Il Pezzo Mancante

July 3, 2010

For this entry I travelled to a far-off place and new destination for this blog, Minnesota. Though slightly obscure, this place known as the Bread and Butter State provided me with an abundance of something rarely found on this earth, happiness and comfort. I guess one could say that it is debatable at best that it was the actual place that provided such feelings, rather than from one specific and undeniable source. But alas, that discussion is for another time. My reason for making this journey was not one driven by my typically epicurean motivations, but while there, I was fortunate enough to enjoy an evening of fine food and wine.

On this particular evening, along with the company of a certain someone that (if I had to guess) is going to be a regular character in many of my future adventures, we found ourselves in Minneapolis for dinner at Cafe/Bar Lurcat. In a newly remodeled building located between an attractive park and the impressive Basilica of Saint Mary's, this hip restaurant draws in a local crowd looking for something modern and sophisticated. Our enthusiastic waiter guided us through the evening with a seemingly unflappable love for his current situation.

The meal began with a Julienned Salad of Apple and Manchego in a chive oil dressing and also an order of the Duck Prosciutto with Goat Cheese Crostini and an apple and pickled onion accoutrement. Those were followed by an Asian styled Udon noodle and orange chicken dish with plenty of spice and an order of Roasted Pork Loin with a red wine reduction sauce, blue cheese and figs. The wine had to be Burgundy. Needless to say, after my recent trip to San Francisco, I am a budding fan of the wines from this region of France.

Domaine Rossignol-Trapet Gevrey-Chambertin 2005***
Began with bright red fruit similar to tart cranberry and plenty of saddle leather and dusty earth. I should have gone with my gut on this one and decanted it, but it was interesting to see this develop throughout the evening. The wine lacked a little bit of the mid-palate richness of some of the other Red Burgs that I've had recently, but really filled out as it was open. By the last glass it was deeper and darker, showing frutta di bosco, baking spice, and black cherry.

In my lifelong search for la dolce vita, this was one of the truly extraordinary meals of my life. The food was nice and the wine enjoyable, but for it's significance, there is a much more serendipitous and resplendent explanation...

Thank you all for reading.

Cheers!

0 Stars - No rating

1 Star (*) - Not of significant quality or interest
2 Stars (**) - A notable wine of legitimate interest
3 Stars (***) - Great wine that should be searched out
4 Stars (****) - Fantastic wine that should not be missed
5 Stars (*****) - An absolutely mind-bending wine - beg, borrow, or steal to get your hands on some of this amazing juice!

Disclaimer: This rating is based on my palate and at the given time when tasted and may differ from yours. Also, I may catch a bottle in a dumb phase or it just may not speak to me at that particular time.