Big Macs & Burgundy Wine Class

I can't remember the last time I was at a wine class...much less one hosted by the STLWineGirl, so I was incredibly excited to attend this class. And it's been at least two years since I was at a Cocktails Are Go cocktail class with Beth Sorrell, who was the other host.

I have to admit it was so good to see some old friends that the class itself is mostly a blur, especially after five courses of heavy pours. All the wines were excellent and I only shared one of them, which was probably not in my best interest to finish so many of them. I am so rusty!

This class, Big Macs & Burgundy, is based on the book by the same name and there were so many people who couldn't make the class that night that there is already demand for another one.

Anyway, we started off with one of my favorite pairings, "salt + bubbles". The salt this time was potato chips, although some BBQ chips were mixed in as well. This might be my favorite because I love bubbles so much.

Salt + Bubbles

A challenging pairing of spinach artichoke dip, made sense with a Gruner Veltliner, and a glass of Pinot Gris was also added. Gruner Veltliner is the go-to for foods that are difficult to pair with.

Vegetal + White wine

I usually don't eat too many spicy foods, but luckily my other favorite, Riesling, is the best thing to pair with it. And it was Mai Lee's Lo Mein so extra bonus.

Spicy + Sweet

The title pairing, half a McDonald's Big Mac with a Coteaux Bourguignons, was just OK. I feel bad because it's hard for me to eat a Big Mac these days since I think most fast food is gross now, but I bet a fresh grilled burger from an actual grill would have done it. The wine was amazing though. I think this wine would have been awesome with some chocolate too.

Fast Food + Fancy

We wrapped up the night with Starbursts, Twinkies, and bites of cheesecake, which was well paired with an equally sweet Moscato. I had trouble drinking the Moscato as I can't do those sweet wines anymore!

If you get a chance to take the class, or any STLWinegirl or Cocktails Are Go class, be sure to sign up quickly!

Big Macs & Burgundy Menu

Resources:

Big Macs & Burgundy = https://www.amazon.com/Big-Macs-Burgundy-Pairings-World/dp/1419744917

STLWinegirl = https://stlwinegirl.com/

Cocktails Are Go = https://cocktails-are-go.com/

Novel Neighbor = https://thenovelneighbor.com/

Wine Girl Wednesday at The Dark Room

Wine Girl Wednesdays are back in 2015 and we kicked off the new year at The Dark Room, a wine bar and art gallery combined. I had been once before for a glass of wine over my birthday weekend, but this finally gave me the chance to try some of their small plates.

This month's pairings matched up a "pizzeta" with a half glass of wine for $10. In addition, there was a wine flight you could pick for $20. Check out the menu by clicking on the image below to see an enlarged version:

Menu

Even before we ordered, we started with the "Welcome White", a dry Muscat from Jumilla, Spain, to help clear the palate. Quite refreshing and dry whites are my favorite because they are so food friendly.

Anyway, the first pairing was the simple Roasted Tomato & Balsamic Glaze pizzeta, which included a four cheese blend and shaved Parmesan. With this much cheese, you know it was my favorite. Even though this was paired with a big jammy red Dolcetto, I found this one went well with the dry Muscat as well as the light and crisp Fiano for the second pairing.

Roasted Tomato & Balsamic Glaze pizzeta

That light and crisp Fiano still went well with the second pairing since the high acid in the wine helped to cut through the richness of the salmon and the goat cheese on this pizzeta. Maybe this one was my favorite because I love smoked salmon so much!

Smoked Salmon & Heartland Goat Cheese pizzeta

While I didn't have too many bites of the last pizzeta, the Prosciutto & Fig rich and meaty flavors demanded a big red, and the Cabernet Franc did it's job.

Prosciutto & Fig pizzeta

Since we didn't know how many pairings we were going to do, I also ordered the house hummus as well.

Smoked Paprika Hummus with Toasted Pita

This is a great place for a late night snack and glass of wine after a theater show!

Resources:

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

The Dark Room = http://thedarkroomstl.com/

Photos by Patience Scanlon

STLwinegirl Traveling Table at Juniper

The STLwinegirl “Traveling Table” is back! I was especially thrilled that the first restaurant chosen for the restart of the famous wine dinners was Juniper, since I had been to the previous versions of the restaurant, but not the latest “southern cooking” incarnation.

I don't eat southern cooking too often so most of the dishes are new to me. I also have to admit that I probably would never order any of these items on my own, so at the Traveling Tables there is always something new to try, taste, and pair.

Menu

While I've enjoyed a lot of oysters, I'm not sure I've had them fried as an appetizer before. The blue cornmeal on the outside was so crunchy and tasty, and the Saint Hilaire Sparkling Brut helped to cut through the grease.

Fried Oysters paired with Saint Hilaire Sparkling Brut

Instead of your typical “chicken and dumplings”, Cornish Game Hen and Sweet Potato Gnocchi took their place for this course. This was my favorite dish of the night because the game hen was so tender after sitting in the smoked chicken broth. We even were given a spoon to scoop up the rest of the delicious broth. This was paired with a Manciat Macon Morizottes to match up with the richness of this dish.

Cornish Game Hen with Sweet Potato Gnocchi in a Smoked Chicken Broth

The last course was the Tasso Pork Chop, but most of us were way too full from the first two courses to make much of a dent. Yet, I thought this was the best pairing with the Trenel Beaujolais Villages since they both complimented each other so well. The sweet sauce on top of the pork paired perfectly with the jammy wine. I love all the fruit that comes with Beaujolais!

Tasso Pork Chop with spoon bread, pickled apples, and smoked onion petals
paired with Trenel Beaujolais Villages

When we first sat down, we all had wished that there was a dessert course, but no one was able to look at the menu by the time we got to the third course. So let this be a lesson for you, be sure to share a couple of dishes in order to save room at the end of your meal!

After all the different courses, I still will need to go back and tried their fried chicken, since I've heard about that dish the most.

Resources:

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

Juniper = http://junipereats.com/

Article: Top 10 Wine And Cheese Pairings To Try Now

You know I have to share everything "wine and cheese pairing" so as luck would have it, here is another article from St. Louis Magazine!

Also written by one of my favorite winos: STLwinegirl

Top 10 Wine And Cheese Pairings You Should Try Now

Wine Girl Wednesday at Element

I was really looking forward to having another excuse to go to Element since I have been a couple of times already. You can check out my past blog post here, back from April. With such a unique menu, I was really curious how the STLwinegirl, Angela Ortmann, was going to pair up several wines.

Wine Girl Wednesday Menu at Element

Of course, my favorite was the Blue Point Oysters with the Gruet Brut Sparkling (it's actually from New Mexico and quite affordable!).

Blue Point Oyster, Smoked Mignonette

Patience and I also dared to try the Briased Oxtail and we were both quite surprised at the rich, meaty flavor. This pared perfectly with the Guardian Cellars "Chalk Line" (a red blend!) from Washington State.

Briased Oxtail, Pickled Papaya, Grapes

We both skipped over the Braised Bacon, Watermelon, and Pig Ear so unfortunately, I didn't get the glass of Efeste Riesling from Washington State.

Braised Bacon, Watermelon, and Pig Ear

Since we were in a hurry to order our oysters, we didn't realize there was an optional "tasting board" this time around where you could taste each pairing plus an additional two more! Luckily, my friends shared some bites of the Vegetable Ash Coated Goat Cheese, which was amazing with the Muscat dessert wine.

Tasting Board

Then things started to get a little crazy. With only sharing a couple of pairings thus far, Patience and I decided to try a couple of new dishes off the menu. Unfortunately, they were out of the Ocean Cocktail (a good variety of seafood!) so instead we shared the Beets and Summer Salad small plates.

Beets

The Beets came with kale chips in a curry creme fraiche.

Summer Salad

The Summer Salad included zucchini, tomato, and carrot in a lemon peppercorn vinaigrette, which was very sweet.

While that doesn't sound too crazy, we did keep the evening going a little while longer as everyone at our table ended up ordering a different dessert on top of everything else we ate and drank thus far!

Custard with fig topping

 

Wafers with blueberries

Bread pudding with raspberries and plums

You know I was the one that ordered the chocolate dessert!

Chocolate Cake

Resources:

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

Element = http://www.elementstl.com

Photos by Patience Scanlon and Jolena Shatzer

STLwinegirl Fifth Biz Birthday Party at Libertine

Since I had so much fun last year, I could not WAIT for this year’s STLwinegirl 5th Biz Birthday party at The Libertine. Yes…I went back there AGAIN and it did not disappoint since the night’s menu was made up of Angie’s “favorite things”…well at least Josh Galliano’s version of them.

Again, this was a night where I wanted to order one of everything from the special menu and I definitely needed to make sure I had plenty to eat before the cocktail tasting.


STLwinegirl 5th Biz Birthday Menu

For $5, you got to taste five unique cocktails in a competition amongst popular local bartenders. I’m sure I was plenty biased as my top two favorite cocktails were the sweeter drinks made by the ladies: Denise Mueller (Robust) and Mandi Kowalski (Planter’s House). The guys’ drinks were a bit too boozy for me, although Kyle Harlan’s (Mission Taco) cocktail came with a chocolate-dipped strawberry, certainly a plus in my book! The winner was Tony Saputo (Eclipse) and Ben Bauer represented The Libertine as well.

The five cocktail tastings went well with the rich appetizers and dishes that I selected. I started off with the Beef Tartare and Pimento Cheese Deviled Eggs. All deviled eggs should have cheese in them!! If that wasn’t cheesy enough, I did order the cheese flight as well: Raclette, Gorgonzola, Sottocenere Garratxa, and Prairie Breeze.

Beef Tartare, Pimento Cheese Deviled Eggs, and a cheese plate

Since the “plates” were reasonably priced at $5 too, I ordered the Shrimp Noodles and the Creole Gumbo, definitely a pair to warm me up. Unfortunately, the Bajan Hot Sauce made the shrimp noodles way too spicy for me to eat, while the Creole Gumbo hardly had a kick at all. The gumbo was very filling so I couldn’t order any more, but luckily friends gave me a bite of the Chicken & Biscuit (YES…Josh Galliano’s fried chicken is really that good no matter how it is served) and believe it or not, the Fried Bologna Sandwich was amazing with a slick hunk of beef between toast. My bologna never tasted that good when I was a kid!

In addition to much eating and drinking, we also had fun together at the “Fernet Face Photo Booth” where you got to show off the face you make after taking a shot of Fernet. Props to anyone who can take one down without make a face!

Always a party with the STLwinegirl!

Resources:

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

Libertine = http://www.libertinestl.com

Sommelier Showdown III

I hadn’t been to a Sommelier Showdown before and when I saw that STLwinegirl, Angela Ortmann, was going to be in the third “battle” against Brandon Kearne from Elaia & Olio, I immediately signed up!

What I really love about this “competition” is that the challenge is about making the perfect pairing, which to me is much more important than how good a wine is by itself. Some wines just may be quite quaffable, but one usually has a glass to drink over dinner and you want to bring out the flavors for both in either a complimentary way or to let the food shine.

With Randall’s Wines & Spirits as the sponsor, they kicked off the evening with a shot of tequila, handed to us by a guy in a Mexican wrestling mask. I’m not sure if every “Showdown” is like this but it certainly set the tone for the night as the evening definitely had a “fight night” atmosphere!

While I admit that I was very biased towards Angela’s pairings, the voters were definitely the winners as you got two glasses of wine with each course. Not a bad deal at $35!! This was an exceptional price considering this “Showdown” was held at Cielo inside the Four Seasons!

 

In summary, I felt Angela had the better pairings because her wines were a lot more accessible in both taste and price. (Prices are listed on the menu because Randall’s was encouraging everyone to purchase what they tasted that night.) I felt that her wines were a lot more mellow and paired well with each course, really letting the food stand out. Brandon’s wines were almost all big, bold, or dry. I don’t think I could drink any of his selections as none of his pairings matched my palate.



First course...goat cheese and salad

Second course...risotto, shrimp and asparagus

Third course...Pork tenderloin

My favorite part of the evening was when both Brandon and Angela came over to our table and I got to ask them why they had picked each wine. It’s great to get inside a Sommelier’s mind and see how they think about the wine and the corresponding food.

Brandon came out the winner, although I really think Angela had the better pairings, which is what the evening’s competition was really about.

Be sure to check out the next “Sommelier Showdown” on Thursday, July 18th at 7pm with Linda McGovern from Major Brands vs Glenn Bardgett from Annie Gunn’s. This one is also $35, but will be located at Copia at 1122 Washington Ave.

Resources:

Randall’s Wines & Spirits = http://www.shoprandallas.com

Cielo = http://www.cielostlouis.com/

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

Elaia & Olio = http://www.elaiastl.com/

Cleveland-Heath

After reading so much about Cleveland-Heath, STLwinegirl, Angela Ortmann, finally gave me a good reason to travel over the river and through the woods to Edwardsville by hosting a Traveling Table there. Located right on the corner of Main Street, the restaurant had a warm and charming feel with all the servers dressed in plaid shirts and jeans. Although, our event was actually located in the Township Grocer next door where we sat at one long, wooden table, which Cleveland-Heath rents out.

Luckily, there were some locals attending the dinner who had eaten there several times so I asked them what was their favorite and what was the best. Both of them said the tacos were fantastic along with the risotto and basically, they loved to try whatever is new there. Cleveland-Heath also offers quite a lengthy beer and wine list and their menu reminded me of American “home cooking” but with a fresh twist.

We started off the night with a baby beet salad with farro, feta, and chimmichurri. Beets are all the range these days and I was really impressed at how different they tasted as to the flavor I was expecting. Fresh is so much better than canned any day! The light and fruity salad paired well with my favorite, a von Hovel Riesling, Kabinett Oberemmeler Hutte, Saar, Germany, 2010. I don’t know how many times I will tell you that German wines are the best…not too sweet, not too dry.

The main course was a Crispy Skinned Wild Arctic Char, in place of salmon, but looked like the same thing to me. Underneath the two large hunks of fish were brussels sprouts, butternut squash, roasted mushrooms, and pomegranate, almost like a mini vegetable salad. I still cannot eat Brussels sprouts to save my life but this was a hearty meal with warm flavors. That warmness helped to pair the meal with a red wine, Mirabile Nero D’Avola, IGT Sicilia, Italy 2009, even though it was a fish course! Yet, it was an Italian red, which was a little too dry and heavy for me, even with the meaty and buttery fish. Although the brussels sprouts definitely needs something strong!

The dessert course was my favorite since it included a ridiculous amount of chocolate. To do it justice, I included another picture so you can see the smooth and creamy goodness underneath the “house made graham” and toasted “marshmellow” top. A strong port was paired with this to cut through all the sweetness, but I can only handle something like a Moscato rather than a fortified wine. The Terra D’Oro Zinfandel Port came from Amador County, CA.

This dinner definitely gets all three stars from me since it featured a Riesling, chocolate, and no bacon to be seen!

Resources:

Cleveland-Heath = http://www.clevelandheath.com/

Township Grocer = http://www.townshipgrocer.com/

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

Photos by Stacy Anderson (http://www.everylittlethingblog.com/) and Angela Ortmann

The Root and The Vine

Two of my favorite foodies, STLwinegirl (Angela Ortmann) and STLVegGirl (Caryn Dugan), got together to host the first vegan wine dinner in 12 years, with Mosaic’s Chef Ben Lester preparing all the courses. While I am not a vegetarian, much less a vegan, I have enjoyed taking several STLVegGirl classes since the emphasis is on healthy eating, which is something I strongly believe in regardless if you do it through a plant-based diet or not.

Rarely do you find “gourmet” vegetarian or vegan-based dishes while dining out either, so this was a very special occasion for those who do follow a restricted diet. In addition, the dinner raised over $1,800 for Food Outreach from ticket sales.

Before the dinner got started, we waited to be seated while enjoying a “vegan cocktail”, which included carrot, ginger, and cilantro. The drink definitely had a strong carrot flavor to it but without the thick, V-8 taste. Very refreshing with the ginger! (And at $5 each, all proceeds went to Food Outreach as well.)

This was probably one of the longest dinners I have been to since we started with an Amuse Bouche of Tofu Misozuke Stuff Squash Blossoms as well as STLVegGirl’s very own hummus that she makes herself. The table was quite crowded with plates and glasses at this point and I managed to finish off the hummus all by myself! Of course these starters were well paired with a sparkling Tomassi Prosecco from Italy.

Roasted Butternut Squash Salad

What really filled me up was the official first course, a Roasted Butternut Squash Soup that was actually sweet instead of the usual heavy, vegetable flavor. The sweetness continued with the Roasted Butternut Squash Salad, but I mostly tasted the apple chips and apple vinaigrette. The baked kale and candied pumpkin seed “granola” gave the salad additional crunch. They would have made tasty snacks by themselves! This was paired with a Chaumette Chardonel Reserve, from Missouri. The white wine had just enough body to handle the sweetness of the soup and salad.

Farro "Risotto" Milanese

The meal got heavier from there because next was a Farro “Risotto” Milanese made of local organic mushroom, salsify, cashew cream, and fennel pollen. The heavy "cream" and mushroom risotto was perfect for a rainy, fall night and the Siduri Pinot Noir, from Willamette Valley Oregon, was an even match with the course to help cut through the cream. I still had a little bit of wine left, which I really wanted to finish off, but unfortunately, the restaurant must have run out of wine glasses because I didn’t finish in time to get the next wine.

Carrot & Coconut Vadouvan Curry Caramelized Mofu Tofu

The Spanish Juan Gil Monastrell probably was a full-bodied wine because you would have needed a strong flavor with the Carrot & Coconut Vadouvan Curry Caramelized Mofu Tofu. That’s right, locally grown tofu created by Daniel Brewer and his Mofu Soy Beanery. I usually pass on curry while at Indian restaurants because I’m nervous about the amount of heat, but I really enjoyed the strong coconut flavor. The curry included cauliflower “cous cous”, pearl onions, heirloom carrots and tomatoes, and pee wee potatoes, in addition to the cubes of tofu. I have to admit…the tofu did well to soak up the curry but I just wish it wasn’t in those odd cubes.

Butternut Squash Soup

As much as I loved the butternut squash soup and the mushroom “risotto”, the highlight of the evening was STLVegGirl’s Dark Chocolate Mousse made with avocado. The dessert also came with a beet sorbet, which I’m still not sure if I liked it or not. It was definitely a refreshing flavor to help tame down the richness and creaminess of the chocolate, so they went well together in the same bite. But really, the chocolate was not overly rich like usual since the avocado tamed down the flavor. But for those vegans who enjoy their chocolate, this is a recipe you must get. This was also my favorite pairing of the nigh tsince the “Novy “Oley” Late Harvest Viognier, from California, was actually not overly sweet. This was actually quaffable by itself for sweet wine lovers like myself.

Overall, an amazing and creative meal for a good cause and I hope there will be another one in the near future…perhaps with another restaurant?

Resources:

STLVegGirl = http://www.stlveggirl.com

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com

Mofu Soy Beanery = http://www.mofusoy.com/

Mosaic Tapas Restaurant Des Peres = http://mosaictapas.com/page.cfm/mosaic-tapas-des-peres/

The Block Traveling Table

Since I really enjoyed my first visit to The Block, I couldn’t wait to go back for a Traveling Table with STLwinegirl, Angela Ortmann. There were only three courses for this traveling table, no dessert, but I think this worked out for the best due to heavy courses and leftovers shared.

This Traveling Table was also special because each course paired a local beer in addition to a glass of wine, so I knew I had to pace myself and just sipped on both pairings.

We started with a “lighter” meat, Pastrami Cured Salmon compressed cucumbers, mixed greens, horseradish emulsion. The horseradish was a non-factor as the sweetness of the cucumber stood out the most. This paired best with the Gruet Brut Sparkling from New Mexico because the dry brut tamed down the sweetness. The Urban Chestnut Zwickel is also a lighter beer, but it has an odd nutty flavor to me.

Next up was the “medium” meat, Braised Pork Belly, crispy poached farm egg, grilled brioche with house-made jam, and better known as “Bacon & Eggs”. I stuck with the poached egg and grape jam while finding a good home for the pork belly. For this course, I preferred the Belgium-style Pale Ale Perennial Hommel since it had a milder finish than the A to Z Pinot Gris from Oregon, which was a little too dry.

My favorite course by far was the Grilled Sirloin, which also came with a large and tender beef rib. Since my friends were so full from their pork belly, I was able to score quite a few leftover sirloin pieces. I would have been happy with this course alone. The sirloin was perfectly pink and juicy.

This course was paired with the wine Elyse C’est Si Bon, meaning “It’s so good”, from Sierra Foothills, CA and the beer was a Charleville Tornado Alley from Ste. Genevieve, MO, a heavier ale. The wine had a much smoother finish to pair well with the sirloin, while the beer was a little too strong.

Resources:

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com/

The Block = http://theblockrestaurant.com/

Urban Chestnut = http://urbanchestnut.com/

Perennial = http://www.perennialbeer.com/

Charleville Vineyard = http://www.charlevillevineyard.com/

Photos by Angela Ortmann

Girls' Night Out: Billions of Bubbles

I finally got to check out the new Dierbergs Des Peres location thanks to a “cooking” class held there that was actually part wine pairing. The theme was “Girls’ Night Out: Billions of Bubbles” and Chef Marianne Moore selected five different appetizer dishes for us to put together, while STLwinegirl, Angela Ortmann, paired a different sparkling wine with each appetizer.

I was a little nervous since cooking is really not my thing so I volunteered for an activity that sounded easy: stuffing mushrooms. First, we had to “polish” the mushrooms with a towel (I normally wash the dirt off so not sure why we did it without water) and then pull out the stems of the mushrooms. After greasing the pans and placing the mushrooms “holes up”, we then created the stuffing.

Unfortunately, the stuffing was made with pork and was the least tasty of all the dishes. I promise to go back to “not cooking” status for the safety of everyone!

We started out with Shrimp & Avocado Puffs, which are two of my favorite ingredients and it was paired with a Prosecco…the Italian version of sparkling wine.

There were TWO cheese courses, which were among my favorites of course: a Baked Goat Cheese Spread, paired with a Cava, or Spain’s version of sparkling wine and a Baked Brie.

The mushrooms were paired with a real Champagne and of course the wine stood out on that course.

As much as I love cheese, I really enjoyed the Aussie Burgers (lamb sliders), which was paired with a Blanc de Noirs. Meaty and filling!

I was quite full by the time we reached the dessert course: Fillo Nest with Mixed Berry Sauce paired with a Brachetto, which I have never had before.

Resources:

Dierbergs Des Peres = http://www.dierbergs.com/About/News/Dierbergs+Des+Peres.aspx

STLwinegirl = http://www.stlwinegirl.com/

Photo by Angela Ortmann