virginia wine dinner

Photo by Image Machine

I know what you are thinking, “two posts about Virginia Wine in one week?! Where is this coming from? There must be something special going on in the world of Virginia Wine that I must know more about.”

Well, you thought correctly and aren’t you impressed at my ability to read your mind? The month of March is Virginia Wine’s “Love by the Glass” promotion throughout the state of VA. Wine for everyone!!

The idea behind Love by the Glass is to encourage diners at Virginia restaurants to try Virginia wines. It seems perfectly timed that we would host a Virginia Wine dinner at the restaurant where I work. Who ever thought of that must be really smart and also very attractive.

Photo by Image Machine

Really, this post is just an excuse to post these photos that KC Johnson of Image Machine took of the wine event that I hosted last week. Aren’t they stunning?

Virginia is starting to receive the credit they deserve for producing great wine and I am here to say that every single glass poured at our wine dinner was exceptional. I did not get to sit down and actually enjoy the meal, but I did get to sample everything behind the scenes. I might have sampled a few glasses of Virginia Fizz. That stuff is just so good.

Photo by Image Machine

Here is what we served:

House made duck prosciutto with watercress salad, topped with apricot dressing and sesame cantaloupe

Chesapeake Bay Oysters topped with sautéed spinach, Vermont white cheddar pimento cheese and Virginia ham

Virginia Peanut Soup, made with cream vegetables and Virginia peanut butter, and salted peanuts

Crawfish Bisque, a sumptuous soup made of fennel, brandy, leaks, Roma tomatoes, and crawfish tails

Roasted Cornish Game Hen rubbed with herbs de Provence and stuffed with wild rice, chestnuts and dried cranberries, served with a blueberry, thyme compote, and patty pan squash

Crisply skinned Chesapeake Bay Rockfish with Hayman sweet potato, Virginia Country Ham, and blue crab hash, melted leaks and Meyer lemon butter

Warm buttery caramel and toffee studded custard with Granny Smith apples in a shortbread crust topped with fresh cinnamon whip cream

Photo by Image Machine