Gil Family Estates Wine at Fig & Olive 2.10.16

by Tobin Sharp

The Hi-Time Wine staff via Patty Quick, our Spanish wine buyer, was recently invited to taste through the Gil Family Estates lineup of wines at Fig & Olive in Newport Beach with Felix Jimenez (Gil Family Estates), Larry Moraes (Blue Ventures Wine Marketing) and our friend and rep for GFE at Regal Wine Company, Elaine McCune.

While this was definitely a 'working' dinner, meaning outside of enjoying the exquisite lineup of wines and beautiful pairing of foods we needed to pay attention and/or take notes and critically evalute the mise en scéne of food, wine and setting, it really was a treat to relax and enjoy one of Orange County's top restaurants while tasting some of our favorite Spanish wines.  And the company was delightful, of course!

We started with the Chef's Choice of Crostinis followed by Fall Sea Scallops and Truffle Mushroom Croquettes paired with first, the Kentia 2014 Albariño (fresh, floral and citrus on the nose; spring fruits, minerality and excellent acidity in the palate) followed by the Lagar Da Condesa 2014 Albariño (pineapple, passion fruit, lychee nose; full, elegant mouthfeel with stone fruits, honey, lemon zest,  forward acidity and a lengthy finish).

The main course consisted of Provence Roasted Chicken, Paella del Mar and Rosemary Lamb Chops (while I was notating more on the wines, the paired foods were stunning as well-- I'm a sucker for lamb and especially great lamb like this, the Provence Chicken marinated with Herbs de Provence, rosemary, garlic and lemon, and Paella, with more scallops, another fave of mine, were perfect selections with the bounty of wines [and the confit heirloom potatos served with the chicken were magic]).

The wines we tasted: the Blau 2014 (50% Cariñena, 25% Syrah, 25% Garnacha-- bright purple fruits, dark spice, blackberry, cassis, excellent tannic structure and acidity), Can Blau 2013 (40% Cariñena, 40% Syrah, 20% Garnacha-- blackcurrant, blue fruits, earth, dark florals, licorice, excellent tannins; Vinous 90 pts.), Honoro Vera 2014 Organic Monastrell (bright red and dark fruits on the nose, flowers and mineral tones with spicy red berries, earthiness on the palate, smooth texture, great acidity, long finish),

Juan Gil 2013 Silver Label Monastrell (black and blue fruits, florals, light spice aromas, berries and cherries, minerals and smoke on the weighty-yet-elegant palate, Vinous 91 pts), Juan Gil 100th Anniversary 2013 (50% Monastrell, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Syrah-- notes of black plum, currant, mocha, tobacco and leather in the nose with more dark fruits in the foreground upon tasting as the dense, layered and velvety tannins lead to a rich, lush but balanced finish), La Atalaya del Camino 2013 (Garnacha Tintorera [Alicante Bouchet], Monastrell--amazing spice and mineral notes, dried fruits, salted plum, mixed red and black fruits), Alaya Tierra 2013 (Garnacha Tintorera-- bright red fruits and berries,  garrique, cocoa, tobacco, touch of minerality, excellent finish uplitfed by fresh acidity, rounded tannins), Tridente 2013 Tempranillo (Bright but dark fruits, mineral tones, pencil lead, incense, spice, rich mouthfeel, long sexy finish), Atteca 2013 (Garnacha-- red & dark fruits, spices, smoky bacon, dark berries & florals, salted mulberry, midnight florals, balanced tannins, seamless finish), Atteca Armas 2011 (Garnacha-- dark cherries, spice, slatey minerality, complex, fruity, powerful but balanced and elegant, great fruit, bold tannins), and El Nido 2013 (70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Monastrell-- explosive, alluring blueberry/boysenberry aromas with English tobacco, licorice and vanilla; dark fruits lead a lush, broad palate that adds luscious floral and Asian spices, impeccable balance and a long, lustrous finish).

We finished with a dessert selection of Caramelized Apple Tart (with vanilla ice cream, natch) and Chocolate Pot de Créme.

Fig & Olive really hit it out of the park on this evening with perfectly paired foods (and top rate, seamless service) to go with such a quality lineup of wines.  Felix and Larry took time to talk about the wines and the family, and what's going on now and what the future looks like (bright, bold and beautiful to judge by what we tasted and heard!).  I am fortunate in that I've been able to taste review many of these wines over the years, working closely with Patty as she tastes and selects the wines to bring into the store, so knew that we were in for a treat and thoroughly enjoyed the entire affair.

To see more pictures of our adventure, please visit here.