The last meeting of the Dublin Wine Meetup Group was January 13th. The event was held at J Gilbert’s Wood Fired Steaks. There was a special menu put together for the event and guests were also free to order from their regular menu. This is the menu that was prepared:
First Course (choice of one)
- Crab Bisque
- House Salad
- Ceasar Salad
Entree (choice of one)
- Pan Roasted Chicken Marsala
- 10oz Top Sirloin
- Five Spice Chicken Penne Pasta
- Salmon Buerre Blanc
- 4oz Petit Filet and BBQ Shrimp
Dessert (choice of one)
- Creme Brulee
- Chocolate Velvet Cake
I had the Crab Bisque, 10oz Top Sirloin, and Creme Brulee (in my opinion, the perfect desert). Dinner was outstanding! I would highly recommend J Gilbert’s Wood Fired Steaks. Check out the restaurant on Sunday afternoon for great specials.
Now onto the wine! We had a selection of 4 wines for the evening. Steve was gracious enough to bring in a bottle of Jones Family Vineyard Cab ’98 (Calistoga, CA). This was made by Heidi Barrett. This lead into an interesting conversation about cult wines and finding good values. The wine itself was excellent. Very complex flavors and a beautiful color.
The next up was Fess Parker Pinot Noir (Santa Barbara, CA). This was another complex wine. Lots of cherry, cola, and berry. I could have used a little less tannin. This one is a buy for me to cellar for a while to see if the tannin will mellow out.
Wynns Coonawarra Estate Cab was mixed in here somewhere. Unfortunately, I must have been involved in a conversation because my notes on this wine are missing.
There was a white on the menu, Caymus Conundrum. To me this is the swiss army of white wines. It pairs well with everything and seems to appeal to every pallet. This is a blend of 11 different white wine grapes. The exact proportions are unknown. You can read more about this wine on the Conundrum Wines web site.
It looks like the group will be getting together again in March at J Gilbert’s. If you are interested in coming to dinner, please stop by the Meetup website and register for the event.