Dinner @ Sidney's Tavern
Sidney's East Berlin PA
Tasted April 25, 2019 by JS1056 with 146 views
Introduction
A Germanic themed wine dinner at Sidney's. The food is the standout here and the real reason to com. Delicious and innovative with great presentation, this jewel in a small central Pennsylvania town is someplace to seek out.
Flight 1 - Hor d'oeuvres (1 note)
Three delightful bites got the evening off to a great start.
Flight 2 - Petite Maryland Crab Cakes Grilled White Asparagus, Herb Salad Lemon-Fennel-Caper Aioli (1 note)
Wow. This was the highlight of the night in my opinion. This was pure harmony. There were so many flavors going on here, but although you knew that each of the individual components were there, it was a single combined flavor that came through. This dish was definitely a case of 1+1+1= 100.
The Pinot Blanc was also a perfect pairing here. It was very nice on its own, but when sipped with the food it became another ingredient in this marvelous combination.
All sorts of stone fruit and citrus, on a relatively dry finish this was a pleasure on its own and with the crab cake. I don't think there was any wood used, but the mouthfeel was still rich while still showing a crispness.
I would definitely have this again.
Flight 3 - Grilled Ctrus Marinated Shrimp Spicy Korean Slaw (1 note)
These enormous shrimp were grilled whole and were spot on. The spiciness of the slaw contrasted wonderfully with the citrus marinade (although 2 of our 4 thought the slaw was a little too spicy).
I thought this was the one pairing that could have been better. This was a pretty dry riesling and could have used some more sweetness to contrast with the spicy slaw.
Too many other Rieslings that are fairly priced to warrant purchasing of this wine.
Flight 4 - Crispy Pan Roasted Salmon Crushed -Minted Spring Peas Carrot-Coconut-Curry Emulsion (1 note)
We all agreed that the salmon was cooked as well as any we have ever tasted. The skin side was a crunchy crisp while the flesh was on the rare side of medium rare.
The peas were delicious and the emulsion, while subtle amped up the salmon.
Flight 5 - Pork Stuffed Chicken Crisp-Smashed Fingerling Potatoe Wild Cherry, Natural Jus (1 note)
What a combination of flavors. The pork and the chicken blended together in such an interesting way and the wild cherries tied it all together.
This was a case where the food brought the wine up several notches.
Flight 6 - Flammekueche Mushroom Duxelle, Oven-Dried Tomato Crisp Lardons (1 note)
At this point, even I was beginning to get a little full considering there were two humongous shrimp, a decent sized piece of salmon and two pieces of stuffed chicken. And now an individual pizza (I am exaggerating, but not much). The topping of this was savory and delicious so I ate it all.
I thought the wine was a decent match but since I was now closing in on gluttony I left most in the glass.
This had all the characteristics I have seen associated with the wine; black fruit, black pepper and firm tannins. And I thought it matched the Flammekueche really well. But just didn't do it for me. Could have been too much at the end of the night. I am open to trying again but won't be my first choice.
Closing
For desert there was an Almond-Honey Cake that was delicious served with Kaffee (coffee with steamed milk, Grand Marnier and Kaluha.
Although the wines individually were pretty pedestrian, they all paired extremely well with the food. Wine dinners often are to show off the wine with the food playing a supporting role. It is the opposite here, with the food as the star and thoughtful choices for the wine to enhance the food.
This was a great meal.