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Michael~David Wine Dinner at Max's Wine Dive

On Tuesday night, I attended the Michael~David Wine Dinner at Max's Wine Dive. The daughter/niece of the two winemakers, Melissa Phillips Stroud, was there to meet and greet and answer any questions dinner go-ers had about the various wines.
The menu courses prepared by Chef Michael Pellegrino:
 1st A goat cheese and grape skewer with chocolate reduction sauce paired with Petite Petit which is 85% Petite Sirah and 15% Petit Verdot.
 2nd Venison tartare on crackers with fig served with the new Sloth Zinfandel.
 3rd A wild boar filled pasta square with cherry sauce, a wild boar stuffed baby bella mushroom with raspberry sauce and, my favorite part of this course, shredded wild boar surrounded with masa and fried with a plum sauce served with Gluttony Old Vine Zinfandel.
 4th Lamb Osso Bucco with roasted pumpkin risotto was perfectly paired with the Rapture Cabernet.
 5th Dessert was chocolate with berries paired with Lust Zinfandel.
I found the dinner to be really interesting and enjoyable and thought it was well paired to the wines. The Petite Petit was different and I really liked its aromas of baked blueberry cobbler and the jammy blackberry finish. Each of the three zinfandels had their own personality-the Lust seemed to be the favorite of all with whom I spoke. My favorite of the evening was the Rapture, a blend of 90% cabernet, 8% petit sirah and 2% merlot. It was the only non-purple of the evening with its deep garnet color, ripe berry aromas with hints of leather and cedar, plum & blackberry flavors and a long finish.
Be aware that all of these wines have fairly high alcohol levels ranging from 14.5%-16.9%. I was not driving so I enjoyed full tastes of each and did wake up with a slight headache in spite of the heavy meal.
Due to the layout at Max's, wine dinner participants are spread throughout the bar which makes it difficult for a group discussion but if you are looking to just discuss with the ones you came with, it works perfectly. Overall, a wonderful time was had by all.

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