The Per Se Experience

I now refer to it as the Per Se “sexperience”, since few things are more enjoyable. For those of you who are not tuned-in to the New York restaurant scene, Per Se, the sister restaurant to Thomas Keller’s French Laundry in Napa, is widely considered to be the finest dining experience in New York, and one of the finest in the world (Michelin 3 stars and New York Times 4 stars). After the extended wait for reservations, I finally sat down at the Columbus Circle hot spot with my lady Deborah last Sunday afternoon anticipating the feast of a lifetime. And that is exactly what we got.

Sparing you most of the decadent details (as to assuage any inadvertent jealousy), I’ll abridge the experience for you with the following assessment…..This 5 ¼ hour gastronomic marathon was a sheer delight for all of the senses (for instance, no music was playing in the background and many courses featured specialized utensils, all to heighten the effect of the cuisine). We sat in an elegant, minimalist dining room overlooking Central Park while the city’s most meticulous and professional wait staff presented to us a seemingly-endless 18-course lunch with 9 world-class wines to match. Put simply…..to work your way through the Per Se tasting menu is to enjoy oysters, sablefish, poached lobster, caviar, 3 types of foie gras, black truffles, white truffles, duck pastrami, pork shank, Wagyu beef, Himalayan sea salt, olive oil ice cream, homemade chocolates, Zind-Humbrecht Riesling and René Rostaing Cote Rotie all in the same sitting (whew!). Not to make a blanket statement about everything I ate, but there was a common thread of extraordinary textural refinement throughout, and a fundamental sense of ümamí that I have yet to uncover in European fare. This meal will rate as one of my top 5 to date, and is the only one of those 5 to be consumed in the U.S!

I won’t tell you how much the “sexperience” costs, but I will declare that, for the passionate foodie, it is one of those endeavors that are painfully expensive but worth every penny (I think we’ll start saving now for the winter menu). I want to extend kudos to the brilliant Per Se staff, warm gratitude to Alice and Stanley for generously making it all possible, and my love to Deborah for picking me as your chow mate. Cheers, all! –Michael Koehler - http://www.suburbanwines.com/

WINE WITH DINNER – Hudson Valley Wine & Food Festival

Earlier this month, I drove up to Rhinebeck, NY to attend the eighth annual Hudson Valley Wine & Food Festival, not only because I love New York wines, but also because I am Suburban’s New York wine buyer. Over the years, the Festival’s attendance has grown to such an extent that it had to be moved last year to the Dutchess County Fairgrounds! Close to 20,000 people were expected to attend this year’s September 5-7 weekend wine and food event. More than 50 wineries participated - representing New York wine regions from the Finger Lakes to Long Island - and food was prepared and served by over 20 local restaurants.

The Hudson Valley is the oldest winemaking region in the country - it was first planted by French Huguenots in the 1600’s and is still the home of New York’s oldest continuously producing vineyards. There are now at least 33 wineries in the Hudson Valley. In Suburban’s New York wine section, I have chosen Millbrook Vineyards & Winery to represent the 10 wineries on the East side of the river and, indeed, their wines showed well at the Festival – especially their 2007 Estate Tocai Friulano, which was a best seller at our June 21st New York Wine Expo. Tocai Friulano is the most widely planted white wine grape in the Friuli region of northeastern Italy. It produces a dry, but fruity, wine that has no connection whatsoever with Tokay d’ Alsace or the great Tokaji dessert wines of Hungary. It is the signature white wine for Millbrook, and very few other domestic vintners even grow this grape!

Of the 23 wineries on the West Side, I have always had a particular fondness for Benmarl Vineyard in Marlboro and I knew its original owner and winemaker, Mark Miller, who died this month on September 9th at the age of 89.

A recent New York Times article about him said, “He was widely regarded as the father of the winemaking renaissance in the Hudson Valley … although he was not the first modern winemaker in the region, he was for decades the best known, becoming a highly visible public advocate for small artisanal wineries, known as farm wineries. Praised by critics, Benmarl wines were featured at prominent restaurants, including the Four Seasons and the Quilted Giraffe in New York City.”
In honor of all that he did to promote New York wines, Mark was awarded New York State Farm Winery License No. 1. In 2006, he sold his vineyard, which he bought in 1957 (originally planted in the early 1800’s) to Victor and Barbara Spacarelli. They renamed it Benmarl Winery at Slate Hill Vineyards and continued the winery’s tradition by hiring as their winemaker Kristop Brown. Kristop apprenticed under Eric Miller, who was the former winemaker at Benmarl and, yes, was Mark’s son. Kristop also worked at Millbrook for a year (small world!). Eric is currently owner and winemaker at the Chaddsford winery in Pennsylvania.

So, Benmarl represents the west Hudson River wineries at Suburban and we currently stock their 2007 Estate Seyval Blanc. This inexpensive, dry white wine showed well at the Festival and also was a best seller at Suburban’s June 21st New York Wine Expo. The Seyval Blanc grape is a well-known, winter-resistant, French hybrid that is widely grown in Canada, the Finger Lakes and the Hudson Valley. – Jay Roelof - www.suburbanwines.com