The Capital Grille – Master Sommelier Wine Tasting Series | Tasty Chomps: A Local's Culinary Guide

I was graciously invited by the establishment at The Capital Grille (headquartered here in Orlando) for a lovely evening of wine tasting, a special event going on all this month till September. Here is a sneak peak of what awaits:

At The Capital Grille, located right off of International Drive in the Point Orlando complex, wine isn’t just a drink you order off the menu; it’s a celebrated affair. The waiters here at Capital Grille, under the tutelage of Master Sommelier George Milotes, are trained in the arts of wine pairings, giving great advice on whether that crisp, sweet, white wine complements that seafood appetizer that you may be having or if that red wine might go better with that steak tonight. The Master Sommelier Wine Tasting event, as described previously, is a great event worth any wine connoisseur or novice beginner’s time in trying out. For just a reasonable price you are able to sample over 10 specially selected wines from New Zealand, California, Italy and more over the course of the next few weeks.

Inside the Capital Grille you will notice that the decor and setting is very much American, very much what I would imagine a old boy’s club would feel like with vintage paintings and hunting assortments on the walls; the perfect place to go for a business or corporate outing I would surmise, with the relative closeness of the Orange County Convention Center nearby and all.

The meal begins with a special seafood appetizer prepared by the chef this evening, filled with luscious lumps of crab meat, lobster, and shrimp topped with a sweet corn salsa. This appetizer went very well with the lunetta prosecco of Italy, light and crisp and slightly sweet, a perfect start or end to any meal. The pan fried calamari with hot cherry peppers was a fiery spicy dish that would awake any taste bud.

Our waitress this evening is gracious and well educated (thanks to the Master Sommelier and the other staff here I am sure) on the various wine offerings this evening for the event as well as great choices for entrees and options and always checking up on us often to see how things are.

For the entrees, I chose the classic cut of a Delmonico dry aged steak seasoned and broiled to create a delicate porcini mushroom crust with a light drizzling of premium 12-year aged balsamic. It went very well with the assortment of red wines that accompanied the steak, my favorite being the Beringer Ranch merlot from California and the Wild Rock pinot noir from New Zealand, both excellent reds. My partner this evening enjoyed her bone-in koma crusted dry aged sirloin with caramelized shallot butter just as much. The bok choy lettuce and au gratin potato sides went very well with our steaks as well, possibly pushing us over the tipping point. But alas there is a final act.

The desserts ordered this evening were the trio of handcrafted ice creams with double chocolate and coconut cookies and the chocolate hazelnut cake, both decadent, sweet endings to a absolutely wonderful meal.

Special thanks go out to Heather Dratler, Randy Cook, and Shannon Niedenthal for making this happen, a wonderful team over there at the Capital Grille.

Pricing
$$$$