Any Port In The Storm/A Very Merry Unbirthday

A trip up to Humboldt this weekend gave me another opportunity to attend a liquor-tasting dinner arranged by Myrtlewood Liquors. They floored me with the last bourbon tasting, and I wasn't about to miss this night's big attraction: port wine. Port has always been a treat since I was first introduced to it by my stepmother-to-be, and during a month-long stay in Lisbon in 2008 I got to indulge in a few different varieties.

The opener, however, was something I'd never seen before:

White port, served as a spritzer with an equal measure of tonic water and a twist of lime. Apparently the stuff is very tart on its own. It's a bit less common than red ports, but if you find it you might give it a try. It smells faintly like tequila and lime, but it's very light and refreshing. It was a nice preamble to the menu.

First course:

Pasteis de bacalhau (codfish cakes) with red pepper coulis and basil chive oil. Scrumptious. The port here is the Fonseca Bin No.27, very smooth and fruity. Both of them a good way to whet the appitite for more.

Second Course:

Poached pear & herbed chevre tart with peach-jalapeno chutney. As you can see, my fork dove for the tart before I could get out my camera for the picture. The pears and soft quiche-like topping were perfect, and the crust was firm with just the right hint of char on the edges. Topped with the chutney, this was amazing! Seriously, you should consider a topping like this on your next pie; the added spice really opens up the taste buds and blooms the sweetness of the pear. It's met with Taylor's late-bottled vintage 2003, which is much less syrupy-sweet than port's reputation suggests; I'd feel confident to serve this port at dinner.

Third Course:


Grilled boar and rabbit sausages with cranberries, gorgonzola, baby lettuce, and sherry balsamic glaze. This was accompanied quite nicely with the Fonseca 10-year tawny. The tawny gave a full sweet & sour flavor that I wnated to linger on, and I loved the rusty color. It balanced well with the boar sausage: rich, rustic, peppery aroma - firm, full-bodied meat that slammed me onto the table when met with the crisp lettuce, tangy balsamic, and pungent gorgonzola. I took a moment to Tweet something vulgar about the experience, but this dish made me want to do bad things. I would have licked the plate until it begged me to stop.

Fourth Course:


Duck Foie Gras with local greens and black muscat vinaigrette. Tasty stuff, but exceedingly rich. The chef, bless him, was chastised from many of the diners for not offering any bread or crackers to bring the foie gras down a notch. He and everyone else recognized it was a foolish blunder, but that it did not reflect the dinner on the whole. No matter - it gave me the time I needed to reflect on the Taylor's 20-year tawny: a rich, raisiny dessert port with a bronzed color and, to me, a hint of orange and herb tea.

Dessert:


Espresso creme brulee with Taylor's Quinta de Vargellas 1998 vintage. This port epitomized what I expect from the style: full-bodied sweetness and a deep velvety tint. It blankets the tongue, and was the best pairing of the night with the espresso creme brulee. This dessert recognizes the need for coffee to counter a normally rich, sweet, eggy creme brulee, and just cuts out the extra steps. Delicious.

That same family friend was treating me to this dinner, as an early celebration of my 28th birthday. Thanks to getting a lucky draw in the raffle, I even got a present:


A very merry Unbirthday indeed...