Iris

[justagirl]

Four of us dined at Iris last night. We had so much fun chatting and toasting to the Jefferson verdict that I don't know if I can do this review justice.

I can tell you that the Duck Confit Salad was one of the best salads I've had. The duck was perfect and amazingly delicious. The leg was atop baby beets, greens, pea shoots, sherry vinaigrette. The other apps at the table were a gnocchi with sausage and the escargot. I tasted the gnocchi which was also very nice.

For my entree I had the lamb loin with a very rich au jus, mushrooms and earthy wonderful veggies. I could have eaten my weight in the eggplant alone. This dish was very filling and very good. I'll have to let Bam fill you in on what he had. I know I had a bite and it was good but I have no words to describe it. Yvette and her husband shared the lamb dish as well and I'm hoping they too enjoyed it.

Three of us split a dessert. Well, by three of us I mean mostly me. It was a Chocolate something but I can't remember what they called it. Had a brule in the middle and 'fostered' bananas on the side...it was yummy.

We had a bottle of the Prisoner: a lush complex red wine consisting of mostly Zin with Cab and maybe Syrah. It was pretty tight upon opening but proved to be an excellent wine. I would have loved to taste this wine after it's been open at least 45 minutes. Yvette's husband brought wines from their cellar, I'll let Yvette touch on that.

Overall a great evening out with friends, excellent food and wines and a gorgeous restaurant.

[bam bam]

I had a great time as well. My entrée was the the veal chop with San Marzano tomatoes, spinach and parpadelle. I had something similar at Emeril's awhile back and last night's version was infinitely superior.

I have eaten at Iris at the uptown location a few times. With the move to the Quarter, the menu has evolved quite a bit. While uptown, there seemed to be a heavy on Carribean flavors and lighter fare. The FQ menu is more Italian with some French bistro fare mixed in for good measure. All the dishes are artfully composed, JAG's lamb was stacked beautifully on top of wild mushroom ravioli.

A great meal, Iris is highly recommended.

[Yvette]

The Prisoner is a blended wine, not all from one vineyard. Much like the block wines we talked about here last year, they take the best crops from several wineries then make a blend. Depending on where and how much they buy from the different wineries, from year to year the wine will always taste different. That particular one, needed to open up, but after it did you could taste the black raspberry and richness which I love. Here is what Wine Spectator had to say about it:

WS 92pts. - According to the Wine Spectator: Offers both style and structure, with lively aromas of black raspberry, cracked pepper and mocha, with plush and layered flavors of wild berry, fresh sage and licorice. Ripe tannins sneak in on the finish. Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petite Sirah, Charbono qnd Grenache. Drink now through 2014.. Tasting Notes - Orin Swift’s Proprietary Blend The Prisoner has become the stuff of legend for many of us in the industry. We can never get enough - it always sells out - and (most importantly) the juice in the bottle is fantastic year in and year out. Predominantly Zinfandel with a dash of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah blended in, it's up there with the best California Zins that cost twice as much. Lush and ripe, this is a decadent wine with excellent structure and great complexity. The 2007 Prisoner blend is 50% Zinfandel, 24% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Syrah, 9% Petite Sirah and a dash of Charbono and Grenache.

The 2000 Chateau Clarke we had comes from the Medoc region of Bordeaux. From the moment we decanted it, you could smell the typical musty Bordeaux wine.

I thought it was delicious, but as most of you know, I am more a big fat ass Cab person. Every once in a while I need a little "culture" though.

The Chateau Clarke is from the Baron Edmond Rothschild family.