Thanksgiving Wine Pairing

Wow. This special Thanksgiving inspired wine pairing was absolutely fabulous. A full house of wine enthusiasts were treated to four delectable courses and 5 fabulous wines. Closed to the public for the special evening, Aromas arranged natural autumn centerpieces of maize, pumpkins and winter squash on each table creating a wonderful balance for the impeccably set place settings.


A beautiful Rosé started the evening. Apparently bubbyly isn't just for toasts anymore. It's a perfectly sparkling way to welcome your guests on Thanksgiving. Paired with a creamy cheese that was irresistible.

First we learned that a general rule of thumb for wine pairing is weight. Light dish — light wine. Also, a little acid in the wine is nice to cleanse the palette as you drink.

Which leads to the next wine, Senses, a white bordeaux bottled especially for Five Points Bottle Shop. A pleasant fresh citrus nose was a nice compliment to the roasted onion puree, green beans and pralined pecans. I savored this dish and this wine.

Next came the sweet potato gratin. I do not like sweet potato so I expected to pass on this one before it even was served. But the presentation beckoned I try it and I'm glad I did. This was simply delicious. Full of sophisticated flavor, it was not the sweet potato my mother used to make.

Svetlana Rostova, 5PBS wine buyer, introduced the second Five Points Bottle Shop private label, Quintessential, a special Côtes du Rhône. Charged with finding a really great tasting wine that 5PBS could bottle and provide to their customers at a really nice price, Svet revealed that she had to taste a LOT of wine. The Quintessential comes from the small southern village of Rasteau in France and is lighter in body.

"Let's face it", she said, "turkey - not a lot of flavor. The spices and herbs in the Côtes du Rhône help the turkey". When pairing, she reminded, think compliment AND contrast.

Somewhere along the line I forgot about note taking and became engaged in great conversations with the other guests at my table. That's the other key ingredient to these wine pairings and beer tastings I'm learning; it's the people you meet and the fun to be had. It turns out that the person sitting next to me is a close friend of a dear friend of mine from New Orleans. And the person sitting across the table went to school in New Orleans, so there was a lot to talk about. We had a grand time and it looks like I'm going to a crawfish boil in the spring. Can't wait.

We had a wonderful Reisling, not too sweet or dry, and a light Pinot Noir, two perfect choices for your Thanksgiving Dinner. A light and delicate Reisling enhances the complex and slightly sweet flavors of turkey, cranberry sauce, root vegetables, sweet potatoes and yams. And Pinot Noir, some say, is the "little black dress" of wine, making it a classy choice with it's light to medium body and subtle oakiness.

Five Points Bottle Shop, Aromas and Scott Parish of National Fine Wine teamed up to provide fresh new choices for your Thanksgiving table. And local caters, Home.made, amazed us with their culinary skill; truly the outstanding menu and creative flavors excited the guests and provided the foundation for a perfect Thanksgiving-style wine pairing.

Wine List

Schramsberg Mirabelle Sparkling Rose
Senses White Bordeaux
Quintessential Côtes du Rhône
Dr. Loosen "Dr. L" Riesling
Morgon 12 Clones Pinot Noir

Menu

cheese
roasted onion puree with haricots vert and pralined pecans
sweet potato gratin with watercress and plumped raisins
cornbread bread pudding with poached oysters and fried sage
tea smoked turkey breast with cranberry orange reduction
pumpkin flan tarts with toffee whipped cream

Thanksgiving Style Wine Tasting

Thursday, November 13th
7pm

With so much family visiting around the holidays it's hard to please everyone. Let us point you in the direction of some fabulous wines that will pair well with all of your holiday fare AND impress the in-laws!

With a very special local chef preparing the holiday themed four course pairings, your taste buds are sure to be inspired and delighted.

Wines

Schramsberg Mirabelle Sparkling Rose
Senses White Bordeaux (Five Points Bottle Private Label Wine)
Quintessential Cotes du Rhone (Five Points Bottle Private Label Wine)
Dr. Loosen "Dr. L" Riesling
Morgon 12 Clones Pinot Noir


Menu

1 st Course

cheese

2 nd Course

roasted onion puree with haricots vert and pralined pecans

sweet potato gratin with watercress and plumped raisins

3 rd Course

cornbread bread pudding with poached oysters and fried sage

tea smoked turkey breast with cranberry orange reduction

4 th Course

pumpkin flan tarts with toffee whipped cream


$35 per person
THURSDAY NOVEMBER 13th @ 7:00pm
*all courses are paired with a half glass of wine

Call AROMAS today to make a reservation 706-208-0059
Or register online.

Unibroue Beer Dinner Delight @ Trapeze

A funny thing happened to me the other day — I was invited to my first beer dinner — and what a surprise it was.

Hosted by Trapeze Pub downtown, I was 'wined and dined' for lack of a better word, as good as if I were sitting slap in the middle of The Five and Ten. Five beers and a delectable five course meal threw my taste buds into uncharted territory.

Our first tasting was Unibroue's 17. Essentially 17 means this is the 17th anniversary special brew; a one time recipe. Enjoy it now or forever hold your peace. Once it's gone; it's gone. I found this fascinating and tasteful too. Paired with an amazing banana crepe with hazelnut creme.

Next was my absolute favorite and real eye opener. The white ale, Ephemere, (eff-eh-mehr) named because it changes with the seasons, (this time it's apple) served with the most outstanding apple stuffed pork tenderloin atop mashed rutabagas which was simple perfection. At first, I didn't really comprehend what a pairing is all about. I tasted the beer and yum — I could taste the apple - I mean it was definitely fruity. Then, I took a bite of my apple stuffed pork and casually another sip of my green apple Ephemere and WOW what a difference. So this is what all the fuss is about. Pairing, what a concept. This was getting fun. (Not to mention I've heard of rutabagas, but what they hell are they - everyone at my table with an iPhone pulled theirs out to look it up - its a root vegetable, thank you, a swedish turnip.)

Terrible (tear-reeb) was absolutely wonderful. It had an earthy, fruity taste and 5PBS wine expert, Svetlana, kept remarking how much the aroma reminded her of Bordeaux. Then there was Maudite (moe-dzit), which was a beautiful deep amber-red and had a nice touch of spice. Loved it. In there, and to be highly noted, was the most delicious cherry vinaigrette salad topped with smoked salmon that I have ever had in my life. Someone pinch me!

And finally, the most fun of them all, THE O4. Released on Unibroue's 14th anniversary, it was meet and right so to do — finish with a fantastic edition that has come and gone — just as the evening opener 17 will be finis before long. Edition 2004 is available nowhere! Save this night, when our gracious Unibroue co-host, Mike, pulled a case from his cellar and shared it with all of us. But here is fun, everyone, and I mean everyone, exclaimed, "Peppermint!" in the first seconds of pouring. It was a milieu of pure candycane delight. How could a beer have a definite peppermint nose and such exotic spices?

Well, as Unibroue says, "Rediscover beer, discover Unibroue."

And how! Here I was expecting typical beer fair, and I remember remarking how I couldn't believe how delicious the food was at a beer tasting. And my friend Sachin says, "It's the beer interpretation of the food that makes it so great!" Indeed, to my delight and humble enlightenment, it was.

Thanks to Eric, his impeccable staff and 5 star chefs at Trapeze. It was a fantastic evening. (And I didn't even miss the hamburger and french fries.)

Visit Unibroue on the web.

Top 5 Pumpkin Ales

The fine folks over at the Kegworks blog have done a roundup of their five favorite pumpkin beers. Always with their finger on the pulse of what's funky, Liquor Snob reports that they love Shipyard's Pumpkinhead, and they've heard very good things about Dogfish Head Punkin' Ale.

The other three are Post Road, Southern Tier, and Weyerbacher Imperial.

See our selection online at 5PBS.

Terra-Rye’zd perfect for Halloween

Terra-Rye’zd looks to me to be the perfect Halloween drink this year. Look for it at Aromas Wine Bar sometime next week.


Read what Bob Townsend of AJC had to say about it.

And Beer Advocate tells all about it.

Screaming Spirit Shaker & Witch Wine Glass

These make for fun hostess gifts or will certainly create a scary buzz at your upcoming halloween party.

Screaming Spirit Shaker

Shop at Buy Costumes

Found by way of What's Next by Stacy Nicoll.




The Witch is Back by Lolita Love Wine Glasses

Find this and more at CJI Collectibles.

Spooky Halloween Wine Liquor Bottle Labels

Serve up some ghoulish fun by using these 8 Halloween Bottle Labels on your own wine or beverage bottles.

Get the party rolling by outfitting your bar or beverage table with these creepy Halloween decorations! Just use eight of your own bottled beverages and cover the existing labels with this set of Halloween Bottle Labels. These colorful bottle stickers are so realistic, your guests are sure to do a double take as they reach for their favorite "brew".

It's not too late to order, but hurry! Available on ebay