It was an absolutely beautiful day yesterday and since there was a sale on porterhouse steaks the grilling season continued. The steak was large enough for several folks with some left over for Scott.The wine was a Beaulieu Vineyards Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon from the heart of the Napa Valley. Dark, mature red in the glass with a nose of dark cherries, cedar, cassis and a hint of chocolate. There was quite a bit of sediment clinging to the sides of the bottle as the first glass was poured. The dark cherries were prominent in the taste with some blackberries hiding underneath. Great acid and soft, mature tannins. This wine felt good and full in the mouth. The end was long with a little more fruit, some smoke, some tannin and a little bit of good, clean dirt to finish. The wine was 13.8% alcohol, proving again to me that Napa does not need to extract alcohol of 14.5% and above to make great wine. There was subtlety to this wine and it was delicious. The Beaulieu Rutherford remains the best value in Napa Cabernets to me. This wine was bought on sale for $19 several years ago. The current release is $28.
There were some potatoes finished in duck fat to go with the steak, and we picked the last tomatoes of the year to go in a small salad. The tomatoes were in a small, protected corner so the frosts had missed them, and they get morning sun. The vines just kept on producing and I kept on harvesting. The three on the bottom of photo are ripening on the counter, but we managed five more for a total harvest of eight. The additional five were in last night's salad.
Today will be equally beautiful and that means one more day of grilling. With the days getting shorter and darkness coming before 6:00 PM I find we are eating a little earlier in the day.
No comments:
Post a Comment