Pessagno Pinot & French Cut Bone-In Ribeye

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Rub for the rib-eye: 
Garlic infused EVOO, minced garlic, crushed rosemary, kosher salt and fine ground black pepper. After a light coat of the EVOO, I just use a nice size pinch of all the spices and let'm sit @ room temp for a couple hours before grilling. 6 mins on each side w/ the grille @ 450 degrees for a nice med-rare.  Cheers to all...


The vino:  '07 Pessagno, Spring Grove Vineyards, Pinot Noir - San Benito County 
I decanted this wine for one hour and it opened up nicely.  The wine has red fruit / cherry on the nose with nice acidity. The mid-palate showed some vanilla due to American Oak aging and the wine has a nice lingering finish. I like the structure and complexity of this wine.  It was very nice with the grilled rib-eye.

Baus Family Zinfandel

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This is an Old Vine Zin from Sonoma County. <$15. It's big boy @ 15.4% alcohol but, surprisingly, not too tannic. It has much dark fruit on the nose - blackberry, black cherry & dusty. The wine has good balance with a touch of spiciness on the mid-palate. It's nice and warm leading to a lingering finish, very nice since it's 40 degrees outside tonight. Pair this wine with a hearty meal or just get a "full pour" and enjoy.  Cheers to all...

Ceviche & Margarita Martini

Seabass-Scallop-Shrimp Ceviche & Margarita Martini

Ceviche Recipe:

1/2 lb Seabass, boneless fillet
1/2 lb Shrimp, peeled & de-vained
1/4 lb Small Scallops
12 limes, juiced

Dice fish/shrimp/scallop into small pieces.  Dice the small scallop into four pieces - about that size for all your diced seafood is a good size.
Place all your diced seafood in a 9x13 baking dish.  Pour the juice of the 12 limes over the seafood.  You want the juice to just cover or be at the top of the seafood.  The acid in the lime juice will cook all the seafood.
Cover with saran wrap and place in refrigerator.  Stir every hour or so and leave in refrigerator overnight.  Stir the next day every hour or so until you add the remaining ingredients.  The stirring will make sure the lime juice is cooking all the seafood evenly.

Remaining ingredients: (Mix these ingredients on the second day.)

3 plum tomatoes, cored & diced
1/2 sweet onion, diced (vidalia or spanish)
3 - 4 Tbsp chopped, fresh cilantro
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper, fine ground
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 Tbsp white vinegar
Mix these ingredients in mixing bowl.

Remove seafood from refrigerator and separate the liquid into another bowl.  Now, add the above ingredients into the seafood.  Add 1/2 the juice from the seafood back into the mixture.  Place this in a tupperware bowl and refrigerate for 3 - 4 hours, stirring every hour.

Final ingredient:
2 avocados, diced
Stir the diced avocado into the mixture just before eating.

Serve with Pita chips or whatever you prefer...

Margarita Martini Recipe:
3 oz Patron
3 oz Fresh squeezed lime juice
1 oz Simple syrup
(Optional - splash of Grand Marnier)
Shake on ice / strain...

Right Bank Bordeaux

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95% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc
<$25
The bright, deep ruby color and the fresh fruity nose of some cherry, black plum and earthiness are the first to cross the senses. The wine was plum on the nose and somewhat medicinal just after opening.  The first impression in mouth is a pleasant balance of smoothness and rich fine tannins where notes of raspberry and blackcurrant blended together with spicy flavours of liquorice.  The liquorice persisted throughout the entire bottle.

'09 Domaine de Couron

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<$20
This is a blend of Grenache & Cabernet.  It has dark fruit, blackberry-black cherry, on the nose but with a hint of the earthiness French wines are known for.  I thought the last two glasses of the wine were more balanced than the first, it opened up nicely.  You get the nice dark fruit from the Cab and the mouth-filling roundness of the Grenache which gives it good balance, not too tannic.  I got a hint of vanilla on the mid-palate and a little spice or maybe it was just the alcohol as this wine is 14.5%.  Should I buy this again, I'd decant it for a hour and give it time to show it's best.  Cheers to all...

Lamb Chops & Luchador Shiraz

Video link to yesterday's cooking:
unWine'd TV

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Lamb Chops
I used garlic infused EVOO, crushed rosemary, kosher salt, cracked black pepper and minced garlic for the rub.  I let that sit in the refrigerator for several hours prior to grilling but let the chops come back to room temp before cooking.  I grilled them 4 - 5 mins on each side @ 450 degrees.  That produced a very nice med-rare.  The chops were as tender as a beef fillet but with a "slightly" bolder taste than beef.  Very good!
Lamb was purchased @ The Butcher Block in Franklin, Tn.
The Butcher Block

Sides:
Oven Roasted New Potatoes, Mushrooms & Brussel Sprouts

Vino:
'07 Luchador, Australian Shiraz <$20; dark fruit on the nose, not too tannic, some spiciness and a nice finish.  The wine paired well with the full flavor of the lamb.

Pekin Duck Cutlets & Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

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I was vacationing in San Francisco a few years ago and had dinner at "Gary Danko."  It's a very nice restaurant, impeccable service as well as a great atmosphere and food.  Give it a try the next time you're in San Fran.
http://www.garydanko.com/


I'm always looking at restaurant menus for new cooking ideas and just happened upon this "Pekin Duck Cutlet" recipe from Gary Danko in my most recent Wine Spectator magazine.  So, I decided that I was going to give this recipe a try; moreover, I've not prepared duck before so it was a new challenge.  Being that Pekin Duck is not found locally where I live, I reached out to my local butcher "Tag'z" and had him find it for me.  Tag'z is my go-to for fine foods.
http://tagz5starmeats.com/


The wine I chose was an '09 Rodney Strong Pinot Noir from the Russian River Valley (Sonoma Coast).  The Russian River is West of the Santa Rosa, CA area and one of my personal favorites for Pinots.  This wine (<$20) is a light, brick, red in color with red fruit on the nose, Bing Cherry being the most noticeable.  It's aromatic with nice acidity and a medium body.  The tannins are mild and it has a nice finish.  It pairs very well w/ the herbal and citrus flavours in the duck and vegetables.


Making the Duck Cutlets: (Reference - Wine Spectator Magazine)
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp grated orange zest
1 cup orange juice, reduced to 1/2 cup
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp chopped parsley
2 Tbsp EVOO
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 Pekin Duck breasts (4 halves), skinless, w/ tenderloin removed
1 eggplant, cut into 1/2" rounds
2 zucchini, sliced lengthwise, 1/4" thick


1.  Combine the first 8 ingredients to make the marinade.  Divide into two equal parts and set aside.
2.  Place one whole breast in a large, resealable plastic bag.  Lay it flat on the counter, and with a rubber mallet, pound the meat.  Start in the middle and work outward, both sides, until the breast is 1/2" thick.
3.  Remove the first breast from the bag, and repeat the pounding process with the remaining breasts.  Place half the marinade in the bag with the breasts, and place in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight.  Marinate the vegetables in the remaining marinade for an hour or two prior to cooking.
4.  Preheat the grille to med-high heat.  Grille the vegetables 3 - 5 mins or to your preference.
5.  Remove duck breasts from the refrigerator before cooking to allow the meat to come back to room temp.  With the grill on med-high heat, grille the breasts for 2 - 3 mins per side for a nice med-rare.  Let rest for a few mins before slicing.  Slice thinly at a 45 degree angle, serve with vegetables.  Cheers....


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