I participated in Triangle Restaurant Week Saturday, dining at Revolution in Durham (had planned to dine at Vin Rouge in Durham on Friday evening but Tropical Storm Andrea changed my plans.) Had a good three-course dinner for $30 consisting of appetizer of haystack shrimp with lemon aioli, entree of sirloin steak with lemon-flavored potatoes and fresh snap peas, and dessert of coffee panna cotta with espresso sauce. Beverages were extra and I had a glass of Crienne Rose' with the shrimp and a glass of a Bordeaux Superior (Chateau Haut La Peyreyre) with the sirloin. My only regret was that they were out of the lamb that had initially been listed in place of the beef. I especially liked the coffee panna cotta. I stayed overnight near Triangle Research Park and attended a wine tasting at Westgate Wine Store in Raleigh before the dinner in Durham.
Wines tasted:
2011 Sutherland Chardonnay, South Africa
2011 Paul Cluver Chardonnay, Elgin, South Africa
I liked both these wines for different reasons. I wasn't taking notes while tasting but I was attracted by the nose on the Sutherland Chardonnay. No noticeable oak influences. Fruity. The Paul Cluver which was about $2.00 a bottle more than the Sutherland did show a bit of oak influence but was a bit richer or fuller because of the oak. My personal preference might be for the Sutherland but I decided the Paul Cluver might be more popular at a church fundraiser so bought two bottles.
Next up was a Sierre Madre Chardonnay that didn't make much impression on me. I did somewhat like the 2010 Walter Hansel North Slope Chardonnay but not at the price difference over the South Africa wines. The Walter Hansel was $39.99 a bottle or $35.99 at case price while the Paul Cluver was $19.99 a bottle or $17.99 at case price.
I also tried the 2009 DeBiase Pinot Noir which I had purchased previously and the 2009 Sierra Madre Pinot Noir and the 2011 Belle Glos Dairyman Vineyard Pinot Noir. I had been wanting to taste the Dairyman and purchased two bottles of it.
The tasting finished up with a blind tasting of two Cabernet Sauvignons. I prefered the second one which was a 2011 Casarena Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva from Mendoza, Argentina. It received 92 points from IWC. The first Cabernet was the 2010 Caymus Napa Valley C.S. (not the Special Selection.) I thought the Argentinian wine had a longer finish and more complexity than the Napa wine. I bought two bottles of the Casarena at $17.99 a bottle as opposed to $64.99 for the Caymus (but then blew the savings by ordering one bottle of the 2010 Caymus Special Selection C.S. due in today.) One other wine I purchased without tasting it first was two bottles of Daulny Sancerre Clos de Chaudenay Vielles Vignes (Sauvignon Blanc.)