Palate Pleasers at Purple Cafe!

Sommelier Dawn Smith, Chef Harry Mills & Cathi Hatch



Will Poole, Cathi & Ken Hatch, Susie Ostrander,
Melanie Corey-Ferrini, Mike Crill

This week the Purple Cafe and Wine Bar in Bellevue presented "A Menu for a Winter's Night" for the ZINO Society Master of Wine Monday event.  Heavy Restaurant Group Sommelier, Dawn Smith, and Chef Harry Mills, teamed together to present an exquisite paired food and wine tasting menu featuring foods of the Northwest and French wines for ZINO Society members and their guests.

Susie Ostrander, Janet Levinger

Richard Leeds with mystery wine

Each course was enthusiastically consumed by the sold-out crowd of 24 lucky tasters in the room.  Between each course, Chef Harry and Dawn supplied background and insights about the food courses and why each wine was selected to pair with those particular flavors.  Though it is hard to select favorites from such an incredible menu, my personal favorites were the Duck Confit Strudel with Yam and Pear Puree and Fennel Pollen and the Mushroom-Potato Pave which was served balanced on its side along with the grilled prime sirloin.  See the incredible pairings below at the end of this blog posting. 

ZINO Society members and guests had a marvelous time connecting with one another while sipping wine and tasting the culinary gems. Guest, Richard Leeds, brought along a favorite Bordeaux-style wine with the label hidden to share with some of the tasters, which turned out to be Long Shadows Feather.  In the 6 degrees of separation category (or is it only one degree of separation now?), Susie Ostrander and Janet Levinger, who had not previously met, discovered that they both had their ears pierced in Sioux City, Iowa, by the same doctor (Susie's uncle)!  The evening ended with an enthusiastic round of applause for all the Purple Cafe staff who had made our evening such a pleasure!

"A Menu for a Winter's Night" 

Passed Canapes

Dried Figs and Spanish White Anchovy

Smoked Mussel, Sweet Pickled Fennel and Piquillo Pepper Aioli

Prosciutto, Fontina Val d'Aosta and Almond Butter

Jean-Paul Trocadero Brut . Savoie, France . NV

A Tasting of Kusshi, Totten Inlet and Kumomoto Oysters

Cucumber-Black Pepper Sorbet

Christian Moreau . Chablis, France . 06

Seared Diver Scallop

Beluga Lentils, Fennel Puree, Meyer Lemon-Hazelnut Vinaigrette and Gremolata

Chateau Bonnet Bordeaux Blanc . Entre-Deaux-Mers, France . 08

Intermezzo

Chilled Soup of Ruby Red Grapefruit, Campari and Crushed Mint

Pan Roasted Muscovy Duck Breast

Duck Confit Strudel, Yam and Pear Puree, Fennel Pollen

Jean-Paul Thevenet 'vieilles vignes' Morgon . Beaujolais, France . 08

Grilled Prime Sirloin

Mushroon-Potato Pave, Glace de Viande, Brown Butter Emulsion

Lalande Balestard . Bordeaux, France . 07

Smoked Chocolate Ganache

Pomegranate, Caramel Tuile

M. Chapoutier . Banyuls, France . 07

Grilled Prime Sirloin with
Mushroom-Potato Pave