Caymus Vineyards Wine Dinner - May 2007

Caymus Vineyards Wine Dinner

May 10, 2007

Chicken and Spinach Canneloni

with Asiago Cream and Tomato Concasse

Mer Soleil Chardonnay 2005

Poached Sablefish with Chipotle Orange Butter Sauce

over a Supersweet Corn and Black Bean Relish

Conundrum 2005

Duck Rillette over Morel Mushroom Duxelle

on a Roast Garlic Crostini

Belle Glos "Clark and Telephone" Pinot Noir 2005

Chargrilled Kona Coffee dusted Sliced Kobe Flank Steak

over Foie Gras Potato Mash with Grilled Zuchinni

Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon 2004

Bavarian Cream and Fresh Berry Mille Feuille

Mer Soleil Late 2002

OK, to my legions of fans that have been waiting with baited breath ... so this is over a month late but here's my review of the Caymus Wine Dinner at Dusty's in Okemos, MI.

Overall, the dinner was fair. The wines, thankfully, were just incredible. The first course is not all that different from a canneloni that currently is on their lunch menu. So, nothing special or imaginative there. The Mer Soleil Chardonnay was just exquisite. Not at all oaky and just a smooth wine. I've got a couple of bottles of this in my fridge.

The sablefish course was just OK. The Conundrum is a wine that I've had before and it was just as I remembered -- smooth and nice nose to it ... a smell of perfume almost in the glass.

Duck rillete was good but the Belle Glos "Clark and Telephone" Pinot Noir was even better. The wine was just out of this world and it is now my wine of the moment. If I can find it anywhere on the shelf, I pick up a bottle for my collection. Incredible nose to it, fruity and just a real pleasure to drink on.

The Kobe steak was the course I was most looking forward to with the Caymus Cabernet. The Kobe was a real disappointment. The chef came out at the end of the meal to explain that on the spectrum of Kobe beef -- 1 being the lowest quality and 10 being the highest, he would rate the beef he served us at a 6 or 7. I would disagree. I would have called it more a 3. I've had London Broil with more tenderness and flavor. For the wine, you can never go wrong with anything that has "Caymus" on the label.

The Mer Soleil Late Viognier was just great! The taste of ice wine at a fraction of the cost. The Mille Feuille was a bit of a disappointment. "Mille Feuille" is supposed to be a thousand folds in French. The crust was not all that flaky or delicate. It was tasty though and it stood up to the wine pretty well.

I was glad that I went to the dinner to at least be able to experience the Belle Glos Pinot Noir. I don't think I would have gone if they weren't pouring Caymus.