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Joan Leslie and
James Cagney in "Yankee Doodle Dandy" (1942)
❖❖❖ IN THIS ISSUE STAYING AND EATING IN SEDONA, ARIZONA By John Mariani NEW YORK CORNER FELICE 56 By John Mariani NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR PRUNOTTO—TUSCAN OWNERS OVERSEE LEGENDARY PIEMONTESE WINERY By John Mariani ❖❖❖ STAYING AND EATING IN SEDONA, ARIZONA By John Mariani ![]() ETCH at Auberge de Sedona Resort The marriage of a resort to a setting seems almost pre-ordained in Sedona, Arizona, owing to the grandeur of the red rock territory that surrounds it. Not to take full advantage of that grandeur would be difficult, for the spreading out of the mountains and mesas, the vibrancy of the colors that change from dawn through twilight, and a monumental scale that demands architectural respect would make any cookie-cutter resort or restaurant look ridiculous.
90 Ridge Trail Drive 928-284-4040
On a recent visit to the
area I checked into the Hilton Sedona Resort at
Bell Rock off Route 179, just outside the city of
Sedona itself while offering easy proximity to the
red rock countryside and a nearby golf course.
With 221 rooms, including suites, every room looks
out on those grand views, while inside there is a
gas fireplace, two queen-size beds On Friday evenings on the Porch Lawn, when the arching skies are clear, high-powered telescopes provided by Verde Valley Astronomy give you a view of stars that dwarfs even the enormity of the Arizona mountains. Jason
Flores is the new chef at the indoor and outdoor
restaurant called The Shadow Rock Tap + Table,
whose name gives you an idea of its casual cast. The
handsome bar takes up the majority of the
interior, while outside on the porch, below
strings of Edison lights, you can relax in All the desserts I tried were original and outstanding, including a cinnamon roll in a Mason jar with caramel ice cream, spiced apples, rum caramel and whipped cream ($12); luscious dulce de leche cheesecake with pecan brittle, cinnamon dust and dulce de leche mousse ($10) and a s’mores skillet of rocky road ice cream, Hershey’s chunks, toasted marshmallows fluff and graham cracker crust ($10). (You can also make your own over the fire pit.)
ETCH 301 Little Lane 800-905-5745
The lead photo of this article
shows the babbling beauty of Oak Creek, which runs
past Etch, the restaurant at L’Auberge de Sedona,
You can have a beef ($24) or bison ($25) burger with warm raclette cheese, or a crispy duck leg confit with peas, smoked bacon, parmesan and jibe berries ($36), ending off your meal with a “grand profiterole” fit for two with espresso crackle, Grand Marnier gelato, crushed Marcona almonds and citrus supremes ($11).
700 AZ-89A 929-862-4444
In so many ways Mariposa is
settled into the Sedona landscape with true grace,
for it takes full advantage of four panoramic
views, foremost on its verandah, which is always
packed with locals and visitors having cocktails
and tapas while watching in awe the extraordinary
sunsets. The interior’s own grandeur is in its
latitudinal spaciousness, colors and woven
textures that echo those of the The formidable doyenne of Mariposa is Lisa Dahl, who is as much a charmer as she is a feisty businesswoman with a large presence in the area over a twenty-year tenure as executive chef and owner of Mariposa and four other restaurants, employing more than 250 people. Coming from the Bay Area fashion world, she brought flair and personal style to everything she’s done, and it shows in the color and presentation of her menus. The wine list is 135 selections strong.
The tapas selection seems almost as long, from
mussels baked in a roasted tomato-white wine
bouillabaisse finished with grilled chorizo,
charred corn and grilled ciabatta
($18) to mushroom flatbread with caramelized
onions, roasted garlic, Chèvre, Gorgonzola and
white truffle oil ($16). The pulled pork tostadas ($17) are as
good as any in the region, and the yellowfin poke
with avocado, mango Similar items are on the extensive appetizer menu, and the entrees are based on a wood-fired grill that include a meat trio ($58) of filet mignon, bone-in lamb lollipops, and spicy chorizo links, as well as New York strip and ribeyes. (Given Mariposa’s resolutely American menu, it’s odd to find Australian rather than American lamb.) The 34-ounce tomahawk ribeye ($115) with truffle butters and roasted mushrooms almost seems requisite at such a southwestern-influenced table. It comes at a fixed price of $175 for two (plus $35 for wine pairings) that begins with a tiger shrimp cocktail and chopped salads, then the steak, then mixed berries with Grand Marnier and lemon biscotti. All the main dishes come garnished, but the sides are well worth ordering, like “Lisa’s Lovely Lemon Mashed Potatoes” with arugula and almond or with lobster scampi ($11). Mariposa exemplifies the generosity and scale of Sedona, with no one leaving hungry or unsatisfied.
❖❖❖ NEW
YORK CORNER
By John Mariani FELICE
56
New
York has more than its share of posh, high-end
Italian restaurants, but Felice 56 is the first
of real significance since Lincoln Ristorante at
Lincoln Center opened ten years ago. (Last
year’s Leoni made an attempt in décor, but the
food fell well short.) Indeed, Felice 56, has
overcome the problems of a subterranean,
windowless space that used to house a dreary
David Chang restaurant through congenial
lighting, the drama of high ceilings and a
gorgeous landscape mural, making this one of the
most beautiful new restaurants in the city.
The restaurant is part of SA Hospitality Group,
which also runs several Sant Ambroeus far more
casual eateries around town. One of the company’s
partners, Jacopo Giustiniani, contends Felice 56
is a “truly authentic Tuscan experience,” whatever
that means, for there are, happily, several
non-Tuscan dishes on the menu from other Italian
regions, like Rome’s cacio e pepe
and carbonara.
No
matter. The food here, under Executive Chef
When you sit
down you’ll have an array of freshly baked breads
to choose among, with Tuscan olive oil for
dipping.
Don’t ignore the appetizers here: Fritelle
(fritters) with prosciutto and ricotta proved
irresistible at our table ($17). Pop-in-the-mouth
crocchette
de riso ($15) are firm rice bites with
tomato and taleggio cheese, coated with
breadcrumbs. Battuta di
manzo (pricey at $27) is impeccably chopped
Black Angus beef with Parmigiano and mustard
seeds, and pristine fluke crudi
($21) with a citrus-pistachio pesto was superb.
Out-of-the-ordinary cheeses and charcuterie
($7-$13) like finocchiona
with fennel, Sienese salame,
and a creamy blu del
mugello, made from cow’s milk with
blueberries.
Main courses stay true to the simplicity of
Italian secondi:
the branzino ($41) comes with tangy sun-dried
tomatoes, olives and a delightful almond pesto,
while braciola
di pollo ($28) is grilled pounded chicken
breast with oven-roasted pumpkin and heirloom
carrots. I was very pleased with an arrosto (roast
beef) in thin slices slowly cooked and served with
a cipollini
onion confit and aromatic herbs ($37). Given
its on-premises café, Felice 56 produces a wide
array of pastries, as well as gelati and
sorbetti brought
in from Sant Ambroeus. The torta della
nonna ($9)—“grandma’s tart”—couldn’t be
simpler, made from sugar dough, vanilla
cream and pine nuts, while, while fritelle di
bosco e zabaione is a lovely rendering of a
berry salad with whipped vin santo cream ($14),
and the zuccotto
($12) is an old-fashioned Florentine alchermes
cake with fior
di latte cream, orange confit and chocolate.
As
a fine ristorante
of real style and considerable finesse, Felice
56 joins Il Gattopardo, Barbetta, Lincoln, Ai
Fiori and Marea in New York’s top rank for Italian
cuisine. Nothing could be more welcome at a time
when too many New York trattorias are just going
through the motions. ❖❖❖ NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR
PRUNOTTO—TUSCAN
OWNERS OVERSEE
By
John Mariani
The marriage of two
prestigious and expensive Piedmontese
products both harvested in autumn—Alba white
truffles and Barolo wines—is akin to serving
caviar with Champagne and foie gras with
Sauternes. So, beginning November 8 through
November 17, Prunotto Wines, Urbani
truffles, San Pellegrino, Wine
Enthusiast and Cucina
Italiana magazines are partnering in a
series of dinners at participating
restaurants in New York, Boston, Washington, Miami, Las
Vegas, Denver and San Francisco for a White
Truffle Festival 2019.
I recently had dinner in New York with
Prunotto’s current commercial manager,
Emanuele Baldi, who told me that in the 19th
century Barolo had been made as a sweet and “vivace”
(effervescent) wine, only becoming a dry wine
in the next century. In the past fermentation and
maceration could last up to two months, so
that in big vintages the alcohol level could
rise over 15%.
In 1904 a cooperative call Cantina Sociale “Ai
Vini delle Langhe” (Langhe is the region where
Barolo and Barbaresco are produced) met to
incorporate, with Alfredo Prunotto as a
witness. The first harvest took place a year
later, but the First World War seriously
impacted the Cantina’s ability to produce fine
wine, and, facing an uncertain economic
future, Prunotto and his wife, Luigina, took
over the control of the co-op and began
exporting their wines. Prunotto retired in
1956, ceding control to wine technicians Beppe
and Tino Colla, who soon began to identify the
better plots and terroirs within the region
for production of better wines, with a new
winery built in 1972.
The biggest change in the
winery’s history came when Tuscany’s wine
giant, the
Marchesi Antinori family, took on the
job of distributing Prunotto’s wines in 1989, then
bought the winery from the Colla brothers in
1994, at a time when the label’s reputation
had flagged.
“Back in the 1980s young Piedmontese
winemakers began to travel and taste wines
from France and California,” said Baldi. “I
call them the `Barolo Boys,’ and they came
back to Piedmont with new ideas that Antinori
was able to finance.”
Barolos are unlikely to ever be compared to
stringed instruments like a ukulele, harp
Barolos, called the “King of Wines,” and their
counterpart Barbarescos, the “Queen,” need
time to mature, and Prunotto’s 2010 Barolo,
aged in French oak for 12 months, then an
additional year in bottle, now shows the power
of the Nebbiolo grape when softened by time,
and with just 13.5% alcohol you’ll get the
structure and complexity that defines the
varietal. The 2013 is very much the same,
perhaps a bit fruitier. Bussia Barolo 2010,
from an estate in use since 1961, had 24
months in barrel before a year in bottle,
and it’s a bolder style, but still only 13.5%
alcohol.
Those so-called Barolo Boys of
the 1980s recognized that Barolo could change
for the better, though I’ve also found that
too many producers who rushed into the Langhe
to buy property also rushed their viticulture
and viniculture, often producing
one-dimensional versions of Barolo. Prunotto,
once in danger of becoming backward-looking,
has instead brought its Barolos to the
prestigious heights that include the wines of
Angelo Gaja, Giacomo Conterno and Domenico
Clerico. It’s a classy place to be.
❖❖❖
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