UNLV Wine Affair

Sip. Swirl. Savor. UNLV Wine Affair

A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of meeting Mohsen Azizsoltani, an instructor at the UNLV College of Hotel Administration, while – of course – at the Saturday wine tasting at Steak in Henderson. We began to converse, and I found out that he is promoting a new wine event for UNLV. He has some experience at promoting such events since he’s in charge of UNLVino!

This new event is designed specifically to unveil the seemingly mysterious world of high end wines to the Las Vegas wine-drinking public. This is an educational as well as a gastronomic event - there are activities planned along with the tasting. And this is all for a good cause - the proceeds will go for scholarships and internships for the students of the College.

I am a fan of UNLVino, and this new project immediately piqued my interest. So I sat down with Mohsen and asked him a few questions about this new event.

Tell me a little about your background and how you became involved in the UNLV wine events.

I have been teaching food and beverage classes at UNLV College of Hotel Administration for the past 14 years. One of my favorite classes to teach is Old World Wines. Since wine has become an important part of our industry, both financially and socially, I believe it is very important to educate our students, who will be the future industry leaders, as well as the public, about wines. I have also been the director of UNLVino, the largest single day wine tasting event in the country, for the past 14 years.

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Birthday Bash at STEAK!

Another year older. And probably with a hangover to end all hangovers!

Happy Birthday Dudi!

That’s the nickname of David, the owner/proprietor of STEAK of Henderson. David invited a couple dozen of his closest friends to celebrate his 30-something birthday party.

What a wonderful time I had! At least, that I can remember. Lots of wine and lots of fatigue equals fuzzy brain cells.

Before I forget, here is the link to the pictures I took.

Beginning with a 2006 Sine Qua Non Rosé, I decided to keep careful track of each and every wine I tasted, noting year, winery, varietal or blend, alcohol content, blah blah blah.

Well, it worked well with the first few wines. And then I got into party mode.

The Sine Qua Non Rosé was a beautiful dark rose to light garnet, with a nose of berries (all of them), bit of watermelon and an interesting touch of funk. Lush in the mouth with great mouthfeel – almost creamy – it added cherries, strawberries, melon, and a hint of earth. At 15.6% alcohol, this is not your fruity and fun Rosé, but a serious wine that demands respect. It was my favorite of the night, but I didn’t know it yet.

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Cozy. Warm. Cute. Mezzo!

Okay, I got scooped. And while normally I could be kind of upset by it, I wasn’t this time. Heidi Knapp Rinella of the Las Vegas Review Journal scooped me by just days with her review of Mezzo in last Friday’s Neon, and, frankly, our experiences were so similar that I thought I’d just save time and just cut and paste hers right into my blog.

However, there’s this little copyright thing that I could get in trouble for, so I decided to write my own.

This was my second time at Mezzo - Mezzo Bistro Italiano - and it was just as enjoyable as it was the first time. The first time, my dining companion and I tasted through the “by the glass” wine list, primarily those with which we were not familiar. Along with a Margherita pizza, it made for a warm and social evening.

Mezzo is the brainchild of Chef Marcus Sbrizi, whose stage name is Chef Marc Ritz.

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Could it Really Be Dead?

Could Sweet Water really be dead?  Or has it, like the Phoenix of legend, been reborn anew from the ashes of its own making?

After the excoriation I gave it last June, Sweet Water Prime Seafood Restaurant seemed to thrive anyway, much to my annoyance and chagrin. Even with other lukewarm reviews in its wake, it just seemed to flourish – the parking lot always seemed to be full!

However, there’s some news! Someone told me a couple of weeks ago that Sweet Water, late of 9460 S. Eastern Ave. in Henderson, had closed. Really?!? I sort of tried to hide my glee.

For those of you who are scratching your head at my delight over the closure of a Las Vegas restaurant, all you have to do is to read my review. The food was okay (quite tasty, actually), but the portions were small, the service was hideous, and the attitude of the manager/owner was detestable. As a result of the poor service, my dining companions and I were late for the plans we had made for the evening. Let me rephrase that - the plans had to be scrapped altogether because we had such horribly slow service.
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Unique Wine Dinner

Wine Dinner Special!

Six Tables Restaurant of Las Vegas and Cruise Holidays of Summerlin are offering a special wine dinner on Monday, September 8 at 7 pm. In the six-course prix fixe single sitting dinner, wine will be paired with each course. In addition to the beautifully prepared dinner, Cruise Holidays of Summerlin will be providing information on wine cruises and tours. Price: only $125/person.
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