A couple of weekends ago, Dominique and I had an absolutely fabulous dinner with David Jackson, his wonderful wife Kathy, and their little dog Islay Bear (A Scottish name for sure). Islay is one of the cutest little dogs you've ever met. And I am truly a big dog guy, but this little guy has such a face, and such a great disposition, that you've just gotta love him.
David, a former and sometime IBM-er, is very knowledgable about wines. And when he isn't selling wine up and down the Hudson Valley, runs his own touring company that oversees gourmet wine trips to Italy!
The company is called Ripertoli Wine Adventures. You can to his website: http://ripertoliadventures.com/
David made grassfed Kinderhook Farms London Broil, with a fabulous rub. It was like buttah!!!! He served it with a Querceto Chingnale CabSav/Merlot super Tuscan. It was deep, dark and delicious. Truly awesome!
For dessert, we had fresh fruit on home made coffeecake with berries and Standing Stone 04 Vidal Ice Wine
Standing Stone is one of my favorite Finger Lake wineries. Standing Stone Vidal Ice is the name they use, not Ice Wine. They pick the grapes after the leaves are gone, and the grapes are drying and starting to shrivel - very important to concentrate and enrich the flavors. They freeze the grapes commercially, making sure they are frozen solid, which is critical to the ultimate wine quality. They ferment very carefully, using a blend of yeasts, and just the right temperature to keep the fermentation going strong.
The apricot comes across on the nose as promised. There's also pineapple and honey. And there is nice acidity, so important in a good, well balanced dessert wine. Golden and rich, also with touches of rasin, make this an exceptional thick and delicious dessert wine. Fabulous!!!!
Standing Stone just released their 2007 Vidal Ice was just released, but the 2001, 2002 and 2004 vintages all received 90 scores in the Wine Spectator Magazine.
A fabulous dinner, with wonderful company, great food, and capped off with a tremendous wine!