Comments
23 people attend this event in this small, quaint restaurant in Northwest Omaha. Chef Kueper, (who trained at the “Academie Cusine” Culinary School in Paris, & worked at the Ritz Carlton and in Aspen) consulted with the wine distributer (Joy Lindholm) to come up with these very unique (and delicious) wine/food pairings. The Dolce Restaurant really specializes in wine/food dinners, and their expertise in this area was obvious to both our event planners (the McMahons), and to our members in attendance.
Joy Lindholm, the representative from the Synergy Wine Distributer, was very skillful, and enthusiastic in discussing the food/wine pairings for each of the courses. Chef Kueper circulated among each of the tables to answer any questions.
For the quaffing, the items on the Charcuterie were all “House made”, and were a real treat, and paired very well with the dry white wine, & the red Bordeaux blend.
The Grossot Chablis (which was lightly smoky with a hint of lemon and pear) was mouth watering with the smoked salmon plate in the first course.
The wine served with the succulent roasted veal loin, for the second course was a full bodied, rich textured champagne blend (containing Pinot Noir (75%)Chadonnay (15%) & Pinot Meuier (10 %). The pairing was excellent.
The 3rd course featured oyster mushrooms & sweet peas was paired with a light red, slightly spicy Burgundy, which was perfect.
For the 4th course, the full bodied red wine with a nice amout of acidity, & a hint of cherries, stood up very well to the Duck Cassoulet & cannelline beans which was served.
For dessert, we were treated to a extraordinary Maple Parfait, which was as beautiful as it was tasty. The Sauternes served was a blend of Semillion (90%) & Sauvignon, (10%) was intense with orange rind and flowers. It was a spectacular pairing!
The only complaint heard was that the wine pours were a little on the scant side, but the chef pointed out that because of the number of the courses, restaurants have to be cognizant of liability issues involved in over-serving of wine, and that was probably a valid point.