Ferrari-Carano

     Thursday April 21, 2011

Reservations Closed
Course Pairing / Description Wine
Hors D' Oeuvres Mini Pomegranate and Orange Frappes With crème fraiche and nutmeg Curried Pork Cheek Sliders Crispy onions and basil mayo
The Wine Advocate rated this wine 88 Points! The 2009 Fume Blanc has aromas and flavors of flinty grapefruit and orange rind intermixed with a hint of honey. This is exuberant, crisp, medium-bodied, fruity, extroverted white with a Light greenish-yellow color. Peppery aromas of lime zest and lemongrass are complemented by a deeper suggestion of ripe pear. Tangy but broad, offering subtly sweet orchard fruit flavors and a bracing kick of citrus zest. This Fume Blanc shows an attractive blend of sweetness and cut on the finish, while repeating a the lemongrass note. This is a solid value for California sauvignon blanc and should be very flexible with food. 		Fume-Blanc, Sonoma County 2009
Salad Course Spring Lettuce and Belgian Endive Salad Creamy sweet onion dressing, feta cheese, grape tomato and crispy fried vegetable sticks
The premiere release of Ferrari-Carano’s unique, proprietary, white wine blend — the 2009 Bella Luce, which means “beautiful light” in Italian — is the sister wine to our SIENA. The goal of Bella Luce was to create a fragrant and light white wine blend from varietals that would complement one another in aromas, flavors and texture. Bella Luce accomplishes this with delicious layers of peach, vanilla and floral aromas, and wisps of orange blossom, pear and lime. Distinctive and round on the palate, Bella Luce’s flavors of cream, vanilla, citrus, and apple shine through. Individual lots of white wine grape varietals, including Chardonnay, Muscat Canelli, Semillon, Muscat Giallo, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Blanc, and Riesling, are gently pressed into stainless steel tanks for 48 hours of cold settling, and then racked to stainless steel tanks for a cold fermentation. The wine does not undergo malolactic fermentation in order to retain its bright flavors and crisp acidity. Bella Luce represents various lots of wine from multiple white varietals, all individually tasted to create the final blend. Bella Luce was recently awarded 92 points by Wine Advocate. 		Bella Luce, Sonoma County 2009
Seafood Course Grilled Jumbo Shrimp and Red Apple Kabob Butter basted with garlic, fried corn salsa and roasted pine nuts
The 2008 Ferrari-Carano Tré Terre 100% Chardonnay is a delicious, full-bodied wine with aromas of lychee, lemon, pear, green apple, peach, mineral and fig. The fruit for this wine comes from six vineyard sites in the Russian River Valley, and has rich flavors of nutmeg, brown sugar and oak spice complement which linger on the finish. Stored in 30% new French oak and 70% older French oak barrels, utilizing 19 different French oak cooperages. 2008 was a year of fire and ice, it began by battling heavy frost in April, a hot summer and heat that continued into the early fall, reduced yield since the grapes for this wine were picked during the month of September but they produced an intense flavored, and well-balanced ripe fruit. 		Tre Terre Chardonnay, Sonoma County 2008
Poultry Course Crispy Skin Roasted Boneless Chicken Thigh Melted leek, bacon and sweet potato pancake, rosemary pan jus
Ferrari-Carano's Italian heritage is reflected in this easy-sipping, multi-dimensional blend of mostly Sangiovese, often blended with Malbec, Cabernet and a little Merlot. Select lots of grapes chosen from their vineyards in Alexander, Dry Creek and Russian River Valleys create a beautifully balanced and medium-bodied wine. Barrel aged for 14 months and then bottle aged for an additional 6 months, SIENA has delicious aromas of cherries, blackberries and currants complemented by sweet vanilla oak and caramel. On the palate, this wine offers ripe, juicy, baked berry pie with anise, cocoa and cola flavors, with lively acidity, supple tannins and a lingering finish. SIENA has smooth tannins and a rich finish that makes it a treat to eat with so many foods. 		Siena, Sonoma County 2009
Meat Course Mustard and Thyme Rubbed Flatiron Steak Soy and black pepper roasted haricot verts and sweet bell pepper butter
Select lots of grapes were chosen from vineyards in Sonoma County to create this beautifully-balanced and full-bodied Merlot (95% Merlot 5% Petit Verdot). This is a velvety wine with a complex nose of cherry cobbler, blackberry, caramel, and vanilla intricately woven with lingering flavors of baked berry pie, cinnamon and spice. This wine has a viscous and full mouth feel, impressive length and velvety tannins. These Merlot vines are farmed on diverse, low-vigor vineyard sites ranging from valley floor sandy loam and gravel to steep, sloped, volcanic rock hillsides. The 2008 season was a challenge, beginning with a dry winter, then frost in the spring followed by drought, wind and heat in the summer and early fall. Valley floor vineyard sites ripened early and were brought in just after a heat spike over Labor Day weekend. A cooling trend brought a moderate ending to fall, and the later ripening grapes were handpicked through the second week of October. The grapes were cold-soaked for five days, and then fermented in tank before gentle pressing. The wine was moved to barrels of 25% of new French oak and 75% older French oak and aged for 16 months, allowing for the perfect balance of fruit, tannin, and oak. It was Joe Maddon, the Tampa Bay Rays manager, who said “If you do not know wines that well and you want something nice with your steak that night, go with Ferrari-Carano Merlot.” He goes on to state that it has great bang for the buck, it is a less expensive wine he likes a lot. 		Merlot, Sonoma County 2008
Dessert Course Grilled Butter Pound Cake and Mascarpone "Sandwich" Roasted blackberry and current coulis, shaved dark chocolate and roasted sesame rolled vanilla bean ice cream
The fruit for this Cabernet Sauvignon comes primarily from mountain-grown fruit in Alexander Valley. Fog drifts over the tops of the coastal mountains and burns off quickly in the morning sunshine, resulting in a warm climate with almost full sun throughout the day - ideal conditions for cabernet sauvignon mountain vineyards. The winemaker notes that this wine is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, blended with small amounts of Syrah and Petit Verdot. The hand harvested grapes enter the gravity flow winery and are hand sorted, then whole berries are gravity fed into tanks for fermenting before pressing. Individual lots are moved to barrels for malolactic fermentation, then blended and barrel aged for 18 months and aged an additional nine months in bottle, allowing for the perfect balance of fruit, tannin and oak With aromas of blackberry jam, baking spices, pure maple syrup and black tea, this wine delights with rich delicious flavors of caramel, espresso and dark chocolate. A juicy and full mid-palate, rich, mouth-coating tannins and excellent depth characterize this lovely Cabernet Sauvignon. Wine Advocate says that from relatively high elevation mountain vineyards, the 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon possesses floral, blueberry and black currant aromas intermixed with hints of graphite and spice box. Medium-bodied with sweet tannin and a surprisingly civilized, polite style for a high elevation Cabernet, it is a mid-weight, Bordeaux-like red that should drink nicely for 7-8 years. 		Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma County 2007