Classic combinations: steak and eggs, ham and cheese, steak and Cabernet. Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak House in Dallas matched the cooking of executive chef David Holben with the iconic California Cabernet Sauvignons from Silver Oak Cellars. I was a guest at the dinner which also included other Silver Oak wines, and wines from Silver Oak’s other label, Twomey Cellars. As an added attraction, Silver Oak also brought along artist Thomas Arvid, an artist who paints still lifes of Silver Oak wines.
Jump for the pairings.
The meal started with Twomey wines. The Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc (2008) was served with passed hors d’oeuvres. A 2006 Napa Merlot accompanied an appetizer of Pekin duck and foie gras egg rolls with red current sweet and sour slaw. Then it was on to the big stuff. 2006 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, Sonoma County paired with honey-herb roasted leg of lamb with minted bread pudding and dried strawberry chutney. The Alexander valley Cabernet is Silver Oak’s more utilitarian. As we discovered during this meal, the wine has a strikingly contrasting style to its Napa counterpart. The 2005 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley followed with steak and eggs grilled filet on pulled pork hash. The latter included a poached egg and was topped with blueberry hollandaise and wild boar bacon (we really did get eggs and bacon!). The Napa Cabernet was the star wine of the evening: the nose with aromas of blackcurrant and a bouquet of dust and cedar. In the mouth, the wine is fruity, showing a clear New World heritage, but the long (25-month) aging in American oak produced a complexity and soft tannin structure that produced a wine with backbone but also with approachability. I would drink now but expect this vintage to keep for a decade.
A dessert of chai tea cheesecake with caramel ice cream Moscato Sabayon was a decadent ending to a fine meal.
All of these wines are available on Del Frisco’s wine list, and retail either locally or by direct order from the winery.
