Local Wine Events

Event Details

Wine OR Wine & Food

Tags:   Food   Wine   Sit Down Dinner  

RSVP: (619) 295-3939
$49.50 + tax and gratuity

Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 5:00
Pre-Dinner Reception with Importer Sharyn Alexander from 4:15 to 5:00
Dinner starts promptly at 5:00

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UPCOMING EVENTS:
http://www.winevaultbistro.com (Click on Calendar)

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Wine Vault & Bistro is pleased to announce a great new wine dinner featuring five high scoring (90-92 points from Robert Parker) Argentinean wines paired with a delicious five course Argentinean-inspired dinner.  Sharyn Alexander, manager of a leading importer of premium Argentinean wines, will be here for the fourth year in a row to personally host this event.  We hope you'll be able to join us for what promises to be an exceptional evening.  Wine notes and bottle prices are at the end of this announcement if you're interested.  Here's the line-up:

Marinated Purple Potato Salad | Red Onion | Escarole | Citrus Confit
2011 Crios Torrontes (5 oz. pour)

Lamb Polpette Braised in Tomato | Green Garlic Soubise | Scallions | Toasted Rosemary Crostini
2009 Mapema Malbec (5 oz. pour)

Charred Hanger Steak | Sweet Potato | Red Wine + Pear Purée | Roasted Shallots | Toasted Almond + Parsley Gremolata
2009 BenMarco Cabernet Sauvignon (3 oz. pour)

Crispy Lamb Shoulder | Caramelized Sunchoke Purée | Celery | Sauce Gribiche
2010 Tikal "Patriota" Bonarda/Malbec Blend (3 oz. pour)

Braised Short Ribs | Black Beans | "Creamed" Spinach + Parsley Root | Horseradish Brown Butter
2010 Luca "Laborde Double Select" Syrah (3 oz. pour)

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RSVP ~ (619) 295-3939
Please make your reservations directly with Wine Vault & Bistro at 619-295-3939.  We're very good about returning calls promptly, so please leave a message with the best time to return your call if you get the dreaded voice mail.

COST
Cost for the complete dinner including all five courses and all five wines is $49.50 per person.  Sales tax and an 18% gratuity will be added to the cost of all dinners.  Due to limited seating, CREDIT CARD RESERVATIONS ARE AN ABSOLUTE MUST.  We accept Visa and MasterCard only.

SPECIAL DIETARY REQUESTS
If you have special dietary requests, please let us know when you RSVP, not when you arrive!  We're pretty flexible (within reason!) with substitutions and can usually accommodate most special dietary requests if given advance notice.  Please note that this is an authentic Argentinean-style menu, and that Argentineans eat LOTS of meat.  We regret that we will be unable to accommodate vegetarian requests for this menu as pretty much the whole thing is about the meat.

CANCELLATION POLICY
You may cancel your reservation up to 72 hours in advance without penalty.  NO REFUNDS WILL BE ISSUED WITH LESS THAN 72-HOUR NOTICE unless we are able to replace your cancellation at the last minute.  (See below for groups over 4 people.)

LARGE GROUPS (OVER 4)
If you want to come with a group of friends, please make one reservation for your entire party so we can reserve a block of seats for you ... however, in the interest of fairness to others, we reserve the right to limit the number of people on a single reservation at our discretion.  The cancellation period for canceling the ENTIRE reservation without penalty is doubled from the standard 72 hours (see above) to 144 hours (6 days).  If you need to cancel only 1 or 2 people, the standard 72-hour notice still applies.

WHEN
The bar will open at 4:15 for a pre-dinner reception with Sharyn until 5:00.  Dinner will then begin promptly at 5:00, but we HIGHLY, HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend that you arrive well before then to better your chances of getting a closer parking space and to beat the last minute rush.

WHERE
Wine Vault & Bistro is located in the heart of San Diego between Little Italy and Old Town at 3731-A India Street on the upper terrace.  Follow the black handrail from the sidewalk up the stairs to our front door.

PARKING
On-street parking is usually available within a 3-block radius.  Remember that it’s OK to park in yellow commercial zones on Sunday and that meters are also not enforced.  You can also park in the lot behind Shakespeare Pub two doors down, but do not park in El Indio's lot unless you want your car towed!  If you can’t find parking next to the restaurant, there’s always LOTS OF PARKING on San Diego Avenue and the adjacent side streets just past the Chevron station across Washington Street.  So please don't drive yourself crazy endlessly going around in circles waiting to pounce on that perfect spot when there's TONS OF PARKING less than three blocks away!

WINE QUANTITIES
We'll be pouring 3-5 ounce tasting portions of wine (see the line-up above) totaling 19 ounces, or the equivalent of over three-quarters of a bottle of wine per person.  Pour buckets are provided for designated drivers.

WINE SALES
Although some wines may be in limited quantities, all wines poured at this dinner will be available for purchase at the restaurant until sold out.  We reserve the right to limit sales of any rare or allocated wines at our discretion.

WINE NOTES & BOTTLE PRICES
2011 Crios Torrontes ~ $12
(Argentina) Review by Robert Parker ~ 90 points: The 2011 Torrontes offers up enticing aromas of peach, melon, floral, and tropical fruit. Medium-bodied, dry, savory, and nicely proportioned, this lengthy effort will deliver plenty of enjoyment over the next 1-2 years.

2009 Mapema Malbec ~ $17
(Argentina) Review by Robert Parker ~ 90 points: Fragrant black cherry and black raspberry, oak in background, touch of balsamic, lots of fruit.

2009 BenMarco Cabernet Sauvignon ~ $18
(Argentina) Review by Robert Parker ~ 90 points: 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot + 5% Cabernet Franc.  Spicy, fragrant, complex.  Excellent length.

2010 Tikal "Patriota" Bonarda/Malbec Blend ~ $18
(Argentina) Review by Robert Parker ~ 91 points: 60% Malbec + 40% Bonarda aged 12 months in French and American oak.  A glass-coating opaque purple color, it sports an enticing nose of Asian spices, incense, lavender, plum and blueberry. In the glass it opens to reveal a ripe, plush, savory wine with no hard edges.  Drink this well-balanced, lengthy wine over the next 5-6 years.

2010 Luca "Laborde Double Select" Syrah ~ $24
(Argentina) Review by Robert Parker ~ 92 points: Sourced from 48-year-old ungrafted vines and aged 14 months in 50% new French barriques before bottling without fining or filtration.  Sports an expressive perfume of smoke, bacon, game, leather, pepper and blueberry.  Smooth-textured and elegant on the palate, this savory, ripe Syrah conceals enough structure to evolve for 2-3 years and offers a drinking window extending from 2013 to 2022.  An outstanding value.

THE FINE PRINT
Due to fluctuations of supply, we reserve the right to make substitutions of equal or greater value in case any of the wines or foods become unavailable.  Please, ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY NO ONE UNDER THE AGE OF 21 ... even if your babysitter flakes out on you at the last minute!

Hope to see you here.  Buon appetito and cheers!