I'm in the United Kingdom this week for work and went to an Argentina steakhouse, Gaucho, last night for a team dinner. The restaurant is on the Thames river, just down the street from our offices in Richmond (a tony town about fifteen minutes from central London). After an extended happy hour at Pitcher & Piano, a UK chain of pubs, overlooking the river, we scurried over to the restaurant for an outstanding meal.
We didn't get seated until around 10 PM, standard practice for Argentina but late for the British. We ordered empanadas, seviche and bread. For a main course I ordered my Argentina go to 'Lomo' cut of steak and a side of grilled portobella mushrooms. Coming off three weeks in Argentina, my expectations for the steak were tempered some but they didn't disappoint as the steak was great. It was lean, very tasty and had the sensory feel of a grass fed, free range Argentina steak.
Their wine list consisted of hundred plus Argentina options that range from approximately 20 pounds ($40 US dollars) up to 100+ pounds ($200+ US dollars). There were ten of us at dinner, so we settled on a Uco Valley (Mendoza) pair of wines, one a Malbec and the other a spanish based tempranillo blend.
Tapiz Malbec Mendoza Uco Valley 2005 - this is a nice, easy drinking wine that had good character but lacked the typical 'spice' of many Malbec's. The '05 vintages are a little off relative to the '06 which is seemingly outstanding.
O Fournier B Crux 2003 - I reviewed this wine when we visited and tasted this bottle in Argentina at the winery. It's an outstanding wine, one that has been recognized by wine critics (Wine Spectator gave it a 91) and consumers alike. Sufficiently complex with nice fruit characteristics that complement a wide range of food. It blended nicely with the Lomo.
By the end of the night I was full, fat feeling, happy and a fair bit giggly walking home around one in the morning. All in all, a good first day & night for the work summit.
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