Home Wine Kitchen Traveling Table

Unfortunately, Home Wine Kitchen has closed.

Even though I had dined at Home Wine Kitchen for No Menu Monday, I was really looking forward to the Home Wine Kitchen Traveling Table hosted by Angela Ortmann (aka STLwinegirl). I just knew that Chef Cassy Vines would go all out for us…and I didn’t realize just how much!

Much like the mix and match cheese tasting a couple of nights before, we were encouraged to try all the courses with each of the three wines that were served:

Vin Ver’rary Chardonnay
Mendocino, California

Chaumette Rose of Chambourcin
Ste. Genevieve, Missouri

Mountain View Pinot Noir
Carneros, California

Needless to say, I was quite surprised that Angela picked out three American wines, not to mention a Missouri wine! It was much like being Goldilocks…the white was a little sweet, the rose was mild, while the red was a little dry. All were smooth initially but once they were paired with the food, the Rose stood out the most and went perfectly with everything. I admit that I barely touched the Pinot Noir and even the white wine was too sweet with some the pairings.

Our appetizers consisted of a variety of assorted confits and housemade ricotta to be spread on large slices of grilled bread. All the vegetables, tomatoes, mushrooms, and garlic were soaking in olive oil, while I wanted to eat the ricotta straight out of the jar. As an appetizer and small plates fan, I could have made my entire meal out of the confits and arugla salad, consisting of figs, herbed cheese, pumpkin seeds, and a cider vinaigrette. I even had a second serving, which turned out to be a big mistake because of the amount of the food that came with the main course followed up by dessert!

For a split second, I thought it was Thanksgiving as huge piles of food kept coming out to the table. The roasted chicken was stacked like the Great Pyramid and THE largest bowl of pasta EVER contained a green linguine with radish pesto, parmesan, and pine nuts. If that wasn’t enough, we were served a side of polenta that was so smooth and creamy that it was almost a tapioca pudding!

I think I finally understand the “home cooking comfort food” theme of Home Wine Kitchen, but I found all the courses to be unlike anything I have ever tasted before. These flavors are nothing like you have ever tasted before! This really is a place for a “food adventure”.

As if we had any more room, we still had to finish the night off with a Pistachio Tart with goat cheese on top! It was very hard not to slurp the goat cheese creamy top off every piece! I would have sworn it was cool whip if I didn’t know better. Dessert was graciously paired with a Domaine St. Vincent Sparkling Wine from New Mexico. We definitely had much to celebrate!

Resources:

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

Home Wine Kitchen = http://www.homewinekitchen.com/

Ernesto's

I went to my first SIP.ciety event at Ernesto’s (http://www.ernestoswinebar.com/) earlier in the week, located in Benton Park, and it was neat to try a new wine bar. Ernesto’s is a reference to Hemingway and there are some great pictures along the walls. There are a handful of bar stools and not too many tables, but there is a nice patio in the back. Hopefully someday soon it won’t be too hot to actually use it!

My friends and I got there early to beat any crowds but I don’t think there were any since we stayed until 7:30pm. It worked out great for us because we took over the bar, got easy access to the wine for tastings, as well as great service from the bartender. hehe I even managed to leave some cheese to share with everyone else!

I actually started with the pulled pork sandwich station that was ran by Execute Chef Cassy herself. I was a little nervous pairing a rose wine with it but since the pork was not too greasy, it was a good pairing, but I still preferred the pinot with it. The best part of the sandwich plate, though, was the strawberries and sauce that adorned the side of the plate. The sauce, with a brown sugar flavor, was fantastic and I ended up dipping my pork sandwich into it! Delicious!

Of course I enjoyed all the cheeses that were provided...the brie definitely paired well with the Cava, (which was my favorite rose wine of the night) while the smoked gouda and blue cheeses went well with the heavier pinots. I was expecting the pinots to be high in tannins but both were smooth with a hint of fruit. Ernesto’s also has a full menu but my friends just ordered some appetizers while I had no problem filling up on the sandwich and cheeses.

The next open house, entitled “Red, White & Green”, will be on September 13th from 5:30-8:30pm. There is a cost of $15 but Chef Cassy will give a cooking demonstration in addition to the wine tasting and hors d’oeuvres.