001 Neal Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain Estate. 92 points. Nice black cherry, plum, currant up front. Typical earthy H.M. notes throughout. Smooth tannins on the end, good finish.

CRISPY DUCK CONFIT. Kumquat Chutney, Red Chard. Solid and tasty.

1991 Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. 91 points. Evolved, almost fully mature Cabernet nose that combines black fruit and cedary and earthy elements. It’s just a touch short on the finish, which is surprising given the lovely aromatics and good mid-palate depth.

BULGOGI BRAISED SHORT RIB. Roasted Bone Marrow, McGrath Mustard Frills. The meat was very tasty. Some thought it a bit salty, although compared to the meatballs this didn’t bug me.
 Fun evening and some great eats.

Food was very creative and about half of the dishes were great. Most others were just “good”, but a few, like the carrots and meatballs were oddly off. Leona either need a bit of a menu tune up or there is too much kitchen variation. Still, I really enjoyed the plating, interplay of textures, and flavors of most of the dishes. There was some nice novelty to them as well, which is rare, so I was basically impressed by the food.

Service tried real hard, and the were SUPER NICE in accommodating our giant table. I picked all the stuff off the menu and they did a good job sequencing it and bringing a large number 4-5 of each dish. After 2 dishes I tried to scale back the number to 3-4 but we got a new server (shift turn over?) and the message never got through. The result was we had too much of each dish, leading to skipping dessert, and people being full too early in the progression. This was mitigated by the reasonable pricing. More serious, was that at the end of the night, with the mains, even though the place was emptying, the gap between dishes grew very long. I’m sure the kitchen was a bit overwhelmed with our giant size, but combined with too much food the slow pacing altered the meal momentum and “agitated the locals” (i.e. the dinners).

My biggest problem with Leona has nothing to do with food or service, and this is in the context of some really good food, is the noise level of the space. It’s just WAY TOO LOUD. Really, this is taking “loud is cool” to ridiculous levels. We couldn’t hear each other. I’m not a supporter of this trend — put up some sound dampeners.

Price was super reasonable for all we had.

Wines were great — of course 🙂

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Big and Bold on the Beach
  2. Big Bottle Madness at Kali Dining
  3. Yanbian Nights
  4. Shin Beijing Cubed
  5. Happy Table – New Bay is Old Bay
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Corton-Charlemagne, hedonists, Leona, Marina del Rey, Nyesha Arrington

Mountain Eats – Petra’s

Apr06

Restaurant: Petra’s Bistro & Wine Bar

Location: 6080 Minaret Rd, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546. (760) 934-3500

Date: March 22, 2016 & Jan 1, 2019

Cuisine: French / American

Rating: excellent, for Mammoth

_

Mammoth Lakes isn’t exactly a culinary capital, but my friend Liz had recommended Petra’s as among the best that it has: Located just across Minaret from the village.
 The menu.

From my cellar: 1997 Louis Jadot Echezeaux. VM 91. Full deep red. Complex aromas of red berries, cassis, cocoa powder, tar, game, dark chocolate, nutmeg and roasted nuts. Concentrated, spicy, fresh and youthful. Dense and mouthfilling but not at all heavy. Structured to age. Finishes long and subtle, with ripe, dusty tannins. Even better than it appeared a year ago from barrel. Drinking great right now.

Pretty olive oil and vinegar.

Green salad.

Caesar Salad. Hearts of Romaine, Shaved Parmesan, Croutons, House Caesar Dressing, Parmesan Tuile.
IMG_0444
Baked Brie (1/1/19). My wife liked, but didn’t love this appetizer.

 Smoked Salmon Trio. Applewood Smoked Salmon Flake, Gravlax, Smoked Salmon Mousse, Dill Crème Fraiche, Fried Capers, Pickled Shallots, Cucumber, Grilled Pita Bread.

Duck Confit. Crispy Skin Duck Leg Confit, Mushroom & Leek Risotto, Fried Leeks, Whole Grain Mustard Sauce. Not bad at all.

Grilled New York. New York Strip, Gruyere Potato Au Gratin, Grilled Asparagus, Cab Demi Reduction.

 A swordfish special.

Scallops. Pan Seared Sea Scallop, Turnip Puree, Sautéed Snow Peas, Brown Butter, Lemon Parsley Oil.

IMG_0445
A different version of scallops with beans, radish, and lobster (1/1/19).

A slightly strange maple/orange ice cream float. The liqueur was very strong, giving this a pretty intense alcoholic taste.
 Homemade brownie vanilla ice cream.

Not only did Petra’s have a more modern menu, but the kitchen out cooked by far most Mammoth places. Service was pretty good too. This would just be middle of the pack in LA, but it’s solid, probably the third best kitchen in this small town.

For more dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Mountain Eats – Campo
  2. Mountain Time Machine
  3. Quick Eats: Panini at Home
  4. Quick Eats: Caffe Delfini
  5. Quick Eats: Osteria Latini 2
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: French Cuisine, Mammoth Lakes, Petras

Akbar – Big Flavors, Big Fun

Apr04

Restaurant: Akbar [1, 2, 3, 4 5]

Location: 3115 Washington Blvd, Marina Del Rey, CA 90292. (310) 574-0666

Date: March 30, 2016

Cuisine: Indian

Rating: Bold and balanced flavors

ANY CHARACTER HERE

It’s time for my my Hedonist group to return to LA’s best Indian restaurant, Akbar (Santa Monica branch). Too many Indian places focus on low cost buffets of very over cooked food, but Akbar cooks everything to order — even baking their own Naan when you place the order. They are more focused on the cuisine of the Punjab (Northern India), with very good curries and kormas. You can get anything from extremely mild to blow the top of your head off. Once I had the “pepper lamb” on 5 (max heat) and my scalp sweat for hours.

This was one of those really crazy evenings where we took over half the place with 25 people and even more wines!

Fellow Hedonist Chef Avi commands the kitchen!

Avi’s Kale Salad with Balsamic Mango Dressing. Not your usual Indian dish, but a nice refreshing salad with a good mix of textures and a bright sweet/tangy flavor.

Chana Samosa. Sort of Indian loaded baked potatoes, potato samosas covered in yogurt, tamarind sauce, curry chickpeas, and more. Awesome tangy, spicy, sweet, curry flavors.

Poutine du Yarom. The big guy requested this one. Fries with curried lamb and fried egg! Good stuff, and certainly not on the vegan diet!

Ground meat skewered and cooked over the fire. One of the Indian variants of Kafta kabob.

Lamb Chops. My friend Dave declared these the best lamb he’s ever had. Incredibly soft and full of fabulous lightly spicy flavor!

Chicken 65. Spicy south indian specialty served with serano and onion. Hot wings crossed with chicken nuggets! Hottest dish of the night.

Fresh baked Naan.

Mushroom Pilau. Rice with mushrooms and maybe a bit of meat.

House favorite Chicken Tikka Masala. Another perfect batch of this amazing dish. The chicken itself is all super tender chunks of white meat. The sauce has this snappy tang and complex flavor.

Shrimp Goa Curry. Shrimp prepared in onion, coconut and tamarind sauce with sauté of mustard. Some found it too sweet, but I loved this — nice creamy sauce too.

Goat curry. A rich, dark, strong curry with chunks of flavorful goat. It is, after all, the most eaten meat in the world.

Kaddu Ki Sabzi. Butternut squash cooked with coconut powder with sauté of mustard and red chilli peppers. Very Southern Indian dish with that coconut and black mustard.

Apollo Fish. White fish battered fried served with tomato onion bhuna.

Shrikhand. Whipped yogurt with saffron and pistachios.

Gulab Jamun. The classic sweet dough/cheese balls in syrup.

This was such a big dinner that wines were many, varied, and chaotic. For the most part, not the really good stuff, and a whole bunch of the New World swill, but a few tasty fellows.

Bonus from Arnie: NV Marc Hébrart Champagne Premier Cru Brut Mareuil-Sur-Ay. 90 points. Light straw. Larger but good bubbles. Toast, apples, okay depth. Nicely done.

Bonus from Ron: NV Billecart-Salmon Champagne Brut Rosé. VM 92. Pale orange. High-pitched red berry, orange zest and jasmine aromas, with suave mineral and smoky lees notes adding complexity. Spicy and precise on the palate, showing very good punch to its strawberry and bitter cherry flavors. Opens up smoothly with air and picks up a bitter rhubarb quality that lingers onto the long, tightly focused finish. This bottling showed more brawny character than many past renditions of this cuvée, but with no lack of vivacity.

2013 Cyril gautheron Chablis Mont de Milieu 1er Cru. Never heard of this Chablis!

Ron brought: 2002 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Erdener Treppchen Riesling Kabinett. 90 points. Crisp green apples, with some slight honeyed notes on the palate. A little sweet, with not quite enough acidity.

Arnie brought: 2012 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese. 93 points. Crisp aromas of passion fruit, nut oils and cinnamon. Rich, sleek and invigorating, but with creamy tropical fruit flavors remaining light and ethereal. Well-balanced, elegant and impeccably long. This does not have the depth of the auction wine, but at present more it offers greater drinkability.

From my cellar: 2000 Trimbach Pinot Gris Sélection de Grains Nobles. VM 93. Bright medium gold. Superripe aromas of apricot jam, exotic spices, honey and tobacco; just misses the clarity of the best SGN bottlings from this producer. Very dense but not hugely unctuous thanks to firm, perfectly integrated acidity. Sappy, vibrant and very long on the aftertaste.

From my cellar: 1996 Maison Roche de Bellene Latricières-Chambertin Collection Bellenum. 93 points. A wonderful 1996 Burgundy. Needed a few minutes to open up, but then was great. Plenty of upfront plush rich cherry, still dominating the subtle emerging mushroom and forest floor flavours that should develop well. Lovely balance of acidity and some spice on the finish, makes this all too drinkable (I only wanted to have half a bottle, but it all vanished!)… slightly too sweet now for my liking, but that is evidence of the (further) potential here. Drinks extremely well now, but will easily cellar and improve for another 10yrs. Recommended.

Fernie brought: 2012 Occidental Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast. 90 points. Oaked fruit juice.

1999 Marqués de la Concordia Rioja Reserva. 87 points. A little thin, although had some character. Not bad for a cheap Rioja.

Ron brought: 1970 Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Ygay Reserva. 93 points. Still vibrant and dark red, a little VA but not off putting, surprisingly strong fruit and good acidity with a little dill on the finish. Plenty of life left in this one.

2003 M. Chapoutier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Croix de Bois (magnum). VM 91. Light red. Wild aromas of charred meat and garrigue add complexity to the sweet notes of raspberry preserves, candied cherry, red plum and subtle white pepper. Explosively fruity Chateauneuf du Pape with no rough edges to its lush strawberry and candied raspberry flavors. Finishes with excellent length. way too young.

2007 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin. Vinous 94. Opaque ruby. Spicy raspberry and cherry aromas are complicated by garrigue and Asian spices. Sweet, focused red fruit flavors are given spine by zesty minerality and pick up an exotic floral quality with air. Expands nicely on the finish, leaving behind sweet lavender pastille and raspberry notes.

2006 Monti Coroni Amarone della Valpolicella Classico.

2005 Pax Syrah Walker Vine Hill. VM 93. Opaque purple. Sexy blackberry, mulberry and candied licorice aromas, with a gentle graphite accent. Silky in texture, displaying a full array of sweet dark berry flavors and outstanding depth and focus. Very fine tannins add support to this extroverted bundle of fresh fruit, with tangier red berry notes coming on with air. The fruit carries impressively through the bright, seamless finish. This is the highest in alcohol of this year’s releases at 14.8%.

No info on the front, no review.

2013 Justin Vineyards & Winery Cabernet Sauvignon. Can we say young?

2008 Troll Bridge Cabernet Sauvignon.

Not even in Cellar Tracker! Impressive.

2010 Eighty Four Wines Petite Sirah. Some reviewer liked this enough to give it a 93.

2013 Predator Zinfandel Old Vine Rutherford Ranch Vineyards. Oh lord, I don’t even love 70s Zin.

Lipper brought: 1997 Turley Zinfandel Hayne Vineyard. VM 94-96. Black-ruby. Bright, spicy, very complex aromas of blackberry, black pepper, iodine and brown spices, plus a lively floral note. Extraordinary fruit offers great sweetness and intensity. Thick yet almost miraculously poised. Finishes with endless, palate-saturating fruit and exhilarating Christmas spices. Always a monumental wine from Turley.

agavin: if I’d noticed this was ’97 I’d have tried it just to calibrate my semi-mature Zin palate.

Akbar has long been my favorite LA Indian, and this meal was probably my best yet — and very different than usual. Chef Avi really turned out a lot of unique things tonight, including a bunch of southern specialties. And the wines were really great too. All in all an excellent night.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

Related posts:

  1. All Things Akbar
  2. Akbar – Curry not so Hurry
  3. Ultimate Akbar
  4. Amazing Akbar
  5. Eating Philly – Tiffin
By: agavin
Comments (4)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Akbar, ctm, curry, hedonists, Wine
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