brunosdream

Remy's 1st Tuesday Tasting December 

6th, 2005: Cal-Ital (Italian 
varietals produced in California)

 I'll be honest w/ you, even after 

my culinary training I still have a 
lot to learn about matching food w/ 

wine. I'm still a novice at identifying 
aromas and flavors in wine, which 

is crucial in bridging food and wine 
together. What I have learned is if 

you find a wine w/ basic elements that 

match or enhance the basic elements in 

the food you're serving, you have the 
foundations for a good pairing. 

Chef Lisa Slay and Sommelier Phil Peimann 

did a fantastic job w/ this. Lisa's 

creations meshed beautifully w/ 
Phil's wine selections. I don't know 

if they built the menu around the wine or

vice versa, but the end product had me 

and my friends salivating like 
Pavlov's dog as each course was presented 

to us!

 We started w/ duck and leek 

ravioli w/ browned almond butter. These 
were large squares of spinach pasta 

stuffed w/ leek and tender pieces of 
duck. The browned almond sauce added a 

delicate essence. This was paired w/ 
Flora Springs Sangiovese '03 Napa Valley. 

If Duane hadn't been so hungry we 
would have had a photo of the ravioli!

 The next course 

was "Drunken Porkloin" w/ sauteed 

carrots and capers. The meat was so 

tender you could cut it w/ a fork! 

The capers added a nice tartness to 

the mix. Paired w/ Rabbit Ridge 

Brunelllo '01 Paso Robles. Phil 

pointed out that Brunello is also 

made w/ sangiovese grapes, however 

the name varies depending on the 

region in Italy the wine is produced.

 Lastly, 

we sampled braised short ribs 

w/ sweet potato puree and gremolata. 

What an awesome dish! A nice riff 

on osso buco. The meat was braised 

to perfection - it was tender and 

falling off the bones. 

The sweet potato puree went 

beautifully w/ the short ribs 

and the gremolata provided a nice 
citrus finish. This was surrounded 

by a pool of intensely flavored 

braising liquid which Phil found 

so delicious he said he could drink it 

by the glass! I concur!! This dish was 

paired w/ Renwood Barbera '00 

Amador County - a region in the 

Sierra Foothills known for it's 

Zins. Out of the 3 wines 
we sampled, this one won 

by a unanimous vote!

 Bruno&Phil 

discussing wine
 

I finished the evening w/ a 

delicious caramel apple ice cream 

and a glass of petite champagne 

cognac. Bravo Lisa and Phil!!

Bruno"The Mayor"  Photos by Duane