#MrMesero Mesero Miquels on Henderson in Dallas! #PatzHall

Don and I recently met up with a wonderful couple from Santa Fe at Mesero Miquel on Henderson. What a fun restaurant with amazing Mexican food in a modern American kitchen! We love Mico's restaurants and frequent them often.

Gina and Robert Erlichman are longtime friends of Don and we visited them while in Santa Fe in November. She creates unusual art using sculptural mixed media combining natural earth pigments, clay, straw, plaster, glass and metal patinas.

 Here are a couple of her latest kimono creations. We were fortunate to view many of her works in person and they are beautiful. 

Both pics via the internet.

 Robert is a fine art photographer, master printer, graphic designer and publisher. His latest project showcases the works of famed American photographer Gordon Parks.

Robert archiving Gordon Parks painting.
Pic via the internet.

His company Art Guild Press and Gina's 2 Feather Studio combine the creative compassion of these two beautiful people.

Now, to the wonderful wine I had at Mesero Miguel! 

2013 Patz & Hall Chardonnay ($38) from the Sonoma Coast. This is a vivid and energetic wine with lovely layers of pear apple, green summer melon, Muscat, lavender, and toasted hazelnut. It has a long, fresh finish.

In the background you see the tasty trio of sauces for the crispy tortilla chips served at Mico's restaurants. Love that stuff!

Enjoy!

A Day of Shopping and a Night of Wine! Cru Wine Bar

This time of the year is so busy with shopping and getting things ready for the holiday season, and although that is all over now, I still remain in that frame of mind until it gets warmer. I love freezing nights, dreary winter days, warm blankets, my old Uggs, new movies, and of course great wine.

One evening Don and I decided to go to the movies, but didn't quite have time  to eat a full sit-down meal before showtime. So we headed to Cru Wine Bar right beside the Magnolia Theater where the movie was playing. 

Don was in the mood for white wine and I'm always in that same mood. He ordered a different flight of whites than me. That way we could taste all six wines. We ordered some shared plates that paired well with the wines. Here's what we ordered.

Flight #3 World Whites 

• 2013 Henri Bourgeois "Les Barrones" Sancerre ($23) from Loire, France. The chive and flint notes are backed by a tangy line echo on the finish. Light, pure and fresh. 87 points Wine Spectator 

• 2011 Le Vins de Vienne Saint-Peray ($27) from Rhone Valley, France. Bright, green-tinged straw. Fresh peach and melon on the fragrant nose and in the mouth. Plush and open-knit, with good finishing breadth and persistence. This easy-going wine drinks week now. 

• 2012 Rudi Pichler, Federspiel, Gruner Veltliner ($25) Wachau, Austria. The fresh-cut apple and grapefruit flavors are firm and fleshy in this lightly spiced white. Features well-defined ripe melon notes, delivering an elegant finish accented by white pepper.

Flight #1: First Class Chardonnays

• 2010 Sanford "Flor de Campo" ($16) from Santa Barbara County, California. Fresh and lively, offering citrus-infused stone fruit flavors, with touches of white peach and flowers. 

• 2011 Chateau St. Jean ($14) from the Sonoma Coast, California. Rich, offering ripe Golden Delicious and Granny Smith apple notes, with pretty spice and light oak shadings. Ends with a subtle mix of nuanced flavors.

• 2011 Mi Sueno, Carneros ($38) in Napa Valley, California. A mix of fresh earth, citrus, mineral and green apple flavors combine to give this wine an unusual yet appealing flavor profile. Firm acidity keeps the flavors fresh and lively.

We had a great time. Cruz Wine Bar is a fun, cozy place to meet, talk, and dine. Off to the movies! Enjoy!

Argentinian Inspired Evening at DCC

Don and I love to try new wines, especially on half-priced bottle night at the club. So whenever there's a chance to dine on a Wednesday night, we head straight there.

The menu has changed at the DCC and many new items are on our list to try in the new year during the winter season. One wine that we have never tried is an Argentinian wine from a small Mendoza winery. Walter Bressia began his winery in 2003 with the purpose of selling limited and personal batches of wine and grappa of the highest quality.

At Bodega Bressia, they have the right technology to make all their wines. The necessary quantity of French and American oak barrels allow the design of a hands-on style and very balanced oak concentration. The oak aging is done in a subterranean cellar located 6 meters below the surface and houses 360 barrels.

This is the wine we chose from Bodega Bressia. It is a blend of Semillon and Chardonnay and was awarded 90 points from the Wine Advocate.

Enjoy!

Santa Fe Holiday; Four Seasons Rancho Encantado; #GrgichHills #SpringMtnVyd #FSSantaFe

November 2014, the weekend after my birthday, Don and I enjoyed a fabulous time seeing his Albuquerque family and new grandson, and a couple of days in Santa Fe.

We spent some time in the town square, visited with a man and his wife that Don knew from UNM, shopped a bit and of course ate fabulous foods. While dining at the Inn of the Anasazi in the square, we split a local Wagyu beef burger and frites along with a 2012 Hess Chardonnay ($20) from Monterey, California.

Besides dining at the Four Seasons, one evening we chose The Compound on Canyon Road, a very familiar road if you love art. 

Don and I chose two half bottles of wine, one red and one white to satisfy both our palates. The first bottle we had was a

2011 Grgich Hills Estate Chardonnay ($21 half bottle) from Napa Valley. This Chardonnay does not undergo malolactic fermentation, preserving its natural acidity. It has a fresh citrus and juicy peach flavor rounded out with rich warm vanilla.

The second wine we ordered was a 

2008 Spring Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon ($40 half bottle) from Napa Valley. Aromas of cherry, raspberry and chocolate layered with floral notes and an array of spices-clove, cinnamon, black pepper, and vanilla. The wine delivers mixes of black and red-fruit-berries, plums and cranberries. Silky tannins, an elongated finish of chocolate and spice. It needs to decant for an hour in its youth. This wine was delicious.

Santa Fe is so romantic, especially in the hills outside of the town at the Four Seasons Rancho Encantado. The smell of pinion wood burning, the crisp cold air with snow falling, the full moon and the stars shining brightly with a glass of wine is perfect for those searching for oneness with each other.