Served a wide variety of appetizers: Pecan dusted red snapper with a smoky remoulade (super awesome); Apricot Rumaki (sun-dried apricot and jalapeno wrapped with applewood smoked bacon, served with a bleu cheese chive dipping sauce (great); Lemon parmesan artichoke bottoms, filled with a lemon Parmesan cream and topped with toasted pine nuts, red bell pepper and parsley (phenomenal); cheese plate, involving imported French and English cheeses alongside a variety of domestic cheeses—swiss, sharp cheddar, dill havarti and gouda, fresh fruit and berries; Brie topped with strawberries and amaretto (my wife’s favorite); country Pate with gherkins and whole grain Dijon; spiced cinnamon pecan dip (nice!); cracker medley and toasted baguettes.

My wife labeled the wines after college football teams. She went to Okahoma—and OU beat Texas tonight. Actually, everyone beat Texas tonight. My alma mater, the Cal Golden Bears should have done better (what’s new), and I’m not surprised that USC was no where to be found because that bottle may have fallen off the table. Thank you. And there were no Ducks, since we did not want any any controversy regarding the judging.

During the tasting, more food came out: Peppered beef tenderloin accompanied by a variety of sauces: whole grain Dijon, balsamic mustard, her mayonnaise, horseradish crème fraiche and fresh baked herb rolls; grilled asparagus and roasted shitake mushrooms with a roasted garlic lemon aioli; shrimp on ice (a bit small, but lots of it) with a nice cocktail sauce that had just a hint of horse radish (needed more); Orzo Pasta with sun-dried tomatoes, fresh spinach and basil (one of my favorites from the night).

I’m not really a huge dessert fan, so I wanted something informal, and this hit the spot—Two Sister’s provided their signature dessert bars, which were awesome!