We have been very fortunate in recent months in bringing to fruition wine and beer dinners that Mark and I have been trying to make happen for years. Well here is yet another one, and it's a doozy!
We have loved McPrice Myers' wines for more than a decade. McPrice's story is great and his wines are even better.
When McPrice was a young troublemaker in east Los Angeles, he says his father -- first a prison guard, then a teacher -- used to tell him he would wind up behind bars.
After graduating from high school, Myers wasn't particularly interested in college, but he did like to play baseball, so he went to Cypress College to play third base. Then he hurt his arm and couldn't play, so he dropped out and got a job at Trader Joe's. And that changed his life. "My boss had all these old wines he bought from Trader Joe's," Myers says. "He used to open them at night and we would taste together. I fell in love with wine right there."
"When I grew up, the last place people would expect me to be would be making wine," he says. "Jail would be more likely."
--The San Francisco Chronicle, 2005
Well that was 2005 and McPrice "Mac" is now making about 3,000 cases a year and to great acclaim. He is one of the most progressive winemakers in Southern California. His fascination is with Rhone varietals and Rhone-style wines, which he crafts into unique expressions that are spicy and assertive, yet soft and round. I just love them. They are remarkable with food and they are great value wines.
We've been trying to get Mac here for no fewer than seven years and finally...he will be here on May 19. So come out for a fun night of rustic and delicious wines with a great menu to boot. We'll start with a tasting of his excellent value brand: Barrel 27 and move on to dinner with some of his higher end bottlings. It's also quite a bargain.
Hors d’Oeuvres
A Walk-Around Tasting
Pound for Pound Zinfandel
High on the Hog Grenache
Right Hand Man Syrah
Lake Trout
Heartnuts and Brown Butter & Sorrel
Terre Blanch
Roussanne-Viognier
Grilled Quail and Roasted Cornish Hen
Porcini Mushrooms & Rosemary
“Beautiful Earth” 2013
Grenache-Syrah-Mourvedre
Cheese Steak Sandwich
L’Agne Rouge 2010
Grenache
House Made Ice Cream Sundae
French Chocolate & Caramel
$99 Plus Tax and Service