PLUS: SPRING WINE & FOOD CLASS SERIES, AUSTRALIAN WINE DINNER WITH YANGARRA ESTATE AND MORE
(March 12, 2015) – The West Loop’s City Winery – recently honored with a 90-point rating for its housemade 2012 Bien Nacido Vineyard Reserve Pinot Noir by Wine Spectator – serves up a hearty slate of food and beverage events throughout the spring and summer for vinophiles of all tastes and vintages. A detailed schedule of upcoming wine events, with ticket links, is viewable at www.citywinery.com/chicago/. They include:
Cheese + Wine Class with Provenance Food & Wine – Softies and Stinkers: Wednesday, Mar. 25 ($60)
Tracy Kellner, founder and owner of Lincoln Square’s Provenance Food and Wine, leads guests through tastings of five distinct cheeses and accompaniments provided by Fortune Gourmet. Wine Director Rachel Driver Speckan elevates the cheese tasting experience by pairing cheeses with five complementary wines that enhance and emphasize all the proper characteristics and flavors.
Spring 2015 Wine and Food Class Series: monthly, April- June ($60/class or $140/three-class series-$40 savings)
From grape to glass, we will cover it all. We’ll share professional tips on what you really need to know about wine and food pairing to use your wine savvy in the real world, all with a glass in hand!
- Food + Wine Pairing 101: Wednesday, Apr. 22, 7-9pm
Here you’ll learn the tools, techniques, and profiles to strike the perfect balance between your favorite foods with the perfect wine. Join us as we taste a range of pairings representing a spectrum of textures and flavors, from salty and sweet to bitter and sour. After this primer, you’ll soon be using your own instincts to create rich, satisfying pairings whether you’re cooking at home or navigating a restaurant wine list.
- Unexpected Pairings – Re-thinking the Traditional Pairing: Wednesday, May 6, 7-9pm
Move beyond traditional wine pairings with a class that will explore unexpected combinations, Learn how to experiment with wine flavors to enhance the flavors of your favorite dish. This course is intended to flip the standards and approach pairing from an unexpected, daring angle to create harmonious new flavor combinations.
- Food + Wine Pairing – Junk Food: Wednesday, June 24, 7-9pm
Make guilty culinary pleasures even better with a perfectly paired wine. Join us to taste a range of wines and house-made bites, and learn the tricks of matching the high with the low, the shabby with the chic. Whatever your taste, there’s always a little something red, white, or sparkling—served in a proper glass, of course—to enhance the occasion.
The Dinner Party – Pre-Dinner Party Tasting Reception Benefiting Common Threads: Monday, Apr. 6, 5pm ($65)
Mixologists Arunas of Acadia and Matt Hunnel of JIMMY at The James Chicago share some of Acadia and JIMMY’s killer cocktails. Good Vines Wine, John Cressman of World Wines and City Winery’s Aaron Mace will pour exclusive wine selections. The tasting event benefiting Common Threads also includes a $45 ticket to The Dinner Party at 7pm with three-time Michelin Star and two-time Five Diamond Chef and 2015 James Beard Nominee Chef Ryan McCaskey of Acadia, producer Chaz Ebert, photographer Sandro Miller and more.
Food + Wine Pairing- Raw Milk Cheeses : Wednesday, Apr. 8 ($60)
Enjoy an exclusive, intimate evening nestled amid the barrels in the private Barrel Room with instructor Tracy Kellner, founder and owner of Lincoln Square’s Provenance Food and Wine, as she leads guests through tastings of five distinct cheeses and accompaniments in celebration of Raw Milk Cheeses Appreciation Day. Wine Director Rachel Driver Speckan elevates the cheese tasting experience by pairing cheeses with five complementary wines that enhance and emphasize all the proper characteristics and flavors. Space is limited.
Enrica Rocca Prosecco Sparkling Wine Dinner: Thursday, Apr. 9, 7pm ($75)
A four-course dinner pairing in the private Barrel Room with “Cooking Countess” Enrica Rocca and her daughter features Italian-inspired dishes paired with Enrica Rocca Prosecco Brut, making its US debut this week. Enrica Rocca Prosecco Brut is a modern version, made to accompany a variety of light local dishes. Perfect also for an aperitif, with traditional Venetian cicchetti and much more.
Wine vs. Beer dinner with Founders Brewing: Friday, Apr. 17 ($85)
Let the battle of beverages begin with a four-course meal in the Barrel Room with Founders Brewing representative Michael Maloney. Each course is paired with City Winery wine and beer by Founders Brewing. Features a custom crafted menu by Chef Andres and Chef Dan with original wine pairings by Beverage Director, Rachel Speckan.
The Wine Coach – Something to Wine About™ with Laurie Forster: Saturday, Apr. 25 ($45)
Laurie Forster, aka The Stand-Up Sommelier™, is a radio personality, award-winning sommelier and comedian who delivers an edgy, off-beat hilarious show in Something to Wine About™. This original comedy show and wine tasting hosted by Wine + Comedy is full of onstage audience participation and grounded, truthful and hilarious opinions on wine and life. Ticket includes wine tastings, light fare and unlimited laughs. Seating is limited so advance purchase is suggested.
Australia Wine Dinner with Yangarra Wine: Monday, Apr. 27 ($85)
Taste an array of Yangarra Estate wines from Southern Australia with chief winemaker Peter Fraser and enjoy a regionally inspired, three-course dinner (with an amuse) by Chef Andres in the cozy Barrel Room. Under Fraser’s expert direction, Yangarra Estate Vineyard became a two-time winner of International Winery of the Year from Wine & Spirits. Space is limited and advance purchase is suggested.
West of West (WOW) Wine Festival: Wednesday, May 20, 6pm ($75)
At this public tasting, West Sonoma Coast Vintners presents WOW Chicago, offering wine lovers an inside taste of some of the most acclaimed cool-climate wines from California’s Sonoma County. Chicago wine lovers can escape to the California coast for an evening of wine tasting with the leading winemakers and proprietors of the West Sonoma Coast, distinguished as one of the world’s leading regions for top quality Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The Grand Tasting offers a stellar line up of more than 30 producers and growers pouring some of their most coveted and hard-to-find gems.
Paso Robles Wine Dinner: Tuesday, June 2 ($100)
Ten wineries from California’s Paso Robles Wine Country pair their wines with a coursed meal on City Winery’s Mezzanine, offering gorgeous skyline views of the city. Wineries and menus to be announced.
Paso Robles Public Tasting: Wednesday, June 3 ($50)
A walk-around tasting in City Winery’s Main Dining Room features more than 25 wineries from Paso Robles Wine Country. Centrally located halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles along California’s Central Coast, Paso Robles Wine Country is the largest and most diverse wine region in California – 30 distinct soil series, many microclimates, varying topography within 614,000 total acres. The fastest growing American Viticultural Area (AVA) in California with 32,000 vineyard acres and more than 200 bonded wineries ranging from nationally distributed, mid-size to boutique is known for its proprietary Paso Robles blends – innovative and non-traditional blends of Bordeaux, Rhône, Zinfandel and Spanish varietal blends. Includes passed appetizers and cheese + charcuterie.
Opened in 2012, City Winery Chicago is a fully operational winery, restaurant with outdoor patio, concert hall and private event space located in the heart of the West Loop at 1200 W. Randolph, in the historic urban Fulton Market district. Once a refrigerated food distribution warehouse, the 1911 building has been transformed into a contemporary 33,000 square foot haven for those passionate about wine, music and culinary arts. The décor evokes the romance of being in wine country, from the exposed stainless steel fermenting tanks and French oak barrels, to the aroma of fermenting grapes. Chicago’s only fully operation winery has produced dozens of in-house wines sourced from vineyards in California, Oregon, Washington, Argentina and Chile, including a Wine Enthusiast 90-point 2012 Bien Nacido Vineyard Reserve pinot noir. With more than 400 unique producers from around the world City Winery is recognized with a 2014 Best of Award of Excellence “for having one of the most outstanding restaurant wine lists in the world” by Wine Spectator. The globally inspired, locally sourced, wine-focused food menu is conceived for pairing and sharing. The concert hall accommodates up to 300 guests, all seated at tables with complete beverage and dining service, ensuring a comfortable “listening room” experience enhanced by a state-of-the-art Meyer Sound system. Riedel is the official and exclusive provider of glassware, showing City Winery’s commitment to enjoying quality wine in a quality vessel. American Airlines is the Official Airline and Virgin Hotels Chicago is the Official Hotel of City Winery. For more information, please visit www.citywinery.com .
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