Wine Anchors Great Memories: A Night with Mirassou Winery

“Wine anchors great memories” – David Mirassou

Is it possible to love a wine brand even before your first sip? In the case of Mirassou Winery, I believe it’s so.

This month, I was all set to attend my second blogging conference, Bloggy Boot Camp. I knew one of the sponsors was Mirassou Winery, but what I didn’t know is that they were having a private wine tasting and dinner for some of the Bloggy Boot Camp attendees. It wasn’t until I received my invitation that I learned of the special event, to be held in the Foundation Room at the Mandalay Bay. I was honored to be invited and excited to sample their wines and see what the night had in store for us.

Now, if you are not familiar with the Foundation Room, let me give you a very brief introduction. It’s a member’s only fine dining restaurant, lounge, and secluded rooms, high atop the Mandalay Bay, with breath–taking view of the Las Vegas Strip. I’ve never been there….and I think it’s safe to say that majority of Las Vegas residents haven’t been there. Being wined and dined by Mirassou was pretty awesome enough, but having it all happen high atop the Las Vegas Strip in a place like the Foundation Room is beyond amazing.

Soon after arriving, we were poured a glass of our first wine of the evening, the Mirassou® California Moscato 2011. I instantly fell in love with the aroma and flavors in this wine!  I like a wine that is a little sweet (but not too much) and the Mirassou Moscato had bright flavors of peach, tangerine, melon and honeysuckle that appealed to me. With our glass in hand, we were invited out to the patio, where we enjoyed our Moscato and enjoyed our amazing view.

We were able to snap a few photos of ourselves:

And here’s a photo of me with a couple of my fellow wine-loving friends who are also Las Vegas bloggers. Below is Kim of The Coffee Pot Chronicles and Eleanor of EleanorPrior.com. (Thanks to Julie of Dutch Being Me for taking the photos of us)

Once we were back inside, the real fun started. Our host for the evening was David Mirassou, sixth-generation family member of the Mirassou family, America’s oldest winemaking family. As David started sharing stories with us about everyone from his ancestors to down to his 11-year-old son, I was instantly drawn in. David was friendly, down-to-earth, and most importantly: real. He was genuinely interested in not just sharing a bit of his world with us, but in learning more about ours.

As we chatted with David, the servers poured our second glass, Mirassou® California Sauvignon Blanc. This wine had flavors of tropical fruit and melon, with hints of grapefruit and pear. It was paired with beautiful grilled asparagus. I tend to prefer white wines, so this was another one of my favorites from the night.

Next, we were poured a glass of Mirassou® California Pinot Grigio. It’s a crisp wine with flavors of apple, peach and citrus. This was another favorite of mine, and it paired exceptionally well with the crab. Wine pairing is still somewhat new to me, but when I had the Mirassou Pinot Grigio with the crab cake, it was one of my first times I thinking “wow, this really does go together”.

One of the next items we were served was Lobster Tacos, which was paired with the Mirassou® California Chardonnay. But, before I realized it, I ate my taco without taking a photo.

Before tonight, if you had asked me what my favorite white wine was, I would say Chardonnay. It’s often my “go to” for wines, but at this point in the dinner, I’m beginning to realize I have more favorites than just Chardonnay.

What came next was the red wines.  I hardly ever drink red wine, so I was extremely interested to see if I would have a favorite in the red department.

First off, was the Mirassou® California Pinot Noir, which was served with Angus Sliders and spicy pickles (loved them!). And guess what? While white wines win with me, I liked the Pinot Noir! I actually enjoyed it the most of all the red wines and can totally see myself buying it when we have my husband’s homemade spaghetti with meat sauce.

While we continued to enjoy our evening with Mirassou Winery, we were surprised by some entertainment. Magician Seth Grabel came in to perform tricks and illusions that had all of us asking “how did he do that??” It was so much fun watching him! I’d love to see a full show with him.

The night was concluded with Chocolate Molten Cake, which was paired with the Mirassou® California Cabernet Sauvignon. Do I even have to say how good this cake was?

So, my favorites of the night? Definitely the Mirassou Moscato was my favorite of all the wines. The Mirassou Sauvignon Blanc will also stay as one of my top picks. For the red wines, I enjoyed the Mirassou® California Pinot Noir the most.

David Mirassou was a great host, who taught us all so much about not just Mirassou history, but about wines in general. My favorite quote from the evening is the one I shared at the beginning: “Wine anchors great memories”. I am passionate about food memories, but this reminded me to not forget beverages, especially wine. A single glass can connect us to a certain memory — of our family, of our friends, and more.

What great memories in your life were celebrated with wine?

The wine-loving bloggers I was able to meet and hang out with at our Mirassou Wine Tasting and Dinner: Jen & Susanne of Tiny Oranges, Julie of Dutch Being Me, Hollie of Ampersand, Kim of The Coffee Pot Chronicles, Ann of Ann About Town, Kate of Mrs. Monologues, Eleanor of EleanorPrior.com, Suzanne of The Wine{a}be, and Jamie of Minnesota Girl in LA

Want to learn more about Mirassou Wines? You can find them on their website at http://www.mirassou.com/ and on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/MirassouWinery

Disclosure: I was invited to this special event, but not obligated to share my experience in any way. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.