Ever notice that wine is just about the only alcoholic beverage that gets paired with food in a coursed-out dinner? Talavera at the Four Seasons Scottsdale noticed it, and that’s why they’re shaking things up on Friday, July 30, with a four-course dinner paired with Clase Azul tequila.
Anyone who knows Clase Azul, knows the bottle because it stands out (and makes a great vase or candlestick holder after it’s finished). They also know it’s one of the smoothest tequilas on the market, making it the perfect companion to a culinary showcase like the one Talavera chefs have in store.
It all starts with snapper served with jalapeno, tomato, and citrus, paired with Azul’s Plata, their universally agreeable blanco. (Actually, dinner starts with a margarita, but that was supposed to be a surprise.) Then it’s on to jumbo prawns paired with Azul’s fragrant and complementary reposado. Wagyu beef and foie grad will pair with anejo, while a bing cherry-based dessert will pair with La Pinta, the brand’s pomegranate tequila. All the while, Azul’s Master Distiller, Arturo Lomeli, will point out nuances to the crowd. He promises to talk about the fun stuff and not details involving proprietary yeast strains going through double distillation and triple micron filtration, even though that’s all part of the Azul story.
This dinner is part of Talavera’s “Vine & Dine” series, which continues on August 19 with the wines of Oscar Renteria, then Valrhona Chocolate in September and Four Peaks in October.
$95/ seat. Reservations: 480-513-5085
*Ironic fact: The Clase Azul bottle style is called “Talavera,” which was introduced to Mexico by Spanish artisans of the Colonial period. Crazy, eh?
The Dutch are famous for three things: windmills, artists (Van Gogh, Rembrandt), and Ketel One® vodka.
Since Van Gogh is dead and windmills have been shunned as a sensible solution to our global energy crisis, Ketel One is the brightest torch carried by Netherlanders everywhere. The newest incarnation of their beloved brand–Ketel One Oranje™–is a super-premium vodka with the essence of natural orange zest.
We know what you’re saying: “Hey, EATERAZ, someone pay for that last line? That sounds sales-pitchy.” Sure we took it from the marketing material’s but the thing is, the bright orange profile and hints of warm spice don’t taste like some sticky additive that actually needs to be covered up with tonic or Red Bull. It’s actually good. This stuff’s great on the rocks, with nothing else added.
A bottle costs about $25 and is hitting liquor stores right now.
Today’s post comes with a language lesson as well: Ketel One Oranje is pronounced “Oh-RON-yah.” No joke. So Ron, wherever and whoever you are, here’s to you, buddy.
You pick up a bottle of Veuve Clicquot and then you chill it in a bad neighborhood, somewhere between the milk and the condiments. Keep your precious Yellow Label in a fridge all its own, like this nifty case that bottles are coming in for limited time. Priced normally at $39.99, the special encased bottles of Veuve are now available at BevMo! The design was obviously inspired by vintage refrigerators, as we so cleverly illustrate here, juxtaposing the bottle of Veuve with an actual SMEG fridge. And yes, SMEG, if you want to send one of those bad boys to the office, we’re at 4419 N. Scottsdale Rd., Suite 218.
Wouldn’t it be sweet to work at Conundrum. Why? Because someone over there was charged with the task of simply picking the hottest restaurants and bars in town so the label could throw parties to promote its ever-popular white wine blend, Conundrum. They’ve already been to places like the W Hotel and Parlor Pizzeria; next up–the new Vig Uptown.
This should be the best of the bunch because that new Vig is pretty damn cool, and sippin’ Conundrum while playing a little bocce sounds like a great night out. If you haven’t tried it, this is one of the most agreeable white wines ever made – a crisp, clean, surefire crowd pleaser.
If no other reason, you should go to enter the Napa Getaway Contest, talk about beating the heat!
Everyone gets a Conundrum apron or monogrammed conundrum wine bag for coming!
The Vig Uptown
6015 N. 16th St.- Phoenix
7pm-9pm
RSVP required to enter.
http://www.whatsyourconundrum.com/getaway
PAID ADVERTISEMENT
People have often teased Tyda that maybe his favorite color is pink. Well, maybe it is … now that Belvedere Vodka’s coming out with a Pink Grapefruit macerated vodka. What’s this word “macerated?” No, it doesn’t mean gruesome or dirty (Then again, the maceration of pink grapefruits is what inspired designer Matthew Williamson to create the limited-edition kaftan you see above, available for $1,540, at Matthew Williamson boutiques in New York and London.), it just means that whole pink grapefruits are part of the actual distillation process. No last-minute, crappy flavor additions here.
When we tasted Belvedere Pink Grapefruit, we thought maybe it would be a good fit for Mexican food, but maybe that’s just because we’re obsessed with tacos these days. Sure enough, however, the marketing materials say “pair with fusion cuisine, like pan-Asian, Mexican, and Mediterranean.” To round out the flavor profile, Belvedere’s included ginger and spring lemons.
So this summer, goodbye Greyhounds. Hello vodka on the rocks!
Look for it on shelves in stores and bars any day now. But first, “Like” ‘em here: www.facebook.com/belvederevodka
Hopefully, we will one day live in a world when restaurants don’t lure you in by claiming they’ve got a billion wines on the list, and then whatever you order seems to be conveniently out-of-stock.
We’re closer to a cure now that Alliance Beverage Distributing is going to refresh wine lists with their new product score—the entire portfolio of Foster’s Group. Some of the wines in the deal were snatched up from Republic National Distributing Company. Ding! Round goes to Alliance.
Who’s in it this approximately 50-label portfolio? Mainly wines from Australia, New Zealand, and the U.S., including Black Opal, Chateau St. Jean, Etude, Matua, Pepperjack, Penfold’s, Stags’ Leap, and Wynns Coonawarra Estate. The Foster’s Arizona deal was made in conjunction with Alliance’s partners Glazer’s Distributors and The Charmer Sunbelt Group, who will help sell the entire portfolio of wines in Arizona. Strength in numbers, baby, strength in numbers.
Why is the portfolio made up of mainly Australian wines? Because the Foster’s Group wine people are the Foster’s Group beer people—the ones who make commercials like this. Enjoy!
We lost touch with world events right around the dates of the Barbecue Festival so we could, you know, focus our attention. And although we knew we were missing things, we had no idea the level of world events that took place. Volcanic ash filled the skies overseas. Rockies pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez hurled a no-hitter (hey that’s a big deal to some people). And Crown Royal released a new whisky—Crown Royal BLACK. This new extra-bold whisky clocks in at 90 Proof, yet retains a smoothness like much lesser, um, proofed Canadians. With deep bourbon notes and a velvety profile, this sipper is perfect for these pre-Summer Temperature Apocalypse evenings. A 750 will run you about $30 at major liquor retailers.
We’ve got a conundrum. Tonight, we should continue to let our feet recuperate from the miles of walking we did at the Arizona BBQ Festival, but we know the best recouping comes in the form of grape juice.
So join us at The Parlor (1916 E. Camelback Rd.) from 4-6pm for the first “What’s Your Conundrum” party, sponsored by 944 Magazine. The event kicks off a series that promotes the Napa white table wine, which has a sexy, new advertising campaign and plan to market to brand-conscious consumers. Enjoy free tastings, apps, and a chance to win a trip to Napa. You must RSVP, but it’s the click of a button. Do it here: http://bit.ly/bM1WKl
Can’t make tonight? Catch the next one on April 21 at the W Hotel (6-8pm) or April 24 at Sportsman’s North (5-8pm).
Tania Oseguera could be an ambassador for drywall and make it seem sexy. But because this is a food blog and not Trading Spaces, we got the double good fortune at last weekend’s Devoured Culinary Classic and spoke to Oseguera about tequila!
She was in town to give a seminar and work the margarita table for Corzo and Cazadores tequila. As you can see in the video posted here, we snuck away for a couple minutes and brought some bottles with us for the fun interview. Check out her take on what’s new with the dos bueno brands and why blue shoes are a no-no.
Click the pic for the interview!
They all brought their A Game, but one guy in particular brought his A+ Game at the Devoured Cocktail Competition last week. Nine local bartenders and restaurant owners took to the shakers for elimination rounds of making the best cocktail possible with Finlandia vodka. The event took place at the St. Francis bar, where four judges sat in a pit surrounded by over 75 eager spectators vying for their samples of the competition drinks. The Judges: EATERAZ’s Rick Phillips and David Tyda; Bill DeGroot, who created the cocktails for Metro Brasserie and the Estate House; and Camelback Inn’s Director of Beverage, Trudy Thomas).
The competitors started off with cocktails that do well in their respective restaurants – for instance, Modern Steak’s bartender mixed up a “Retail Therapy” Martini, while the District at the Sheraton sent some herbs grown in their garden along with their guy.
For the final round, emcee Megan Finnerty of AZRepublic.com presented a surprise ingredient–Orange Flower Water. The winning cocktail? A Finlandia/Maker’s Mark concoction from Mac Gregory, Director of F&B at The Phoenician.
This whole shabang was planned to publicize:
Devoured
March 13-14, 11am-4pm
Phoenix Art Museum
http://www.phxart.org/devoured
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