Touché Bouche originally published on Food and Fond Memories on July 17, 2010 by sandyaxelrod Leave a Comment (Edit)
Touché Bouche
Steve and I chose to attend the wine pairing dinner at Bouche because we had become friends with the couple who own it. In fact the way we found out that the New Orleans Wine and Food Experience was happening while we would be there was that I went on Bouche’s website www.bouchenola.com and noticed the wine dinner. I immediately called Carol and got all of the details. That evening was the perfect kick-off for this fabulous event!
Happy to see the Carol the owner of Bouche again!
Bouche is nestled in the Warehouse district of New Orleans. We arrived a little early because Carol wanted a little time to personally show us around. When we met her in January she told us that this wine bar would be quite unique, and it was. Here you can choose to enjoy an exotic drink or a nitrogen martini in their relaxed cosmopolitan bar or just hang out in the comfortable swank living room. Very tasty hors d’oeuvre were passed in the bar area while a Trentadue Grand Cuvee Sparkling Wine was poured. Bouche paired the evening’s menu with wines from Trentadue because they have an exclusive for the 2009 Trentadue Chardonnay.
All set for guests at the fabulous wine dinner at Bouche
Now that’s what I call a wine bar!
The rest of the restaurant is divided into small intimate dining rooms including one that has a large dining table for about 12 guests and two very private booths for two complete with privacy curtains. We were seated in the largest of the rooms which totally felt like we were dining in a winery’s cellar. Although we were seated at our own table it soon felt like we were all old friends at a party. And what a party it was!! The food was exquisitely prepared by Four Star Chef Gary Barnette, who at some point during his career has won the very prestigious Culinary Olympics. He came out to introduce our first course and by this point Steve and I had already had quite a bit of the bubbly so we had a hard time focusing on what he was saying. Fortunately we were given a lovely menu especially printed for the event.
Sautéed Jumbo Lump Crabmeat in a Delicate Thai Sesame Butter over Glass Noodles, Summer Roll Garni Served with Asian Dipping Sauce
Our first delectable dish was an appetizer of sauteed jumbo lump crabmeat in a delicate Thai sesame butter over glass noodles, summer roll garnie served with Asian dipping sauce. This was perfectly paired with the 2009 Trentadue Chardonnay. Just before each course was served Victor Trentadue would tell us about the wine we would be drinking and then the Chef would describe the food and why he chose to pair the wine with the dish. This really taught us quite a bit about the process of pairing wine with food. And Victor was so passionate about his family’s wines that we knew they had to be good. Our salad course was smoked duck melange over mesclun greens with toasted wild hickory nuts tossed in a champagne grapefruit vinaigrette. The 2005 La Storia Cuvee 32, Alexander Valley not only enhanced the enjoyment of the salad but also turned out to be our favorite wine of the evening. An Intermezzo (palette cleanser) of Lemon Blueberry Sorbet was delicious! The Trentadue Grand Cuvee Sparkling Wine was not only poured with it but was used to make the fresh fruit sorbet. Our dinner plate was abundant with Bouche partie tournedos with a mushroom duxelle, French cut lamb chops glazed with guava and roasted shallots and Gulf prawns with a sauce Lorenzo accompanied by grilled zucchini and herb roasted potatoes. Poured with this was a 2006 La Storia Zinfandel, Alexander Valley Estate which was quite good, but we had the “32” poured at our request when our glasses were refilled.
White Chocolate Raspberry Walnut Torte
And the perfect ending was the white chocolate raspberry walnut torte paired with a Trentadue Chocolate Amore. Touché Bouche! The port echoed the flavors of the torte and tasted like a chocolate covered strawberry. The festivities continued with singing and boisterous fun because everyone there was, well, er, eh, sloshed is the best way to describe it.
