by Steven Doyle
This week marked a beautiful dinner from the people at Cooper’s Meat Market located at Sylvan-30 near Oak Cliff. The wine dinner was prepared by the very capable hands of chef Kelly Hightower who has a huge following, and also featured one of our very favorite sommeliers Selena Dodge who was pouring wines from Halter Ranch at Paseo Robles, California.
Historic Halter Ranch is a vineyard and winery located in the heart of the Paso Robles’ Westside Adelaida District. California’s Central Coast Wine Country has ideal conditions for growing superior wine grapes and producing world-class wines. The 100% estate-grown wines are sustainably farmed on westside limestone soils. Tradition and innovation mix at Halter Ranch to produce Bordeaux and Rhône-style wines of the highest quality.
The evening began with a king crab salad with avocado, Texas grapefruit and a white soy vinaigrette paired with a 2015 Grenache Blanc. This Grenache Blanc has aromas and flavors of honey, white flowers, melons and pear. Delicious on its own, this wine also pairs beautifully with seafood.
Next we enjoyed a pan roasted quail filled with rice, chorizo, and medjool dates which Dodge paired with Halter’s cotes de Paso Rouge, a 2016 vintage which is a a Rhone-style blend that is a combination of four varietals from the sustainably farmed estate vineyard. Grenache provides a bright fruit forward entry, Mourvedre adds spice and meaty notes, while Syrah brings weight to the mid palate, and Tannat ties everything together with its color, tannin and acidity. The perfect food wine.
Our third course consisted of a breathtaking elk chop with dried and crisped sunchokes, wilted mixed winter greens and a huckleberry gastrique served with a 2016 Synthesis which blends the power and complexity of Cabernet Sauvignon with the richness and elegance of Syrah. A harmonious combination, this wine offers aromas of red and black fruits with flavors of currants and blackberries leading to a smooth finish with well-integrated tannins.
The fourth course was this bountiful cast iron roasted Akaushi tenderloin served with baby herbed potatoes and a Bordelaise sauce paired with the Halter Ranch 2015 Ancestor which gives us a Bordeaux-style reserve blend, and an homage to the Ancestor Tree, the largest Coast Live Oak tree on record. Carefully selected barrels of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, and Petit Verdot were blended for this cuvée which offers aromas of olallieberries and cassis.
The evening’s finale was this melange of Cabernet infused chocolate truffles and almond brittle paired with 2016 Cabernet from Halter Ranch with aromas of ripe blackcurrant, blackberry and black plum fruit with scents of earth, sage, and herbal spice. Big, ripe and juicy on the palate, its mouthfilling black currant and dark plum flavor and a perfectly powerful finish to a perfect evening.
Coopers will be hosting a variety of wine dinners each second Tuesday, so please stayed apprised .
