It's no secret that my absolute favorite place to go out to eat is Luca's Mediterranean Cafe in Keene. Nathan and I first went there 12 years ago when my parents gave us a gift certificate for dinner and we've been faithful patrons ever since. The food and wine is always fantastic, but it's way more than that. Luca and his staff always make our family - our WHOLE family - feel like celebrities every time we go there. The customer service is fantastic and we always know we'll have a wonderful time - every time.
We have so many memories tied to this restaurant: Nathan and I got engaged at the window table, I had my 30th birthday party in the wine cellar, and we've enjoyed numerous meals with friends and family with laughter and love. It's a special place.
A few weeks ago, Laura, Luca's general manager, contacted me to see if I'd like to come to a wine tasting with their supplier to try some new wines and choose some new ones for the restaurant. Favorite restaurant + wine tasting = an offer I couldn't refuse!
So early one morning (yes, the tasting was at 10AM), I headed down to the restaurant and met with Laura, Luca, Sheila Sheehan from Fortune Wine Brokers in Dover, and Richard Bruno, winemaker and owner of Vinum Cellars in Napa, CA, for an exciting hour of wine tasting.
That's Richard ... he makes seriously delicious wines.
First up was the sparkling wine. This is a new endeavor for Vinum Cellars, and I have to say they do a great job! Light, bubbly, yummy ... (can you tell I'm no wine expert? These descriptions are going to be very elementary and are strictly my opinions ...) And this was probably the most appropriate bottle to be drinking at 10AM.
After the bubbly, we sampled two whites and a rose. Not usually being a fan of either, I was pleasantly surprised with these. The whites were very soft and buttery (not too oaky like so many whites) and the rose was light, crisp and fresh. It made me long for hot summer days, sitting outside, sipping a glass of chilled wine.
And then ... it was time for the good stuff. I LOVE red wine. Love it. Every time I am asked "What is your favorite beverage?", red wine is always the answer. So I was very excited when we got to the reds.
This Cabernet was good. A nice bottle of decent, drinkable red wine that went down easy and would have gone well with a delicious meal.
But the Petite Sirah?
O.M.G.
This wine is exactly what I look for in a red. A rich, bold flavor and very dry. It was so dry that Laura had to drink about half a bottle of water after taking a sip, but me? I was in heaven. It was the best dry red I have had in a long time. If you like your reds rich, bold and DRY, this is the wine for you. (And if it hadn't been 10:20-ish AM, I would have had a couple glasses for sure.)
Side note - the dog on the label is the dog of the man who originally invested in the cellar. Touching, no?
The last wine of the morning was this Cabernet Sauvingnon. A higher-end bottle than the others we had been tasting, this was a definite winner, too. This is the type of wine that you buy when you go out to dinner and want a GOOD bottle of wine to enjoy with your meal. It will be available at Lucas later this month - and if you enjoy a delicious red and are planning a dinner out - definitely order this bottle. You will not be disappointed.
A couple side notes from the morning:
While it was fun to try some new wines, it was especially entertaining to meet the wine maker and hear about his vineyard; how he makes the wines and the mission of his business. Vinum Cellars makes all their wines by hand, in small batches, and does all the can to use sustainable products and practices. Richard was very passionate about his product and his winery - and it will be fun to drink some of these wines at the restaurant after meeting the wine maker in person.
Except for the last Cabernet, all the bottles have screw tops ... which personally I love. It's so much less pretentious to pull a bottle of delicious, drinkable wine out of the wine rack, open it up, and enjoy it ... without the whole production of carefully uncorking the bottle, examining the cork, (wondering what the heck am I now supposed to do with this cork that's just been placed in front of me!?!). These wines are accessible, drinkable and delicious!
Lastly, THANK YOU to Luca and Laura for inviting me to join in this fun experience! I can hardly wait to go eat at the restaurant soon and enjoy a bottle of the Cabernet. And as soon as the Petite Shirah is available, I'll be back for a bottle of that, for sure. My mouth is drying out just thinking of it. (Bliss!)
