Jed Steele Wine Dinner at Cafe Maxx

Tuesday, November 11, 2014 - 07:00 PM

This Event has been read: 2417 times.

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"Drinking wine is just a part of life, like eating food." - Francis Ford Coppola

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And we have to drink wine everyday just like we eat food everyday!! 

My wine drinking schedule is winding down and after and amazing month of October events we started out November with a bang with our Vega Sicilia event at Casa D'angelo on Monday, which was incredible!!  Thank you Manny and AJ for the five extra vintages of Unico!! There was 1960, 1970, 1990, 1998 and the reserve Especial on the table this evening in addition to the 2000 that was served to the entire group!!   I will give a full review on the wines in the WIDY part of our e-mail in a week or so.

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Then, last night the Sassicaia tasting back to 1979 including the 1982, 1985, 1990, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2006 and a 1990 Opus one thrown in for good measure in the blind round for a comparison- another spectacular “Once in a Lifetime” tasting that’s two in a row to start out this week!!

We still l have a few events left for 2014 but things are coming to a close quickly as we get ready for the Holiday season here at the store with your gift box selections now the focus on the business getting all the big kids their wines in time for the Holidays so we can't drink “as much” after Thanksgiving.

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But like I said we still have a few great tastings like the vintage Madeira tasting on Friday night this week where we are serving wines back to the 1827 vintage!  Check out the line-up of Madeira that we are showing this year on our web page, vintages include:  1870, 1862, 1900, 1934 and 1952. 

And November also means it’s time for our good friend Jed Steele to pay us a visit as Jed is the only winemaker that we do a dinner featuring his wines on an annual basis.  It has been since the year 1990 when he was working at Kendall Jackson winery, which also just happens to be the first wine dinner that I ever participated in.  Jed was the one that got me started down the path of these AWESONE wine events that we do on a weekly basis now.

We salute our best friend in the wine business- come out and taste the newest releases from the man of Steele and experience a five course tasting menu pre-pared by Chef Olvier Saucy.  The fee for this dinner is $95 + Tax + Gratuity, for reservations call 954-782-0606.

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Café Maxx Welcomes Jed Steele
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
7:00 PM

 

 

Reception

Blue point oyster stew

Tuna tartare, Poke style with mango and caviar

Crab and corn empanadas

Bell and Evans chicken philo purses with brie

 

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Shooting Star Sauvignon Blanc
Price: $13.25       Sale $11.66          Case $136

We ferment the juice in stainless steel tanks to preserve the wonderful freshness and character of the grapes. With the exception of this Sauvignon Blanc, all our other white wines spend some time in barrel. We make this wine without any barrel fermentation or aging. Additionally, the wine does not go through malo-lactic fermentation. This helps to preserve the crisp acidity and fresh fruit flavors in the wine. The Shooting Star Sauvignon Blanc is a field blend, containing approximately 10% Semillon from the same vineyard. We feel the Semillon adds a bit of richness to the wine.

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Shooting Star Black Bubbles
Price: $17.00       Sale $14.96          Case $174

From an idea born in the Land Down Under we proudly unveil our newest creation, Black Bubbles. Always on the lookout for something different, Jed Steele's son Quincy discovered sparkling Shiraz, an Aussie tradition, while working at the D'Arenburg Winery. Bringing home the idea of a Northern California version inspired Jed to formulate a unique Syrah blend from some of our finest contracted vineyards in Lake County.

 

First Course

Local snapper with mixed citrus and vanilla peppercorn salsa goat cheese pearled couscous and roasted buttersquash

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Steele Pinot Blanc Santa Barbera County 2012
List $17.00            Sale $14.96         Case $174

The fruit from this area tends to have tropical fruit aromas and flavors, as well as peach and melon characteristics and we also find the hallmark green apple character common in Pinot Blanc. The nose is aromatic with a soft and creamy mid-palate.

 

Second Course

Duck ravioli and creamed porcini, leek and wild mushroom demi glace
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Steele Writers Block Pinot Noir Lake County 2011
Price: $19.75       Case $17.38        Case $202

The dark brick hue of this wine prophesizes deep flavors that are sure to satiate the most fanatical of pinot pundits. Aromas of candied bing cherries, brown sugar and spice suggests that this wine is all Pinot Noir, but on the pallet the Writer’s Block Pinot Noir has more body and texture than typical Pinots. This wine offers up juicy cherry and raspberry flavors with hints of cinnamon and tobacco. The mouth feel is round and supple, and finishes with soft tannins.

 

Third Course

Braised short rib and sea scallop surf and turf, foie gras red wine sauce mashed fingerling potatoes with root vegetables

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Steele Outcast Red Lake County 2010
List $22.50            Sale $19.80         Case $230

51% Syrah,23 % Zinfandel, 11% Petite Sirah, 7% Merlot, 5% Malbec 3% Petite Verdot. Smooth yet spicy, bold and luscious, this fruit forward wine showcasing some of Lake County's favorite vineyards and varietals.

 

 

Dessert

Pistachio crusted chocolate terrine with sundried cherry & port chocolate sauce

 

Steele Touriga Nacional Port

 

Dinner is $95 + Gratuity + Tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463

 

 

A bit about Jed Steele:

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The very first time we ever saw Jed Steele he was plying his trade in the summer of 1979 for tiny Edmeades Winery in the laid-back Anderson Valley of Mendocino. We didn't realize then that he already had a wealth of experience behind him - his first job in winemaking was back in 1968 in the cellars of Fred and Eleanor McCrea at Stony Hill. In those days we thought Stony Hill was the best Chardonnay produced in America. Hard to believe that Jed has been making wine in a period that spans five decades. He has probably made more volume of fine wine than any other single winemaker in California - certainly nobody understands the many diverse microclimates of California Chardonnay better than he. Back in 1983 Jess Jackson, the founder and proprietor of Kendall-Jackson, knew exactly what he was doing when he hired Jed. Jackson decided to launch his venture with one of the very best talents in California. Throughout the 1980's Kendall-Jackson and Jed Steele amazed us with an incredible array of high quality offerings - reserve Chardonnays, Zinfandels, Cabernets - even late-harvest Rieslings - that were as good as any produced in the state. All the while, the winery churned out ever-increasing numbers of the "Vintner's Reserve" Chardonnay; during the Jed Steele era Kendall-Jackson's production of that wine soared from 9,000 cases to three quarters of a million cases annually.

 

Despite the enormous critical and commercial success, somewhere, somehow...things went sour between Steele and Jess Jackson. There were rumors well over two years before Steele left the organization that he was unhappy with the corporate direction at Kendall-Jackson. Things had just become too big for him. According to Steele, "There certainly is a degree of power and professional prestige in turning out six figure boxes of good Chardonnay annually, but there is something about the days at Stony Hill that I felt I needed back. The touch, the feel, the intimate contact with the wine is necessary to me as a winemaker in the practice of my craft. I had lost this intimacy at Kendall-Jackson."

 

In August of 1990 Steele agreed to wind down his relationship with Kendall-Jackson and signed a consulting deal for $400,000 with Jackson. Jed would train the new winemaker and provide for an orderly transition. On May 30, 1991, Jackson canned Steele and refused to pay the last $275,000 of the consulting contract. Steele sued and Jackson countersued in what was one of the most acrimonious trials ever seen in normally serene Lake County. The combatants traded bitter charges and occasionally snapped at one another outside the courtroom, according to Santa Rosa's Press Democrat, which covered the trial. Jackson won on his counterclaims that Steele interfered with Kendall-Jackson grower relations during his term of employment by negotiating grower contracts for the new Steele wines. Furthermore, Jackson won on the charge that Steele had wrongfully revealed a "secret process" for making Chardonnay to Steele's new employer, Stimson Lane. Stimson Lane, owners of Washington State's Chateau Ste. Michelle and Columbia Crest, are determined to turn their Napa Valley property, Villa Mt. Eden, into one of Kendall-Jackson's major competitors. Steele is now consulting with them to help them one day reach that objective. The successful "secret process" counter charge was the most sensational news that came out of the trial. At first many observers scoffed at the countercharge that there could be such a thing as a "secret process" in an industry noted for its openness and free exchange of ideas. When Kendall-Jackson's claim was upheld, many felt that it would have a chilling effect on the future trading of information among vintners. Steele, incidentally, won the right to his additional $275,000; but observers labeled the trial a "draw", considering the fact that Steele had to pay damages. Although Jess Jackson tried to paint the struggle between himself and Steele as a battle between a small, family-owned-and-operated operation (Kendall-Jackson) and a huge, multi-national company (Stimson Lane is owned by U.S. Tobacco), one could not help but be amused by the irony. Kendall-Jackson is no small peanuts - this winery (though family owned) is an aggressive, major player in the California wine scene. The little guys here were Jed and Marie Steele - good, modest folks with no well-heeled backers and only Jed's good name on the bottom line of the bank notes.

 

Despite being embroiled in a sensational trial, Jed Steele moved forward to open his own winery and get back in touch with wine. His first vintage (1991) debuted in 1993 to exceptional critical acclaim. Steele bottled a Chardonnay with a California appellation that was an amalgam of four of Jed's favorite vineyards; he also produced small separate bottlings (less than 200 cases of each) from several of those vineyards. That first year Steele also took a big leap into the Pinot Noir business - a surprising move because he had never made Pinot Noirs at Kendall-Jackson. It was probably more serendipity than design. The opportunity arose at harvest's end in 1991 to get some superb pinot noir fruit from the Durell Vineyard and the Sangiacomo Vineyard, and Jed seized the moment "just a little scared by it all." The critical response to Steele's 1991 Carneros bottling and 1991 Sangiacomo bottling was extremely positive and encouraged him to make Pinot Noir an important part of his portfolio. (Steele now produces six different Pinot Noirs). With the 1992 vintage Steele introduced his first Pinot Blanc from the famed Bien Nacido Vineyard in Santa Barbara (source of some legendary Chardonnays from Au Bon Climat and others). The first four vintages have been some of the finest Pinot Blancs produced in California. The Wine News selected both the 1993 and the 1994 as "Best of the Year". The recent 2004 is again outstanding.

 

In the last several years, Steele has added additional wines to the portfolio. Beginning with the '92 vintage Steele began producing about 1000 cases of Zinfandel from the Pacini Vineyard in Mendocino, and the winery has released a DuPratt Zinfandel from the 1993 vintage. Jed first made Dupratt Zinfandel in 1974; his 1987 Kendall-Jackson Dupratt Zinfandel was the finest Zinfandel we have ever tasted and one of the greatest wines Jed has ever produced. Zinfandel, we might add, is Jed Steele's favorite wine. Steele now produces excellent value wines under a second label called Shooting Star - Steele's middle name is Tecumseh, the Indian Chief who was said to have drawn good luck from being born under a meteor of shooting stars!

 

Other Steele wines available:

 

These wines offer some of the greatest values that you will find not only in California but from anywhere in the world.  From the entry level Shooting Star wines to the top wine in the line-up here the Stymie everything is worthy of ordering by the case or mix up a case where else can you get Aligote,  Lemberger and Sparkling Shiraz from a single winery??

 

Steele Shooting Star Chardonnay Mendocino 2012
List $13.50            Sale $11.88         Case $138

The grapes for our Shooting Star Mendocino Chardonnay are grown in the Redwood Valley north of Ukiah and the Dupratt Vineyard in the Mendocino Ridge appellation.  Typically this Chardonnay shows citrus and mineral characteristics with a hint of stone fruit flavors and bright acidity.

 

Steele Chardonnay california Cuvee 2013           
List  $19.25           Sale  $16.94        Case $197

Steele Chard Cuvee (375m)       
List $12.50            Sale $11.00         Case $127.50

Our flagship white wine, California Cuvee Chardonnay, really shows off Jed Steele’s wizardry in blending. As with all great wines, the process begins with the selection of the right vineyards. We have worked with most of the great Chardonnay vineyards in California and have chosen these six prestigious properties to obtain the grapes for this wine.

 

Steele Shooting Star Aligote Washington State 2012
List  $13.50           Sale $11.88         Case $138

Our Aligoté is barrel fermented, but we use older oak barrels rather than the 30% new oak that we typically use for chardonnay. The wine is crisp and clean, a wine with a nice balance of fruit and acidity. Flinty, mineral elements mix with a light floral hint on the nose, followed with the suggestion of tart/sweet apple on the palette, making it a wonderful, versatile food wine.

 

Steele Shooting Star Sauvignon Blanc Lake County 2013
List $12.50            Sale  $11.00        Case $128

The Sauvignon Blanc is a fresh, crisp wine with plenty of bright, lively fruit.  It has notes of fig, melon, gooseberry and a hint of honey.  On the palate, this “lip-smacking good” wine shows fresh grapefruit, gooseberry and tart lime, with a generous, crisp acidic finish.

 

Steele Pinot Blanc Santa Barbera County 2012
List  $17.00           Sale $14.96         Case $174

The fruit from this area tends to have tropical fruit aromas and flavors, as well as peach and melon characteristics and we also find the hallmark green apple character common in Pinot Blanc. The nose is aromatic with a soft and creamy mid-palate.

 

Steele Shooting Star Pinot Noir Lake County 2012
List  $13.50           Sale $11.88         Case $138

The unique growing conditions of Lake County provide a few places to grow Pinot Noir. We have selected a Pinot Noir clone (Clone 32) that is the latest ripening clone in every California Pinot Noir clonal trial. The late ripening nature of clone 32 allows the fruit to ripen in the later (October), and cooler part of the season. We selected 2 Big Valley sites suitable for growing Pinot Noir, Lyon Vineyard at the foot of Mt. Konocti and Dorn Vineyard on the banks of Kelsey Creek both contribute different flavor profiles, that balance each other well. The Lyon vineyard provides structure and rose petal scents. The Dorn vineyard gives to the blend strawberry flavors and soft tannins.

 

Steele Pinot Noir Bien Nacido Block N 2009
List  $38.50           Sale  $33.88        Case $393

This vineyard, given its coastal influence, produces a wine with freshly picked strawberry, bing cherries, cloves, and spice, aromas and flavors. But still has a balance of acidity and a finish that lingers of sweet tobacco and spices.

 

Steele Pinot Noir Carneros 2012
List $20.25            Sale $17.82         Case $207

This vineyard, given its coastal influence, produces a wine with bright strawberry and cherry flavors, balanced with hints of jasmine tea and cola. Our approach for Carneros Pinot Noir has always been to produce a classically-styled “pinot-lover’s pinot”, with moderate oak, high-tone fruit flavors, a rich nose, juicy palate and long finish.

 

Steele Merlot Clear Lake 2011
List  $17.00           Sale $14.96         Case $174

This wine is a mouthful of pleasure: lots of fruit, medium tannins and a long lingering finish. We would recommend some cellar time for this wine if only to allow all of the great aromas and flavors properly meld.

 

Steele Shooting Star  Merlot Lake County 2012
List  $14.75           Sale $12.98         Case $151

Merlot has always been a strong performer in Lake County. The wines are better structured and denser than a typical Merlot. An addition of Cabernet Franc helps balance the wine and give it more fruit. We aged this wine in American Oak barrels for 12 months.

 

Steele Stymie Merlot Reserve Lake County 2010
List $37.50            Sale $33.00         Case $383

Stymie Bench Vineyard typically yields a Merlot with a rich, deep red color and firm body, exhibiting aromas of chocolate, jammy fruit, tobacco and pepper. The palate reveals a rich, well-structured wine with layers of ripe red currants, anise, chocolate-covered cherries, a peppery mid-palate, and just a hint of coffee. This high-quality fruit produces an excellent, long-lasting finish and smooth tannins. It’s a perfect “special occasion” wine and pairs well with big hearty foods. Exceptional with any full-flavored dish, such as any preparation of lamb or beef, steaks, grilled venison chops or ragout. You will be missing out if you don’t try this Merlot with chocolate.

 

Steele Shooting Star Syrah Lake County 2013
List $12.50            Sale $11.00         Case $128

After many years of close observation we decided to plant Syrah in Lake County. This decision has been affirmed, as each vintage has rewarded us with great fruit. Five local growers of Syrah for Steele/Shooting Star are the Dorn, Fiora, Jacobsen, McGrath, and Walschmidt Vineyards. From these vineyards we select certain lots for Shooting Star.

 

Steele Cabernet Franc Lake County        
List $17.00            Sale  $14.96        Case $174

This wine is a mouthful of pleasure: lots of fruit, medium tannins and a long, lingering finish. We would recommend some cellar time for this wine if only to allow all of the great aromas and flavors properly meld.

 

Steele Shooting Star Blue Franc Washington State 2011
List  $13.50           Sale  $11.88        Case $138

The wine is clean, crisp, and unpretentious with tons of fruit, including warm berry pie, complementing the traces of pepper, almond, cherry and cinnamon. Our Shooting Star Blue Franc has soft tannins, medium body, great color and is the perfect red wine to enjoy over the summer with any festive occasion.

 

Steele Shooting Star Cabernet Sauvignon Lake County 2012
List  $14.75           Sale $12.98         Case $151

Cabernet Sauvignon has not been the best red grape for most parts of Lake County, making vineyard site selection a crucial decision. A long season is needed to get the proper sugar development and to help reduce some of the natural herbaceous character. We always blend in a small percentage of Merlot and Cabernet Franc from the Dorn Vineyard. We age this wine in used American Oak as well as some used Hungarian barrels for 12 months.

 

Steele Cabernet Sauvignon Red Hills Vineyard Lake County 2012
List  $21.50           Sale $18.92         Case $220

This wine has a rich, fruit-forward elegance. A spicy fruit and berry core backed up by soft tannins makes it a nice glass of wine for casual sipping among friends.

 

Steele Shooting Star Zinfandel Mendocino
List $13.50            Sale  $11.88        Case $138

Based on our stylistic approach to Shooting Star wines this Zin is lighter and softer than our Old-Vine Steele Zinfandels. We used approximately 80% neutral barrels and 20% new barrels in order to capture as much of the aroma and flavor of the grape as possible. This wine has aromas of raspberry and other ripe black fruit, butter, and just a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg.  The tannins and acids in this wine are soft but distinct.  Cedar tones with just a hint of plum make the finish a wonderful explanation point.

 

Steele Catfish Zinfandel Clear Lake 2011
List  $23.75           Sale $20.90         Case $243

The vineyard is located on the Bell Hill bench of Lake County just south of Kelseyville.  Catfish Vineyard, planted in 1901, is head pruned and stands on its own roots.  Steele Wines purchased the vineyard in 2000 and we have been working to rehabilitate the old vines since that time. Catfish Vineyard Zinfandel, is actually a field blend of a number of varieties, including small amounts of carignan, alicante bouschet, cabernet sauvignon , petite sirah, and cinsault.  Having more than one variety assured the old-time vintners that they would have some grapes to harvest regardless of the spring frosts or autumn storms.

 

Steele Pacini Zinfandel Mendocino 2012
List  $20.25           Sale  $17.82        Case $207

The nose has characteristics of spice and blueberry in addition to a bacon (or pancetta) and a white pepper element.  The palate is full of berries,  a hint of caramel,  with a dusty chocolate finish. The wine has great structure, is well balanced, and has a delicious lingering finish.

 

Steele Shooting Star Black Bubbles Lake County NV
List  $17.00           Sale   $14.96       Case $174

From an idea born in the Land Down Under we proudly unveil our newest creation, Black Bubbles.  Always on the lookout for something different, Jed Steele’s son Quincy discovered sparkling Shiraz, an Aussie tradition, while working at the D’Arenburg Winery.  Bringing home the idea of a Northern California version inspired Jed to formulate a unique Syrah blend from some of our finest contracted vineyards in Lake County.

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