Miner Family Vineyards Wine Dinner at Upstream

[wondersofwine]

Upstream Restaurant in Phillips Place, Charlotte, NC is primarily known for sushi and seafood. This is the wine dinner I attended as part of the Charlotte Food and Wine Weekend (this events occurs only every two years. Many restaurants participate with different wineries.)

I reported on the Domaine Chandon sparkling wine earlier. The next wine was 2002 Miner Viognier, Simpson Vineyard. It was straw to soft gold in color and aromatic with some smokiness. Clear and crisp, leaving legs on the glass, this was a nice Viognier. Over the next two days I tried 2002 Alban Viognier and St. Michelle Viognier but liked the Miner better. (Food started with a seared tuna sushi dish with a nice lemony flavor).

The Miner 2001 Chardonnay, Napa Valley, was crisp, smoky, quite pleasant if not complex. Medium to long finish. No malolactic fermentation. Some bubbles present. Worth seeking out to accompany shellfish. We had with scallops, sweetbreads and savoy cabbage with orange-anise emulsion.

My favorite of the wines was the next one--2001 Pinot Noir, Gary's Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands. It was a clear, pretty Burgundy color--not purple or dense. Nose of red cherries and maybe currants. Beautiful aroma. Viscous texture. A mouthful worthy of savorying with cherries again present on the palate. Lightbodied for the vineyard--probably not highly extracted. (Two other ladies at my table found it to be too light-bodied--I saw it more as full of elegance and finesse--definely not as bold as a Siduri Pisoni for example.) The Pinot Noir was served with the Niman Ranch veal cheeks (my first try of cheeks) and Maine lobster with cauliflower puree and black truffle jus.

We were served a lamb dish with Swiss chard and eggplant caviar to go with the other red wines. Next came 2000 Syrah, Napa Valley. Clear, medium red color. A different nose than I usually find with Syrah. Some subtle spices. Then a 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville (Napa Valley). This was young and perhaps needs some time. Not a lot of depth showing. Possibly it may not even develop much depth. I know 1999 and 2001 are generally considered to be better vintages than 2000 for California Cabernet Sauvignon.

Dessert was chocolate profiteroles with almond ice cream, candied almonds and chocolate sauce. This was served with Jamaican Blue Mountain Estate coffee (which I didn't have because I don't need caffeine at that hour.)

[This message has been edited by wondersofwine (edited 04-27-2004).]

[winoweenie]

Sounds like some super food and drink. I've had some nice Miner wines. WW