An Evening with Friends......Wine & Gourmet Food

Not long ago we celebrated the onset of warm weather with a dinner on our back patio. We gathered 22 friends, and fortunate for all of us, one of whom is a talented self-taught gourmet chef. Accompanied by many talented sou chefs, we set out on a mission to find a few new wines for Red Zinnia. I wish I could bottle up the flavors from that beautiful spring evening and send them out to you all. It was truly a magical night.

The Menu with Wine Pairings

Prepared by Chef Shawn Meyer

Our Sommelier for the Evening: Jaime Sammons

Crostini di fungi

Winter Citrus Salad

Bottega Vinaia Trentino Pinot Grigio 2008
Mixed green salad

Caponata

Rioja Campo Viejo Crianza Tempranillo 2006
Roasted Cauliflower soup w/ truffle oil

Brancott New Zealand Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2009
Spaghetti Putanesca

Monte Antico Toscana 2006
Spinach Risotto

Jacob's Creek Reserve Shiraz 2006
Grilled fish

A-Mano Moscato 2007

Raspberry Lambic Icee

Shawn has graciously shared this recipe with us. An easy one, it looks great, and is really nice to refresh the palate between heavier dishes.

Sicilian Citrus Salad
2 oranges preferably blood, but any high quality orange will do
2 lemons (Meyer lemons are also nice)
1 grapefruit
crushed red pepper ** sea salt ** good quality extra virgin olive oil

Peel the citrus, and spend a few minutes with each removing as much pith as possible. With a very sharp knife or a slicer, slice the citrus as thin as possible. Don't worry about removing seeds, you won't even notice them. Arrange on a plate, grapefruit as a base, then the blood orange, and then the lemon on top. Sprinkle with salt and crushed red pepper drizzle with olive oil maybe garnish with a little flat leaf parsley
Enjoy!

Jaime brought together her knowledge of wines and the regions where they originate in a fun way. Watch for many of the wines mentioned above to find their way onto the shelves of Red Zinnia.

Thank you to Kori Meyer for the amazing photos that capture the beauty of the evening.

Jaime discovered this great idea in a magazine. The tables were covered with brown paper, and marker pens were placed at each place setting. It made for an easy way to take notes on each of the wines. Michelle's artistic talents supplied the colorful additions to the paper.