| Pinotpalooza at 55 Degrees in Plano, TX |
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Our latest rendezvous took place at a happening new wine bar in
Plano, TX called 55 Degrees (Wine Cellar Temperature for the
wine clueless). From the parking lot outside, the place did not
appear to be very big, but once you stepped through the door you
are quite surprised by how deep and wide it actually is. The
place has a very long bar to the left hand side and to the right,
there are numerous comfy chairs and couches for one to sit, sip
and congregate over a glass of wine. At the back, there are two
long tables, or maybe several tables that just happened to be
pushed together for our event. Most of the walls are covered in
brick which is aesthetically pleasing to the eye, but hell on the
acoustics. It can be a little hard to hear friends that don't speak
up!
Chris from Prestige, a Texas Wine Distributor, was our host for
the tasting and had picked out six delicious pinot noir wines for
us to sample this evening. Not to be outdone, the staff put
together a cheese and charcuterie plate, along with some palate
cleansing crackers to nibble on between wines. By the way, the
prosciutto was absolutely divine! Here is the line up in the order
we tasted them:
Arista - Russian River Pinot Noir
Baileyana - Edna Valley Pinot Noir
David Bruce - Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
Hendry Estate - Napa Valley Pinot Noir
Lucia Vineyards - Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir
Robert Stemmler - Ferguson Block - Carneros Pinot Noir
While many argued over in which order they preferred the Pinot
wines we tasted, the one thing all of us were in agreement on was
that the Lucia Vineyards Pinot Noir was in a class all by itself!
So good was it, that many of us stayed after the tasting and
ordered a full glass of it, just so we could linger over it a little
longer. Wow! Then Chris gave us the bad news that it is
basically gone from the metroplex. However, 55 Degrees still
has some left. The Lucia is made by two eccentric grape growers
named Gary. Gary Pisoni and Gary Fraccioni (spelled?). When
you see "Gary's Vineyard" on one of your favorite Pinot Noir
maker's wines, these are the two Gary's they are referring to.
I can't recommend 55 Degrees highly enough. Great
atmosphere, friendly staff and excellent wine prices. They have
a very thorough wine list, much bigger than many wine bars in the
area and they don't mark up the wines near as high either. My
only negative comment would be for them to upgrade the glasses
they used for the tasting. It was hard to get anything out of the
nose of the wines, but the house glasses they used for regular
customers were just fine.
Stop by and give them a try when you have the opportunity. It
would an excellent place to go before or after dinner, a movie,
etc...
Plano, TX called 55 Degrees (Wine Cellar Temperature for the
wine clueless). From the parking lot outside, the place did not
appear to be very big, but once you stepped through the door you
are quite surprised by how deep and wide it actually is. The
place has a very long bar to the left hand side and to the right,
there are numerous comfy chairs and couches for one to sit, sip
and congregate over a glass of wine. At the back, there are two
long tables, or maybe several tables that just happened to be
pushed together for our event. Most of the walls are covered in
brick which is aesthetically pleasing to the eye, but hell on the
acoustics. It can be a little hard to hear friends that don't speak
up!
Chris from Prestige, a Texas Wine Distributor, was our host for
the tasting and had picked out six delicious pinot noir wines for
us to sample this evening. Not to be outdone, the staff put
together a cheese and charcuterie plate, along with some palate
cleansing crackers to nibble on between wines. By the way, the
prosciutto was absolutely divine! Here is the line up in the order
we tasted them:
Arista - Russian River Pinot Noir
Baileyana - Edna Valley Pinot Noir
David Bruce - Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
Hendry Estate - Napa Valley Pinot Noir
Lucia Vineyards - Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir
Robert Stemmler - Ferguson Block - Carneros Pinot Noir
While many argued over in which order they preferred the Pinot
wines we tasted, the one thing all of us were in agreement on was
that the Lucia Vineyards Pinot Noir was in a class all by itself!
So good was it, that many of us stayed after the tasting and
ordered a full glass of it, just so we could linger over it a little
longer. Wow! Then Chris gave us the bad news that it is
basically gone from the metroplex. However, 55 Degrees still
has some left. The Lucia is made by two eccentric grape growers
named Gary. Gary Pisoni and Gary Fraccioni (spelled?). When
you see "Gary's Vineyard" on one of your favorite Pinot Noir
maker's wines, these are the two Gary's they are referring to.
I can't recommend 55 Degrees highly enough. Great
atmosphere, friendly staff and excellent wine prices. They have
a very thorough wine list, much bigger than many wine bars in the
area and they don't mark up the wines near as high either. My
only negative comment would be for them to upgrade the glasses
they used for the tasting. It was hard to get anything out of the
nose of the wines, but the house glasses they used for regular
customers were just fine.
Stop by and give them a try when you have the opportunity. It
would an excellent place to go before or after dinner, a movie,
etc...