SELINE | SPRING MENU
New menu at @selinerestaurant means new pairings and new pairing challenges. I was dead set on using a sake at some point in this menu due to a grouping of courses that felt like it was a need. I generally try not to paint myself into a corner when it comes to what I am selecting as I think it narrows the scope and will often times lead to pairings that feel forced. But with I couldn’t get it out of my head that a sake was a need here.
New for me was the 2020 Domaine Casterá, Memòria from the Juraçon region of France. I tasted it 7 months ago and it blossomed with nori and seaweed out of the glass with glossy honeyed notes on the palate. Thankfully I earmarked it for later and we open with it this menu. Followed by a Galician wine maker in Gutier Seijo Otero at Mixtura. A blend of albariño and treixadura from both sides of the border in Northwestern Spain and Portugal, with floral vibrancy and an energetic palate it’s acidity helps cut through some of the richness in its course progression.
The 2019 Jakeli, Saperavi remains on the menu and remains a guest favorite. We follow with Zaku, Kaizen Ittekisui, Junmai Daiginjo. Layered with green apple, mint, and floral tones it’s a super silky soft sake with plenty of structure for its three course progression too. Following that is the ever so allocated 2019 Weszeli, Steinmassl Riesling from Kamptal, Austria. Wildly aromatic and having undergone malolactic fermentation the riesling is softened and sweetened through the vilification process rather than residual sugar. Plenty of acidity remains but the aromatics are herbaceous and tropical fruited.
Our final savory course is finished with 2020 Siro Pacenti, Pelagrilli, Brunello di Montalcino. Where the front of the menu sees some experimental producers there is nothing experimental about the Pacentis.Classic, rigid, and textured this is everything you want a Sangiovese to be with blackened, dried, and roasted strawberries and savory herbs in the glass. Finally, we finish the menu with the Rare Wine Company’s “Savannah Verdelho” from Madeira. Salty, nutty, and citrus noted to pair with our desserts.
Until next time
TEXTURES 2 | SELINE
Some various textures at SELINE moving into spring
1. mid-service rose gochujang sauce and elderflower flower
2. frying dehydrated beef tendon
3. DCB admiring his plating for the fried maitake and rose gochujang sauce
4. limequat lacto-ferment
5. mid-service plating of tuna, perilla leaf, poblano gel
6. clean up
7. assam tea scoby grown from zero
8. exploded strawberry lacto-ferment that’s why we use a box
TEXTURES | SELINE
Some things we’ve been up to
1. straining nopales cactus juice for a new non-alcoholic pairing
2. milk curdles in our milk punch #1
3. juiced tomato foam for our tomato & seed soda
4. grilling pork loin on the yakatori grill
5. splitting DUTCH, our coffee kombucha scoby
6. fermentation bomb
7. strawberry, lemon, rhubarb syrup
8. Chef Jill making nem nuong spring rolls for family
SELINE | WINTER MENU
We’re in the waning days of our winter menu here at @selinerestaurant and I realized I hadn’t posted the pairing wines. Interestingly enough is this is probably the 3rd (and will be 4th) version of this lineup during the winter menu. I cornered the market on several wines pouring them out and having to make adjustments because the suppliers had no more.
Starting with vermentino from Sardinia we continue our trend of starting with soft and salty. The acidity is racing but we opted to elevate the acid structure following with Domaine Petit-Roy and their Saint Romain Blanc. Crisp, clean, and energetic it leads into our classic celery root pairing. That bottle in the photo is the last of Gotsa’s 2017 available on the market I believe. I’ve had to break a few hearts this month telling guests I have no idea where to get it or if it’ll ever come back. Hopefully so.
Jean-Baptiste Geoffroy leads the second half of the menu moving down from the 2nd spot. Felt it paired better than the Saint Romain after sitting for the tasting menu this past week. Josh Bergstrom’s smoky, chewy, and savory ‘Gargantua’ pairs with our pork course before heading into a familiar pairing with Sara Perez and Rene Barbier, out of Priorat.
Previously we ended with Jean Boudry and his Galant de Abbesses but like the Gotsa, I cornered that market and there is no anticipation of its return any time soon. Thus we pivoted to the ‘Savannah Verdelho’ from RWC in Madeira. Salty, nutty, and sweet to finish our menu on dessert.
Soon we’ll be trying wines for spring and experimenting on our NA program too. We’ll see you soon..
Next up: Beverage Director Matt Brodbine.
At SELINE Matt is building the best N/A beverage program in California, something to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the tasting menu.
It’s about experimenting, refining, and quietly raising the bar—no trends chased, no shortcuts taken. Just an elite experience, day in and day out. And on his days offs, with the weather permitting Matt’s on the fairway, perfecting his golf swing.
Full interview in our Substack Link in bio!
#ParaLlevar #NonAlcoholicDrinks #RestaurantCulture BehindTheCraft HospitalityStories
That will do it on my trip to Copenhagen. Thank you to the team at @nomaprojects and @nomacph for having me this week. Quite the education and it’s given me A LOT to think about. Thank you for your time and patience and answering all my questions. Thanks to @jeungkev and his team in the Lab as well, super beneficial to work with you guys. An incredibly passionate and professional team that cares deeply about what they do. Looking forward to see most of the team out in LA! I hope to return to Copenhagen again and explore more of this city. And to @auroraoftedal and @griffinismynameo thanks for coming down from Oslo, wonderful to meet Otto. Until next time..
SELINE | SEPTEMBER
The @selinerestaurant autumn menu is well underway this week and because of this we have major movement on our wine pairing. Only one holdover from the summer menu with the Gotsa, Saperavi Flor Reserve continuing to pair with the celery root progression.
We’re opening with Alfredo Egia, Izaki, Txakolina, a buzzy wine with apple and pear notes from an emerging natural winemaker in Basque. Moving into the classic and regional defining Condrieu from Andre Perret with tones of stone fruit and jasmine bursting with white florals. Textured and lush; a very pleasurable wine. Due to the flavor components and seasons changing I guess my mindset moved into, “we need red wine here”. Which is why we see that three red wine progression in the middle of the menu.
We were lucky enough to receive and allocation of Rodolphe Demougeot, Les Beaux Fougets, Beaune and we have put it to good use with our pheasant course. Followed by a big, brooding, savory red wine from Sarah Pérez and René Barbier out of Priorat to finish off the savory courses.
We’re ending with two favorites of mine, Jean Bourdy and his Galant de Abbesses, an oddity of a wine and Eric Bordelet and his Granit from Normandy. A slightly off dry sparking pear cider to close our fall menu felt just right.
Hope we see you soon!
SELINE | milk punch #1
This pairing is a great example of one of our non-alcoholic beverages that changes not in concept but execution.
The previous iteration was a “banana flip”comprised of banana milk, an egg yolk, and a coffee kombucha/chicory root syrup. Playing off the idea of a flip cocktail and New Orleans style coffee, it was an ultra rich dessert mocktail that was delicious but heavyy to nearly end a meal. Alex and I had been chatting about the idea of milk punch and trading out the flip for this drink.
The new version is a milk punch made up of wild banana chai tea from @rareteacellar roasted banana/espresso/chicory root syrup as well as the banana malt syrup, which is featured in a course on our menu.
Instead of using citrus juice, we have opted for a blend of powdered lactic and citric acids as an agitator to start the curdling process.
Nuanced on the nose and palate it is to a degree unintentionally emulative of certain sherries. Which was an accident. We hadn’t expected these flavors and notes and were happy to see the outcome of this pairing.
SELINE | JANUARY | NON-ALCOHOLIC PAIRING
Like our wine pairing at @selinerestaurant our non-alcoholic pairing is made with each course progression in mind. We avoid purchasing zero alcohol wines, digestifs, and mixers and aim to create a new beverage each time. Not saying that we won’t use these items at some point - but we would rather focus on the creation of our beverages that are often using the same ingredients found in the menu. Fresh pressed juices, kombuchas, ferments, tea, and flower water reductions are all represented here. @alexkaberg and myself are constantly tinkering and experimenting with different ideas. Some things work, something’s we shelve because they’re not quite there yet. Of course @dcberan and @casebase21 are all included in the process helping us refine acid structure, sweetness levels, and gastronomic techniques that they have used in the past.
From left to right we have our:
lychee frizante
cider of pine and pear
MU/TH/UR
rooibos and vinegars
hibiscus wine
milk punch #1 (new today!)
herb and bark elixir
Want to know what’s in them? You’ll have to come and try them yourself ;)
Reservations for @selinerestaurant are available
SELINE | JANUARY
The January menu is set at @selinerestaurant which means new pairings. We have traded out 3 wines and added a mid-course Champagne from Patrick Le Brun at Le Brun-Servenay. Who says you can’t pour mid-flight Champagne?
Not me.
Starting in the Swiss Alps of Valais with a Petit Arvine from Alexandre Deletraz. High toned acidity and structure with nuances of pineapple rind. Next we have a bizarrely oxidized skin contact white wine from one of my personal favorites, Kabaj. The 2009 Konde, from Jean Michel Morel and Katja Kabaj, is more bronze than orange adding nuttiness and toasted elements to frame the courses that it wouldn’t have with a more traditional wine. As stated above, Patrick Le Brun’s, 2011 Grand Cru Chardonnay bridges our pairing to the heart of the menu which were featured in December.
We finish the pairing with GD Vajra, Barolo Chinato. The last course needed a bitter sweet wine that paired well with its mountain-like flavors and cooling tones. That’s where the Chinato comes in. As the menu changes we’ll see alterations of course. Stay safe out there.
Our kombucha program is underway at @selinerestaurant.com . The idea of the program is to offer a kombucha amongst our non-alcoholic pairing or used as a component to a greater drink like our banana flip features our coffee kombucha that has been fortified into a syrup with chicory root.
I started naming the scobies after sci-fi protagonists like Ripley (Alien) and Dutch (Predator). MU/TH/UR is our mother scoby and starter booch for all tea kombuchas at the restaurant and reference to the AI Supercomputer aboard the spacecrafts in the Alien series. Our magnolia blossom oolong will likely be featured in a pairing with the new January menu as it drinks super cleanly and refreshing. But that remains to be seen as we taste test the new dishes.
A pear reduction kombucha will be started this week, nicknamed Cooper.
