Jersey Foodies 2010 TOP 10 WINE LIST!

As with every year, it is nearly impossible to compile 500-1000 wines, and whittle it down to the best 10.  There are hundreds of honorable mentions, and even many wines that in the end received higher scores than ones on this list.

This list however is not about the best score or the highest ratings that we have given.  This list is more about the most memorable wines of 2010, and why they were so memorable.  Maybe it was the actual wine.  Maybe it was the restaurant or event that this wine was consumed at, or maybe it was all about the moment.  Regardless, here we go:

10.  1975 Chateau Leoville Las Cases – this was a classic example of a perfectly stored Bordeaux that should have been well over the hill.  Needless to say, we had this on Valentine’s Day at Tastebuds in New Hope, PA, and it showed a lot better than expected.  Even our waiter truly enjoyed and appreciated having a taste of this gem that had been well stored in our cellar for years.

9.  2006 Myriad Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon – this was one of the young Cali cabs that truly impressed me this year.  We ended up drinking this on a random night “on the bistro,” and it was one of those awesome moments that made me go wow!  This was a joy, and I look forward to seeing the fruit in this wine develop with time in the bottle.

8.  2000 Sine Qua Non “The Boot” – this magnum was brought to Berserkerfest at Peking Duck House in November, and for a 10 year old white, this blew me away.  Hands down my best white (non Champagne or sparkling) wine of the year.  This was gorgeous, and it was a great night with great friends!

7.  1990 Chateau Leoville Barton – this was opened at our generous friend Dee’s house, and pulled from her cellar.  Another very young, but great wine that was drinking so nice with good friends!  What a joy this bottle was on a great pre holiday night with amazing friends!

6.  1997 Joseph Phelps Insignia – another wine consumed at Berserkerfest in November, and one of my favorite Insignia’s to date!  I think this is just the second time an Insignia has found its way to our Top 10 list.  We were also blessed to attend a ’74-’07 Insignia vertical this year that was absolutely amazing.  One of these days I will get around to finishing and posting my notes.

5.  2006 Ghost Horse Shadow – what is there to say about Ghost Horse other than wow?  This wine isn’t for the faint at heart, and I’ve been hearing about “The Todd’s” wines for years.  Needless to say, this is his most affordable bottling, and as I said in my tasting note, quite possibly the best $100 wine I have ever had.  Kudos to Todd and Ghost Horse, and a HUGE thanks to Randy and Carrie at Napa Valley Wine and Cigar!  Count me in for a 6 pack of the 2007 that should be released sometime in February!

4.  2001 Chateau d’Yquem – is there really anything that needs to be said about this wine?  Well, actually, yes!  It was consumed WAY to early, but we had the chance to consume a lot of this thanks to the generosity of great wine friends!  I look forward to seeing how this wine is going to develop over the rest of my lifetime!  And I truly think that it will last that long!

3.  2006 Sine Qua Non Raven Syrah – when Paul and Stef were asked at our Stefania tasting what they liked to drink, Paul mentioned his love for syrah!  This was the second of the syrah I pulled from the cellar that night, narrowly getting edged out by a wine that could almost be called it’s cousin.  Regardless, both these wines were great, and it was the Lillian that just barely edged it out.

2.  2005 Lillian Syrah – This was the wine I was referring to above that narrowly beat out the Sine Qua Non.  I think that the extra year in the bottle truly gave this wine the edge, along with the fact that it’s not quite as high octane, and just a bit more subdued than the Sine Qua Non with more balance.  Regardless, they were both great wines, and were neck and neck.

1.  2001 Chateau Lafite Rothschild – Here is another wine served at Berserkerfest at Peking Duck House in November, and we can’t think fellow Berserker Mont enough for bringing this to share.  This was such an amazing night with great wines, and we both had the opportunity to really taste this wine throughout the evening.  By the end of the night, this wine was singing, and it is only going to get better with time.

So there you have it, and yes, I know many of you were there for some wines that were even more amazing than these, but these are the ones that I chose!  Cheers!

Jersey Foodies 2010 TOP 10 FOODIE LIST!

Every year, I try to come up with a Top 10 List that talks about the most memorable new restaurants we’ve visited, or great events that we’ve attended.  Some years, I actually get around to writing this list, while other years it falls by the wayside.  This year, I actually found the time to do it, so here we go.

Many times, people will disagree with events that I list here, and that is fine.  It may not necessarily be about the best meal we’ve had, but it’s about the experience we’ve had, and the potential that this new restaurant has.  There is quite a bit of variation on this list again, but I can tell you that 2010 was one of our best years yet!  Check out the list, and let’s hear your thoughts!

Cheers, and here’s to a happy and healthy 2011!  And now, the TOP TEN:

10.  Peking Duck House – What is there to say other than the fact that there were another 2 successful Berserkerfest’s at New York’s Peking Duck House?  The first being in May, and the second being in November.  Always a great night, and always a great group coming in from all over the country.  2010 was no different, and they were indeed some awesome nights filled with great food, and great wine!  Other than Berserkerfest’s, we made it to Peking Duck House an additional 5 times.  Not bad considering we don’t live in the city!

9.  Delorenzo’s Tomato Pies – For me, tomato pies do not get any better than Delorenzo’s Tomato Pies on Hudson Street in Trenton, as well as on Route 33 in Robbinsville.  Delorenzo’s was once again Top 10 worthy, so check ‘em out at:  http://www.delorenzostomatopies.com/ and give them a visit!  Like other years, we visited Delorenzo’s over a dozen and a half times this year!

8.  Chef Jose Garces:  I can’t tell you how impressed I was by our visits to Chef Jose Garces different restaurants in Philly.  Check them out at:  http://www.grg-mgmt.com/  We had great visits his many different restaurants this year, and two that stick out are Village Whiskey and Garces Trading Co!  Both excellent, and we look forward to making it back to these and his others in 2011.  Check ‘em out at:  http://jerseyfoodies.blogspot.com/2010/11/village-whiskey-philadelphia-pa.html  and http://jerseyfoodies.blogspot.com/2010/10/garces-trading-co-philadelphia-pa-from.html

7.   The Farnsworth House – Bordentown, NJ:  What can I say about The Farnsworth House other than awesome in 2010?  One of the main reasons they made this list is because of their ever changing bar menu featuring many great items ranging from $3.95-$10.95.  This changes almost weekly, and there is always something good on there.  For the cost, they have an incredible burger, but my favorite lies in the mussels, or the salmon and asparagus.  My true favorite from the bar menu however is the Kofte kebab!  This is heaven!  Their wine list is on the up and up, and their by the glass selections are tasty for the money with the best wines by the glass in town.  The Ventisquero pinot noir is awesome, as well as the Yali sauvignon blanc.  Their wines by the bottle have come a long way as well, with great wines like Clayhouse, Cakebread, Yali, Ventisquero, and Core, many of which are distributed by the great folks at Victory Selections, another Bordentown gem....of which yours truly is a part of on a part time basis...for now!  May just be full time soon!  Finally, 24 beers on tap?  Awesome!  They added a new beer tower, and these too are changing every time we stop in.  This is a great local bar, and worth the trip for the beer list alone!

6.  Coltello Restaurant – Crosswicks, NJ: This is hands down the best Italian BYO restaurant in Central New Jersey, owned and operated by Chef Dominick of Conti’s Little Flower and Spigoli! Now Chef Dominick has his own family owned and operated restaurant, and it is our go to Italian place in this area! Great job to Dominick, Richard Sr., and Richard Jr. We look forward to many visits in 2011!


5.  Oliver-A Bistro – Bordentown, NJ:  This is another restaurant that we just cannot get enough of.  For whatever reason though, it seems like we hit Oliver for lunch more than dinner this year, which is actually kind of shocking!  But even so, I still think they have the best rack of lamb in NJ, and someday I am going to figure out to cook it as good as Chef McElmoyl does!   From Danielle running the front of house, to her husband Chef Matt in the kitchen, to Bruce, Kevin, or the rest of the gang, Oliver-A Bistro is a class act serving some of the best food in NJ.

4.  West Side Gravy – Collingswood, NJ: What is there to say about this restaurant other than awesome? We were very excited to see Chef Capasso open this venture, and even more excited to see him hire Chef Siobhan Allgood who appeared on Season 8 of Hell’s Kitchen! This was the most exciting new restaurant of 2010 that we visited, and my choice for our 2010 restaurant of the year. Kudos to the team and staff at both Blackbird and West Side Gravy. Chef Capasso has a great team at both locations, and look for some exciting things to happen as both of these restaurants are being renovated into one location on the main drag in Collingswood! http://jerseyfoodies.blogspot.com/search?q=West+Side+Gravy

3.  Speaking engagements:  this year was by far the best year for us to come and present to different organizations, and we did a numerous amount of events this year ranging in topics to food, to wine, to cooking, to grilling.  By far the most memorable event for me was the presentation we gave at the Present Day Club in Princeton.  This is a very nice organization we were asked to speak at thanks to one of their members Marge D’Amico, and we couldn’t have been any more honored.  We had a great lunch prepared by Chef Christine, and then enjoyed the afternoon speaking at their club!  What a great day, and a great excuse to be out of the office!  ;-)  The Present Day Club details can be found at:  http://jerseyfoodies.blogspot.com/2010/10/present-day-club-princeton-nj.html

2.  Stefania Wines comes to New Jersey:   It’s not often that our little town can say that a winemaker comes to visit, and this year, we were lucky enough to host Paul and Stefania Romero of Stefania Wines in our backyard with a group of about 40 friends.  They sent 3 cases of their wines our ahead of time, and Zelda put together a gorgeous menu.  I fired up the smoker for some briskets, and the Flannery sliders were a hit like always.  All I can say is that it was a great evening, and we finally met fellow Jersey bloggers John and Lisa of:  http://www.eatinginsjersey.com/ as well as Frank Nerney of:  http://ballymote.wordpress.com/   This event can be read about at:  http://jerseyfoodies.blogspot.com/2010/09/stefania-wines-tasting-backyard-bistro.html 

1.  And the number 1 memory of 2010 for us would have to be being once again featured in the New York Times in a story about New Jersey food bloggers.  This story can still be found online at:  http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/nyregion/07dinenj.html 

Stay tuned for our TOP 10 WINE LIST to come as well!  And also stay tuned for our HUGE list of honorable mentions!  Breaking it down to 10 really is a hard task!  Cheers!