Look who's in Food & Wine magazine's "Ten Best New Wine Lists"...Seattle's own Lindsey Norton of 94 Stewart !
Not bad for a 25-year-old without formal wine training. Then again, she did grow up in a restaurant family; her mother, Celinda, ran a string of cafes in Longview over the years, including the highly regarded Cibo Con Amici, Rusty Duck and Pig Feathers Market before moving to Seattle a year ago. Cindy's the chef and runs the kitchen, Lindsey handles beverages, brother Nic is the cheese steward, dad's the official handyman.
Lindsey's wine list names some 300 bottles, half from Washington, Oregon and California, the balance from Italy, France, and more distant shores. Over a dozen by-the-glass pours, including an $8 mystery wine dubbed "The Brown Bag Experience." Ya gotta guess the grape variety...or ya don't get dessert.
Matching wines to her mom's cooking is Lindsey's strong suit. Every dinner entree comes with a suggestion for an appropriate bottle, from a modest Inama Soave Classico ($38) to wash down the $18 Market Mac to an elegant Domaine Drouhin Oregon pinot noir ($75) to accompany a $30 plate of Copper River salmon. Bottle of bargain bubbly? Sure, a $20 cremant de Bourgogne or a $22 prosecco. Splurge? Sure, there's a Penfold's Grange Hermitage at $350, and a couple of Burgundies in the same range. You'd be better off bringing your own bottle; there's no corkage fee on Sunday nights.
We've been among the cheerleaders since 94 Stewart opened. Now, with a year's worth of downtown Seattle experience, the Nortons are ready to launch a series of monthly, 5-course wine dinners around a communal table starting with Alexandria Nicole Cellars on June 29th.
For her part, Lindsey says she's not interested in getting professionally certified. "Too trendy," she feels. Besides, they're not going to teach inspired answers to questions like this: what to drink with scallops in coconut cream? Why, a gewurztraminer from the Alto-Adige, of course. You can't learn that kind of match by rote; it comes from an exceptional palate and exceptional confidence.
94 Stewart, guess the address, 206-441-5505
Posted by Ronald Holden at June 12, 2006 3:49 PM