So, as some of you know, I'm the rather new sommelire at a restaurant in NC that prides itself on its four-Diamond rating from AAA. Tonight we had our first Big Event since my signing on, our chapter in a traveling series of dinners amongst the four-Diamond restaurants in the area (at each dinner, all the chefs from all the restaurants involved are each responsible for a course). After hassling a few people ten days ago and then nine days ago, and then eight days ago, and then a week ago, I was able to get the menu for pairing purposes. My restaurant is an Italian restaurant, so I decide to take the opportunity to do some subliminal marketing and use all Italian wines, despite the heterogeneous nature of the food.
Now, I had some things coming down the wire on this - a vendor rep hand-delivered my Bera on ice an hour before the event began (he'd been expecting the truck hours earlier in the day - shit happens). But nothing compared to what ensued:
There I was, in line-up before service for our 65-person dinner with my floor staff, my chef and sous chef, and all the visiting chefs and sous chefs when one of the latter sees our printed menus on the tables and comments, "that's not what I made," The fucking spicy yellow watermelon broth identity-crisis dish that had tortured me a week prior had evolved into a sherried-lobster cheesecake with salad and shit. My Bisson was too fruity. It was fifteen minutes till service. You could hear laughter and conversation bubbling in from the lounge. It's a small restaurant; I don't have case-quantity of almost any wines around.
"Shit."
I felt as though all the blood drained out of me, all at once. Calm hitherto, suddenly I was jittery and having to fight back a freak-out. Our biggest event of the year, probably; I'm the new wine director when everyone's fond of at least one of my recent predecessors; this event is, by definition, about being perfect. I had to walk away for a moment and then come back and taste the new dish.
So, I switched the Arneis and Rosato, having no other choice, and we reprint the menus.
The wines of the evening for the customers? People were very kind and seemed to enjoy all of them, but the Occhipinti and the Bera were a cut above. People fucking lost their shit and wanted to know what was going on with these wines, where they could buy them, blah blah blah. It was encouraging, but also frustrating, as I felt the earlier-course wines could have shone more if I'd been able to pair them properly.
For completeness' sake:
Mixed passed hors d'oeuvres
Our signature coctail (Luli Moscato Chinato, orange juice, and club soda)
First course
Late summer watermelon, poached lobster, tiny greens, crispy pancetta, spicy yellow watermelon broth, and smoked poblanos
This dish is going in six different directions. I throw up my hands and say pink. 2007 Bisson Ciliegiolo Rosato it is.
Second Course
Lightly-smoked and cider-cured salmon croque monsieur with dill emulsion, tart apple chutney, chiogga beet syrup, and at least one other ingredient I forget now
2007 Cordero di Montezemolo Langhe Arneis
Third course
Mushroom and local goat cheese tart topped with duck prosciutto, finished with pomegranate gastrique
2006 Occhipinti Nero d'Avola Siccagno
Fourth course
Cannelloni stuffed with house-made ricotta, served with local-beef/kalamata olive rag, fried rosemary, and house-made parmesan
2005 Pertimali Rosso di Montalcino
Dessert
Crepe stuffed with caramelized apples and local goat cheese, topped with vanilla ice cream, served with local honey and candied walnuts
Bera Moscato d'Asti
Now, I had some things coming down the wire on this - a vendor rep hand-delivered my Bera on ice an hour before the event began (he'd been expecting the truck hours earlier in the day - shit happens). But nothing compared to what ensued:
There I was, in line-up before service for our 65-person dinner with my floor staff, my chef and sous chef, and all the visiting chefs and sous chefs when one of the latter sees our printed menus on the tables and comments, "that's not what I made," The fucking spicy yellow watermelon broth identity-crisis dish that had tortured me a week prior had evolved into a sherried-lobster cheesecake with salad and shit. My Bisson was too fruity. It was fifteen minutes till service. You could hear laughter and conversation bubbling in from the lounge. It's a small restaurant; I don't have case-quantity of almost any wines around.
"Shit."
I felt as though all the blood drained out of me, all at once. Calm hitherto, suddenly I was jittery and having to fight back a freak-out. Our biggest event of the year, probably; I'm the new wine director when everyone's fond of at least one of my recent predecessors; this event is, by definition, about being perfect. I had to walk away for a moment and then come back and taste the new dish.
So, I switched the Arneis and Rosato, having no other choice, and we reprint the menus.
The wines of the evening for the customers? People were very kind and seemed to enjoy all of them, but the Occhipinti and the Bera were a cut above. People fucking lost their shit and wanted to know what was going on with these wines, where they could buy them, blah blah blah. It was encouraging, but also frustrating, as I felt the earlier-course wines could have shone more if I'd been able to pair them properly.
For completeness' sake:
Mixed passed hors d'oeuvres
Our signature coctail (Luli Moscato Chinato, orange juice, and club soda)
First course
Late summer watermelon, poached lobster, tiny greens, crispy pancetta, spicy yellow watermelon broth, and smoked poblanos
This dish is going in six different directions. I throw up my hands and say pink. 2007 Bisson Ciliegiolo Rosato it is.
Second Course
Lightly-smoked and cider-cured salmon croque monsieur with dill emulsion, tart apple chutney, chiogga beet syrup, and at least one other ingredient I forget now
2007 Cordero di Montezemolo Langhe Arneis
Third course
Mushroom and local goat cheese tart topped with duck prosciutto, finished with pomegranate gastrique
2006 Occhipinti Nero d'Avola Siccagno
Fourth course
Cannelloni stuffed with house-made ricotta, served with local-beef/kalamata olive rag, fried rosemary, and house-made parmesan
2005 Pertimali Rosso di Montalcino
Dessert
Crepe stuffed with caramelized apples and local goat cheese, topped with vanilla ice cream, served with local honey and candied walnuts
Bera Moscato d'Asti