Throughout the summer and for other special occasions (New Year's Eve and Valentine's Day) Ryan does wine dinners on Sunday nights. It is a great way for his customers to learn more about the amazing wines of Washington and the Pacific Northwest and provides a way for Ryan to be creative in his menu planning. I am constantly amazed by what he does and I am always thinking he could never top this, yet each time is better than the previous one. The biggest wine dinner is on the anniversary of The Stone House opening in September of 2008. It is always with Stevens Winery. Tim Stevens has been a family friend of the Donaldson's for years and now has his own winery, with some of the best wines in Washington. If you ever have the opportunity to try his wines do not miss it! I love these wines! This year's Anniversary Dinner was really incredible. Ryan did 12 courses with 5 main wine pairings and two different champagne pairings. The dinner ran four hours but as a customer that night it never felt that long because I was constantly being challenged and surprised by the menu. I am so proud of Ryan and the hard work, dedication and passion he puts into his work every day.
Menu of the fantastic dinner to come
Course #1: Oyster, Creme Fraiche, Caviar paired with champagne
What a decadent and rich way to start the evening
Course #2: Textured Mojito
Think Mojito jello shot! On top is spun sugar (read cotton candy) toped with mint - delicious
Course #3: Lemon, Sage, Sugar
A lovely palate cleansing amuse, I took a small bite before I took the picture, opps! It was like a little sponge that melted in your mouth
Course #4: Sope, Coconut, Red Pepper paired with 2010 Stevens Viognier
So yummy! The sope corn cake on the bottom topped with fresh crab, on the side a gelee of red pepper and coconut topped with avocado, spicy and smooth
Course #5: Salmon, Peach, Hazelnut, Lily paired with 2010 Stevens Viognier
This was the first of the interactive dishes on the menu, notice the salmon is over a bowl of lilies, the waitresses brought out hot steaming water and poured it into the bowls so that the smell of the lilies emanated the room and brought the flowers of the wine into the food. Oh and the food was pretty amazing too! Salmon cooked perfectly crusted in hazelnut with a peach sauce, wow!
Course #6: Dork Balls, Zucchini, Tomato, Cheese paired with 2008 Stevens Cabernet Franc
This was a really fun play on an old classic spaghetti and meatballs! The Dork ball is a meatball made of duck and pork - read oh so delicious!! the Zucchini are sliced and cooked quickly to have the consistency of noodles with a tomato sauce and little cheese on top. This was one of my favorite courses of the night.
Course #7: Duck, Endive, Marionberry, Licorice paired with 2008 Stevens Cabernet Franc
Perfectly cooked duck over sauteed endive and a licorice sprinkled on top with a marionberry dipping sauce. This really complemented the Cabernet Franc beautifully.
Course #8: Foie Gras, Toast, Blackberry, Licorice paired with 2008 Stevens 424 Blend
Just a last little amuse before the last two main courses, a little foie gras decadence with blackberry and licorice to bring out the flavors of the wine, probably my favorite of the Stevens Winery the 424 blend!
Course #9: Buffalo, Fig, Gnocchi, Goat, Grape paired with Stevens 424 Blend
This was another perfectly cooked piece of buffalo and another interactive moment of the dinner. The fig part of the dish is that encapsulation over the gnocchi (handmade of course). You would break the encapsulation with your fork and out would pour a lovely fig sauce to enjoy with the buffalo, gnocchi and the goat cheese in the middle of the plate.
Course #10: Wagyu, Potato, Red, Blue, Rosemary paired with Stevens XY Cabernet Sauvignon
This was the most fun and I think the best dish of the night. Let me start with the wagyu that was again cooked to perfection and melted in your mouth. Now see the little glass on the top left part of the plate? There is a small sprig of toasted rosemary inside, as you lift the glass the scent of the rosemary again permeates the room and flavors both the wine and the dish. Potato- yes a little pomme frites on the side and Red and Blue? It's that little square on the top right a small square of blue cheese topped with a cabernet sauvignon gelee (the Stevens XY to be exact!) This dish was perfect you would take a small bite of the wagyu with a chantrelle mushroom a few pomme frites, a small piece of the Red/Blue and then take a sip of wine, PERFECTION!
Course #11: Corn, Gelato, Crust, Banana, Curry paired with Stevens Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc
This was a delicious and fresh way to begin the end of the evening. A very clean tasting corn gelato with pie crust and curry butter. I really got a lovely honey taste from the dish and the wine it was so nice and clean and light.
Course #12: Chocolate Red Wine Truffle paired with Stevens special dessert wine
Pure decadence in a small bite to end the evening with Tim Stevens giving our table a little special dessert wine.
First let me say that my pictures do NOT do this meal justice. One of Stone House's regular customers should be putting some pictures on the facebook page if he has not done so already, so please look at those if you get the change. Again, I cannot express how amazed and impressed I was by everything placed in front of me on this fantastic night of eating and celebration. I think one thing I really enjoyed was seeing the process develop this year, whether in my kitchen or from the ideas and inspiration Ryan drew on from our dinner together in Chicago and from reading about several world famous chefs. It was so neat to see him in his interpretation and memories of those experiences. I am so proud of him and honored to have experienced this meal!
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