Bottle 4

2004 Rancho Sisquoc Sisquoc River Red

I enjoyed this bottle of wine with a dear, dear friend of mine. We have known each other for 16 yrs (gasp!). Though we have always shared a love of cooking and wine, we discovered a few years ago that we are dine out buddies. We love eating out and occasionally splurging on a really nice meal. Our significant others do not feel the same joy. Though my husband loves a good meal, he prefers when I prepare it and even though he likes eating out, I always see him wince, just a little, if the check is over $40 (lucky for him I am a very good cook). I always feel that I have to order the least expensive thing on the menu and forget about getting that $15 drink. My friend, the Professor, has the same situation. His significant other thinks eating at a place that serves $10 sandwiches is a fancy meal out- I can say that because he also is a great friend of mine. So the Professor and I decided that we would enjoy a meal at a nice restaurant with each other more than with our significant others. In fact once a year we really spurge on a 5 course meal with wine pairings at a restaurant in the OC called The Hobbit- it is a fabulous night out.

So after weeks of craziness with moving and living amongst boxes, I texted the Professor (he rarely answers his phone) that I desperately needed a night out. He suggested a place in Eagle Rock called Four Cafe. It is a new place that provides a local and sustainable menu- which is all the rage here in LA. And it is BYOB- so obviously I brought the wine. The food was great- and super reasonable (I don't think it would elicit that wince from Adam).

Our conversation, as usual, was all over the map. We do our dinners about once every 2 months so there is catching up on jobs, friends, relationships. We laugh, we talk about the food we are eating and if we have found any good recipes. One thing I love that the Professor does is pick one food that he researches and tests to find the best recipe for- after last night's dessert he announced the search is on for the best peanut butter cake.

We both enjoyed the wine alot- it tasted of blackberries with a small hint of cinnamon. It paired well with our heirloom tomato gazpacho that had the faintest hint of chipotle. Luckily we chatted up the chef/owner, Michelle and I offered her a glass of our red and she gave us each a taste of her Sauvignon Blanc that paired nicely with the almond and green tea encrusted mahi mahi- yummy. The whole evening was great- good wine, good food, great conversation, an old friend...It got me thinking, does good company make wine taste better? I really enjoyed this red wine and I wonder if the setting of when and where one is opening a bottle of wine affect one's taste of it. I think I will have to research this topic a little more- hopefully by then the Professor has found the perfect peanut butter cake and I will crack open one of my dessert wines.