One Winemaker Two Southwest Florida Wine Dinners

Last week for Wine Wednesday I not only gave five intriguing selections for Father's Day, I also provided a short list of upcoming wine dinners for summer. I attended two this week. They were at different locations (Fort Myers and Pine Island) but featured the same wine brand. Both were so good I have to share the photos from one winemaker two Southwest Florida Wine Dinners.

The dinners featured wines from Grateful Palate, owned by Dan Phillips. Dan's labels include the popular Southern Gothic line. He flew in from Spain to present them. If the name sounds familiar, I wrote about them earlier this year when Dan was in town introducing his latest releases. It was during that visit that both Tarpon Lodge and Harold's Cuisine inquired about summer wine dinners. Dan made it happen this week.

First, Tarpon Lodge. Tarpon Lodge is on Pine Island and hosts monthly events on the dining terrace. It is a special place. This was a four course meal. However, the third course featured two wines. While all of the courses were creative and superb pairings, my favorite was dessert. It was in a small glass pot. The base was savory pate that was bruleed for a sweet, crisp crust. Finally, it was topped with a custard filled phyllo cigar. This dish was accompanied by Bitch Genache. It was a "wow" kind of pairing.

Next, Harold's. Harold's is in Fort Myers, just south of Gladiolus on US41. This was a five course meal along with a delightful amuse-bouche to start. Harold is known for doing great things with meat. We had both elk and lamb. Each was cooked to perfection. I loved all of the courses but if I had to pick one to have again right now, it would be the oysters. They were delicately fried, still juicy, sitting in a lemon sauce with delightful dollops of nori. Paired with Stong Arms white Bordeaux, the layers of flavors were outstanding.

Finally, here are some photos of two Southwest Florida wine dinners this week. Perhaps they will encourage you to reserve a space for a future dinner at your favorite spot before the holidays and the tourists are here again.

The four course wine dinner menu at Tarpon Lodge with Grateful Palate wines