Culinary Wine & Dine in Paso Robles

Location:
1021 Pine Street
Paso Robles, CA 93446

Culinary Category:
Culinary Vacation
Guided Culinary Tours

Culinary Focus:
Regional
Wine

Culinary Wine & Dine in Paso Robles

DATES: May 17 to 21, 2009

Paso Robles – a community nestled in the coastal mountain range of central California. Located close to both mountains and beaches, it is home to one of the greatest wine growing areas of the United States. Paso Robles is situated halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, and plays host to over 170 wineries.

Enjoy a wine and dine tour in California’s Paso Robles and Los Olivos areas. This area is referred to by Robert Parker as our great emerging wine destination. This five day, four night tour will introduce you to dozens of local wines and many lunches and dinners at great restaurants and wineries.

After flying into the San Louis Obispo airport or driving to Paso Robles we will be staying at Paso Robles’ finest property, Hotel Cheval. The hotel features 16 luxurious rooms, a lively Pony Bar, cozy library and intimate courtyard. We will have a hearty private “Tapas dinner” in the Hotel Cheval library with discussions on Central Coast wines and a Midlife Crisis Vineyard wine tasting.

ITINERARY

Day One:

During our first full day we will visit Turley Vineyards and Zin Alley followed by VinFusion for a catered organic lunch and a tasting of some unusual wines. Next we visit L’Adventure for important tasting. Most of their wines are rated over 90 by Robert Parker. After this wine filled day, we return to Cheval for rest, a massage or a carriage ride around the square with Chester, the Hotel’s mascot horse. Dinner that night at Artisan Restaurant on the Square.

Day Two:

On our next daywe will leave for the Los Olivos area. On the way we will stop at the Wind Dance Olive Farm in the Aliva Valley for a tour and tasting. We will also be visiting Salisbury and Laetitia Vineyards for wine tastings. After the tasting we will head to the Los Olivos Wine Merchant Café for lunch with several wines. Then we will head to Blackjack Ranch and Artiste to taste their wines. For a brief rest we will walk around Solvang, the “Danish” town. Dinner will be at Hitching Post 2.

Day Three:

The next day we will start at a most unusual winery, Clautiere Vineyard. We will taste their wines and also pose for a group picture. Moloy O’Neill Vineyards is the next stop for wine tasting and a box lunch. After lunch it’s on to a very new winery, Sculpterra Winery & Vineyards, where we not only taste their wines, but roam around their amazing sculpture gardens. For dinner. After a rest back at Hotel Cheval, we will go to RN Estate Vineyard & Winery. Roger Nicolas owns this estate will provide our farewell dinner with his wines.

Day Four:
On our final day you can sleep late, stroll, shop, drink more wine or have a massage in your room. We will have lunch and our final wine tasting at Hotel Cheval and then back to the San Luis Obispo airport.

For costs and a more detailed schedule, contact us by clicking on the “Request Information” button above.

Note: Epitourean, LLC provides a referral service for operators of culinary classes, vacations, cruises, schools and demonstrations. We cannot be held responsible for variations in descriptions, courses offered, changes to dates and/or prices provided by the operators.

Recipe

FOIE GRAS MONTMORENCY

(Duck Liver with Cherries)

Ingredients:

1 pound dark, sweet cherries

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup Montbazillac wine

1 Foie Gras

Directions:

1. Pit the cherries and poach them with the sugar and wine for about 30 minutes or until only a small amount of liquid remains.

2. Cut foie gras into ½ inch slices (crosswise) removing any tendons.

3. Season slices with salt and pepper.

4. Sear slices in a very hot sauté pan very quickly on each side - about 1 minute per side.

5. Serve immediately with cherry compote and a glass of Montbazillac or Sauternes.

PINOT NOIR POACHED SALMON

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 lb. salmon fillet, approximately 1-inch think

Juice of ½ Orange

Kosher Salt

Coarsely ground pepper

1 cup Pinot Noir wine

1 cup water

2 Tbsp butter

Directions:

Wash salmon and pat dry. Squeeze orange juice over the top of the salmon, sprinkle with Kosher salt and ground pepper.

In a skillet that is at least 2 inches deep, add wine and water. Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and add salmon fillet skin-side down. Cover and simmer approximately 8 to 12 minutes or until a meat thermometer registers an internal temperature of 140 degrees F. Salmon will be slightly opaque in thickest part. Remove salmon from skillet and transfer to individual serving plates. The salmon will continue to cook after it is removed from the skillet. Reserve liquid.

Bring liquid to boil and reduce to approximately 1/3 cup. Remove skillet from heat and add butter. Mix the liquid and butter with a whisk until just smooth. Pour the sauce over the salmon just before serving. Garnish with sprig of dill.

Cooking Times for Salmon:

1/4 to 1/3 inch – 3 to 4 minutes

1/2 to 3/4 inch – 4 to 6 minutes

1 to 1 1/2 inch – 8 to 12 minutes

Culinary Wine & Dine in Paso Robles...Cooking Adventure...Culinary Experience...Cooking Classes!

Culinary Wine & Dine in Paso Robles

Recipe