Is it the food? Is it the wine? Is it the friends?
What makes dinner into a memory?
Last night's dinner was simply delicious, maybe one of my favorite ever. As I thought about it more, I tried to figure out if there was one thing that made the meal so good. There were three things to consider: the Food, the Wine and the People we shared it with.
A delicious meal makes the dinner that much more delicious
Was it the Food?
A Berkshire Pork Chop simply seasoned with Dijon mustard, fresh-cracked pepper, fresh thyme, and rosemary. Sautéed mushrooms in a risotto with garlic and fresh thyme. Green beans flashed steamed with shallots, garlic and chicken stock. The Sauce? A three-hour reduction of veal stock, ½ bottle of a good Bordeaux, shallots, garlic, Dijon mustard, tomato paste, fresh rosemary and thyme.
Was it the Wine? A 1989 Château Lafite Rothschild Pauillac, a first-growth Bordeaux, that had been decanted three hours earlier.
Was it spending time with Friends? Lisa and Steve are dear friends who we love spending time with. Great people, good conversation, and we never know which direction the conversation will go.
After considering the pieces, my answer is all three. The Food, The Wine & The Friends.
The food was fantastic and our three-hour wait for the gourmet sauce that brought the whole plate together delivered on the anticipation. The wine was awesome as well — rich, smooth, mineral complex. Well worth the wait. You see, I have been holding that bottle since my friend, Mike, gave it to me in 2005 as a gift. That bottle had seen five moves and six homes since he gave it to me when we moved from Ohio. The friends and conversation were also at the center of the meal’s enjoyment. Friends we met three years ago and found out quickly that we had much in common.
Alone, the food would have been very good, mainly due to the deliciousness of the gourmet sauce, in my opinion. The wine alone would have been crazy good as well, and the conversation by itself would likely have been rich. That meal was great because of all three, and will never be replicated again. I feel blessed to have enjoyed such an experience.
Preparing the food and sharing it with others is something that I love to do. Here’s to doing it again and finding the next greatest meal ever.
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