Should have said "no"

The Evil Red Genius and I decided to make our first wine adventure of 2015 to a place where we've been before - the Wine House in Old Town Fairfax.

Are we gluttons for punishment?

One might think so but dig a little deeper and you'll see there's a method to our madness.

Every time I have gone to this wine bar it has been as a result of a Groupon.

Our Groupon for $40 worth of food at the Wine House was about to expire so we hopped in the car and took a Sunday afternoon joy ride through Clifton to this quaint little bistro.

The last time we went to the Wine House it was nice enough to relax outside for lunch.  Although this January day was unseasonably warm at 60 degrees, it was sporadically rainy so we sat inside at the bar. While the staff at the Wine House isn't rude, they aren't anything to rave about either. Thankfully, we know enough about wine, at least what we like, and don't require much assistance. However, it would still be nice to simply be asked if we needed any help. I should be used to it by now, but being a stickler for good customer service, I guess I never will be accepting of this behavior, or lack of appropriate behavior.

The Wine House has a unique selection of wine and there are hardly ever any bottles that we recognize. Of course the ones we do recognize are quite overpriced and with a $10 cork fee piled on top, price is a factor. While we searched for a bottle of wine to share, we put our order in for the artisan cheese plate.

The cheese plate included the exact same four cheeses that we had back in the summer which I found a tad bit disappointing but knowing how much we enjoyed those cheeses, we were positive we'd be pleased.  For someone who does not like cranberry, the cranberry and walnut chutney that comes with the cheese plate is exquisite, especially on a slice of green apple! Who knew?

After considering five reds (including researching them quickly online because God forbid, this place take the time to prepare even a simple write-up for each wine), we finally decided on the

2012

Montinore Estate

"Red Cap"

Pinot Noir

Willamette Valley, Oregon

This vintage is known as a winemaker's dream because it yielded perfectly-balanced fruit due to a long dry season followed by an Indian summer. However, it's a shame that we couldn't truly appreciate that thought all because we weren't forceful enough with our waitress. Alas, I blame myself.

I handed her the bottle to open and she headed toward the chiller. I immediately proclaimed with a tilt of the head and strange look on my face, similar to that of my dog's expression, "It's a red. Why are you chilling it?" She replied, " We always chill our reds... to bring it up to room temperature."

WARNING!

Right there, I should have gone with my gut and told her to please not do that with this wine, but we went along with her prompting anyway. She confirmed that every time we have been here in the past they have always chilled the reds. I suppose we didn't know that because we've always sat outside and didn't see it for ourselves. 

We were extremely anxious as we watched our red wine sitting in the chiller and once we received it and the bottle was cold to the touch and it tasted cold, we were not very happy... and that's an understatement.

I'm always one to speak up. Why didn't I do so today? (smack palm to forehead and roll eyes)

We both decided we needed a sweater for our glass but wrapped the napkin, or our hands, around it instead to hopefully warm it up.  Perhaps, a wooly wine scarf made out of alpaca fur would suffice. Yeah, we'd have to get right on that one....

Well, let's buckle down and do this, Evil Red. 

We'll make it work. We always do.

Eating a red grape followed by a sip of wine brought out a tangy note on the tongue. Eating a piece of goat cheese and then a sip of wine really "empowered" the goat.  We love goat cheese so this was a fantastic surprise! The bleu cheese was creamy but quite harsh, yet a salty cracker toned it down. The cloth bound cow's milk cheese from Vermont was delightful with and without the wine - imagine a grassy, farmy cheese frolicking along the hillside....Yes, cheese frolicks...

So our wine was warming up, and we were starting to gather aromas of red fruit, flowers and a hint of dark chocolate. Coffee and plums were starting to open up on the palette with this heavier-than- normal Pinot Noir. Still, I hesitate to critique this wine too much because it should never have been served chilled which really muted the aromas and taste.

Having a $40 food Groupon and only ordering the cheese plate so far, we knew there was much more food to share. If this place does anything right, it's make delicious food!  It wasn't crowded, there were a few couples sitting at tables and we were the only people at the bar the entire time we were there.  Yet, I still had to ask the waitress (the only waitress) who chilled our red wine, "Can we order now?" Would it hurt for her to show some enthusiasm or maybe even just a tad bit of acknowledgment of her customers? Oh that's right, I forgot where we were for a moment.

Customer service slackers at their finest.

Next up was the goat cheese, spinach, artichoke and pesto quiche with a side salad. This quiche was absolutely delightful and the wine was a nice pairing. Again, I think it was the goat cheese being empowered by the Pinot that made me want to lick the plate when we were finished. I regret I didn't lick the plate, to be honest.



When we finished the quiche and after the Evil Red Genius dropped a piece of cheese on the floor, the inattentive waitress decided to assume we were finished ordering and asked if we wanted dessert.  I proceeded to tell her that we did not require dessert but we would like to order the steak frites to share.  Don't rush me out, girl!

My fork then promptly decided it was lonely and joined the Evil Red Genius' piece of cheese on the floor below us.  I would have photographic proof of this comingling on the pretty wood flooring but no, the waitress chose that exact moment to be helpful and picked up the fork.

Geez..... I just can't win with her, can I?

The steak frites are always a favorite of ours and while we didn't have it at our last outing, we went back to basics and shared it this time. Who needs dessert when you have red wine and savory, juicy hangar steak, pomme frites in a rich, black peppercorn cream gravy?

As the wine warmed up it became quite lovely. I can't help to think though how much better it would have been had it been served to us properly. I'd definitely be willing to try it again and give it another chance. 

After all it wasn't the wine's fault.. I simply should have said "no"!
 Lesson learned!