The Wonderful Dalla Terra Italian Wine Dinner at Mirabelle Restaurant
by Shaun Duffy

With the food craze that has been sweeping the nation in the past decade, the way that we eat has changed for the better. Instead of going out to eat just to fill our stomachs, some of us indulge in the art of dining. We find ourselves looking forward to trying new restaurants. While some people pay off their mortgage or buy a new car with their hard earned cash, we prefer to spend it on dinner.

We don’t devour an overflowing plate of chow that arrives five minutes after it was ordered. Instead we have a glass of wine, spark conversation, and appreciate the work of the chef.

Foodies and gourmands are self-proclaimed titles that express a love for food, and gastronomy. We are a close knit society, especially in Austin, who know one another, and use words like prix fixe menu, amuse bouche, and foie gras. Then we gather at one of Austin’s leading restaurants with curiosity, and hunger for a dining experience. That restaurant was Mirabelle.

Having only recently moved to Austin from Las Vegas, I asked around among chefs, restaurateurs, and even servers, to learn what they thought of Mirabelle. The response was unanimous: a romantic environment, great prices, and delicious food. Hearing this, I developed high expectations for this small town, independently owned restaurant. Such expectations might be a formula for disaster, but my experience was a complete success.

On Wednesday, March 3rd, I attended the Dalla Terra Italian Wine Dinner with Rob Forman at Mirabelle restaurant. It was a pairing of simple, rustic Italian food with outstanding and underappreciated Italian wines.

Walking into Mirabelle I was overwhelmed by the atmosphere of comfort because of the soft colors and low light in the dining room. While being escorted to the private party room, I was greeted with a wonderful glass of Ferrari, Brut sparkling wine from Trentino and a “slice of pizza”, with thin sliced potato, Taleggio cheese, white truffle oil, and a peppering of sniped chives. The sweet carbonation of the wine paired perfectly with the strongly flavored taleggio cheese, and the fragrant truffle oil. This canapé sparked my appetite, awakened my senses and set the stage for things to come.

After a bit of conversation, and how do you do’s, we found our seats and were all welcomed by the energetic and animated owner of Mirabelle, Michael Vilim. Previously the sommelier at the Austin Four Seasons Hotel, Michael is skillful at food and wine pairings and with the juggling of both a full dining room and private party room; he is the epitome of a hands-on restaurateur. After Michael gave us an overview of the evening’s courses, we were then briefed on the humble Italian wines by Rob Forman. Making a name for himself at Wiggy’s Liquor, Rob now lives in New England where his passion for Italian wine thrives.

The first course arrived right on time. It was a crusty gratineed jumbo shrimp with a boiled lemon and artichoke heart salad. Artichokes are the arch nemesis of wine pairings, because they tend to have a metallic effect on wine. Surprisingly, though, the lemon artichoke salad was paired beautifully with a 2002 Marco Felluga “Molamatta” Collio Bianco from Friuli. The fruity white wine stood up nicely and was not overpowered by the acidic salad. It was a wonderful blend of flavors that mingled and married in your mouth.

With just the right interval between courses, the next course came with a bit of anticipation. Eggplant is a beautiful thing when handled with respect and knowledge, and the chefs working at Mirabelle obviously know their craft well. This second course was a stuffed eggplant torta with fresh mozzarella, basil, proscuitto and oven roasted tomato. One of my favorite things about this eggplant dish was that I could taste the eggplant; it was not overpowered by all the other strong flavors. The eggplant had texture and a bite to it which gave it the dominant flavor. Mozzarella, basil, proscuitto, and sweet oven roasted tomatoes all took a back seat to the star of the show. A 2001 Coltibuono Chianti “Centamura” from Tuscany was served and the light bodied red accented the dish, especially the tomatoes and basil.

As the servers poured the next wine, a 2000 Ajello “Furat” from Sicily, the third course arrived along with the delicious smells of porcini mushrooms. A pan roasted boar with porcini mushrooms and a stone ground Guiford Mill polenta offered all the textures and flavors that I look for in a good dish. The gaminess of the boar went well with the sweet, earthiness of the fresh porcini mushrooms, and the creamy feel of the polenta.

The plat de resistance was a roasted loin of venison wrapped in coppa di parma, served with swiss chard gratin and roasted vegetables. A 1999 Avignonesi “Desiderio” from Tuscany blended nicely with the bold characteristics of the venison. Also, the coppa di parma basted the very lean venison with its subtle salty flavor.

With the entrees out and only the dessert left to come, we were greeted by Mirabelle’s chef and his crew. Chef David Apthorpe is an honors graduate from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. He was voted “Best Chef” in 2002 and 2003 by the Austin Chronicle Reader Poll. With wine in hand, Chef Apthorpe answered questions about the preparation and origins of some ingredients, and explained his thought process behind some of the courses. A round of applause was enjoyed by all the kitchen staff for a job well done.

As a marvelous evening came to an end, a simple, but elegant almond torte with lemon and ricotta ice cream was served with a 2002 Di Gresy Moscato “La Serra”. This dessert had all the right flavors. The torte was not too lemony, and the ricotta ice cream did not taste like cheese. It tasted sweet and soothed my palate after all of the brilliant flavors that I experienced during the course of the evening.

The Dalla Terra Italian Wine Dinner with Rob Forman was executed wonderfully. As I was getting ready to leave, Patrick Vilim, the softspoken maitre d’, thanked me for coming and wished the best. Not only was the food great, but the hospitality at Mirabelle was a great introduction to Austin dining.

Mirabelle hosts wine dinners and other events during each month. For dates and more information visit their website or sign up for their email list.

I would recommend Mirabelle to anyone who wants good honest food, with great service.

Shaun Duffy graduated from the Arts Institute of Houston, School of Culinary Arts Program, and recently moved to Austin from Las Vegas, where he cooked at the four star restaurant Picasso, in the Bellagio Hotel. Currently he works under the direction of Chef Elmer Prambs at the Austin Four Seasons Hotel.

Mirabelle
8127 Mesa Drive
Austin, TX. 78759
(Mesa & Spicewood Springs)
(512) 346-7900
www.mirabellerestaurant.com
Mon-Fri 11am-2pm
Mon-Thurs 5:30pm-9:30pm
Fri-Sat 5:30pm-10pm

–From the April 2004 Austin Review