Tucked behind the heart of our fair city lies a restaurant with an international reputation for fine food, and what it serves is only the very best America has to offer-in meat, produce and wines. Next week, it will celebrate Malibu’s best by pairing some seldom-seen menu favorites with excellent wines handcrafted in the hills of Malibu in the Saddle Peak Lodge’s first annual Malibu Wineries Showcase Dinner.
The brainchild of Managing Partner Gerhard Tratter, the event is his way of “telling a story” about the food and wine they choose to feature. For this event, the simple fact that a city best known for sand, surf and movie stars also produces some of the most highly rated wines south of Napa makes for a tale of compelling interest, not only locally but to enophiles everywhere. Employ the talents of one of America’s finest young chefs, Warren Schwartz, to choose the menu and prepare food that amplifies their flavors and you have a tale worth tasting.
Malibu has a long history of winemaking and that history may include a bit of Saddle Peak Lodge. During the 1800s, Malibu was a grape-growing region for Spanish missionaries who knew great soil and climate when they found it. But Prohibition came along and a bad bout of phylloxera killed off much of the established rootstock. Then, along came an odd county rule outlawing the commercial production of wine, and Malibu’s vineyards grew fallow.
It is whispered that the old hunting lodge at Saddle Peak would offer refreshments in those dry days, but who’s to say? Nothing in the Sheriff’s blotters confirms the rumor, but it hasn’t died either. In any event, wine is happily legal again and the vintners of old would be impressed with the new products from our hills-the wines of Rosenthal, Semler and Jussila-and the excellent culinary repertoire from Saddle Peak Lodge.
In 1987, George Rosenthal began planting 25 acres of rather lush chaparral off Kanan Road. Set behind the first coastal ridge, his vineyard gets a cool nighttime breeze off the ocean that tempers scorching midday heat from the Valley. Steep hillsides mean the vines stretch their roots deep into the soil in search of water, making the Rosenthal property a perfect terroir for rich, fruity reds that need stress to reach their peak. After his first crop, Rosenthal petitioned the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to establish a viticultural designation, or appellation, for Malibu-its first, Newton Canyon. Rosenthal grapes are hand-harvested, crushed the same day and stored in French oak barrels under the careful eye and discerning taste buds of their renowned, young Burgundian winemaker, Christian Roguenant.
Three Rosenthal wines are on the menu: the 2001 “Newton Canyon” Chardonnay accompanies an heirloom tomato soup and butter-braised lobster risotto; an early library wine from Rosenthal’s second vintage, the 1992 Cabernet Sauvignon, is paired with quail; and the huge, powerful 1998 Founders Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon will be served with caribou.
Moving up the hill from Rosenthal, one comes to the 1,000-acre Saddlerock Ranch, a steep property on which the Semler family grew avocados before rising water bills caused them to switch-a felicitous turn of events because the wines they produce are quite good. The first crush was a mere two years ago and yet Tratter reports he was so impressed by the bottle the Semlers brought for tasting that he added it to Saddle Peak’s menu right away. Their three Semler wines are Saddle Rock Chardonnay and Merlot, to be served with appetizers of elk and crab cakes and the 2000 Semler Malibu Estate Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, which will accompany braised lamb shanks.
The third vintner, Jussila, is the region’s newcomer. Jussila began with grapes grown in a Topanga backyard and aged in barrels stored in the basement. Before long, Paul and Kevin Jussila’s love of wine outgrew their home and they re-established themselves in Malibu. Jussila is very much a boutique operation with only a single wine offered, but it’s an excellent first effort, the 2001 Jussila Topanga Estate Syrah. Saddle Peak has chosen to serve it with pan-seared Arctic char with Kennebeck fries.
If you miss this event-it is already sold out-add yourself to the waiting list. They are already planning an encore. Or, make reservations for dinner at the Lodge: 818.222.3888. The wines and many of the entrees are on the regular menu and dinner at Saddle Peak is always a wonderful experience.