Dinner at Woodfire Grill

Chef's seven course grand tasting menu for Atlanta Reef Club Holiday Dinner.
The menu was provided in advance, and we all brought wine to pair with a course or two.

beet tartare. egg yolk.

Wow this was smoked, so I don't understand calling it tartare but it was incredible. I love beats but they really honored the ingredient with this dish. This was so savory I think they could slap this in between a hamburger bun and sell it as "vegetarian" BBQ.

Champagne worked well.

• NV Marie Courtin Champagne Resonance Extra Brut

  France, Champagne

  Very crisp and taut, overall tasty but without some bottle age would I really endorse this. Worked well as a starter.

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wagyu eye round tartare. black truffles. arugula. fricco.

A really tasty dish that worked really well with the meaty and rich Rosé sparkler. I liked how the wagyu was not chopped super fine. Could have used a bit more arugula.

• NV Piollot Champagne Rosé Extra Brut

  France, Champagne

  Dark pinkish red, obviously saignée; nose is rich and meaty with ripe strawberry, cherry, and almost red currant; palate comes together nicely on the finish which keeps this from being clumsy; a nice pairing with the wagyu tartar.

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pork sugo ravioli. basil cream. Vidalia onion jam. radish.

Not the course that was advertised but the basil jam made this dish accessible to whites. The Chassagne showed best I feel. The food was delicious.

• 2005 Marcel Servin Chablis Grand Cru Blanchot

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

  Light yellow straw; nose is a little faint but as it warmed the oily minerality, shrimp shell, tarragon, chives almost, and lots of lemon came out; softer acidity on the fairly modest palate; very good and probably drinking near its peak.

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• 2009 Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Bright light yellow; nose is youthful and really blowing, butter, lemon, and loads of limestone are almost harmoniously singing from the glass; the palate is taut and bright with a nice long finish; very good.

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maine lobster salad. celeriac. citrus. frisee

The best food and wine pairing. We were not aware of this course and the Somm poured the restaurant's wine, so I'm sure they had practiced this pairing a few times. Salad was really fresh with an underlying richness which was the inverse of the wine.

• 2010 Damien Laureau Savennières Les Genêts

  France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Savennières

  Dull yellow straw; an oaked and leesy Chenin which I was not loving due to my fondness of the grape's precision, cut, and minerality; still good acid, wooly sweater, and recognizable as CB, fatter and rounder; the pairing was spot on though which enhanced the wine more so than the food.

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foie (terrine). brioche. quince. compressed apple.

This dish was ok. There was also some peanut butter which made the dish a little cloying. Unfortunately the Klein Constancia was corked but the Somm brought over the Daene which was very nice, but still not big enough to compete with the dish.

• 2002 Klein Constantia Vin de Constance Flawed

  South Africa, Coastal Region, Cape Peninsula, Constantia

  Corked. This would have been my first Constance...damn.

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• 2007 Château Doisy-Daëne

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  Lighter golden straw; more my style of Sauternes- still lot of botrytis characteristics in a leaner more acid driven style; dried pineapple, white raisin, clean finish, very drinkable.

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torched escolar. chestnut. aged sherry. butternut squash. brussel sprout.

The most memorable and well executed bite from the entire evening. No wine paired with the bite but it was killer.

black bass. miso. bok choy. chanterelle.

Another incredible dish with great rich and deep flavor. The Montille was also as brilliant in its depth and elegance. Most did not bother with the Pernand which was brought by mistake. It was supposed to be the '05 D.F. Clos du Roi.

• 2006 Domaine de Montille Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

  Please refer to ALO76 for my tasting note- it is spot on. I really loved the elegance and finesse this showed while still being one that could cellar longer.

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• 2005 P. Dubreuil-Fontaine Père & Fils Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru Clos Berthet Rouge

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru

  Darker deeper denser purplish red; nose is larger scaled with powerful mix of red and dark fruit; palate lacks harmony though I think more bottle age may help it; completely out classed by the Montille next to it.

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Asian pear. glazed pork belly. spinach. almond. dates. blue cheese.

This was another incredible dish with some really meaty pork belly. The food was delicious but it almost needed more fat to tone down the hardness of the Mon Aieul.

• 2009 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de mon Aïeul

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Did not enjoy this bottle as much as the prior; this had a much more tannic almost dumb quality to it, the fruit was a little muted and there was a strong leather note; not sure if this is going dormant or was just an off bottle.

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c.a.b. porterhouse and shortrib. potato puree. perigord black truffle. port wine reduction.

An insane amount of black truffles which I think almost detracted from the dish although very generous of the chef. The short rib definitely won this competition, and the GPL definitely beat the Cos.

• 1990 Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Deep color with not a lot of bricking, could not tell a difference next to the '95 Cos; nose is full and deep blowing the elixir of Bordeaux, some nice green to go along with the red fruit and earth, chocolate, cigar, and luxurious feel to this, also it was highly drinkable; only bottle blind and I thought '95 Pichon Lalande so this bottle was incredibly youthful.

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• 1995 Château Cos d'Estournel

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  I will second Stefanakiko's note about this not being ready. We gave it 2 hours in decanter and was still hard and unrelenting especially on the palate, bitter tannin, dark fruit, damp earth, cigar, cedar; we were left wanting...a time machine I guess. Brought by someone who has a notoriously cool cellar.

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Apple butter. Profiterole. caramel.

Things are a little fuzzy for me at this point...truffle shock. I cannot remember this dish.

Chocolate and chai.

Ganache cake that is really rich and in need of a more powerful and youthful port. The '11 Graham or Cockburn would have done well here.

• 1985 Dow Porto Vintage 87 Points

  Portugal, Douro, Porto

  Very light color; high toned and alcoholic red fruit, strawberry, cooked raspberry, cherry were very strong; soft tannin, not in great balance, not terrible but still disappointing.

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The food was tremendous which seemed simply prepared, beautifully presented, and the seasoning was done with a deft hand. The service was also tremendous. If you have not been to Woodfire yet, it is a must-try.