Patz & Hall : Dinner

11.17.2010

After the prep was put together, Roy & Gordon “G” came walking through the front door at 11AM.  We were not quite ready for a tasting yet because we had a few loose ends to still tie up.  The foam was not ready, ducks breasts and legs were still in the thermal circulator and dessert was cooling in the walk-in.  We still had to open some wine too.  After the tasting, some minor adjustments had to be made to clean up the plates and removal of some ingredients to make sure the pairings went well. By this time, we already had 175 reservations.  The cuttoff was suppose to be 150 (by the end of the night, we finished with 250).

The Winemaker James Hall and his wife joined us for dinner with.  They were happily seated with the President of Roy’s, Mark Running.  It might have seemed, nice and cheerful in the dining room but there were some moments in the kitchen when Roy had to be very vocal.  Yes, he is my mentor and Boss, so I take everything he tells us very seriously.  One thing I was happy about was having my good friend Blaine Villasin helping us out with one of the courses.  Thanks Blaine!  Overall, another great wine dinner with new guest and Ohana.

 

Wines to Taste

Hamachi Sashimi Umeshiso Vin, Radish & Poached Asian Pears

2008 Patz & Hall Dutton Ranch – Russian River Valley Chardonnay

 

Skin-on Barramundi Parsnip Puree, Smoked Heirloom Tomato & Pineapple Foam

2007 Patz & Hall Zio Tony Ranch – Russian River Valley Chardonnay

2006 Patz & Hall Zio Tony Ranch – Russian River Valley Chardonnay

Sous Vide Duck Legs and Magret Duck Breast Carrot Puree, Romesco & Chanterelles

2008 Patz & Hall Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

Asian Inspired Lamb Chop Croquette, Thumbellina, Sunchoke & Curried Natural

2007 Pisoni Vineyard Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir

2006 Pisoni Vineyard Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir

 

Rachel's Black Velvet Bread Pudding Lilikoi, Bacon Caramel & Pear Chip

Kona Coffee & Tea

Patz & Hall Prep

November 16, 2010

I know I have been slacking, but time to get started on this post.

Back in November we had the opportunity to have Roy join us for a wine dinner with Patz & Hall.  The parameters of the dinner were a first for me.  5 courses and 6 wines, but 2 of the courses had 2 wines each.  Quite a few numbers in the last sentence.  3 Chardonnays and 3 Pinot Noirs.

The prep work was the first thing to care of and there was quite to do for me and my new Sous Chef, Kevin Alan Wong.

Plus this time around I wanted to shoot the food and preparation a little bit differently.  I thought Hipstamatic would be a great way to shoot it. Hipstamatic is a retro trend in photography. You can change the filters, film and flashes. It is very similar to Lomography and Instant Polaroid cameras.

Cakebread Cellars Wine Dinner

September 28, 2010

Finally got to sit down and post some pictures.  We had the pleasure of hosting a Wine Dinner with Cakebread Cellars.  Here are some pictures from Tuesday.  Enjoy!

Hiramasa with Yuzu Kosho, Serrano & Mango Relish

Cakebread Cellars Sauvignon Blanc

King Crab Cioppino & Dungeness Crab Cake

Cakebread Cellars Chardonnay

Culotte Steak Berry Compote & Onion Marmalade

Cakebread Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon

Butterscotch, Chocolate & Lilikoi

Kona Coffee & Tea

World of Pinot

3.5.2010

An opportunity to work with Roy Yamaguchi (my chef and mentor) is hard to come by.  So I volunteered to help with the team do the World of Pinot Event.  We had a great team of Roy, Jackie Lau, Chris Kajioka, Lorin Watada, myself and the hotel staff (for execution).  The event was held at The Cliffs Resort in Pismo Beach, CA.  We had about 170 guests and dinner started at 8:30pm. Roy Yamaguchi was the featured chef of Gala 1.  Chris K played a pivotal role in the developement and execution of the menu.

1st Course

Lobster Sausage, Maui Onion Soubise

Lobster Uni Pinot Sauce

2nd Course

Olive Oil Poached Arare Crusted Shutome

Butternut Squash, Sweet Grape Tomatoes

3rd Course

48hr Sous Vide Wagyu Short Rib with Breaded Oxtail

Parsnip Puree, Buttered Vegetables

Dessert Course

Baked Hawaiian, Big Island Goat Cheese Macaroons

Newton Red Label Wine Dinner

2.23.2010

Another month has come along and another great winemaker has come to join our evening.  This month we are joined by Newton Wines from St. Helena, CA.

1st Course

Japanese Hiramasa & Apple Carpaccio

Mango Ravioli, Umeboshi Shiso and White Truffle Soy

2008 Newton Chardonnay

Beautiful slices of Hiramasa were sliced and layered.  Thinly sliced Granny Smith Apples, Mango Raviolis (made by spherification), Micro Herbs, Umeboshi Shiso Vinagrette, Green Oil and White Truffle Soy Vinaigrette drizzled onto the plate.

The Chardonnay had notes of ripe pear, green apple, light butterscotch and vanilla.  My chardonnay had a dry and creamy finish.  I paired the dish by adding some sweetness from the mango, tartness from the umeboshi and apples.  I added some saltiness with the addition of the soy.

2nd Course

Char-siu Roasted Cornish Hens

Clove, Acorn Squash & Pomegranate Molasses Jus

2007 Newton Claret

The Cornish Hens were a perfect size that I couldn’t resist using them.  The goal for this dish was to match the creamy mid-palate, silky tannins and medium weight with bold spices, some sweetness and vibrant mouth-feel.

The Hens were brined (star anise, kosher salt, dark brown sugar, cinnamon, clove, lemongrass, orange juice) for about 2 hours.  They were then dried and put into a cryovac bag, marinated with char-siu (chinese five spice, nutmeg, red coloring), sealed and sous vide for 2hrs.  Roasted to perfection, laid on top of parsnip puree, segmented and buttered acorn squash.  The pomegranate molasses jus (mirepoix, pomegranate, molasses, chix jus, veal reduction) sauced on the plate and garnished with pink peppercorns.

The Claret was a perfect blend in the Bordeaux tradition, lifting aromas of black cherry, currant, plum, nutmeg and white pepper spice.  The claret was a great accompaniment to the grilled/roasted hens.

3rd Course

Smoked Petite Filet Mignon

Blackberry Infused Natural and Guittard Chocolate

2007 Newton Cabernet Sauvignon

Newton carries a a great line a Cabernet Sauvignons.  I preferred the Red Label Cabernet versus the Unfiltered Cabernet one.  Nonetheless they are both great.

The Petite filets were smoked with applewood chips, then sous vide poached with e.v.o.o. and cooked to medium rare doneness.  Herb oil fingerling potatoes were confit and pressed for a hard sear, rainbow carrots and carrots were sauteed with wonderful brown butter.  The Natural (mirepoix, roasted garlic, red wine, thyme, blackberry, veal reduction) was finished with some guittard chocolate to give it some depth and complexity.

The Cabernet Sauvignon was richly flavored with smoky plum, blackberry, vanilla and violets.  This wine went very well with the smoking technique, dark fruit and spice components of the dish.  The key has to be the cocoa to round out a nice savory flavor.

4th Course

Apple & Frangipane Tart Tatin

Puff Pastry, Turbinado Sugar and Dark Balsamic

This lovely dish was created by my pastry girl Rachel.  She understood where I wanted to go with this simple idea.  By using puff pastry it gave us a fluffy, buttery flavor.  The apples gave that sweet-tart flavor and the almonds gave it a perfect nuttiness.  Bruleed apples, salted pistachio and vanilla bean ice cream finished the dish.  Wished we had a nice zinfandel to tie the last course.

Frank Family Wine Dinner

unagi, scallop roll and hazelnuts

mis en place for broth

asparagus, fennel, tomato and shellfish

seared black cod

hibiscus, ginger, lemongrass and port wine

sumac lamb loin, figs, confit potato

roasted macadamia nuts

cherries, truffles, honey vanilla ice cream and macadamia nut baklava

fillo, mac nut truffle, vanilla syrup

Frank Family Vineyards Wine Dinner

1st Course

Scallop Sushi Roll  Unagi, Negi, Cucumber, Nitsume & Hazelnuts

1997 Signature Brut

2nd Course

Seared Black Cod  Asparagus, Clams, Mussels with Galangal Infused Broth “Tableside”

2007 Chardonnay Napa Valley

3rd Course Sumac Crusted Lamb Loin  Figs, Fingerling Potato & Hibiscus Reduction

2007 Zinfandel, Napa Valley

4th Course

Deconstructed Macadamia Nut Baklava Truffle Cherries & Honey Vanilla Ice Cream

Zinfandel Port, Napa Valley, Coffee & Tea

Aloha! The 1st Wine Dinner for 2010 started off with a bang! We had 31 Guests, 4 courses,4 wines and a great group of guests.  The lovely Kristen Greenberg from Torrey Wines was our Representative for the evening.  She brought with her some beautiful wines and a great surprise at the end, a Zinfandel Port, amazing!

1st Course

Molly Mortenson, sushi-girl extraordinaire, created this roll. On the inside, diced scallops marinated (with sesame oil, sriracha), negi, asparagus, cucumber. On the outside, rice, unagi, nitsume and roasted hazelnuts. Paired with the 1997 Signature Brut, was perfect. The champagne had notes of roasted hazelnuts, toasted brioche and hints of vanilla custard.

2nd Course

The execution of the Seared Black Cod was time consuming. It incorporated many components. Asparagus tips were blanched and shocked. The bottoms were blended with seasonings and thickened with Xanthum Gum. Heirloom tomatoes were blanched in the fryer to remove the skins. Fennel bulbs were sliced thinly and dehydrated to concentrate the flavors. Manila Clams and PEI Mussels from Santa Monica Seafoods were poached and meat removed. Alaskan Black Cod were cut to 2.5 oz portions and seared until one side was crispy. The broth consisted of mirepoix, whole fennel, garlic, galangal, white wine, clams, mussels, cream, basil, thyme, dill, KSP. Once filtered the broth was put into teapots and served tableside in front of the guest.

The Chardonnay had hints of kaffir lime, galangal (thai ginger), juicy peaches and dried pear. The broth complimented the chardonnay very well and was much received by our guests.

3rd Course

First we took the loin off the rack, removed the sinew and seasoned it with KSP, Sumac (middle eastern spice), pan seared and cooked to med-rare. We then cut them to medallions. The fingerling potatoes were confit with EVOO, herbs, shallots, garlic.  Patty Pans were sauteed and caramelized.  Black figs were caramelized with sugar and roasted.  The Hibiscus sauce was made by steeping dried hibiscus leaves with shallots, port wine and sugar.  Once everything was arranged on the plate, the hibiscus reduction in place, we drizzled Natural on the lamb, green oil and micro greens on top.

The zinfandel has notes of black cherries, raspberry and grilled figs.  It has nice complex tannins, body and long lingering finish.

Amazing wines are being produced at this winery.  The chalk tags on those barrels are going to create sweet beautiful music on the palette. Some photos from the Wente Wine Tour.