We had a truly great meal Thursday night at Laurelhurst Market in Portland — one of the best of 2009 without a doubt, and best values.  At Scott Paul Wines, we try very hard to over-deliver at the price point.  I think our values are well aligned with Laurelhurst’s and that should make us good partners for a joint dinner this February that will benefit Morrison Center Child and Family Services.  Here’s the full event schedule, with restaurants and wineries teamed up for interactive dinners all over the city.

Everything was extremely well-executed and delicious.  My 21-year-old stepson raved (“outstanding.”) The French Onion Soup was wonderful.  My cassoulet, pictured below after I’d already messed it up a bit, was excellent as was the side of kale.  The 12-hour smoked wagyu brisket and the chuck flap steak with bearnaise sauce seemed to go over well with the boys.  An apple tarte tatin was luscious.

We drank a lot of Crémant de Bourgogne and Champagne last night, as well as some fine Burgundy and a 2000 Cuvée Martha Pirrie Pinot Noir at the Scott Paul Wines holiday party for staff and a few friends.  To nibble on alongside the Champagne Marc Chauvet, I spread Duck Foie Gras Mousse paté (from Chop in NW Portland) on toasted brioche squares.  I made a fluffy mixture of gorgonzola and ricotta cheeses, with finely chopped walnuts and chives plus a small splash of apple brandy, and mounded a spoonful on the end of endive spears with a tiny sprinkling of crumbled bacon.  I made some little smoked salmon tea sandwiches, especially for the non-meat eaters to compensate for the fact that there was even meat on the candy (valrhona covered toffee sprinkled with bacon).  And my mother’s cheese puff recipe — always a hit, as in, guests-following-you-to-the-kitchen great.

If you want to grab some of the Crémant or Champagne in time for the holidays, tomorrow is your last chance!  Kelly will be in the tasting room 1-5 p.m., and then we take a few weeks to enjoy the holidays and recover!

Hope your season is filled with good folks and wine and lots of savory bites.  Cheers!

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 19th, 2009 at 7:06 pm and is filed under Martha's Blog - ARCHIVES. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.