My Old Life

Many of you will not really relate to this place, but it is definitely an interesting place for me.

I have, for many years now, run in gourmet circles. Probably 90% of our friends are wine snobs, and we frequent fine restaurants regularly.

For the past 10 years or so, our favorite French Restaurant, L'Etoile, has held specialty wine dinners a few times per year. These are events that we NEVER miss. I have memories of some of the best meals that I have ever consumed paired with amazing wines and finished off with desserts that take your breat away from these events. I have always made it a point to attend these without fail, and they are great times with my dear friends and my husband.

Today I received an invitation to one of L'Etoile's famous wine dinners:

Gourmet Dinner wtih Harold Wood, the highly respected epicurean.

The menu is 6 courses with six different wines.

1) Duck Foie Gras Pressed with Apples and paired with a Perrier Jouet Rose Champagne

2)Veloute of Maine Lobster, Infusion of Porcini Mushrooms & Corriander paired with a Montmains 1999 Chablis Premier Cru

3) Fillet of Yellow Edge Grouper, Barigoule of Glazed Vegetables, Jus of Seafood & Artichokes paired with a Grenovilles 1999 Chablis Grand Cru

4) Partridge Breasts, Galette of Celery, Foie Gra, Pommes Maxim's, Fruit Gastric paired with a Domaine Billard Gonnet 1999 Pommard Rugiens Premier Cru

5) Chaurce Cheese, Plum with Cloves Scented Oil

6) Pinapple Ravioli with a Trio of Exotic Fruits, Verjus Sorbet, Coulis "Arc En Cief" paired with a Close Labere 1998 Sauternes

I am very lucky because I have plans to be down at South Padre Island during this dinner, but I can't imagine what I would have done, had I been here at home. I see how much this is my old life, and I would be very sad to miss out on such an occassion with my husband and my good friends. However, I know without any second thoughts that I simply could NOT consume those foods. I used to love Foie Gras, and Lobster was one of my most favorites.

I guess that I would have called the restaurant and asked them to prepare something for me, even if it wasn't quite up to main menu. However, it is a really big eye opener for me that this will ALWAYS be an issue from this point on.

WOW.

Again, I am SO glad that I have already purchased the plane tickets and hotel room. I shudder to think what I would have done. It is bound to come up again, and is definitely something that I will have to consider long and hard.