The Fruits of Life!
Jack & Jill are big believers in enjoying the fruits of life. Often times, literally.
“Food, at its most basic level, is simply sustenance. It serves as energy for the body. Or at least, it’s supposed to. Unfortunately, our food, as a society, has been undermined and contaminated via additives and preservatives not to mention bioengineering. Various lobby groups have gone to great length…and expense…to ensure the survival of this profitable poisoning of the manna. It’s disgraceful to know that our government not only allows it but also subsidizes its existence and….”
“Jack!”
“Yes, dear?”
“You’re going off on a tangent. Again. Focus.”
(Grumble, grumble) “Ok.”
For us, going out to dinner is more than nutritional intake. It’s more of an exercise in feeding our soul. As such, we sometimes partake of ‘lighter exercise’ and other times enjoy ‘more strenuous workouts’ (that way, too). Regardless, we find great enjoyment in every aspect of our dining experience.
One aspect of a meal which is sometimes overlooked, or at the very least, under-appreciated, is THE drink. I am as guilty as most in this regard, opting for the easy out of a Tanqueray & Tonic (with lime, of course). Yet, in many instances, THE drink can make THE meal. It’s not a matter of adding another taste to the plate(s) but rather, ELEVATING the taste as well as the overall experience (there’s that word again).
In drinking this, uh, I mean, thinking this through, we decided to ‘review’ some wines we have indulged in. Prior to commencing, pls understand; when we say ‘review’ we simply mean, share our thoughts as well as someone else’s professional opinion. Neither of us is a sommelier nor do we aspire to be. We just like to drink. Wine. Together.
Not every dinner is a grand affair, though we certainly wish it could be. Some offerings are but local establishments, BYOB-style. In such situations we have found two bottles which mark well as ‘every day’ wines both in taste and cost. Regardless of cuisine, they always fits right in. Italian? That’s-a beautiful! Thai? Brings out the kick. Hibachi? Bonsai! Seafood? Charlie loves it! Chinese? Me love you, Joe! Spanish? Ay, que rico!
First up, we have the 2015 Apothic Dark (~$9.99).
Apothic Dark seamlessly integrates flavors of blueberry and blackberry with enticing notes of coffee and dark chocolate for a rich and smooth mouthful with layers of texture. Or, in laymen’s terms, it tastes like berries and chocolate! Jill simply loves ANYTHING chocolate! Further, you can’t beat a name like, Apothic Dark! It conjures images of Kiss’ Gene Simmons in classic pose.
On the occasions which call for a ‘bigger’ wine such as holidays, anniversaries/birthdays and, well, any opportunity to play ‘dress up’ with Jill (don’t judge), we have found Bordeaux’s to be the right choice (Burgandy’s are an extremely close second).
One such Bordeaux would be a 2010 Chateau Rollan de By, Medoc (~$32.99).
This is a medium to full-bodied offering with a core of raspberry and steeped blackberry fruit carrying an edge of sorts on the finish, yet still very smooth. This wine drinks quite nicely! And the fact that it’s so ‘French‘ makes me feel like an international man of mystery.
One of our favorite escapes is Las Vegas. When in Sin City we stay at either the Palazzo or Venetian, two sister hotels of the highest quality (we will share our Vegas experiences in due time). Invariably this leads to partaking in one of life’s greatest pleasures. One that is deeply rooted in the essence of man. Ok, outside that of innate sexual drive, which I’m happy to say, Jill has got a fantastic handle on! No, I speak of a steak dinner!
Needless to say, Las Vegas offers quite a number of very fine choices for steak and all the traditional accompaniments. One chophouse we have grown fond of is, Delmonico Steakhouse. This is an Emeril Lagasse restaurant which features steakhouse fare with his New Orleans twist. The offerings here are always outstanding; fresh, generous and varied. Equally impressive is their wine list. Actually, wine BOOK would be more accurate.
Recalling our first experience there…
Getting Jill to agree to a steak dinner is no easy feat. It’s simply something she doesn’t necessarily crave… unlike me. But agree she did. The hostess was lovely and the head waiter very much engaged, though his googly eyes revealed his true motivation (I am a VERY lucky man!). As Jill innocently flirted with our servers, I was engrossed in the novel, Wine & Peace!
Their wine selection is truly extraordinary, and I found myself a wee bit overwhelmed. A waiter, noticing my obvious dilemma, summoned the sommelier. My first thought was, ‘oh boy, I’m in trouble. I will have NO clue as to what that man will be saying and will reveal myself to be vinaceously inadequate.’
I am happy to say, I couldn’t be more mistaken.
The sommelier approached his task in a genuine and conversational manner, evoking wisdom and a true desire to share a wonderful experience. Managing to gain direction from us based on our forthcoming meals, as well as prior experiences, including what we deemed a comfortable price point (we had none, you only live ONCE), he quickly realized we were game to enter ‘his’ world and recommended a 2009 Chateau du Margaux ($999- granted, it was a wee bit less at the time). It was simply INCREDIBLE!
Paul Pontallier, the deeply respected and sadly missed former general manager of Chateau Margaux, is said to have stated, “If people don’t think this is one of the greatest wines I have ever made, then it means I haven’t really understood anything in the last 30 years spent making wine.”
This is quite simply, an absolutely amazing wine offering loads of fruit, steeped in plum, blackberry and red currant notes finely embroidered with accents of rooibos and black tea, tobacco leaf, with ripe aromas. It drinks so very slow with an exhilarating finish. If it wasn’t so damn expensive, we would’ve sucked down two bottles!
As the wine flowed and the courses came and went, we could feel our animal spirits being released, tannins leading to temptation! The balance of the evening was spent rolling the dice at the tables (luck was a lady that night!) and the wee hours spent rolling with each other in the sheets.
Ah, the fruits of life indeed!