new foods, wines, and peeps ...

... and an additional 5+ lbs later - i survived (happily) yesterday's middle east feast held by home cook b.m. in the berkeley hills. YUM! so in this post (which also contributes to r|alex) ...

• e/m excerpts i received 2 weeks ago from my college friend, alison ... and
• about the wine we were served throughout our meal.
  

e/m excerpts ... middle east feast ... The market is shifting ... the farmer's market that is. good grilling tomatoes have made an appearance ... it's time ... because this menu is so popular ... two dates ... visual and gastronomic delights ... wine dinner parties ... consists of 3 courses ... first course is mezza ... almost all vegetarian, that, temporally speaking, takes up almost two thirds of the dinner ... over a two hour period ...with good wine and conversation ... in the middle east, mezza courses are made up of anywhere from 20 to 80 or more dishes ... ours will clock in at around a dozen ... labne ... mohammara ... odoriko tomatoes ... assorted pickles (including the quintessential turnip pickles), assorted marinated olives, several herbs (mint that one eats between nibbles to perfume and refresh one's palate), several marinated vegetable dishes ... fool ... other dishes ... constraint... table space ... dishes are all served at once on the table ... baba ghannooj - make it in the labor intensive way ... eggplants are mesquite grilled (... imparts the smoky flavor to the dish), and the eggplant pulp is then mixed with garlic, cumin, lemon juice, pepper, and a touch of yogurt using a wooden spoon as opposed of a cuisinart ... interesting texture instead of the baby food consistency ... from electrical blending ... meat course - lamb kebabs ... mixed with garlic, basil, and spices ... ground lamb ... coarser grind ... more toothsome and interesting in texture. (dessert was 2 cakes to celebrate a guest's bday and retirement!) ... feast ... complimented by tangy, crisp wines from Italy, the South of France, Spain, and Zinfandels from California.

menu of wines served ... provided by the host (just typing from the little page found at our table seating ... so while we chatted, nibbled, and chewed, a l'il reading on the side -

• rueda superiore (2007) this spanish wine comes from a region that has been producing excellent whites recently. the vineyards range about 2000 fee in altitude. the cool evenings allow the grapes to gain good structure and acidity. rueda is made of the verdejo grape.
• cheverny, salvard (2007) this wine comes from the village of cheverny in the loire valley. it is made of 100% savuignon blanc. this is one of my favorite whites that kermit carries. it goes particularly well with white, tart, creamy foods like goat cheese. make sure you have a sip as you're eating the labne.
• corbieres, fontsainte (2007) aaaaaaaaaaaaaah ... time for a rosé. it is spring after all. this is not the greates rosé in the world (that would be domaine tempier's bandol), but it is really, really good. it is also very consistent from year to year and is quite elegant for such a moderately priced wine (or for a rosé for that matter).
  
• bierzo tinto, los bayos (2005) here's another spanish wine. the grape is mencia, which is exclusive to bierzo and galicia. bierzo is a wine that is going to appreciate in value over the next ten years. it is relatively unknown to most people now but that will change, as this wine is unique, elegant and delicious.
  
• saint joseph, richard (2005) the village of saint joseph, located in the northern rhone, is known for its read wines made of 100% syrah. saint joseph is lighter than some of its neighbors like cornas and hermitage. typically of syrah based wines, the nose on this wine displays wonderful pepper notes.
• zinfandel, amista (2005) this zin comes from a new winery in dry creek valley it is big and robust, yet balanced. even though i've designated it a waiting wine, you should save some to have with your first bitest of the kebab since it goes well with the tomato sauce. (check it out here )
  
• merlot, mietz (2000) a merlot? have i gone mad? well ... this is a really good aged merlot that i picked up a month ago at the winery. i think it will go well with the kebabs. mietz is known for its pinot noirs and merlots and is a great winerty to visit, especialy during the barrel tasting weekends, which are held the first two weekends of march.
  

so ... turns out there was one wine (and i'm certainly not a wine connoisseur) that i will not necessarily revisit, however, it was great to try, right?! and mind you, there were six others to enjoy!

anyway, with new foods, wines, peeps, and chit/chat - yesterday evening was a fabulous and memorable event. yum. (now time for a little extra calorie burning! phew!)

[oh! and with lots of leftovers,
i've bot lamb kebabs for lunch tomorrow;
likely won't be bringing the zin to work, though.]