by Steven Doyle
It may have been a bit since you checked out Cool River, the super cool steak house in Las Colinas with an upscale sports theme on the bar half of the building. However long it has been, you may have missed a golden opportunity to relive some excitement. This past weekend Cool River played host to Duckhorn Vineyard’s Ashley O’Leary who brought with her some pretty amazing wines for patrons to sample. To pair courses with the dinner executive chef Rodman Shields and Cool River’s wine director wine director Dave Fiegel collaborated to bring guests a heightened experience.
Duckhorn Vineyards has spent more than 30 years establishing itself as one of North America’s premier producers of Bordeaux varietal wines. From its modest inaugural vintage of 800 cases of Cabernet Sauvignon and 800 cases of Merlot in 1978, to its addition of Sauvignon Blanc in 1982, Duckhorn Vineyards has crafted a tradition of quality and excellence that continues today.
It was a truly amazing evening, and guests soon found that Cool River’s Shields is an amazing chef. Check out the dinner and pairings for the evening. Be sure to add yourself to the mailing list for future dinners.
The first course was a refreshing bite consisting of smoked salmon with creme fraiche and caviar. We would see caviar topped again on the menu later in the evening. This was paired with a Duckhorn Sauvignon Blanc.
The second course was this pair of beautifully seared and milky jumbo scallops served with a lemon burre blanc and bacon braised Brussel sprouts and paired with the Duckhorn Migration Chardonnay.
Chicken fried lobster is always a welcome addition to any menu, and this version was served with a smoked tomato butter and crispy leeks. The dish was paired with Duckhorn Goldeney Pinot Noir.
You cannot enter the halls of Cool River without a tasting of beef, and Shields outdid himself with this A-5 Japanese strip served with a 160 second tarragon crusted soft boiled egg, along with grilled asparagus and duck fat fried potato. Sheilds has been using duck fat before it was a trend, and often maintains a dedicated duck fat fryer at the restaurant. This dush was pared with Duckhorn 3 Palms Merlot. This is an after photo once we sliced opened our egg.
Our final course was this beautiful chocolate bomb served with texas pecans, salted caramel and an espresso whipped cream, paired ith Parraduxx Z Blend.
What a wonderful evening that had guests standing with applause.
What would you pair Duckhorn Cabernet Sauvignon 2011 for guest who are vegan and meat eaters?