Ciao Italia! Ahoy ye sea lovers!

Chef Ashley Ondrick plating
smoked swordfish

Last Thursday evening, At the Table With... took a trip through the Italian wine country with Martin Langer of OZ wines and it was bellisimo!  

With a start of creative tapas styled bar food (Speck Wrapped Breadsticks with Apple Moustarda) paired with Prosecco from Veneto and a finish of traditional fare (Coffee and Red Wine Braised Beef Cheeks) matched with Barolo from Piedmonte, Martin and his guests enjoyed a spectacular evening.

Martin Langer of OZ wines speaking to guests.

Thank you to all who joined us on this sojourn to Italy.  And a gracious tip of the hat to Martin Langer  & Chef Ashley Ondrick for bringing a knowledge of the Italian grape and its consumate lover, la cuinca, to our Table.

If you missed this tour through Italy, join us for one of the many adventures to come... 

Thursday January 24, 2013 7:00pm  

• Chris Edelman of Seafood Specialities dishes up sustainable treasures from the Northeast Atlantic.

Thursday February 07, 2013 7:00pm

• Don't miss Mystic Brewery's Brian Greenhagen  showcasing new beers brewed with the oldest of traditions right here in our own backyard (Chelsea.)

We look forward to sitting around the table with you!!!
ATW

And the other shoe drops...

Here it is!  Translated from Italian, the menu for this coming Thursday's At The Table With... Martin Langer of OZ wines.  For those joining us, gear up for an intimate evening exploring Italia through the art of cucina e vini.  If you weren't able to get a seat this time round, no worries please, we'll be hosting many more dinners At The Table With...  Check out what's coming up next!

Se il vino è il cibo dell'amore.

Martin Langer Wine Dinner Menu

Here it is folks, hot off the digital press:

First Course

Trio of Seafood

Salt Cod Beignet with Squid Ink

Grilled Oyster with Grapefruit Sabayon

Chilled Lobster and Deviled Egg

Second Course

Seared Squab Breast with Red Wine Sauce

Roasted Garlic and Black Truffle Custard

Frissee with Walnut Vinaigrette

Third Course

Deconstructed Cassoulet

Crispy Duck Confit and Seared Foie Gras

Garlicky Pork Sausage White Bean Cake

Seared Spinach and Armagnac Plumped Prunes

Fourth

New England Cheese Board with House Made Jams

And Whole Wheat Crisps

Dessert

Dried Cherry Clafouti with Roasted Pear and Whipped Cream

Martin Langer Dinner:Decoding French Wine Labels

    For some strange reason the French have been stereotyped as being snooty, pretentious and obtuse. Having traveled in France my experience has been quite contrary. A simple "Good Morning" or "I am sorry I don't speak French, can you help me" spoken in French was enough to break the ice. With this in mind, I began formatting the wine list that Martin sent over and at first glance, it's kind of intimidating. One might argue that some of the labels present as snooty pretentious and obtuse. But again, after some initial digging I came to understand that there is a rhyme and reason to the labels and with a new understanding. Check out the list:

Aperitif at the Counter: Cotes de Gascogne

Domaine Menard – 2010- "Haut Marin Blanc"  

Ugni Blanc/Colombard/Gros Manseng

First Course: Jurancon

 Clos Lapeyre -2010 - Jurancon sec

Clos Lapeyre-2007- Jurancon Vitage Vielh

 Gros Manseng/Petite Manseng

Second Course: Gaillac

Domaine Rotier-2008- Gaillac rouge "les gravels"

 Duras/Bracoul/syrah/Cabernet sauvignon

Third Course: Irouleguy

Domaine Illaria-2008-

 Tannat/Cabernet Franc

Fourth Course: Cotes du Marmandais

  Elian da Ros – 2009- "ce vin est une fete"

Abouriou, Cabernet Franc, Merlot

Elaiin de Rosa - 2008 - Chante Coucou Rouge 

Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec

Dessert:Fronton

Flambant du Château Montauriol- 2010

Negrette

     Most likely, the list above is confusing and worry not, what follows is a bit of info to help you decode the list.


Each course has been broken in to a specific location in the wine region of South West France, a relatively unknown region with a fraction of the prestige of it's close neighbor Bordeaux. This is good news for us because wines that are good enough to make it our shores are judged based more on their merit rather than their name..and at a much lower price. Below I have copied the second course and then given a definition to follow:

Second Course: Gaillac = Course Number:Location/town of wine producer

Domaine Rotier-2008- Gaillac rouge "les gravelles" = Producer---Vintage---Name of Wine

Duras/Bracoul/syrah/Cabernet sauvignon =Grape Varietals found in the wine

To give a comparison this is how wine  is typically listed in this country:


Cabernet Savignon, Robert Mondavi, Napa Valley, 2010


As you can see we are accustomed to ordering wine by the grape varietal (type of predominant grape in the wine). For example, most folks in the states will say "I'll have the Savignon Blanc" when ordering wine. For the French they have a concept known as terrior (roughly pronounced tear war) which means: a group of vineyards from a specific region that share the same soil, weather, grape varietals, and wine making style that all contribute to the personality and flavor profile of the wine. So when the French organize their labels and menus, they focus on the wines origin (and usually the more specific the origin the more expensive the wine is). For example in France if you would like to order a Pino Noir, then you would look for a wine from Burgundy, or if you want a Cabernet Savignon then you would order a wine from the region of Bordeux. 


Hopefully this bit of info has been helpful and if it peaks your interest, there is are still three seats left. 


On a side note one of the cool things about this dinner is that for course one and four we will be tasting two different wines from the same producer.


As always you can email us if you have any further questions. Of course Martin will also be breaking down the differences between "Domaine" and "Appelation" if you so wish at the dinner. Menu to follow and we look forward to seeing you all at The Table

Wines from Sud-Ouest

We just received the wine list for the At The Table With Martin Dinner and he has picked some gems from the South West of France. Now that we have wines picked the next move is to write the menu. The menu will feature locally sourced ingredients with courses inspired by and paired with each wine of a specific region. Confit..foie gras and deconstructed cassoulet will all be in play. 4 seats remain.

Martin Langer Wine Dinner Update

        Martin Langer stopped by today and brought his usual bag of tricks for us to taste. For those of you not in the know, Martin is our wines sales rep from Oz Wines. Although we source as many of our ingredients as locally as possible , we are still struggling to find wines grown in New England that can stand up to our menus.      Well, let me re-phrase that, we have yet to find any local regional red wines that work for us. This is where Martin and Oz Wines come in. They are a company that specializes in sourcing wines from small European producers, with an emphasis on obscure varietals and unlikely appellations, and a focus on food- friendly, delicious wines. Once a month we taste Martin's newest selections and update our wine list with our favorites. Therefore, whenever you join us at The Table, you too will enjoy a new and different wine that is an escape from the usual suspects of your standard wine list.
        During our tasting, Martin and I came up with the theme for his upcoming wine dinner: South-West France, a region that's home to cassoulet, fois gras and confit duck. Over the next week, Martin will be sending me his wine selections for the dinner and then we will work up a menu that focuses on cuisine from each region of origin for each wine. Also, for each food course we will be tasting two different wines from each producer.
        On a side you note, you might wonder why we choose wines from Europe rather than California. The reasons why are two fold: First, based on our research on Source Map, European wines shipped on a container ship produce a lower carbon foot print than wines trucked from California. Secondly, we have found that for the most part wines from Europe, that are typically grown in the cooler higher latitudes have a higher acid content and more subtle flavor quality that delivers a bottle that pairs better with food than California wines. Don't get me wrong, we also love West Coast Wines, but they tend to be more of a meal in glass that pairs better with a simple cheese course. Of course there are always exceptions, this is just generally speaking. No disrespect...just saying.

Keep your eyes posted for the menu and there are 7 seats for this event.