Enjoy a wine and cheese tasting featuring the Robert Mondavi Stemware collection from Waterford. As a fourth generation family member of Schaefer's Wines, Foods & Spirits, I will speak to the paring of wine and cheese as the experts of Waterford reveal how the correct glass can make your wine taste that much better. For more information, please call 630.974.4377 (Bloomingdale's).

 

WHEN & WHERE:

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

BLOOMINGDALE'S OLD ORCHARD

7:30 - 8:30 pm

Demo Kitchen on 3

Like many of the finest ideas, the inspiration for Gordon Brothers Family Vineyard sprang from a simple observation: farmer Jeff Gordon and his brother Bill noticed that Washington State's Columbia Valley shared the same latitude as Bordeaux. A student of agriculture, Jeff studied the local microclimate and the rich volcanic soil and became convinced that if properly cultivated, the Columbia Valley was capable of producing excellent wines. Over twenty years later, he's more than turned his idea into reality - one of only a dozen wineries in Washington that can claim 100% estate-grown wines, they now produce Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Late Harvest Gewürztraminer, Syrah, and their highly acclaimed flagship red blend, "Tradition."

 

New to our shelves, the Gordon Brothers Merlot 2005 is a lovely rich wine with a great mouthfeel and wonderful aromas of black cherry, spice and rose petals. It is made from 92% Merlot, with 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Malbec blended in to add complexity to the wine. Wine Spectator gave it 91 points and declared it "Ripe and generous, a silky, plush-textured mouthful of red plum, raspberry, cream and coffee flavors that arch enticingly from the first sip through the long, round finish. Drink now through 2013." Regularly $21.95, this wine is available now at $17.97 - try it now with your favorite grilled meats.

This Saturday our tasting room will feature wines and snacks from Spain, courtesy of Robert Houde of Garnacha Imports. Robert will be on hand to pour and speak about some wonderful Spanish wines - red, white and rosé - while our deli staff offers equally tasty treats. Please stop by for this FREE tasting, any time between 11 and 5 on Saturday, Aug. 4th.

We had the pleasure of attending the Summer 'White Out' Wine Dinner at Oceanique (505 Main Street, Evanston) featured in last week's Say Vino and wanted to tell you all what you missed! Oceanique is a wonderful seafood-focused restaurant that is incredibly creative, yet without the pretension you'll find in many high-end downtown restaurants. On top of that, they have a terrific wine list and love showing off their food by pairing it with just the right wine: on the last Wednesday of every month, Oceanique prepares a special fixed-price wine dinner featuring a handful of exquisitely chosen wines, usually from the same producer or region, and Schaefer's is happy to partner with them in presenting some of these monthly treats. It was definitely a treat to go out mid-week for such a lovely meal - check out their website for next month's topic, watch this space for the next time we partner with Oceanique again, and plan on splurging some time in the coming months with a visit for one of their wine dinners!

 

So - the details: the welcome wine was an elegant Cremant de Loire from Domaine des Baumard - it is made from 100% Chenin Blanc in contrast to the traditional Champagne blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. It is bone-dry and offers less toast than many traditional Champagnes, plus it costs far less than most Champagnes as well. It was so good that Schaefer's will be accepting pre-sale orders so you can try it too: regularly priced at $24.95, you may order some this week at only $19.97.

 

The first course was a tomato & bufala mozzarella salad, served with an Alsatian blend from Kuentz-Bas. It had a lovely floral nose but since the blend didn't include Riesling or Gewurztraminer, it was neither as spicy nor as sweet as many blended Alsatians. Next came ravioli of hon shemeji, a type of mushroom, in a Madeira and parmesan sauce that was paired with Domaine du Salvard's 2006 Cheverny - and all we can say is wow! This was a brilliant combination: the wine, made from 85% Sauvignon Blanc with 15% Chardonnay added to give a little weight and spice to the wine, had a lovely soft mouthfeel and surprisingly little minerality and worked just beautifully with the ravioli, pulling out the strong flavors of the Madeira and the earthy depth of the mushroom. This wine is currently sold out but expected back in the area by mid-August and you may order some this week at only $14.97 (regularly $18.95).

 

The meal went on to a course with halibut paired with a Savennieres (also from Dom. des Baumard), then a sorbet then a delicious quail served with an equally delicious Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc, but since this is already really long, we'll just finish with dessert: a lovely warm peach cobbler served with blueberry ice cream on top and paired with Dom. de Durban Muscat Beaumes-de-Venise 2005. This lovely dessert wine was full of honey and spice with candied apricot flavors. It was delicate and matched the hot peach and cinnamon perfectly without being cloyingly sweet or overly fruity (as is sometimes the case with Muscat). The new 2005 vintage is also due in mid-August. Regularly priced at $23.95, you may pre-order some this week at only $17.97. (Ben and Barbara Rooks)

That's all for this week. If we may be of any further service, please stop by our store at 9965 Gross Point Road in Skokie (for directions, click here), visit our website at http://www.schaefers.com, give us a call at 847-677-WINE (9463), 800-833-WINE (9463), or click here to contact us.