Dinner at Madonna Inn

Dinner tonight at the famous Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo, California. It began with an early California inspired antipasto: a mix of cured peppers, vegetables salami and mozzarella. There were even green onions.

The table appeared to made of oak and was topped with glass drinking goblets of colors ranging from blue to pink to yellow, all pastels except fro when hit by the light. A brass chandelier hung over the table and a pair of copper (faux) salt and pepper shakers finished off the settings The silver ware was just that, silver and our bread and butter plates were painted in imitation of Victorian era china. If you've never been to the inn it's worth a look. Gaudy, over the top and out dated it is representative of what many tourists love to visit. Don't stay long though, just pop your head in; the colors paired with rose emblazon carpet and giant rock formations can be dizzying. www.madonnainn.com

For dinner I had a small green salad with blue cheese; made with Roquefort blue cheese the "crumbles" were a creamy chunk of the delightful moldy chevre. The salad itself wasn't much to shout about a simple arrangement of iceberg lettuce, purple cabbage, shredded carrots and one lone cherry tomato. My entree, a plate of beef ribs, no doubt grain fed, were tender and a little fatty. The barbecue sauce is of their own creation and had a nice zing. To go with the dinner I picked a glass of 2002 Stephen Ross, Dante Dusi Zinfandel.

These zin grapes come from a vineyard that is reaching cult like status among Paso Robles zin drinkers. One of the oldest zinfandel vineyards in the region the vineyard does not allow the wineries they sell too to have much of an input, if any, into how the grapes are grown, pruned and watered. I think their thinking is, if we've done so well for so long why mess with it and I agree. Knowing this about the grapes I was surprised to find the wine rather small. A promising nose of fruit and spice the palate had too much acid, overpowering the subtle flavors of meat, jam and spice. After a brief discussion with my husband, a new winemaker, we came to the conclusion that the wine was aged in mainly used oak.

This is from the winery's web site: "The winemaking style focuses on balance, fruit flavors, moderate French oak, and a ripe but restrained alcohol level. " I'm not to sure what "moderate French oak" means and I soon as I figure it out I'll post my findings. Any input is appreciated.

All in all it was a nice dinner. The ribs came with a baked potato, perfectly cooked. The side of green beans were over done but vegetables can be difficult for a large restaurant to deal with, especially when so often the diners push them to the side. I'm not condoning mediocrity, just expressing my understanding.

My cousin enjoyed the filet mignon, which she said was cooked to her exact specifications. I recommended a glass of the 2003 Domaine Alfred Rhone blend, from Edna Valley and she was overjoyed with the results. Additionally she spread a bit of the Roquefort blue "crumbles" on her dish for a truly tasty treat.

Dining with J and S

About once a month a good friend and I make dinner together, my husband is inevitably invited. The friend, J was a chef a highly acclaimed restaurant in San Diego and with his help dinners always prove exceptional. Additionally, all three of us work in the food and/or wine industry in some form or another so we have continuous access to amazing wines. This particular evening we had four wines-- all gifts from proprietors or wine makers (lucky us!)--That we wanted to open so the fare was chosen to pair with them.

2003 d'Arenberg, The Last Ditch, viognier, McLaren Vale

2003 Villa Creek, Avenger, Rhone blend, Paso Robles

1989 Adelaida, zinfandel, Paso Robles

2002 Four Vines, Port, zin/syrah, Paso Robles-- all three Paso wines are west side Paso.

For the first course we went with an endive salad with oranges, caramelized walnuts, feta cheese and citrus vinaigrette. I finished the dish with a sprinkling of dried chives and fresh cracked black pepper.

As we worked to prepare the dinner we decided to first open the Avenger. A little tight at first, as many wines are, it opened to a very fruity bouquet of blueberries, cassis and a bit of spice. My first thought was white pepper. On the palate it was very subtle, almost too much so for me as I love big chewy wines. The fruit stayed through but was most prominent on the beginning, the middle and the end revealed hints of clove, nutmeg and pepper.

We snacked on a wedge of Morbier cheese as J prepared the main course. This particular form of the cheese had a soft light orange rind, and a line of ash down the middle. Soft and creamy it smelled similar to a blue but on the palate was very mild with a hint of mushrooms and earth, as well as smoky thanks to the ash. Exceptional!

The Avenger and the Morbier paired wonderfully, but cheese has a way with wine so take that with a grain of salt.

For the entree J prepared a jerk rub made of white onion, thyme (quite a bit), cinnamon, Nanami Togarashi-- an Asian blend of assorted chili peppers, and fresh ground nutmeg, all spice and cloves. This we rubbed, excessively so, on pork chops. The pork chops were grilled over an everyday Weber kettle grill.

To finish off the pork chops J hand sautéed sliced pear over medium heat in a light oil. They were placed over the top of the chops.

The Morbier cheese that we had been snacking on went into a batch of polenta, about one half pound of the tasty dairy product.

We sat down to dinner with the first course (the endive salad) and The Last Ditch. Unfortunately it was a bad pairing but would prove to be of an asset with the polenta. A creamy viognier it presented starchy flavors combined with a little spice (very subtle). After some careful thought we came to the consensus that a verdejo would have been a better match.

For the entree we had chosen the 1989 Adelaida. A present from a friend at the winery, J was kind enough to share this enticing treat with us. The nose was AMAZING. Big aromas of Bing cherry with slightly syrupy or baked undertones. Vanilla and almond extract made a nice middle with meat and spice showing their colors as it began to open up even more. Venison and cigar box are what I thought of. The palate's performance was strikingly similar to the Avenger in that the nose far outweighed the palate. The Adelaida was very subtle with little of the fruit but all other elements shinning through. Though tasty in its own right it was an okay match with the pork chops. Luckily for us the Avenger fit the bill perfectly. And as I said earlier the viognier was spot on for the cheesy polenta.

The final dish was an easy pairing, Port and chocolate.
Chocolate soufflé with chocolate sauce and fresh whipped cream along with a side of pears cooked in a honey whiskey mixture with a little bit of flambé. I used Ghirardelli chocolate in the soufflé and Knob Creek whiskey for the pears. The earthy elements of the syrah showed through on the palate and complimented the flambéed pairs nicely while the zin profiles with the bitter sweet dark chocolate soufflé were a match made in heaven.

Toasting to a low-income bracket (two students and a young winemaker) and fabulous dining we finished stuffed and satisfied.