Chardonnay Challenge by Ruinart!

Okay, it's not Ruinart, but the closest thing I had on hand: 2000 Dom Perignon.  and, on a side note, I tried one of the reserve Brut's at Frank Family Vineyards and it tasted strikingly similar to the 1999 Dom Perignon vintage.   Go Cali!

on www.guildsomm.com I found out about The Ruinart Chardonnay Challenge.  Ultimately, if you win the challenge, you win a trip to Champagne.  I entered by taking an online quiz about chardonnay and got an email 3 days ago that I got accepted to attend!  It's tomorrow in San Francisco!  Aeeiii!

I'm hoping to make some good contacts, invitees include Gillian Ballance who is the head Sommelier at PlumpJack Restaurants, Jess Altieri who heads up a wine-related webvideo site called http://winechanneltv.tv/ and Michael Ireland at Quince Restaurant.  Unfortunately, if they googled my name, like I did to all of them, they'd see that I'm an electro-pop producer, which is a world or two away from being a certified wino.   Bygones.

It feels like Ruinart is trying to reinvigorate the chardonnay varietal for connoisseurs, by celebrating it as a major component in Champagne.  I'm not opposed to this, mainly because I'm part of the school that is convinced that France makes better white wine than red.  So let's do this!  Tasting is tomorrow.  Wish me luck..

The Holy Trinity: Pesto, Risotto Cakes & Dukkah

Lucky for us, it was Monday and The Vintner's Restaurant had a light crowd and seated us at 7:30pm.  With a wall of the best local wines and a simple menu, we requested a vegetarian entree par the chef's descretion.  Out came a plate of bread, local olive oil and a popular addition called Dukkah which is a crushed blend of fennel, coriander seeds and sesame seeds.  Holy shit! Delicious!  Next, the pumpkin risottos balls and our recommended wine in a decanter: Laughing Jack 2005 Shiraz.

I'm happy I remembered to photo this dinner, it was one of the most memorable dinners ever.  Shawn Kalleske makes Laughing Jack and you can literally call him and go to his house to try his wine. The very next day, I called... and called, and then it occurred to me that Tuesday Nov. 3rd is the Melbourne Cup, Australia's official excuse to take the day off! Poop.  No more Laughing Jack for Madeline.