The first and last dinners

We all know this is a blog about wine tasting in Napa Valley, but hopefully one more little tangent about my trip to New York won't kill you. It was a short-but-sweet excursion filled with incredible food and drink (some of which was from Napa), so I'm not going too far off course here.

My favorite and most memorable meals were the first and the last, both were dinners. But our first meal on our first full day was also worth mentioning; we enjoyed creative selections of panini with an elegant and robust Barolo at the Bottega del Vino.

At 9:15 pm on a Tuesday night (shortly after we arrived), we checked in at db moderne, Daniel Boulud's restaurant in the Theater District and home to the $50 foie gras burger. Without reservations, we were asked to wait a few minutes, and then we were seated in the more casual section (the more formal part of the restaurant was fully committed, even at that hour!).

After perusing the mostly French and Italian wine list, we asked for the advice of the sommelier. He guided us toward an "unusual" blend of Syrah and Cabernet from the Rhone that he found "interesting". Although my fellow wine enthusiast was content with this selection, I thought it a little masculine and probably would have ordered a Chateauneuf-de-pape. That being said, the terrine of foie gras and the Berkshire pork ternderloin we ordered were so artfully presented and exquisitely flavored, the food seemed to improve the tannic nature of our chosen wine. Though for future reference, I will steer clear of any wine that a sommelier describes as "interesting" or "unusual".

On our last night, we arrived early for our 8:30 reservations at Bobby Flay's upscale steakhouse, Bar Americain. We relaxed at the bar with a split of Veuve Clicquot and the best oysters I've ever had. Whoever told me that bigger oysters are usually lackluster in flavor was very wrong. The phrase, "the smaller, the sweeter" in regards to oysters may be true, but the big ones deserve some praise, too. Especially if they are from Fanny Bay, British Columbia--I could have eaten 2 dozen!

When we decided on which wines to take with us, I didn't know where we would be eating, but the bottle of 2006 Provenance Three Palms Vineyard Merlot was a good pick. Unlike most Merlot, this particular bottling is complex and very full-bodied. It complimented our ribeye surprisingly well. Although Cabernet Sauvignon would have been my first instinct had I known we would be dining at a steakhouse, this Merlot, with it's rich, plumy fruit and earthy undertones, was just the ticket--even if we didn't get tickets to a Broadway show. Nonetheless, we went back to the hotel very satisfied and quite content.

Provenance Vineyards, located in Rutherford off of Highway 29, makes more than a few tasty Merlots. I also love their crisp Sauvignon Blanc!