Temecula Creek Inn and Leonesse Cellars Present "White vs. Red: The Grape Debate"

March 9, 2010 - PRLog -- TEMECULA, Calif. – In a salute to great wine and food, Temecula Creek Inn, located in the heart of Southern California’s wine country, together with Leonesse Cellars in Temecula, presents “White vs. Red – The Grape Debate – An Untraditional Wine Dinner” on Friday, March 19, 2010.

     The event is the first in a series of 2010 Artisan Wine Events to be held at Temecula Creek Inn, where wine enthusiasts and novices alike can partake in discussion and debate, meet the region’s top winemakers, and dine on the area’s best cuisine. Winemaker Tim Kramer and owner Mike Rennie of Leonesse Cellars will showcase their wines, paired with delicious cuisine prepared by Temecula Creek Inn’s Executive Chef Salvatore Giuliano.

     Menu highlights include a Farmers’ Market Salad of Baby Greens, Clementine Tangerine and Crumbled Chevre Cheese with Molasses-Pecan Vinaigrette; Loch Duart Salmon Crudo, Watermelon Radish, Fennel, Chive Gremolata Crostini with Juniper Berry Mandarin Gastrique; and a Trio of Cracked Tellicherry Pepper, Cocoa Nib and Espresso Bean Crusted Certified Angus Beef Ribeye Medallion with a Puff Pastry Lace Fried Spanish Onion, Salted Baked Root Vegetables and Crushed Fingerling Potato Horseradish Hash.

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     For dessert, the chef will create a Chocolate Fondant and Passion Fruit Crème Brulée with Fresh Berries.

     Each course will be paired with a regional red and white wine, allowing guests to select the better match. The menu will feature Leonesse Cellar’s Melange de Blanc 08’ and Cinsaut ’07, A Viognier ’08 and Melange de Reves ’07, a Chardonnay Vineyard Select ’07 and Syrah Cellar Select ’06, and a Muscat Canelli ’08 and Cinsaut Dessert Wine (Port) ’05. (MENU ATTACHED).

     Priced at $85 per person, the four-course meal excludes tax and gratuity, but includes complimentary wine and cheese reception, where guests can

preview wines that will be served during the evening.  The setting will be intimate, beginning with a wine reception on The Plaza at 6:30 p.m., featuring artisan-inspired appetizers by Giuliano; wine tasting by Kramer; live entertainment by wine host Joel Reese and a decadent four-course dinner at 7:30 p.m. in Temet Grill, the resort’s signature restaurant. Reservations are required.

     Those who want to make it an overnight event can reserve the “Grape Debate Wine Dinner” package, available for one night only at the resort on Friday, March 19, 2010. Priced from $319 per couple and based on double occupancy, the package includes one night of deluxe guestroom accommodations, “White vs. Red – “Grape Debate Wine Dinner” for two, and two touring/tasting tickets to Leonesse Cellars. The package is not applicable to groups.

     To make a reservation for the “White vs. Red – The Grape Debate – An Untraditional Wine Dinner” only, call 951-587-1465. To book the “White vs. Red – The Grape Debate – An Untraditional Wine Dinner” package, call 877-517-1823, e-mail temeculacreekinn@jcresort.com or visit the web at

www.temeculacreekinn.com.

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     Temecula Creek Inn will host additional artisan wine events throughout the year. The Fall 2010 event will pose Temecula wines against the Rhone varietals—an event that will educate palettes and surprise even the savviest wine enthusiast.

GETTING THERE

     Secluded amidst the abundant natural beauty of Southern California’s wine country, the 130-room Temecula Creek Inn is located at 44501 Rainbow Canyon Road in Temecula, California, 50 miles north of San Diego and 90 miles south of Los Angeles. Visitors can arrive via Highway 15.  
ABOUT LEONESSE CELLARS

     Nestled in Southern California's wine country, Leonesse Cellars was founded in 2003 by Mike Rennie and Gary Winder, who together have more than 50 years of agriculture and grape-growing experience in the Temecula Valley. Their combined experience has lead to a true understanding of growing wine grapes of the highest quality, grapes which are concentrated, balanced, and ripe, ultimately producing wines of incredible depth and flavor. Among the wines produced at Leonesse Cellars are Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling, White Merlot, Muscat Canelli, and Cinsault Port, as well as small lots of other specially selected varietals. 38311 De Portola Road, Temecula, California. 951-302-7601, www.leonessecellars.com.



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