Par-Baked At Campanile

Jayne and Jon feeling good after an epic meal with friends at Campanile Restaurant in Los Angeles.
Campanile’s sister business and next door neighbor is La Brea Bakery whose baguette is proudly served at Jaynes.  Jayne had the great pleasure of meeting one of her culinary inspirations, Nancy Silverton founder of Campanile and La Brea, later that evening at Nancy’s latest creation Mozza.  

Jaynes is Open Independence Day, Friday July 4th 2008 at 5pm

George Washington, Commander in Chief of the Continental army during the American Revolutionary War

Sir Henry Clinton, Commander in Chief of the British forces during the American Revolutionary War

I am Simply Cinzia! Lunch at Spago

    Wednesday June 18th saw Jayne and Jon driving up to Beverly Hills for a lunch with current Tuscan wine superstaress Cinzia Merli.   Cinzia’s winery Le Macchiole is quite famous these days because of the 100 point rating her Le Messorio Merlot received from Wine Spectator’s James Suckling(interview).  Im not a big fan of numeric rating, but these wines have earned their elevated recognition.  Cinzia’s humble and gracious demeanor is certainly worthy of a perfect score.  

     Le Macchiole is located in the Bolgheri region of Tuscany and grows Sangiovese, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah.   We serve the Bolgheri Rosso at Jaynes which is a blend of all the above mentioned grapes.  Additional offerings are the Paleo Rosso (100% Cabernet Franc), Le Messorio(100% Merlot) and Scrio (100% Syrah.)   While the Le Messorio was an incredible wine, well suited to a new world palette being very round and lush, my personal favorite was the Rhone inpsired Scrio which had the complexity of a great Hermitage.    Highlights of the lunch were of course the exquisite wines from Le Macchiole but also an apertif of ‘96 Billecart-Salmon Brut(at $88 an incredible price), the steak tartare hors de oeuvres, a perfectly rare and tender rack of Colorado lamb and exotic Persian Mulberry’s for dessert.   A visit to the table from Wolfgang Puck was a big treat as well.

  

 

Cinzia was an absolute doll and very down to earth.  My friend Jeremy Parzen aka “Zelig” was also at the lunch and thankfully speaks perfect Italian.  At one point Jeremy told Cinzia that it was very exciting to be sitting with such a wine superstar, someone on the level of Angelo Gaja.  Cinzia replied (in Italian) “But Angelo Gaja is a great, rich entrepreneur while I am not.  I am simply Cinzia”  We love her for it and thank her for hosting such a wonderful lunch.   Grazia, Molto Cinzia.

Now Playing At Jaynes: Major Lance

Dig 60’s Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions?  Well check out protege Major Lance from Curtis’ Curtom label.  This clip is  live with no lip sync. The band is somewhere back in the shadows with a particularly mean sounding bari sax player prominent in the mix.   Can’t explain the beret’d terrier.  This song, “Monkey Time” became a northern soul dance favorite during the mod revival of the 80’s.  San Diego was one of the core hubs of this revival with bands like the Crawdaddys, The Event and the Tell Tale Hearts.

 

“Terroir” Part Un: A French Garden Wine Dinner, Tuesday June 17th/UPDATE: Sold Out

Come experience “Terroir”!   Jayne and Jon are having a French Garden Wine Dinner on Tuesday June 17th from 7:30-9:30pm.   There is a great mystique and complexity to French wines built up from centuries long winemaking traditions.   French wine was the gateway for us into the world of great wine. the Wardrobe, so to speak.   We would like to share this wonderful experience with our friends here at Jaynes.      

The patio will be set with candles and abundant flowers arranged by Jayne herself.   We are opening some incredible bottles from our favorite regions and have created a beautiful menu to pair with each selection.                

We will be joined by French wine expert Peter Poulos.  Peter will be on hand to tell the story of the wines and their regions and will be happy to answer any of your questions.    We hope you will join us for what will be a very special evening.              

Menu

Reception  
Vigneau Chevreau Vouvray Petillant Brut.  

First Course  
Savory Provencal Tart with Herbed Goat Cheese.  Served with Frisee and Fennel Salad.   

Wine Pairing:  Domain Salettes Bandol Rose.   

Second Course
Washington State Sea Scallop with Lemon Orzo, Asparagus and Sweet English Peas.

Wine Pairing:   Domaine Fevre Premier Cru Fourchaume-Vaulorent Chablis  

                           Eric Morgat L’Enclos Savenierres   

Third Course  
Burgundy Braised Short Ribs with Rough Cut Pasta, Pearl Onions and Baby Carrots

Wine Pairing:  Bachey Legros Chassagne Montrachet Vielle Vignes Rouge.  

                          Domaine Du Cayron Gigondas.    

Fourth Course  
Organic Peach Crostada with Tahitian Vanilla Gelato

Wine Pairing:  Raymond-Lafon Sauternes

$75/person plus tax and gratuity

Space is very limited so if you are interested, please call 619 563-1011 for reservations.

Featured Wine: 2006 Flowers Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

When it comes to Pinot Noir from California, Jayne says ‘Sonoma Coast’.   Flowers Winery is one of its greatest residents.  Cool climates, ocean breezes, high elevation vineyards, rocky well drained soil coupled with a non-interventionalist winemaking technique yields elegant wines showing a complexity and restraint not often seen in an ever expanding California wine market led by huge, hot fruit bombs.   We have just received the 2006 Flowers Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. Hand picked, destemmed and punched using natural yeasts with no fining agents (foreign proteins added to clarify the wine) or filtration.   Michel Chapoutier once said “If I filter the wine, I am only drinking half the wine.”    Like their compatriot in France, Walt and Joan Flowers choose to have the wine speak of the vineyards and soil from which they came and eschew the more modern techniques that may tend to homogenize wine.  This is true terroir.  We are proud to be serving their wine.    

Ask Me About Brunello

Jayne’s Gastropub is proud to welcome Jeremy Parzen, PhD to Jaynes.   Jeremy and Jon have a history of record production together as producer/guitarist and engineer, respectively.  Hits include the CMJ charting Fixation Orale by Les Sans Culottes and Homesick Songs by Golem.   In addition to being a great musician, Jeremy is a world class Italian wine expert who has travelled the world extensively and has written about his many travels in publications such as the New York Times, Gastronomica, Men’s Vogue and his very popular wine/food/music blog, Do Bianchi.  He will be pouring wine behind the bar this Thursday evening and on Thursdays to come.  If you speak Italian or would like some practice, Im sure he would be happy to swap tongues and tell you about the ongoing Brunello controversy in a dialetto toscano.

‘Avin’ a Bevvy? Featured Wines

We are featuring some spectacular new wines from Piedmont, Loire Valley, Carneros and the Willamette Valley.  All elegant, complex and most importantly, honest.   

2006 Produttori del Barbaresco Langhe Nebbiolo.   A traditional Nebbiolo from one of Piedmont’s all time great producers of Barbaresco.   An ideal food wine and truly old world.

2005 Fiano Di Avellino Dei Feudi Si San Gregorio.   100% Fiano Di Avellino from Campania Italy.   An elegant white wine with notes of peach, stone and honey.  Pairs perfectly with our Roast Chicken and Gambas Al Aljillo.
2005 Eric Morgat L’Enclos Savennieres.  A dry yet rich chenin blanc showing great minerality, fruit and well integrated acids.   There are absolutely wonderful wines being produced in the Loire Valley.  This area is considered the epicenter of Natural Wine.  
2007 Robert Sinskey Vin Gris of Pinot Noir.   Robert Sinskey’s terroir driven, low technology approach creates some of our favorite California wines.    Easily our favorite Rose.   
2005 Owen Roe ‘The Kilmore’ Pinot Noir    Our favorite Willamette Valley Pinot Noir available in half bottles.    
  

 

Natural Wine

Jayne’s has been exploring the world of Natural wines. The Natural wine movement arose out of France, with its epicenter in the Loire Valley. This movement is dedicated to producing wines in a traditional manner with very little technological and/or chemical intervention. This is not to be confused with organic or biodynamics. The grapes may be organic or biodynamic but the winemaking might involve techniques that mask the essence of the fruit or terroir from whence they came. There are very polarized voices on the subject both in France and here in the states. One particular voice is Alice Feiring that has waged all out war upon commoditized wines and the ubiquitous wine luminary Robert Parker. We are still very much in apprenticeship on the subject but the story is a fascinating one. I came across a compendium of Natural wine ideas by Joe Dressner out of NYC which I thought might people may find interesting. Joe is an importer and distributor so there is a hint of commerce in this list. Nonetheless, it lays out some important tenets of Natural wine and his voice is very powerful in the movement. There will be more on this subject in the near future…

Real Wine by Joe Dressner
The following techniques and guiding principles are what we believe is winemaking with integrity and respect for the traditions of the native region. This is fine winemaking at its purest, most fundamental level.

Wild Yeasts
All wines are made with the natural yeasts on the grapes, in the vineyards and in the cellars. Cultured yeasts to rush fermentation or add “enhancing” aromas and flavors are unacceptable. We look for wines that express their terroir.

Hand Harvesting
Growers harvest by hand, not machine. We want the ripest fruit to be brought into the winery- not a mix picked at random by machinery.

Low Yields
Our growers must seek low yields for greater concentration. We look for growers with holdings in old
vines.

Natural Viticulture
We encourage growers to plow their vineyards to keep the soil an active ecosystem, and to use natural methods in tending their vines.

No or Minimal Chaptalization
We do not want an artificially high degree of alcohol produced by adding sugar to the must. Non- or very slightly chaptalized wines are more enjoyable and healthier to drink.

Non-Filtration
Wines are either not filtered or minimally filtered.

Non-Interventionist Winemaking
We prefer a harmony, not an imposed style - wines should showcase their place of origin and varietal character. We are not looking for oak flavor, particular fruits or overly done aromatics. Minimal use of sulfur dioxide is encouraged.

Quality Control
We taste at our growers several times before and after bottling before shipping wines. Where possible, we work with the vigneron to make special blends representing the very best wines in their cellar.

Let’s Get Married!

The CA Supreme Court overturned the ban on gay marriage. I know its against the unwritten bar and restaurant code to discuss politics but this is just something that needed to happen. We’ll have plenty of champagne on ice to celebrate with!