Regardless of the look on my face, I was having a great time. This was taken at about 6:15 and the dinner didn't actually start until 7:00. We were having a glass of champagne and a small cheese plate, trying to feed Chris Brown (middle), Julie Brown's husband (Julie is taking the picture.) Filling out the picture are TR and me. Julie Brown is TR's daughter. Chris is always hungry, but also I think he knew that, since he was our designated driver, he had to keep food in his stomach while drinking. The place filled up greatly later. This was a good time to take the picture, though. Later than this Julie would have been sitting on someone's lap to take the picture.
We had gone over to Homestead first to pick up past wine club selections there. But they were hosting a huge bus tour, so we just grabbed out wine and fled, putting us at D'Vine early. No worries, it made finding parking easier. I was also glad we had gotten there early, because I needed a ladder to climb up to the bar stool. It had been difficult before, but never that hard! I swear, the next time they measure me, I will be 4' 9.5"! I'm getting shorter while the rest of the world just gets taller. Why can't chairs be made people-size? This is probably how Peter Dinklage feels all the time!
The dinner was catered by a new company (for D'Vine, anyway)--All in Good Taste Catering. It is mainly run by a married couple, Sharon Hardy-Easter is the chef and Hal Easter is general manager. www.allingoodtastecatering.net. They do not have a restaurant, so their attention is not divided. They brought their own wait staff making the evening go very smoothly and taking a huge load off the winery's staff who now only had to deal with serving the wine. It was a bit more expensive than in the past, but well worth it.. the food was worth blogging about.
Our first course was Italian Flatbread with Lemon Artichoke Spread and Pine Nuts (the spread was divine!) It was paired with D'Vine's White Symphony (a Chardonnay, Riesling, and Semillon blend). The only problem now was that it was self serve, and getting the ladder back out for me to climb up on would be difficult now that the place was both crowded and busy. Julie volunteered to get my food for me, and she was probably even more generous with me than I'd have been with myself. The wine was a bit bland, but was a good fit for this course since the flavor of the spread was lovely, but delicate.
Next was a Strawberry Salad (and spinach leaves), with Toasted Almond, Chive and Basil Dressing and a Boursin Pinwheel Biscuit. The bread was not my definition of a biscuit--it was more my definition of Challa bread or a Brioche (mildly sweet), but more flavorful. It was a yeast bread made in a pinwheel (like a cinnamon roll) and delicious. They served butter, but it was totally unnecessary. The salad was perfect, refreshing, and full of flavor. It was paired with D'Vine's Pink Vine which they bill as a dry rose. It is dry, but is also light and slightly fruity, and was a good accompaniment to the strawberry salad.
The entrée was Coffee Crusted 6 oz. Beef Filet, Garlic Roasted Fingerling Potato, and Grilled Heirloom Tomatoes with Balsamic Glaze. The surprise was that the steak had been infused with a thick, rich chocolate syrup (genache?)--injected with it actually. I ate the whole thing, but I don't think I'd choose it again. I will never refuse chocolate in whatever form it is served, but that is definitely not my preferred form. Also, the steak was overcooked. She was obviously going for medium rare, but mine was closer to medium well. I prefer my steak very rare, so she never had a prayer with me (I wonder how the blood would have mixed with the chocolate?) The conditions were such that, well I don't think I'd ever have chosen to serve steak--catering it to approximately one hour away from where it was cooked with no cooking equipment at the venue. (D'vine probably has a microwave, but all they need for their cheese plates is a refrigerator, cupboard, and counter.--I think that pretty much is all they have.) I'd never serve steak there, unless I could set up a grill outside the back door and cook to order. I'll bet they have figured that out by now, however. This was (I think) their first time catering this venue. Of course, the beef may have been requested by the winery, wanting to showcase their Pinot Noir.
The vegetables were superb and Chris commented that that was the best tomato he'd ever had. I didn't finish my potatoes, but that was the fault of my wanting to save room for dessert, not the potatoes. The course was paired with the Pinot Noir, the perfect choice to complement both the beef and the chocolate.
The dessert was Peach Bread Pudding with Sweet Pecan and Peach Brandy Sauce. I am a bread pudding lover, but TR usually turns up his nose at it saying he doesn't eat white stuff. But not this time, he not only finished his, but he jumped on both Chris's and Julie's unfinished portions (they were full because they had eaten their potatoes...LOL). So, I'd say a highly successful dessert, rich with just the right amount of sweetness and fruitiness. With it was served D'Vine's Almond Sparkling Wine which is one of our favorites (most of us had started the evening off with it.) I bought six bottles of the Almond Sparkling to take home with us.
We both slept very well last night and this morning I weighed 1 1/2 pounds more than I did yesterday.....Everything has its consequences.
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