Winemaker Dinner with Friends

18 months ago, Scott and I had the honor of dining with my friend Gail and her man, Nils, who is considered the "King of Cab", at the Saddleback Wine Cellars Dinner they hosted in Yukon. I was glad to partake in that lovely dinner punctuated by even lovelier wines and I had hoped they'd host a dinner in Norman sometime soon. Last night they did!

Plus One

The dinner was held at Scratch Kitchen and I have never been disappointed at Scratch. Just look at the menu!



The first course was an Arugula Salad with Beluga Lentil and Apple. I didn't eat a lot of the salad because there were two wines presented with the salad - the Black Rock Wild Cat White and a surprise white - and I was too busy talking with the other guests.

This is surprising to no one. If I had to eat with friends or co-workers at every meal, I would not have the paunch that I'm currently sporting.

The first wine was very, very good and I will have to purchase some as soon as I can. It was a surprise to me as I prefer reds.

The next course was a Black Bean Soup served with the Rancher's Red. Both were superb! Nils got up and talked about his vineyards and wines during this course.  He seemed to do this begrudgingly, I might add, because he does not like to toot his own horn. That's ok because there are a LOT of people who will toot their horns for him! I ate some of the soup and took the rest (with a little more added by the kitchen) home to Scott to enjoy. So good!

The main course was served with my favorite wine of Nils', the Black Rock Petit Sirah which I first tasted 3 years ago when I met Nils. I dug into the braised short ribs and grits before snapping a picture because YUM! I immediately put this dish on the list to replicate at home, but I would serve it like Martha does in this recipe - with a squeeze of lemon and garnished with green olives and freshly grated horseradish.

Dessert was a berry cheesecake that was ok, but I much preferred the merlot that was served with the dessert.

Pretty wines all in a row...

It was great to see my friend Gail in our home town considering the fact that I will miss her when I visit her town in 2 weeks. ;.(

Gail, Nolita and Nils