Wine Dinner at 610 Magnolia

I guess I need to clarify:
I had a fantastic time at the 610 dinner and the food and wine were great. I just wondered about the cost and if it was unusual for Louisville. We are living on one income at present and have become a bit more cost conscious as of late. We are also paying rent here in Louisville and a mortgage in Milwaukee. Those things make you look at costs with a bit more vigilance.

I like the use of the terms "living on one income," 'cost conscious," and "vigilance" to describe what (could be) one of the most-expensive dining experiences in Louisville. I could just cut the irony with a knife.

Matthew D.,
Everything in life is relative............................I'm close to sixty, an empty nester, etc. When I was 22 years old I was making $6000.00 a year as a teacher with a master's degree. I bought blocks of cheese at a local Wisconsin cheese factory simply to have something to eat. I couldn't afford a refrigerator, but during the winter it was no problem. My house was so cold because I had the heat turned down to fifty, I kept food and milk on the kitchen table and they never spoiled. I slept in a REI sleeping bag on the living room floor in my house in Cazenovia, Wisconsin that I rented for $35 a month.

[Robin Garr]

Avoiding digressions and cutting right to the short answer, Phil, yes, the cost is unusual - but not unknown - for Louisville. 610 Magnolia is one of our most expensive eateries, although many of us feel it earns that rank through very high quality and innovation. The special wines at your dinner punched the price up to a new level. I doubt that most of us on this forum, even, pay that much for dinner as often as once a year.

Jeff Ruby's is another high ticket. I think you would probably agree with me when I suggest that big bucks are much better spent at 610.

I guess I need to clarify:
I had a fantastic time at the 610 dinner and the food and wine were great. I just wondered about the cost and if it was unusual for Louisville.

I certainly would agree Robin, but I do love a great steak. I was very pleasantly surprised that Jeff Ruby's had a half bottle of an Amarone. In my opinion, Amarone needs to age well to affect that raisin like finish. Half bottles usually age faster and I do believe the Amarone at Rubys was a 2001 which was a pointe!

[Robin Garr]

I expect Ruby's Amarone is Bolla, a Brown-Forman import, which is all but ubiquitous at high-end Louisville restaurants. I've spent a fair amount of time in the Valpolicella region and tasted some remarkable Amarones, and I can't say that Bolla is a favorite. But you go with what you've got, and I'm glad you enjoyed it ...

I certainly would agree Robin, but I do love a great steak. I was very pleasantly surprised that Jeff Ruby's had a half bottle of an Amarone. In my opinion, Amarone needs to age well to affect that raisin like finish. Half bottles usually age faster and I do believe the Amarone at Rubys was a 2001 which was a pointe!

Robin,
Unfortunately I do not remember exactly, but I do not think it was a Bolla. It might have been a Grassi.

I have some bottles of 1995 Tommaso in my cellar up in Milwaukee that I have to bring down to Louisville to share with some folks.

.

Jay M.
That sounds like one heck of a grand evening. I'm envious.

[Robin Garr]

Brown-Forman no longer has an Italian wine portfolio; they sold Bolla early this year. Of course it'll take a while for the Bolla to cycle out of the local cellars.

Oops, you're absolutely right, Jay. I knew that, but forgot. And I expect you're right on the second part, too: There's an awful lot of Bolla Amarone floating around out there. Unfortunately, because of its very large production, it's not really a very typical Amarone. Frankly, Brown-Forman has been whipsawed since the beginning by the necessities of scale: With the size of their distribution, they can't really do artisan labels, but by being stuck with larger, mass-market producers, they built themselves a glass ceiling on quality. In my opinion, of course ... and I do like a few B-F labels quite well. Sonoma-Cutrer and Bonterra, to name two.

I haven't been to 610 since Eddie Garber's days.

I recall working closely with him for a dinner he presented at the James Beard House in New York. I believe Carmen wines were paired with the meal.

I'm not even going to tell you what that meal "cost"!