Even though this is a beer blog, it’s not always about beer; sometimes I delve into wine, spirits, and other beverages. Often they go hand-in-hand with food, and this past weekend was one such occasion, as we attended a dinner and wine pairing at Brasada Ranch resort here in Central Oregon.

It was hosted by the new Wild Rye restaurant at Brasada, fronted by executive chef Karl Holl, and featuring wine pairings with The Marigny. Disclosure: I had received an invite to attend via media connections, so we checked it out.

The theme of the dinner was “foraged” with “a four-course dinner perfected with the season’s rarest mushrooms, gathered by Chef Karl himself from the surrounding high desert of Central Oregon.” Every course incorporated mushrooms in some form, right down to dessert with candy cap mushroom bread pudding.

It was showcase for Chef Holl, who as I understand it is new, as well as for Wild Rye, and it was a good evening for it. Hosted in Brasada’s Barn event center, the evening started out on the patio and lawn with fire pits and the sunset, with appetizers and sparkling wine. It was essentially a social hour before being seated for the table service.

Once seated, we progressed through the four course meal, starting with rolls, then salad, consommé (soup), smoked quail as the main entrée, and dessert. Each course was paired with a different Marigny wine, starting with a white blend and working through several red Pinot blends, and finally an aged, sherry-like chardonnay to accompany the dessert course. The meal ended with a digestif.

The food was excellent, creative and seasonal and hearty yet elevated. As a showcase for Wild Rye it was successful, and it’s worth a look to check out the restaurant in general.

The wines were interesting, and mostly paired well with the various courses. The most interesting/polarizing was the Cold Blooded Old Times, a chardonnay that experienced extended “sous voile” aging in barrels for over 10 years when those barrels were forgotten in an open-air barn, during which time they weren’t opened nor topped up. This aging process oxidized and concentrated the wine to become somewhat sherry-like, which is a character you will probably either like or you won’t.

All around, it was an enjoyable evening and showcase event for the new restaurant. Check out the gallery of pictures from that evening:

First course: Roasted chanterelle salad with arugula, tomatoes, mushroom hollandaise, and parmigiano reggiano

Second course: Wild mushroom consommé, with fonduta and porcini

Third course: Smoked and grilled quail with local autumn mushrooms, rye berry risotto, and huckleberry jus

Fourth course: Candy cap mushroom bread pudding with maple anglaise and whipped creme fraiche