The Capital Grille turns the page to their Summer Plates Menu

The Capital Grille, with locations across the country, recently revamped their lunch Plates menu. Turning the page from spring to summer, they're offering a three course lunch ensured to be completed in 45 minutes at a cost of $16.

New entrees on the menu include a Wagyu Cheeseburger with Fried Egg and Crisp Onions and Seared Sea Scallops with Sweet and Sour Tomatoes. Mini Tenderloin Sandwiches and a Lobster Roll carry over from the spring, rounding out a variety of tempting choices.

I  coincidentally stopped in for lunch with customers on the last day of their spring menu and again on the first day of their summer menu. Additionally we stopped in with the kids before a Red Sox game for dinner in the dining room. Three out of four days at one of my favorite restaurants? When it rains it pours I guess.

From the summer lunch Plates menu I went with the Carrot and Ginger Soup, the Wagyu Cheeseburger and a Watermelon Salad with Feta Cheese. The soups are strength of these lunch offerings, and the Carrot Soup is no exception. I'm not a chef - though I have watched several seasons of Top Chef - so I know that a test of the kitchen is the quality of their soups. This one continues to be a strong point in the path paved by the Porcini Bisque from winter and the Asparagus Soup from spring.

But the main event, and the dish I was looking most forward to trying, was the Wagyu Cheeseburger. The admirable qualities of Wagyu beef and similarly but more specifically Kobe -- known for their marbling -- are said by some to be a waste when obfuscated in a burger. That may be true to an extent but who cares? The burger is outstanding.

When the buttery toasted brioche bunch is placed on the fried egg, the yolk cascades down the burger creating a built-in dipping sauce. And an experience best enjoyed with knife and fork.

The burger receives a simple seasoning prepared in-house: Salt, pepper, and a little sugar. I'll have to give that a try next time I'm grilling burgers. Although I may not achieve similar results as my Weber grill doesn't reach up the 1200F their equipment is capable of which delivers burgers with a seared exterior and an even red color and temperature throughout.

It all comes together incredibly well.A 94+ point burger in my book.

The watermelon salad was a bit of an odd pairing with the warm burger. I was hoping to achieve a bit of a "hot with the cold" situation but I think I'd try it with the French Green Beans next time. Or the Truffle Fries if you want to play it safe.

All-in the lunch Plates menu continues to present a tremendous value - if you can show the discipline to not order alcoholic drinks and dessert. But really - how often do we cut out of work for a nice lunch these days?

The Capital Grille distinguishes itself with its consistent quality across the menu and it's upscale, intuitive style of service. Highly recommended.

If you're visiting The Capital Grille for the first time, here are a few sure-fire, iron-clad, can't-miss favorites:

  • Wedge Salad with Bleu Cheese and Applewood Smoked Bacon
  • Pan Fried Calimari with Hot Cherry Peppers
  • Lobster Mac 'n Cheese
  • Bone-In Kona Crusted Dry Aged Sirloin with Carmelized Shallot Butter
  • Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake
  • Coconut Cream Pie
Further Reading:
Disclosure: Plates Lunch on a complimentary blogger/press invite.

Question of the Day: What are some of your favorite menu items at The Capital Grille?


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/9UPV-BDG5QM/capital-grille-turns-page-to-their.html

ice wine good wines dessert wines vintage wine sparkling wines

Academy of Wine Communications-FLX: February Meeting this Thursday, 2/25/10

Update: February meeting canceled due to winter storm warning for the region.  We’re working on setting up our next meeting for Thursday, 3/18/10.  Watch here for more details. February’s meeting of the Finger Lakes Chapter of the Academy of Wine Communications will be held on Thursday, February 25, 2010 at Three Brothers Wineries & Estates [...]

Source: http://familylovewine.wordpress.com/2010/02/22/awc-meeting-this-thursday-22510/

pinot noir moscato wine cooler merlot wine rack

A ?Zinful? Experience

Last Saturday I was lucky to be able to attend the Zinfandel Festival at Fort Mason in San Francisco. ZAP, The Association of Zinfandel Advocates & Producers celebrates Zinfandel America?s Heritage Grape and is dedicated to preserving the history of Zinfandel through the Heritage Vineyard at UC Davis. It is the largest single varietal tasting [...]

Source: http://blogs.fairplex.com/blog/wine/?p=36

free wine italian wine wine gifts dry wine red beer

OTBN 13: A Night of Regret & Discovery

Although I was an avid and longtime reader of Dottie Gaiter and John Brecher’s weekly Wall Street Journal wine column, I never have participated in Open That Bottle Night (OTBN). Started in 2000, the event was created as an excuse to open a special wine that remains for whatever reason languishing in your cellar. I [...]

OTBN 13: A Night of Regret & Discovery originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Winecast/~3/FUsu7Y9Hwbo/

best wine wine bottles wine coolers wines and spirits wine store

Tasting Report: 2010 Kutch Pinot Noir

With wine, the path of discovery can be as enjoyable as tasting the beverage itself. As enthusiasts we oscillate between depth and breadth: We temporarily stop and dive deep into a category until another region catches our attention.

For me, I've been stuck on California Pinot Noir for a couple years. And it's unclear how long it will be before I come up for air.

Within California Pinot, there seems to be a battle between lean and ripe. Between producing nuanced wines that let the vineyards speak for themselves vs. aiming to produce blockbuster wines. Within this dichotomy, even after reading several articles, it was unclear to me where Kutch Wines fits in.

38 year old Jamie Kutch worked on Wall Street before cashing in and pursuing his dream of producing wine. After being impressed with wines from producers like Kosta Browne and A.P. Vin he reached out to them for guidance - and was welcomed with open arms. A far cry from the competitive financial world he left behind.

He got his start producing wines at Kosta Browne so you'd think his style would run towards ripeness. But you'd be wrong. After producing the 2005 vintage at KB he set out on his own and developed a minimalist philosophy which favors earlier picking. But like Michael Browne he prefers to keep racking -- the transfer of wine from one container to another to remove sediment -- to a minimum. The result can be a tremendous creamy, velvety mouthfeel. But only if you can still produce a wine with good clarity and avoid rotten egg aromas from dead yeast along the way.

When I hear about California producers aiming for balance I sometimes fear they'll go too far. That the wines will be under-ripe and hard to enjoy. My favorite producers find that intersection between pure fruit flavors, the right amount of ripeness, and ultimately find a way to produce a delicious enjoyable glass of wine.

Kutch only produces Pinot Noir from Sonoma at this point. The appelation wines -- from the Sonoma Coast and Anderson Valley -- retail for $39. The single vineyard wines sell for $50. But good luck finding them at retail. Considering the modest production levels and the quality here I think these wines a good value.

The best way to buy them is by spending a couple years on their mailing list. I've on the list about a year so far. No dice. Thankfully a friend shared a couple bottles of his recent allocation. Here are my notes on one of their 2010s:

2010 Kutch Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast
13.9% Alcohol
240 Cases produced
$39

There's a purity of fruit and freshness here that's tremendously appealing. Light-medium bodied visually with perfectly ripe strawberries dominant and supporting tart cherry notes. It's subtle, but along with mild orange peel notes, supporting herabaceous aromatics and flavors add a perfect touch of earthy compleixty. Not an off note in the bottle. I like this. A lot. A tremendous introduction to the producer.

93/100 WWP: Outstanding

Further Reading:

Hop on the Kutch mailing list by visting http://kutchwines.com


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/F5pgmeW0XQA/tasting-report-2010-kutch-pinot-noir.html

types of wines types of wine about wine what is wine wines

Really Nice Wine Glasses for $2.35 a Stem?

Don't know how long this will last, but Amazon Warehouse Deals has a used (?) 6-pack of Schott Zwiesel stems for $14.10 - just $2.35 a stem. These are a great buy at $59.99, so $14 is a ridiculously good deal. The primary concern here would be what used stemware is like. I have to imagine it was something that was returned to Amazon that was in otherwise perfect condition. I've had nothing but good experiences returning stuff from Amazon that wasn't what I was looking for but I've never ordered from their Warehouse Deals.

 I mentioned why these glasses are a nice option in this post.

 Check 'em out here
Question of the Day: Any experience with Amazon Warehouse Deals?

 I'll update this post if I notice these glasses are gone so as to not waste your time.

 Like hearing about wine deals? I do too. I'd love it if you subscribed to The Wellesley Wine Press for future updates.

 Update: Looks like someone bought them. Follow me on Twitter (@RobertDwyer) for real-time deal updates.


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/PVIsHMUnTbo/really-nice-wine-glasses-for-235-stem.html

wine racks best wine wine bottles wine coolers wines and spirits

Bluff Dale Vineyards

The Winery at Bluff Dale Vineyards The Grapes around Texas ©2012 Half of every adventure is getting to your destination and our trip this year was no exception. We decided to take a different route to the Hill Country this time around to check out some places we have not had the time to see … Continue reading »

Source: http://thegrapesaroundtexas.com/2012/06/02/bluff-dale-vineyards/

ice wine good wines dessert wines vintage wine sparkling wines