Week 9: Dinner - Palisades (Brazil/Argentina)

Interior of The Palisades Restaurant

This past Thursday, I ventured to the Palisades Restaurant in Eggleston Virginia to wine and dine on some South American fare.  As promised, I thought we were lost.  We weaved through winding country roads to what seemed like the middle of nowhere.  The town of Eggleston reminded me of one of those old western ghost towns - cute, classic, but oddly vacant.  The Palisades restaurant was, however, absolutely adorable.  I loved the classic country charm mixed with a bohemian-esque atmosphere.  Bright and open, the restaurant/bar was very inviting and made for a fun, unique, and modern, dining experience.  

The Menu

The evening's Latin American Menu Included:

Marinated Flank Steak with Chimmichuri Sauce

Beef Empinadas

Argentinian Potato Salad (...mashed potatoes?)

Meet the wines (from left to right):

1.  Pulenta: Pinot Gris 2011

    The Pinot Gris shows a great white-flower intensity (roses and 

    jasmine), along with white peaches.  On the palate, it is 

    fresh and persistent, with acidity and a lengthy finish.

2.  Arido: Malbec 2010

    Intense ruby color.  Delicate red fruit and violet aromas 

    interact with classic Malbec spiciness.  Soft and round in the 

    mouth with balanced acidity and sweet tannins.

3.  Tilia: Bornarda 2009

    On the nose, there is a ripe red fruit with hints of violet 

    and anise.  In the mouth, there are juicy raspberry and cherry 

    fruit flavors alongside notes of black pepper.  The finish is 

    soft and round with velvety tannins.  The wine rests for nine 

    months in French and American Oak, before another six in the 

    bottle.

The Wines

1.  This Pinot Gris had a perfumey, floral, nose with hints of 
    crisp pear.  On the palate, I was very surprised by this Pinot 
    Gris, as it appeared to have more similarities to a Sauvignon 
    Blanc or even a Chardonnay.  I greatly enjoyed this very light 
    and delicate spring/summer wine with it's notes of peach, 
    pear, and apple.  A very smooth and delicate balance, this is 
    perhaps one of my favorite whites that I have tasted all 
    semester.  An extremely balanced wine that offered a warm 
    smoothness in the floral hints, but also something fresh and 
    fruity on the palate.  When paired with the dinner, I felt 
    like this white served well as a palate cleanser between the 
    different dishes, and could be a fantastic apertif.

2.  The Arido is a thicker, full-bodied, chewy, black-red wine.  

    An interesting contrast to the lightness of the first wine in 

    the line up, I was intrigued by this darker, bolder, wine. 

    With hints of Black Pepper and spice on the nose, I could 

    immediately tell that this red was meant to be paired with a 

    "red meat and potatoes" type dinner.  On the palate, I could 

    detect hints of plum and spice, but with an interesting  

    oaky/buttery sensation towards the end-palate.  When paired 

    with the dinner's steak and empanada, I began to detect notes  

    of cranberry.  I found that the dinner's heaviness brought out 

    the wine's fruity undertones, making them a superb pair.

3.  I found the Tilia Wine to share many of the spicy 

    characteristics of the Arido.  The color of this wine was 

    noticeably more brown and muted compared to the Arido's bright

    red ruby color.  On the nose, I detected heavy leather and 

    oaky notes, with not much of anything else.  On the palate, I 

    tasted more floral than fruity notes, with leathery/oaky notes 

    towards the end palate.  I found this red to be particularly 

    single-noted and boring.  Definitely not up to the same par as 

    the first two wines, and not my favorite with this dinner    

    pairing.

All in all, this wine dinner was a very pleasant experience.  I was very impressed by the Palisade's interesting and unique food and wine pairing.  I would definitely love to come back later in the semester to sample another wine-dinner.