Monday, March 30, 2009

Carriage House Wine Dinner - April 9th

Subject: Litchfield Plantation's Chateau Julien Vintners Dinner


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You're invited!
To a very special event

Join us!

Chateau Julien
Vintners Dinner
Date: April 9, 2009
Time: 6:30pm
Location: The Carriage House Club
Join Our Mailing List!


We're having a very special event and you're invited! Please join us on Thursday, April 9 at The Carriage House Club as our guest for the Chateau Julien Vintner's Dinner! The proprietor of Chateau Julien Estate, Mr. Bob Brower, will be hosting this special occasion. Executive Chef Robert Beuth has created an impeccable Five-Course menu to complement the selection of Fine Wines. All Featured Wines will be available for purchase at greatly reduced rates.

On behalf of The Carriage House Club Team, we look forward to welcoming you on Thursday, April 9, 2009.


Chateau Julien Wine Estate Vintner's Dinner
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Special Host: Mr. Bob Brower, Proprietor
$72.00 per person

Welcome Reception 6:30pm

Appetizer
Berkshire Farms Pork Belly
Slow Braised Kurobuta Pork Belly over a White Bean Ragout
Caramelized Onions & Apple Smoked Bacon, finished with a Natural Jus
Chateau Julien Pinot Grigio

Salad
Golden Beet Salad
Butter and Brown Sugar Poached Golden Beets, Toasted Pistachios,
Goat Cheese with Baby Mache and a Herbed Vinaigrette
Chateau Julien Gewurztraminer

Seafood Course
Fresh Locally Caught Atlantic Black Sea Bass
Pan Seared Black Sea Bass over Fresh Vegetable Ratatouille,
Basil Pesto Tomato Broth, Topped with a Kalamata Olive Tapenade
Chateau Julien 2007 Reserve Chardonnay

Intermezzo
Lemon Sorbet

Main Course
Duck Trio
Sliced Duck Breast over a Duck Leg and Wild Mushroom Ragout
Topped with Pan Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras & a Lingonberry Infused Duck Jus
Chateau Julien 3.2 Ton Reserve Merlot

Dessert
Peach "Melba"
Vanilla and Cinnamon Poached Peach over a Vanilla Ice Cream Torte with a Lemon Pecan Crust, Finished with a Fresh Raspberry Coulis
Chateau Julien Port

Executive Chef Robert Beuth
and the Carriage House Club Culinary Team
For Reservations Please Call
843-237-9322
Today!

Litchfield Plantation | 9 Simons Lane | P.O. Box 290 | Pawleys Island | SC | 29585

Monday, March 23, 2009

Silicon's Valley's Top Wineries

America’s Favorite Plaque – Since 1997

In The Know, Inc.



Congratulates Chateau Julien Wine Estate on making the list,



Your winery is ranked #5



Silicon Valley's Top Wineries



Ranked by number of cases produced in 2008 in Silicon Valley



as published in the

Silicon Valley Business Journal

March 20th, 2009



Highest Quality >> Affordable >> Easy to Order



Made in America with a money-back guarantee



In The Know, Inc. is not affiliated or

endorsed by the Silicon Valley Business Journal

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Wine Dinner at Litchfield Plantation - AGAIN!!!!

Myrtle Beach Restaurant News
Welcome readers of MyrtleBeachRestaurantNews.com! We are so happy to welcome you to the Myrtle Beach Restaurant News and Entertainment section of MyrtleBeachCompass.com!
Certified Executive Chef Rob Beuth is settling in at his new position at Litchfield Plantation's Carriage House Club, and on April 9 he is preparing a special menu for a Chateau Julien Estate Wine Dinner. He says this meal will be extra-special because the vineyard owner is hosting the event.
"Chateau Julien is our house wine," Chef Beuth wrote in an e-mail. "We currently are the only restaurant outside of Charleston who uses this label. Each year the owner of the vineyard, Bob Brower, comes to the Carriage House and presents a wine dinner of all his favorite wines. There aren't many wine dinners around town where the actual owner of the vineyard is present. He presents each wine and gives a small story of each wine and will greet each table towards the end of the evening."
Chateau Julien Estate owner Bob Brower, shown here with his wife, Patty Brower, will host an upcoming wine dinner at Litchfield Plantation's Carriage House Club.The Chateau Julien Estate was founded by Bob and Patty Brower in 1982. It is in Carmel Valley, Calif., and Winemaker Bill Anderson has worked with the Browers since 1982.
A seat at this special table costs $72, and the evening gets underway at 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 9.
The menu includes:

Appetizer
Berkshire Farms Pork Belly: Slow-Braised Kurobuta Pork Belly over White Bean Ragout with Caramelized Onions and Apple Smoked Bacon, finished with a Natural Jus
Paired with: Chateau Julien Pinot Grigio

Salad
Golden Beet Salad: Butter and Brown Sugar Poached Golden Beets with Toasted Pistachios and Goat Cheese, with Baby Mache and Herbed Vinaigrette
Chateau Julien Gewurztraminer

Fish Course
Fresh Atlantic Black Sea Bass: Pan-Seared Black Sea Bass over Fresh Vegetable Ratatouille with Basil Pesto Tomato Broth, topped with Kalamata Olive Tapenade
Chateau Julien 2007 Reserve Chardonnay

Intermezzo
Lemon Sorbet

Main Course
Duck Trio: Sliced Duck Breast over a Duck Leg and Wild Mushroom Ragout, topped with Pan-Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras and Lingonberry Infused Duck Jus
Chateau Julien 3.2 ton Reserve Merlot

Dessert
Peach "Melba": Vanilla and Cinnamon Poached Peach over a Vanilla Ice Cream Torte with a Lemon Pecan Crust, and finished with a Fresh Raspberry Coulis
Chateau Julien Port

Litchfield Plantation is on Kings River Road in Pawleys Island. Call (843) 237-9322 for reservations. The Carriage House Club is open for breakfast daily from 7-10 a.m., and for dinner from 6-9 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Merlot - It's about time to return!

Wine & Spirits Daily

March 16, 2009

Recession Gives Merlot a Chance to Shine

Dear Client:

Several years ago the "Sideways effect" on Merlot sales was one of the major issues in the wine business, but an article in WSJ contends the varietal is making a "Rocky"-like comeback. Could the recession prompt a comeback for the wine industry's prodigal son?

"Americans fell in love with Merlot, after all, because it was a meatloaf kind of wine, easy and unfussy, round and fairly soft, and we all need that kind of comfort these days. Not only that, but everyone is looking for value and so many Merlots are inexpensive. And Americans are clearly in a buy-American mood..." wrote wine critics Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher.

In addition to the "Sideways" curse, many producers were making "really bad" merlot "for a really long time" after it became popular in the 1990s (which is something we see happening to Pinot Noir right now). As a result, the Merlot crush in 2008 was down -25% for the year "at its lowest level in more than eight years," said wine and grape brokerage firm Ciatti Co. after studying the 2008 California grape crush report.

WSJ hopes this means that "less Merlot will mean better Merlot" and that produces will focus on what is inside the bottle rather than producing "cute labels." After tasting more than 50 Merlots, Dorothy and John said the varietal "is struggling out of the hole that greedy winemakers dug for it. The wines were not uniformly good, but they were uniformly better than they have been in years." They admit that Merlot still has a long way to go before it becomes "a consistent treat," but there is hope.

In the four weeks to February 22, IRI reports that dollar sales of Merlot grew 3.2%, while red wines altogether grew 7.1%. In terms of volume, Merlot grew 5% and red wines grew 6.2%. Merlot lost -0.4 market share points in dollar sales but gained 0.1 share points in volume. So while it's not growing near as fast as other varietals, Merlot is showing some promise for the future.