Two wine dinners: One by land, the other by sea

"You live at the beach? Wow! What do you do when the summer’s over?” If I had a vodka tonic for every time I heard that, I’d … well, OK, that’s another column. But you get the idea: There’s no shortage of things to do when the vacationers aren’t looking. Some of my favorites include the wine, beer and spirits tastings that restaurants put together to not only bolster off-season cash registers, but also to pay special attention to their cherished locals.

Marian Parrott of Sedona restaurant in Bethany Beach has no problem attracting her cherished locals. The popular restaurant was founded by Jonathan Spivak (of Salt Air fame) in January 1993, and as Jonathan’s right-hand-girl for many years, the transition of ownership to Marian was seamless.

Last week, I was honored to be included in one of her few wine tastings. She and Banks Wine & Spirits teamed up to feature the popular vintages of Hermann J. Wiemer of the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York. The dinner was completely sold out, and presented a challenge to Marian’s intrepid kitchen crew, as Weimer’s wines tend toward the Riesling and Gewürztraminer varieties, i.e., rather sweet. But they rose to the challenge with dishes that not only stood up to the scrumptious wines, but also enhanced them. The festivities began with light and flaky caramelized onion tartelettes topped with rosemary goat cheese, followed by sautéed shrimp over a couscous stir fry with pineapple teriyaki sauce. The wines slowly progressed from the (relatively) dry to the sweeter varieties (including a light and fresh Gewürztraminer!), but the kitchen kept up the pace with Asian spice-rubbed pork ribs, a hubcap-size portobello glistening with three aromatic cheeses, and perfectly pan-seared duck breast over Dijon sweet potato mash. Dessert was a special treat with goat cheese fudge (yup, fudge!) from Side Hill Acres Dairy Goat Farm, also located in upstate New York. Wiemer Vineyards rep Jeremy Coffey summed it up best: “If it grows together, it goes together.” The tasting was a rousing success, and Sedona remains one of my favorite restaurants around.

Not all wine tastings are in restaurants, however. I had barely dried out from the Sedona extravaganza before I was herded onto the Cape May-Lewes Ferry for one of the extremely popular Sunset Wine-Lovers’ Cruises hosted by Outlet Liquors’ guru of the grape, Dave Hill. I have to admit that I didn’t know what to expect. I associate the ferry with long rows of seats, a little snack bar, breathtaking views, a shortcut to Atlantic City, and nervous car alarms shrieking in protest against the motion of the ship.

Instead, we were directed forward (the pointy end) to a full dining room, decked out (pun intended) with a full bar and white tablecloths. Am I on the ferry, or on a cruise ship? Dave takes great pride in his selection of wines for each of the cruises, and in true sommelier fashion, he glides from table to table, topping off glasses and explaining why that vintage pairs with the course-of-the-moment.

But it’s still a ferry, right? Is the food imported from the little snack bar below decks? (Don’t forget the Toast Chee crackers….) On the contrary! CMLF’s Executive Chef Ingrid Dellatorre’s dinner could not have been further from snack-bar fare. Her first course made that abundantly clear: The grilled avocado stuffed with a spicy jerk shrimp and tropical quinoa salsa played the perfect foil against Hill’s very French and very dry 2013 Domaine Des Herbauges Chardonnay. It was time to stop listening for car alarms and pay attention! Terminal Manager Nikki Fisher (from Bordeaux, France, by the way) made that very easy with her welcoming smile and able description of the cuisine to follow.

Lanterna Distributors rep Debra Matalone explained that wine No. 2's grapes grow on hills so steep that workers have to wear harnesses to tend to the fruit. And that 2013 Senorio Da Vila Godello from Spain stood nose to nose with the gentle acidity of Ingrid’s amazingly moist mahi on seasoned arugula with hearts of palm, parmesan and wedges of lemon, lime and orange. The pairing was a rollercoaster of taste, texture and temperature, and a tribute to the Spanish wine-workers’ defiance of gravity.

Ingrid’s French lentil salad (reminiscent of my mother’s Middle-Eastern mujadara) was paired with Andouille sausage, blue cheese, and a deliciously aggressive NV Ixeia Red, also from Spain. This was followed by perfectly braised osso bucco in a red wine reduction with a parsnip potato puree. Dave smiled when I mentioned that the reduction tasted like the 2010 Chateau Lusseau cuvée of merlot, cabernet, malbec and cab franc that he was pouring. I am guessing that that was not a coincidence.

By this time, the ship was on its way back into Lewes terminal. We had all scampered outside to photograph the sunset (it never gets old, does it…) and as darkness enveloped the ship, a celebratory flute of sparkling NV Reviso Prosecco appeared at the table, ready to play politely with bananas foster cheesecake topped with caramel brittle.

The remaining Sunset Wine-Lovers’ Cruises are sold out for this year (now I know why), but go to CMLF.com to book for next year. And as far as Sedona goes, be sure to make reservations before mounting the 15-minute trek to the corner of Central Boulevard and Pennsylvania Avenue in Bethany Beach. Marian’s restaurant is no longer a secret. And to think the shoulder season has just begun!


Bob Yesbek is a serial foodie and can be reached at byesbek@CapeGazette.com.