Our entertaining saving grace came in the form of two special friends on Saturday night – Masha and Mark. After one mention of borrowing a table-cloth, Masha took it upon herself to make an entire table arrangement out of paper. She used brown craft paper to cover the table and purple and yellow paper cut in various ways to add a festive component (somewhere between Mardi Gras and New Years). It was a great contrast to my china and silver. It is good to have such a creative and generous friend.

Additionally, Mark stepped up as sommelier for the evening – pairing each course and providing the wine for everyone. Here are his notes. The wine was great – if you decide to make any of these dishes please also considering matching with these wines.

We are quite the team.

Mark’s Wine Pairing

Mache and Radish Salad paired with Perle d’Aurore Rosé Brut.

“It is difficult to pair things with salad, so you need something that won’t overpower the salad. Radishes tend to have a spiciness to them, and bubbles go well with spicy, so I figured this would fit both of those needs.”

Salmon and Crispy Bason Lentils with Angeline Pinot Noir California, Matariki Pinot Noir Hawkes Bay and The Crossings Pinot Noir.

“We had three different pinot Noirs with the salmon. We could have gone with a white, in fact, I bought a muscadet to go with the salmon, but being that it is colder out, I figured we would all want red. Pinot Noirs or Beaujolais go really well with Salmon. I really thought it would be fun to let people try three different pinot noirs to compare and contrast different ones from different regions and at different price points. “

Apple Fritters and Bourbon Ice Cream with Quinta de Ventozelo.

“For dessert, I thought the port would be nice, and this is a very well priced port.”

After Dinner Game of Catch Phrase with Edgewood Tradition Napa Valley and Finca Flichman Malbec Tupungato.

“Then, for after dinner, I figured we would want something a bit bolder since everything else (except for the port) was a bit more mild.”