A meal will always be more enjoyable when paired with a good wine! Last night Marc and I enjoyed a wine dinner hosted by Sonja Magdevski of Casa Dumetz Winery and Tim Skogstrom at the Old Place in Agoura.
The dinner menu consisted of a 1st course of bouquet of greens with a cambozola dressing paired with a 2010 Casa Dumetz Syrah Rose, the second course was a pan seared scallop with infused olive oil atop a creamy risotto paired with the 2010 Casa Dumetz Viognier. The third course was a mushroom cassoulet with a scotch egg paired with the 2009 Casa Dumetz Syrah Noir, followed by the main course of oak grilled short rib with Triunfo Bordeaux blend and last but not least, dessert, an entire skillet of Mixed Berry Cobbler paired with 
the Enchanto White Rhone Blend. I am having a hard time deciding what course was my favorite but I am going to have to go with the pan seared scallop with creamy risotto. As for the wine, I have tasted Casa Dumetz several times before and this time around I would have to say it was a toss up. Tonight, I enjoyed both the Syrah Noir and the Triunfo Bordeaux blend. The Syrah Noir is a specific Syrah clone, not a cross between Syrah and Pinot Noir although I think that would be rather interesting. The grapes are from the Tierra Alta Vineyard located in the Santa Ynez valley. One third of the harvest was bled off to ferment as Rose and the remaining skins were added to the primary fermentation. In the end the lots were combined to give them a final product that is pleasing and fragrant. The Viognier was also tasty especially with the creaminess of the risotto. Casa Dumetz is yet another local winery that is beginning to make a name for itself and not only because of it's celebrity owner Emilio Estevez. Emilio's fiancee and winemaker Sonja Magdevski is truly in a class by herself. I have not heard a lot about female winemakers so I was immediately interested in her story. Having moved to Malibu in 2002 while working on a Master's degree in journalism she took a part time job at a local florist. It was here that she met Emilio but that was not the beginning of her wine making journey. In 2003 Sonja made a trip home to the Republic of Macedonia. While on a tour of the village with her father they happened on some very old and untended grapevines which set in 
motion a plan to rejuvenate the village by replanting all of the old fields. Flash forward to Malibu where Sonja began helping Emilio with his grapevines and the love story of Casa Dumetz is written. Magdevski is on her way to making a name for herself at Casa Dumetz as well as being the winemaker for Tim Skogstrom and partner's new Triunfo Bordeaux blend and Enchanto White. Other projects are on the horizon including Sonja's Suds, a small production of sparkling Syrah Rose set to be released just in time for the holidays.
the Enchanto White Rhone Blend. I am having a hard time deciding what course was my favorite but I am going to have to go with the pan seared scallop with creamy risotto. As for the wine, I have tasted Casa Dumetz several times before and this time around I would have to say it was a toss up. Tonight, I enjoyed both the Syrah Noir and the Triunfo Bordeaux blend. The Syrah Noir is a specific Syrah clone, not a cross between Syrah and Pinot Noir although I think that would be rather interesting. The grapes are from the Tierra Alta Vineyard located in the Santa Ynez valley. One third of the harvest was bled off to ferment as Rose and the remaining skins were added to the primary fermentation. In the end the lots were combined to give them a final product that is pleasing and fragrant. The Viognier was also tasty especially with the creaminess of the risotto. Casa Dumetz is yet another local winery that is beginning to make a name for itself and not only because of it's celebrity owner Emilio Estevez. Emilio's fiancee and winemaker Sonja Magdevski is truly in a class by herself. I have not heard a lot about female winemakers so I was immediately interested in her story. Having moved to Malibu in 2002 while working on a Master's degree in journalism she took a part time job at a local florist. It was here that she met Emilio but that was not the beginning of her wine making journey. In 2003 Sonja made a trip home to the Republic of Macedonia. While on a tour of the village with her father they happened on some very old and untended grapevines which set in 
motion a plan to rejuvenate the village by replanting all of the old fields. Flash forward to Malibu where Sonja began helping Emilio with his grapevines and the love story of Casa Dumetz is written. Magdevski is on her way to making a name for herself at Casa Dumetz as well as being the winemaker for Tim Skogstrom and partner's new Triunfo Bordeaux blend and Enchanto White. Other projects are on the horizon including Sonja's Suds, a small production of sparkling Syrah Rose set to be released just in time for the holidays. You can purchase Casa Dumetz wines at the Cornell Tasting Room as well as several locations in Malibu, Ventura, Santa Monica and Los Angeles. Check out their website for locations:
Photos courtesy of Glenn.
CHEERS!
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