The Event: dinner with Joseph Carr, founder of Joseph Carr wines and the Josh Cellars line of varietals.

The Date and Time: Wednesday, August 27, 2014  6PM to 9PM

The Event: dinner with Joseph Carr, founder of Joseph Carr wines and the Josh Cellars line of varietals.

The Venue: Biff's

The Target Audience: wine writers

The Availability/Catalogue: coming soon to the LCBO, prices are estimated.

The Quote/Background: Joesph Carr is passionate about his wines. As a negociant, he works with small estate growers and winemakers, even coopers, across California to source hand crafted wines. His company is now just nine years old, and maintains his winemaking philosophy as a chance to follow his dream of producing wines of balance and sophistication. They are all approachable in the distinctive California style, but with Euro lean labeling that stands out from the shelf. He sources his Carr wines from Napa for the reds and Sonoma for the whites. His entry level wines (Josh Cellars) are named after his father, and feature more varietals from all over California. Many are sold in American restaurants, and thus have a higher recognition factor in Canada. He uses two winemakers, one for Josh and one for Carr.

The Wines: We had some Josh Cellars wines for reception, and again with dinner. At dinner, we also had Joseph Carr wines from Napa.

 

**** BEST -- Four Stars (91+ in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Josh Cellars Legacy Red, $21.95 (FAVE of the night), with merlot-zinfandel-syrah-petite sirah.

-Josh Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, $19.95

-Joseph Carr Cabernet Sauvignon Napa, under $30

 

***1/2 BETTER -- Three and a Half Stars (88 – 90 in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Josh Cellars Chardonnay, $17.95

-Josh Cellars Sauvignon Blanc, $17.95

-Joseph Carr Merlot Napa, under $30

 

*** GOOD -- Three Stars (85 – 87 in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Josh Cellars Pinot Noir, $21.95

 

The Food: at the reception we had pork rillettes, oysters, and cheese croquembouche.  Dinner had choices. I opted for protein to catch the wines, so I began with smoked trout with apple and fennel (Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay did a great job of accompanying the food), followed by filet mignon (bleu for me) with smoked eggplant puree, and then orange and fennel bavarois. I had a wide variety of wines with the filet, but I thought the cabernets went best.

The Downside: I had just come from a frustrating ticket exchange for seats at the Met opera.

The Upside: a chance to connect with Joseph Carr.

The Contact Person: jcarr@josephcarrwine.com; rsandham@thekirkwoodgroup.com

The Event's Marketing Effectiveness and Execution (numerical grade): 89.

Chimo! www.deantudor.com