Text 9034, 92 rader
Skriven 2011-04-02 00:02:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
Ärende: spring training trip 150
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So the Atlas Bistro was having a Robert Foley wine dinner,
something to jump at. Alex had jumped at this, getting
ressies for his friend Scott, me, and himself. We were
assigned to Table 4, which had Barry Marshall, a friend and
sometime rep of Foley's, Damien (last name not gotten), the
products' distributor, and the Foleys (among others, whom I
didn't have the opportunity to talk to). I sat opposite
Kelly Foley, who was cute enough to distract me from the
food and, sometimes, even the wine.

Homemade charcuterie - three terrines, one hammy; one
capery; one dominated by the taste of grilled pork fat and,
truth be told, a bit reminiscent of that gourmet treat Spam.
Charbono 08 was the pairing, which accentuated the smokiness
and went quite well. I don't care for the grape - some say
it's the same as the Dolcetto, others have other names for
it - but this was a well made example. A nicely acid wine,
with cherry aspects, that cleansed the palate well between
tastes of the pork products. This was served at the AZ Wine
tasting area, after which we went to our tables next door.
Bob Foley (Robert) stood up and gave a disquisition on how,
40-odd years ago, the Charbono grape and Inglenook Vineyards
sparked his original interest in wine.

Seared raw sea bass, white bean puree, seaweed - I'd rather
the fish had been raw altogether, but it was a high-quality
presentation. I also thought the puree wasn't pureed enough,
so little beany bits took away from the texture. Alex enjoyed
the textural contrasts and thought it a fine dish. A
tropical-fruity Semillon 09 (no oak) went very nicely.

Seared scallops, black trumpets and chanterelles, corn puree
- again, I thought the components wonderful, the execution
fine, but the juxtaposition dubious. The scallops (2) were
big and juicy, moderately sweet, mildly briny; the mushrooms
were fine; the corn puree Alex went into ecstasies about -
I thought it very nice as well but dividing rather than
unifying the dish. It masked the mushrooms and their wok
taste, and the sweetness didn't go with the crisp citrusy
Pinot Blanc 08, also unoaked, that was poured alongside.
Also, as the scallops were not candy-sweet to stand up to
or unsweet to contrast with the corn, there was this
sort of unfair competition going on.

Broiled lamb chop, Jerusalem artichokes, and goat cheese -
the chop not completely trimmed and very rare, just the way
I like mine, though I did see some still largely clad bones
go by. I was confused by the vegetable: the goat cheese was
broiled onto the top and both not unpleasant in flavor (I
generally don't eat the stuff) and easy to scrape off, but
it made the underlying rounds hard to identify. I thought
at least some of them tasted sort of parsnippy. The Merlot
08, a fine balance of acid, tannin, and smoothness, was a
fine complement. This was my favorite course and pairing.

The broiled buffalo filet, corn milk, vanilla blackcurrant
demi was a little on the sweet side. The meat, also rare
but not as rare, was a little stringy but not unpleasantly
so; it tasted sort of like an uber-beef: grass feeding has
its advantages. Claret 07 was a big Cab, minty and curranty
with this latter characteristic no doubt helped by the demi,
which was actually nicely done, without the advertised
flavors sticking out too much.

Deconstructed cannoli with lemon-ricotta filling. I forgot
to note that these are not the official names of the dishes.
I neglected to pick up a menu (of which there was on the
table one per two or three guests). A nice caramelly tuile
with a pleasant blob of flavored, slightly sweetened cheese
on top. The audacious pairing of Petite Syrah 08 was to our
minds not totally successful. I attribute this to the cheese
coating the tongue and countering the punch of the wine,
which by itself was rich, plummy, and rather tannic.

Someone at another table bought a bottle of the 03 Claret,
which is Kelly's favorite wine and sold out at the winery
(meaning that even she can't get much of it), and sent a
glass to her with their complements (she is very charming).
I got a sip of it, and I found it pleasantly matured, though
still pretty big; the flavors were similar, though did I
detect a touch of anise in this one? I don't know.

Reluctant farewells to the space, the people, and the wine.
We repaired with Scott to Roosevelt's, a quirky pub in an
old downtown house in what might kindly be called a
transitional neighborhood, where we shared the thick,
rich, sweet, and hoppy Stone Old Guardian barleywine
with its caramel, floral, and grapefruit notes.

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