Page 130 - South Mississippi Living - September, 2015

DINING cheers
perfect
ometimes it’s the pairing that can make all the difference. Recently Mignon’s Steaks and Seafood, one of the Coast’s premier fine dining restaurants, partnered with Grgich Hills Estate, one of Napa Valley’s finest vineyards, and the resulting five course dinner was nothing short of spectacular.
PS A I R
story and photos by Julian Brunt
Mignon’s cuisine and Grgich Hills Estate wines
Grgrich Hills Estate has been producing some of California’s best wines since 1977. They are committed to making distinctive wines with quality, consistency, and longevity, as the company is so fond of saying. Each of their six different wines that were served — a Chardonnay, a Fumé Blanc, a Zinfandel, a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Merlot, and a dessert wine named “Violetta” — is hand crafted and award winning.
But let’s start at the end of a grand evening. A wine of rare distinction was served with the final course (a poached pear, with cranberry, cinnamon, and brown sugar polenta) that was not only
as lovely as a Zinfandel can be, but was a wine of historic note. The wine was Grgich Plavac Mali, from winemaker Mike Grgich’s Croatia vineyard, Grgić Vina. Besides producing amazing wines, it is now known that the famed Zinfandel grape was first grown there and later exported around the world.
A very sad note followed as we learned the vineyard was lost to fire recently, and wine will not flow from this vineyard for many years to come.
The evening began with a gracious introduction by Frank Markovich, southeast region sales manager for Grgich Hills, and followed with a subtle crevette salad of English cucumber, tomato, radish, carrot, feta cheese, and a white wine vinaigrette. This lovely beginning was paired with Grgich Hills Fume Blanc, and a better
FRANK MARKOVICH, southeast region sales manager for Grgich Hills.
CHEF ADRIAN HALPAUS of Mignon’s Steaks and Seafood in Palace Casino Resort
130 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • September 2015 FOR MORE REFLECTIONS OF THE GULF COAST >> www.smliving.net