Yesterday I was all geared up to go to the Domaine Serene 20th anniversary tasting and lunch at RN74. I got to work super early, plugged away at my desk until it was time to leave, hopped across the Bay Bridge, spent thirty minutes searching for parking (the best I found was $15 flat rate) and headed to the restaurant exactly at 11:30 A.M. Upon entering I noticed that there was no one there. I walked up to the host and said, "Umm, I'm here for a tasting?", the response, "It is tomorrow!" Oh crap! Well, I had two choices: 1. Go back to the office and have a crap lunch 2. Stay for lunch and then go back to the office. I went with the later and was thankful for it.
I moseyed up to the bar and one of the nicest bartenders I have been around in a long time, June, set a place for me. He was explaining the drink he had just concocted to the guested seated next to me, a gin and Cynar based cocktail with homemade Rhubarb juice. I was intrigued, so I decided to take a look at the cocktail menu. I was immediately drawn to the Muscat Sour. I am a sucker for drinks with egg whites in them (protein right?). I have enjoyed and made many a Whiskey sour but this drink got me going: Don Cesar Pisco, Essencia Orange Muscat, fresh lemon juice, egg white and Angostura Orange bitters. It was fantastic, perfectly balanced between sweet and sour and the Pisco combined with the Orange Muscat gave the cocktail gorgeous aromatics of citrus, peach, apricot and white flowers. It was a great way to start my Monday lunch.
My first course, yes I had multiple courses for lunch on a Monday, was Grilled Mushrooms with hearts of romaine, chickpea panisse, pine nuts and nisoice olives. There was a complete harmony in the dish and unique playfulness from the combination of varied textures, flavors, and aromas. The crunch of the lettuce with the warmth and richness of the mushrooms gave my foodie senses an almost hedonistic pleasure. To continue the Monday debauchery I felt it appropriate...no, imperative, that if I was going to have mushrooms I was mandated by the "food gods" to order red Burgundy. Right?
RN74 is the brainchild of Rajat Parr who has designed an expansive wine list with an emphasis on Burgundy. The wine list has depth, breadth and even some wines I can afford. The wine by the glass list rotates and has a good selection of wines from around the world. In addition to offering full glasses of wine, they offer half-glasses allowing guests to sample a variety of wine of their meal without having to sell their houses or any limbs. Since I am a sucker for trying a bunch of different wines I created my own little Burgundy flight with the three offerings on the by-the-glass (BTG) menu: Domaine Lejeune "Les Argillieres" 1er Cru Pommard 2006, Jerome Chezeaux "Les Chaumes" 1er Cru, Vosne-Romanee 2004, and Domaine Tollot-Beaut Chorey-Cote de Beaune 2006.
It was so interesting to try all three wines next to each other, with the two 06's really expressing the vintage in very different ways. The Lejeune was an elegant and bright wine with delicate aromatics of sour cherries, red plums, dried mushrooms, and hints of pressed leaves. The Tollot-Beaut was a bit more of a brute with deeper extraction, more oak and a tad less acidity. Both wines were good but I preferred the delicacy and nervy acidity of the Lejeune. The Chezeaux was really a beautiful wine.
Many people have panned the 2004 vintage in Burgundy but I find the vintage's aloofness endearing and as the wines age I'm finding them able toexpress more terroir than the big and burly 2005's. The Chezeaux had bright red fruits mixed with savory spice notes, hints of clove, truffle, a touch of fresh mulch. It showed depth, complexty and length on the palate that so many wines aspire to but fail to achieve, when Burgundy hits on all cilendars it is tough to find anything better (except maybe Barolo). All three wines were great examples of what is going on in Burgundy today. The ability to smell and taste the varried approaches to their vineyard sources is truly amazing.
Besides mushrooms what better dish to have than duck, ergo my order of Liberty Farms Duck "Cassoulet" with barley, duck sausage and shitake mushrooms. The duck was perfectly cooked the skin was crispy and the meat melted in my mouth. It was served over the barley with the rich reduction screaming to be had with a glass of red Burgundy. The combination of the wines with dish was pure and classic. I really enjoyed the Jerome Chezeaux the best with this dish. Its depth and complexity paried seemlessly with the earthiness and game flavors of the "Cassoulet". After I finished the duck I decided not to go for the kill and have dessert, so I could save a little mystery for my next time at RN74. If you live in the Bay Area i highly recomend either lunch or dinner (menus are different) at RN74 and if you don't live here, well we need some more tourists. You will be super glad you came.
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