My small apartment was filled to the brim with so many people: Chuck and Rosalie, Bruce, Sean, Mike, Richard, Hugh, Ben, Lu, Sudhir, and Mark - and I think everyone left with smiles!
We started off with the 2006 Vichon Chardonnay (which I mistakenly told everyone was from Napa, not France... Napa is the other France, right?) After letting them get a taste, I served up the Braised Pork with Pearl Onions and Grapes, which I think came out so tender and moist, and I heard many comments on the sauce.
Hugh helped me pass out the note cards, and people started to guess at the price. I let them know that their was one white over $20, and one was under. Guesses started...
We then moved on to the 2006 Gato Negro Chardonnay from Chile. Rosalie helped me with the Coconut Shrimp with a Orange Marmalade Mustard and Horseradish sauce (Mike liked the sauce, but we agreed the beer batter should have had a bit more beer!) Oh, and frying them was a bit slow, but they were quite yummy.
I then let everyone see the bottles for the two whites. Did that change their minds on price? Not too much, from what I could tell; most people went from taste.
About this time, Mark arrived - bringing with him a bottle of port! What a great addition to the evening, now we just had to get through the rest of the courses.
On to the reds: first, a 2003 Robert Pecota Cabernet, which we served up with Leg of Lamb Stuffed with Lamb and Walnut Kofte.
Many people commented on the stuffing.. the full ingredients for it are listed in the link.
This was the "high end" bottle - but no one knew for sure, yet.
So, on to bottle #4, a 2003 Stonehaven Cabernet. Now, this one had a screw top, so I tried to leverage that as a ploy - was it because it was cheap, or a cheap trick. I didn't let them know, yet. Paired this with a Marinated Tri-Tip Roast with Mushrooms and Garlic.
And the guessing commenced. I reminded everyone that the four bottles totalled $87 - and some needed to make some "adjustments." I then added a bit more mathematically complexity; the most expensive bottle was 6 times the least expensive. And more "adjustments."
The answers: #1 - $20, #2 - $7, #3 - $43, #4 - $17
Overall the results were mixed and varied. Some guessed the highest was a low end. Some guessed the lowest was the best. Richard commented that is was hard to believe that someone would pay twice as much for one Cabernet over the other - then promptly and gladly finished the less expensive bottle!
We moved on to the 2006 Jackson Triggs Vidal Ice. I love ice wines and this one paired nicely with the Gingered Papaya Mousse on a Pastry Cookie (the recipe was only slightly modified) Then, Mark's addition of the 2003 Montona Zinfandel Andretti Reserve Port . So good, and brought back the memories of the trip to Napa the work team took earlier this year.
We started winding down, and Sean was nice enough to help clean up. We took some time out on the balcony - first time it was used! - and enjoyed the ramp down.
I want to thank everyone for their time, and generosity. I truly enjoyed having them over, and filling my home with warmth. I hope to do it again soon.
If you were there, let me know what you thought!
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