It’s the time of year when dinners abound. This week it was Aria, where the food was very good, but the highlight was the long chat I had with the sommelier as he poured various dessert wines and amaro for us.

• Appetizers
  • Charcuterie with 3 meats, pickles, preserves, mustards, sourdough focaccia
  • Pain Au Lait w/ grass-fed butter, vancouver island sea salt
• Mains
  • Others got the Stn. Burger, Tanjo Farms Duck, Arctic Char, and Cave-Aged Comté Agnolotti
  • I had the Berkshire Pork loin w/ brussels sprouts, caramelized apple, potato rösti, apple cider vinaigrette
  • Bottles of 2018 Big Head “Raw” Gamay
• Dessert
  • Winter Spiced Pavlova w/ cranberry purée, spiced pastry cream, gingerbread cookies
  • Dark Chocolate Ganache Bar w/ brown sugar cookie, hazelnut & aged rum ice cream
  • Sticky Toffee Pudding w/ white chocolate, vanilla ice cream, madeira & wildflower honey sauce
  • glasses of 2016 Big Head “Select Late Harvest” Riesling and 2014 Domenico Fraccaroli Recioto Della Valpolicella

Two more coming up, too: Greta Solomon and Barberians. Wish me luck.