Central Coast Wine Classic Dinner

In May of this year, we held a dinner at our home on behalf of the 2009 Central Coast Wine Classic. Laurie and I prepared the meal and contributed the wines from our collection. This event, an auction lot in last year’s Wine Classic, was hosted by Archie McLaren, Founder and Chairman of the Central Coast Wine Classic and seven other guests.

Mélisse Restaurant — A Great Dining Experience

Melisse, named for a lemon-scented herb from the Mediterranean, is a Michelin two-star and #1 from Zagat since 2003. Chef-owner, Josiah Citrin, is a self-taught culinary expert, offering the finest, freshest contemporary French/American cuisine, inspired by the seasons. Focusing on the best local farm fresh produce from the Santa Monica farmers market, Citrin offers a tasting menu, a vegetarian tasting menu, an a la carte menu, a carte blanche menu as well as daily specials and an impressive wine list offering rare, world-class wines. Beautifully presented, the dishes are little works of art. Melisse offers an exceptional dining experience, in a chic, dark, plush, elegant dining room, resembling a French country home, as well as two small rooms, Olivia and Augustin, for private entertaining.

The Fontainebleau Hotel’s Hakkasan Restaurant in Miami Beach & The World’s Most Unusual Wine List?

On a recent visit to Miami Beach with my wife, Laurie and I visited the newly refurbished Fontainebleau Hotel for the first time in many years. It was nice to see the beautiful hotel and it is definitely worth a visit. The Fontainebleau, a revered Miami Beach landmark for over half a century, widely recognized for its distinctive curvilinear design, completed a $1 billion expansion and renovation the end of 2008. The 1950s era resort has been transformed into one of the country’s most sought-after beachfront resort properties, a blend of Miami’s glamorous golden era and stylish, ultramodern luxury.

For dinner, we chose Hakkasan, one of three, world-class signature dining experiences at the hotel. Opened in early 2009, Hakkasan also has locations in London and Istanbul. The award-winning restaurant was rated by Zagat as Top Newcomer in South Florida in their 2010 survey. Heading up the Miami kitchen is Chef Wen Sian Tan, formerly of My Humble House restaurant in Beijing. Chef Tan offers diners a diverse menu of modern Cantonese cuisine and house specialties reinterpreted for a contemporary palate, with a wide array of wines, sake and cocktails.

Movies, Wine, Food and Drink

Wine and spirits in movies may be a central theme, a key plot element, a subplot or just a way to highlight a scene. Wine and spirits play a supporting role in some of the screen’s memorable moments. The films mentioned here range from enduring classics to ones with some cinematic merit to others that are less significant or even soap opera-ish, but wine legitimizes them, affording depth and breadth. Whiskey, for the most part, seems to be the main prop for tough guys and hard-boiled detectives

Confessions of An Addict

Marrying wine with food is the ultimate. Most people enjoy good food. A very small percentage of the population even enjoys fine wine. And, an even smaller percentage has the ability to match great food and great wine. It is an art. Someday we will write on our favorite wine and food combinations. For now, something more suited to every day fare.

Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello Retrospective Dinner

The Ridge Vineyards Retrospective Dinner with Paul Draper took place at the elegant Four Seasons Biltmore in Santa Barbara on April 4, 2009.  The dinner was presented on behalf of the 2008 Central Coast Wine Classic by wine collectors John and Laurie Tilson of Montecito who contributed the wines from their collection.  This great event, […]