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| Welcome! Summer 2009 |
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Welcome to the Mirabel Properties newsletter. Our kitchen team and wine director have been busy putting together a variety of new special events for your dining pleasure. If you’re planning a summer getaway L’Auberge Carmel has two new overnight hotel offers available for your consideration. And I’m happy to share that we’re on schedule with the construction of our new Hotel Luca in Yountville. You can read more about the hotel in this issue. Over 200 of our readers entered the giveaway contest in our previous newsletter, please take a moment to enter our new contest to be eligible to win a $100 certificate for dinner in Aubergine. Wishing you a wonderful summer. I hope to welcome you personally during your next visit to one of our restaurants or hotel.
HOTEL OFFERS *Subject to availability and valid Sunday through Thursday only. Additional taxes, resort and service fees apply. Excludes holidays and special events. Valid through July 31, 2009.
• One night stay in a thoughtfully appointed queen guest room About Michaud Vineyard, Chalone Appellation, Monterey County
“Carmel on the Half Shell”
July 16, Thursday Telephone 831-622-5907 for reservations or more information.
Friday, July 31 Friday, September 25 October 30 All of the Wine Exploration Dinners begin with a 6:30 pm reception followed by 7:00 pm dinner. The cost is $225 per person, per event*. Seating is limited to 10 people. Reservations required, reserve your seats early. Telephone 831 624-8578. About Thomas Perez
By popular demand, Cantinetta Luca is once again serving lunch Friday through Sundays from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Bring your friends and come in soon. Chef Balestrieri and general manager Giuseppe Panzuto look forward to welcoming you.
Cantinetta Luca is open seven days a week.
What is the date of Thomas Perez’s first “Wine Exploration Dinner” event? Email your answer to info@mirabelgroup.com. The winner will be selected in a random drawing on July 1, 2009.
Construction is moving along quickly. Scheduled to open in Fall 2009, the Italian mosaic flooring of the high arching entrance invites guests through magnificent solid Mahogany doors to the hotel’s lobby reception area, detailed with Jerusalem limestone, an indoor and outdoor fireplaces, and chic seating areas. Cantinetta Piero, the hotel’s restaurant, inspired by and named in honor of famed winemaker Piero Antinori, is modeled after the convivial attitude and open-air lifestyle of Tuscany. Under a 15-foot ceiling with massive beams and vaulted brick ceilings, a gracious entrance will lead guests past a wine display to tables, a pizza bar and wood-burning oven and the open kitchen which features a salumi curing room. From the rooftops, 200-year-old tiles from the town of Lucca, Italy, peer down at open terraces and patios, arched windows and the casual luxury of Hotel Luca’s tasteful guest rooms. Here guests will find every modern amenity and convenience including flat-screen TV, music system and sensual recessed lighting. Dark-toned furniture, upholstered for ultimate comfort is complemented by fine art selected for inspiration and beauty. All rooms have generous bathrooms with radiant floor heat, double sinks, large soaking tubs and separate showers. Many of the guest rooms also have fireplaces and balconies. Passing under an arched walkway to the pool, guests will discover extended cooling steps leading into the water, and terraces where one may refresh in the water without being fully immersed. The large pool is complemented with a warm-water massaging pool and all will be surrounded by a privacy wall and luxurious landscaping. Luca Spa will offer an intimate experience, including a Zen Garden suggesting a reflective moment before or after a rejuvenating massage, cleansing scrub or pampering wellness treatment. The spa features a large signature lavendar-saltwater soaking pool complete with water wall and fireplace. All in all, we can’t wait to open our doors and welcome you. Hotel Luca’s twenty guest rooms, two residences, Cantinetta Piero restaurant and spa promise all the services of a top hotel. Introductory rates at Hotel Luca will range from $295-$650 per night and include breakfast for two. Travelers interested in booking future reservations or for further information may telephone 707-944-8080. or visit the hotel’s web site www.hotellucanapa.com. Stay tuned for more details and special opening offers in our next newsletter. www.hotelucanapa.com  |
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Congratulations to Executive Pastry Chef Ron Mendoza who won first place in the “most innovative” category for his “Strawberries and Basil” dessert in the annual Golden Scoop Awards. The competition was held in New York City a few weeks ago. Professional bakers, confectioners, and pastry chefs from all over the country sent in submissions with finalists chosen and invited to come to New York to plate their desserts for a panel of judges. Everyone enjoyed the spectacle of seeing and tasting the inventive desserts and appetizing treats being created in America's pastry kitchens. Along with an engraved Golden Scoop and jacket patch, Ron received 100 pounds of chocolate from E. Guittard, a 20-year-anniversary World Pastry Cup book from the Almond Board of California, and a class of his choice at the French Culinary Institute. Ron will also be featured in the January/February issue of Food Arts magazine. 
If you’re planning a summer getaway to Carmel by-the-Sea be sure to take advantage of our midweek summer stay offer. Rates begin at $289 per night, and are available through July 31, 2009, Sunday through Thursday nights. It’s a great time to visit. Your stay includes:
For more than 30 years Michael Michaud has created wines in a style that reflects both the mineral characters of the soil and the dynamic climate of Monterey County’s rugged Chalone Appellation. His limited production Chardonnay expresses ripe fruit characters of apricot, nectarine and peach. The small quantity Pinot Noir suggests black cherry, blackberry and black currant. The fruit flavors are complemented by subtle spiciness and nuances of oak from the 3-year, air-dried French oak barrels in which the wines are fermented and aged. Above all, the wines retain a balance with refreshing acidity, a satisfying weight and texture in the mouth, multiple layers of flavor and a long elegant finish. 
A winemaker dinner is a wonderful thing, a guest sommelier is a wonderful thing but when you have a winemaker who is also a guest sommelier, the enjoyment is more than twice as good. Here’s an opportunity to meet a fascinating and knowledgeable personality for an evening of great wines and food. Diners will choose courses of their liking from menus created by chef Grosjean, gusest sommelier Dan Kosta, will then pair wines to accompany the selected dishes.
Be among only 10 guests in the Wine Cellar of Aubergine restaurant where Wine Director Thomas Perez will conduct an informative conversation on all facets of wine. Thomas’ expertise and experience will be illustrated through his wine selections to accompany
a five-course dinner, especially prepared for the evening by executive chef Christophe Grosjean. 
Thomas Perez has spent virtually his entire adult life in fine restaurants and developed a passion for great wine early on. He has a Masters Degree of Oenology and Viticulture from Escuela Superior de Enologia del Pais Vasco in Rioja, Spain and makes a limited bottling of Pinot Noir under his own Maia-Lynn label. Thomas has visited and worked in many of the great vineyard regions of California, Germany and France including the ultimate dream - participating in the harvest at Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, Burgundy’s legendary vineyard. As Wine Director of Mirabel Hotel & Restaurant Group, Thomas is responsible for all wine and spirits service at each of the group’s properties including the new Hotel Luca and Cantinetta Piero, opening in the Fall of 2009. 
Cantinetta Luca
“Antipasti & Vino” Half Price at Cantinetta Luca 
Lively, sophisticated and fun. That’s how we envision Hotel Luca. From its villa-like stone tower to its arched walkways and European lime plaster, the new Hotel Luca will combine the best of contemporary design and old-world architectural passion. Designed to be alive, flowing and spontaneous, Hotel Luca embraces the beautiful light of the Napa Valley. Outdoor terraces and intimate seating areas for hotel guests abound. Guests at the restaurant will enjoy al fresco dining ringed by olive trees overlooking a courtyard with sparkling fountain. And at the sun-drenched pool we’re creating a landscaped oasis for elegant relaxation. 
